No nonresidential use shall hereafter be established,
altered, moved or expanded unless it complies with the performance
standards set forth in this Article. Continued conformance with such
standards, once applicable, shall be a requirement for the continuance
of any certificate of occupancy. Central utility systems serving three
or more dwelling units, including but not limited to systems providing
heat, water, air conditioning or electrical power shall be deemed
to be nonresidential uses for the purposes of this Article.
Consistent with the general purposes of this
chapter, performance standards shall set specific controls on potentially
objectionable external aspects of such nonresidential uses so as to:
A.
Reduce to a reasonable minimum the dissemination of
smoke, gas, dust, odor or other atmospheric pollutant outside the
building in which the use is conducted.
B.
Control noise and light perceptible beyond the boundaries
of the site of the use.
C.
Prevent the discharge of untreated wastes into any
watercourse.
D.
Prevent the dissemination of vibration, heat or electromagnetic
interference beyond the immediate site on which the use is located.
E.
Prevent physical hazard by reason of fire, explosion,
radiation or any similar cause.
F.
Regulate and control the generation and flow of vehicular
traffic so as to prevent hazardous conditions, traffic congestion
and excessive noise in the streets.
[1]
Editor's Note: Former § 125-32, Noise, was repealed 3-19-2019
by Ord. No. 6-2019.
A.
Method of measurement. For the purpose of measuring
vibration, a three-component measuring system approved by the Town
Engineer shall be employed.
B.
Maximum permitted steady-state and impact vibration
displacement. No activity shall cause or create a steady-state or
impact vibration displacement by frequency bands in excess of that
indicated in the following table:
|
Frequency
(cycles per second)
|
Vibration Displacement Steady-State
(inches)
|
Impact
(inches)
| |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Under 10
|
0.0005
|
0.0010
| |
|
10 -- 19
|
.0004
|
.0008
| |
|
20 -- 29
|
.0003
|
.0006
| |
|
30 -- 39
|
.0002
|
.0004
| |
|
40 and over
|
.0001
|
.0002
|
A.
General control. The emission of smoke and other particulate
matter shall not be permitted, regardless of quantity, if it will
be in any way detrimental to the public health, safety, welfare or
comfort or a source of damage to property.
B.
Method of measurement of smoke. For the purpose of
grading the density of smoke, the Ringelmann Smoke Chart shall be
used to determine the total smoke emitted. A reading shall be taken
every minute for an hour or, if less than an hour, until the total
smoke emitted exceeds that allowed by these regulations. Each reading
shall be multiplied by the number of minutes during which it was observed
and the product added.
C.
Maximum permitted emission of smoke. There shall be
no measurable emission of smoke, gas or other atmospheric pollutant.
The emission of one smoke unit per hour and smoke with discernible
density of No. 1 on the Ringelmann Smoke Chart shall be prohibited.
D.
Maximum permitted emission of dust.
(1)
The emission of dust related to combustion for indirect
heating from any course shall not exceed 0.30 pounds of dust per thousand
pounds of flue gas adjusted to fifty-percent excess air for combustion.
(2)
There shall be no measurable emission of dust or other
particulate matter not related to combustion for indirect heating.
(3)
All properties shall be suitably improved and maintained
with appropriate landscaping and paving or other type of improvement,
so that there will be no measurable windblown dust or other similar
types of air pollution created.
No land use shall be permitted which emits any
discernible obnoxious odor outside the lot on which the use is conducted.
No use shall be permitted which will cause any
dissemination whatsoever of toxic or noxious matter outside the building
in which the use is conducted.
The handling, storage or disposal of radioactive materials or waste by-products, whether or not licensed by the Atomic Energy Commission, shall be conducted only in accordance with the standards established in Title 10, Chapter 1, Part 20, Code of Federal Regulations, Standards for Protection Against Radiation, as amended, and in accordance with any other applicable laws or regulations.
No operation shall be permitted which produces
any perceptible electromagnetic interference with normal radio or
television reception in any area within or without the Town.
No storage, utilization or manufacture of solid
materials or solid products which burn actively and support combustion
easily or which have a low ignition temperature, a high rate of burning
or create great heat under ordinary temperature conditions shall be
permitted.
There shall be no emission of heat which would
cause a temperature increase in excess of one degree Fahrenheit along
any adjoining lot line, whether such change be in the air, in the
ground or in any watercourse or water body.
[Amended 5-17-2011 by L.L. No. 4-2011]
A.
Purpose. The purpose of this section is to establish provisions for
exterior lighting in order to:
(1)
Minimize the impact of stray lighting on human health, habitats and
the environment.
