A. Distribution System
1. The
of the facility, including walls or equipment, shall be 20 feet from any
residential .
2. Where a facility is not
within a
, the surrounding
shall be used as the
wall for the purposes of
.
4. Where a water tower more than 20 feet in height is used in conjunction with such facilities, its center shall be located a distance from any
equal to not less than one-half its height.
5. The use shall not have any service or storage yards.
6. Noise emission at the
shall be equivalent to the residential requirements of the noise ordinance.
7. No TVI (television interference) or RIV (radio interference) on a continuous basis shall be permitted.
8. Any
housing such facility shall be in keeping with the character of the in which it is located. The Design Review Board (DRB) shall review all applications and make recommendations to the Zoning Examiner. The DRB shall review architectural style,
elevations, materials on exterior facades, color schemes, new mechanical equipment locations, lighting of outdoor areas, window locations and types, screening,
,
, and other contributing design features.
9. The use shall be located wholly within an
or within an area
on all sides with a masonry wall or compact evergreen hedge, not less than six feet, nor more than ten feet, in
.
10. The use shall include a ten-foot high wall in an earth tone and vegetative
where
to a residential .
11. The use shall be limited to water pumping and storage facilities, telephone exchanges, and power substations with an input voltage of no greater than 138 kilovolts.
12. The following requires approval in accordance with Section 3.3.4, 100' Notice Procedure. The PDSD Director may forward the request to the Design Review Board (DRB) for design review and recommendation.
a. Water pumping and storage facility upgrades or expansions, provided:
(1) Existing
are not altered.
(2) Use Specific Standards 4.9.11.A.5, .9, .11, are met.
In considering any request for a special exception, the Zoning Examiner shall take into consideration the impact of providing such an exception in historic areas (as defined by or listed in the National Register of Historic Places, properties or districts, City of Tucson Historic Preservation Zones, City of Tucson Historic Landmarks, or Neighborhood Preservation Zones), located within the specific Gateway Corridor Zone or Scenic Corridor Zone in which the special exception is being requested.
A special exception request to relieve the requirement to underground transmission lines must meet the required findings of UDC section 3.4.5. Additionally, the effects that can be expected from permitting relief from the undergrounding requirements based on any of the criteria listed herein or any combination of those criteria when added together must remain consistent with the overall purpose and integrity of the Gateway/Scenic route, unless it is technologically impossible and/or clearly financially cost prohibitive. If relief is approved under this section, any new above-ground transmission line that is permitted must be designed, constructed, and maintained to be as unobtrusive as possible.
A special exception request to relieve the requirement to underground transmission lines that meets the findings established by UDC section 3.4.5, Findings and which also meets criteria a, d, or f of this subsection may only require one criterion for approval when no other criteria apply to the project. Otherwise, in addition to the required findings of UDC section 3.4.5, the special exception request must meet more than one criterion listed in subsections (a) through (h) below.
a. The proposed overhead transmission lines are contextually sensitive to adjacent and surrounding zoning and land uses. Examples of this may include a proposed location that is industrially zoned or a proposal that results in a less adverse aesthetic impact or less adverse impact on viewsheds for surrounding properties.
b. Requiring underground construction would cause a significant increase in ground disturbance when compared to overhead construction in sensitive areas such as Environmental Resource Zone (ERZ) or Watercourse Amenities, Safety and Habitat (WASH) wash crossings or environmentally and archeologically sensitive areas.
c. The proposed overhead transmission line will have minimal impact on residential areas.
d. The proposed overhead transmission lines are located on non-Gateway or non-Scenic corridor routes, and the relief is requested for a segment that perpendicularly crosses a Gateway Corridor Zone or Scenic Corridor Zone, and the placement of poles is set back at least 150 feet from the curbline of the designated Gateway or Scenic Corridor.
e. The proposed overhead transmission lines are for a repair or upgrade of existing facilities and the proposed facilities are similar in size and scale to the existing facilities being repaired or replaced. Replacement facilities may not be any larger than 10% the height or width of existing facilities being replaced.
f. The transmission lines are proposed in an area where there is an existing presence of railroad, highway and/or bridge crossings, or in an area where underground installation would interfere with other existing undergrounded utilities, and curing that interference is technologically impossible or financially cost prohibitive.
g. The proposed transmission lines will provide electrical service to critical customers where overhead lines are strongly recommended for specialized operations; examples include but are not limited to: provision of electricity to Davis Monthan AFB or other installations necessary to the national defense.
h. The proposed project is in an area where costs to install underground would have a disparate impact on low-income residents.
The ZE findings shall identify each specific criterion that relates to the application/ project, and which are met. Approval of a Zoning Examiner special exception shall not preclude any other necessary regulatory relief process such as a variance.
B. Renewable Energy Generation
2. The
of the facility, including walls or equipment, shall be 20 feet from any
residential .
3. All activities shall be conducted in
with the following use specific standards.
a. Noise
The sound level of any individual operation shall not exceed the levels permitted in Section 16-31, Excessive Noise, of the Tucson Code.
b. Smoke
Smoke emission from any source is not permitted to exceed a
greater than that described as No. 1 on the Ringleman Chart. However, smoke may be emitted which is equal to, but not darker than, No. 2 on the Ringleman Chart for not more than four minutes in any 30-minute period. For the purpose of
the
of smoke, the Ringleman Chart, as published by the U.S. Bureau of Mines, is the standard.
c. Glare or Heat
Any activity producing intense glare or heat shall not be performed in such a manner as to create a
or hazard beyond the
of the
.
d. Odors
Emission of odorous gases or other odorous matter is not permitted in such quantities as to be offensive to owners or occupants of
property or in such a manner as to create a
or hazard beyond the
of the
.
e. Vibration
Vibration discernible beyond the
of the
is prohibited.
f. Fly Ash, Dust, Fumes, Vapors, Gases, and Other Forms of Air Pollution
Emissions that can cause damage to health,
, vegetation or other forms of property or that can cause any excessive soiling of the air per
or
guidelines is prohibited.
g. Liquids and Solid Waste
Waste shall not be discharged into the
, drainage ways, or on property possibly creating a danger to the public health and safety, and no waste shall be discharged in the public sewage system that might endanger the normal operation of the public sewage system.
h. Illumination
Illumination of
and open areas shall be located and directed so as to eliminate glare toward
and
properties and shall comply with the requirements of the Outdoor Lighting Code in Chapter 6 of the Tucson Code.
i. Interference
TVI (television interference) or RIV (radio interference) that emanates from the
is prohibited.
4. A service or storage yard is prohibited.
5. In addition to the requirements of Section 7.6,
and Screening, there shall be a decorative masonry wall at least six feet in between the and any residential
.
C. Sanitation System
Uses shall be at least 300 feet from any nonindustrial , except where the use of the non-industrially zoned property is railroad or freeway
.
(Am. Ord. 11732, 2/19/2020; Am. Ord. 11942, 7/12/2022; Am. Ord. 11996, 3/21/2023)