City of Papillion, NE Civic, Commercial and Office Design Guidelines

Buildings shall maintain a minimum buffer of 30 feet from the edge of any floodway or from the edge of any wetlands identified by the National Wetlands Inventory or a site-specific inventory of wetlands.

Site design shall minimize cut-and-fill and generally follow the natural topography of the site.

Developments shall preserve natural and scenic areas, streams and natural drainageways, floodplains, prairies, and wetlands. Developments shall, to the degree possible, preserve individual trees or stands of trees specified by the City of Papillion's list of recommended tree species. Developments that remove specified trees shall replace such trees according to the Tree Replacement Schedule under § 205-235. All replacement trees must also be listed on the list of recommended species and shall have a caliper of at least three inches.

Building location and orientation.

[Amended 5-3-2016 by Ord. No. 1732]

Facades with principal entrances shall be oriented to the project's primary street or to an active pedestrian or public zone within the site. For multi-tenant buildings, at least 50% of the entrances shall be oriented to the primary street or pedestrian or public zone, such as an internal community street. Facades with principal customer entrances may be turned perpendicular to the primary street if they provide a direct pedestrian connection from a public sidewalk to the major customer entrance without interruption by vehicular traffic. The primary street for a development is any arterial or collector street that fronts the development or an internal community street. When the development has two primary streets, the project design may designate one of the streets as primary.

Drive-through facilities shall be substantially screened from view from adjacent arterial streets.

Developments should maximize the amount of parking located to the side or rear of buildings and should locate buildings near their primary fronting streets.

Developments at intersections shall identify or emphasize their corners with significant landscaping or similar public feature.

In general, accessory structures shall not front a primary access street and shall be oriented away from public streets, open space, or residential areas. The Planning Director may waive this requirement, however, if the Planning Director determines that the applicant has sufficiently demonstrated that an alternative location and orientation design would:

Serve a genuine business or aesthetic purpose;

Provide visual interest and scale to the building; and

(c)

Not adversely affect the public health, safety, or general welfare.

Pedestrian access.

Developments shall provide a continuous walkway connection at least five feet in width from the public sidewalk or right-of-way to the customer entrances of all principal buildings on the site. Developments adjacent to multi-use trails shall provide a direct connection from the trail to the development's internal pedestrian circulation system. For trails that are proposed in the City's Comprehensive Plan but are not yet constructed, the development plan shall make provisions for a connection to the trail, and the developer shall be responsible for constructing the connection when the trail becomes available.

Multibuilding developments shall provide clear and safe walkways at least five feet in width that connect all buildings on the site. Buildings not intended for routine customer access or intended solely for drive-up services are excluded from this requirement.

Where the required walkways specified in this section cross drives, parking aisles, or other vehicular ways, the crosswalks shall be distinguished from driving surfaces by the use of durable, low-maintenance surface materials, such as concrete or brick pavers, or scored, colored concrete. Painted concrete is not acceptable in this application.

In parking lots with over 200 stalls, the required walkways specified in this section shall be located in landscaped medians or corridors that include trees and ground covers for at least 50% of their combined length. Landscaped walkways provide credit toward overall site landscaping requirements set forth in § 205-227.

Sidewalks no less than eight feet in width and separated by curbs from adjacent vehicular circulation ways shall be provided along the full length of the building along any facade that either includes a customer entrance or adjoins a customer parking area.

(6)

Pedestrian connections to adjacent developments shall be provided. If adjacent properties are undeveloped, the development plan shall indicate how future connections will be provided.

Vehicular access.

Development plans shall minimize the number of access points to adjacent arterial streets. Access from arterial streets shall be controlled and will typically be limited to one point of access per 600 linear feet, or as otherwise determined during site plan review by the City of Papillion. Developments shall make maximum use of internal cross-easements and shared access points when possible. Cross-accesses between adjacent properties shall use traffic calming techniques to reduce speeds.

Main driveways and drive aisles shall provide a continuous system that connects to the main site entrance.

Commercial developments are encouraged to provide a means of access to residential areas that avoid requiring residents to use arterial streets for short-distance trips. Such connections must be designed to avoid channeling commercial traffic onto residential streets.

When possible, shared service and delivery access should be provided between adjacent parcels and buildings.

Parking lots and streets in adjacent developments shall be interconnected unless such connection is precluded by topography or other site-related constraints, as determined by the Planning Director.

Parking.

Parking shall be grouped into parking blocks that are defined by pedestrian paths, landscaping, and buildings.

A maximum of 200 parking stalls may be located in any one parking block.

Signs.

