55.26 COMMERCIAL ZONING DISTRICT REGULATIONS (C-1, C-2).

The commercially zoned districts are intended to provide for high quality area of various densities and intensities in an effort to promote quality of life, health and general welfare of citizens and visitors while providing a large variety of services and shopping, all consistent with the Comprehensive Plan. It shall be generally recognized that the type of use is not so important as the manner in which the use is accomplished. It is intended that these districts shall not be used indiscriminately to permit any use that could potentially be detrimental to the intent of the Zoning Ordinance.

1.   Commercial Districts.

   A.   C-1 General Commercial District. The C-1 District is intended and designed to provide for general uses and activities of a retail business, service industry or professional office character that, by nature of their business, provide service and commodities that benefit the local needs of the unincorporated areas of the County. This district is most appropriately located along paved streets.

   B.   C-2 Highway Commercial Services District. The C-2 District is intended and designed to provide for general uses and activities of a retail business, service industry or professional office character that, by nature of their business, provide service and commodities that benefit the general needs of the County and the highway traveling public. This district is most appropriately located along arterial streets or in areas that can be adequately buffered from residential districts.

2.   Principal Permitted Uses. Principal permitted uses for commercial districts are as follows:

PRINCIPAL PERMITTED USES	C-1	C-2
Agriculture - Animal hospital, veterinary clinic or kennel	PR	PR
Automotive - gas or filling stations	PR	PR
Automotive – Convenience stores, including gas and food sales		PR
Automotive - tire and auto accessory store.	P	P
Automotive - public parking lots and garages.	P	P
Automotive – service and repair garages.	P	P
Automotive - car wash.	P	P
Automotive – automobile, trailer, mobile home, and farm implement establishments for display, hire, sales, and repair, including sales lots; but excluding automobile, tractor, machinery, or similar wrecking and used parts yards.		P
Business - Banks loan offices, and Financial Institutions,	P	P
Business - Professional and commercial offices.	P	P
Business – Travel bureaus, real estate office and similar agencies	P	P
Civic - Libraries, Museums and similar institutions	P	P
Civic - Private Clubs, lodges, youth centers or veterans organizations, including those holding a beer permit or liquor license.	P	P
Clothing – Apparel shops and clothing accessory shops for items such as handbags, hosiery, hair and similar accessories.	P	P
Clothing – Clothing repair shops including tailors	P	P
Clothing - Furriers	P	P
Clothing – Costume rental shops	P	P
Clothing – Shoe sales or repair shops	P	P
Clothing – Hat sales, cleaning or repair shops	P	P
Clothing, Laundry – Commercial laundry, dry cleaning or dyeing establishments		PR
Clothing, Laundry – Diaper services	P	P
Clothing, Laundry – Dry cleaning pick up stations, not including on-site cleaning processes
Clothing, Laundry – Laundromats	P	P
Commercial Entertainment – Amusement Parks		P
Commercial Entertainment – Bowling alleys	P	P
Commercial Entertainment – Billiard Hall	P	P
Commercial Entertainment – Camping grounds and tourist parks	P	P
Commercial Entertainment – Theaters, indoor only	P	P
Commercial Entertainment – Theaters, outdoor	P	P
Food – Meat markets, butcher shops	P	P
Food – Drug stores	P	P
Food – Restaurants, including sit-down restaurants, tea rooms, delicatessens, coffee shops, excluding drive-thrus	P	P
Food – Drive-thru restaurants and coffee shops	PR	PR
Food – Taverns or similar drinking establishments	P	P
Food – Milk and dairy stores and distribution stations, excluding processing	P	P
Food – Commercial Bakeries		PR
Personal Services – Beauty shops, barber shops	P	P
Personal Services – Cosmetics, manicure shops	P	P
Personal Services – Masseur salons, spas; excluding adult entertainment businesses	P	P
Personal Services – Opticians and optical sales and repairs	P	P
Personal Services - Reducing Salons and fitness centers	P	P
Personal Services – Medical and Dental clinics	P	P
Recreation - Baseball fields, softball fields, soccer fields, swimming pools, skating parks, golf driving ranges or similar recreational uses and facilities	P	P
Recreation - Public and private events centers, banquet halls, party barns	PR	PR
Retail – Bicycle sales and repair shops	P	P
Retail – Book stores	P	P
Retail – Bird or pet stores	P	P
Retail – Florist shops gift and card shops	P	P
Retail – Hardware, paint and wallpaper stores	P	P
Retail Commercial greenhouses		PR
Retail – Toy shops	P	P
Retail – Variety stores, discount stores	P	P
Trades Services – Carpenter, sheet metal and sign painting shops		PR
Hotel – Hotels, motels	P	P
Utilities – Utility pole mounted small wireless facility	PR	PR
Utility – Electrical substations, telephone exchanges, sanitary sewer lift stations, lagoons, wells, water treatment facilities, gas regulating stations	P	P
Utility – Microwave, radio, television and cellular telephone communication towers.	PR	PR
Warehouses – Mini-storage facilities	P	P
Other retail business or service establishments determined by the Zoning Administrator to be equivalent to the permitted uses listed above.	P	P
Key: P = Permitted Use PR = Permitted Use With Restrictions SUP = Special Use Permit required Blank = Use Not Permitted

