Development design within this district should
place emphasis on the layout of the streets, the building of a variety
of housing types with smaller front yards, the appearance of clearly
defined streetscapes and orientation to the existing village center.
In design terms, traditional communities are characterized by mixed
land uses; grid street patterns; emphasis on pedestrian circulation;
intensively used open spaces; architectural character; and a sense
of community. This zone is to provide for a mixture of residential
types with certain provisions for commercial activities to serve primarily
a resident population. This zone is particularly pedestrian-oriented
and is related to the more intensive uses of a town center, although
the commercial activities are of a scale that is less intensive than
those permitted in the commercial zones.
A. Design objectives are as follows:
(1) Dwellings, shops and workplaces generally located
in close proximity to each other; the scale of which accommodates
and promotes pedestrian travel for trips within the Town.
(2) Modestly sized buildings fronting on, and aligned
with, streets in a disciplined manner, uninterrupted by parking lots.
(3) A generally rectilinear pattern of streets, alleys
and blocks reflecting the street network of the existing Town which
provides for a balanced mix of pedestrians and automobiles.
(4) Squares, greens, landscaped streets and parks woven
into the street and block patterns to provide space for social activity,
parks and visual enjoyment.
(5) Promotion of civic buildings for assembly or other
civic purposes.
(6) A recognizable, functionally diverse, visually unified
town center, focused on a village green or square.
(7) A development size and scale which accommodates and
promotes pedestrian travel rather than vehicle trips within the Town.
B. Multifamily units, including duplexes, townhouses, and apartments, shall represent no more than 20% of the total number of residential units permitted in a mixed use planned development unless the open space provided for in §
155-21C is at least 50% of the total area of the development, in which case multifamily units shall represent no more than 35% of the total number of residential units permitted in the development. The density of development for those portions of the site proposed for multifamily use shall not exceed 10 units per acre. In an area where townhouses are proposed, unless such is waived by the Planning and Zoning Commission, there shall be no more than five townhouse units in any contiguous group, and a variety of building setbacks, color, building materials and facades shall be provided for each contiguous group.
[Amended 8-10-2020 by Ord. No. 203]
C. Each planned unit development shall provide for visual
and acoustical privacy of each dwelling unit. Fences, walks and landscaping
shall be provided for the protection and aesthetic enhancement of
property and the privacy of its occupants, screening of objectionable
views or uses and the reduction of noise.
D. Parking shall be provided convenient to all dwelling units (maximum walking distance of 150 feet) and, for all uses, meeting the minimum requirements of Article
XI. Driveways, parking areas, walks and steps shall be well paved, maintained and lighted for night use. Screening of parking and service areas shall be encouraged through ample use of trees, shrubs, hedges and screening walls.
E. Access and circulation shall adequately provide for
fire-fighting equipment, furniture moving vans, fuel trucks, refuse
collection, deliveries and snow removal.
F. All planned unit developments shall provide for underground
installation of utilities, including telephone and power in both public
and private rights-of-way. Provision shall be made for acceptable
design and construction of storm sewer facilities, including grading
gutters, piping and treatment of turns to handle stormwaters, prevent
erosion and formation of dust.
G. A variety of open space and recreational areas is
encouraged, including children's informal play in close proximity
to individual dwelling units according to the concentration of dwellings,
formal parks, picnic areas, playgrounds, areas of formal recreation
activity (such as tennis courts), scenic open areas and communal recreational
facilities (such as swimming pools).
H. Sidewalks shall be provided along both sides of all
streets unless the Planning and Zoning Commission determines, in certain
locations, that circumstances do not warrant sidewalk sections. The
pedestrian circulation system and its related walkways shall be insulated
as completely as possible from the street system in order to provide
separation of pedestrian and vehicular movements. This shall include,
when deemed to be necessary by the Planning and Zoning Commission,
pedestrian underpasses or overpasses in the vicinity of schools, playgrounds,
local shopping areas and other neighborhood uses which generate a
considerable amount of pedestrian traffic.
[Amended 5-9-2011 by Ord. No. 149]
I. Street lights shall be provided and shall not exceed
18 feet in height and be placed at no more than seventy-five-foot
intervals on both sides of the street.
J. Fences, four feet in height or less, are permitted
in front yards. Frontage fences should be designed to take into account
the amenity of the street, surveillance and safety, the security of
children and pets and property, and the use of front landscape space.
K. Residential units proposed on all single-family lots
shall be located at the "build-to" line, which shall be established
by the developer and which shall be located between 15 and 25 feet
from the front lot line.
L. When proposed, a front porch shall be placed on the
build-to line of the front yard of all lots proposed for single-family
use. A front porch shall have a minimum depth of seven feet and a
minimum width of 14 feet. In addition to providing for the continuance
of the predominant architectural style of existing neighborhoods in
Leonardtown, the front porch is intended to provide cover and shade
as well as a change in the scale of a building in order to serve as
a transition from the height of the dwelling to the front yard, sidewalk,
and street.
M. A minimum of 80% of all buildings on a block shall
conform to the build-to line, with the remaining 20% allowed to vary
by being further set back or permitted to come forward no greater
than 25% of the distance between the right-of-way and the build-to
line for residential structures.
N. The Mayor and Council may modify the strict application
of these standards where it is felt that such would further the objectives
of the planned unit development, except it may not grant a variance
in the total number of units permitted or the maximum percentage of
multiple-family units.
