§ 14-303. "C-2" Commercial District.

   (1)   Use Regulations – General. The uses permitted in this district shall be:

      (a)   In completely enclosed building unless otherwise specified;

      (b)   As respects the sale of goods or merchandise, shall be at retail;

      (c)   As respects the rendering of services, shall be with the ultimate consumer.

   (2)   Use Regulations – Without Certificate. 124 Subject to the provisions of (1) above, where applicable, the specific uses permitted in this district shall be the erection, construction, alteration or use of buildings and/or land for:

      (a)   The uses permitted in any Residential District, except attached buildings used solely for dwelling purposes. All use qualifications provided in Residential Districts are not required in this district;

      (b)   The following sales, separately or in any combination: Antiques, art goods and artists' supplies; automobiles and parts, excluding installation; bakery goods; bicycles; motorcycles; boats and farm equipment; books; photographic equipment; china; glass and metalware; confectionery goods; cosmetics; department store merchandise; draperies; drugs; dry goods; electric appliances and fixtures; floor coverings; florist merchandise; fruits and vegetables; furniture; garden supplies; gifts; groceries; hardware; hobby and handicraft merchandise; household appliances; jewelry; luggage; meat; music material and merchandise; musical instruments; newspapers and magazines; office equipment and supplies; optical and orthopedic goods; packaged paints; radio and television sets and parts; seafood except as provided in subparagraph (3)(t) below; sporting goods; stationery; variety store merchandise ("5-and-10-cent store"); wallpaper; watches and clocks; wearing apparel; 125

      (c)   Barber, beauty shop, bicycle rental, costume and clothing rental, hat cleaning, photographer, tailor shop, taxidermist; 126

      (d)   Blueprinting, duplicating, and kindred reproduction services, not to exceed 1,500 square feet in gross floor area; 127

      (e)   Business or professional office or agency, financial institution, school, radio or television studio (for transmission towers, see (3)(o) below); 128

      (f)   Farmers Market; 129

      (g)   Funeral parlors, including the sale of morticians' goods; 130

      (h)   Hand laundry, laundry pick-up agency and/or dry cleaning pick-up agency, and each use, singly or in any combination, not to exceed 1,500 square feet in gross floor area; 131

      (i)   Instruction in music, arts, or sciences; 132

      (j)   Laboratories (analytical, chemical, and research) and assay offices, not to exceed 1,500 square feet in gross floor area; 133

      (k)   Personal service or treatment of patients; 134

      (l)   Post offices; 135

      (m)   Printing, publishing, and related trades and arts, not to exceed 1,500 square feet in gross floor area; 136

      (n)   Private open-air parking lot, incidental and contiguous to any uses permitted in this district (subject to the provisions of Chapter 14-1400 of this Title); 137

      (o)   Repair of household appliances and fixtures, jewelry, musical instruments, photographic equipment, radio and television equipment, shoes, dental or prosthetic laboratories, or optical lens grinding, not to exceed 1,500 square feet in gross floor area; 138

      (p)   Restaurant (see (3)(p) below), café, soda or ice cream fountain, or catering, including outdoor dining areas; 139

      (q)   Treatment or sale of pet birds and pet animals, and animal hospitals, not to include dog kennels or public stables; 140

      (r)   Water booster or sewer substations, telephone exchange buildings, railroad passenger stations, electric transforming or gas regulating substations; provided, that any facilities used in connection with an electric transforming or gas regulating substation located in the open-air shall: 141

         (.1)   not be within 50 feet of any Residential District;

         (.2)   have a green belt at least 4 feet high containing evergreens, shrubbery and/or trees to be planted and maintained in an area at least 10 feet in depth around the entire inside perimeter of the lot, except at points of ingress or egress;

         (.3)   shall not be used for the storage of equipment or vehicles;

      (s)   Accessory uses, customarily incidental to any of the above permitted uses; provided, that the accessory use does not occupy more than 25% of the gross floor area, and does not include open air storage of materials, equipment or merchandise, except as provided in subparagraph (n) above. Accessory use shall not include the preparation and sale at retail of food to be consumed off premises whether by a restaurant, café, soda or ice cream fountain. 142

