University City, MO "HR" High Density Residential District

The following Sections provide specific regulations regarding the use and development of property within the "HR" district. These district regulations are supplemented by additional regulations appearing elsewhere in this Chapter or other Chapters of the University City Municipal Code. Other regulations contained in this Chapter governing land use and development include, but are not necessarily limited to, the following:

Supplementary Regulations (Article V);

Historic Landmarks and Districts (Article VI);

Off-Street Parking and Loading Requirements (Article VII);

Sign Regulations (Article VIII).

Section 400.310 Intent and Purpose.

[R.O. 2011 §34-33.2; Ord. No. 6139 §1(Exh. A (part)), 1997]

The purpose of the "HR" district is to protect and conserve areas of predominantly multi-family apartments, built at relatively high densities, and provide for the construction of new high density residential developments commonly referred to as town house apartments, garden apartments, and elevator apartment buildings.

Section 400.320 Permitted Uses.

[R.O. 2011 §34-33.3; Ord. No. 6139 §1(Exh. A (part)), 1997; Ord. No. 7041 § 2, 6-12-2017]

The following land uses and developments are permitted in the "HR" district. In addition to the land uses permitted in this district, certain other land uses may be conditionally allowed per Section 400.330.

Accessory uses (see Article V "Supplementary Regulations", Division 3);

Dwellings, elevator-type, up to a F.A.R. of one (1.0);

Dwellings, garden-type;

Dwellings, town-house;

Dwellings, attached single-family;

Group homes for the disabled, small, where the group home dwelling unit is more than one thousand (1,000) feet from any existing group home dwelling unit;

Home occupations (see Article V "Supplementary Regulations", Division 8);

Places of worship;

Schools, public;

10.

(Reserved)[1]

[1]

Editor’s Note: Former Subsection (A)(10), which listed telecommunications equipment as a permitted use, was repealed 1-14-2019 by Ord. No. 7094.

Section 400.330 Conditional Uses.

[R.O. 2011 §34-33.4; Ord. No. 6139 §1(Exh. A (part)), 1997]

The following land uses and developments may be permitted in the "HR" district, subject to the issuance of a conditional use permit in accordance with the procedures and standards contained in Article XI, "Conditional Uses":

Auditoriums and other places of public assembly;

Convalescent and nursing homes;

Convents and rectories, in connection with a place of worship and located on the same or adjacent lot;

Dormitories;

Dwellings, two-family;

[Ord. No. 6990 §1, 5-26-2015]

Dwellings, elevator apartment, with a F.A.R. between one (1.0) and three (3.0) (see Section 400.340(D));

Fraternity and sorority houses;

Governmental, philanthropic, religious or charitable institutions, including meeting halls, and training facilities;

Group homes for the disabled, small, where the group home dwelling unit is one thousand (1,000) feet or less from any existing group home dwelling unit;

10.

Group homes for the disabled, large;

11.

Police or fire stations;

12.

Parks and playgrounds, public or private not-for-profit;

13.

Public utility facilities.

[Ord. No. 7094, 1-14-2019]

14.

Recreation facilities, common;

15.

Rental offices associated with residential developments;

16.

Schools, private; except trade, technical or business schools, college and university facilities.

Section 400.340 Density and Dimensional Regulations.

[R.O. 2011 §34-33.5; Ord. No. 6139 §1(Exh. A (part)), 1997]

Minimum Lot Size.

Dwellings, two-family.

[Ord. No. 6990 §1, 5-26-2015]

Minimum lot area. Five-thousand (5,000) square feet.

Minimum lot width. Fifty (50) feet.

Town-house, attached single-family, garden-type, and elevator-type dwellings. See Article V "Supplementary Regulations," Sections 400.1120, 400.1125, 400.1130, or 400.1140 as applicable.

[Ord. No. 7041 § 2, 6-12-2017]

Other permitted or conditional uses. Lot area and width shall be adequate to provide the minimum setbacks required by this Section and required parking, as established under Article VII "Off-Street Parking and Loading Requirements", but in no instance shall a lot be less than twenty thousand (20,000) square feet in area or one hundred (100) feet in width, except for public utility facilities.

Public utility facilities. Lots created for public utility facilities may be less than twenty thousand (20,000) square feet in area or one hundred (100) feet in width, provided that such lots shall not be used for any other use.

Building Setback Requirements.

Dwellings, two-family.

[Ord. No. 6990 §1, 5-26-2015]

Minimum front yard setback. Twenty (20) feet.

Minimum side yard setback. Five (5) feet.

Minimum rear yard setback. Twenty-five (25) feet.

