A.
Number of spaces. Each use that is newly developed, enlarged, significantly
changed in type or increased in the number of establishments shall
provide and maintain off-street parking spaces in accordance with
the latest edition of the Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE)
Parking Generation Manual (the Manual) and the regulations of this
ordinance. The Manual's land use applied to a design shall be based
on the use most closely associated with the proposed project. The
number of paved parking spaces used in the design shall conform to
the average peak period parking demand as noted in the Manual. However,
space shall be reserved to allow for the expansion to the 85th percentile,
as indicated in the Manual, if the Township determines, at its sole
discretion, that the average is not adequate.
B.
Area reserved for additional parking. The Board of Supervisors may
require the reservation for a certain number of years or an indefinite
period corresponding to the years the building(s)/use(s) (for which
the reserved additional parking area is intended) are in existence.
Such reservation shall be in a form acceptable to the Township solicitor
that legally binds current and future owners of the land to keep the
reserved parking area in open space and then to provide the additional
parking if the Township determines it is necessary. A deed restriction
is recommended.
C.
Parking site plan. The applicant shall present a site plan to the
Township that shows the layout that will be used for the average and
85th percentile parking. The site plan shall show that the additional
parking is integrated with the overall traffic access and pedestrian
access for the site and that the additional parking will be able to
meet the Township requirements. The stormwater management design for
the overall site shall take into account that the area set aside for
additional parking and its associated aisles and accessways are impervious.
The reserved area shall be required to be kept as landscaped open
area until such time as the Board of Supervisors' decision may authorize
the land's release from the restriction or until the Township may
require that the land be developed as parking.
D.
Periodic review of reserved parking area. The Zoning Officer shall
periodically review the sufficiency of the parking that is provided.
If the Zoning Officer in the future determines that the reserved parking
is needed to meet actual demand, he/she shall provide a written report
of the findings indicating why the additional parking is required
and send the report to the Board of Supervisors and the property owner.
The property owner shall be required to meet with the Board of Supervisors
at a public meeting within 30 days of said notice. The report will
be presented and discussed at the public meeting, and the Board of
Supervisors will render a written decision at a public meeting within
45 days of said meeting. If required, the property owner shall then
have one year to develop the reserved area into off-street parking
in compliance with previously approved plan.
E.
Uses not listed. Uses not listed in the Manual shall comply with
the most similar use listed in the Manual, unless the applicant proves
to the satisfaction of the Township that an alternative standard should
be used for that use.
F.
Multiple uses. Where a proposed lot contains or includes more than
one type of use, the number of parking spaces required shall be the
sum of the parking requirements for each use. If joint use of parking
spaces is proposed, the applicant shall provide documentation to explain
why the joint use should be allowed, but also address how the number
of parking spaces can be increased if the joint use no longer exists.
G.
Parking landscaping. See provisions for buffer yards and landscaping
in this Zoning Ordinance.
A.
General. Parking spaces and accessways shall be laid out to result
in safe and orderly use and to fully take into account all of the
following: vehicular access onto and off the site; vehicular movement
within the site; loading areas; pedestrian patterns; and any drive-through
facilities. No parking area shall cause a safety hazard or impediment
to traffic on or off the lot.
B.
Existing parking. Any parking spaces serving such preexisting structures
or uses at the time of the adoption of this ordinance shall not in
the future be reduced in number below the number required by this
ordinance. If a new principal nonresidential building is constructed
on a lot, then any existing parking on such lot that serves such building
shall be reconfigured to comply with this ordinance, including but
not limited to: required parking and areas reserved for additional
parking, if needed; requirements for channelization of traffic from
adjacent streets; channelization of traffic within the lot; minimum
aisle widths; paving; and landscaping.
C.
Change in use or expansion. A structure or use in existence at the
effective date of this ordinance that expands or changes the use of
an existing principal building shall be required to provide the required
parking for the entire size and type of the resulting use as outlined
above, except as follows:
(1)
If an existing lawful use includes less parking than would be
required if the use would be newly developed, then that deficit of
parking shall be grandfathered for reuses of an existing building.