   (3)   Use Regulations – With Certificate. The following uses will be permitted in this district only if a Zoning Board of Adjustment Certificate, as hereinafter provided, is obtained, and only in completely enclosed buildings except in paragraphs (d), (j), (l), (m), (o), and (w): 143

      (a)   Amusement arcades; 144

      (b)   Athletic and drill hall, dance hall, theater, motion picture theater, and other entertainment of guests and patrons as a main use; 145

      (c)   Automobile repair shop (not including body and fender work, or painting), and repair shops not listed in Section 14-303(2), Use Regulations – Without Certificate; 146

      (d)   Automobile service station for the retail sale of automobile fuels, lubricants, radiator fluids and accessories, and for the performance indoors of incidental service and minor repairs to automobiles (not including body and fender work or painting, clutch, cylinder, differential or transmission repairs) incidental car washing indoors in an area not to exceed 400 square feet, and the inspection of automobiles; provided, the same is licensed by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania; 147

      (e)   Bath house and indoor swimming pool as a main use; 148

      (f)   Billiards, pool and bowling; 149

      (g)   Bottling and/or distributing of liquids for human consumption; 150

      (h)   Central heating plant; 151

      (i)   Courtroom or courthouse building; 152

      (j)   Garages and parking as a main use; 153

         (.1)   public garage; 154

         (.2)   private garage; 155

         (.3)   public parking lot; 156

         (.4)   private parking lot, except as permitted under paragraph (2)(n) above; 157

         (.5)   automobiles sales lot; 158

      (k)   Installation of auto, boat, motorcycle or truck parts; 159

      (l)   Open air theater, open air motion pictures, and other open air entertainment; 160

      (m)   Outdoor amusement parks, athletic and sports fields, outdoor swimming pools, and day camps; 161

      (n)   Penal and correctional institutions (public); 162

      (o)   Radio or television transmission tower; 163

      (p)   Restaurant which serves patrons who remain in their automobiles; take-out restaurant; delicatessen; and, restaurant, café or soda and ice cream fountain which dispenses food at retail through a window or aperture which opens onto the sidewalk or public arcade area; 164

      (q)   Retail dry cleaning establishment using nonflammable solvents as approved by the Department of Licenses and Inspections; 165

      (r)   Retail sale of packaged beverages as a main use and the retail sale of malt beverages for take-out as an accessory use. 166

      (s)   Retail sale of picture frames, candles, ceramics, leather goods, and related handy-craft items with accessory making or assembling of same with hand tools only, not to exceed 1,000 square feet in gross floor area; 167

      (t)   Sales of live poultry, live fish, or live animals for human consumption; 168

      (u)   Self-service laundry using residential type washing machines; provided, said use complies with the following terms and conditions: 169

         (.1)   such use does not exceed 2,500 square feet in gross floor area; and

         (.2)   such use shall be permitted only from 6 A.M. to 1 A.M.; and

         (.3)   lights located on the outside of the premises shall not be permitted to remain lighted after 12 o'clock midnight;

      (v)   Self-service dry cleaning establishment; provided: 170

         (.1)   The Fire Marshal shall have certified that the premises, machines, equipment and materials are in compliance with the Fire Code as set forth in Chapter 5-800; 171

         (.2)   An attendant over 21 years of age and trained in the use of the equipment on the premises employed by the licensee shall be present at all times when the premises where the self-service dry cleaning establishment is located is open for business;

         (.3)   No operator of any coin-operated dry cleaning equipment shall use or permit to be used any solvent other than that which has been approved, by the manufacturer of the equipment, for use therein;

         (.4)   An interlock system shall be provided on the machine to prevent the loading door from being opened during the normal cycle. Said system may be electrical or mechanical and so connected as to remain effective in case of power failure;

         (.5)   The licensee shall permit only the front side of the dry cleaning machines to be accessible to the customers. The working or maintenance portion of the machines shall be so constructed, located and maintained so as to be not accessible to the customer. At no time when customers are present shall the concentration of vapors, in the customer area from the dry cleaning solvent exceed one hundred parts per million;

