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Township of Palmer, PA
Northampton County
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Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Code
New Laws (21) Index
The purpose of this district is to provide and require a unified and organized arrangement of buildings, service and parking areas, together with adequate circulation and open space, all planned and designed as an integrated unit, in a manner so as to provide and constitute an efficient, safe, convenient and attractive shopping area. This district also recognizes that the PC District is mostly developed and that it adjoins heavily traveled roads, necessitating careful vehicular access control.
See site plan and review requirements in §§ 190-201 and 190-209.
Permitted by right uses shall be as follows:
A. 
Routine changes of establishments within an existing structure, for retail sales of goods, restaurants and/or personal or business services.
B. 
Routine changes of establishments within an existing structure for business, professional and medical offices and financial institutions.
C. 
Accessory use and structure that is customarily incidental to a lawful principal use.
D. 
Exercise club.
E. 
Artisan's or crafts studio.
F. 
Forestry.
[Added 2-19-2001 by Ord. No. 2001-299]
G. 
Business professional office, provided it is in a previously approved land development.
[Added 5-20-2002 by Ord. No. 2002-316]
H. 
Retail sale of goods, commercial recreation, restaurant and/or personal or business services involving new construction of structures or structural building addition, provided it is in a previously approved land development.
[Added 5-20-2002 by Ord. No. 2002-316]
Special exception uses in the PC District shall be as follows:
A. 
Appropriate governmental facilities and services (see § 190-210).
[Amended 5-20-2002 by Ord. No. 2002-316]
All of the following uses are conditional uses in the Planned Commercial District which must meet the general and specific standards governing conditional uses in this ordinance:
A. 
Business, professional or medical/dental office or financial institution that involves new construction of structures or structural building additions, provided that said structure is the subject of an approved land development plan.
B. 
Retail sales, commercial recreation, restaurant and/or personal or business services involving new construction of structures or structural building additions, provided that said structures are set forth on a previously approved land development plan.
Specifically prohibited uses shall be as follows:
A. 
All exterior storage and exterior commercial display, except exterior sales of nursery and gardening items.
B. 
Adult bookstore, adult live entertainment use, adult movie theater and massage parlor.
C. 
All uses not permitted specifically either by right, special exception, conditional use or accessory use are prohibited.
[Added 5-20-2002 by Ord. No. 2002-316]
Area and bulk regulations in the PC District shall be as follows:
A. 
Tract area: 20 acres minimum. Lots of a minimum area of two acres may be created out of a twenty-acre-minimum tract, provided that each lot would be fully integrated into the overall development and that vehicular access is provided only as part of an integrated, coordinated system throughout the entire tract, and not with any additional exterior access points.
B. 
Tract width: 1,000 feet minimum; a minimum lot width of 100 feet, except that there shall be a minimum lot width of 250 feet for any lot having direct individual vehicular access onto a major or minor arterial street, apart from the coordinated vehicular access of a planned commercial center.
C. 
Lot coverage: 35% maximum building coverage, except that an additional 15% may be used as a parking garage; a maximum of 80% impervious coverage, with a minimum of 20% of the lot area being landscaped areas.
D. 
Front yard setback.
(1) 
The following are the minimum front yard setbacks from the exterior lot lines of the tract:
(a) 
Fronting major arterial streets: not permitted.
(b) 
Fronting minor arterial streets: 80 feet minimum.
(c) 
Fronting collector streets: 60 feet minimum.
(d) 
Fronting local streets: 60 feet minimum.
(2) 
A minimum front yard of 20 feet shall be required for an individual lot within the tract.
E. 
Side and rear yard setbacks. The same requirements as listed in § 190-82E(1) shall apply to side and rear yards.
(1) 
Minimum of 60 feet from the exterior lot lines of the tract and a minimum of 10 feet from any lot line of an individual lot within the tract.
(2) 
Buildings on the lot line.
F. 
Parking lot setback.
(1) 
All vehicular parking areas developed after the adoption of this ordinance shall be set back a minimum of 60 feet from the future right-of-way of PA Route 248 (Nazareth Road) and 40 feet from the future right-of-way of all other minor arterial roads, including Park Avenue.
(2) 
See also § 190-168G.
G. 
Height: 2 1/2 stories or 35 feet maximum, whichever is more restrictive.
See Article XVII.
See Article XVIII.
No construction of structures, parking areas or access roads shall occur on any portion of and land with a slope prior to construction of greater than 15%. Vegetation shall remain substantially undisturbed on all areas of slope of greater than 15%. See § 190-150 regarding intrusion of construction areas into certain features.
No conditional use shall be granted within the PC District if it will, in the opinion of the Board of Supervisors, create a traffic hazard within the tract or exterior to the tract. Additional access points from a PC tract that is currently most developed onto public streets are prohibited, unless the applicant proves to the satisfaction of the Board of Supervisors that such access is necessary and would not adversely affect the smooth flow of through traffic.
See § 190-201.