City of Garland, TX BUILDINGS

Building Height.

Building height shall be limited as described herein.

Building heights shall be as described in Table 7-3, Sub-District Building Height Standards.

Notwithstanding Subsection (1) above, buildings shall be limited to a maximum of two stories within two hundred feet of any property outside the Downtown district which is zoned for single-family residential.

Table 7-3: Sub-District Building Height Standards
Sub-District Standard	Downtown Historic and Downtown Square	Uptown	InTown Residential	Suburban Corridor
Building Height ¹	Min. 1 story, constructed to accommodate a second story, Max. 4 stories ²	Min. 1 story, constructed to accommodate a second story, Max. 8 stories ²	Min. 1 story, constructed to accommodate a second story, Max. 4 stories ²	Min. 1 story Max. 2–5 stories ¹

Notes:
¹ Maximum of 2 stories when the building is within 200 feet of property zoned single-family residential outside the Downtown district; patio home and duplex buildings within the Suburban Corridor may be one story in height.
² Single Story by Major Waiver - Major waiver required to construct a single story building without the ability to accommodate a second story.

(3)

A Landmark Building which is located on axis with a terminating street or access drive or at the intersection of streets or access drives shall be designed with landmark features that take advantage of the location, such as an accentuated entry or a unique building articulation that is offset from the front wall planes and extends above the main building eave or parapet line.

(B)

Building Types.

(1)

Table 7-4 shows the building types that are allowed in each sub-district.

Table 7-4: Sub-District Building Types
	Sub-District
Building Types	Downtown Historic	Downtown Square	Uptown	InTown Residential	Suburban Corridor
Single-Family			X	X
Townhouse	X		X		X
Mixed Residential	X	X	X
Loft	X	X	X		X
Live/Work	X	X	X		X
Liner Building	X	X	X
Mixed-Use	X	X	X		X
Commercial	X	X	X		X

(2)

Nonresidential At-Grade.

Minimum floor-to-ceiling heights for all nonresidential spaces at-grade shall be sixteen feet, or twelve feet by Minor Waiver, excluding necessary furr downs.

(C)

Architectural Articulation.

Where clearly visible from a public street or open space, buildings shall demonstrate both horizontal and vertical articulation. Building articulation shall be approved as part of the review of building facade plans accompanying a Downtown Development Plan application (examples below).

(1)

All buildings shall be designed and constructed in tri-partite architecture, with a distinct base, middle and top. An expression line, setback or other architectural element shall delineate the base and top.

(2)

Buildings shall generally maintain a facade rhythm of twenty to thirty feet. This rhythm may be expressed by a change in building plane, stepping portions of facades in and out, utilizing columns or pilasters that are distinctly set out from the facade or changing types or colors of materials in combination with other techniques.

(D)

Residential At-Grade.

(1)

All buildings that have residential unit floor plates within six feet of grade shall include a primary front door entrance into the unit which is accessed from the sidewalk.

(2)

Entries for grade-level units should be located a minimum of two feet above the sidewalk elevation and include a minimum twenty-four square-foot stoop; however, units for handicapped accessibility (or handicapped adaptable) may be located at-grade provided that a fence a minimum of thirty inches and a maximum of four feet in height, and with no more than fifty percent opacity, encloses a small setback and the front door porch area. This standard does not apply for single-family detached homes in the IR sub-district. Any change to this standard shall be considered a Major Waiver.

(3)

Buildings with residential at grade shall have a minimum landscaped build-to line of fourteen feet from the back of the sidewalk to the building face. Stoops, stairs, bay windows, chimneys, and patios may encroach up to eight feet beyond the build-to line, but not beyond the right-of-way line.

(4)

All units shall also include windows that provide residents a view of the street or public access easement and sidewalk area.

(5)

Lobbies to upper stories (residential or nonresidential) may be located at the sidewalk level.

(6)

Masonry columns may be used on patios and fences provided that the columns are used as accents. Wood fences and railings, chain-link fencing, and vinyl fencing materials are prohibited.

(7)

For buildings located within the boundaries of any Historic District recognized by the United States Department of the Interior on or before April 1, 2019, balcony and patio railings and fences shall be largely transparent and constructed of glass, wrought iron or metal or a combination thereof.

