[Amended 2-2-2004; 6-4-2007; 8-6-2007; 10-5-2009; 11-2-2009; 8-7-2017; 9-9-2019; 11-4-2019; 12-6-2021[1]]
A.
Purpose.
The purpose of this district is to provide sufficient space in appropriate
locations for a wide variety of commercial and miscellaneous service
activities generally serving a wide area and located particularly
along certain existing major thoroughfares where a general mixture
of commercial and service activity now exists, but which uses are
characterized by extensive warehousing, frequent heavy trucking activity,
open storage of materials or the nuisance factors of dust, odor and
noise associated with manufacturing.
B.
Permitted
uses. A building or land shall be used only for the following purposes:
(1)
Churches, rectories, parish houses, convents and monasteries,
temples and synagogues.
(2)
Public parks, public and private forests, wildlife
reservations and similar conservation projects.
(3)
Any use permitted in the Historic Business District;
provided, however, that no dwellings or tourist homes/bed-and-breakfast
inns are permitted.
(4)
Bakeries.
(5)
Boat and boat trailer sales and storage. Boat displays
of more than five feet in height shall be a minimum of 25 feet from
the front property line.
(6)
Bottling works, dyeing and cleaning works or laundry,
plumbing and heating shops, painting shops, upholstering shops, cabinet
and furniture manufacture, sheet metal shops, tire sales and service
(including vulcanizing and reapplying but no manufacturing), appliance
repairs and general service and repair establishments, similar in
character to those listed in this item, provided that no outside storage
of material is permitted, except as provided in this section.
(7)
Business and commercial radio and television stations
and studios or recording studios, but not towers more than 150 feet
in height.
(8)
Car washes or automobile laundries, automatic or otherwise.
(9)
Commercial greenhouses, wholesale or retail, and nurseries
for growing of plants, trees and shrubs, including a building for
sale of products produced on the premises.
(10)
Farm implement sales, service, rental and repair,
but not salvage or junk, and provided that major repair or storage
of materials damaged or unusable implements or vehicles shall be inside
a completely enclosed building. Displays of materials and equipment
of more than five feet in height shall be a minimum of 25 feet from
the front property line.
(11)
Garages, parking or storage.
(12)
Hotels, motels or motor lodges.
(13)
Lawn mower, yard and garden equipment, rental,
sales and services.
(14)
Lumber and building materials stores.
(15)
Monument sales establishments with incidental
processing to order, but not including the shaping of headstones.
(16)
Printing, publishing and engraving establishments.
(17)
Schools for industrial training, trade or business.
(18)
Filling station, service station or motor vehicle
repair shop.
(19)
(Reserved)
(20)
(Reserved)
(21)
Veterinary business, subject to the following
requirements:
(a)
Definition: a business to administer to animals
including sick and injured animals, large and/or small domestic and/or
large and/or small livestock in a facility approved for such operations
by the State of Delaware, Department of Veterinary Medicine.
(b)
The facility may have animal holding areas for
administration of care until the animal is judged well enough to be
sent back to its owners.
(c)
The facility may operate on a 24 hours per day,
seven days per week schedule in order to handle emergencies.
(22)
Pet grooming business, subject to the following
requirements:
(a)
Suitable facilities are provided for the care
and cleaning of large and small domestic animals.
(b)
The facility must meet all district regulations.
No mobile or trailer facilities are allowed.
(c)
The facility may be in another business facility
of similar use.
(d)
State of Delaware, Department of Public Health
requirements must be maintained and met on a regular basis.
(23)
Shopping center; shopping mall: includes general
retail, commercial and business uses; provided, however, that wholesale,
storage or other facilities are not included.
C.
Permitted
accessory uses. Permitted accessory uses are as follows:
(1)
Material storage yards in connection with a permitted
use where storage is incidental to the approved occupancy of the building,
provided that all products and materials used or stored are in a completely
enclosed building or enclosed by a solid masonry wall or solid fence,
not less than six feet in height. Storage of all materials and equipment
shall not exceed the height of the wall. Storage of cars and trucks
used in connection with the permitted trade or business is permitted.
(2)
Storage or shipment of office supplies or merchandise
normally carried in stock in connection with a permitted office, business
or commercial use, subject to applicable district regulations.
(3)
Cafeteria, for the use of a commercial enterprise
but not open to the general public.
(4)
Temporary buildings, the use of which is incidental
to construction operations or sale of lots during development being
conducted on the same or adjoining tract or subdivision and which
shall be removed upon completion or abandonment of such construction
or upon the expiration of a period of two years from the time of erection
of such temporary buildings, whichever is sooner; and conditions on
the placement of which may be established by the Mayor and Town Council
to limit any negative effect such structures may have on the property
or adjacent properties.
D.
Conditional uses. Conditional uses shall be permitted as provided in Article XVII of this chapter.
E.
