Township of Warwick, PA Article XX Regulations Governing All Districts; Parking Requirements

§ 195-74 Lot area or yard required.

The lot or yard requirements for any new building or use shall not include any part of a lot that is required by any other building or use to comply with the requirements of this chapter. No required lot or area shall include any property, the ownership of which has been transferred subsequent to the effective date of this chapter, if such property was a part of the area required for compliance with the dimensional requirements applicable to the lot from which such transfer was made.

§ 195-75 Minimum lot area.

A. Where a minimum lot area is specified, no principal building or use shall be erected or established on any lot of lesser size than as specified in Articles IV through XVIII, except as specified in § 195-76.

B. In addition, if a parcel or property proposed for subdivision is subject to a restrictive covenant under Act 319, and is located in a zoning district requiring a minimum lot size of greater than one acre, the following provisions shall apply:

(1) The minimum lot size for each lot in the subdivision shall be 43,560 square feet provided the Act 319 regulations for the subdivision are met.

(2) All other applicable zoning regulations including lot width and yard setbacks shall apply.

§ 195-76 Exceptions to minimum lot areas.

A. The provisions of this chapter shall not prevent the construction of a single-family detached dwelling on any lot that was lawful when created and which, prior to the effective date of this chapter, was in separate ownership duly recorded by plan or deed, and provided that:

(1) Such lot is not less than one acre in the RA District and not less than 80% of the minimum lot area in all other districts.

(2) Those lots not served by public water and sewer shall meet all requirements of the Bucks County Department of Health.

(3) The percentage of lot area covered by the detached dwelling shall not exceed 15% of the area of the lot.

(4) Front and rear yards shall aggregate at least 60% of the total lot depth or meet the normal requirements of the district in which the lot is located; but in no case shall either the front yard or the rear yard be less than 30 feet.

(5) The side yards shall aggregate at least 40% of the total lot width or meet the normal requirements of the district in which the lot is located, but in no case shall either side yard be less than 12 feet.

B. This exception shall not apply to any two or more vacant contiguous lots in a single ownership as of or subsequent to the effective date of this chapter. These lots shall be consolidated to minimize the nonconformity.

§ 195-77 Minimum lot width; lane lots.

No principal building shall be erected on any part of a lot which has a width less than that specified in Articles IV through XVIII, except as specified in § 195-76 or in the case of lane lots. Lane lots may be permitted as an exception to the minimum lot width requirement at the building setback line as defined in § 195-9. A lane lot is a parcel of land which does not have the required minimum lot width at the minimum front yard line but has direct access to a public street through a narrow strip of land which is part of the same lot. The lot lines of the narrow portion of the lot (the lane) shall be parallel or nearly parallel.

A. Lane lot may serve one detached dwelling only.

B. Each lot must have a separate lane.

C. Lane lots may not be used in a subdivision of lots containing any new streets.

D. If the proposed lane lot is not large enough to further subdivide under the zoning requirements at the time the subdivision is proposed, then the lane shall have a minimum width of 25 feet at the street line of a public street and shall not narrow to a lesser dimension. However, if the proposed lot is large enough to further subdivide under the zoning requirements at the time the subdivision is proposed, then the minimum lane width shall be 50 feet at the street line and shall not narrow to a lesser dimension; provided, however, that should the property owner agree by plan notation and recorded document that the lot will not be further subdivided, then a lane of 25 feet in width shall be sufficient.

E. The area of the lane shall not be included in the calculation of the minimum lot area.

F. Only one tier of lane lots will be permitted on a tract.

G. The front yard setback for a lane lot shall be a distance equal to the front yard requirements for the district in which the lot is located and shall be measured from the point where the lot first obtains a minimum lot width measurement.

H. The length of the lane shall be limited to a maximum length of 500 feet.

I. The improvement requirements of Chapter 163, Subdivision and Land Development, shall be met.

J. Lane lots of three or more will not be permitted if a public street could feasibly be constructed.

§ 195-78 Yard requirement exceptions.

No portion of a building or structure shall be built within the minimum depth of front, side or rear yards as specified in the dimensional requirements for each zoning district (Articles IV through XVIII), except in accordance with this section. A proposed building may be constructed nearer to the street than a required minimum front yard depth under the following conditions:

A. There shall be existing buildings on the lots on either side of lot which would contain the proposed building.

B. The proposed building would front on the same side of the same street in the same block as the existing buildings on lots on either side.

