A.
Landscaping shall be provided as part of site plan
and subdivision design. It shall be conceived in a total pattern throughout
the site, integrating the various elements of site design, preserving
and enhancing the particular identity of the site and creating a pleasing
site character.
B.
Landscaping may include plant materials such as trees,
shrubs, ground cover, perennials, and annuals and other materials
such as rocks, water, sculpture, art, walls, fences, and paving materials.
The landscape plan shall identify existing and
proposed trees, shrubs, ground cover, natural features such as rock
outcroppings, and other landscaping elements. The plan should show
where they are or will be located and planting and/or construction
details. When existing natural growth is proposed to remain, the applicant
shall include in the plans proposed methods to protect existing trees
and growth during and after construction.
A.
Topsoil preservation. Topsoil moved during the course of construction shall be redistributed on all regraded surfaces so as to provide at least four inches of even cover to all disturbed areas of the development and shall be stabilized by seeding or planting. A soil erosion and sediment control plan for the subdivision site shall be approved as part of the preliminary plat, in accordance with the provisions of Chapter 137, Soil Erosion and Sedimentation Control, of the Code of the Township of West Amwell.
B.
Removal of debris. All stumps and other tree parts,
litter, brush, weeds, excess or scrap building materials, or other
debris shall be removed from the site and disposed of in accordance
with the law. No tree stumps, portions of tree trunks or limbs shall
be buried anywhere in the development. Without permits from the appropriate
agencies, all dead or dying trees, standing or fallen, shall be removed
from the site. If trees and limbs are reduced to chips, they may,
subject to approval of the Municipal Engineer, be used as mulch in
landscaped areas. A developer shall be exempt from these provisions,
however, and shall be permitted to dispose of site-generated new construction
wastes on-site as long as the conditions set forth in N.J.A.C. 7:26-1.7
are met.[1]
[1]
Note: Municipalities should refer to N.J.A.C.
7:26-1.7 for conditions.
C.
Protection of existing plantings. Maximum effort should
be made to save fine specimens (because of size or relative rarity).
No material or temporary soil deposits shall be placed within four
feet of shrubs or the drip line of trees designated to be retained
on the preliminary and/or final plat. Protective barriers or tree
wells shall be installed around each plant and/or group of plants
that are to remain on the site. Barriers shall not be supported by
the plants they are protecting, but shall be self-supporting. They
shall be a minimum of four feet high and constructed of a durable
material that will last until construction is completed. Snow fences
and silt fences are examples of acceptable barriers.
D.
Slope plantings. Landscaping of the area of all cuts
and fills and/or terraces shall be sufficient to prevent erosion,
and all roadway slopes steeper than one foot vertically to three feet
horizontally shall be planted with ground covers appropriate for the
purpose and soil conditions, water availability, and environment.
E.
Additional landscaping. In residential developments,
besides the screening and street trees required, additional plantings
or landscaping elements shall be required throughout the subdivision
where necessary for climate control, privacy, or for aesthetic reasons
in accordance with a planting plan approved by the Planning Board
and taking into consideration cost constraints. In nonresidential
developments, all areas of the site not occupied by buildings and
required improvements shall be landscaped by the planting of grass
or other ground cover, shrubs, and trees as part of a site plan approved
by the Planning Board.
F.
Planting specifications. Deciduous trees shall have
at least a two-and-one-half-inch caliper measured six inches from
the butt, at planting per ANSI standards. Size of evergreens and shrubs
shall be allowed to vary depending on setting and type of shrub. Only
nursery-grown plant materials shall be acceptable; and all trees,
shrubs, and ground covers shall be planted according to accepted horticultural
standards. Dead or dying plants shall be replaced by the developer
for one year.
G.
Plant species. The plant species selected should be
hardy for the particular climatic zone in which the development is
located and appropriate in terms of function and size.
A.
Location.