For example, an existing store might include three parking spaces
and would have been required to provide seven spaces if it was newly
developed. Therefore, there is an existing nonconforming deficit of
four spaces. Then, if that store is converted to an office that would
need 10 spaces, the office would need to provide a total of six spaces.
(Ten spaces minus the preexisting deficit of four spaces equals six
spaces.)
(2)
If a nonresidential use expands by an aggregate total maximum
of 5% in the applicable measurement (such as gross floor area) beyond
what existed at the time of adoption of this ordinance, then no additional
parking is required. This addition without providing new parking shall
only be allowed one time per structure.
D.
Continuing obligation of parking and loading spaces. All required
numbers of parking spaces and off-street loading spaces shall be available
as long as the use or building which the spaces serve still exists,
and such spaces shall not be reduced in number below the minimum required
by this ordinance. No required parking area or off-street loading
spaces shall be used for any other use (such as storage or display
of materials) that interferes with the area's availability for parking.
E.
Location of parking. Required off-street parking spaces shall
be on the same lot or abutting lot with the principal use served,
unless the applicant provides, to the satisfaction of the Board of
Supervisors, that a method of providing the spaces is guaranteed to
be available during all of the years the use is in operation within
a walking distance of 300 feet from the entrance of the principal
use being served. Such distance may be increased to 500 feet for employee
parking of a nonresidential use. A written and signed lease shall
be provided, if applicable. The Board of Supervisors may require that
the use be approved for a period of time consistent with the lease
of the parking and that any renewal of the permit shall only be approved
if the parking lease is renewed.
F.
Tree preservation. A reduction of 5% in the number of parking
spaces required on the site shall be allowed to the extent that the
reduction in the amount of required pavement will preserve existing
healthy trees in an undisturbed, natural condition. The amount of
reduction can be determined only after taking into consideration any
unique site conditions and the impact of the reduction on parking
needs for the use and must be agreed upon by both the applicant and
the Township.
G.
Signage. Adequate signage shall be provided to facilitate traffic
flow. At a minimum, stop signs shall be provided at locations where
parking aisles intersect circulation roadways and at parking lot access
points onto streets and roadways. Signage shall meet PennDOT design
standards.
A.
Purpose: to minimize the amount of land covered by paving, while
making sure adequate parking is provided, and to recognize that unique
circumstances may justify a reduction in parking.
B.
As a conditional use. As a conditional use, the Board of Supervisors
may authorize a reduction in the number of off-street parking spaces
required to be provided for a use if the applicant proves to the satisfaction
of the Board of Supervisors that a lesser number of spaces would be
sufficient.
C.
Evidence. The applicant shall provide evidence justifying the proposed
reduced number of spaces, such as studies of similar developments
during their peak hours. The applicant shall also provide relevant
data, such as number of employees, peak expected number of customers/visitors
and similar data. Such information provided shall be in report format
and sealed by the Pennsylvania-licensed professional engineer.
D.
Shared parking. An applicant may prove that a reduced number
of parking spaces is justified because more than one principal use
will share the same parking. In such case, the applicant shall provide
a shared parking study. The study shall clearly establish those uses
that will use the shared spaces at different times of the day, week,
month and/or year, including seasonal or mode adjustment factors.
The study shall:
(1)
Be based on the most current Urban Land Institute (ULI) or ITE
parking study methodology or other generally accepted methodology;
(2)
Address the size and type of activities, the composition of
occupants and the anticipated peak parking and traffic loads;
(3)
Provide for a reduction by not more than 50% of the combined
parking required for each use;
(4)
Provide for no reduction in the number of spaces reserved for
persons with disabilities;
(5)
Address the risk of a future design change that might impact
or otherwise affect the use of shared parking, and identify a reserve
area to be used if future parking expansion is required; and
(6)
Be sealed by a licensed professional engineer.
E.
Shared parking plan agreement. A shared parking plan, if approved
by the Board of Supervisors, shall be enforced through a written agreement.