RESIDENTIAL AT GRADE

(E)

Residential Above-Grade.

At least fifty percent of residential units above-grade shall have balconies that are at least four feet in depth.

(F)

Flex Space At-Grade.

(1)

The ground floor entry for Flex Space at-grade spaces shall be located at the approximate elevation of the adjacent sidewalk.

(2)

Flex Space spaces adjacent to the sidewalk at-grade shall:

(a)

Be constructed to meet fire code separation requirements from any other uses constructed on the floors above;

(b)

Have a minimum floor-to-ceiling height of sixteen feet, or twelve feet by Minor Waiver, except for furr down areas for ducting or other approved purposes;

(c)

Have an awning or canopy along the south, east, and west facing facades, that extends at least six feet from the building over the sidewalk for at least seventy-five percent of the frontage of the building. Such awning or canopy shall maintain a minimum eight-foot clearance over the sidewalk; and

(d)

Separate business patrons from the general public on the sidewalk, and when desired, shall be accomplished using planters or wrought iron fencing unless otherwise approved by Minor Waiver.

NONRESIDENTIAL AT GRADE

(G)

Nonresidential Windows and Glazing.

(1)

At-grade.

Windows shall be highly transparent, and shall comprise a minimum of sixty percent and a maximum of eighty percent of the ground floor facade.

(2)

Above-grade.

(a)

Windows shall represent a minimum of thirty percent and a maximum of sixty percent of each building elevation above the ground floor; however, because loft units generally contain large amounts of window area, an increase of up to fifteen percent may be approved by Minor Waiver for building elevations containing lofts. Increases greater than fifteen percent shall require a Major Waiver.

(b)

Windows shall be generally vertical in proportion and generally have at least a three-inch reveal. A series of vertically proportioned windows joined together by a mullion shall be considered as meeting this standard.

(H)

Building Entries.

Each building and separate lease space at-grade along the street edge shall have a functioning primary entry from the sidewalk. Such entries shall be inset from the front building plane by at least four feet. Functioning entries shall be located no more than sixty feet apart unless other spacing is approved as a Minor Waiver. Corner entries may count as a primary entry for both intersecting street frontages. Entries to lease spaces from a courtyard, plaza or parking area may be flush with the building facade provided there is an awning or other weather protective cover.

Where parking lots are located behind a building, a secondary rear entry is encouraged to provide convenient access from the parking lot into the building.

(I)

Roofs.

(1)

Flat roofs and green roofs are allowed.

(2)

For buildings located within the boundaries of any Historic District recognized by the United States Department of the Interior on or before April 1, 2019, which have with hip, gable or mansard roofs, the allowed materials include slate, concrete or clay roofing tile, copper, factory-finished standing seam metal or laminated asphalt shingles of at least three hundred pounds per square. Wood shingles are expressly prohibited.

(J)

Exterior walls.

For buildings located within the boundaries of any Historic District recognized by the United States Department of the Interior on or before April 1, 2019, the following standards apply:

(1)

Exterior walls of buildings and parking structures that are visible from a street, plaza or other public open space (excluding windows, doors, breezeways and other openings) shall be constructed of at least eighty percent masonry materials, as defined in this GDC.

(2)

Concrete tilt wall, pre-cast concrete panels, and other similar materials are prohibited.

(3)

No more than twenty percent of each facade along a street shall use accent materials such as wood, architectural metal panel or tile.

(4)

EIFS shall be allowed only as a material for trim and moldings more than eight feet above the ground floor.

(5)

Glass curtain wall may be allowed for lofts and nonresidential uses provided it does not constitute more than seventy-five percent of the facade.

(6)

Other exterior walls which are not visible from a street, plaza or other public open space shall be constructed of at least twenty percent masonry materials, with the remaining being noncombustible materials, including exterior 3-stage stucco, cementitious fiberboard, or other material approved by Minor Waiver and allowed under the International Building Code.

(Ordinance 6773 adopted 5/19/15; Ordinance 7079, sec. 45, adopted 8/20/19; Ordinance 7107, sec. 88, adopted 12/3/19; Ordinance 7261, secs. 6–7, adopted 10/12/21)