(1)
Street trees shall be installed five feet from the
right-of-way on both sides of all streets in accordance with the approved
landscape plan. Trees shall either be massed at critical points or
spaced evenly along the street, or both. When trees are planted at
predetermined intervals along streets, spacing shall depend on tree
size, as follows:
|
Tree Size
(feet)
|
Planting Interval
(feet)
| |
|---|---|---|
|
Large trees (40+)
|
40 to 50
| |
|
Medium-sized trees (30 - 40)
|
30 to 40
| |
|
Small trees (to 30)
|
20 to 30
|
(2)
The trees shall be planted so as not to interfere
with utilities, roadways, sidewalks, sight easements, or street lights.
Tree location, landscaping design, and spacing plan shall be approved
by the Planning Board as part of the landscape plan.
B.
Tree type. Tree type may vary depending on overall
effect desired, but as a general rule, all trees shall be the same
general tree size on a street except to achieve special effects. Selection
of tree type shall be approved by the Planning Board.
C.
Planting specifications. All trees shall have a caliper
of 2 1/2 inches measured six inches from the butt and they shall
be Grade A nursery grown, of substantially uniform size and shape,
and have straight trunks. Trees shall be properly planted and staked
and provision made by the applicant for regular watering and maintenance
until they are established. Dead or dying trees shall be replaced
by the applicant for one year. No tree shall be planted less than
25 feet from an existing or proposed streetlight or street intersection.
A.
Function and materials. Buffering shall provide a
year-round visual screen in order to minimize adverse impacts from
a site on an adjacent property or from adjacent areas. It may consist
of fencing, evergreens, berms, boulders, mounds, or combinations thereof
to achieve the stated objectives.
B.
When required.
(1)
Buffering shall be required when topographical or
other barriers do not provide reasonable screening and when the Planning
Board determines that there is a need to shield the site from adjacent
properties and to minimize adverse impacts such as incompatible land
uses, noise, glaring light, and traffic. In small-lot developments,
when building design and siting do not provide privacy, the Planning
Board may require landscaping, fences, or walls to ensure privacy
and screen dwelling units.
(2)
Where required, buffers shall be measured from property
lines, excluding access driveways.
(a)
Where more-intensive land uses abut less-intensive
uses, a buffer strip of 25 feet shall be required. Buffer strips shall
be required along the property lines of commercial and industrial
uses which adjoin residential zone boundaries.
(b)
Parking areas, solid waste and recycling collection
and utility areas, and loading and unloading areas should be screened
around their perimeter by a buffer strip a minimum of five feet wide.
(c)
A landscaped buffer area shall be provided along
the rear property line of reverse frontage lots. The buffer strip
shall be a minimum of 25 feet where necessary for the health and safety
of the residents, and include both trees and shrubs.
(3)
Within any cluster development, including mini cluster
developments, the new dwellings shall be provided with a twenty-five-foot-wide
buffer, separating the residential lots from any portion of the remaining
lands, including open space, recreation areas and agricultural activities.
The buffer may consist of existing vegetation generally in its natural
condition, or the establishment of a planted buffer, the design of
which shall be approved by the municipal approving authority. Such
buffers, where deemed appropriate, may include fencing combined with
vegetation.
[Added 9-2-2004 by Ord. No. 15-2004]
C.
Design. Arrangement of plantings in buffers shall
provide maximum protection to adjacent properties and avoid damage
to existing plant material. Possible arrangements include planting
in parallel, serpentine, or broken rows. If planted berms are used,
the minimum top width shall be four feet, and the maximum side slope
shall be 2:1.
D.
Planting specifications. Plant materials shall be
sufficiently large and planted in such a fashion that a screen at
least eight feet in height shall be produced within three growing
seasons. All plantings shall be installed according to accepted horticultural
standards. Such strips shall be planted with evergreens and deciduous
trees as follows, subject to the approval or modification of the Planning
Board:
(1)
Evergreens spaced five feet in from outside line and
10 feet apart in a row; two parallel rows of staggered planting recommended.
(2)
Every 40 feet, a deciduous tree should be planted
in the center of the strip.
(3)
More than one type of evergreen species shall be planted.
(4)
More than one deciduous species may be used. All deciduous
trees should be of one-and-one-half-inch caliper and B.B. stock (balled
and burlapped).