An attested copy of the agreement between the owners of record shall
be provided to the Township. Proof of recordation of the agreement
shall also be provided to the Township before the issuance of a zoning
permit for the project. The agreement shall:
(1)
List the names and ownership interests of all parties to the
agreement and contain the signatures of those parties;
(2)
Provide a legal description of the land or parcel(s) whose uses
are to be included in the shared parking plan;
(3)
Include a site plan showing the area of the parking parcel,
access drives and any area that must be maintained in green space
for the possible future expansion of the parking area;
(4)
Provide a legal description of the parking parcel or easement,
including any access aisles and parking reserve areas, and designate
and reserve this area for shared parking unencumbered by any conditions
that would interfere with its use;
(5)
Agree and expressly declare the intent for the covenant to run
with the land and bind all parties and all successors in interest
to the covenant;
(6)
Assure the continued availability of the spaces for joint use
and provide assurance that all spaces will be usable without charge
to all participating uses;
(7)
Describe the obligations of each party, including the maintenance
responsibility to retain any identified reserved open space (if applicable)
for additional parking spaces, if needed;
(8)
Incorporate the shared parking study by reference; and
(9)
Describe the method by which the covenant shall, if necessary,
be revised.
F.
Change in use of a shared parking area. Should any of the shared
parking uses be changed, or should the Township determine that the
conditions of the shared parking agreement have changed, or if the
Township determines that insufficient parking is an issue, the owner
shall have the option of submitting a revised shared parking study
and agreement or provide the number of spaces required for each use
as submitted separately. If the Township disagrees with the revised
shared parking study, the Township may require the full number of
parking spaces to be provided. Failure to comply with this decision
or the shared parking agreement shall be cause for revocation of a
certificate of compliance.
G.
Reserved area for additional parking. Under this section, the
Board of Supervisors may require that a portion of the required parking
be met through a reservation of an area for future parking. The format
and area reserved for said parking shall meet the criteria set forth
above.
(1)
Such reservation shall be in a form acceptable to the Board
of Supervisors' solicitor that legally binds current and future owners
of the land to keep the reserved parking area in open space. A deed
restriction is recommended.
(2)
The applicant shall present a site plan to the Board of Supervisors
that shows the layout that will be used for the additional parking
if the parking is required to be provided in the future. The site
plan shall show that the additional park is integrated with the overall
traffic access and pedestrian access for the site and that the additional
parking will be able to meet Township requirements.
(3)
The additional parking that is reserved under this subsection
shall be required to be kept as landscaped open area until such time
as the Board of Supervisors' decision may authorize the land's release
from the restriction or until the Township may require that the land
be developed as parking.
(4)
The Zoning Officer shall periodically review the sufficiency
of the parking that is provided. If the Zoning Officer in the future
determines that the reserved parking is needed to meet actual demand,
he/she shall provide written notice to the property owner. The property
owner shall then have one year to develop the reserved area into off-street
parking in compliance with this chapter.
A.
General requirements.
(1)
Backing into a street. No parking area shall be designed to
require or encourage parked vehicles to back into a public street
in order to leave a parking space, except for a single-family or two-family
dwelling with its access onto a parking court. Parking spaces may
back into an alley.
(2)
Every required parking space shall be designed so that each
motor vehicle may proceed to and from the parking space provided for
it without requiring the moving of another vehicle.
(3)
Parking areas shall not be within a required buffer yard or
street right-of-way.
(4)
Separation from street. Except for parking spaces immediately
in front of individual dwellings, all areas for off-street parking,
off-street loading and unloading and the storage or movement of motor
vehicles shall be physically separated from the street by a continuous
grass or landscaped planting strip, except for necessary and approved
vehicle entrances and exits to a lot.
(5)
Stacking and obstructions. Each lot shall provide adequate area
upon the lot to prevent backup of vehicles on a public street while
awaiting entry to the lot or while waiting for service at a drive-through
facility.
(6)
Size and marking of parking spaces.
