In addition to the above listed regulations, the following regulations shall apply to businesses uses located in the Residential Business Districts. Business uses permitted in the RB districts shall be permitted by special exception in agreement with the following exceptions.
(a) Permitted Business Uses. All business uses permitted in the City’s B-3 district.
(b) Uses per Building or Lot. Any principal commercial building may contain more than one use and/or organization. Any lot may contain more than one principal structure, provided that each principal structure is located in a manner which will allow the possibility of subdividing the lot in a manner that each structure and resulting lot would conform to the zoning and subdivision requirements, including frontage on a public street.
Where any lot contains more than one principal building, all buildings shall be compatibly designed, whether constructed all at one time or in stages over a period of time. All building walls facing a street or residential use shall be suitably finished for aesthetic purposes, which shall not include unpainted or painted cinder block or concrete block walls. Preferred building materials include brick, wood, stone or other natural materials.
(c) Outdoor Storage. No merchandise, products, waste equipment or similar material or objects shall be displayed or stored outside,
(d) Off-Street Parking. Minimum off-street parking shall be provided as follows:
(1) Retail sales of goods and services. Five and five tenths (5.5) spaces per one thousand (1,000) square feet of gross floor area or fraction thereof.
(2) Offices. Six (6) spaces for each one thousand (1,000) square feet of gross floor area or fraction thereof.
(3) Restaurants. One space for every three (3) seats.
(4) Minimum space requirements for uses not specifically covered. In determining minimum parking space requirements for uses not covered in this section, the Planning Commission shall be guided by the number of persons to be employed in said building or by the use; and the number of persons expected to visit, or patronize the building or use.
(e) Reverse parking. Reverse parking, with off-street parking located in the rear yard, is preferred. Off-street parking or loading shall not be permitted within the first fifteen (15) feet of any front yard.
(f) Landscaping. All business uses in the RB districts shall be landscaped in agreement with the following standards.
(1) All portions of the property not utilized by buildings or paved surfaces shall be landscaped, with a combination of fencing, shrubbery, lawn area, ground cover, contours, existing foliage and the planting of conifers and/or deciduous trees native to the area in order to either maintain or re-establish the tone to the vegetation in the area and lesson the impact of the structures and paved areas. The established grades on any site shall be planned for both aesthetic and drainage purposes. The grading plan, drainage facilities and landscaping shall be coordinated to prevent erosion and silting, as well as assuring that the capacity of any natural or man-made drainage system is sufficient to handle the water generated and anticipated.
(2) Perimeter strips consisting of a landscape screen shall be provided between off-street parking areas and adjoining properties. The perimeter strip shall be composed of plants and trees arranged to form both a low level and a high level screen. The high level screen shall consist of trees planted with specimens of at least four (4) feet in height, and planted at intervals which will provide an overlapping foliage screen at maturity with a minimum mature height of fifteen (15) feet. The low level screen shall consist of shrubs or hedges planted at an initial height of not less than two (2) feet and spaced at intervals of not less than five (5) feet. The low level screen shall be placed in alternating rows to produce a more effective barrier. All plants not surviving two (2) growing seasons after planting, shall be replaced. Perimeter strips shall be a minimum of ten (10) feet wide and shall be protected by permanent curbing.
(g) Trash and Garbage Pick-Up Location. There shall be at least one trash and garbage pick-up location provided by each building, which shall be separated from the parking spaces by either a location outside the building, which shall be a steel- like, totally enclosed container located in a manner to be obscured from view from parking areas, and adjacent residential uses or zoning districts by a fence, wall, planting or combination of the three. If located within the building, the doorway may serve both the loading and trash/garbage functions, and if located within the general loading area(s), provided that the container in no way interferes with or restricts loading and unloading functions.
(h) Lighting. For all uses within this district, adequate lighting to ensure safe pedestrian and vehicular travel shall be provided. The following standards shall apply.
(1) Lights shall be directed toward the center and designed so as to prevent glare beyond the property line.
