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Every parcel of land hereinafter used as a public or private parking area shall be designed, developed and maintained in accordance with the following requirements. Such requirements shall be also subject to the landscaping requirements of § 1232.04: Landscaping Requirements.
(a) Screening.
(1) When a parking lot in a nonresidential district abuts a residential district along a shared lot line, either of the following must be provided:
A. A 20-foot-wide existing, wooded strip left in its natural state; or
B. A 15-foot-wide strip within which one or a combination of the following forms of screening shall be provided:
1. Dense vegetative planting, trees and/or shrubs of a variety which shall be equally effective year-round;
2. A landscaped mound or berm; or
3. An opaque wall or fence.
C. Such screening shall be a minimum of six feet in height, measured from the natural grade, except that the use of walls or fences in compliance with this section shall comply with any more restrictive fence regulations found elsewhere in these regulations.
D. Applicants may propose the use of a combination of the allowed forms of screening.
(2) For parking lots or segments of parking lots that are 20,000 square feet or more in area, a minimum of 5% of the gross area must be reserved for internal landscaping.
(b) Paving.
(1) Approved driveway materials in the residential districts shall be either portland cement concrete or bituminous asphaltic concrete. In the R-1D District, crushed gravel or an approved semi-rigid surface material, as approved by the Code Administrator, shall also be permitted. Blast furnace slag and crushed concrete are not approved driveway surfaces.
(2) Any off-street parking area and access drives in nonresidential districts shall be graded and surfaced with concrete or bituminous surface or with any surfacing equal to or superior to either of these types, as approved by the Code Administrator.
(3) Porous pavement is permitted for use in nonresidential zoning districts provided:
A. The porous pavement is utilized for only the parking spaces and no driveways or circulation aisles; and
B. The applicant shall submit a maintenance plan to the city in association with the porous pavement.
(4) Failure to comply with the maintenance plan shall be deemed a violation of this code.
(5) Grass paver systems are permitted for use as part of any public recreation area.
(c) Overhang of vehicles. An allowance of a two-foot overhang for vehicles may be counted as part of the parking space as long as it does not infringe upon any required landscape area or sidewalk.
(d) Lighting. Lighting shall be subject to the exterior lighting standards of § 1226.04: Outdoor Lighting.
(e) Space and directional arrow markings. Designated parking spaces shall be marked on the surface of the parking area with paint or permanent marking materials and maintained in a clearly visible condition. Unless modified by the Code Administrator, white shall be the standard color to delineate usable portions of off-street parking areas. One-way and two-way access ways into required parking facilities must be identified by directional arrows.
(f) Drainage. All required spaces, together with driveways and other circulation aisles, shall have adequate provision for drainage and for disposal of stormwater, so that water shall not flow onto adjoining property or adjacent sidewalks in a quantity or manner that would be detrimental thereto or inconvenient to persons using the sidewalk.
(g) Separation from public right-of-way. Except in residential zoning districts, all open off-street parking facilities located within a required front yard shall be separated from public sidewalks or the existing right-of-way by a landscaped area at least ten feet in width. This area shall be landscaped and maintained with a suitable combination of trees, shrubs, and ground cover. A minimum six-inch barrier curb shall be provided on the parking lot side of the required landscaped areas.
(h) Connection of adjoining parking areas. Planned open off-street parking facilities shall be required to provide interior access to planned or existing adjoining open off-street parking facilities and private roadways at property lines. All interior access between adjoining parking facilities and private roads shall be open to the public.
(i) Interior design and landscaping.
(1) All parts of open off-street parking facilities which are unusable, either for parking, circulation or loading, shall be landscaped and maintained with plantings of grass, flowers, shrubs, and at a minimum, one tree of at least 1% inch caliper or larger for every 12 parking spaces.
(2) In addition, the following planting, landscaping and interior design requirements shall be met.
A. Interior rows. For parking lots with interior rows, one tree shall be located at the ends of interior rows and one at each end of a perimeter row.
B. Distribution. Any remaining required trees shall be evenly distributed along the parking lot perimeter or in interior islands.