 

3.   Restrictions for Principal Permitted Uses. The following restrictions shall apply to the appropriate permitted uses in commercial zoning districts:

   A.   Animal Hospitals, Veterinary Clinic or Kennel. Such animal uses shall be permitted provided any structure or area used for such purpose shall be at least 200 feet from any “R” district boundary and 100 feet away from any “A-1” or A-R” district boundary.

   B.   Gas Stations and Convenience Stores.

      (1)   No gasoline filling station or a commercial customer or employee parking lot for 25 or more motor vehicles, or a parking garage or automobile repair shop shall have an entrance or exit for vehicles within 200 feet along the same side of a street of any school, public playground, church, hospital, public library or institution for dependents or for children, except where such property is in another block or on another street which the subject lot does not abut.

      (2)   Pump islands, light standards and related minor accessory equipment not involving repair work or servicing of vehicles other than for fuel, air, and water shall be permitted in the yard areas provided no gasoline pump or fuel dispensing equipment shall be located within 12 feet of any street right-of-way.

      (3)   No oil draining pit or appliance for such purpose shall be located within 25 feet of any “R” district boundary or street right-of-way line.

      (4)   On all corner lots, all vehicular entrances to, or exits from, and curb openings shall be set back a minimum of 150 feet from the projecting intersection of curb lines or edge of pavement and such openings shall not exceed 35 feet in width at the curb line or edge of pavement. There shall be a minimum of 20 feet of separation measured along the curb line between any series of driveways.

   C.   Drive-thru Restaurants. Drive-thru restaurants shall be permitted in any commercial district provided the drive-thru lanes provide sufficient space for vehicle queuing on the premises and provided all drive-thru lanes and associated menu boards and speaker systems are located at least 200 feet from any “R” district or “A-R” district.

   D.   Outdoor Theaters. The screen for any drive-in movie theater or outdoor theater shall be so located as to not be visible from adjacent highways or streets. Sufficient driveway area shall be provided so that cars will not be waiting in line on any public right-of-way or otherwise create a hazard to vehicular movement.

   E.   Trade services, clothes bakeries, cleaning/dyeing, lumber yards, greenhouses. No heating plant or ventilating flue in connection with any such commercial operations shall be within 50 feet of any “R” district.

   F.   Events Centers, Banquet halls, and party barns. On-site parking shall be provided for the maximum event, parking shall not be permitted on public or private streets. All buildings shall comply with all applicable fire codes, including number and location of exits.

   G.   Microwave, radio, television, and cellular telephone communication towers but not utility poles. All towers must have a fall zone. The minimum distance from the base of any new ground mounted communication tower to public right-of-way or any property line shall be: 1) A distance equal to at least seventy-five percent (75%) of the height of the tower from any adjoining property line. 2) A distance equal to at least one hundred feet (100') or one hundred percent (100%) of the height the tower, whichever is greater, from any residential zoned district or residential use property line.

   H.   Small wireless facility utility pole height limitations. New, replacement, or modified utility pole or wireless support structure shall not exceed the greater of ten feet in height above the tallest utility pole existing, located within five hundred feet of the new, replacement, or modified utility pole, or forty feet in height above ground level.

   I.   Permitted uses with restrictions shall not be permitted to be established or maintained in any commercial district which by reason of its nature or manner of operation is or may become hazardous, noxious, or offensive owning to the emission of odor, dust, smoke cinders, gas, fumes, noise, vibrations, refuse matter or water-carried waste.

   J.   Permitted uses with restrictions shall demonstrate said use will not have any detrimental impact on existing neighboring uses due to traffic congestion or parking needs.

