(A) Purpose and intent.
(1) It is the intent of this section to provide that businesses, utilities, light industry, research, offices, residential uses, and related activities shall be constructed, maintained, and operated with a proper appearance from streets and adjoining properties and to provide that each permitted use shall be a good neighbor to adjoining properties by controlling the emission of noise, odor, exterior lighting, vibration, smoke, particulate matter, gases, and wastes.
(2) It is further the intent of this section to state the conditions of construction and operation with which uses will be expected to comply. In many cases, the relation of a prospective use to all performance standards cannot be judged properly at the time of building permit issuance. In these cases, the recipient of the building permit should note that these standards, like all other provisions of this chapter, are continuing obligations and that all uses shall be expected to operate in compliance with these standards. The building plans shall bear the signature of a qualified professional stating that all performance standards will be complied with based upon the submitted building plans. The city retains the right to conduct its own investigation to determine compliance with the performance standards at any time.
(B) Compliance. The performance standards set forth in this section shall be complied with and any use which fails to comply with these standards shall be in violation of this section and shall be subject to the penalty provided for violations.
(C) Performance standards; measurements. Each measurable standard shall be measured at the appropriate indicated location in accordance with the provisions of this section. The following performance standards shall be applicable to all uses in all zoning districts.
(1) Noise. The decibels generated from a use shall not exceed the exterior noise limitations set forth in Table 1 of this section as measured at the property line of the parcel from which the noise is generated. The decibels typically generated by particular uses are given in Table 2 of this section.
(a) Measurement of noise. Noise shall be measured at the property line of the parcel from which the noise is generated. Noise shall be muffled so as not to become violative of applicable standards due to intermittence, beat frequency, shrillness, or intensity. The sound pressure level shall be measured with a sound level meter and an octave band analyzer that conforms to ANSI S1.4-1983 (American National Standards Institute) specifications, or any successor standard promulgated by ANSI. Preferred frequencies for acoustical measurements shall be used.
Table 1
| ||
Land Use | 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. | 7:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. |
Commercial | 62 dBA | 55 dBA |
Industrial | 80 dBA | 80 dBA |
Light industrial | 70 dBA | 70 dBA |
Residential | 55 dBA | 50 dBA |
Table 2
| |
Sound Environment | Typical Sound Pressure Levels Generated (dBA) |
Table 2
| |
Sound Environment | Typical Sound Pressure Levels Generated (dBA) |
Air-conditioning unit (20 feet) | 60 dBA |
Broadcast studio | 20 dBA |
Freeway traffic | 70 dBA |
Library | 30 dBA |
Light auto traffic (100 feet) | 50 dBA |
Quiet office | 40 dBA |
Threshold of hearing | 0 dBA |
Vacuum cleaner (5 feet) | 80 dBA |
Air-raid siren | 140 dBA |
Jet takeoff (200 feet) | 130 dBA |
Nightclub with band playing | 120 dBA |
Passing subway train at 10 feet | 110 dBA |
Passing bus or truck at 10 feet | 100 dBA |
Passing car at 10 feet | 90 dBA |
(b) Exceptions.
1. Nighttime building or construction operations. It shall be unlawful to allow or permit any building or construction operations (including construction related noises, such as the delivery of equipment or material or the operation of tools, machinery, or apparatus) on private property between the hours of 7:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. within 1,000 feet of any residence and between 10:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. in all other districts. Work occurring in the public right-of-way, on public property, or within public utility easement areas shall be exempt from these restrictions.
2. Daytime building or construction operations. Between the hours of 7:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m., noises customarily resulting from construction work and from the maintenance of grounds shall be exempt from the limitations listed in Table 1 of this section.
3. Amplifiers; noise generated by an amplifier or other device for which a license has been obtained in accordance with current city ordinance for amplifier, permitting, use, and the like. Amplifiers, of this code shall be exempt from limitations listed in Table 1 of this section.
4. Other exemptions.
a. Valves, warning devices, aircraft, and railroads, emergency generators, snowplowing, mosquito abatement, and emergency equipment/vehicles used only during times of emergency;
b. Church bells, chimes, and carillons;
c. The authorized use of recreational facilities within the property of schools, colleges, and public parks between the hours of 7:00 a.m. and 10:00 p.m.; and
d. Substations for public utilities.
(c) External speaker systems.
