The jurisdiction of this chapter shall apply
to all structures, lands, water, and air within the corporate limits
of the Village of Wales.
No structure, land, water, or air shall hereafter be used or developed and no structure or part thereof shall hereafter be located, erected, moved, reconstructed, extended, enlarged, converted, or structurally altered without a building permit, unless specifically exempted by §
435-108, and without full compliance with the provisions of this chapter and all other applicable local, county, state, and federal regulations.
Unless specifically exempted by law, all cities,
villages, towns, and counties are required to comply with this chapter
and obtain all required permits. State agencies are required to comply
if § 13.48(13), Wis. Stats., applies. The construction,
reconstruction, maintenance, and repair of state highways and bridges
by the Wisconsin Department of Transportation are exempt from compliance
when § 30.2022, Wis. Stats., applies.
Only the following uses and their essential
services may be allowed in any district:
A. Principal uses and their essential services specified
for a district are permitted.
B. Accessory uses and structures are permitted as specified
in the district regulations but not until their principal structure
is present or under construction. Residential accessory uses shall
not involve the conduct of any business, trade, or industry, except
home occupations and professional home offices as defined in this
chapter.
C. Conditional uses and their accessory uses and changes to or substitutions of existing conditional uses are considered special uses requiring review, public hearing, and approval by the Village Board, after a recommendation by the Plan Commission, in accordance with §
435-110. When a use is classified as a conditional use at the date of adoption of this chapter, it shall be considered a legal use subject to annual review by the Village Board. Changes to or substitution of conditional uses shall also be subject to review and approval by the Village Board in accordance with §
435-110.
D. Permitted principal uses not specified in this chapter
and which are found to be similar in character to principal and accessory
uses permitted in the district may be allowed by the Village Board,
after the Plan Commission has made a review and recommendation.
E. Conditional uses not specified in this chapter and which are found by the Plan Commission to be similar in character to conditional uses allowed in the district may be permitted after review, public hearing, and approval in accordance with §
435-110 of this chapter.
F. Temporary uses may be allowed provided that such uses
are of a temporary nature, do not involve the erection of a substantial
structure, and are compatible with the neighboring uses. A plan of
operation for such uses shall be submitted for review and approval
by the Village Board, after a recommendation by the Plan Commission.
Conditions may be required by the Village Board and Plan Commission
pertaining to, but not limited to, parking, lighting, sanitary facilities,
duration, and hours of operation. No temporary use shall be conducted
within a street right-of-way. Compliance with all other provisions
of this chapter shall be required.
The purpose and intent of this section are to
perpetuate structures and sites of special character, architectural
or historic interest, or value. The intent is to safeguard the Village's
historic and cultural heritage, as embodied and reflected in such
historic structures and sites, and to foster civic pride in notable
accomplishments of the past. A designated historic site is defined
as any parcel of land which has historic significance due to a substantial
value in tracing human history, upon which a historic event has occurred,
or upon which is situated a designated historic structure. A designated
historic structure is any building, structure, work of art, or other
object constituting a physical betterment of real property which has
a special character, historic interest, or historic value as part
of the development, heritage, or cultural characteristics of the Village.
A. Historic Preservation Commission membership. The duties
of the Historic Preservation Commission shall be fulfilled by the
Plan Commission.
B. Powers and duties.
(1) Designation. The Village Board, after a recommendation
by the Historic Preservation Commission, shall have the power to designate
historic structures and historic sites within the Village limits.
(2) Regulation of construction, reconstruction, alteration,
and demolition; certificate of appropriateness.
(a)
No owner or person in charge of a designated
historic structure or historic site shall reconstruct, alter, or demolish
all or any part of the property or cause or permit any such work to
be performed upon such property or demolish such property unless a
certificate of appropriateness has been granted by the Village Board,
after a recommendation by the Historic Preservation Commission.