(5)
Maintenance. Plantings shall be watered regularly
and in a manner appropriate for the specific plant species through
the first growing season; dead or dying plants shall be replaced by
the applicant within the period of one year after planting. No buildings,
structures, storage of materials, or parking shall be permitted within
the buffer area; buffer areas shall be maintained and kept free of
all debris and rubbish.
A.
Amount required.
(1)
In parking lots, at least 5% of the interior parking
area shall be landscaped with plantings, and two trees for each 10
spaces shall be installed. Parking lot street frontage screening and
perimeter screening shall be a minimum of five feet wide. Planting
required within the parking lot is exclusive of other planting requirements,
such as for street trees.
(2)
Parking areas or lots of over 60 spaces shall, where
possible, be subdivided into modular parking bays or lots of not greater
than 60 spaces each. A single row or line of spaces shall not be more
than 20 spaces in length. Parking bays should be separated from access
or circulation drives by five-foot-wide landscape buffer areas and
strips. Integrating pedestrian circulation into ten-foot-wide strips
should be considered.
(3)
Any parking area in a front yard or within clear view
from the public right-of-way or adjacent to a residential zone shall
be screened from view by a landscaped buffer area, including berms,
hedges, shrubbery or low walls of approximately four feet in height
in order to screen out the view of the parked cars.
(4)
Parking areas shall be screened from interior drives
using evergreen, deciduous, and flowering trees and shrubs to create
a continuous landscape strip of 10 feet minimum width. Consider integration
of pedestrian walkways within these strips.
(5)
Parking structures shall receive landscape treatment
which softens the bulk and scale of the structures and screens the
ground-level cars from public right-of-way and buildings. Deck-level
planting shall be treated similarly to a parking lot on grade.
B.
Location. The landscaping should be located in protected
areas, such as along walkways, in center islands, and at the end of
bays. All landscaping in parking areas and on the street frontage
shall be placed so that it will not obstruct sight distance.
C.
Plant type. A mixture of hardy flowering and/or decorative
evergreen and deciduous trees may be planted; the area between trees
shall be planted with shrubs or ground cover or covered with mulch.
Stormwater management areas include detention
basins, drainage ditches and swales, and wetlands areas. Sensitively
designed basins and swales can benefit the health, welfare, and safety
of residents. This may involve integration of these areas as aesthetic
landscape features, naturalized wetland areas, or active and passive
recreation areas, in addition to their stormwater management function.
A.
Stormwater detention basins. One of the following
landscape concepts, or an alternative concept complying with the standards
set forth above, shall be used:
(1)
Reforestation.
(a)
This landscape treatment is appropriate for
detention basins and drainage areas that are not highly visible or
are adjacent to areas of mature woodlands or wetlands. It reverts
the disturbed area to a revegetated, stable, low-maintenance, natural
landscape asset over time.
(b)
The area shall be graded creatively to blend
into the surrounding landscape and imitate a natural depression with
an irregular edge. This shall include gentle berming. Linear, geometric
basins are unacceptable.
(c)
The quantity of trees to be planted on the interior
of the basins shall be equal to the number of trees that would be
necessary to cover the entire area, based upon a twenty-foot-by-twenty-foot
grid to the high water line or outflow elevation. Of this number,
10% shall be two-and-one-half-inch to three-inch caliper, 20% shall
be one-inch to two-inch caliper, and 70% shall be six-foot- to eight-foot-high
whips.
(d)
The trees shall be planted in groves and spaced
five feet to 15 feet on center.
(e)
No trees shall be planted within the two-year
storm frequency elevation.
(f)
The ground plane shall be seeded with a naturalization,
wildflower, and/or meadow grass mix. The species indigenous to the
area and/or tolerant of typical wet/dry floodplain conditions.
(g)
Plantings shall not be located within 20 feet
of low flow channels or any other associated detention utilities to
allow for maintenance.