C. The existing buildings on the lots on either side would be no greater than 50 feet from the proposed building.

D. The proposed building may be constructed at a front yard depth that is not less than the average of the front yard setbacks of the existing buildings on the lots on either side.

E. In no case shall the front yard of the proposed building be less than 20 feet.

F. Ground-story bays, porches, access walkways to the primary structure and chimney flues may project into required yard areas no more than three feet. Such projections into the required minimum yard areas shall not occupy more than 1/3 the length of the building wall. Cornices and gutters may project no more than two feet over a required yard. Fire escapes may be permitted in accordance with this section in side or rear yards only.

[Amended 10-18-2021 by Ord. No. 2021-02]

G. The provisions of this section shall not apply to fences, hedges or walls less than six feet high above the natural grade in the required yard, nor to terraces, steps, decks, or uncovered patios, except that no such uncovered patio or deck may be built or extend more than 50% within the minimum depth of side or rear yards as specified in Articles IV through XVIII.

§ 195-79 Off-street parking regulations.

A. Ingress and egress for nonresidential uses shall be designated so that vehicles shall not be required to back out onto a street or another lot. Whenever possible, ingress and egress for residential uses shall be designed so that vehicles shall not be required to back out onto a street or another lot.

B. Parking areas for all uses except residences shall be designed to permit each motor vehicle to proceed to and from the parking space provided for without requiring the moving of any other motor vehicle. Wherever possible, parking areas for residential uses shall be designed to permit each motor vehicle to proceed to and from the parking space without requiring the moving of any other motor vehicle.

C. Structures and uses in existence at the date of the adoption of this chapter shall not be subject to the requirements of this section so long as the kind or extent of use is not changed, provided that any parking facility now serving such structures or uses shall not, in the future, be reduced below such requirements.

D. Whenever there is an alteration of a structure or a change or extension of a use which increases the parking requirements according to the standards of this chapter, the total additional parking required for the alteration, change or extension shall be provided in accordance with the requirements of that section.

E. No parking area shall be used for any use that interferes with its availability for the parking need it is required to serve.

F. All required facilities shall be provided and maintained so long as the use exists which the facilities were designed to serve. Off-street parking facilities shall not be reduced in total extent after their provision, except upon the approval of a special exception by the Zoning Hearing Board for reason of diminution in floor area, seating area, number of employees or change in other factors controlling the regulation of the number of parking spaces.

G. Two or more uses may provide for required parking in a common parking lot if the total space provided is not less than the sum of the spaces required for each use individually. However, the number of spaces required in a common parking facility may be reduced below this total by special exception if it can be demonstrated to the Zoning Hearing Board that the hours or days of peak parking needed for the use are so different that a lower total will provide adequately for all uses served by the common parking facility. The uses utilizing the common parking facility shall be located on the same parcel or shall be located on contiguous parcels, but in no event shall the common parking area be located on the opposite side of an arterial or collector street.

[Amended 6-18-2018 by Ord. No. 2018-1]

H. Off-street parking spaces shall be provided in accordance with the appropriate use regulations of § 195-16. For any use where parking provisions are not specifically listed in § 195-16, the number of parking spaces required shall be determined by the Board of Supervisors upon the recommendation of the Planning Commission and the Township Engineer.

I. All areas for the loading and unloading of delivery trucks and other vehicles for servicing of establishments and/or shops by refuse collection, fuel, or their service vehicles, shall have adequate and unobstructed access from a street, service driveway, or alley and shall be so arranged that they may be used without blocking or otherwise interfering with the use of automobile accessways, parking facilities, or pedestrian ways or backing out onto a street.

J. Maintenance of parking areas. For parking spaces of three or more vehicles, the area not landscaped and so maintained, including driveways, shall be graded, surfaced with asphalt or other suitable material, and drained to the satisfaction of the Township Engineer to the extent necessary to prevent dust, erosion, or excessive water flow across streets or adjoining property. All parking lots for commercial purposes shall be paved in accordance with the standards within Chapter 163, Subdivision and Land Development. All off-street parking spaces shall be marked so as to indicate their location. Failure to keep parking areas in satisfactory condition, i.e., from holes, clearly delineated, or properly graded, shall be considered a violation of this chapter.

K. Off-street loading. Off-street parking requirements as specified herein shall be provided on any lot on which a building exceeding 6,000 square feet of gross floor area for business, industry, or otherwise indicated is hereafter erected.