         (.6)   There shall be prominently posted on the premises the name, address and telephone number of the owner or operator of said business and there shall be a public telephone on the premises in a conspicuous location;

         (.7)   Such use does not exceed 2,500 square feet in gross floor area;

         (.8)   Such use shall be permitted only from 6 A.M. to 1 A.M.;

         (.9)   Lights located on the outside of the premises shall not be permitted to remain lighted after 12 o'clock midnight;

      (w)   Trolley and cab stations, bus terminals, car and bus barns; 172

      (x)   Uses customarily accessory and incidental to the uses specified in subparagraphs (a) through (w) above; 173

      (y)   A use of the same general character as the uses specified in subparagraphs (a) through (w) above. 174

   (4)   Area Regulations.

      (a)   Occupied Area. Not more than 75% of the lot area on intermediate lots and 80% on corner lots shall be occupied by buildings.

      (b)   Open Area. The open area shall be not less than 25% of the lot area on intermediate lot and 20% on corner lots and shall consist of at least the required minimum rear yard in all cases, plus such other open courts and/or side yards as shall be required to equal an area not less than the total open area above required.

      (c)   Building Set-back Line. No building set-back line shall be required in this district.

      (d)   Side Yards and Courts. When side yards or courts are used, except inner courts and courts between wings of the same building, they shall have a minimum width of five feet (subject to exception, see § 14-104(12)).

      (e)   Open Court Between Wings of the Same Building. The minimum width between wings shall be 12 feet.

      (f)   Inner Court. The least dimension of an inner court shall be eight feet. Minimum area for such court shall be 100 square feet. Such courts of less area than 300 square feet shall not be permitted for any building used for dwelling purposes except when used as vent shafts.

      (g)   Rear Yard and Rear Yard Area.

         (.1)   Buildings used for commercial purposes and/or containing less than three families shall have a rear yard with a minimum depth of not less than 10% of the lot depth, but in no case less than eight feet.

         (.2)   Buildings containing three or more families shall have a rear yard with a minimum depth of nine feet, and a minimum Rear Yard Area of 344 square feet, plus an additional 100 square feet of Rear Yard Area for each additional family more than three families.

   (5)   Height Regulations.

      (a)   The maximum height of a dwelling shall be 35 feet above the average ground level at the base of the structure, but in no case over three stories.

      (b)   The permitted height of non-residential buildings shall be 35 feet except that one foot of additional height may be added for each additional foot the building sets back from all lot lines; provided, however, that the maximum height of such buildings shall be 60 feet (subject to the provisions of § 14-231(2)).

   (6)   Off-street Loading. Off-street loading spaces shall be provided in accordance with Section 14-1405 of this Title.

   (7)   Off-street Parking. See Chapter 14-1400 of this Title.

   (8)   Signs. Signs accessory to use on the premises shall be permitted in this district only under the following conditions: 175

      (a)   Lots facing one street line shall be permitted a total sign area of six square feet for each lineal foot of street line;

      (b)   Lots facing more than one street line shall be permitted a total sign area as follows:

         (.1)   For the shorter street line frontage there shall be permitted a sign area of 6 square feet for each lineal foot of street line;

         (.2)   For the longer street line frontage there shall be permitted a sign area of 4 square feet for each lineal foot of street line; provided, that in no case shall the total sign area on the longer street line frontage be less than the equivalent sign area permitted upon the shorter street line frontage;

         (.3)   Where a lot has two or more short and/or two or more long street line frontages, the provisions of (.1) and (.2) shall apply to each of said street frontages;

         (.4)   The total of the sign areas permitted in subparagraphs (.1) and (.2) may be cumulated; provided, such use is restricted to one street frontage;

      (c)   Signs which are free-standing structures on the ground shall not exceed 20 feet in height, measured from the average level of ground of the lot to the top of said structure;

      (d)   Signs may be animated or illuminated; provided, the illumination shall be focused upon the sign itself so as to prevent glare upon the surrounding area;

      (e)   Signs with flashing or intermittent illumination shall not be erected within 150 feet of any Residential District, nor facing any Residential District within 300 feet of the sign;

      (f)   Signs which revolve shall be prohibited;

      (g)   Any revolving device which causes intermittent flashes of light to be projected shall be prohibited.