1. External speaker systems shall not generate noise that is heard beyond the property line.
2. External speakers and audible external paging systems are prohibited for businesses conducting motor vehicle sales. Existing nonconforming speakers at automotive dealerships shall be brought into compliance within six months from the date of adoption of this division.
(2) Odors. At a point along or outside any property line, the emission of odorous matter in a quantity as to be offensive or in excess of the odor threshold shall not be permitted.
(a) The measurement of odor threshold shall be in accordance with the American Society for Testing and Materials Method DI391-57 Standard Method For Measurement Of Odor In Atmosphere (Dilution Method) (Philadelphia: American Society of Testing and Materials, 1957).
(b) Detailed plans for the prevention of odors crossing property lines may be required before the issuance of a building permit.
(3) Exterior lighting. All public and private outdoor lighting installed in the city shall be in conformance with the requirements set forth in this division.
(a) Definitions. For the purpose of this section, the following definitions shall apply unless the context clearly indicates or requires a different meaning.
EXTERIOR LIGHTING. The illumination of an outside area or object by any manmade device that produces light by any means.
FIXTURE. The assembly that houses the lamp or lamps and can include all or some of the following parts: a housing, a mounting bracket or pole socket, a lamp holder, a ballast, a reflector or mirror, and/or a refractor or lens.
FLAT LENSES. A glass or plastic element used in luminaires that is flush or inside the bottom edge of the luminaire.
FOOT-CANDLE (fc). A unit of illumination produced on a surface, all points of which are one foot from a uniform point source of one standard candle.
FOOT-CANDLE HORIZONTAL MEASUREMENT (hfc). The measurement of foot-candles utilizing a direct reading, portable light meter mounted on a horizontal position.
GLARE. The sensation produced by luminance within the visual field that is sufficiently greater than the luminance to which the eyes are adapted to cause annoyance, discomfort, or loss in visual performance and visibility.
LIGHT LOSS FACTOR (LLF). A factor applied to lamps which estimates the lumen output of a lamp sometime after installation. (For example, a lamp with an initial lumen rating of 10,000 which has a light loss factor of 0.8 is estimated to put out 8,000 lumens. A lamp with an initial lumen rating of 10,000, which has a LIGHT LOSS FACTOR of 1.0, is estimated to put out 10,000 lumens.)
LUMINAIRE. A complete lighting unit consisting of a light source and all necessary mechanical, electrical, and decorative parts.
SAG LENSES. A glass or plastic element used in luminaires that extends below the bottom edge of the luminaires.
UNIFORMITY RATIO. Describes the average level of illumination in relation to the lowest level of illumination for a given area.
(b) Luminaire design factors.
1. The style of the light and light standard shall be consistent with the architectural style of the principal building.
2. Pathways, sidewalks, and trails shall be lighted with low level fixtures not to exceed eight feet in pole height.
3. All building lighting for security or aesthetics shall include glare controls and shall be shielded. Floodlighting is discouraged, and if used, shall be shielded to prevent disability glare for drivers or pedestrians, light trespass beyond the property line, and light above a 90-degree horizontal plane. Wallpack type fixtures shall not be permitted.
4. All parking area lighting shall include glare controls and shall be shielded.
5. Poles supporting lights shall be no taller than 23 feet in a residential district and shall be dark-sky light fixtures, 25 feet in a commercial district, a commercial part of a residential planned unit development, or in office/business park districts, and 32 feet in any industrial district.
(c) Standards and requirements.
1. Standards; exception. Lighting shall be provided in accordance with the standards of the Illuminating Engineering Society of North America (IESNA) as follows for all uses.
