(a) Purpose. The purposes of this section are to insure that adequate provision of transportation and other public requirements, the promotion of health, safety and the general welfare and the coordination of streets and other public facilities are considered in the development and use of property and that development and use of property are done in accordance with an adopted City of Asheville (herein "city"), transportation or corridor plan, including but not limited to such plans as the Transportation Improvement Program (TIP), greenway, neighborhood, small area, and pedestrian thoroughfare plans. The city council hereby incorporates by reference as if set forth in full herein the findings of the city's pedestrian thoroughfare plan and further finds and declares that the construction of sidewalks advances those interests of the city and, in order to accomplish those purposes, this section sets out requirements for the construction of sidewalks and, where a developer requests it and certain conditions exist, for the payment of a fee in lieu of the requirement for construction of sidewalks.
(b) Guidelines for requiring sidewalks. Sidewalks shall be required for all new construction and for renovations, additions and/or expansions to existing structures which fall into one or more of the following categories:
(1) All new single-family residential development which consists of 20 or more single-family homes (see "new development" explication below);
(2) AH new multi-family residential development, except for the construction of less than ten units (see "new development" explication below);
(3) All new office, institutional, commercial, and industrial development (see "new development" explication below);
(4) All existing office, institutional, commercial, and industrial development additions or expansions to structures where the expansion results in an increase of more than 75 percent value of the structure as defined in section 7-11-1 of this chapter.
(5) All new streets, improved streets or extension to streets.
"New development" shall be interpreted to include all new construction in addition to the use of a building or property where the use has, ceased for a period of more than 180 days. See also subsections 7-17-5(c) and 7-17-5(d) concerning "overcoming presumption of cessation of use". This does not include minor additions or expansions that do not meet the city's threshold standards identified in subsection (3) above.
(c) Additional conditions for requiring sidewalks. Notwithstanding (b) above, the following findings must be made prior to the city engineer/designee requiring the construction of a new sidewalk or a "fee in lieu of constructing a sidewalk for an applicable project. One or more of the following conditions must be met, as determined by the city engineer/designee.
(1) The applicable project area, including the street frontage, is identified as a needed pedestrian linkage within an adopted city transportation or corridor plan, including but not limited to such plans as the Transportation Improvement Program (TIP), greenway, neighborhood, small area, and pedestrian thoroughfare plans.
(2) The current or projected (within five years) average daily traffic count (ADT) for the street is 300 vehicles per day or more as determined by the city traffic engineer. Traffic generated from the applicable project or any additions to the applicable project will be included in calculating the ADT for this condition.
In the event that the sidewalk is not required, the developer must provide a recorded easement, if necessary, for the future development of the sidewalk. The developer wherever practical shall grade for the future development of a sidewalk.
(d) Public and private streets. Sidewalks shall be constructed along all public and private street frontages that meet the requirements of section 7-11-8(c) of the lot for which the development is proposed.
All sidewalks shall be constructed in accordance with the standards set forth in the city's Standard Specifications and Details Manual.
(e) Fee in lieu of construction. Where a new sidewalk is required to be constructed, a fee in lieu of that sidewalk may be paid if one or more of the following conditions apply:
(1) The sidewalk is proposed to be constructed within an existing right-of-way where sufficient right-of- way or easement width does not exist or cannot be dedicated to build the sidewalk without reducing existing transportation facilities such as travel lanes, on-street parking, bike lanes, and the adaptive reuse or preservation of an existing building or structure prevents extending the sidewalk onto private property. In these instances, compliance to the maximum extent practicable is required and a fee is paid for the balance of sidewalk not constructed.
(2) The sidewalk is a part of a publicly funded project that includes sidewalks and construction is scheduled to begin within two years of permitting. In this case, the developer would pay the fee based on the public agency's design.
(3) The total project costs are less than $100,000.00 and the cost of the construction of the sidewalk would exceed 15 percent of the total cost of the approved project.
(4) The traffic volumes on an existing road, including any added trips expected as a result of the project, do not exceed 500 vehicles per day and the required sidewalk is more than 1,320 feet (one-fourth mile) from an existing sidewalk, measured from the closest points along the road frontage.
(5) When the sidewalk would require the relocation of multiple public utility facilities or structures.
(6) The sidewalk would be located in a floodway and a no rise certification can not be obtained and a CLOMR cannot be approved without the requirement of purchasing additional affected properties.
(7) The sidewalk would require construction and/or grading to occur on adjacent property to connect to future sidewalk and where there is no right-of-way or easement available. In these instances, compliance to the maximum extent practicable is required and a fee is paid for the balance of sidewalk not constructed. Additionally, an easement sufficient to provide future connections shall be provided.
The fee shall be based on the amounts identified in the city's Fees and Charges Manual and may be prorated based on partial compliance. In no case shall the fee in lieu of constructing the sidewalk exceed 15 percent of the total cost of the approved project. The total cost of the project shall include all construction costs associated with the improvement as approved by the city.
In the event that a fee in lieu of constructing a sidewalk is approved, the developer must provide a recorded easement if necessary for the future development of the sidewalk. All fees shall be paid prior to the issuance of the zoning permit and shall not transfer to future projects on the same property.
The developer wherever practical shall grade for the future development of a sidewalk.
(f) Use of fees. All fees collected by the city pursuant to these provisions shall be accounted for separately from other monies, shall be expended only for the construction or rehabilitation of sidewalks or other pedestrian improvements in the city.
(Ord. No. 2664, § 1(a), 2-8-00; Ord. No. 2904, § 1(a), 3-12-02; Ord. No. 3417, § 1(e), 11-28-06; Ord. No. 3791, §§ 1c, d, 9-22-09; Ord. No. 3816, § 1, 12-15-09; Ord. No. 4424, § 1a, 6-9-15; Ord. No. 4361, § 1jj, 3-23-21)