The General Commercial Overlay District is established to provide additional opportunities for a broad mix of retail and service commercial uses without reducing the function of the underlying base zoning districts. In addition to the purpose and the community development objectives stated in the preamble to this chapter (§§
200-2 and
200-3), the purposes of this article are to:
A. Recognize a need to provide for a variety of uses which will be an
asset to the West Brandywine community, both from the standpoint of
local service and in terms of diversification of the local tax base;
B. Accommodate larger-scale uses in locations which can be feasibly
served by public water and sewer systems, and with convenient access
to the arterial street of the Township;
C. Allow existing businesses to grow and new businesses to establish,
consistent with chapter standards;
D. Assure that nonresidential activities will be conducted in a manner
which respects the surrounding residents and landowners; and
E. Establish transitional provisions that create flexibility within
existing zoning and planning scheme to promote commercial development
opportunities along the Horseshoe Pike (S.R. 322) corridor without
unduly disturbing the underlying base zoning districts.
The General Commercial Overlay District is an overlay district
to be applied to the specifically mapped base zoning districts, as
defined by the approved West Brandywine Township Zoning Map.
All uses permitted in this district shall comply with the following
requirements:
A. Area and bulk regulations for any single principal use, not part
of a planned commercial development.
(1) Minimum lot area: one acre.
(2) Minimum lot width at street line: 100 feet.
(3) Minimum lot width at building line: 150 feet.
(4) Minimum front yard:
(a)
Fifty feet, measured from the ultimate right-of-way of PA Route
322, where applicable;
(b)
Thirty feet, measured from the ultimate right-of-way of any
other public road, where applicable.
(5) Minimum side yard (each): 20 feet, except where abutting a district
boundary.
(6) Minimum side yard (each) where abutting a district boundary: 40 feet.
(7) Minimum rear yard: 40 feet.
(8) Maximum lot coverage: 50%.
(9) Maximum building height: 35 feet.
B. Area and bulk regulations for planned commercial development.
(1) Minimum tract size.
(b)
Individual lots when created as part of a planned commercial
development: 10,000 square feet.
(2) Minimum tract width at street line.
(3) Minimum lot width at building line.
(b)
Individual lots when created as part of a planned commercial
development: 50 feet.
(4) Minimum setback from ultimate right-of-way of PA Route 322: 80 feet.
(5) Minimum setback from ultimate right-of-way of any other public road:
50 feet.
(6) Minimum building setbacks from outside curb or edge of cartway of
any internal roadway, provided that emergency access is not hindered:
10 feet.
(7) Minimum setback from any adjacent property boundary (as existed prior
to subdivision of planned commercial development, if any): 30 feet.
(8) Maximum impervious lot coverage: 60%.
(9) Maximum building height for all uses: 35 feet.
The following design standards under Article
XV of the Zoning Ordinance shall apply to all development and land uses, and no use under the General Commercial Overlay District shall be approved unless the applicant demonstrates compliance with the following requirements:
A. Prohibited uses. Section
200-92 shall apply.
B. Conservation of woodlands and riparian buffers: §
200-100.
C. Required off-street parking requirements: §
200-101.
D. The parking lot standards of §
200-102 shall apply.
F. The access and traffic control standards of §
200-104 shall apply. Access lanes shall be paved. In addition, the following requirements shall be met:
(1) Vehicular access within the General Commercial Overlay District shall
be designed to limit the number of new access points to public roads
and to limit potential for turning movement conflict.
(2) Direct access to arterial and collector streets and highways shall
be limited to no more than one point of ingress or egress for every
600 linear feet of roadway on any lot, tract, or parcel. Such points
of ingress or egress shall be separated by a minimum of 300 linear
feet.
(3) Any parcel with frontage on more than one arterial or collector street
or highway may provide for access to each of such streets or highways.
Access to adjoining parcels with frontage along arterial and collector
streets and highways shall be combined so as to limit potential turning
movement and pedestrian movement conflicts, unless determined by the
Board of Supervisors to be an unreasonable requirement.
G. Interior circulation standards: §
200-105.
J. Screening and buffering standards: §
200-108.
