[Added 12-20-2004 by Ord. No. 10-04]
The purpose of this district is to:
A. 
Create an institutional and residential neighborhood in the form of a hospital health care village.
B. 
Integrate the components of the new village to form a compact, mixed-use, walkable place with a hospital and ancillary offices, residences, and commercial uses.
C. 
Minimize the adverse visual impact of expansive parking fields through the use of shade trees, screening, and grade changes.
D. 
Provide for needed transportation and traffic improvements to minimize the impact of the health campus on surrounding roads.
E. 
Connect the two undeveloped tracts on the east and west sides of PA Route 33 south of Freemansburg Avenue and maintain vehicular access to the Lehigh River.
F. 
Create a network of open space and recreational opportunities for pedestrians and bicyclists.
G. 
Protect the natural features of the Lehigh River and connect the development program to this scenic amenity.
The intent of this article is to:
A. 
Create a Hospital Health Care Village District to consolidate a broad range of resources that individually and collectively contribute to the promotion of wellness and enable the improvement and maximum recovery of health from physical and mental diseases, illnesses and injuries.
B. 
Assist physicians, nurses, other health care providers and other persons in their positions of service or as general caregivers to promote wellness and improve health of persons of all ages.
C. 
Provide opportunities for educational advancement and learning and research and discovery related to wellness and health.
D. 
Allow for residential, recreational, commercial and institutional uses and activities that are related to a hospital health care village, both on property owned by the hospital and on other properties within the Hospital Health Care Village District.
E. 
Create a holistic place that emerges from the existing setting that nurtures wellness and enhances physical, mental and spiritual well-being though the site enhancements pertaining to horticultural therapy, healing gardens and similar landscape treatment.
F. 
Protect and preserve site amenities and natural resources, especially the Lehigh Valley wooded hillside and other steeply sloping woodlands, in order to balance where to build and where to preserve the natural amenities and resources.
[Amended 11-18-2024 by Ord. No. 05-24]
A hospital health care village is a facility that includes principal and accessory uses such as the following:
A. 
Acute hospital inpatient (overnight stays).
(1) 
General medical and surgical community hospital.
(2) 
Clinical specialty hospital (e.g., orthopedic, heart, cancer).
(3) 
Acute rehabilitation hospital.
(4) 
Short-stay, overnight specialty hospital (e.g., surgical specialty hospital).
(5) 
Children's (pediatric) hospital.
(6) 
Women and children's hospital.
(7) 
Long-term acute care.
B. 
Nonacute hospital inpatient (overnight stays).
(1) 
Nursing home.
(2) 
Personal-care facility/assisted living.
C. 
Health care outpatient (not overnight).
(1) 
Medical diagnostic facility.
(2) 
Outpatient surgery center.
(3) 
Physical rehabilitation center.
(4) 
Alzheimer center.
(5) 
Imaging center.
(6) 
Dialysis center.
(7) 
Alternative medicine (e.g., massage, acupuncture, day spa).
(8) 
Exercise/fitness center.
(9) 
Adult day care.
(10) 
Child care.
D. 
Office.
(1) 
Medical office.
(2) 
Professional office (e.g., allied health professionals or other professionals).
(3) 
Data center.
(4) 
Pharmaceutical or other research facility.
(5) 
Administrative support.
(6) 
Medical research, engineering or testing laboratory.
(7) 
Facility for development of microelectronic and computer products, precision instruments, optical goods, pharmaceuticals, and similar products.
E. 
Education.
(1) 
Nursing school.
(2) 
Medical school.
(3) 
College, university, trade school.
F. 
Residential.
(1) 
Hospice.
(2) 
Single-family detached dwellings.
(3) 
Single-family semidetached dwellings.
(4) 
Townhouses.
(5) 
Age-restricted adult communities.
(6) 
Garden apartments.
(7) 
Mid-rise apartments.
(8) 
Condominiums.
(9) 
Life-care center.
G. 
Lodging/food service/convenience.
(1) 
Hotel or motel.
(2) 
Conference center.
(3) 
Restaurant, standard.
(4) 
Restaurant, fast-food.
H. 
Accessory and other uses.
(1) 
Dormitory/living quarters (e.g., medical students, nursing students, residents-in-training).
(2) 
Chapel/place of worship.
(3) 
Cultural/community center.
(4) 
Retail sales.
(5) 
Financial institution.
(6) 
Co-located commercial communications antenna.
(7) 
Parking lots.
(8) 
Parking structures.
(9) 
Heliport/hangar/helipad.
(10) 
Athletic fields/courts.
(11) 
Walkways/bicycle paths.
(12) 
Emergency services station/ambulance quarters.
(13) 
Fueling facility/power generation/power storage facility.
(14) 
Mobile health care units.
(15) 
Temporary erection of tents or similar structures, kiosks, etc. together with temporary lighting and services and associated parking for festivals, special occasions, and public safety programs.
(16) 
County morgue.
A. 
The district shall be as shown on the Smart Growth Zoning Districts and Overlay Districts Map in Article XXV.
B. 
