In expansion of the purpose contained in Article
I, §
350-1, of this chapter and the community development objectives contained in Article
I, §
350-2, of this chapter, it hereby is declared to be the primary purpose of this article to provide reasonable standards to permit and regulate residential uses and limited office uses within the P Professional District. Specific objectives are as follows:
A. Allow limited office uses on major roads and in existing residential
areas while preserving the residential character of the neighborhood.
B. Limit the impact of nonresidential development on residences by requiring
a single-family detached residential character, limiting the scale
of buildings, controlling the location of parking areas, and requiring
buffer landscaping.
C. Encourage retention of existing buildings by permitting uses which
are compatible with the existing structural types, lot sizes and other
physical and visual characteristics of the P Professional District.
D. Control access and limit the impact of development on the Township's
major roads.
In the P Professional District, a building or structure may
be erected, altered or used and a lot or premises may be used or occupied
for any of the following purposes:
A. Any use permitted in an R-3 Residence District.
B. Professional office, such as insurance, real estate, architectural,
accounting, legal, dental or medical offices, or similar office uses.
C. Day-care center, in accordance with the requirements Article
XXII, §
350-155 of this chapter.
D. Accessory uses customarily incidental to any of the above uses. As
an accessory use to any professional office, the administrator, executive
or professional who maintains the office may reside in the building
with his or her family. There shall be no other residential occupancy
by persons other than the administrator, executive or professional
who maintains the office.
The Township hereby waives the dimensional requirements of this
section for existing nonconforming residential uses only. All other
uses shall meet the following dimensional requirements:
A. Minimum lot area: 8,000 square feet.
B. Minimum lot width: 80 feet at front building line.
C. Minimum front yard: 25 feet.
D. Minimum side yard: 10 feet.
E. Minimum side yard abutting a residential district or use: 25 feet.
F. Minimum rear yard: 35 feet.
G. Minimum rear yard abutting a residential district or use: 45 feet.
H. Maximum building footprint:
|
Lot Size
(square feet)
|
Maximum Footprint
(square feet)
|
---|
|
8,000 to 15,000
|
2,000
|
|
15,001 to 20,000
|
2,500
|
|
20,001 to 25,000
|
3,000
|
|
25,001 to 30,000
|
3,500
|
|
30,001 or more
|
4,000
|
I. Maximum impervious coverage for residential uses: 40%.
J. Maximum impervious coverage for nonresidential uses: 60%.
K. Maximum building height for principal buildings: 35 feet, not exceeding
two stories.
The following regulations shall apply to all uses:
A. All P Professional District properties shall be located on a collector
or higher classification road.
B. Off-street parking shall be provided for professional offices in
the P Professional District as follows:
(1) One space for each 200 square feet of floor area dedicated for office
use, or portion thereof, exclusive of basement area if not used for
office purposes, except that, for a medical office, one space shall
be provided for each 100 square feet of floor area dedicated for medical
office use, or portion thereof.
(2) Two spaces for an accessory dwelling unit as permitted in §
350-43, above.
C. All signs shall meet the requirements of Article
XXIV, §
350-179, of this chapter.
The following regulations shall apply to all nonresidential
uses:
A. No new freestanding, nonresidential building shall be constructed
on any property which has an existing principal building situated
on it as of the date of enactment of this chapter unless the building
is not suitable for the proposed use, as follows:
(1) The existing building is structurally unsound. The applicant shall
submit a written evaluation prepared by a registered professional
engineer or other qualified professional to the Township for review;
(2) The existing building cannot be reasonably modified to accommodate
access for handicapped individuals. The applicant shall submit a written
report prepared by a registered professional engineer listing all
restrictions and estimated costs to modify the building to the Township
for review; or
(3) The interior spaces of the building are too small to be converted
to the proposed use.
B. Design requirements for new principal buildings and building additions:
(1) Any new building or addition shall be of such size, scale, general
appearance and building materials so as to conform to the general
nature of surrounding buildings and to not detract from the intent
of this article to preserve a single-family detached residential appearance.
(2) Any new building or addition shall have residentially scaled windows
and doors, with a proportion of windows and doors to solid wall that
is similar to proportions commonly found on single-family detached
dwellings.
(3) A building addition shall be permitted only to the sides and rear
of an existing principal building.
(4) Any new building or addition shall have a pitched roof that covers
at least 80% of the building with a pitch of at least six vertical
inches to every 12 horizontal inches.
C. Parking standards.
(1) No parking shall be permitted in front yard areas or between buildings
and streets, except that parking which is already in existence in
the front yard area and between buildings and streets at the time
of the conversion may remain.
(2) All parking spaces, aisles and driveways serving spaces shall be
set back a minimum of 10 feet from the rear and side property lines,
except that, when abutting a residential district or use, the minimum
setback shall be increased to 15 feet.
D. Driveways access controls.
(1) No more than one driveway access shall be permitted per street frontage.
(2) Corner lots which front on two streets of different classification
shall take access from the street of lesser classification and shall
have no access from the street of higher classification, unless it
is physically infeasible to provide access to the street of lesser
classification. Any existing driveway to the street of higher classification
shall be eliminated when a driveway is provided to the street of lesser
classification.
E. Landscaping and buffer requirements.
(1) All areas of a lot not covered by building and/or impervious paving
materials shall be maintained as a landscaped area containing trees,
shrubs and ground cover materials, which may include lawn areas. At
least 40% of the lot must be landscaped.
(2) Buffer planting. A visual buffer shall be provided between any nonresidential
use of a property in the P Professional District and any residential
use in accordance with one of the following:
(a)
A fence at least six feet in height, constructed of wood, vinyl-clad
chain-link with vertical interwoven slats, or similar materials, as
to provide a visual barrier in combination with a planting of trees
and shrubs to soften the appearance of the fence; or
(b)
A planting of trees and shrubs, at least 10 feet in depth, planted so as to provide an attractive visual barrier, in accordance with the requirements of Chapter
300, Article
V, §
300-43C, of the Township Code of Upper Moreland Township.
F. No outdoor storage is permitted except in fenced-in areas.
G. Trash shall be collected by a commercial hauler and shall be kept
inside or within a fenced-in area which shall be located in the rear
of the property.
H. Lighting facilities.
(1) Abutting properties shall be shielded from lighting. Lighting facilities
shall not produce unreasonable amounts of light or any glare or hazardous
interference on abutting properties or streets.
(2) Glare control shall be accomplished primarily through the selection
and application of lighting equipment. Only after these means have
been exhausted shall vegetation, fences and similar screening methods
be considered acceptable for reducing glare.