O. Signage provisions: see Article
XVII.
In addition to the design standards of §
200-57, as applicable, the following provisions shall apply to planned commercial development, where approved by the Board of Supervisors as a conditional use:
A. As part of the conditional use application prepared in accordance with §
200-174 of the Zoning Ordinance, the applicant shall submit a plan for the overall design and improvement of the planned development which links access, buildings, structures, and open areas in a comprehensive manner. The development plan shall also identify specific ownership and maintenance responsibilities of the lot or tract, including buildings, structures, access, and parking areas, landscaped open space, and other improvements.
B. Any conditional use application for planned commercial development
shall be accompanied by submission of architectural drawings and/or
plans of sufficient detail to illustrate the character of the intended
exterior design of all structures, including:
(1) Massing, scale, proportion, roofline, relationship among facade elements.
(2) Relationship to the streetscape.
C. A plan shall be provided at the time of conditional use application, which shall demonstrate compliance with the screening and buffering requirements of §
200-108 of the Zoning Ordinance.
D. Conditional use approval shall be contingent upon agreement by the
applicant or applicants that the tract shall be developed under single
direction in accordance with the terms of approval granted by the
Board of Supervisors.
E. The following uses shall only be permitted as accessory to any planned
office or planned commercial development: child day-care facility;
restaurant for use by employees or guests of the principal use; and
recreational uses designed for use for employees of the principal
use.
F. The combined uses, buildings, structures and other improvements shall comply with the bulk regulations under §
200-56B above.
G. Curbs and sidewalks shall be provided along all public rights-of-way.
Sidewalks abutting a public right-of-way shall be coordinated with
the internal pedestrian circulation system which allows for safe and
convenient movement of pedestrians. Sidewalk and trail improvements
shall reflect their continuation through any adjoining neighborhood,
tract, or parcel.
H. Parking needs shall be independently calculated for each use in accordance with Article
XV of the Zoning Ordinance. Parking facilities may be designed as a common parking lot, provided that the required number of parking spaces are provided for each use. As a condition of approval, the Board of Supervisors may reduce collective parking requirements, provided that the applicant demonstrates to the satisfaction of the Board that the intended uses and parking lot design promote shared parking.
I. No parking or loading facilities, excluding sidewalks and paths,
and necessary access ways to a public street, shall be located closer
than 25 feet from any lot line, and less than 10 feet from any street
line.
J. To the extent that parking areas are visible from public streets,
visual impacts shall be mitigated through introduction of landscape
screening, architectural block walls, landscaping combined with pedestrian
paving materials, or other design means acceptable to the Township.
K. Where any individual commercial building facade is visible from any
public right-of-way and exceeds 40 feet in length, there shall be
both a clear dimensional differentiation of roofline, and an offset
in facade of at least five feet to create effective facades that are
no longer than 40 feet. Street trees with tree wells, or other streetscape
and pedestrian amenities, shall be used to balance facade offsets.
The Township may allow a commercial building with a facade longer
than 40 feet if the proposed design emulates characteristic historical
building forms such as barns, stables, churches, meeting houses, or
other public buildings. Building arrangements which rely on repeated
use of the same long facade element shall not be approved. Where an
individual commercial building facade exceeds 40 feet in length, the
building design or use layout shall limit the length of the streetscape
frontage occupied by any one use to the greatest extent practicable
by providing for inviting, interior accessory or independent business
uses with the streetscape-fronting portion of the building (e.g.,
the cafe and/or floral operations within a grocery store, or a small,
independent service or retail use). In all cases, blank walls, facades,
and windows shall be kept to a minimum.
L. Signs. See the provisions of Article
XVII.
M. The application shall be accompanied by a working plan for the cleanup
and disposal of litter, and trash receptacles shall be provided outside
any establishment with take-out service or convenience shopping.
N. Establishments storing outdoor shopping carts or having other outdoor storage shall provide defined areas on the site for storage which shall be clearly marked and defined for storage. Other than shopping carts, no permanent storage of merchandise, articles or equipment shall be permitted outside a building, unless screened in accordance with §
200-108.