Minimum tract size: 120 acres for any use listed in § 275-246A; and two acres for all other hospital health care village uses as per § 275-246 or other uses recited in § 275-248A, B or C.
C. 
Utilities: public water and public sewer.
D. 
Licensure: for uses listed in § 275-246A and B, the principal facility shall be licensed by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
E. 
The design guidelines of Exhibit XXX-A shall be met.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: Exhibit XXX-A is on file in the Township offices.
F. 
The provisions of Article XXXII, Streetscape Enhancement Overlay District, shall be met, except as modified by the Design Guidelines, Exhibit XXX-A.
[Amended 3-20-2017 by Ord. No. 02-17; 11-18-2024 by Ord. No. 05-24]
The following uses as defined in § 275-246 may be housed within a hospital health care village either under one roof or in a campus setting nearby the hospital, subject to the eligibility criteria in § 275-247:
A. 
Permitted-by-right uses.
(1) 
Hospital health care village, except for the conditional uses in Subsection C.
(2) 
Recreation and open space use.
(3) 
Agricultural use.
(4) 
No-impact home-based business.[1]
[1]
Note: See additional requirements in § 275-190.
(5) 
Home occupation, major or minor.[2]
[2]
Note: See additional requirements in § 275-190.
B. 
Accessory uses.
(1) 
Parking, in accordance with Article XVII.
(2) 
Signs, in accordance with Article XVIII.
(3) 
Other uses defined in § 275-246H.
C. 
Conditional uses (subject to the provisions of §§ 275-20 and 275-252, and §§  275-189 and 275-190, where applicable):
(1) 
Except for a hospital or a medical office, any permitted-by-right use in a building of 150,000 square feet or greater on the ground floor, subject to § 275-252A, and in accordance with §§ 275-189 and 275-190, where applicable.
(2) 
Heliport/hangar and helipad, subject to flight takeoff and landing patterns approved by the FAA and PennDOT Bureau of Aviation approved flight patterns.
(3) 
Nursing home; personal-care facility/assisted living.
(4) 
Other uses not specifically defined as a hospital health care village.
(5) 
Principal buildings less than 20 feet in height, subject to § 275-252C.
(6) 
Dispensary facility.
(7) 
Academic clinical research center.
A. 
Hospital health care village shall comprise at least 80% of proposed building program and building area.
B. 
Open space areas, exclusive of buildings, parking and other pavements shall comprise at least 20% of the gross tract area.
[Amended 11-18-2024 by Ord. No. 05-24]
A. 
Minimum tract area: 120 acres for any use listed in § 275-246A; and two acres for all other hospital health care village uses as per § 275-246 or other uses recited in § 275-248A, B or C.
B. 
Maximum building surface coverage: 35% for the tract exclusive of parking structures. Parking structures shall not be included in the computation for building coverage.
C. 
Maximum impervious coverage: 65% for the tract.
D. 
Maximum building footprint: except for a hospital and a medical office, no individual building shall exceed 150,000 square feet on the ground floor, unless in compliance with § 275-252A.
E. 
Maximum building height: 10 stories or 150 feet, whichever is less, except as indicated below:
(1) 
Within 300 feet of a residential district boundary, not including a residential district boundary separated by an existing or officially proposed expressway: 35 feet.
(2) 
Between 300 feet and 500 feet of a residential district boundary, not including a residential district boundary separated by an existing or official proposed expressway: four stories or 75 feet.
F. 
Minimum principal building height: 20 feet, subject to the provisions of § 275-252.
G. 
Minimum perimeter district setback: 100 feet for all buildings, unless specified otherwise in Exhibit XXX-A.
H. 
Minimum yard setbacks: refer to the Design Guidelines, Exhibit XXX-A.
[Amended 11-18-2024 by Ord. No. 05-24]
A. 
The Hospital Health Care Village District shall be conceptually in accordance with the Master Plan included in the Appendix of the Comprehensive Plan Update 2004 (see Subsection I).
B. 
The Hospital Health Care Village District shall be a compact, walkable, mixed-use village that is emblematic of a college campus in the Lehigh Valley, or neighborhoods/precincts in the cities, boroughs and towns of the Lehigh Valley.
C. 
The Hospital Health Care Village District shall be consistent with the smart growth principles and key design elements adopted as part of the Comprehensive Plan Update 2004, and included in Article XXV.
D. 
The Hospital Health Care Village District shall be built and maintained in accordance with Article XXXII, Streetscape Enhancement Overlay District, except as modified by the Design Guidelines, Exhibit XXX-A.
E. 
Building plan.
(1) 
A separate plan sheet shall be submitted to depict the proposed building program. Said plan shall indicate the proposed principal and accessory uses, the gross square footages of all uses, and the building heights. The building plan shall also indicate the total tract building coverage, existing and proposed, and the total tract impervious surface coverage, existing and proposed.
F. 
Street, alley, and streetscape plan.
(1) 
A separate plan sheet shall be submitted to depict the proposed interconnected street and alley network. Such plan shall indicate all street widths.
(2) 
The plan shall meet the requirements of Article XXXII, Streetscape Enhancement Overlay District, except as modified by the Design Guidelines, Exhibit XXX-A.
