(A) The purpose of this section is to require building and entrances to be oriented to the street to the maximum extent practicable to encourage pedestrian access and movement. Requirements for orientation and primary entrances are intended to provide for convenient, direct and accessible pedestrian circulation by connecting activities within a structure to the adjacent sidewalk and to nearby transit stops; and promote the use of pedestrian and transit modes of transportation to retail and commercial facilities.
(B) The following design standards shall apply:
(1) All ground-floor tenant spaces with at least 25 feet of frontage facing a public, or private streets shall have at least one building entrance oriented to the adjacent street. Such an entrance shall open directly to the outside and shall not require a pedestrian to first pass through a garage, parking lot or loading area to gain access to the entrance from the street, but the entrance may include architectural features such as arcades, anti-chambers, porticos and the like without being in violation of this provision. If a building has frontage on more than one street, the building shall provide a main building entrance oriented to one of the streets or a single entrance to the corner where the two streets intersect. Where one single tenant has 200 feet or more of frontage on public or private streets, one additional entrance shall be provided for each 200 feet of frontage on one of the public or private street. Freestanding banking institutions and restaurants located in the Mixed Use district are exempt from the provisions contained in this division and may locate the primary building entrance on any facade of the structure. A clear internal site pedestrian sidewalk or pathway shall be provided to the building entrance from all public or private street sidewalks. A building may have more building entrances than required by this section oriented to a public or private street, and may have secondary entrances facing off-street parking areas and loading areas.
(2) Residential dwellings fronting on a public or private street shall have a main entrance to the dwelling opening onto the front of the dwelling at the ground floor lever. Such an entrance shall open directly to the outside and shall not require passage through a garage to gain access to the doorway. The doorway may be above final grade where a porch, stoop, portico, anti-chamber, wheelchair ramp or similar architectural feature is included in the design. Ground floor single-family attached housing or townhouse, condominium residential units fronting on a public or private street shall have separate entries directly from the major pedestrian route.
(3) Ground floor and upper story residential units in a multi-family building fronting on a public or private street may share one or more entries accessible directly from the street.
(4) Residential building facades over 150 feet in length facing a street shall provide two or more main building entrances.
(5) Entryways into mixed-use buildings containing residential units shall be clearly marked with a physical feature incorporated into the building or an appropriately scaled element applied to the facade.
(6) Bicycle parking spaces shall be sited so as not to occupy space within, reduce the size of, or impede the use of required sidewalks, pedestrian ways, curbside landscape strips, landscape buffers or unable open spaces. All bicycle parking must be easily accessible and shall be equipped or located so as to allow the bicycle to be conveniently and securely locked to a parking device or within a secured bicycle parking area. Covered bicycle parking shall be provided. Covered bicycle parking may be provided within a parking structure, garage, under a separate roof within a bicycle locker, or in a designated area within a building or residential complex. A covered bicycle structure may occupy two of the required on-site parking spaces.
(7) Surface parking areas shall provide perimeter parking lot landscaping adjacent to a street which meets one of the following standards: a five-foot wide planting strip between the right-of-way and the parking area shall be provided for streets designate collector or local. A ten-foot wide planting strip between the right-of-way and parking area shall be provided for streets designated arterial.
(1995 Code, § 10.109.080) (Ord. 06-2004, passed 2-21-2006)