(A) Purpose and intent. The Northeast Corridor (NEC) Overlay District (defined as a set of zoning requirements, described in the text, mapped, and imposed in addition to those of the underlying district) provides additional requirements along the Northeast Corridor which are designed to promote, preserve, and protect the health, safety, and welfare of residents and property owners, enhance the aesthetics of subsequent development, and move vehicular traffic around the City of Albemarle. These provisions are based, in part, on the following findings:
(1) Corridor development should not detract from development opportunities downtown;
(2) The standards will encourage new buildings, promote landscaping intended to beautify the corridor, and add a source of pride to the community's development efforts; and
(3) The standards will help to ensure that travelers and residents who use this corridor will find the view aesthetically pleasing while enjoying minimal traffic disruptions, note the added landscaping helps beautify the corridor, and appreciate the tree preservation efforts in conjunction with development, all in an effort to promote neighborhood pride.
(B) The Northeast Corridor Area.
(1) Existing development. Existing single-family homes with access to the NEC are exempt from these regulations; moreover, expansions and reconstruction after demolition or destruction of residential uses are also exempt. Expansions and reconstruction after demolition or destruction of any other uses with comparable access must comply with the standards.
(2) New development.
(a) All new development shall submit site plans, landscaping plans, and buildings plans for review by the Staff Review Committee prior to being forwarded for a recommendation by the Albemarle Planning Board and approval by the City Council. The Staff Review Committee will evaluate the design of new structures in terms of the degree to which they enhance the attractiveness of development and preserve the view along the corridor. Particular attention shall be paid to projects proposed in heavily wooded existing areas to ensure that subsequent development is compatible with tree preservation efforts.
(b) Projects that lie within the corridor, that are more than 200 feet from the corridor centerline, and are provided with access from properties to the rear of the proposal are exempt from these provisions. Projects that lie within the corridor, are less than 200 feet from the corridor centerline, and are provided with access from properties to the rear of the proposal shall come under these provisions. Projects that lie within the corridor, have some portion of the development within 200 feet of the corridor centerline and the remainder beyond 200 feet, and are provided access to the corridor, shall come under these provisions.
(3) Permitted uses.
(a) Permitted uses in the underlying R-10 General Residential District are allowed. However, potential new individually sited single-family residential development with possible access to the corridor is strongly encouraged to consider the merits of only one entrance/exit way (i.e., a modest sized subdivision) so as to control the number of curb cuts along the corridor and thus contribute to the unimpeded movement of traffic. Otherwise, single-family residential development is exempt. More intensive development, as in the possible rezoning to N-S Neighborhood Shopping District (available to the developer with certain developmental intentions) is required to meet minimum acreage requirements to create a campuslike development with access unavailable off the corridor. Property owners contemplating property development near an existing or possible intersection of the NEC are encouraged to consolidate landholdings to quality for the N-S (Neighborhood Shopping) zoning classification.
(b) Permitted uses in the underlying HI and LI Districts are allowed. However, due to the nature of this type of development, the Staff Review Committee may make any reasonable departure recommendations from this section to the Planning Board.
(4) Special uses. The following special uses are permitted when authorized by the City Council after the Council holds a public hearing: The special uses allowed the underlying R-4 High Density Residential Districts.
(5) Architectural design.
(a) Building scale. Buildings shall promote the following architectural characteristics:
1. Display windows on ground level;
2. The use of cornice canopies, balconies, and arcades to delineate between the ground level and upper levels; and
3. Medium sized buildings to be broken into smaller scale components at the ground level.
(b) Building materials. Brick, wood, stone or substantially complementary materials; shingles are the preferred roofing materials;
(c) Roofs. New construction shall have sloped or pitched roofs. The roof shape may be gable, hip, gambrel, or mansard. Flat roofs are prohibited.
(d) The front facade. It shall enhance the pedestrian environment and scale by use of features as porches, columns, and cornices. Solid walls and blank exteriors are prohibited.
(e) Windows. Reflective glass and band windows are prohibited. The sidewalls of buildings on corner lots shall have windows similar to the front facade.
(f) Maximum building height. Two and a half (two 1/2) stories except for churches, which must comply with the underlying district requirements.
(g) Entrances. The main entrances to all buildings shall be oriented to the street frontage. Where impractical, the front facade is expected to be "welcoming" in appearance, i.e., attractive windows, canopies, awnings, cornices, and other architectural details. Solid walls and blank exteriors are prohibited.