4.   Special Use Permits. Principal permitted uses designed “SUP” in subsection 2 of this section shall be permitted only upon approval of a Special Use Permit by the Board of Adjustment in accordance with Section 53.38 of this chapter in addition to conformance with all appropriate restrictions outlined subsection 3 of this section

5.   Permitted Accessory Uses. Uses not permitted as a principal permitted use for that zoning district shall not be permitted as an accessory use except as specifically permitted in this subsection. The following accessory uses are permitted in commercial zoning districts:

   A.   Customary accessory uses and structures incidental to the permitted principal uses.

   B.   Private garage or carport in association with a permitted residential use.

   C.   No more than three shipping containers are allowed on parcels of 10 acres or less and no more than five shipping containers on parcels over 10 acres.

   D.   Temporary buildings for uses incidental to construction work, which buildings shall be removed upon the completion or abandonment of the construction work. Temporary buildings or dwellings shall not be permitted for a period longer than one year unless approved in writing by the Zoning Administrator.    

   E.   Private Solar Energy Systems.

      (1)   Ground-Mounted Solar Array. Ground-mounted solar array shall be:

         a.   Located in the side or rear yard.

         b.   Set back from lot lines as if the arrays were a detached accessory use.

         c.   Sized as if the arrays were a detached accessory structure.

         d.   Screened from adjacent residential properties.

      (2)   Building-Mounted Solar Array. Building-mounted solar array shall be:

         a.   Mounted a principal building or accessory structure.

         b.   Mounted in a way that does not extend more than 12 inches above or beyond the surface to which it is mounted.

   F.   Small Wind Energy Conversion Systems (SWECS) are a permitted accessory use subject to the requirements set forth in this subsection.

      (1)   SWECS Height. SWECS structure height shall not exceed 125 feet.

      (2)   Setbacks. The base of the SWECS shall be set back from all lot lines by a distance at least equal to one and a half times the height of the system.

      (3)   Clearance. Rotor blades on SWECS must maintain at least 24 feet of clearance between their lowest point and the ground.

      (4)   Compliance With FAA Regulations. SWECS must comply with applicable FAA regulations, including any necessary approvals for installations close to airports.

      (5)   Appearance. Towers and rotor blades for small wind energy systems shall maintain such finish or be painted in such manner as to conform the tower color and appearance to the surrounding environment to reduce visual obtrusiveness. No such tower shall have any signage, writing, or pictures that may be construed as advertising placed on it at any time. In addition, no flags, streamers, or decorative items shall be attached to a small wind energy system tower or turbine.

      (6)   Removal of Nonfunctional or Abandoned SWECS.

Any small wind energy system which is nonfunctional or abandoned for a continuous period of six months shall be repaired and placed back in operation by the owner or operated, or else the same shall be removed.

   G.   Beekeeping and apiaries; up to a maximum of four hives per acre and provided all hives are set back a minimum of 25 feet from property lines.

6.   Site Development Regulations. Dimensional requirements for commercial districts are as follows:

BULK REGULATIONS
Regulator	C-1	C-2
Minimum Lot Area	1 acre	1 acre
Minimum Lot Width	None	None
Minimum Front Yard Depth	30	30
Minimum Side Yard Depth Adjacent to “A” District Adjacent to “R” District Adjacent to “C” District Adjacent to “M” District Accessory Structures	50 75 10 10 4	50 75 10 10 4
Minimum Rear Yard Depth Accessory Structures	35 4	351 4
Maximum Height (in feet) Principal structures Accessory structures	35 15	40 40
Maximum Number of Stories Principal structures Accessory structures	2½ 1	3 3
Notes:
1. Microwave, radio, television and cellular telephone communication towers may exceed the maximum height restrictions under an approved special use permit and provided all fall zone requirements are met.

 

7.   Foundations. A permanent foundation is required for all principal buildings.

8.   Off-Street Loading. Off-street loading shall be provided as required by Section 55.21.

9.   Off-Street Parking. See Section 55.22 for off-street parking requirements.

10.   Site Plans. Site plans shall be required for all uses in all commercial districts except single family and duplex family residential buildings. See Section 55.30 for Site Plan requirements.

11.   Signs. All signage including, but not limited to, building and wall signs, monument and pole signs, shall be in conformance with Section 55.20 of this chapter.

12.   Exceptions and Modifications. See Section 55.29.