A. General. All circulation systems and parking facilities within a proposed development shall be designed and located in such a manner as to comply with the following:
1. Movement. A clearly defined vehicular circulation system shall be provided which allows free movement within the proposed development while discouraging excessive speeds. Vehicular circulation systems shall be separated as much as practicable from pedestrian circulation systems. Off-street parking facilities and other vehicular use areas shall be integrated with surrounding structures and with the building or group of buildings for which they serve.
2. Points of Access. Access points to peripheral streets shall be provided which adequately serve the proposed development and which are compatible and functional with circulation systems outside the development.
3. Through Traffic. Whenever possible in proposed residential developments, living units should be located on residential streets or courts which are designed to discourage non-local through traffic.
4. Storage Demand. Off-street parking areas shall be provided which adequately accommodate maximum vehicle storage demands for the proposed development and are located and designed in such a manner so as to serve the uses in the proposed development and not create incompatible visual relationships.
5. Emergency and Service Vehicles.
a. Safe and efficient access to all areas of the proposed development shall be provided for emergency and service vehicles.
b. All proposed developments, regardless of size, shall be designed, and located in such a manner as to ensure the adequate provision of fire and police protection.
6. Sidewalks. Sidewalks shall be provided as required by the city regulations.
7. Compliance.
a. Conformance with the city and county thoroughfare plans is required.
b. Compliance with the Palm Beach County Traffic Performance Standards is required.
B. Off-Street Parking and Vehicular Use Areas.
1. General. All proposed off-street parking areas shall conform to the design and layout requirements contained herein and the current edition of the Engineering Design Handbook and Construction Standards. Off-street parking areas shall be approved according to the procedures contained in the land development permit (see Chapter 2, Article III, Section 3). A certificate of occupancy for a structure or premises shall not be issued until the required parking area has been inspected and approved by the City Engineer or designee.
2. Required Surface. All areas proposed for parking and/or loading shall be improved to provide a paved surface (asphalt or concrete) in accordance with the Engineering Design Handbook and Construction Standards. Those areas exempted in Section 1.E. above shall be surfaced with compactable dust-free materials as approved by the City Engineer. Stabilized sod may be substituted for up to fifty percent (50%) of the required parking spaces, where eighty percent (80%) or more of the parking demand falls within a twenty-four (24)-hour period each week. Sod may be substituted only for the area of parking stalls. All driveways, aisles, and maneuvering areas shall be hard-surfaced and shall conform to the design requirements contained herein. Sod parking stalls shall have a base consisting of not less than eight (8) inches of stabilized shell rock, lime rock, or sand, or an equivalent material as approved by the City Engineer. Sod parking areas shall have dimensions equivalent to the dimensions of paved parking areas with ninety (90)-degree parking stalls and two-way traffic in aisles, as specified in these Land Development Regulations and Engineering Design Handbook and Construction Standards.
3. Minimum Dimensions and Accessibility. Off-street parking areas, including the back-up distance between parking stalls and the abutting aisle way, shall be designed to meet or exceed the dimensional requirements for stalls, driveways, and access aisles, as provided for in the Engineering Design Handbook and Construction Standards. Maneuvering and access areas shall be of sufficient size to allow vehicles to enter and exit the parking stalls and parking lot in a safe and efficient manner. In no instance shall parking lots be designed to allow vehicles to back out into any public alley or other road right-of-way as reflected in the Engineering Design Handbook and Construction Standards. All required spaces shall be sized in accordance with the current city standards. The dimensions of such required off-street parking spaces shall not include public or private rights-of-way, and all spaces must be maintained and drained so as to prevent nuisance conditions or a danger to the public and/or adjacent property owners.
4. Vehicular Traffic Control Markings. All traffic signing and pavement marking shall comply with the U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices. Particular attention is directed toward Section 3.G, which contains sign design, shape, color, mounting height and other conditions. Fire lanes shall be identified with marking and signage in accordance with Section 8 of this article. Parking stalls shall be delineated in accordance with the Engineering Design Handbook and Construction Standards.
5. Landscaping. Each parking lot shall be landscaped consistent with Chapter 4, Article II, Section 4. Landscape material located within off-street parking or other vehicular use areas shall be protected with curbing and/or wheel stops in accordance with Section 3.B.7. below.