(h)
The perimeter area (slopes above the high water
line) shall include shade trees (approximately 80/1,000 linear feet),
evergreen trees (approximately 40/1,000 linear feet), ornamental trees,
and shrubs screening drainage structures and creating visual interests.
(i)
Provision for emergency access as well as general
maintenance of the basins shall be reviewed by the Township Engineer.
Plantings shall be designed to disguise yet not hinder vehicular access.
(j)
Plantings are not permitted upon any emergency
overflow berms associated with a detention basin unless approved by
the Township Engineer.
(2)
Recreation/open space feature.
(a)
This landscape concept is appropriate in situations
where a basin is the largest or only portion of open space in an area
or is adjacent to existing open space and recreational open space
is desired. It is also appropriate for smaller, highly visible basins
where a visually pleasing open area is desired.
(b)
The objective in these situations is to integrate
the area into the landscape using topography and plantings in order
to complement the function of the area and to provide a visually interesting
landscape feature and/or recreation space.
(c)
The area shall be graded creatively to blend
into the surrounding landscape and imitate a natural depression with
an irregular edge. This shall include gentle berming.
(d)
Provide perimeter plantings, including shade
trees, formally or informally, evergreen trees to create and screen
views, and small trees and shrubs to provide a continuous landscape
strip screening drainage structures and creating visual interest.
(e)
Integrate buffer plantings with perimeter plantings
where applicable.
(f)
The following are guidelines for plant quantities:
|
Type
|
Quantity
| |
|---|---|---|
|
Shade trees
|
80/1,000 linear feet
| |
|
Evergreen trees
|
40/1,000 linear feet
| |
|
Ornamental trees
|
10/1,000 linear feet
| |
|
Shrubs
|
50/1,000 linear feet
|
(g)
To provide recreational open space, concentrate
frequently flooded detention in a basin area (five- to ten-year storm
volume) and provide a gently sloping, less often flooded, area (ten-
to one-hundred-year storm volume) as a recreational open field space.
Provide ballfields and/or open play areas integrated with plantings
in a park-like manner.
B.
Stormwater retention basins.
(1)
This landscape treatment can take on a variety of
landscape forms, from formal reflecting pools and canals or entry
fountain features to natural park-like lakes and ravines.
(2)
Water fountains and features are encouraged in the
design of research, office and industrial parks.
[Amended by Ord. No. 98-11]
(3)
The water's edge shall be easily maintained and stable.
Possible treatments might include rip-rap, stone walls, natural plantings,
decking, and bulkheads.
(4)
The planting of the perimeter of the feature shall
accentuate views and interest and integrate pedestrian paths, sitting
areas, and other uses.
(5)
Plantings shall include formal or informally massed
deciduous and evergreen trees and shrubs to screen and frame views
with ornamental trees, shrubs, and grasses used for visual interest
or special effects. A continuous landscape area shall be provided.
(6)
If used as a recreational feature, the connection
to the water must be addressed and controlled. The types of uses shall
be specified, and the plantings and pedestrian spaces shall be integrated
with these uses.
(7)
Plants with pervasive root systems shall not be located
where they may cause damage to drainage pipes or other underground
utilities.
(8)
All engineered basin structures shall be designed
to blend into the landscape in terms of construction materials, color,
grading, and planting.
A.
Paving materials. Design and choice of paving materials
used in pedestrian areas shall consider the following factors: cost,
maintenance, use, climate, characteristics of users, appearance, availability,
glare, heat, drainage, noise, compatibility with surroundings, decorative
quality, and aesthetic appeal. Acceptable materials shall include,
but are not limited to, concrete, brick, cement pavers, asphalt and
stone.
B.
Walls and fences shall be erected where required for
privacy, screening, separation, security, or to serve other necessary
functions.
A.
Street furniture such as, but not limited to, trash
receptacles, benches, bike racks, phone booths, etc., shall be located
and sized in accordance with their functional need.
B.
Street furniture elements shall be compatible in form,
material, and finish. Style shall be coordinated with that of the
existing or proposed site architecture.
C.
Selection of street furniture shall consider durability,
maintenance, and long-term cost.