C. Maximum number required. Nothing in this section requires the planting of more trees than the number calculated using the 1:12 ratio established in division (i)(1) of this section.
D. Interior island. A curbed landscaped interior island is required for each 20 contiguous parking spaces in a parking row. The island must be three feet in width and the length of the adjoining spaces. If a tree is planted in the interior island the width must be four feet.
E. Interior end island. A three-foot wide curbed landscaped interior end island is required at the end of all interior rows. The length of the island must be equal to the depth of the adjoining parking spaces. If a tree is planted in the island area the width at the tree planting area must be four feet.
F. Interior mid-row island. For parking lots in excess of 40 spaces, a curbed landscaped interior mid-row island connecting the interior end islands must be provided having a minimum width of three feet. If a tree is planted in the interior mid-row island the width must be four feet.
G. Island design. All islands shall be designed for ease of vehicular movement.
Figure 1234-A: Common Components to Interior Landscaping.
(j) Ground cover. Ground cover must be installed appropriate to the surface conditions sufficient to prevent erosion and sedimentation of the area. See § 1232.04: Landscaping Requirements.
(k) Lighting and walkways. Lighting fixtures and walkways are permitted within all landscaped islands and perimeter areas.
(l) Interior curbs.
(1) All off-street parking spaces must include a barrier that shall be located at least two- and one-half feet from a fence, wall, walkway, or landscaped area to protect such areas from vehicle encroachment.
(2) Such barrier shall be designed to allow for positive drainage of stormwater and may include:
A. Six-inch tall continuous curbs that have scissor cuts or other breaks for positive drainage flow; or
B. Wheel stops with a minimum height of four and one-half inches.
(Ord. 21-161, passed 12-13-2021)
When bicycle or e-Scooter parking accommodations are provided on a site, they shall be located in an area adjacent to the primary building and separate from vehicular or pedestrian traffic circulation to prevent unnecessary conflicts and safety hazards between vehicles, people, bicycles and e-Scooters.
(Ord. 21-161, passed 12-13-2021)
(a) When products or services are proposed to be provided to the general public without requiring them to exit their motor vehicles, a vehicular circulation plan shall be submitted prior to issuing building permits in accordance with the following requirements:
(1) Commercial establishments, such as banks, drive-through restaurants, automatic car wash facilities and other similar facilities with service windows or service entrances, shall provide a minimum of ten waiting spaces, but not less than five spaces per window or entrance when there are two or more windows or entrances.
(2) Self-serve car wash facilities shall provide no fewer than two waiting spaces per stall.
(3) Gasoline stations shall provide no fewer than two waiting spaces per accessible side of a gasoline pump island.
(4) In any case, there shall be no credit given for spaces within the public right-of-way for vehicles waiting for service at drive-in or drive-thru facilities.
(b) The Code Administrator shall review the plan and determine that it does not:
(1) Constitute a threat to public safety either to vehicles or pedestrians; or
(2) Block access to and from the required parking spaces.
(Ord. 21-161, passed 12-13-2021)
(a) When required.
(1) In connection with every nonresidential building or part thereof having a gross floor area of 10,000 square feet or more, there shall be provided and maintained at least one off-street loading space.
(2) In addition, one additional such loading space for each 20,000 square feet of gross floor area so used in excess of 20,000 square feet.
(b) Each off-street loading space shall be not less than ten feet in width, 45 feet in length and 14 feet in height, unless waived by the Code Administrator for good cause shown.
(c) In the case of mixed uses, the total requirements for off-street loading facilities shall be the sum of the various uses computed separately.
(d) All loading areas shall be graded as necessary and improved with bituminous or portland cement, and shall be provided with adequate drainage per plans approved by the Code Administrator.
(e) Each loading space shall be served by direct access to a street, service drive or alley in a manner that will not interfere with traffic or parking lot circulation.
(f) Off-street loading areas shall be located on the same zoning lot as the specific use to be served
and shall not be located in any front yard or within 25 feet of any street right of way, except for areas used for the occasional drop-off or pick-up of goods by vans, step-vans or panel trucks.