(2) The maximum height of free-standing light standards shall be twelve (12) feet.
(3) The following intensity standards shall apply:
A. Parking areas: an average of one and five (1.5) tenths foot candles throughout.
B. Intersections: three (3) foot candles.
C. Maximum to property lines: one and zero (1.0) tenths foot candles.
(i) Signs. The following are requirements for placement and use of signs in the district.
(1) Signs advertising a retail business, office, or other permitted use. Such signs shall be on premises signs and shall be erected on the site where such use is located.
A. The computation of the area of a sign shall include incidental decorative trim and the framework in addition to the portion devoted to the message and lettering.
B. For projecting or freestanding double faced signs, only one display face shall be measured in computing the total sign area where the sign faces are parallel or where the interior angle formed by the faces is forty-five degrees (45º) or less. Signs with sides forming an interior angle of more than forty-five degrees (45º) shall not exceed the maximum area permitted for such signs for all sides combined.
C. The area measure of each freestanding sign shall include all separate components, which shall not exceed a height of seven (7) feet from the ground level to the top of the sign and shall not exceed a height of nine (9) feet to the top of the sign support.
D. Wall signs which are part of the architectural design of a building, shall be restricted to an area not more than fifteen percent (15%) of the wall area, including windows and doors, of the wall upon which such sign is affixed or attached, and such signs shall not protrude above the structural wall of which it is a part. Where such sign consists of individual lettering or symbols attached to a building, wall or window, the area of the sign shall be considered to be that of the smallest rectangle or other regular geometric shape which encompasses all of the letters and symbols.
(2) For all permitted uses in the district, a sign or signs may be erected in accordance with one of the following.
A. One freestanding sign up to ten (10) square feet plus one of the following:
1. One wall sign mounted flush on wall up to eight (8) square feet; or
2. One wall sign (when part of the architectural design of the building) consisting of individual letters or symbols not to exceed fifteen percent (15%) of wall area; or
3. One window sign consisting of individual letters or symbols not to exceed thirty percent (30%) of the total glass area of the building front.
OR
B. One projecting sign projecting not more than five (5) feet from the wall up to ten (10) square feet in size, plus one of the following:
1. One wall sign mounted flush on wall up to eight (8) square feet; or
2. One wall sign (when part of the architectural design of the building) consisting of individual letters or symbols not to exceed fifteen percent (15%) of wall area; or
3. One window sign consisting of individual letters or symbols not to exceed thirty percent (30%) of the total glass area of the building front.
If building fronts upon more than one street, one additional sign in conformity with either subsection (i)(2)A. or B. 1, 2 or 3 hereof may be permitted on each street frontage.
(3) Temporary signs. Exterior temporary signs, including all movable signs such as those advertising a commercial sale, when located on the site where such use is conducted, may be permitted, for a period not to exceed thirty (30) days in any one calendar year for any one promises or commercial use.
A. The size of such sign may not exceed twelve (12) square feet per side.
B. Applications for a temporary sign permit shall be made to the City Zoning Officer accompanied by the required permit fee and an escrow deposit to be set from time to time by ordinance of the City Council, as a guarantee that temporary signs shall be promptly and completely removed at the end of the authorized period. If such signs are not promptly removed at the end of the authorized period, the City will then have them removed and forfeit the sum deposit to reimburse the expense incurred in the removal.
(4) Prohibited signs. The following signs shall be prohibited in the district
A. Off-premises signs (billboards).
B. Flashing, rotating, or revolving signs with the exception of barber poles.
C. Roof signs.
D. Any signs suspended between poles and illuminated by a series of lights.
E. Any sign erected on a tree or utility pole or painted or drawn on any natural feature.
F. Any banner sign or sign of any other type across a public street or on any private property, except for such signs which are approved by the City Council to be of general benefit to the municipality or for public convenience, necessity or welfare.
G. Signs which contain, include, or are illuminated by any flashing, intermittent or moving light or light except those giving public service information such as time, date, temperature, weather, or similar information.