Town-house, attached single-family, garden-type, and elevator-type dwellings. See Article V "Supplementary Regulations," Sections 400.1120, 400.1125, 400.1130, or 400.1140 as applicable.

[Ord. No. 7041 § 2, 6-12-2017]

Other permitted or conditional uses. The minimum setback requirements for all other principal buildings shall be as follows:

Minimum right-of-way setback. Twenty (20) feet.

Minimum property line setback. Ten (10) feet.

Where a property line of a non-dwelling use abuts a "SR" or "LR" zoned property, then the minimum setback from the property line(s) shall be fifteen (15) feet.

Floor Area Ratio (F.A.R.). The maximum amount of gross floor area for all buildings on any lot in the "HR" district shall not exceed an amount equal to the total area of the lot (F.A.R. of one (1.0)), except as provided for in Subsection (D) below.

Increase In F.A.R. For Elevator Apartments.

The maximum floor area allowable on a lot, that is at least one (1) acre in area, may be increased to a F.A.R. of two (2.0) subject to the issuance of a conditional use permit in accordance with the procedures and standards contained in Article XI, "Conditional Uses".

The maximum floor area allowable on a lot, that is at least three (3) acres in area, may be increased to a F.A.R. of three (3.0) subject to the issuance of a conditional use permit in accordance with the procedures and standards contained in Article XI, "Conditional Uses".

In addition to the increase in F.A.R. conditionally allowed, the total amount of gross floor area may be increased by an amount equal to twice the number of square feet of open balcony or enclosed patio space, provided such balcony or patio space contains at least sixty (60) square feet in floor area and has at least a horizontal dimension of six (6) feet.

Common Open Space Requirements. Common open space for residential developments shall be provided in accordance with the provisions of Article V "Supplementary Regulations", Section 400.1150.

Section 400.350 Other Development Standards.

[R.O. 2011 §34-33.6; Ord. No. 6401 §1(part), 2002; Ord. No. 6764 §1, 1-26-2009]

For all new developments or those uses requiring a new conditional use permit or site plan review, a detailed landscaping plan shall be submitted to the Director of Planning for approval, in conjunction with a review by the City Forester. Landscaping shall be installed and maintained in accordance with the approved plan. Unless other arrangements were made during the permitting process, said landscaping plan shall be approved prior to the building permit being issued and shall be installed prior to the occupancy permit being approved.

All uses that have exterior speakers shall be operated so that the volume of the service speaker as well as noise from patrons shall not be perceptible beyond the property lines of the business.

Lighting of all exterior areas, including all parking areas, shall comply with Section 400.2110 of the Zoning Code, and shall be designed to be compatible with surrounding areas, shall be shaded to direct light downward and away from abutting uses, adjoining properties and streets.

For all developments requiring new curb cuts along County or State roadways, curb cuts shall be approved by the proper State and/or County agencies. If there is a substantial change in site design caused by those approvals, the applicant shall resubmit the changes to Department of Planning Development, the Plan Commission and/or the City Council (whichever approvals were originally required).

For all new developments or those uses requiring substantial exterior construction, a detailed construction traffic control and parking plan should be submitted to the Director of Planning for approval. Said plan shall set forth details pertaining to worker and resident parking during all phases of the proposed construction. It shall further detail solutions to public property maintenance issues such as street cleaning and traffic diversion. Said plan shall be finalized prior to the issuance of a building permit.

For all new developments, drainage and grading arrangements shall be approved by MSD and the City Public Works and Parks Department.

For all new developments, exhaust controls for common facilities shall be installed and maintained to prevent smoke and odors from being perceptible beyond the property lines of the development.

For all new developments, houses or other major construction, a site plan showing all existing City trees located at or near the property shall be submitted along with a statement by the owner of the property verifying that no City trees shall be destroyed or damaged during construction and if such destruction or damage does occur, the City shall be reimbursed for the fair market price of the tree.

In addition to all other requirements and regulations set forth in this Chapter, all new development and substantial redevelopment proposed and planned along the Olive Boulevard corridor between Skinker Boulevard to the east side of the I-170 interchange shall adhere to the guidelines and regulations set forth in the document known as the "Olive Boulevard Design Guidelines". The guidelines are a required part of the building permit process. A copy of the guidelines may be obtained from the Zoning Administrator in the Community Development Department (an electronic copy is also available online at the City's website at ucitymo.org/government/departments/community development/zoning). For the purpose of this requirement, "substantial redevelopment" shall mean one (1) or more of the following:

Increase of twenty-five percent (25%) or more in the gross floor area of any building;

Significant upliftment of the facade aesthetics by paint and/or addition or replacement of facade elements;

Restoration of historic structures;

Significant changes in site design, for example, landscaping, lighting, ingress/egress, etc.