(A) Purpose. The purposes and intent of the recreational and open space regulations prescribed in this section to be as follows:
(1) To provide adequate active recreational areas and passive open space;
(2) To encourage the preservation of existing trees and vegetation;
(3) To encourage the retention of environmentally fragile areas;
(4) To encourage the protection of air and water quality;
(5) To enhance flood control; and
(6) To provide higher quality development.
(B) Minimum public recreational space requirements.
(1) Generally. Every person, corporation, partnership, other entity or any combination thereof who or which subdivides land for residential purposes is required to dedicate a portion of the land as provided in division (B)(3)(a) below or, upon determination by the Board of Commissioners that the land is not suitable for recreational purposes, to make a payment in lieu of dedication as provided in division (B)(3)(b) below, for the purpose of public recreation to serve the needs of the residents of the subdivision. At the request of the subdivider, the Board of Commissioners may accept a payment in lieu of dedication notwithstanding that land within the property to be subdivided may be suitable for recreational purposes or may accept a partial dedication of land and a partial payment in lieu thereof when the Board of Commissioners determines that same is in the best interest of the citizens of the area to be served. All payments received by the city in lieu of dedication shall be expended for capital improvements of recreation facilities within the city or its extraterritorial jurisdiction.
(2) Specifically. The requirements of § 157.10(B) shall be applicable to each of the following types of residential development, or other residential uses not listed:
(a) Traditional detached single-family, modular home, duplex home, multiplex attached home, zero-lot line detached and planned manufactured housing subdivisions;
(b) Residential cluster developments;
(c) Townhouse developments;
(d) Condominium developments;
(e) Individual residential components of a Traditional Neighborhood Development that include the subdivision of property for sale to individual owners;
(f) Manufactured home parks;
(g) Multi-family dwelling/apartment complex; and
(h) Mixed use developments (i.e., that include upper story attached dwellings).
(3) Dedication/payment.
(a) Amount of land to be dedicated. The amount of land required to be dedicated by a subdivider shall be based upon the most recent U.S. Bureau of Census population figures for an average size family in the city and a park and recreation standard factor of seven acres per 1,000 persons determined by the following formula: Total number of dwelling units proposed × Average size of family × .007 acres per person × Amount of land to be dedicated. Examples: 100 units × 3.2 persons/unit × .007 acres/person = 2.24 acres; 26 units × 3.2 persons/unit × .007 acres/person = 0.58 acres.
(b) Amount of payment in lieu of dedication. The amount of money required to be paid in lieu of dedication by a subdivider shall be an amount based upon the most recent U.S. Bureau of Census population figures for an average size family in the city, a park and recreation standard factor of seven acres per 1,000 persons and the average per acre value for property tax purposes of the land to be subdivided determined by the following formula: Total number of dwelling units proposed × Average size of family × .007 acres per person × 100% of the average per acre value for property tax purposes of land to be subdivided = Amount of payment in lieu of dedication. Examples: 100 units × 3.2 persons/unit × .007 acres/person × ($2,563.81 average per acre value for property tax purposes) = $5,742.93; 26 units × 3.2 persons/unit × .007 acres/person × ($2,563.81 average per acre value for property tax purposes) = $1,493.16.
(4) Suitability of land. Criteria for use in evaluating suitability of proposed recreation areas shall include, but not be limited to, the following, as determined by the City Board of Commissioners after recommendations of the Planning Board.
(a) Unity. The dedicated recreation land shall, where possible, form a single parcel of land except where the City Board of Commissioners, upon recommendation of the Planning Board, determines that two parcels or more would be in the public interest. Recreation areas shall fit into an interconnected system with pedestrian walkways, which could also serve as routes to schools, churches and other major pedestrian destinations.
(b) Location and access. The dedicated recreation land shall be located so as to reasonably serve the recreational needs of the immediate neighborhood within the subdivision. The recreation and walkway system should be located in block interiors and oriented away from exposure to heavy automotive traffic. Dedicated recreation land must have a minimum width of at least 60 feet of street frontage or a dedicated right-of-way of not less than 60 feet in width.
(c) Usableness. The dedicated recreation land shall be usable for recreation. Lakes and swampy areas shall not be included in computing dedicated recreation land area unless acceptable to the City Board of Commissioners upon recommendation of the Planning Board and recreation director. Lift stations or other utility facilities are prohibited on dedicated recreation land.
(5) Administrative procedures.
(a) Subdivider responsibility. At the time of filing a preliminary plat for approval, the owner of the property shall, as a part of the filing, indicate the area or areas to be dedicated for recreation purposes on the preliminary plat as submitted or his or her desires to give fees in lieu of dedication.
(b) City responsibility. At the time the preliminary plat is submitted for approval, the Planning Board shall make its recommendations to the City Board as to accept a dedication or fee in lieu of dedication of land within the subdivision.