(1) Every retail store, shopping center, or industrial use exceeding 6,000 square feet shall have at least one off-street loading space. Where there is an aggregate gross floor area of 20,000 square feet or more arranged, intended, or designed for such use, there shall be provided off-street truck loading or unloading berths in accordance with the following table:

	Square Feet of Aggregate Gross Floor Area Devoted to Each Use	Required Number of Berths
	6,000 up to 19,999	1
	20,000 up to 79,999	2
	80,000 up to 127,999	3
	128,000 up to 191,999	4
	192,000 up to 255,999	5
	256,000 up to 319,999	6
	320,000 up to 391,999	7
	For each additional 72,000 square feet	1 additional berth

(2) Every school, auditorium, convention hall, exhibition hall, funeral home, multifamily/apartment building of 20 units or more, office building, eating place, hotel, sports arena, nursing home, hospital, or life/full-care facility exceeding 6,000 square feet shall have at least one off-street loading space. Where there is an aggregate gross floor area of 30,000 square feet or more, arranged, intended or designed for such use, there shall be provided off-street truck loading and unloading berths in accordance with the following table:

	Square Feet of Aggregate Gross Floor Area Devoted to Each Use	Required Number of Berths
	30,000 up to 44,999	1
	45,000 up to 119,999	2
	120,000 up to 197,999	3
	198,000 up to 290,999	4
	291,000 up to 389,999	5
	390,000 up to 488,999	6
	489,000 up to 587,999	7
	588,000 up to 689,999	8
	For each additional 105,000 square feet	1 additional berth

L. Required off-street parking of business vehicles.

(1) In addition to off-street parking spaces required by this section, and the specific use regulations of § 195-16, all uses shall be provided with adequate parking spaces for all vehicles used for business purposes by the tenants and/or owners of the foregoing uses.

(2) For safety purposes, these parking spaces shall be adjacent to the buildings in a location designated by the Township Board of Supervisors upon the recommendation of the Township Planning Commission.

(3) If the foregoing uses are adjacent to a residential use or district, the parking spaces for business vehicles shall be on a side of the building away from the residential use or district.

(4) In no case shall business vehicles related to the foregoing uses be parked for more than one hour closer than 60 feet to the front of the property.

(5) Business and commercial vehicles, trailers and vehicles awaiting repair shall be screened from view, when parked overnight, by parking in a garage or by screening consisting of dense plantings or opaque wooden fencing when the number of vehicles exceeds two or when any vehicle exceeds 10,000 pounds gross vehicle weight.

(6) No business vehicles which present danger to the health, safety and welfare of the public shall be parked overnight in residential areas. Additionally, no business vehicles containing explosives, bulk inflammables or other potentially dangerous materials shall be parked overnight in residential areas.

§ 195-80 Reduction of nonresidential parking requirements.

In order to prevent the establishment of a greater number of parking spaces than is actually required to serve the needs of nonresidential uses, the Board of Supervisors, after consulting with the Planning Commission and Township Engineer, may permit a conditional reduction of parking space if the following conditions are satisfied:

A. This conditional reduction of parking space shall apply to any permitted institutional, commercial or industrial uses.

B. The design of the parking lot, as indicated on the land development plan, must designate sufficient space to meet the parking requirements of this chapter. The plan shall also illustrate the layout for the total number of parking spaces.

C. The conditional reduction may provide for the establishment of not less than 80% of the required number of parking spaces, as specified in this chapter. This initial phase of the parking provision shall be clearly indicated on the plan.

D. The balance of the parking area conditionally reserved shall not include areas for required buffer yards, setbacks or areas which would otherwise be unsuitable for parking spaces due to the physical characteristics of the land or other requirements of this chapter. This parking area which is reserved shall be located and have characteristics so as to provide amenable open space should it be determined the additional parking spaces are not required. The developer shall provide a landscaping plan for the reserved area with the land development plan.

E. The developer shall enter into a written agreement with the Board of Supervisors providing for the installation of the reserved parking areas upon recommendation and review by the Township Engineer at any time after the issuance of the last occupancy permit. The additional parking spaces shall be provided at the developer's or owner's expense should it be determined by the Township that the required number of parking spaces are necessary to satisfy the need of the particular land development.

F. Land which has been determined and designated by the Board of Supervisors to remain as open space rather than as required parking shall not be used to provide parking spaces for any addition or expansion but shall remain as open space.

§ 195-81 Street access.

For all nonresidential uses, access to roads shall be at least 200 feet from the intersection of any street lines.