6. Irrigation. All landscaped areas within parking lots shall have an automatic irrigation system, approved and permitted through the Department of Development.
7. Curbs and Car Stops. Parking lot curbs and car stops shall be required and constructed in accordance with the Engineering Design Handbook and Construction Standards. Landscaped areas in parking lots shall be protected from the encroachment of vehicles by a continuous, raised curb, or in the instance of a parking stall, by a wheel stop and a raised continuous curb. Areas to be protected include all pedestrian walkways, landscaped islands, landscaping adjacent to parking stalls and landscaping adjacent to curvilinear drive-ways where encroachment is likely to occur.
8. Drainage. Stormwater shall be contained on-site. Containment capacity shall be designed for a minimum of two and one-half (2.5) inches of rain-fall in one (1) hour. Drainage structures and exfiltration trenches shall comply with Chapter 4, Article VIII, Section 3.G., the Engineering Design Handbook and Construction Standards and/or standards of the South Florida Water Management District (SFWMD). Inlets shall be located in grassy areas unless otherwise approved by the City Engineer. Where appropriate, all drainage structures shall have sediment-settling basins that can be cleaned regularly of deposits by typical means. For impervious areas exceeding twenty-five thousand (25,000) square feet, the parking lot and facilities shall be designed and certified by a Florida-registered engineer. Maximum storage capacity of soil shall be considered at the rate of one (1) inch of water for each six (6) inches of soil above the water table. Drainage calculations are required in all instances. The hydrologic conductivity of soil shall be determined with tests made at the site using test procedures recommended by the (SFWMD) or other procedures which have been approved by the City Engineer.
9. Illumination. The lighting levels of off-street parking and loading areas shall comply with Chapter 4, Article VII, Section 3.C.
10. Sidewalks. Sidewalks shall be six (6) inches thick through all driveways and shall meet American with Disabilities Act (ADA) accessibility code requirements where applicable. See Chapter 4, Article VIII, Section 3.D. for additional standards regarding sidewalks within the public right-of-way.
11. Structures. Parking facilities may contain small, permanent structures such as shade structures and booths used by parking attendants.
C. Driveway Openings and Access.
1. Minimum Dimensions. Parking lot driveway openings and access points shall be designed in accordance with the Engineering Design Handbook and Construction Standards.
2. Drive Radii. Each parking lot driveway shall have a radius at the intersection of the vehicular traffic lanes designed in accordance with the Engineering Design Handbook and Construction Standards.
3. Distance from Streets. Parking lot driveway openings shall be separated from intersections in accordance with the Engineering Design Handbook and Construction Standards.
4. Clearance at Parking Stalls. A safe and unobstructed space between the side of a parking stall and a public/private right-of-way, access aisle, or interior driveway shall be designed in accordance with the Engineering Design Handbook and Construction Standards.
5. Clearance at Major Driveways. Unless otherwise approved by the City Engineer, the minimum distance from the street right-of-way line at any major ingress or egress driveway to any parking stall or to any interior access aisle having direct access to such driveway shall be one hundred (100) feet.
6. Intersections. Driveways which intersect streets owned and maintained by a governing body other than Boynton Beach must be permitted by the proper governing agency, prior to issuance of a building permit.
7. Maximum Number of Driveways. A property with street frontage is allowed a maximum of two (2) driveway openings. The number of driveways may be limited to one (1) opening due to factors such as the length of the street frontage; distance between driveway openings; location of driveway openings on abutting properties; or other extenuating circumstances deemed substantial by the City Engineer.
A property with frontage along two (2) or more rights-of-way may be permitted additional driveway openings, depending on traffic volumes, but in no case shall there be more than two (2) openings allowed on any given street.
8. District Standards.
a. PID Planned Industrial Development Districts. In addition to the minimum general standards stated above, driveway openings shall be located no closer than one hundred fifty (150) feet from center line to center line.
b. All "Mixed Use-Urban" Districts. Driveway openings shall not be directly from an arterial roadway where sufficient alternative access is available.
D. Standards for Off-Street Loading Areas.
1. General. Unless a waiver is granted by the City Engineer, every hospital, institution, hotel, commercial or industrial building, or similar use, requiring the receipt or distribution of materials or merchandise by oversized vehicles, shall have sufficient permanently maintained off-street loading space so as not to hinder the free movement of vehicles and pedestrians over parking areas, a street, or sidewalk.