(7)
Each parking space shall be a rectangle with a minimum width
of nine feet when the stall angle is 90° and 9.5 feet when the
angle is 45° or 60°. The minimum width for parking stalls
in garages or car ports shall be 10 feet wide. The minimum length
of a parking space shall be 18 feet (which includes a front overhang
of three feet), except the minimum length shall be 22 feet for parallel
parking.
(8)
If a sidewalk exists at the curb, the combined width of the
curb and sidewalk shall be sufficient to permit a three-foot, unobstructed
walkway width (i.e., the minimum width of sidewalk plus curb shall
be three feet plus the front overhang). Where curb overhang will not
interfere with pedestrian flow or impact adjacent landscaping, the
stall depth may be reduced by the front overhang (i.e., the parking
space depth can be reduced to 15 feet if there is a curb and sidewalk
adjacent to it of at least six feet).
(9)
For handicapped spaces, see below.
(10)
All spaces shall be marked to indicate their location, except
those of a one- or two-family dwelling.
B.
Aisles.
(1)
Each aisle providing for one-way traffic to access parking stalls
shall have the following minimum width:
|
Angle of Parking
(degrees)
|
Minimum Aisle Width
(feet)
| |
|---|---|---|
|
Parallel or 30
|
12
| |
|
45
|
14
| |
|
60
|
16
| |
|
90
|
20
|
(2)
Each aisle providing access to stalls for two-way traffic shall
be a minimum of 24 feet in width, except a width of 20 feet may be
allowed for parking areas with spaces that are parallel or involve
an angle of parking of 45° or less.
C.
Accessways and driveways.
(1)
The width of a driveway/accessway at the entrance onto a street,
at the edge of the cartway, shall be as follows:
|
One-Way Use
(feet)
|
Two-Way Use
(feet)
| ||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Minimum
|
12*
|
25*
| |
|
Maximum
|
20*
|
30*
|
|
NOTES:
| ||
|---|---|---|
|
*
|
Unless a different standard is required by PennDOT for an entrance
to a state road or the applicant proves to the satisfaction of the
Zoning Officer that a wider width is needed for tractor-trailer trucks.
An illustration indicating the proposed truck type and proposed truck
path shall be provided with the application to show why the extra
width is required.
| |
(2)
Stormwater management. Adequate provisions shall be made to
maintain uninterrupted parallel stormwater flow along a street at
the point of driveway entry. The Township may require an applicant
to install an appropriate type and size of pipe at a driveway crossing.
D.
Paving, grading and drainage.
(1)
Parking and loading facilities, including driveways, shall be
graded and adequately drained to prevent erosion or excessive water
flow across streets or adjoining properties.
(2)
Except for landscaped areas, all portions of required parking,
loading facilities and driveways shall be surfaced with asphalt, concrete,
paving block or other low-dust materials preapproved by the Township.
(3)
However, by conditional use, the Board of Supervisors may allow
parking areas with low or seasonal usage to be maintained in stone,
grass or other suitable surfaces. For example, the Board of Supervisors
may allow parking spaces to be grass, while major aisles are covered
by stone.
(4)
If the design and material are found acceptable by the Township
Engineer, portions of parking areas may be covered with a low-dust
porous parking surface that is designed to promote groundwater recharge.
This might include porous asphalt or pervious concrete placed over
open-graded gravel and crushed stone. Porous parking surfaces shall
not be allowed in areas routinely used by heavy trucks.
(5)
Curbing should not be required in parking areas except where
necessary to control stormwater runoff.
E.
Lighting of parking areas. See light and glare control provisions
in the Zoning Ordinance.
F.
Parking for persons with disabilities/handicapped parking.
(1)
Number of spaces. Any lot including four or more off-street
parking spaces shall include a minimum of one handicapped space. The
following number of handicap spaces shall be provided, unless a greater
number of spaces is officially required under the Federal Americans
with Disabilities Act (ADA),[1] as amended.
[1]
Editor's Note: See 42 U.S.C. § 12101 et seq.
(2)
Location. Handicapped parking spaces shall be located where
they would result in the shortest reasonable accessible distance to
a handicapped-accessible building entrance. Curb cuts shall be provided,
as needed, to provide access from the handicapped spaces.