(3) 
An alley shall be a minimum paved width of 12 feet for one-way alleys, and 16 feet for two-way alleys.
G. 
Pedestrian access plan.
(1) 
A separate plan sheet shall be submitted to depict the proposed interconnected network for pedestrian access including sidewalks, trails, bicycle paths and other pathways.
(2) 
The pedestrian access plan shall also meet the requirements of Article XXXII, Streetscape Enhancement Overlay District except as modified by the Design Guidelines, Exhibit XXX-A.
H. 
Open space plan.
(1) 
A separate plan sheet shall be submitted to depict the proposed open space network. Such plan shall show the required minimum 20% open space areas as per § 275-249B.
(2) 
The plan shall indicate all proposed recreational areas, proposed improvements, and their uses.
(3) 
The plan shall indicate the proposed arrangements for ownership, maintenance, and management of the open space areas, which shall be subject to the review and approval of the Township.
I. 
Master plan.
(1) 
A master plan drawing shall be submitted with each plan submission to depict all existing development and all proposed development. The master plan or updated master plan shall indicate the current phase or stage of the hospital health care village that is being proposed for land development plan approval.
(2) 
The master plan, which will be updated from time to time, shall be a refinement of the plan included in the appendix of the Comprehensive Plan Update 2004 report.
J. 
Staging/phasing plan.
(1) 
A separate plan sheet shall be submitted to depict proposed staging or phasing of the land development.
(2) 
The staging/phasing plan shall comply with Chapter 230, Subdivision and Land Development.
K. 
Landscape and buffering plan.
(1) 
A separate plan sheet shall be submitted to depict all proposed landscaping and buffering.
(2) 
The plan shall meet the requirements of Article XXXII, Streetscape Enhancement Overlay District, except as modified by the Design Guidelines, Exhibit XXX-A.
(3) 
The provisions of § 275-171D shall apply.
L. 
Parking plan.
(1) 
A separate plan sheet shall be submitted to depict proposed surface and deck parking. Such plan shall list the number of parking spaces proposed in relation to the proposed use(s).
(2) 
The plan shall meet the requirements of Article XXXII, Streetscape Enhancement Overlay District, except as modified by the Design Guidelines, Exhibit XXX-A.
(3) 
Parking shall be constructed and maintained on the side and to the rear of buildings.
(4) 
Parking shall be in accordance with Article XVII, except that hospital shall have three parking spaces per one hospital bed, and medical office shall have one parking space per 200 square feet of net, occupied floor area.
M. 
Signage plan.
(1) 
The provisions of Article XVIII, Signs, shall apply.
(2) 
A separate plan sheet shall be submitted to depict all proposed signage for all wall, window and freestanding signs.
(3) 
Such plan shall also depict any proposed banners, directional, and wayfinding signs.
(4) 
Such plan shall also depict all pavement markings.
N. 
Utilities plan.
(1) 
A separate plan sheet shall be submitted to depict all proposed utilities.
(2) 
All utilities proposed for the hospital health care village shall be placed underground, including but not limited to electrical, cable TV, and telephone service. Electrical transmission lines, constructed by the electric utility company for regional benefit, are exempt from this criteria.
O. 
Manual of design guidelines.
(1) 
At the time of land development plan submission for each phase or stage of development, a Manual of Design Guidelines shall be submitted to illustrate the proposed architectural, streetscape, and landscape design guidelines for the proposed construction. The manual shall be consistent with Exhibit XXX-A.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: Exhibit XXX-A is on file in the Township offices.
P. 
Declaration of covenants, easements and restrictions.
(1) 
A declaration shall be submitted to the Township and shall be satisfactory to the Township Solicitor.
A. 
An individual building of 150,000 square feet or greater on the ground floor:
(1) 
The maximum building length shall be 385 feet.
(2) 
The length of the facade of any new building which exceed 32 feet in length shall have vertical design elements such as pilasters, columns, piers, or recesses or projections of one foot to four feet, so that no new vertical bay or section of a building facade exceeds 32 continuous feet in length.
(3) 
Building windows and openings shall constitute no less than 30% of all frontage walls on the ground floor/first floor.
(4) 
No building shall have opaque windows on the ground floor/first floor.
(5) 
No residential building shall have a flat roof. If a nonresidential building has a flat roof, it shall have a parapet wall screening all mechanical equipment.
B. 
Other uses not specifically defined as a hospital health care village:
(1) 
Such uses shall be governed by § 275-20.
(2) 
Such uses shall be subject to determination by the Township that they are consistent with the purposes of § 275-244, the intent of § 275-245, and the development requirements of § 275-251.
C. 
Buildings less than 20 feet in height:
(1) 
Accessory buildings may be less than 20 feet in height.
(2) 
Up to 30% of the total nonresidential building square footage of the Hospital Health Care Village District may be in buildings of 20 feet in height.
(3) 
No principal building shall have a flat roof. If a building has a flat roof, it shall have a parapet wall screening all mechanical equipment, unless it has a parapet wall screening all mechanical equipment from public view along streets, sidewalks, and public alley accessible parking areas.