(h) Color. The predominant color of the building shall be of a tone which is compatible with surrounding buildings. Earth tones are encouraged and bright colors shall only be used as accents to the overall buildings, unless the company theme utilizes contrasting colors.
(5) Landscape features and exterior structures.
(a) Exterior improvements. Features such as decorative fences, utilities, outdoor furniture, signs, and displays shall be compatible with the mass and scale of such other improvements elsewhere in the area. Chain link fences are expressly prohibited except where adequately screened.
(b) Service areas and utilities. Service areas are to be to the rear or side of buildings in a visually unobtrusive location and are to be appropriately screened by decorative fencing, walls, or landscape materials.
(c) Parking. All parking must be located to the side or rear of buildings. The NEC shall be considered as the "front" for where such is oriented toward the corridor; otherwise, development far enough off the NEC shall be considered to "front" on another street. For landscaping, see City of Albemarle's Landscaping of Parking Lots ordinance.
(d) Utilities. All service lines to new structures shall be placed underground except where prohibited by the utility provider. Should that be the case, every effort will be made to have the service lines placed along the rear of the buildings so as to minimize their visual impact.
(e) Signs prohibited:
1. Exterior neon signs;
2. Off-premises signs; and
3. Flashing or moving message signs.
(f) Neighborhood shopping district restrictions:
1. Only one shopping center identification sign, not to exceed 200 square feet (on which the names of all businesses within are placed) is permitted; the sign height (from ground level to the upper most dimension), shall not exceed 15 feet;
2. Only one of the following signs is permitted for each tenant per each exposed wall, awning, projecting, or wall;
3. Total face of wall sign area shall not exceed 125% of the area of the copy area; and
4. The material and design of a sign shall be in keeping with the character of the principal use of the site.
(g) Driveway connections. Where practicable, shared driveway connections to new residential and commercial properties along the NEC with cross access agreements are encouraged. When, in the subsequent purchase of lots along the NEC, two or more contiguous lots are created, accessibility shall be provided by one curb cut. Any subsequent sale of a portion of the tract shall encompass a shared driveway. Note: This is intended to ensure that due diligence will be paid to the desired standard of 500 feet between new curb cuts.
(h) Stub street connections to adjacent properties may be required.
(i) Lighting. Free standing exterior lights, higher than 12 feet in height shall be of the "shoe box" type or otherwise shielded to eliminate direct glare to adjacent properties.
(j) Parking lots. All offstreet parking lots shall be graded and drained so as to dispose of all surface water accumulated within the area, in accordance with the design standards of the City of Albemarle Engineering Department. For landscaping requirements, see the City of Albemarle's Landscaping of Parking Lots ordinance.
(k) Building setbacks. Applicable properties within the corridor overlay zone that are under the NS District provisions must maintain front building setbacks equal to or greater than ten feet; all other setbacks are the same as the underlying zoning district.
(l) Acceleration and deceleration lanes. Depending upon the size of the project and its expected impact upon traffic flow along the corridor, the Staff Review Committee may require of the developer the addition of a deceleration lane approaching the project and/or an acceleration lane leaving.
(6) Tree preservation and care during construction.
(a) Existing trees shall be preserved whenever feasible. Prior to any clearing of the property, a grading permit must be obtained from the Enforcement Officer. A tree preservation plan (required to be submitted by the developer prior to grading of the site and reviewed by the Staff Review Committee) must show that there will be no disturbance in the Critical Root Zone (CRZ). A disturbance is considered trenching, placing backfill in the CRZ, driving or parking equipment in the CRZ, and dumping of trash, oil, paint or other materials detrimental to plant health in close proximity of the tree(s). When selecting which trees to preserve, the following shall be considered: existing and proposed grading; age, condition, and type of tree; and location of site improvements and utility connections. Minimum size requirement to qualify for tree preservation is four inches in diameter at breast height (DBH).
(b) Should any tree designated for preservation in the tree preservation plan which is removed without a tree removal permit or which dies at anytime after approval of the plan or issuance of a Certificate of Occupancy, the owner shall replace the removed tree(s) 60 days, in accordance with the schedule below. In the event of a restricted site, the owner shall request review by the Staff Review Committee as to the most appropriate action to take.