(3)
Minimum size. Each required handicapped parking space shall
be eight feet by 18 feet. In addition, each space shall be adjacent
to a five-foot-wide access aisle. Such access aisle may be shared
by two handicapped spaces by being placed between them. However, one
out of every eight required handicapped parking spaces shall have
an adjacent access aisle of eight feet in width instead of five feet,
and there shall be at least one eight-foot access aisle when handicapped
parking is required (i.e., if only two handicap spaces are required
the aisle between the two spaces must be at least eight feet wide).
(4)
Slope. Handicapped parking spaces and adjacent areas needed
to access them with a wheelchair shall be located in areas with a
slope of less than 2% in any direction.
(5)
Marking. All required handicapped spaces shall be well marked
by clearly visible signs and by pavement markings. Such signs and
markings shall be maintained over time. Blue paint is recommended.
The amount of the fine for violations shall be noted on the signs
that are visible to persons parking in the space.
(6)
Paving. Handicapped parking spaces and adjacent areas needed
to access them with a wheelchair shall be covered with a surface that
is usable with a wheelchair and meets the requirements of the ADA,
as amended.
G.
Paved area setbacks (including off-street parking setbacks).
(1)
Intent: to ensure that parking or moving vehicles within a lot
do not obstruct sight distance or interfere with pedestrian traffic,
to aid in stormwater management along streets and to prevent vehicles
from entering or exiting a lot other than at approved driveways.
(2)
Any new or expanded paved area serving a principal nonresidential
use shall be separated from a public street by a planting strip. The
planting strip shall have a minimum width of 15 feet and be maintained
in grass or other attractive vegetative ground cover, as approved
by the Township. At least 10 feet of the planting strip shall be outside
of the street right-of-way.
(3)
The planting strip shall not include heights or locations of
plants that would obstruct safe sight distances, but may include deciduous
trees that motorists can view under the leaf canopy.
(4)
The planting strip may be placed inward from the shoulder of
an uncurbed street or inward from the face of the curb of a curbed
street. The planting strip may overlap the street right-of-way, provided
it does not conflict with PennDOT requirements, and provided that
the Township and PennDOT, as applicable, maintain the right to replace
planting areas within the right-of-way with future street improvements
as required.
(5)
Township-approved sidewalks and approximately perpendicular
driveway crossings may be placed within the planting strip. Stormwater
channels may be placed within the planting strip as long as there
is at least a ten-foot planting strip between the edge of the stormwater
channel closest to the parking area and the parking area. The following
shall be prohibited within the planting strip:
(6)
This setback shall include an unobstructed, generally level
width running parallel to the road that is suitable for a person to
walk. The intent of this level area is to allow for the construction
of a sidewalk at some future date if it is not required as part of
the current application.
H.
Parking setback from buildings. Parking spaces serving principal
nonresidential buildings and apartment buildings shall be located
a minimum of five feet from any building wall, unless a larger distance
is required by another provision. This distance does not apply at
vehicle entrances into or under a building.
A.
Each use shall provide off-street loading facilities, which
meet the requirements of this section, sufficient to accommodate the
maximum demand generated by the use and the maximum size vehicle,
in a manner that will not routinely obstruct traffic on a public street.
An illustration indicating the proposed truck type and proposed truck
path shall be provided with the application to show how this section's
requirements will be met.
B.
At the time of review under this ordinance, the applicant shall
provide evidence to the Township on whether the use will have sufficient
numbers and sizes of loading facilities. For the purposes of this
ordinance, the words "loading" and "unloading" are used interchangeably.
C.
Each space, and the needed maneuver room, shall not intrude
into approved buffer areas, landscaped areas and planting strips.
A.
Fire lanes shall be provided where required by state or federal regulations
or other local ordinances.
B.
The applicant shall provide suitable access for emergency apparatus
for all nonresidential buildings and apartment buildings.
C.
The specific locations of fire lanes and emergency apparatus access
are subject to review and approval by the Township.
