(a) Maintenance of Screening and Landscaped Areas. All screening and landscaping materials shall be installed and maintained according to accepted nursery industry procedures. The owner of the property shall be responsible for the continued property maintenance of all landscaping materials, and shall keep them in a proper, neat and orderly appearance, free from refuse and debris at all times and shall remove all noxious, invasive, or poison type plants as may be identified by the Urban Forester. All unhealthy or dead plant material shall be replaced within one (1) year, or by the next planting period, whichever comes first. Violation of these installation and maintenance provisions may be grounds for the Planning Director to:
(1) Find the owner of the property in violation of the conditions of the Zoning Permit;
(2) Require replacement of the landscape material; or
(3) Institute legal proceedings to enforce the provisions of this Code.
(b) Screening and Landscape Establishment. Once a screened or landscaped area has been approved by the Planning Director and established by the owner, it may not be used, disturbed or altered in any way that would decrease its landscape or screening effectiveness unless approved by the Planning Director.
(c) Screening Requirement. In order to provide protective screening and buffers for residentially zoned areas that are adjacent to nonresidential areas, the Planning Director may require a wall, fence or planted open space to be provided by any newly developed or substantially expanded nonresidential property if the nonresidential property is not already sufficiently screened.
Screening shall be in accordance with the following:
(1) Screening areas shall be provided for the purpose of minimizing the visual and noise impact between incompatible land uses by improving the aesthetic and functional quality of new development.
(2) Where vegetative and/or topographic conditions already provide a natural screen and buffer prior to development of properties in question, every effort shall be made to retain such conditions in good maintenance. In such cases, additional screening may not be required by the Planning Director, provided that provision is made for maintenance of such areas.
(3) The Planning Director may waive the requirement for a wall, fence or greenbelt if equivalent screening is provided by existing or planned parks, parkways, recreation areas or by topography or other natural conditions found on the subject property.
(4) Screening Standards.
WHEN... | IS PROPOSED TO ABUT... | A MINIMUM SCREENING OF... |
Any commercial or office land use | Any Single Family or Two Family Residential District | A. If proposed; a wall or fence should be five to six feet in height and placed near the nonresidential property line. The area between such wall or fence and the property line shall be treated with plantings to form a permanent landscaped area. or B. If proposed; a strip of open space along the property line at least ten (10) feet in width should be established. Such greenbelt shall be planted and maintained with sight blocking plant material such as evergreens or hedge at least six (6) feet in height, tightly situated so as to provide an effective and permanent visual buffer. The portion of the landscaped area not covered by plantings shall be kept in a neat and orderly appearance. |
Any industrial land use | Any Residential or Commercial District | |
Any multi-family land use | Any Single Family or Two Family Residential District | |
Any institutional land use (including assisted living facilities, educational institutions and religious places of worship) | Any Single Family or Two Family Residential District |
(d) Materials for Screening and Landscaping.
(1) Walls and Fences. When walls or fences are used to fulfill screening requirements, they shall be detailed on the plan. They are to be of weather-proof materials. This includes pressure treating or painting of lumber if it is not redwood or cedar and using aluminum or galvanized hardware. Chain link fences with or without wooded or synthetic slat material shall not be permitted when used to satisfy screening requirements.
(2) Plants. All plants are to be healthy upon planting. Plant materials used in conformance with the provision of this Chapter shall be salt tolerant as necessary and shall conform to the standards of the American Association of Nurserymen and shall have passed any inspection required under State regulations. Trees and plant materials should be species indigenous to Zone 5 of the United States Department of Agriculture Plant Hardiness Zone Map. Trees shall be balled and burlapped or in containers. Shrubs, vines and ground covers can be planted as bare root as well as balled and burlapped or containers.
A. Deciduous Trees. Deciduous trees shall have a minimum caliper of at least two one and one half (1½) inches conforming to acceptable nursery industry procedures at the time of planting. If deciduous trees are to be used for screening purposes, additional materials listed in this Chapter must be used to create a dense buffer.
B. Evergreen Trees. Evergreen trees shall be a minimum of six (6) feet in height at the time of planting when used for screening purposes when adjacent to a Single Family or Two Family Residential District. Evergreen plantings used for screening shall be planted so as to provide an effective, dense screen upon the time of planting. The height at installation of the planting shall be measured from the level of the planting surface of the evergreen base.
C. Shrubs and Hedges. Shrubs and hedges shall be at least five (5) feet in height at the time of planting. All shrubs and hedges shall be designed to provide an effective, dense screen and mature height of at least six (6) feet within two (2) years after the date of the final approval of each planting. The height at installation of the planting shall be measured from the level of the surface of the plant base at the edge closest to the screening.
(Ord. 109-14. Passed 6-23-14.)