(c) Prerequisites for approval of final plat. Where a dedication is required by the City Board of Commissioners, the dedication shall be shown upon the final plat submitted for approval. Where a dedication of land is proposed for a subdivision, the deed will be submitted with the final plat. If a fee in lieu of land is proposed the fee may be paid upon final subdivision approval by the City Board of Commissioners or the developer may choose to pay, by the lot, with the request for a building permit.
(6) Intent of section. It is the intent of this section to permit an early determination regarding recreation areas, especially of small subdivisions which, because of their proximity to other recreation areas or other good reasons, may not need recreation areas for the orderly development of the proposed subdivision.
(C) Minimum private recreational space requirements.
(1) The developer of manufactured home parks, semi-attached/duplex, multiplex and multi-family/apartment developments that include the construction of dwelling units not intended for sale to individual owners shall be required to reserve a portion of land for private recreational development to serve the needs of the residents of the development. The purpose of this requirement is to ensure that unsubdivided residential developments provide adequate active recreational facilities to serve the residents of the development.
(2) The following are illustrative of the types of facilities that shall be deemed to serve active recreational needs and therefore count toward compliance with the private recreational space requirements of this section: tennis courts, racquetball courts, swimming pools, sauna and exercise rooms, meeting or activity rooms with clubhouses, swings, slides and play apparatus. Each development shall install the types of recreational facilities and equipment that are most likely to be suited to and used by the age bracket of persons likely to reside in the development. Facilities and equipment for active recreation shall be indicated on the site plan provided by the developer and shall be reviewed by the Director of the City Parks and Recreation Department. The Recreation Director shall forward a recommendation as to the adequacy of the proposed recreational facilities and equipment to the Planning Board for review and recommendation to the Board of Commissioners.
(3) The developer of each semi-attached/duplex, multiplex, upper story attached, and multi-family residential development that includes dwelling units that are not constructed for the purpose of sale to individual owners shall reserve a minimum of 750 square feet of active recreational space per manufactured home space or dwelling unit.
(4) The owner of the development shall be responsible for the continuing upkeep and proper maintenance of the private, active recreational space required by this section.
(D) Private common open space requirements for residential developments.
(1) Private, common open space shall be required for residential developments where higher residential densities and/or smaller lot sizes than base zoning for the zoning district in which located are allowed. This requirement shall be in addition to any public or private recreational space requirements required by divisions (B) and (C) above, and shall apply to each of the following types of residential development:
(a) Multifamily/apartment, semi-attached/duplex, multiplex developments that include dwelling units that are not constructed for the purpose of sale to individual owners;
(b) Manufactured home park parks;
(c) Condominium and townhouse developments;
(d) Upper story attached dwellings;
(e) Zero lot line developments;
(f) Residential cluster developments; and
(g) Traditional neighborhood developments.
(2) Common open space may be passive or active and shall be owned and maintained by the property owner, a property owners association, or approved private, non-profit organization as authorized in division (E) below.
(3) Multi-family/apartment complex. The developer of each multi-family/apartment complex development that includes dwelling units that are not constructed for the purpose of sale to individual owners shall reserve 1,000 square feet of open space per dwelling unit.
(4) Manufactured home park. The developer of each manufactured home park shall reserve 1,500 square feet of open space per dwelling unit.
(5) Condominium, townhouse and upper story attached development. The developer of each condominium, townhouse or upper story attached development shall reserve 500 square feet of open space per dwelling unit.
(6) Zero lot line development. The developer of each zero lot line development shall reserve 500 square feet of open space per dwelling unit.
(7) Residential cluster development. The developer of each residential cluster development shall reserve open space as follows.
(a) The minimum amount of open space shall equal the amount of lot area by which all dwelling unit lots are reduced below the base zoning for single-family detached residential units for the zoning district in which located.
(b) For example, a proposed residential cluster development in the R-20 Zoning District allows minimum lot sizes of 12,000 square feet. The base minimum lot size for a single-family unit in R-20 is 20,000 square feet. Consequently, the 8,000 square feet of lot area resulting from the reduced lot size shall be set aside for common open space. The application of this open space requirement for a ten-acre residential cluster development in an R-20 Zoning District is illustrated below:
Example of Minimum Open Space Required for a Residential Cluster Development Located in an R-20 Zoning District |
Example of Minimum Open Space Required for a Residential Cluster Development Located in an R-20 Zoning District | |
Development acres | 10 acres |
Base density for single-family residential units | 2.2 du/ac |
Base maximum # single-family residential units | 22 max. du |
Base minimum lot area per single-family residential unit | 20,000 sq. feet |
Total base minimum single-family residential lot area | 440,000 sq. feet |
Residential cluster minimum lot area per unit | 12,000 sq. feet |
Total residential cluster minimum lot area | 264,000 sq. feet |
Difference in minimum lot areas | 176,000 sq. feet |
Common open space acres to be dedicated | 4.04 acres |
(8) Upper story attached dwellings and mixed use. The developer of each upper story attached dwelling unit shall reserve a minimum of 500 square feet of open space per dwelling unit.