(b)
Upon filing of any application for a certificate
of appropriateness with the Historic Preservation Commission, the
application shall be subject to the following:
[1]
In the case of a designated historic structure
or historic site, the proposed work will not be allowed if it would
detrimentally change, destroy, or adversely affect any exterior architectural
feature of the improvement or the site upon which said work is to
be done.
[2]
Any proposed demolition on the site will not
be allowed if it would destroy the historical significance and be
detrimental to the public interest and contrary to the general welfare
of the Village residents.
[3]
Federal, state, county and local government
agencies and public utility companies undertaking projects affecting
any designated historic structure or site shall be required to obtain
a certificate of appropriateness prior to initiating any changes on
the property.
[4]
Any proposed historic preservation treatments
on designated historic properties shall be consistent with the following
historic preservation standards:
[a] The distinguishing original qualities
or character of a building, structure, or site and its environment
shall not be destroyed. The removal or alteration of any historic
materials or distinctive architectural features should be avoided
whenever possible.
[b] All buildings, structures, and
sites shall be recognized as products of their own time. This should
be considered before alterations are undertaken which have no historical
basis and which seek to create an antique appearance.
[c] Changes which may have taken place
in the course of time are evidence of the history and development
of a building, structure, or site and its environment. If these changes
have acquired significance in their own right, their significance
should be recognized and respected.
[d] Deteriorated architectural features
should be repaired rather than replaced, wherever possible. In the
event that replacement is necessary, the new material shall match
that being replaced in composition, design, color, texture, and other
visual qualities. Repair or replacement of missing architectural features
shall be based on accurate duplications of features, substantiated
by historical, physical, or pictorial evidence, rather than on conjectural
designs or the availability of different architectural elements from
other buildings or structures.
[e] The surface cleaning of structures
shall be undertaken with the gentlest means possible. Sandblasting
and other cleaning methods that will damage historic building materials
shall not be used.
[f] Every reasonable effort shall be
made to protect and preserve archaeological resources affected by,
or adjacent to, any acquisition, protection, stabilization, preservation,
rehabilitation, restoration, or reconstruction project.
[g] Contemporary design for alterations
and additions will not be discouraged when such changes do not destroy
significant historical features and are compatible with the scale,
mass, and architectural features of the historic property and its
environment.
[h] New additions shall be designed
so that, if removed, the integrity of the structure is not impaired.
(c) Ordinary maintenance and repairs may be undertaken without a certificate
of appropriateness, provided that the work involves repairs to existing
features of a designated historic structure or site. Replacement of
elements of a structure with pieces similar in appearance will be
acceptable, provided that the work does not change the exterior appearance
of the structure or site.
C. Procedures. After notice, public hearing, and a recommendation
by the Historic Preservation Commission, the Village Board may designate
historic structures and historic sites or rescind such designation
or recommendation. At least 10 days prior to such hearing, the Village
Board shall notify the owner of record. The owner shall have the right
to confer with the Village prior to final action on the designation.
Within 10 days after the close of a public hearing, the Village may
designate a property as either a historic structure or historic site.
After the designation, notification shall be sent to the property
owner.
No land shall be used or structure erected where
the land is unsuitable for such use or structure by reason of flooding,
concentrated runoff, inadequate drainage, adverse soil or rock formation,
unfavorable topography, low percolation or bearing strength, erosion
susceptibility, or any other feature likely to be harmful to the health,
safety, prosperity, aesthetics, and general welfare of Village residents.
The Village Building Inspector, in applying the provision of this
section, shall, in writing, recite the particular facts upon which
he bases his conclusion that the land is not suitable for certain
uses. The applicant shall have an opportunity to present evidence
contesting such unsuitability if he or she so desires. Thereafter,
the Village Board, after a recommendation by the Plan Commission,
may affirm, modify, or withdraw the determination of unsuitability.
Specific site restrictions include, but are not limited to, the following:
A. Private sewer and water. In any district where public
sewerage or water service is not available, the width and area of
all lots shall be sufficient to permit the use of a private on-site
wastewater treatment system (POWTS) designed in accordance with Chs.
