(A) General site requirements. All developed portions of the site shall conform to the following general landscaping standards, except where specific landscape elements, such as a greenbelt, berms, or screening are required.
(1) All unpaved portions of the site shall be planted with grass, ground cover, shrubbery, or other suitable live plant material, which shall extend to any abutting street pavement edge. Grass areas in the front yard of all nonresidential uses shall be planted with sod.
(2) A mixture of evergreen and deciduous trees shall be planted on the unpaved open portions of nonresidential parcels where specific landscaping requirements do not appear later in this subchapter. The total number of trees required shall be determined at the time of site plan review, based on the overall appearance of the site and the amount of landscaping provided elsewhere on the site. Required trees may be planted at uniform distances, at random, or in groupings.
(B) Landscaping adjacent to roads and road rights-of-way. Where required, landscaping adjacent to roads and road rights-of-way shall comply with the following planting requirements.
(1) Minimum requirements.
(a) Where required, landscaping adjacent to a road or road right-of-way shall consist of a landscaped area with a minimum depth of ten feet, which shall be located on private property contiguous to the road right-of-way, excluding openings for driveways and sidewalks. Through lots and corner lots shall provide such landscaping along all adjacent road rights-of-way.
(b) The Planning Commission may permit all or a portion of the landscaped area to be located within the road right-of-way or elsewhere within the front setback area, provided that the Planning Commission finds that the following conditions exist.
1. Relocation of the landscaped area is consistent with the intent of this section.
2. Relocation of the landscaped area is justified because of the physical characteristics of the site, the location of existing easements, sidewalks, or landscaping, the configuration of existing parking, the need to maintain emergency vehicle access, or because of other public health or safety concerns.
3. Relocation of the landscaped area will not result in less landscaped area than would be required if the landscaped area had been located on private property contiguous to the road right-of- way.
4. Relocation of the landscaped area will not jeopardize traffic safety or the general planning of the city.
(2) Required plantings. For the purposes of computing length of road frontage, openings for driveways and sidewalks shall not be counted. Trees and shrubs may be planted at uniform distances, at random, or in groupings.
Type Requirements
Deciduous tree 2 per 40 lineal ft. of road frontage
Shrubs 6 per 40 lineal ft. of road frontage
(3) Location.
(a) Where planted, trees shall comply with the following minimum setbacks, as measured from the center of the tree.
1. Setback from edge of road: 10 feet.
2. Setback from fire hydrant: 5 feet.
3. Setback from vehicular accessway or sidewalk: 5 feet.
(b) When planted, shrubs shall comply with the following minimum setbacks, as measured from the edge of the shrub.
1. Setback from edge of road: 5 feet.
2. Setback from fire hydrant: 5 feet.
(C) Berms. Where required, berms shall conform to the following standards.
(1) Dimensions. Unless otherwise indicated or appropriate, required berms shall be measured from the grade of the parking lot or first ground adjacent to the berm, and shall be constructed with slopes no steeper than one foot vertical for each three feet horizontal (33% slope), with at least a two-
foot flat area on top. Berms may undulate in height, subject to review and approval of berm design as shown on the site plan. Unless otherwise indicated, the maximum height of required berms shall be three feet.
(2) Protection from erosion. Any required berm shall be planted with sod, ground cover, or other suitable live plant material to protect it from erosion so that it retains its height and shape. The use of railroad ties, cement blocks, and other types of construction materials to retain the shape and height of a berm shall be prohibited unless specifically reviewed and approved by the Planning Commission.
(3) Required plantings.
(a) Berms located in the front yard of nonresidential parcels. Berms located in the front yard of nonresidential parcels shall be landscaped in accordance with the requirements for landscaping adjacent to roads, as set forth in division (B) of this section.
(b) Berms used for screening other than in the front yard. Berms used for screening other than in the front yard shall be landscaped in accordance with the requirements for screening, as set forth in division (E) of this section.
(4) Measurement of berm length. For the purpose of calculating required plant material, berm length shall be measured along the exterior edge of the berm.
(D) Greenbelts. Where required, greenbelts shall conform to the following standards.
(1) Measurement of greenbelt length. For the purposes of calculating required plant material, greenbelt length shall be measured along the exterior edge of the greenbelt.
(2) General planting requirements.
(a) Grass or ground cover requirements. Grass, ground cover, or other suitable live plant materials shall be planted over the entire greenbelt area, except where paved walkways are used.
(b) Tree and shrub requirements. Except where the greenbelt is used for screening, a minimum of one deciduous or evergreen tree shall be planted for each 40 lineal feet or portion thereof of required greenbelt, or, alternatively, eight shrubs may be substituted for each required tree. Trees and shrubs may be planted at uniform distances, at random, or in groupings.
(c) Distance from sidewalk. Plant materials shall not be placed closer than four feet from the right-of-way line where the greenbelt abuts a public sidewalk.
(d) Setback from property line. Plant materials shall be placed no closer than four feet from the property line or fence line.
(3) Greenbelts used for screening. Greenbelts used for screening shall be landscaped in accordance with the requirements for screening, as set forth in division (E) of this section.
(E) Screening.
(1) General screening regulations. Unless otherwise specified, wherever an evergreen or landscaped screen is required, screening shall consist of closely-spaced evergreen plantings (i.e., no farther than 15 feet apart) which can be reasonably expected to form a complete visual barrier that is at least six feet above ground level within three years of planting. Deciduous plant materials may be used, provided that a complete visual barrier is maintained throughout the year.
(2) Screening of equipment. Mechanical equipment, such as air compressors, pool pumps, transformers, sprinkler pumps, satellite dish antennas, and similar equipment shall be screened on at least three sides. Insofar as is practical, the screening shall exceed the vertical height of the equipment being screened by at least six inches within two years of planting.
(F) Parking lot landscaping. In addition to required screening, all off-street parking areas shall also provide landscaping as follows.
(1) Landscaping ratio. Off-street parking areas containing greater than 15 spaces shall be provided with at least ten square feet of interior landscaping per parking space. The amount of parking lot landscaping may be decreased to seven square feet per parking space where a berm is constructed to screen the parking from the road in accordance with § 154.082(A)(3), (B)(3) or (C)(3). Whenever possible, parking lot landscaping shall be designed to improve the safety of pedestrian and vehicular traffic, guide traffic movement, and improve the appearance of the parking area.
(2) Minimum area. Landscaped areas in parking lots shall be no less than five feet in any single dimension and no less than 150 square feet in area. Landscaped areas in or adjacent to parking lots shall be protected with curbing or other means to prevent encroachment of vehicles.
(3) Other landscaping. Required landscaping elsewhere on the parcel shall not be counted in meeting the parking lot landscaping requirements.
(4) Required plantings. Requirements for plant material shall be based on the location, size and shape of the parking lot landscaped area. A minimum of one tree shall be planted per 300 square feet or fraction thereof of interior landscaped area. At least 50% of each interior landscaped area shall be covered by living plant material, such as sod, shrubs, ground cover, or trees. Plantings within parking lots shall comply with the requirements for unobstructed site distance set forth in § 154.027. The landscape plan shall indicate the types, sizes, and quantities of plant material proposed for the area.
(G) Landscaping of rights-of-way.
(1) Public rights-of-way, located adjacent to required landscaped areas and greenbelts, shall be planted with grass or other suitable live ground cover, and shall be maintained by the owner or occupant of the adjacent property as if the rights-of-way were part of the required landscaped areas or greenbelts.
(2) Trees and shrubs shall not be planted in the road right-of-way without first obtaining approval from the agency which has jurisdiction over the road.
(3) Trees and shrubs shall be planted no closer to the edge of the road pavement than the distances specified as follows.
Setback
Trees 10 feet, as measured from the center of the tree
Shrubs 5 feet, as measure from the perimeter of the shrub
(H) Maintenance of unobstructed visibility for drivers. No landscaping shall be established or maintained on any parcel or in any parking lot which will obstruct the view of drivers. Accordingly, all landscaping shall comply with the provisions concerning unobstructed sight distance set forth in § 154.027.
(I) Potential damage to utilities and public facilities. In no case shall landscaping material be planted in a way which will interfere with or cause damage to underground utility lines, public roads, or other public facilities. Species of trees whose roots are known to cause damage to public roadways, sewers, or other utilities shall not be planted closer than 15 feet from any roadways, sewers, or utilities. Trees shall be setback from overhead utility lines as indicated in the following.
Minimum Distance from Center of Trunk to Nearest Utility Line | Tree Height |
Up to 15 feet
|
10 feet
|
15 to 25 feet
|
20 feet
|
over 25 feet
|
30 feet
|
(J) Landscaping of divider medians. Where traffic on driveways, maneuvering lanes, private roads, or similar vehicle accessways are separated by a divider median, the median shall be curbed and have a minimum width of ten feet. A minimum of one deciduous or evergreen tree shall be planted for each 30 lineal feet or portion thereof of median. Trees may be planted at uniform distances, at random, or in groupings, but in no instance shall the center-to-center distance between trees exceed 60 feet.
(K) Irrigation. The site plan shall indicate the proposed method of watering landscaped areas. Although not required, installation of an in-ground irrigation/sprinkler system is encouraged, particularly in front yards.
(Ord. 92-005, passed 2-17-92) Penalty, see § 154.999