Permitted
signs. Permitted signs are as follows:
(2)
All signs permitted in any district.
(3)
One indirectly illuminated identification sign, not
to exceed 30 square feet in area, for each building devoted to the
following uses: church, school, hospital, nursing home, country club,
golf course or similar use. Such signs shall be used solely for the
purpose of displaying the name of the institution or association and
its services or activities. In addition, a bulletin board may be permitted,
provided that the total of 30 square feet is not exceeded by both
the bulletin board and the identification sign.
(4)
One nonilluminated sign not exceeding four square
feet of area identifying a permitted home occupation on the premises.
(5)
One business sign not exceeding three square feet
for each linear foot of street frontage on the lot or unit and one
additional sign not exceeding the same dimensions for the second street
for a corner lot or unit; provided, however, that no single sign shall
exceed 200 square feet in sign area. Permitted sign locations are
marquee, projecting, roof and/or ground. All ground signs shall have
a minimum front setback of 15 feet, except ground signs supported
by not more than two pedestals, the bottom of which sign is more than
14 feet above the ground and which shall have a minimum front setback
of two feet from the street line. Business signs may be directly or
indirectly illuminated.
(6)
One
reader board per lot or, where there are multiple uses on a lot, per
unit is permitted as a wall, ground or monument sign in addition to
any other sign permitted; an electronic variable-message reader board
or sign (EVMS) is subject to the following specifications:
(a)
Nonresidential units may substitute an electronic variable-message
sign in lieu of other permitted signs. Such EVMS shall be further
subject to the standards of this subsection.
(b)
Except for public emergency announcements, the message displayed
on the EVMS shall be static and nonanimated and shall not be changed
more than once in any given one-hour time period. In the event of
a public emergency, announcements may scroll continuously until the
public emergency message is no longer necessary.
(c)
A public emergency announcement is limited to weather-related emergencies,
national and local security events, amber alerts, and the like. It
is not intended to permit scrolling messages, including but not limited
to schools, churches, civic groups for social events, annual meetings,
National Firesafety Week, time to change smoke and fire detector batteries,
and other similar messages.
(d)
The EVMS shall be limited to two feet by 12 feet per twenty-foot
linear front footage of a unit and shall not exceed a maximum of 200
square feet.
(e)
Lighting of such reader board shall be LED.
(f)
The applicant for an EVMS permit shall certify in writing to the
Town that the message, except for public emergency announcements,
to be displayed on the sign shall remain static and shall not flash
or scroll at any time and that the message will remain unchanged for
at least one hour at a time.
(7)
At
every street intersection there shall be a clear view between the
heights of three feet and 10 feet in a triangle formed by the corner
and points on the curb 30 feet from the intersection and entranceway.
F.
Height,
area and bulk requirements.
(1)
Minimum lot sizes. Minimum lot sizes shall be as follows:
|
Use
|
Area
(square feet)
|
Width
(feet)
|
Depth
(feet)
|
Units/Acre
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
All uses
|
10,000
|
75
|
100
|
4.4
|
(2)
Minimum yard requirements. Minimum yard requirements
shall be as follows:
|
Use
|
Depth of Front Yard
(feet)
|
Width of Side Yard
(feet)
|
Depth of Rear Yard
(feet)
|
|---|---|---|---|
|
Other
|
40
|
10
|
30
|
(3)
Maximum height requirements. Maximum height requirements
shall be as follows:
|
Use
|
Feet
|
Stories
|
|---|---|---|
|
Other
|
35
|
3
|
G.
Reference
to additional regulations. The regulations contained in this section
are supplemented or modified by regulations contained in other articles
of this chapter, especially the following:
A.
Purpose. The purpose of this district is to provide primarily for
retail shopping and personal service uses, to be developed either
as a unit or in individual parcels, to serve the needs of a relatively
small area, primarily rural, low density, or medium density residential
neighborhoods. To enhance the general character of the district and
its compatibility with its residential surroundings, signs are limited
to those that are accessory to businesses conducted on the premises,
and the number, area and type of signs are limited.
B.
Permitted business uses.
(1)
A building or land shall be used only for the following business
purposes:
(a)
Banks, drive-in or otherwise, so long as driveway space shall
be provided off the street for all vehicles waiting for drive-in service.
(b)
Bakeries, retail.
(c)
Barbershops, day spas, hair and nail salons.
(d)
Bicycle sales and repair shops.
(e)
Delicatessen businesses.
(f)
Clinics, medical facilities (outpatient only) and offices.
(g)
Dry-cleaning and laundry pickup only.
(h)
Flower shops.
(i)
Health club facilities, swimming and tennis clubs.
(j)
Offices, general business or professional.
(k)
Radio/television broadcasting stations or studios.
(l)
Restaurants, including microbreweries with food sales/service.