(2)
Provide safe roadways for pedestrians, cyclists and motorists.
(3)
Protect against direct glare and excessive lighting.
(4)
Prevent light trespass in all areas of the Town of Bedford.
(5)
Minimize skyglow and reclaim the ability to view the wonder of the
night sky.
(6)
Provide lighting guidelines.
(7)
Discourage the waste of energy caused by excessive lighting.
(8)
Provide assistance to businesses in bringing nonconforming lighting
into conformance with this chapter.
(9)
Allow for flexibility in the style of lighting fixtures.
(10)
Provide clear guidelines for the Boards and enforcement staff
of the Town to use in administering this section.
(11)
Help the Town to achieve its goal of a twenty-percent reduction
of its energy use by 2020.
B.
No use shall produce illumination beyond the boundaries of the property
on which it is located in excess of 0.5 footcandle, measured vertically
at five feet above the ground, at the property line. Notwithstanding
the above, where two commercial properties abut each other, a maximum
vertical illumination at five feet above the ground, at the property
line, of 1.0 footcandle is permitted.
C.
Flashing sources of illumination are prohibited.
D.
Existing exterior lighting that is determined by municipal law enforcement
to contribute to a condition of disabling or distracting glare onto
a public roadway may be ordered to be changed or removed at any time.
E.
All residential and commercial uses shall limit light sources and
illuminated surfaces to the illumination levels indicated below:
|
Source
|
Maximum Illumination Level
| ||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Residential Districts or RO, PB-O or PB-OK District
|
PBR, NB, CB, RB or LI District
| ||
|
Bare or neon-type bulbs or lamps
|
Not permitted
|
Not permitted
| |
|
Illumination of any vertical building surface(measured vertically
on the side of the building)
|
Not permitted
|
30 footcandles
| |
|
Back-lighted or luminous background signs (measured in front
of the sign)
|
Not permitted
|
250 footlamberts
| |
|
Outdoor illuminated signs (measured vertically on the sign's
surface)
|
25 footcandles
|
50 footcandles
| |
F.
Building- or pole-mounted, shielded floodlights and/or shielded spotlights
meeting the requirements of the above chart are permitted in all districts.
Such lights must be angled downward so as not to create glare as seen
from above and shall meet any one of the following criteria:
G.
Illumination levels shall be measured with a photoelectric photo
meter in accordance with the standards published by the Illuminating
Engineering Society of North America.
H.
The mounting height for any lighting fixture in a PB-O, PB-OK, PBR,
NB, CB, RB or LI District shall not be greater than 25 feet.
I.
Flags of the national, state, county or Town government, that are
not illuminated with downward lighting, may be illuminated only with
a single ground-mounted narrow cone spotlight that confines the illumination
to the flag, provided the lumen output is no greater than 1,800 lumens,
regardless of the number of lamps. No other flags may be illuminated.
J.
Lighting of radio, communication and navigation towers shall not
be permitted unless required by the Federal Aviation Administration
(FAA) regulations, in which case required lighting shall be of the
lowest permitted intensity and red, unless otherwise required by FAA
regulations.
K.
Temporary exterior holiday lighting shall be exempt from the requirements
of this chapter.
L.
An applicant may apply to the Planning Board for a special permit under § 125-81 for the temporary use of lighting not in accordance with the standards listed above.
M.
In the case of applications requiring site plan review, the Planning Board may impose standards more or less stringent than those listed in this section in order to meet the general purpose and intent of Article IX, Site Plan Approval, of this Code.
N.
In any case where national and New York State building code requirements
exceed the requirements of this section, the national and state requirements
shall apply.
The discharge of any or all wastes shall be
permitted only if in complete accordance with all standards, laws
and regulations of the Westchester County Health Department, New York
State Department of Environmental Conservation or any other regulatory
agency having jurisdiction. Facilities for the storage of solid waste
shall be so located and designed as to be screened from the street
or from any adjoining property and so as to discourage the breeding
of rodents or insects.
[Added 7-11-1983]
For the purpose of preventing congestion in
the streets: promoting the safe and efficient utilization of public
transportation facilities; protecting air quality; promoting fuel
conservation; and otherwise protecting the public health, safety and
welfare, the following specific traffic standards are hereby established
to serve as a guide for Town officials and agencies in the review
of applications for development approvals:
A.