SPS 383 and 385, Wis. Adm. Code, and a private water supply system
(well) in compliance with Ch. NR 812, Wis. Adm. Code.
B. Outhouses prohibited. No outhouse or privy shall be
erected.
C. All lots shall abut upon a public street for a frontage
of at least 66 feet at the right-of-way, and those fronting on the
radius of a cul-de-sac turnaround shall have a frontage of at least
40 feet.
D. Corner lots shall have two street yards.
E. All principal structures shall be located on a lot,
and only one principal structure shall be located, erected, or moved
onto a lot in single-family and two-family residential districts.
The Plan Commission may permit more than one structure per lot in
other districts where more than one structure is needed for the orderly
development of the parcel. Where additional structures are permitted,
the Plan Commission may impose additional yard, landscaping, or parking
requirements or require a minimum separation distance between principal
structures.
F. Accessory building location. No accessory building shall be erected, structurally altered, or placed on a lot so that any roofed or enclosed portion thereof is closer than 10 feet to the principal building on such lot, unless §
435-37C applies.
G. No building permit shall be issued for a lot which
abuts a public street dedicated to only a portion of its proposed
width and located on the side on which the required dedication has
not been secured.
H. Lots abutting more restrictive district boundaries
shall provide side and rear yards not less than those required in
the more restrictive abutting district. The street yards in the less
restrictive district shall be modified for a distance of not more
than 40 feet from the district boundary line so as to equal the average
of the street yards required in both districts.
I. Preservation of topography. To preserve the natural
topography as much as possible, to protect against dangers and damage
caused by human-made changes to the existing topography, and to avoid
unsightly and hazardous exposed earth sections, no lot or portions
of lots nor any parcels of land shall be excavated or filled unless
the following conditions are met:
(1) If the difference in proposed grades between two contiguous
lots within the required building offset areas along a lot line is
to be not greater at any point than two feet, this difference in levels
may be sloped toward or away from the lot line at a gradient of three
feet horizontal to one foot vertical (3:1) and as soon as practical
must be covered adequately with topsoil and sodded or seeded with
mulch to prevent erosion, or a retaining wall of stone or other suitable
masonry material shall be constructed to retain the higher ground.
Within a single lot, any excavation or fill not exceeding two feet,
and not involving an area in excess of 4,000 square feet, shall be
subject to the aforesaid requirements.
(2) If a difference in proposed grades between two adjacent
lots within the required building offset areas along a lot line is
to be greater at any point than two feet, the following procedure
shall be followed:
(a)
No slope to be covered with sod, grass seed,
or other natural plant material may exceed a gradient of three feet
horizontal to one foot vertical (3:1).
(b)
A slope protected by riprap construction may
not exceed a gradient of one foot horizontal to one foot vertical
(1:1).
(c)
A difference in grades may be protected by a
retaining wall, provided that the wall is engineered in such a manner
as not to collapse. No retaining wall shall exceed four feet in height.
A retaining wall may be stepped to achieve greater height. Each step
of the wall shall be no more than four feet in height and shall be
set back a minimum of two feet from the previous step.
(d)
Approval of any of the aforesaid methods shall
be obtained in the following manner:
[1]
The applicant shall furnish a topographic plan
with a maximum contour interval of one foot prepared by a registered
professional engineer, architect, land surveyor, or landscape architect
showing existing elevations on the subject lot and on adjacent lands
within 25 feet of the area to be filled or excavated. The plan shall
also show existing and proposed drainage patterns and existing soil
types on the subject lot and on adjacent land within 25 feet of the
area to be filled or excavated.
[2]
The applicant shall furnish a plan showing a
typical cross section of the proposed slope, riprap, or retaining
wall; a planting or sodding schedule, and the proposed means of preventing
erosion during construction. If a retaining wall is to be constructed,
a registered professional engineer shall certify that the wall will
not collapse.