 

Notes

124	Amended, 1979 Ordinances, p. 36; amended, 1979 Ordinances, p. 233; amended, Bill No. 20 (approved March 8, 1985).
125	Amended, 1979 Ordinances, p. 233; amended, Bill No. 1081 (approved May 5, 1995), 1995 Ordinances, p. 581.
126	Amended, 1979 Ordinances, p. 233.
127	Amended, 1979 Ordinances, p. 233.
128	Amended, 1979 Ordinances, p. 233. Subsection cross-reference renumbered.
129	Added and subsequent subsections renumbered, Bill No. 010540 (approved December 19, 2001).
130	Amended, 1979 Ordinances, p. 233.
131	Amended, 1979 Ordinances, p. 233.
132	Amended, 1979 Ordinances, p. 233.
133	Amended, 1979 Ordinances, p. 233.
134	Amended, 1979 Ordinances, p. 233.
135	Amended, 1979 Ordinances, p. 233.
136	Amended, 1979 Ordinances, p. 233.
137	Amended, 1979 Ordinances, p. 233.
138	Amended, 1979 Ordinances, p. 233.
139	Amended, 1979 Ordinances, p. 233; amended, 1980 Ordinances, p. 32. Subsection cross-reference renumbered. Amended, Bill No. 040999 (approved February 16, 2005).
140	Amended, 1979 Ordinances, pp. 233 and 973.
141	Amended, 1979 Ordinances, p. 233.
142	Amended, 1979 Ordinances, p. 36; amended, 1979 Ordinances, p. 233. Former subsection (2)(r), relating to outdoor advertising and non- accessory advertising signs, amended by 1979 Ordinances, pp. 36 and 233, was deleted by 1985 Ordinances, p. 99, which renumbered former subsection (2)(s) as (2)(r). Amended, Bill No. 040999 (approved February 16, 2005).
143	Amended, 1979 Ordinances, p. 233; amended, Bill No. 1081 (approved May 5, 1995), 1995 Ordinances, p. 581.
144	Amended, 1979 Ordinances, p. 233.
145	Amended, 1979 Ordinances, p. 233.
146	Amended, 1979 Ordinances, p. 233.
147	Amended, 1979 Ordinances, p. 233.
148	Amended, 1979 Ordinances, p. 233.
149	Amended, 1979 Ordinances, p. 233.
150	Amended, 1979 Ordinances, p. 233.
151	Amended, 1979 Ordinances, p. 233.
152	Amended, 1979 Ordinances, p. 233.
153	Amended, 1979 Ordinances, p. 233.
154	Amended, 1979 Ordinances, p. 233.
155	Amended, 1979 Ordinances, p. 233.
156	Amended, 1979 Ordinances, p. 233.
157	Amended, 1979 Ordinances, p. 233.
158	Amended, 1979 Ordinances, p. 233.
159	Amended, 1979 Ordinances, p. 233.
160	Amended, 1979 Ordinances, p. 233.
161	Amended, 1979 Ordinances, p. 233.
162	Amended, 1979 Ordinances, p. 233; amended, Bill No. 000337 (approved September 12, 2000).
163	Amended, 1979 Ordinances, p. 233.
164	Amended, 1979 Ordinances, p. 233; amended, 1980 Ordinances, p. 32; amended, Bill No. 1081 (approved May 5, 1995), 1995 Ordinances, p. 581.
165	Amended, 1979 Ordinances, p. 233.
166	Amended, 1979 Ordinances, p. 233; amended, 1993 Ordinances, p. 1195.
167	Amended, 1979 Ordinances, p. 233.
168	Amended, 1979 Ordinances, p. 233.
169	Amended, 1979 Ordinances, p. 233.
170	Amended, 1979 Ordinances, p. 233.
171	Referenced material now appears in Title 4, Subcode F.
172	Amended, 1979 Ordinances, p. 233.
173	Amended, 1979 Ordinances, p. 233.
174	Amended, 1979 Ordinances, p. 233.
175	Amended, 1977 Ordinances, p. 36.