Attached signs shall be designed as an integral part of the building elevation and integrated into the overall design of the building. Attached signs shall be located above the building entrance, storefront opening, or at other locations that are consistent with and emphasize the architectural features of a building.

All new commercial or office development shall only use monument signs or ground signs, unless an I-80 Corridor pole sign is permitted pursuant to § 205-264. For monument signs and ground signs, the width of any vertical element over 15 feet in height shall not exceed 10 feet.

[Amended 7-3-2018 by Ord. No. 1804]

A landscaped base area shall be provided for all detached signs appropriate to the mass and height of the sign. As a guideline, a base area of 1.5 square feet shall be provided for each square foot of sign area. The landscaped area may include trees, shrubs, flowering perennials, ornamental tall grass, fountains, water features, decorative stonework, planters, sculpture, and decorative paving. Turf grass, loose stone, or mulch is not credited for satisfying this requirement.

[Amended 7-3-2018 by Ord. No. 1804]

Other sign regulations and requirements are set forth in Article XXXVII.

Screening.

[Amended 5-3-2016 by Ord. No. 1717]

Developments shall provide year-round screening of loading docks, truck parking, outdoor storage, utility meters, HVAC equipment, trash collection and processing, and other service functions visible from the public right-of-way. The screen shall be of sufficient height to hide the equipment, vehicles, materials or trash being screened from public view, but in no case shall the screen be required to exceed 10 feet in height. Trash enclosure gates shall furnish a steel frame with decorative steel or wood covering, or another design acceptable to the Planning Director. Chain-link fencing with inlaid wood or metal slats shall not be considered acceptable. Screening shall be integrated into the overall design of buildings and landscaping and shall fully contain the visual impact of these service functions from adjacent public streets and neighboring properties.

Architectural elements, materials, colors, and design of screening walls, coverings, and fences shall be consistent with the predominant materials, colors, and elements of the principal building.

Other screening requirements are set forth in Article XXXV, Landscaping and Screening Requirements.

Lighting.

All lighting used to illuminate an off-street parking area, sign or other structure shall be arranged so as to deflect light away from any adjoining property and from public streets through fixture type and location. When lighting is mounted to the underside of canopies, these lights shall be recessed so that the visible light source is no lower than the plane of the underside of the canopy.

The maximum height of lighting standards shall be 35 feet, unless a specific exception is granted as part of the MU or PUD approval process.

Exterior lighting of buildings shall be limited to low-level spotlights, floodlights, and similar illuminating devices hooded in such a manner that the direct beam of any light sources will not glare upon adjacent property or public streets. The Planning Director may approve exceptions to these requirements for sports and athletic field lighting, flagpole lighting, public streetlighting, temporary lighting for seasonal/holiday or special events, and lighting used for public safety.

Open space.

[Added 5-3-2016 by Ord. No. 1717]

Open space shall be integrated and/or connected through trails and linear parks with the following types of lands located within or adjacent to the development area:

Dedicated parks;

Dedicated school sites;

(c)

Dedicated open spaces;

(d)

Any local or regional trail or open space system; and

(e)

Activity or community centers.

§ 205-189 Building design guidelines.

Mass and scale for buildings over 20,000 square feet.

Breaks shall be incorporated into the mass if the building at significant entrances or along walls that front plazas or other significant pedestrian features. Methods of breaks may include towers, pediments, or facade articulations or variations; changes in the horizontal or vertical plane; or enhancements in color and materials, consistent with the overall design of the building.

[Amended 5-3-2016 by Ord. No. 1717]

Primary building facades shall meet one of the following guidelines:

Facades greater than 100 feet shall incorporate projections or recesses in the wall plane with a depth of at least 3% of the length of the facade and extending for at least 20% of the length of the facade. The maximum uninterrupted length of wall shall be 100 feet.

Facades shall display a repeating pattern of at least three cycles of color change, texture change, material change, or expression of structural bays with an offset of at least 12 inches from the ruling plane of the facade.

The Planning Director may waive these guidelines if the applicant demonstrates an alternative building design that, in the Planning Director's opinion, provides visual interest and scale to the building.

Mass and scale for buildings over two stories.

Building mass and architectural elements shall differentiate between the base of the building and upper levels of the facade.

Architectural elements.

[Amended 5-3-2016 by Ord. No. 1717]

Each building shall be constructed with a base, middle, and top. Each component shall be articulated through horizontal and/or vertical articulation, which may consist of changes in wall plane, use of openings and projections, and/or material changes. The Planning Director may waive this requirement if the applicant demonstrates an alternative building design that in the Planning Director's opinion provides visual interest and design to the building.

