The following principles shall guide the exercise of site planning review by the City:
(a) The natural topographic and landscape features of the site shall be incorporated into the plan and the development.
(b) Buildings and open spaces should be in proportion and in scale with existing structures and spaces in the area within 300 feet of the development site.
(c) A site that has an appearance of being congested, over-built or cluttered can evolve into a blighting influence and therefore such should not be congested, over-built or cluttered.
(d) Open spaces should be linked together.
(e) Natural separation should be preserved or created on the site by careful planning of the streets and clustering of buildings using natural features and open spaces for separation. Existing vegetation removal should be kept to a minimum.
(f) Screening of intensive uses should be provided by utilizing landscaping, fences or walls to enclose internal areas.
(g) Buildings should be sited in an orderly, non-random fashion. Long, unbroken building facades should be avoided.
(h) In connection with the siting of mid-rise and high-rise buildings, the location should be oriented to maximize the privacy of the occupants of adjacent buildings.
(i) Short loop streets, cul-de-sacs and residential streets should be used for access to low density residential land uses in order to provide a safer living environment and a stronger sense of neighborhood identity.
(j) Street location and design shall conform to existing topographic characteristics. Cutting and filling shall be minimized in the construction of streets. Grading next to intersections should be as flat as possible for traffic safety.
(k) Pedestrian circulation in non-residential areas should be arranged so that off- street parking areas are located within a convenient walking distance of the use being served. Handicapped parking should be located as near as possible to be accessible to the structure. Pedestrian and vehicular circulation should be separated as much as possible, through crosswalks designated by pavement marking, signalization or complete grade separation.
(l) Path and sidewalk street crossings should be located where there is a good sight distance along the road, preferably away from sharp bends or sudden changes in grade.
(m) Parking lots and garages should be located in such a way as to provide safe, convenient ingress and egress. Whenever possible there should be a sharing of curb cuts of more than one facility. Parking areas should be screened and landscaped and traffic islands should be provided to protect circulating vehicles and to break up the monotony of continuously paved areas.
(n) Drive through establishments such as restaurants and banks should be located to allow enough automobile waiting space for peak hour operation without interference with other parking lot circulation.
(Ord. 269-2001. Passed 12-17-01.)