[1]
All restaurant owners who will be serving alcoholic beverages
must apply with the Alcohol Beverage Control Commission (ABCC), which
is the final approving authority of licensing establishment for the
sale of alcoholic beverages in the Town limits.
(m)
Shoe repair shops.
(n)
Shops for the sale, service or repair of home appliances, office
machines, electrical, communications, televisions, radio equipment,
computers and electronics.
(o)
Stores and shops for the typical conduct of retail business,
which may include sale of accessories, antiques, clothing, appliances,
liquor stores, news and bookstores, carpets, computers, catering,
pharmacy, fabric, food, coffee, ice cream/frozen dessert shop, furniture,
general merchandise, hardware, hobby supplies, jewelry, office supplies,
paint, printing and stationery, sporting goods, and electronic equipment.
(p)
Studios for artists, photographers, teachers and musicians.
(q)
Day care, learning and educational centers.
(r)
Business complexes.
(2)
No building may be erected, altered or used, and no lot or premises
may be used, for any trade, industry or business that is noxious or
offensive by reason of odor, dust, smoke, gas or other vibrations
or noise.
C.
Permitted accessory uses.
(1)
Indoor storage of merchandise or supplies carried in conjunction
with a permitted business or office use.
(2)
Sidewalk sales:
(a)
Sidewalk sales are to be conducted on business property with
improvements thereon and confined to the exclusive display only of
merchandise the business sells in its establishment at that location.
No merchandise displayed on the sidewalk shall be permitted which
obstructs, interferes with or in any way is a hazard to the orderly
movement of pedestrian traffic. A minimum of five feet of unobstructed
sidewalk (the width of the curb shall not be included) must be provided
at all times.
D.
Conditional uses. Conditional uses shall be permitted as provided in Article XVII of this chapter.
E.
Permitted signs. Permitted signs are as follows:
(2)
All signs permitted in any district.
(3)
One business sign not exceeding three square feet for each linear
foot of street frontage on the lot or unit and one additional sign
not exceeding the same dimensions for the second street for a corner
lot or unit; provided, however, that no single sign shall exceed 200
square feet in sign area. Permitted sign locations are marquee, projecting,
roof and/or ground. All ground signs shall have a minimum front setback
of 15 feet, except ground signs supported by not more than two pedestals,
the bottom of which sign is more than 14 feet above the ground, and
which shall have a minimum front setback of two feet from the street
line. Business signs may be directly or indirectly illuminated.
F.
Height, area and bulk requirements.
(1)
Minimum lot sizes. Minimum lot sizes shall be as follows:
|
Use
|
Area
(acres)
|
Pad Sites
(acres)
|
|---|---|---|
|
All uses
|
3
|
1
|
(2)
Minimum yard requirements. Minimum yard requirements shall be as
follows:
|
Use
|
Depth of Front Yard
(feet)
|
Width of Side Yard
(feet)
|
Depth of Rear Yard
(feet)
|
|---|---|---|---|
|
All uses
|
30
|
10
|
30
|
(3)
Maximum height requirements. Maximum height requirements shall be
as follows:
|
Use
|
Feet
|
Stories
|
|---|---|---|
|
All uses
|
35
|
2
|
(4)
Landscaped open area buffer. Lots abutting adjacent properties that
are not part of the NB District shall be separated from the adjacent
properties with a landscaped open area buffer of at least 25 feet
in width.
G.
Outside storage.
(1)
Unless specifically approved by the Town in writing, no materials,
supplies or equipment (excluding vehicles), and not limited to garbage
and refuse containers, shall be stored in any area on a property except
inside a closed building, or behind a visual barrier screening such
areas so they are not visible from the perimeter service drive or
road, public streets and/or real property located outside the property.
(2)
Screening of garbage and refuse containers and waste disposal areas.
Garbage and refuse containers and waste disposal areas shall be concealed
by means of screening walls constructed of materials similar to and
compatible with the building or mature landscaping on the property.
These elements shall be integrated and approved in the site plan for
the property. Locations for garbage, refuse and waste storage shall
be chosen to make the same as inconspicuous as possible. The storage
of all waste, garbage or refuse shall be governed by the provisions
of the regulations governing solid waste disposal and storage and
comply with the Delaware Solid Waste Storage and Disposal Act. In
the event any property owner or occupant violates such standards,
in addition to the penalties prescribed by state law, any civil penalties
authorized by such statutes shall be enforceable by the Town; provided,
however, that any civil penalties awarded the Town shall be utilized
by the Town to cure any hazard to the property caused by the improper
storage of solid waste.
(3)
No trailers or shipping containers shall be used for storage purposes
on any property.
(4)
Outside storage of raw materials or finished product by the owner
or occupant of any property is strictly prohibited without the Town's
written approval. All storage of raw materials and finished products
must be within fully enclosed buildings.
H.
Reference to additional regulations. The regulations contained in
this section are supplemented or modified by regulations contained
in other articles of this chapter, especially by the following:
