This section shall be referred to as the Lillington Open Space Standards or open space standards.
4.08.1 USABLE OPEN SPACE (PARK SPACE) REQUIRED
A. Except as provided in paragraph I. of this section, every single-family residential (attached and detached) development shall be developed so that at least 3% of the total area of the development remains permanently as usable open space. Multi-family developments shall provide a minimum of 5% usable open space. See Section 4.10.5 for additional open space and amenity requirements for multi-family developments.
B. For purposes of this section, usable open space means an area that:
1. Is not encumbered with any substantial structure;
2. Is not devoted to use as a roadway, parking area, or sidewalk, provided, however that multi-use trails may be counted towards required open space;
3. Reflects the character of the land as of the date development began. Wooded areas shall be left in their natural or undisturbed state except for the cutting of trails for walking, bicycling or jogging. Areas not wooded shall be landscaped for open play fields, picnic areas or similar facilities, or be properly vegetated and landscaped with the objective of creating a wooded area or other area that is consistent with the objectives of this section;
4. Is capable of being used and enjoyed for purposes of informal and unstructured recreation and relaxation;
5. Is part of an independent lot shown on the plan as being reserved for open space; and
6. Is legally and practicably accessible to the residents of the development from which the required open space subdivided or to the public if the open space is dedicated to the town.
C. Usable Open Space shall include:
Greenway/Park: A natural preserve available for unstructured recreation. Its landscape shall consist of paths and trails, meadows, waterbodies, woodland and open shelters, all naturalistically disposed. Parks may be linear, following the trajectories of natural corridors (greenways). The size shall be .5 - 5 acres (except greenways where there is no minimum). |  |
Green: An open space available for unstructured recreation. A green may be spatially defined by landscaping rather than building frontages. Its landscape shall consist of lawn and trees, naturalistically disposed. For the purposes of this section, standalone dog parks shall be considered a variation of the green park type. The minimum size shall be .5 acres. |  |
Squares: An open space available for unstructured recreation and civic purposes. A square is spatially defined by building frontages. Its landscape shall consist of paths, lawns and trees, formally disposed. Squares shall be located at intersections. The minimum size shall be .25 acre and the maximum shall be 2 acres. |  |
Playgrounds: An open space designed and equipped for the recreation of children. Playgrounds shall be interspersed within residential areas and may be placed within a block. There shall be no minimum or maximum size. |  |
Community Garden: A grouping of garden plots available for small-scale cultivation, generally to residents of apartments and other dwelling types without private gardens. Community gardens should accommodate individual storage sheds. |  |
D. Location and Visibility.
1. Land for usable open space (park space) shall be centrally and internally located as to serve the needs of the residents of the neighborhood.
2. Usable open space (park space) shall serve as focal points for developments.
3. All usable open space (park space) shall be conveniently accessible to all residents of the development and shall have at least 20 feet of frontage on at least one public street within the development.
4. No residential unit within a development shall be further than ¼ mile, as measured along a street or pedestrian path, from usable space (park space) or other publicly accessible park facility.
5. All usable open space (park space) shall be visible from dwelling units that are adjacent to the park area. This includes dwelling units on properties that share a property boundary with the park space or front the park space from directly across a street.
E. Minimum Amenities within Usable Open Space.
1. Required usable open space (park space) shall be planned, improved, and usable by persons living nearby. Improved shall mean cleared of underbrush and debris and shall contain two or more of the following amenities: landscaping, walls or pathways, fences, walks, lighting and electricity, fountains, ball fields, and/or playground equipment.
2. Public Seating: Provide seating areas appropriate to the intended use of the park space (e.g., park benches and durable theft/vandalism-resistant chairs and garden wall seats).
3. Trash Receptacle: At least one garbage receptacle shall be required for each park space.
4. Bicycle Parking: At least two bicycle parking spaces shall be required for every one-quarter acre of park space and every ½ mile of greenway.
5. Minimum Amenities - Playground per 4.08.1.C: Playground equipment shall be equivalent to the standards established by the Consumer Products Safety Commission and ASTM for playgrounds.
6. Minimum Amenities - Greenway per 4.08.1.C: A greenway path is credited toward the minimum park space dedication requirement at a rate equal to the length of the path times 20 feet in width. The minimum width of the paved path shall be 10 feet.
F. Credit for Proximity to Existing Park Space. Developments that are proximate to an existing town-owned, publicly-accessible park space may count all such lands in their park space dedication requirement up to 25% of the required total, subject to the provisions below.
1. The existing park or parks must be within ½ mile of the development, as measured along a road or pedestrian path, to be considered proximate.
G. Credit for Neighborhood Amenities. Developments that provide neighborhood amenity facilities will receive a credit of 25% of the required total, subject to the provisions below.
1. The facilities are open to all residents of the neighborhood and are not subject to a private membership separate from any related POA dues.
2. Such facilities shall, at a minimum, include a clubhouse a minimum of 800 square feet and either tennis courts (minimum of two courts) or a pool (a minimum of 2,000 square feet in water surface area).