Table 3 | |||
IESNA Parking Lot Levels of Activity | IESNA Maintained Horizontal Illuminance Standards (Foot-Candles) | ||
General Parking and Pedestrian Area | Vehicle Use Area (Only) | ||
Ave. | Min. | Uniformity Ratio | |
Table 3 | |||
IESNA Parking Lot Levels of Activity | IESNA Maintained Horizontal Illuminance Standards (Foot-Candles) | ||
General Parking and Pedestrian Area | Vehicle Use Area (Only) | ||
Ave. | Min. | Uniformity Ratio | |
High | 5.0 | 0.9 | 4:1 |
Church parking | |||
Community shopping centers (space to 99,999 square feet) | |||
Educational facilities | |||
Entertainment theaters | |||
Fast food facilities (>40 seats) | |||
Hospital parking | |||
Industrial employee parking | |||
Major cultural events | |||
Major athletic events | |||
Multi-family residential complex | |||
Neighborhood shopping centers (retail space of less than 5,000 square feet) | |||
Office parks | |||
Regional shopping centers (space above 100,000 square feet) | |||
2. Automotive dealerships. Lighting shall be provided in accordance with the standards of the Illuminating Engineering Society of North America (IESNA) as follows for automotive dealerships:
Table 4 | ||
Areas of Activity | Description | Standards (Foot- Candles) - Target Maintained Levels |
Circulation area | Includes all portions of the lot dedicated to customer parking, employee parking, site entrance areas, and inventory areas including related drive aisles. Car dealerships shall comply with this provision no later than January 1, 2010. However, compliance with the provision related to security lighting, below, is required from 10:00 p.m. until sunrise. | 10 foot-candles - average |
Feature display area | The first row of vehicles adjacent to a major/minor arterial, including the area in front of the vehicle up to the property line and behind the vehicle up to the merchandise area and/or the circulation area including drive aisles. However, compliance with the provision related to security lighting, below, is required from 10:00 p.m. until sunrise. | 75 foot-candles - maximum |
Merchandise area | All other rows of vehicles on a lot used for general auto sales, including all areas surrounding the vehicle up to the defined circulation area including related drive aisles. Car dealerships shall comply with this provision no later than January 1, 2010. However, compliance with the provision related to security lighting, below, is required from 10:00 p.m. until sunrise. | 50 foot-candles - maximum |
Security lighting, Monday - Sunday | The average amount of light found on site within each of the areas of activity, including the feature display area, average merchandise area, and circulation area from 10:00 p.m. until sunrise. Car dealerships shall comply with this provision no later than January 1, 2010. | 10 foot-candles - average |
a. In determining the maximum foot-candle standard provided above, all foot-candle measurements shall be taken from the ground at any point within the areas of activity or at the property line.
b. In determining the average foot-candle standard, all foot-candle measurements shall be taken from the ground at ten foot increments throughout the areas of activity.
c. Sag lenses are prohibited from use on all car dealership luminaries. All existing dealerships using sag lenses at the time of adoption date hereof, will be grandfathered and considered legal nonconforming for the sole purpose of its lens type until the dealership replaces greater than 10% of their existing fixtures on site during any 12-month period at which time full compliance shall be required. All new fixtures shall have flat lenses.
d. Light shields used by car dealerships to control light and reduce glare shall be made of nonreflective material.
3. Exterior lighting. Exterior lighting shall be designed at or below the following average maintained foot-candles at the property line:
Table 5 | |
Location | Maximum Foot-Candles At Property Line - Horizontal Measurement |
Intensity at adjoining right-of-way | Horizontal fc: 0.50 |
Intensity at adjoining major/minor arterial rights-of-way | Horizontal fc: 10.0 |
Nonresidential to residential | Horizontal fc: 0.10 |
Nonresidential to nonresidential | Horizontal fc: 2.0 |
Residential to residential | Horizontal fc: 0.10 |
4. Light loss factor. The light loss factor (LLF) shall be a minimum of 0.75 to a maximum of 0.8 for all uses.
(d) Measuring light levels.
1. Metering equipment. Light levels of both direct and indirect light shall be measured in foot-candles with a direct reading, portable light meter. Readings shall be taken only after the cell has been exposed long enough to provide a constant reading.
2. Method of measurement. Foot-candle horizontal measurements shall be taken at a height of three and one-half feet aboveground.
(e) Exceptions and variances.
1. Because of their unique requirement for nighttime visibility and their limited hours of operation, ball diamonds, playing fields, tennis courts, and other outdoor recreational facilities shall be exempted from the general standards of this division. Lighting for outdoor recreational facilities shall be shielded to minimize light and glare from spilling onto adjacent residential properties. The maximum permitted illumination at adjoining residential property lines shall be one foot-candle. The maximum permitted illumination at adjoining nonresidential property lines shall be two foot-candles.
2. Luminaires used for public roadway illumination by a public transportation agency shall be exempt from the requirements of this section but may be subject to the regulations of federal or state agencies or by intergovernmental agreements.
3. Decorative seasonal lighting shall be limited to a power rating of less than or equal to 75 watts.
4. Temporary emergency lighting used by police, firefighters, and other emergency services, as well as all vehicular luminaires shall be exempt.