(g) All operations, materials and vehicles in any loading space that are visible from public streets or from residential districts shall be screened. The screening material, upon installation, shall be at least six feet in height and 100% opaque.
(h) Exterior lighting shall be designed and maintained so that glare is not cast on adjacent properties, regardless of use, or on adjacent streets. All lighting structures shall be cut-off types which include shields or other devices which eliminate all light above an angle of 85 degrees, as measured from the vertical axis of the light source.
(Ord. 21-161, passed 12-13-2021)
(a) Public sidewalks.
(1) New public sidewalks, constructed to meet the city’s construction standards, shall be required along the street frontage of any lot being developed when the following conditions exist:
A. The development includes new construction on a vacant lot or complete redevelopment of an existing principal building (e.g., the principal building is torn down and replaced);
B. There is no public sidewalk along one or more of the public street rights-of-way adjacent to the lot; and
C. There is adequate existing right-of-way for the public sidewalk.
(2) All sidewalks shall be constructed in the same manner as public sidewalks in Chapter 1010 of the code of ordinances.
(b) Internal pedestrian connections.
(1) Where a sidewalk exists in a public right-of-way adjacent to the site, is required to be constructed as part of the development approval, or where a public transit stop is located along any of the applicable site’s frontage, a paved pedestrian connection shall be constructed from the sidewalk to the entrance of the building.
(2) The pedestrian connection shall have a minimum width of five feet.
(3) All pedestrian walkways located within a site (internal pedestrian circulation) shall be physically separated from the drive lanes and driveways. Additionally, all sidewalks and crosswalks shall be constructed of an impervious surface and shall be visually distinct from the driving surface by use of pavers, color, bricks, scored concrete, or other material approved by the Code Administrator or Planning Commission, as applicable. See Figure 1234-B.
Figure 1234-B: This photograph illustrates how a sidewalk connecting the public sidewalk to the business can be integrated into the required landscaping.
(Ord. 21-161, passed 12-13-2021)
(a) Intent. A traffic impact analysis (TIA) is intended to identify the transportation impacts which are likely to be generated by a proposed use and to identify improvements required to ensure safe ingress to and egress from a proposed development, maintenance of adequate street capacity, and elimination of hazardous conditions.
(b) Applicability. A TIA shall be required in the following cases:
(1) Any zoning map amendment application that seeks to rezone properties from R-1A, R-1B, R-1C or R-1D to an R-2 or R-3 Zoning District;
(2) Any application for a RPD development plan where there is a proposed density of four units per acre or more and the site is located adjacent to a R-1A, R-1B, R-1C, or R-D District;
(3) Any application for a MUO development plan; and
(4) Any site plan application that due to its size, density, traffic generation rates or location can reasonably be expected to create traffic issues, as determined by the City Engineer or engineering consultant(s) to the city, are required to submit a TIA.
(c) Contents of a TIA. The TIA shall be prepared and certified by a professional traffic engineer and shall include, at a minimum, the following data and information. Information and statistics required by this section may, when available, be obtained from the city.
(1) Study area.
A. Developments wishing to take access from a major thoroughfare (arterial street) shall provide an analysis of the traffic impact from the proposed point of access to the nearest signalized intersections in all directions, or up to a one-half-mile radius, whichever is less.
B. Developments wishing to take access from a collector street shall provide an analysis of the traffic impact from the proposed point of access to the nearest intersections of the collector with an arterial in all directions, or up to a one-half-mile radius, whichever is less.
C. Developments wishing to take access from a local street shall provide an analysis of the traffic impact from the proposed point of access to the nearest arterial streets in all directions, or up to a 0.25-mile radius, whichever is less.