[3]
The Building Inspector shall transmit the applicant's
plans to the Village Engineer for review and comment, and the permit
shall be issued only after receipt of the Village Engineer's written
report and approval.
[4]
The applicant shall complete the proposed work
in strict accordance with the approved plan and the time schedule
specified in the permit.
(3) In every instance, no person, occupant, owner of land,
or corporation shall remove or cause to be accumulated topsoil or
excavated materials in any manufacturing, business, institutional,
park, conservancy or residential district without the proper review
and approval of an application for such removal or accumulation by
the Village Board. Such removal or accumulation includes, but is not
limited to, piles of materials which have been formed, accumulated,
or pushed into mounds or piles and which obstruct views or pose a
threat to the general safety or welfare of the community with the
existence of trenches, holes, pits, or mounds caused by such removal
or accumulation.
J. A buffer yard shall be created and maintained around
all business and industrial districts which abut a residential, park,
or institutional district and any multifamily residential district
that abuts a single-family residential, two-family residential, business,
or industrial district. Buffer yards shall screen such uses from adjoining
lands in such a manner that:
(1) If a buffer yard is composed mostly of plants, the
plants shall be of sufficient depth, height, and varieties as to provide
dense visual screening within three years and during all seasons of
the year. Existing healthy plants of desirable species may be used
to meet the screening requirement.
(2) Where architectural walls or fences are used, sufficient
landscaping shall be used in conjunction with such wall or fence to
create an attractive view from the adjacent property.
(3) Buffer yards shall be used only for landscaping, required
screening, drainage facilities, utilities, fences, walls, and earth
berms. Required buffer yards may be located within required setbacks;
however, structures, other than those mentioned above, and parking
lots are not allowed in a buffer yard.
(4) Where a buffer yard is located next to a parking lot
on the same site, the buffer screen shall be sufficiently opaque to
prevent the penetration of headlight glare. Overhead lighting installed
in or adjacent to a buffer yard shall not direct any rays onto adjacent
properties.
(5) All landscaping shall be maintained by the owner or
operator to the satisfaction of the Plan Commission.
(6) No signs shall be permitted on or in any part of the
buffer yard.
(7) All buffer yards shall comply with the traffic visibility requirements set forth in §
435-39 of this chapter.
In addition to any other applicable use, site, or sanitary restrictions and regulations, any use on land annexed after May 7, 1982, which contains floodplain or shoreland areas, as defined in §
435-118 of this chapter, shall comply with the floodplain and shoreland provisions in Chapter
232, Floodplain Zoning, and Chapter
360, Shoreland Zoning. These provisions include, but are not limited to, minimum lot area and width requirements; minimum building setback requirements from shorelines (ordinary high-water mark of navigable waters); limitations on the type of accessory structures allowed within shorelands; limitations on clearing vegetation within 35 feet of shorelines; and restrictions on extensive filling, grading, lagooning, dredging, ditching, and excavating in shorelands.
No lot, yard, parking area, building area, or
other space shall be reduced in area or dimensions so as not to meet
the provisions of this chapter. No part of any lot, yard, parking
area, or other space required for a structure or use shall be used
for any other structure or use not otherwise permitted by this chapter.
In addition to conditions required by the Village Board on a case-by-case basis, the following are use-specific conditions or requirements for certain uses that may be allowed in basic zoning districts in accordance with Article
III and §
435-110:
A. Automobile service stations. No gasoline pump or other
accessory equipment shall be closer than 15 feet to a street right-of-way
line or base setback line.
B. Animal hospitals and veterinary services. No building
other than one used only for residence purposes shall be closer than
50 feet to the lot line of an adjoining lot in a district permitting
residential use.
C. Bed-and-breakfast establishments.
(1) The bed-and-breakfast establishment use shall comply
with all applicable federal, state, county, and Village laws and regulations,
including but not limited to Ch. 254, Wis. Stats., and Ch. DHS 197,
Wis. Adm. Code, as amended.