No decision shall be made to approve the construction
of any development which would contain in excess of 20,000 gross square
feet of new nonresidential floor space or 50 or more new residential
dwelling units if the approving agency, acting on the advice of a
qualified traffic engineer, determines that the result of such development
will be to create one or more of the following peak-hour traffic impacts
within two miles of any vehicular access point to the subject site
during the first year of operation of the proposed project or, in
the case of phased construction, during the first year of operation
of any phase for which approval is sought:
(1)
A reduction in level of service to less than Level
D at any street intersection.
(2)
A significant adverse impact on the operation of streets
or intersections projected to be operating during the target year,
at Level of Service E or below.
(3)
Traffic volumes significantly over the capacity of
the mainline (nonintersection) highway sections.
B.
In projecting future levels of service and the capacity
of mainline highway sections, accepted traffic engineering procedures,
as determined satisfactory by the approving agency, shall be utilized,
using the following requirements as a guide:
(1)
Base-year traffic conditions, including peak-hour
traffic volumes and turning movements, must be documented either through
direct field surveys or from other available current data sources.
(2)
Projected volumes must include estimated traffic generation
from the proposed development during peak hours of on-site traffic
activity as well as peak hours of street system activity.
(3)
Daily trip generation estimates must be provided.
Information published by the Institute of Transportation Engineers
(ITE) will generally be relied upon as a basis for estimating trip
generation, although the approving agency may allow or require a departure
from the use of specific ITE averages where said agency determines
that such departure is warranted by unique characteristics which may
be present in the proposed project.
(4)
Allowance must also be made for traffic which is expected
to be generated by other projects already approved or under construction
within the Town or within neighboring communities, as well as an additional
allowance for general regional traffic volume changes.
(5)
Estimated traffic generation must be distributed throughout
the access network in accordance with clearly stated distribution
assumptions determined acceptable by the approving agency.
(6)
The capacity analysis of the intersections or mainline-highway-section
roadway system shall be calculated both with and without site-generated
traffic. In analyzing such capacity, the applicant shall use methods
generally recognized by national authorities, such as the Transportation
Research Board of the National Academy of Sciences, and/or methods
accepted by the New York State Department of Transportation. Traffic
capacity estimates may take into account improvements planned by the
applicant or by others, provided that, in either case, a specific
commitment to construct such improvements has been made.
(7)
In determining overall intersection level of service
at signalized intersections, optimum practical signal timing may be
assumed. Overall intersection level of service shall be determined,
for both signalized and unsignalized intersections, based upon a volume
weighted average of each intersection-approach level of service.
As a part of site plan review of an application
for the establishment of a use which, in the Planning Board's judgment,
could have potentially objectionable external aspects and therefore
be subject to these performance standards, the Planning Board may
require the applicant, at his own expense, to provide such evidence
as it deems necessary to determine whether the proposed use will conform
to said standards.
If, in the judgment of the Building Inspector,
there is a violation of the performance standards:
A.
The Building Inspector shall give written notice,
by registered or certified mail, to the owner and tenants of the property
upon which the alleged violation occurs, describing the particulars
of the alleged violation and the reasons why it is believed that there
is a violation in fact, and shall require an answer or correction
of the alleged violation to the satisfaction of the Building Inspector
within a reasonable time limit set by said Inspector. The notice shall
state, and it is hereby declared, that failure to reply or to correct
the alleged violation to the satisfaction of the Building Inspector
within the time limit constitutes admission of a violation of this
chapter. The notice shall further state that, upon request of those
to whom it is directed, technical determinations of the nature and
extent of the violation as alleged will be made, and that, if a violation
as alleged is found, costs of the determinations will be charged against
those responsible, in addition to such other penalties as may be appropriate,
and that, if it is determined that no violation exists, costs of determination
will be borne by the Town.
B.
If, within the time limit set, there is no reply,
but the alleged violation is corrected to the satisfaction of the
Building Inspector, he shall note "Violation Corrected" on his copy
of the notice and shall retain it among his records.
C.
If there is no reply within the time limit set (thus establishing admission of a violation of this chapter) and the alleged violation is not corrected to the satisfaction of the Building Inspector within the time limit set, he shall proceed to take action in accordance with § 125-128 of this chapter.
See the Flood Damage Prevention Ordinance, adopted
May 17, 1977, amended April 3, 1979.[1]
See Wetlands Control Ordinance, adopted February
20, 1973, last amended March 15, 1977.[1]
The provisions of the New York State Environmental
Quality Review Act (SEQR) apply to all actions undertaken by the Town
under this Zoning Ordinance. The requirements of this chapter shall
be coordinated, as much as possible, with the procedural requirements
of SEQR.