(2) Existing conditions. The report shall contain information clearly describing, in written or graphic form, the existing and proposed conditions including:
A. The proposed land use of the site and anticipated stages of construction;
B. The existing street system including major intersections, ingress and egress locations, roadway and right-of-way widths, traffic signals and traffic control devices and public transportation facilities;
C. Any proposed changes in the street system; and
D. A 24-hour traffic count on all roadways which have direct access to the proposed development site and the existing average daily traffic volume and the highest average peak hour volume for any weekday hour between 3:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m.
(3) Development impact. The report shall include information on the average weekday trip generation rate (trip ends) and the highest average hourly weekday trip generation rate between 3:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m. for the proposed use as determined from figures provided by a qualified traffic engineer.
(4) Determination of the capacity of the roadway.
A. Data and procedures contained in the Highway Capacity Manual, Special Report 87, published by the National Highway Research Board, shall be utilized to calculate the level of service of roadways as required for this TIA. Roadway service volumes shall be calculated at level of service C for roads identified as arterials and at level of service D for roads identified as collectors.
B. All arterial roadways operating below level of service C (inclusive of levels D, E and F) shall be identified as congested locations. All collector roadways operating below level of service D (inclusive of levels E and F) shall be identified as congested locations.
(5) Determination of the capacity of intersections.
A. A load-factor analysis shall be conducted for one 24-hour period on a weekday on all intersections within the study area. The highest average hourly load factor between 3:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m. shall also be recorded. A maximum load factor of 3/10 is operating below level of service C (inclusive of levels D, E, and F) and shall be identified as congested locations.
B. A maximum load factor of 7/10 will be allowed for intersections involving two collector roads. All such intersections with a load factor greater than 7/10 are operating below level of service D (levels E and F) and shall be identified as congested locations.
C. To determine intersection capacity at levels of service C and D, Figure 6.8 and Tables 6.4, 6.5, and 6.6 of the Highway Capacity Manual shall be consulted or any other applicable figures or tables as determined by the City Engineer or engineering consultant(s) to the city.
(6) Conclusions. The projected total future peak hour traffic demand shall be calculated for all roads fronting on a proposed site and all intersections within the study area. This demand shall consist of an assumed normal increase of traffic volume of 2% per year (or the Northeast Ohio Areawide Coordinating Agency (NOACA) projections, whichever is less) and the anticipated traffic that will be generated by the proposed development. An analysis shall be undertaken to determine if roadways and intersections will operate at the appropriate level of service following completion of the development, given the future peak hour traffic that will be generated by the proposed development. This analysis consists of the comparison of the total future peak hour intersection and roadway traffic demand with the service volumes for levels C and D computed in division (c)(4) and(c)(5) of this section. All roadways and intersections that would operate below the required level of service following completion of the development shall be considered deficient.
(d) Mitigating traffic impacts. If the TIA results in the conclusion that the level of service of adjacent roadways and/or intersections is or will become deficient prior to the proposed development and will not be able to accommodate the increased traffic load generated by the proposed development, any or all of the following mitigating steps may be required, at the developer’s expense, by the City Engineer or engineering consultant(s) to the city. The City Engineer or engineering consultant(s) to the city shall make their determination prior to approval of a RPD development plan, MUO development plan, site plan, or zoning permit, whichever is applicable.
(1) Limitation of the number and/or location of access points;
(2) Design of access points to prevent certain turn movements;
(3) Dedication of and/or improvement to the right-of-way abutting the development of improvements in the immediate vicinity of the development to add turn lane, through traffic lanes or allow redesign of intersections or access points to accommodate additional traffic or turning movements;
(4) Installation of traffic signals or other traffic control devices as may be warranted by the Uniform Traffic Control Manual; and/or
(5) Development of the site at a lower intensity than originally proposed.
(e) Responsibility for thoroughfare improvements. In cases in which a proposed street or right-of-way, as shown on a plan adopted by the city, abuts or crosses the proposed development, the subdivider shall be responsible for all required public improvements, including the construction of the right-of-way as delineated by such plan. Certain public improvements may be waived on review and approval by the Planning Commission; however, right-of-way dedication shall be required in all cases.
(Ord. 21-161, passed 12-13-2021; Ord. 24-33, passed 3-25-2024)