1. Trunk Size:
Trunk Size of Removed Tree (in inches) | Number of Replacement Trees | Trunk Size of Replacement Tree at DBH |
4-9 | 3 | 2 1/2" |
10-15 | 5 | 2 1/2" |
16-21 | 7 | 2 1/2" |
22-27 | 9 | 2 1/2" |
28-33 | 11 | 2 1/2" |
34+ | 13 | 2 1/2" |
2. Replacement trees. Replacement trees shall be healthy and of a quality and species approved by the Department of Public Works and planted in accordance with accepted landscaping practice or in accordance with planting guidelines adopted by the city from time to time. A list of approved species of trees shall be kept and made available by the Department of Public Works.
(c) Failure to replace trees.
1. If replacement trees are not planted within 60 days after the removal of a tree without a permit, or in violation of a permit, the city may, at its option, replace the trees. All costs associated with purchasing and planting the replacement trees shall be charged to the owner or other person or entity causing the unpermitted removal of the tree. Any such charge to a property owner which remains unpaid 60 days after the invoice date shall constitute a lien against the property, which may be recorded and foreclosed in accordance with standard procedures;
2. In addition to the replacement requirements above, for each tree which is preservable or designated for preservation which is removed without, or in violation of a tree removal permit, the person or entity removing the tree shall pay compensation to the city in the amount of the assessed value of the tree. If the property owner replaces the tree, the assessed value payment, shall be reduced by the costs associated with replacing the tree. The money shall be used by the city to plant trees on parkways or elsewhere within the city; and
3. In addition to providing or paying for trees, violators of this section may be fined up to $500 for each tree removed without, or in violation of, a permit or preservation plan.
(d) Fees. A fee to be established by the City Council shall be charged for each tree removal permit to cover the cost of staff review and prior identification. A single permit may authorize the removal of more than one tree, but shall only apply to a single parcel of land.
(7) Landscaping and design standards for street yards.
(a) A street yard consists of the buffer area parallel to the NEC designed to provide continuity of vegetation along the right-of-way and to soften the impact of development by providing a pleasing view from the road. The planting of trees within this yard shall be the responsibility of the property owner.
(b) Street yards shall have a depth of 30 feet from the NEC R-O-W.
(c) Street yards shall contain one shade tree/35 linear feet or one ornamental tree/25 linear feet, except in the case of a conflict with utility lines. These trees shall be generally equally distributed along the street frontage, but they are not required to be at absolute equal intervals. This will allow for some flexibility in design while discouraging long intervals without trees.
(d) Shrubbery may be planted in clusters where trees are not practical.
(e) Not more than 20% of the street yard may be used for walkways.
(f) Parking, merchandise display and off-street loading are prohibited in the street yard.
(g) No tree or shrub shall be planted within the sight triangle without the prior approval of the City Engineering Division.
(8) Site plan submittal requirements. In order for a plan to be reviewed, a site plan at no greater than 1" = 20' scale, containing the following information must be submitted to the Staff Review Committee:
(a) General location, type, and quantity of existing plant materials;
(b) Existing plant materials and areas to be left in natural state;
(c) Methods and details for protecting existing plant materials during construction and the approved erosion control plan, if required;
(d) Locations, size and labels for all proposed plants;
(e) Plants lists with common name, quantity, and spacing and size of all proposed landscape material at the time of planting;
(f) Location and description of other landscape improvements, such as earth berms, walls, fences, screens, sculptures, fountains, street furniture, lights, and courtyards or paved areas;
(g) Planting and installation details as necessary to ensure conformance with all required standards;
(h) Location and type of irrigation system, if applicable;
(i) Location of any proposed buildings;
(j) Layout of parking and traffic patterns;
(k) Location of overhead and underground utilities;
(l) Location of signage;
(m) Connections to exiting streets;
(n) Zoning designation of adjacent properties; and
(o) Site plan shall be drawn to scale and include a North arrow and necessary interpretive legends.
(9) Landscaping definitions. The following definitions shall apply to the regulation and control of landscaping within this article:
(a) Caliper. A standard trunk diameter measurement for nursery grown trees taken six inches above the ground up to and including four inch caliper size, and 12 inches above the ground for larger sizes.
(b) Critical root zone (crz). A circular region measured outward from a tree trunk representing the essential area of the roots that must be maintained in order for the tree's survival. The critical root zone is one foot of radial distance for every inch of tree DBH, with a minim of eight feet.
(c) DBH. Diameter-at-breast height is the tree trunk diameter measured in inches at a height of four and one-half feet above the ground.
(d) Deciduous. Those plants that annually lose their leaves.
(e) Drip line. A vertical line extending from the outermost edge of the tree canopy or shrub branch to the ground.