5. Hazard warning lights that are required by local or federal regulatory agencies shall be exempt.
6. Transportation facilities shall be exempt.
7. Public walkways shall be exempt.
8. When site characteristics are unique and the requirements of this section cannot be met, the City Planner has the authority to approve nonconforming lighting designs if the illumination levels and/or uniformity ratios are within 20% of the values set forth in this division. All other nonconforming designs shall be subject to approval of the City Council through the variance procedure or development agreement.
(f) Nonconforming luminaires.
1. Exterior lighting luminaires in existence on the effective date of this division shall be exempt from the standards of this division and shall be considered legally nonconforming. The fixtures may be repaired and maintained. However, if any legal nonconforming luminaire is moved or damaged by any means to an extent that its total replacement is necessary, the luminaire, or replacement, shall comply with this division.
2. For development activity involving improved property, luminaires shall be required to comply with this division when the floor area of any building or structure, or parking areas, or any combination thereof, is increased by 10% or greater.
(g) Exterior lighting plan required.
1. A lighting plan shall be required any time exterior lighting is proposed, or modified, that is associated with a residential use of greater density than a one- or two-family dwelling or with any commercial, office, industrial, or other use. The lighting plan shall be submitted with the site plan information as required in this section.
2. The lighting plan shall include a site plan indicating location of light fixtures and intensity of foot-candles at various points on the site, catalog cuts of the proposed fixtures, and a summary table containing average foot-candles, minimum foot-candles, maximum foot-candles, uniformity ratio (average/minimum), foot-candles at the property line, pole height, and light loss factor (LLF). The plan shall also contain a certification by the property owner or agent and the preparer of the plan that the exterior lighting depicted on the plan complies with the requirements of this chapter. Once the plan is approved, the exterior lighting of the property shall conform to the plan.
(4) Vibration. Vibration shall not be discernible at any property line to the human sense of feeling for three minutes or more duration in any one hour. Vibration at any time shall not produce at any time an acceleration of more than 0.1 gravities or shall result in any combination of amplitudes and frequencies beyond the “safe” range of Table 7 United States Bureau of Mines Bulletin No. 442 Seismic Effects Of Quarry Blasting, on any structure. The methods and equations of Bulletin No. 442 shall be used to compute all values for the enforcement of this provision.
(5) Smoke and particulate matter. Measurement of smoke and particulate matter shall be taken from the point of emission.
(a) The emission of particulate matter containing more than 5% by weight, of particles having a particle diameter larger than 44 microns, is prohibited.
(b) The rate of emission of particulate matter from all sources within the boundaries of any lot shall not exceed a net figure of one-half pound per acre of lot size during any one hour.
(c) Smoke not darker or more opaque than No. 0 on the Ringelmann smoke chart (as published by the United States Bureau of Mines) may be emitted except that smoke not darker or more opaque than No. 1 on the chart may be emitted for periods not longer than four minutes in any 30 minutes. These provisions, applicable to visible gray smoke, shall also apply to visible smoke of a different color but with an equivalent apparent opacity.
(d) Dust or other types of air pollution borne by the wind from sources such as storage areas, trash enclosures, and yards within the boundaries of any lot shall be kept to a minimum by appropriate landscaping, screening, paving, oiling, wetting, or other acceptable means.
(6) Gases.
(a) Fumes or gases shall not be emitted at any point in concentrations or amounts that are noxious, toxic, or corrosive. The values given in Table I (industrial hygiene standards - maximum allowable concentration for eight hour day, five days per week), Table III (odor thresholds), Table IV (concentrations of substances causing pain in the eyes) and Table V (exposures to substances causing injury to vegetation) in the latest revision of Chapter 5, Physiological Effect, that contains the tables, in the Air Pollution Abatement Manual, by the Manufacturing Chemists’ Association, Inc., Washington, D.C., are hereby established as guides for the determination of permissible concentration or amounts.
(b) Detailed plans for the elimination of fumes or gases may be required before the issuance of a building permit.
(7) Hazard. Any operation of an industrial nature shall be carried on with reasonable precautions against fire and explosion hazards.
(8) Waste.
(a) All sewage and industrial wastes shall be treated and disposed of in a manner as to comply with the water quality standards applicable to the classification assigned to the receiving waters by the city, the state, and IDEM.
(b) Approval of the State Environmental Protection Agency of all plans for waste disposal facilities shall be required before issuance of any building permit.
(Prior Code, § 156.082) (Ord. 0-08-0020, passed 9-22-2008) Penalty, see § 156.999