[Added 10-19-2004 by Ord. No. 4-195]
[Amended 9-15-2009 by Ord. No. 4-227[1]]
The purpose of establishing planned low-intensity multifamily districts shall be to encourage the logical and timely development of land for multifamily purposes, in accordance with the objectives, policies, and proposals of the Comprehensive Plan for the community; to permit a variety of housing which conforms to the interest of the Comprehensive Plan and this chapter; to assure the suitable design of the development, in order to protect the surrounding environment of adjacent and nearby neighborhoods; and to encourage the use of smaller-scale multifamily dwellings to complement existing adjacent developments and to ensure that the proposed development will constitute a residential environment of sustained desirability and stability and not produce a volume of traffic in excess of the capacity for which access streets are designed. The protective standards contained in this article are intended to further the goals of the stated legislative intent.
[1]
Editor's Note: This ordinance also changed the title of Article X from AQRC Age-Qualified Residential Community to R-3B Low-Intensity Multifamily District.
A. 
Permitted and conditional uses. A building may be erected, altered, or used and a lot or premises may be used or occupied for any of the following purposes, and no other.
[Amended 9-15-2009 by Ord. No. 4-227]
(1) 
Permitted uses. The following are the permitted uses in this district:
(a) 
Single-family detached dwellings on minimum lots of 30,000 square feet.
(b) 
No-impact home-based business, in accordance with the standards set forth in § 160-213.
(2) 
Conditional uses. The following use is permitted in this district by conditional use:
(a) 
Townhouses at the maximum density permitted by § 160-48B(7).
B. 
Area regulations.
(1) 
Area of tract. Not less than five acres shall be provided for every area to be used in whole or in part as an Low-Intensity Multifamily District.
[Amended 9-15-2009 by Ord. No. 4-227]
(2) 
Building area. No more than 15% of the tract area of each Low-Intensity Multifamily District may be occupied by buildings. However, in age-qualified residential developments including accessory nonresidential buildings (such as clubhouses, fitness centers, detached garages and carports), the maximum area occupied by buildings permitted by this section may be increased an additional 5% when the additional building coverage can be attributed to said accessory nonresidential buildings; so long as the total area occupied by buildings on the tract does not exceed 20%.
[Amended 9-15-2009 by Ord. No. 4-227]
(3) 
Setback from arterial or collector streets. There shall be a setback from the ultimate right-of-way of each street on which the Low-Intensity Multifamily District abuts, which shall not be less than 175 feet in depth from arterial or collector streets.
[Amended 9-15-2009 by Ord. No. 4-227; 5-1-2018 by Ord. No. 4-249]
(4) 
Setback from perimeter property lines. There shall be a setback from any perimeter property line which the district abuts of not less than 50 feet.
(5) 
Miscellaneous setbacks. The minimum setback from any interior street, right-of-way, solid waste collection station or common parking area (or access road thereto) shall be 20 feet except for courtyards and culs-de-sac, in which event 12 feet shall be the permissible minimum setback.
(6) 
Distance between buildings. The horizontal distance, measured in feet, at the closest point between any two buildings shall not be less than 35 feet. The horizontal distance, measured in feet, between parallel elements of buildings forming courts and courtyards shall not be less than twice the height of the taller building, measured in feet.
(7) 
Density. The maximum density of single-family detached dwellings permitted by § 160-48A(1)(a) shall be determined by adherence to the minimum lot size requirement of 30,000 square feet per dwelling. The maximum permitted number of townhouse dwelling units permitted by conditional use under § 160-48A(2) shall be 2.5 dwelling units per developable acre.
[Amended 9-15-2009 by Ord. No. 4-227]
(8) 
Height regulations. No building shall exceed 35 feet in height or three stories above the ground elevation.
(9) 
Building configuration.
(a) 
For multifamily townhouse buildings, there shall be not fewer than three nor more than four dwellings attached in a group.
(b) 
For preservation of existing single-family dwellings, there shall be a lot planned, whether or not intended for sale, which shall have a minimum width of 100 feet and a minimum area of 1/2 acre.
(10) 
Parking, traveling lane, and pedestrian lane requirements and regulations.
(a) 
Each lot shall be provided with off-street parking. See Article XXVII.
(b) 
No parking shall be permitted within 50 feet of a perimeter property line or 100 feet from an arterial or collector street right-of-way line.
[Amended 5-1-2018 by Ord. No. 4-249]
[Amended 9-15-2009 by Ord. No. 4-227]
The general plan for low-intensity multifamily developments shall include evidence and facts showing that the plan has considered and made provisions for, and the development shall be executed in accordance with, the following essential conditions:
A. 
If the development of the Low-Intensity Multifamily District plan is to be carried out in stages, each stage shall be so planned that the foregoing requirements and the intent of this article shall be fully complied with at the completion of any stage. The initial stage of development shall contain at least 50% of the total number of dwelling units proposed under the plan.
B. 
All access roads to public streets and highways shall be located not less than 200 feet from the intersection of any street lines and shall be designed in a manner conducive to safe ingress and egress.
C. 
Lighting shall be permitted and installed in compliance with § 160-220 of the Code of the Township of Whitpain.
D. 
Screening.
(1) 
Screening materials. In evaluating the design of screening, the landscape material, size and spacing along existing perimeter streets shall be of such quantity and selection as to satisfy the requirements of "softening buffer" as defined in § 160-7B, and the landscape material, size and spacing along existing perimeter property lines abutting a residential district shall be of such quantity and selection as to satisfy the requirements of "screen buffer" as defined in § 160-7B and shall be not less than 20 feet in width and comprised of no less than 50% of evergreen material.
E. 
Areas for the deposit, retention and disposal of waste materials shall be screened from view.
F. 
Accessory buildings or structures.
[Amended 8-18-2015 by Ord. No. 4-240]
(1) 
No accessory buildings, structures or uses, except parking, may be located within areas between the front of a dwelling unit and street lines, within any perimeter setbacks, or within two-family and townhouse lots. All permitted accessory buildings or structures, except for those in connection with single-family detached dwellings provided for in Subsection F(3) below, shall be shown on the land development plans for the development. An accessory building, structure or use not shown on the land development plans for the development shall not thereafter be permitted.
(2) 
Except for one cable television antenna, no accessory buildings, structures or uses may exceed 16 feet in height.
(3) 
For single-family detached dwellings, an accessory building or structure having a maximum height of 10 feet, but not exceeding 15 feet measured from grade to the highest point of such building or structure may be erected in the rear yard only, but no closer to the side or rear line of the lot than 10 feet, except parking. The height of the accessory building or structure and the maximum dimension from grade to the highest point may be increased an additional one foot for each additional two feet of required setback from both the side and rear lines of the lot, to a maximum accessory building or structure height of 16 feet, but not to exceed 25 feet measured from grade to the highest point of the building or structure. All measurement from grade to the highest point of the building or structure shall include any chimneys, spires, towers, elevator penthouses, tanks and similar projections.