(f) Landscaping. The process or product of site development including grading, installation of plant materials, and seeding of turf.
(g) Ornamental tree. A small to medium tree, growing 15 to 40 feet in height at maturity, that is planted for aesthetic purposes such as colorful flowers, interesting bark, or fall foliage.
(h) Planting area. The area prepared for the purpose of accommodating the planting of trees, shrubs, and goundcovers.
(i) Planting yard. The required installation of landscaping and screening material between zoning district and sometimes individual uses.
(j) Shade tree. A large tree growing to over 40 feet in height at maturity, usually deciduous, that is planted to provide canopy cover shade.
(k) Staff Review Committee. A committee consisting of a minimum of three staff members, designated by the City Manager, to review and approve plans submitted for alternate methods of compliance.
(l) Street tree. A tree planted along the street behind the right-of-way.
(m) Street yard. A buffer area parallel to the NEC designed to provide continuity of vegetation along the right-of-way and to soften the impact of development by providing a pleasing view from the road.
(10) Landscape standards and specifications.
(a) The developer shall furnish and install all plant materials listed on the plan schedule.
(b) Plant materials shall conform to the requirements described in the latest edition of American Standard for Nursery Stock, which is published by the American Association of Nurserymen.
(c) Plant materials must be from an approved species list or approved by the City of Albemarle Director of Public Works or his designee.
(d) Shade trees must be a minimum of two inches in caliper. Ornamental trees must be a minimum of six feet in height at the time of planting (six feet from top of root ball to top of tree).
(e) No tree may be planted in the sight triangle without the prior approval of the Director of Public Works.
(f) Do not use staking materials unless it is absolutely necessary. If staking is necessary, then the developer/property owner must remove the staking material after one growing season.
(g) Property owners will ensure the survival and health of required trees in perpetuity. If any plant material dies, it must be replaced by the property owner within 60 days. The City of Albemarle Director of Public Works or his designee may be consulted to determine the proper time to move and install plant material so that stress to the plant is minimized. A temporary Certificate of Occupancy may be issued when extremes in weather or soil conditions are not favorable to landscaping.
(h) The developer shall ensure that all plant pits, vine pits, hedge trenches, and shrub beds are excavated as follows:
1. All pits shall be generally circular in outline, with vertical sides. The tree pit shall be deep enough to allow one-eighth of the ball to be above existing grade. Soil within the planting areas shall be free of rock, debris, inorganic compositions and chemical residues detrimental to plant life. Soil shall be compatible with the composition of the existing sub-soil and sufficiently blended to ensure adequate exchange of air and water between the planting area and the adjacent soil strata. Plants shall rest on well-compacted surface. The tree pit shall be a minimum of nine inches larger on every side than the ball of the tree; and
2. If areas are designated as shrub beds or hedge trenches, they shall be cultivated to at least 18 inches in depth. Areas designated for ground covers and vines shall be cultivated to at least 12 inches in depth.
(i) Each tree, shrub, or vine shall be pruned in an appropriate manner, in accordance with accepted standard practice.
(j) All trenches and shrub beds shall be edged and cultivated to the lines shown on the drawings. The areas around isolated plants shall be edged and cultivated to the fall diameter of the pit.
(k) Existing trees shall be preserved whenever possible.
(l) All planting areas shall be mulched with a two-to-three inch layer of bark, pine needles or other similar material to cover the complete planting area.
(11) Overlay boundary. Being the area lying within the corporate limits of the City of Albemarle,
(a) Bounded on the north side and on the south side by lines measuring the lesser distance of 400 feet or the rear lot line of the parcels of land abutting on the north side and abutting on the south side of the Northeast Connector, of the centerline herein below described; and
(b) Bounded at the beginning point and at the ending point by lines perpendicular to the center line and intersecting the north boundary and the south boundary at a right angle, said center line being described as follows:
Beginning at a point 539.02 feet east of the point of intersection of the center line of U.S. Highway 52 North with the center line of the Northeast Connector and runs eastwardly with the centerline of the Northeast Connector to the point of intersection of the aforesaid center and the Badin Road in the City of Albemarle (See a copy of the Official Zoning Map of the City of Albemarle).
(Ord. 99-43, passed 9-7-99; Am. Ord. 02-01, passed 1-22-02; Am. Ord. 06-08, passed 4-3-06; Am. Ord. 21-02, passed 1-19-21; Am. Ord. 21-26, passed 7-12-21)