Front facades facing a primary street shall have visible, clearly defined customer entrances that include at least three of the following elements: canopies or porticos, overhangs, recesses or projections, arcades, raised cornice parapets over the entrance door, distinctive roof forms, arches, outdoor patios or plazas, display windows, architectural tile work or moldings integrated into the building design, or integral planters.

At least 20% of the surface area of front commercial facades up to a height of 16 feet shall be transparent. Transparency may include glazed doors, windows, and display windows.

Front facades shall utilize variations in color, horizontal planes, materials, patterns, height, and other techniques to provide visual interest and scale to buildings.

All rear and side building facades oriented to the streets below shall be subject to all requirements for front facade design, with the exception of providing customer entrances. Streets subject to this requirement include 66th Street, 72nd Street, Washington Street (84th Street), 90th Street, 96th Street, 108th Street, 114th Street, 120th Street, 132nd Street, 144th Street (Highway 50), Giles Road, Centennial Road, Cornhusker Road/6th Street, 1st Street, Portal Road, Lincoln Street (Lincoln Road), Highway 370, Schram Road, Capehart Road, Fairview Road, and I-80. The City may, from time to time, add other streets to this list.

(6)

Other rear and side facades may use a simplified expression of the materials and design used on other building elevations.

Building materials.

Permitted exterior building materials shall be high-quality, durable materials that include but are not limited to brick; native or manufactured stone (Renaissance stone or similar masonry materials); integrally colored, burnished, textured, or glazed concrete masonry units; prefinished metal panel systems; quality metals such as copper; high-quality prestressed concrete systems; tilt-up concrete panels with an architectural finish; and drainable (water-managed) EIFS.

The following exterior materials are prohibited: split shakes, rough-sawn wood, painted concrete block, tilt-up concrete panels without an architectural finish, field-painted or prefinished standard corrugated metal siding, standard single- or double-tee concrete systems; or barrier-type EIFS. The Planning Director may permit the use of these materials up to 10% of any facade as an accent material.

To promote visual diversity, each building shall incorporate a minimum of three and a maximum of five materials from the permitted building materials list. The Planning Director may permit the use of fewer or more materials if the applicant demonstrates that the use of such materials will result in a building that gives a sense of quality and permanence.

[Added 5-3-2016 by Ord. No. 1717[1]]

[1]

Editor's Note: This ordinance also redesignated former Subsection D(3) and (4) as Subsection D(4) and (5), respectively.

Materials on all sides of the building shall be consistent with materials and colors of the front facade when visible from public streets and trails and adjacent residential areas.

These guidelines are not intended to inhibit creativity and innovation in building design. The Planning Director may permit the use of any building materials if the applicant demonstrates that the use of such materials will result in a building that gives a sense of quality and permanence.

Roof forms.

Buildings with flat or slightly sloped roofs shall incorporate parapets on all facades that face a public street or residential district. Variations in parapet height and articulation of cornice lines should be used to add interest.

Roof forms shall be designed to express various building functions and features, such as entrances.

Any section of roof that is visible from an adjacent property or right-of-way shall consist of any of the following materials: clay or concrete tile, standing-seam metal, architectural-grade asphalt shingles, architectural metals, copper, natural or synthetic slate, or similar durable materials.

Mansard or false roofs shall require the approval of the Planning Director. The intent is to prevent situations where the rear of the roof structure is visible from adjacent streets or residential districts.

Roofs shall effectively screen all rooftop mechanical equipment from public view.

§ 205-190 Accessory structure design guidelines.

[Added 5-3-2016 by Ord. No. 1732]

Freestanding canopy structures.

Design.

Freestanding canopy structures that are incidental to and customarily associated with a specific principal building on the same site must be designed to be in harmony with said principal building in form, use of materials, and coloring.

Freestanding canopy structure coloring shall also be neutral in appearance. Bright, highly saturated, attention-grabbing colors are not permitted.

Roof.

The roof of the freestanding canopy structure may be pitched, flat, or be a combination of pitched and flat depending on the architectural elements of the principal building.

Pitched roofs shall be between 4:12 and 8:12, with roofing materials that match the principal building's sloped roofing materials.

(c)

An architectural detail shall be applied to the edge of flat-roofed freestanding canopy structures.

(d)

Freestanding canopy structures coloring shall be neutral in appearance and consistent with the principal building. Bright, highly saturated, attention-grabbing colors are not permitted.

Columns.

Masonry consistent with the principal building shall be utilized, at minimum, on the bottom eight feet of freestanding canopy structure columns.

Lighting.