Parcel pickup or customer drop-off lanes are permitted outside of the fire lane, provided that they do not hinder the movement of vehicles or pedestrians.
2. Minimum Dimensions. For the purpose of these Regulations, the term "off-street loading or unloading space" shall mean a vehicular loading space constructed of a hard surface and shall consist of a space with dimensions not less than twelve (12) feet in width, thirty-five (35) feet in length and fourteen (14) feet in height, exclusive of access aisles, maneuvering space, or alley right-of-way.
3. Modifications. A required loading bay or zone shall neither be reduced in size causing it to be nonconforming nor shall the use of it change thereby failing to meet the goals and objectives of the original, unless it is replaced with an equivalent loading area or zone.
4. District Standards. In addition to general requirements in Section 5.A. above, additional loading areas may be required within developments zoned planned commercial development (PCD). The number of required loading areas shall be based upon the size of the development, types of uses, and configuration of the buildings. Additional buffering may be required at the discretion of the Director of Planning and Zoning to ensure that such areas are adequately screened from view.
5. Community Design. See Section 4.B. of this article for additional regulations related to off-street loading areas.
E. Dumpsters and Solid Waste Removal.
1. General. In accordance with this section and City Code of Ordinances Part II, Chapter 10, Garbage, Trash, and Offensive Conditions, all uses requiring the pickup of quantities of garbage or trash shall provide an easily accessible area for the pickup and delivery of a dumpster or other trash receptacle; all such areas shall be so designed that garbage and trash pickup can be accomplished without excessive maneuvering such as turning around and backing up.
2. Parking. No dumpster enclosure or trash receptacle shall be located in a parking space.
3. Minimum Dimensions. The size of the dumpster enclosure shall be constructed in accordance with Engineering Standard Drawing G-4 of the Engineering Design Handbook and Construction Standards of latest supplement thereof.
4. Screening. Dumpsters shall be adequately screened from view in accordance with the provisions of the Land Development Regulations, or compatible with the surrounding environment if located out of view from the general public (see also "Landscaping" in Chapter 4, Article II, Section 6.G.).
5. Community Design. See Section 4.C. of this article for additional regulations regarding dumpster enclosure areas.
F. Queuing and Stacking.
1. Minimum Dimension. Unless otherwise approved by the City Engineer, drive-through facilities for banks, pharmacies, restaurants, and the like shall provide a minimum distance of seventy (70) feet for vehicular stacking purposes. Gasoline stations shall provide a distance of thirty (30) feet at each end of the pump island. Queuing shall be measured from the front of the stopped vehicle that would be located at the point of ultimate service to the rear of the queuing lane. The queuing lane(s) shall not obstruct or impede the free movement of fire, emergency or services vehicles, or the general vehicular circulation throughout the site.
2. By-Pass Lane. Where deemed appropriate by the City Engineer, a by-pass lane shall be provided before or around the point of service of a drive-through facility. A by-pass lane may not be required if the queuing lane is adjacent to a vehicular use area which functions as a by-pass lane. The by-pass lane shall be clearly designated and distinct from the queuing area.
3. Drive-Through Facilities.
a. Community Design Standards. See Chapter 4, Article III, Section 3.A.10. for additional community design standards regarding drive-through windows.
b. Conditional Use Approval. See Chapter 3, Article IV, Section 3.B.6. for additional regulations regarding the requirement for conditional use approval.
G. Fire Lanes. The Fire Marshal may require a fire lane along the front of any non-residential building greater than fifteen thousand (15,000) square feet or any multiple-family/mixed use building, in order to allow for the efficient movement and access of fire or emergency vehicles/personnel. Fire lanes shall be separate from off-street loading zones or loading areas and shall not be encumbered by any parked or standing vehicles. Designated fire lanes shall be clearly marked with adequate pavement marking and signage. The fire lane dimensions, pavement markings, and signage shall be designed in accordance with the Florida Fire Prevention Code and Engineering Design Handbook and Construction Standards.
(Ord. 10-025, passed 12-7-10; Am. Ord. 12-016, passed 10-2-12)