(9) TND Developments. The developer of each residential component (i.e., multi-family, condominiums, zero lot line homes and the like) of a traditional neighborhood development shall reserve open space as required above for that specific type of residential development. The nonresidential components of each traditional neighborhood development shall reserve open space equal to a minimum of 15% of the gross land area of the nonresidential portion of the development (see also Chapter 155).
(10) For purposes of this division (D),
OPEN SPACE means an area that:
(a) Is not encumbered with any structure unless the structure is intended for recreational purposes and is accessible to all residents of the development or general public;
(b) Is not contained within a street right-of-way or otherwise devoted to use as a roadway or parking area not associated with the use of the open space;
(c) Is left in its natural or undisturbed state (as of the date development began), if wooded (except for the cutting of trails for walking or jogging) or, if not wooded at the time of development, is landscaped for ball fields, picnic areas, play areas or similar recreational facilities, or is properly vegetated and landscaped with the objective of creating a wooded area or other area that is consistent with the objective set forth in division (D)(10)(d) below;
(d) Is capable of being used and enjoyed for purposes of informal and unstructured recreation and relaxation;
(e) Is legally and practically accessible to the residents of the development out of which the required open space is taken, or to the public if dedication of the open space is proposed pursuant to division (E)(3); and
(f) Is not encumbered by underground private septic lines, any part of a private sewage disposal system, or any above-ground or below-ground structure.
(11) All floodplains, wetlands, streams, riparian buffers, ponds, lakes and other water bodies shall be contained in common open space.
(12) Open space shall be shown on the site plan with a notation to indicate that the open space shall not be used for future structures except as allowed per division (D)(10)(a) above.
(13) The following shall not be counted towards open space areas:
(a) Private yards and building setback areas;
(b) Public or private streets or street rights-of-way;
(c) Parking lot landscaping;
(d) Parking areas and driveways; and
(e) Land covered by structures except as allowed per division (10)(a) above.
(14) Buffer areas required by § 157.03 may be counted towards private open space areas.
(E) Ownership and maintenance of required private open space.
(1) Common open space required by division (D) above shall not be dedicated to the public except upon the written acceptance of the city, pursuant to division (E)(3) below, but shall remain under the ownership and control of the developer (or successor in title) or a property owners’ association or similar organization established pursuant to Chapter 158. As an alternative to a property owners’ association, a private non-profit organization, such as a private land trust, whose primary purpose is the preservation or conservation of open space may own and manage the proposed open space.
(2) The person or entity identified in division (E)(1) above as having the right of ownership and control over the open space shall be responsible for the continuing upkeep and maintenance of the same.
(3) The Board of Commissioners shall have the authority to accept or reject offers for land dedications made as a requirement of division (D) above. Land proposed by the developer as public open space on a site plan shall be considered to be offered for dedication until the offer is officially accepted by the Board of Commissioners.
(a) The offer may be accepted by the city through:
1. Written acceptance by the Board of Commissioners; or
2. Written acceptance by an administrative officer designated by the Board of Commissioners.
(b) Until the dedication has been accepted, land so offered may be used for open space purposes by the property owner or by a property owners’ association. Land so offered for dedication shall not be used for any purpose inconsistent with the proposed public use. The property owner shall be responsible for the maintenance of all facilities and improvements until an offer of dedication is accepted by the city.
(F) Flexibility in administration authorized.
(1) The requirements set forth in divisions (B) through (D) above concerning the amount, size, location and nature of open space and recreational space to be provided in connection with residential developments are established by the Board of Commissioners as standards that presumptively will result in the provision of that amount of open space and recreational space that is consistent with generally recognized standards relating to the need for those areas. The Board of Commissioners recognizes, however, that due to the particular nature of a tract of land, or the particular type or configuration of development proposed, or other factors, the underlying objectives of the recreational and open space requirements may be achieved even though the standards are not adhered to with mathematical precision. Therefore, the permit-issuing board is authorized to permit minor deviations from these standards whenever it determines that: the objectives underlying these standards can be met without strict adherence to them; and because of peculiarities in the developer’s tract of land or the particular type or configuration of the development proposed, it would be unreasonable to require strict adherence to these standards.
(2) Whenever the permit-issuing board authorizes some deviation from the standards set forth in divisions (B) through (D) above, pursuant to division (F)(1) above, the official record of action taken on the development application shall contain a detailed statement of the reasons for allowing the deviation.