(2) A current registry of all guests shall be established,
and each guest shall be required to sign the registry upon check-in
and checkout. The registry shall be maintained and updated daily,
and it shall be subject to inspection and audit by Village officials
or other law enforcement officials to determine the bed-and-breakfast
establishment is in compliance with its conditional use approval.
(3) The property shall contain not less than one parking
space for every guest bedroom plus two parking spaces for the owner.
Parking and parking spaces in the front yard shall be prohibited.
(4) The setback shall conform to the zoning district requirements.
(5) The maximum length of stay for any guest shall not
exceed 14 consecutive days during any sixty-day period.
(6) Any sales of convenience items for personal use shall
be available for and limited only to the guests or renters and shall
not be for sale or marketed to the public.
(7) All outdoor refuse containers shall be subject to
appropriate screening as determined by the Village Board.
(8) One on-site sign shall be permitted in conformance with the sign regulations in Article
VI.
(9) A conditional use approval hereunder shall be nontransferable
and shall not run with the land. Any transfer of all or a portion
of the business or legal or equitable title in and to the real property
shall automatically terminate the conditional use approval.
(10)
All conditional use approvals for a bed-and-breakfast
establishment shall be issued for not longer than one calendar year
from the date of the final approval by the Village Board, and each
conditional use approval for a bed-and-breakfast establishment shall
be subject to an annual renewal public hearing before the Village
Board to determine if the conditional use approval shall be reissued
or terminated.
(11)
The buildings and structures shall contain and
exhibit unique architectural and historic characteristics that reflect
and replicate the historical nature of the Village as an early Welsh
settlement.
(12)
The bed-and-breakfast establishment use shall
be subject to any other conditions imposed by the Village Board upon
review and consideration of each application for a conditional use
approval hereunder.
D. Home occupations and professional home offices.
(1) The use of the residential dwelling for the home occupation
or professional home office shall be clearly incidental and subordinate
to its residential use and shall not occupy more than 25% of the area
of one floor.
(2) No home occupation or professional home office shall
be located in or conducted in an accessory structure, except in the
upper level of detached garages.
(3) No more than one full-time person, or any equivalent
thereof, may be employed other than members of the family residing
on the premises in such home occupation or professional home office.
(4) Retail sales shall be prohibited except for the retail
sales of products or goods produced or fabricated on the premises
as a result of the home occupation.
(5) No traffic, parking, noise, odor, smoke, lighting
or glare generated by the home occupation or professional home office
shall be greater in volume or intensity than would normally be expected
in a residential neighborhood.
(6) No materials which decompose by detonation shall be
allowed in conjunction with a home occupation.
(7) No outdoor storage of equipment or product shall be
permitted.
(8) The home occupation or professional office use shall
not require external alteration or involve construction features not
customary in a dwelling.
(9) Home occupations which comply with the conditions
set forth above may include, but are not limited to, designing, canning,
crafts, desktop publishing and other computer services, dressmaking,
insurance agencies, laundering, piano teaching, telephone marketing,
word processing, and other similar uses.
(10)
Home occupations shall not include auto body
or engine repair, barbering, beauty shops, construction trades, dance
studios, pet boarding, and other similar uses, with the exception
of office bookkeeping associated with such operations.
E. Hotels and motels. No building shall be closer than
50 feet to the lot line of an adjoining lot in a district permitting
residential use.
F. Sexually oriented establishments. The Village Board finds that sexually oriented establishments
require special zoning restrictions in order to protect and preserve
the public health, safety, welfare, and morals of the Village. In
recognition of the protections afforded to the citizens under the
First and Fourteenth Amendments, it is not the intent of this subsection
to inhibit freedom of speech or the press but rather to restrict the
location of defined material and activities consistent with the Village's
interest in the present and future character of its community development.