H. The following areas shall not count toward common open space set-aside requirements:
1. Private lots, yards, balconies and patios dedicated for use by a specific dwelling unit;
2. Electric or gas transmission line rights-of-way;
3. Public right-of-way or private streets and drives;
4. Open parking areas and driveways for dwellings;
5. Land covered by structures except for ancillary structures associated with the use of the open space such as gazebos and picnic shelters;
6. Designated outdoor storage areas;
7. Land areas between buildings of less than 40 feet;
8. Land areas between buildings and parking lots or driveways of less than 40 feet in width;
9. Required setbacks; and
10. Detention/retention facilities except as permitted by the Administrator.
I. Subdivided residential developments of less than 25 dwelling units are exempt from the requirements of this section unless the town agrees that it will accept an offer of dedication of such open space and in that case the offer of dedication shall be made.
4.08.2 OWNERSHIP AND MAINTENANCE OF RECREATIONAL AREAS AND REQUIRED OPEN SPACE:
A. Open space required to be provided by the applicant in accordance with these open space standards shall not be dedicated to the public but shall remain under the ownership and control of the developer (or his successor) or a property owner’s association or similar organization that satisfies the criteria established in Article V. Open space shall be designated as an independent lot on the plat and shall be noted as being reserved for their intended purposes.
B. The person or entity identified in paragraph A. as having the right of ownership and control over such recreational facilities and open space shall be responsible for the continuing upkeep and proper maintenance of the same.
C. Open space may be dedicated to a registered land trust, if approved by the Board of Commissioners.
4.08.3 DEDICATION OF OPEN SPACE
A. If any portion of any lot proposed for development lies within an area designated on the officially adopted Comprehensive Parks Master Plan as a public park or part of the public greenway system, the area so designated (not exceeding 3% of the total lot area) shall be included as part of the area set aside to satisfy the requirement of this section. This area shall be dedicated to public use.
B. If more than 3% of a lot proposed for development lies within an area designated as provided in paragraph A., the town may attempt to acquire the additional land in the following manner:
1. The applicant may voluntarily dedicate the additional land to the town;
2. The applicant may be encouraged to develop an integrated subdivision, cluster subdivision or some other applicable development pattern and to dedicate the common open space created thereby; or
3. The town may purchase or condemn the land.
4.08.4 FLEXIBILITY IN ADMINISTRATION AUTHORIZED
A. The requirements set forth in this article concerning the amount, size, location and nature of recreational facilities and open 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 recreational facilities an open space that is consistent with officially adopted town plans. The Board of Commissioners recognizes, however, that due to the particular nature of a tract of land, or the nature of the facilities proposed for installation, or other factors, the underlying objectives of this article may be achieved even though the standards are not adhered to with mathematical precision. Therefore, the permit issuing authority is authorized to permit minor deviations from these standards whenever it determines that:
1. The objectives underlying these standards can be met without strict adherence to them; and
2. Because of peculiarities in the applicant’s tract of land or the facilities proposed it would be unreasonable to require strict adherence to these standards.
B. Whenever the permit issuing authority approves a deviation from these open space standards pursuant to paragraph A., the official record of action taken on the development application shall contain a statement of the reasons for allowing the deviation.
4.08.5 OPEN SPACE LINKAGES
Where a trail, natural area or public park is dedicated to or acquired by the town, such area may be credited toward the minimum amount of common open space required.
4.08.6 NATURAL OPEN SPACE REQUIRED
A. Every single-family residential development shall be developed so that at least 5% of the total area of the development remains as natural open space.
B. Every multi-family development shall be developed so that a minimum of 10% of the total site remains as natural open space. See Section 4.10.5 for additional open space requirements for multi-family developments.
4.08.7 NATURAL OPEN SPACE DESIGN CRITERIA
All required open space shall meet the following design criteria, as applicable:
A. Water bodies, retention areas, detention basins and wetlands basins, may constitute up to 40% of required open space, provided that retention facilities are designed to provide safe access to water. Unless otherwise approved by the Board of Commissioners, side slopes to retention facilities shall provide at least six feet of horizontal run for each foot of vertical rise.
B. At least 30% of required open space must be dry land with a slope of less than 10% unless otherwise approved the Board of Commissioners.
C. Unless otherwise approved by the Board of Commissioners, open space shall be continuous, contiguous with open space on abutting properties and accessible to the public.
4.08.8 CONNECTIVITY REQUIRED
To the maximum extent practicable, common open space shall be organized to create integrated systems of open space that connect with the following types of lands located within or adjacent to the development:
A. Dedicated public park or greenway lands;
B. Dedicated school sites;
C. Other dedicated open spaces;
D. Common open space located adjacent to the development;
E. Portions of the regional trail and open space system.
4.08.9 OWNERSHIP & MAINTENANCE
The designated common open space and common facilities are outlined in Section 5.16 of this ordinance.
(Ord. passed 2-14-2017; Ord. 2020-05, passed 8-10-2019; Ord. passed 3-15-2022)