Certain land uses, because of their character and intensity, may create an adverse impact on less intensive and varied adjacent land uses. Accordingly, the following regulations are established to protect and preserve the appearance, character and value of property throughout the town.
(A) When buffers are required.
(1) New uses. Buffers are required when certain land uses develop and share a common property line with either a significantly different type of use in the same zone or, in some cases, a differing zone.
(2) Expansion of an existing use falling into any of the categories listed above. The expansion of an existing use can have an adverse impact on adjoining properties. When an expansion is less than 5% of the building floor area or 1,000 square feet, whichever is lesser, buffers are not required. Additionally, the entirety of the existing use need not be buffered. Buffers are required instead as follows.
(a) Expansion of a structure or parking facility.
1. Only the area undergoing expansion must comply with the buffer requirements. The buffer should encompass the area along the side and/or rear lot line where construction activity occurs, 90 degrees from the beginning and ending points of construction.
2. When parking or accessory buildings bar the development of a full buffer, they need not be removed to facilitate full compliance.
(b) Addition of buildings to a lot. Any new building or parking lot(s) added to an already developed lot are required to meet the buffer requirements; the prior development is not.
(B) Responsibility for developing. The developing land use is completely responsible for the creation of the buffer yard with the following modification.
(C) Exceptions/modifications.
(1) When an abutting parcel contains a natural vegetative strip comparable to a buffer yard, this area may count toward the requirement of the buffer yard.
(2) When a required buffer abuts a public alley, up to one-half of the alley width can be used to satisfy the buffer width requirement of these regulations.
(3) The width of a required buffer may be reduced by 25% if a wall, fence or berm is provided that meets the following standards.
(a) The fence or wall is constructed in a durable fashion of brick, stone, other masonry materials or wood posts and planks or any combination of the aforesaid materials. No more than 25% of a fence surface may be left open, open work being distributed equally over the entirety of the fence, and the finished side of the fence faces the abutting property.
(b) Walls and fences must be a minimum height of six feet.
(c) Berms must be a minimum height of four feet with a maximum slope of three to one and those exceeding six feet in height must have a maximum slope of four to one. Additionally, they must be stabilized to prevent erosion and landscaped.
(d) Shrubs may be waived if a fence or wall is built. If a berm is constructed, shrubs are still required but may be reduced by 25%.
(4) Buffer requirements may be waived when their requirement would result in buffering between fundamentally compatible land uses, for example, when a use has been allowed “permitted by standards”. Accordingly, the Planning and Zoning Board is authorized to waive buffer levels if and only if their requirement would serve no purpose. The waiver must be written and dated on the face of the zoning compliance permit of the developing use.
(D) Specific requirements for trees and shrubs placed in the buffer. For trees and shrubs best suited for the area the books South Dakota Trees and South Dakota Shrubs are available in the town office.
(1) Trees: at least 40% of required trees within a buffer must be large maturing trees with a minimum caliper of two and one-half inches measured six inches above ground at the time of planting; small maturing trees must have a minimum caliper of one and one-half inches measured six inches. Twenty-five percent of the trees in the buffer must be evergreen.
(2) Shrubs must be evergreen and at least two and one-half feet tall when planted with an average height of five to six feet expected as normal growth over a four-year period. Twenty-five percent of shrubs may vary from the above as follows:
(a) May be deciduous;
(b) May be two feet tall when planted provided three to four feet growth is anticipated over a four-year period; and
(c) If planted on a berm may be of a lesser height provided that combined height of the berm and plantings is at least six feet after four years.
(E) Miscellaneous provisions.
(1) All trees and shrubs are to be planted in both a visually pleasing fashion and in a way so as to facilitate the creation of a visual screen. Generally, plantings should be spaced equidistant throughout the buffer with final design approval part of the overall site plan approval.
(2) A minimum of two types of trees and shrubs must be used to minimize the effects of disease and/or blight.
(Ord. 10.10, passed 5-19-2009)