O. Site planning for commercial uses: internal relationships.
Commercial buildings shall be so grouped in relation to parking areas
that after customers arriving by automobile enter the shopping center,
establishments can be visited with a minimum of internal automotive
movement. Facilities and access routes for deliveries, servicing and
maintenance shall, so far as reasonably practicable, be separated
from customer access routes and parking areas. Areas where deliveries
to customers in automobiles are to be made or where services are to
be provided for automobiles shall be so located and arranged as to
prevent interference with pedestrian traffic within the center.
(1) Sites should be developed in a coordinated manner
to complement adjacent structures through placement, architecture
and size or mass. Where possible, commercial uses requiring floor
areas in excess of 10,000 square feet should be designed to appear
as several distinct, albeit attached, structures, each with a floor
area no greater than 6,000 square feet to reduce the visual impact
of a single larger building mass in keeping with the scale of existing
structures in Leonardtown.
(2) Whenever possible, commercial buildings on the same
site should be clustered and incorporate plazas, courtyards, pocket
parks, and other pedestrian use areas.
(3) Sites occupied by commercial uses should be designed
to avoid the appearance of domination by automobiles. Positive methods
to achieve this guideline include:
(a)
Orienting buildings to fronting streets and
placing some of the parking at the rear and/or sides;
(b)
Designing the required parking area into a series
of smaller, discrete, connected lots rather than a large uninterrupted
parking lot(s);
(c)
Providing sidewalks and well-defined pedestrian
walkways through parking areas and from public sidewalks into the
site. Well-defined walkways utilize pavers, changes in color, texture,
and composition of paving materials and vertical plantings such as
trees and shrubs. The minimum width of walkways should be five feet.
[Amended 5-9-2011 by Ord. No. 149]
(d)
Parking areas should be designed to be partially
screened from view from adjacent streets and building occupants.
[1]
Screening can be accomplished through a number
of methods, including:
[a] Orienting buildings away from parking
areas;
[b] Placing buildings between streets
and parking lots/areas;
[c] Using extensive landscape screening,
berms, and architecturally treated walls.
[2]
Methods utilized should be designed to accomplish
the intended screening while allowing adequate safety and surveillance
of the parking areas.
P. Building design for commercial uses.
(1) Buildings should reflect an individual design that
has considered site location, conditions, intended use, and the character/building
mass of surrounding development. Building designs should reflect an
individual style and form and not merely current trends.
(2) A consistent visual identity should be applied to
all sides of buildings visible to the general public. All sides should
have an equivalent level of quality of materials, detailing and window
placement. Abrupt ending of architectural details should be avoided
with no radical change in details, features or materials.
(3) Large buildings should avoid long, blank, uninterrupted
walls. Positive methods to achieve this objective include building
wall offsets regarding modulation, changes in colors and materials,
placement of windows and doors, use of porches, porticos or canopies,
changes in floor level, and projections that provide building shadows
that visually break up long, flat building facades.
(4) Large buildings should avoid long, blank, uninterrupted
roof planes. Positive methods to achieve this objective include height
variations to give the appearance of distinct elements or offsets
in the roof line to provide architectural interest and variety to
the massing of the building and to relieve the effect of a single,
long roof.
(5) Large buildings should use modulation (defined as
a measured setback or offset in a building face) to reduce overall
bulk and mass. The planes of exterior walls should not run in one
continuous direction more than 50 to 60 feet without an offset or
setback. Offsets should be a minimum of three to five feet.
(6) Large buildings should use articulation in a clear
rhythm to reduce their perceived size. Articulation is the giving
of emphasis to architectural elements (like windows, entries, balconies,
etc.) that create a complementary pattern of rhythm, dividing large
buildings into smaller identifiable pieces. Articulation in the form
of doors, windows and other framed building openings that articulate
architectural elements break up the look of a long, blank wall.
(7) Buildings facing streets should incorporate pedestrian-scaled
entrances. Pedestrian-scaled entrances are those that provide an expression
of human activity or use in relation to building size. Doors, windows,
entrances and other features should be designed to respond to the
size of the human body and not give the appearance of anonymity or
overwhelming the building's users.
(8) Building design should incorporate traditional building
materials such as masonry, stone, heavy timbers, brick or other natural-appearing
materials.
(9) Building colors should accent, blend with, or complement
surroundings. Bright or brilliant colors should be reserved for trim
and accents.
(10)
Outdoor storage areas, mechanical equipment
and trash receptacles should not be visible from adjacent streets
and pedestrian walkways. The method of screening such areas from view
should be architecturally integrated with the building with respect
to materials, shape and size.
(11)
Materials used for site features such as fences,
screen walls, and signs should be appropriate to the zone district
where the development is located and should complement building design
through materials, color, shape and size.
Q. Any project or development consisting of 50 or more dwelling units,
such as large-scale multiple-family dwellings, shall provide recreational
space for the private use of its residents. Recreational space includes,
but is not limited to, the following:
[Added 1-13-2014 by Ord.
No. 160]
(1) Indoor space, such as:
(c)
A common community room, which shall contain a kitchen and a
bathroom;
(2) Outdoor space, such as:
(c)
A tennis or basketball court; or
(3) Other indoor or outdoor recreational space, with consideration given
to the average age of the majority of residents anticipated to reside
in the project or development.