Accordingly, adult sexually oriented establishments are subject to,
but not limited to, the following:
(1) No building for a sexually oriented establishment
or use, measured from the closest point of the structure or portion
of the structure occupied or proposed for occupancy by the establishment
or use, shall be located within 500 feet of the nearest property line
of the premises of a hospital, residence, religious institution, school,
funeral parlor, crematorium, day-care center, restaurant, library,
park, museum, playground, or any other public or private building
or premises likely to be utilized by persons under the age of 18 years.
(2) No building for a sexually oriented establishment
or use shall be located within 500 feet of a building for another
adult sexually oriented establishment or use. The distance between
any two sexually oriented establishments shall be measured from the
closest exterior wall of the structure in which each business is located.
(3) No building for a sexually oriented establishment
or use shall be located within 500 feet of the nearest property line
of any area zoned residential or agricultural in the Village or a
contiguous town or municipality.
(4) Required separation distances between a sexually oriented
establishment and other uses, including another sexually oriented
establishment, are to be measured in a straight line, without regard
to intervening structures or objects. The presence of another municipality,
county, or other political subdivision boundary shall be irrelevant
for purposes of calculating and applying the distance requirements
of this subsection.
(5) Advertisements, displays, pictures, or other promotional
materials which are sexual in nature shall not be shown or exhibited
on the premises in a manner which makes them visible from pedestrianways
or other public areas. All points of access into such establishments
and all windows or other openings shall be located, constructed, covered,
or screened in a manner that will prevent a view into the interior
from any public area.
Portable storage units shall not be allowed
except in compliance with this section. No portable storage unit will
be allowed which obstructs the normal use of any public right-of-way,
fire lane, or passenger or commercial loading zone. No portable storage
unit will be allowed which is not maintained in good repair and condition,
free from deterioration, graffiti, rust, or other damage.
A. Residential districts. In any residential district,
there may be one portable storage unit per dwelling. Such portable
storage unit shall be no larger than eight feet high, eight feet wide,
and 16 feet long. No portable storage unit shall remain at any dwelling
for more than 48 hours at one time. No portable storage unit shall
be allowed at any dwelling in excess of 10 cumulative days in any
calendar year. In residential districts, portable storage units shall
be placed only in a driveway and outside of the applicable setbacks.
B. Nonresidential districts. In any nonresidential district,
there may be two portable storage units per principal building. No
portable storage unit shall remain on any lot in a nonresidential
district for more than 96 hours. No portable storage units shall be
cumulatively placed on any lot in a nonresidential district in excess
of 30 days in any calendar year. In nonresidential districts, portable
storage units shall be placed in the rear or side of the lot.
C. Other approvals. On application, the Plan Commission
may waive or modify the provisions of this section and allow such
placement of portable storage units as the Plan Commission determines
is reasonable and necessary to address unusual or exceptional circumstances,
including casualty or natural disaster.
[Added 3-1-2010]
The owner or lessor of any property within the Village which
is not zoned commercial, pursuant to this chapter, may conduct no
more than three rummage or garage sales during any calendar year on
premises owned or leased by the seller, and any such sale shall be
limited to a period of not more than 72 consecutive hours within any
one week. A week shall be deemed to commence on any Monday.
A. Conditions
of operations. All garage sales are to be confined within the hours
from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m., and promptly at the conclusion of any
garage sale or rummage sale all remaining personal property shall
be returned to and stored within the permanent structures on the premises.
No sale may be conducted in such a manner so as to obstruct any sidewalk,
street, traffic sign, or safe view of an intersection.
B. Signs.
Signs not to exceed six square feet per face may be erected on the
premises for a period not to exceed three days three times in any
calendar year. Off-premises directional signs shall not exceed six
square feet per face, may not be erected so as to obstruct any sidewalk,
street, traffic sign, or safe view of an intersection, and shall be
removed immediately after the event has been concluded. Such sale
and directional signs shall not be illuminated.