§ 255-295. Standards for conditional use approval.

[Amended 8-11-2020 by Ord. No. 20-1360, § 5]

Those uses permitted in this article by conditional use shall be required to conform to the following standards:

   A.   A personal care facility , retirement community, assisted living center or nursing home.

      (1)   Such use is consistent with § 255-287, Intent.

      (2)   Such use will not adversely affect the health, safety or welfare of the neighborhood .

      (3)   Parking is provided in accordance with Article XIX of this chapter.

      (4)   Buffer and screening requirements required for a flife care complex in an INST – Institutional District shall be complied with unless modified by the Board of Commissioners.

      (5)   The density shall not exceed:

         (a)   40 dwelling units per acre.

         (b)   50 dwelling units per acre (Option 1) with the installation of a green roof or a solar, geothermal or other renewable energy power-generation facility that is designed to provide at least 20% of the expected annual energy use for the building . The facility shall be designed and installed under the direction of a professional with demonstrated expertise in the design and construction of such facilities. The green roof shall cover at least 70% of the net roof area (the total gross area minus areas covered by mechanical equipment) of a building . Green roofs shall be designed and installed under the direction of a professional with demonstrated expertise in green roof design and construction . Vegetation shall be maintained for the life of the building . The green roof shall conform to the best available technology standards, such as those published by LEED.

         (c)   50 dwelling units per acre (Option 2) if the applicant provides reliable shuttle service to the train station(s) and if the applicant demonstrates compliance with three (3) of the Alternative Transportation Design Standards of Appendix A of Chapter 212 Subdivision and Land Development , Article IV, § 212-35.2., as well as moderate income housing as described in § 255-295.C.(1)(b)[v].

         (d)   The continued maintenance of the optional facilities shall be secured by a recorded covenant.

      (6)   The plans shall comply with the development requirements for multiple dwelling  development in Article VIII, MD – Multi-Dwelling District, § 255-53.1.

   B.   Exhibition center .

      (1)   Such use is consistent with § 255-287, Intent.

      (2)   Such use will not adversely affect the health, safety or welfare of the neighborhood .

      (3)   Adequate provision has been made to accommodate increased traffic on public streets .

      (4)   The Board of Commissioners may limit the total square footage of gross floor area of an exhibition center based on the legislative intent of the GFW Greater Fort Washington District and the standards and criteria contained in Article XXV, Conditional Use by Board of Commissioners.

   C.   Apartment  development .

      (1)   Apartment  lot , density, yard , bulk, height, and parking regulations.

         (a)   Minimum lot size. 3 acres.

         (b)   Maximum density.

            [i]   40 dwelling units per acre.

            [ii]   45 dwelling units per acre on lots of 5 acres or greater.

            [iii]   45 dwelling units per acre with the installation of a green roof or renewable energy facility as described in § 255-295.A.(5)(b).

            [iv]   45 dwelling units per acre is also permitted with vertical mixed use  development , consisting of ground floor non-residential development and apartments in the floors above.

            [v]   50 dwelling units per acre (Option 1) with the installation of a green roof or renewable energy facility as described in § 255-295.A.(5)(b), and moderate income housing provided that such units shall be so maintained by a covenant running with the land. To qualify for the increase, the new building shall be three stories or higher and at least 10% of the dwelling units, but no less than two units, shall be affordable to moderate-income families. Access to amenities shall not be differentiated based on type of household. Price and income guidelines for moderate-income households shall be as defined by the Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency (PHFA) Keystone Home Loan Program income guidelines in effect at time of application. Developers and subsequent transferees of moderate-income units shall provide documentation showing compliance with these family incomes and rental/purchase price limits.

               [a]   Moderate-income dwelling units require 1.0 parking space per unit rather than the 1.5 spaces per unit required for market-rate housing.

               [b]   Building coverage may be increased to 60%, impervious surface may be increased to 75%, and green space may be reduced to 7.5% for single-use developments.

            [vi]   50 dwelling units per acre (Option 2) if the applicant provides reliable shuttle service to the train station(s) and if the applicant demonstrates compliance with three (3) of the alternative transportation design standards of Appendix A of Chapter 212 Subdivision and Land Development , Article IV, § 212-35.2.A.(4), as well as a green roof or renewable energy facility, or moderate income housing as described in § 255-295.C.(1)(b)[v].

            [vii]   Provision for autonomous passenger vehicles. If and when the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania authorizes operation of autonomous passenger vehicles on all roadways within Montgomery County, an applicant seeking to construct and/or operate at least one hundred (100) residential units at a site within this district must make the following provisions for autonomous passenger vehicles:

               [a]   The principal vehicle access must be on a two-way street .

               [b]   The plan for the proposed development must include at least one designated pick-up/drop-off space for autonomous passenger vehicles for every 100 units.

               [c]   Certification by an engineer that the building and its exterior do not include any element which would interfere with the use of LIDAR (or any comparable technologies in use by autonomous vehicles) within the site or entering or exiting the site at its intersection with any public street .

               [d]   The plan must provide for adequate curbside management, including pedestrian waiting area at each pick-up/drop-off area, security cameras for each such location, and bollard and signage barring trucks and other commercial vehicles from each such location, sufficient to provide safeguards for persons using such area.

         (c)   Minimum lot width (measured at building  setback line ). 200 feet.

         (d)   Yard requirements.

            [i]   Front yard . 25 feet.

            [ii]   Side yards . 35 feet.

            [iii]   Rear yard . 45 feet.

         (e)   Building coverage. 40%.

         (f)   Impervious coverage. 75%.

         (g)   Green space . 15% minimum of the gross lot area , within which a minimum of 3% of the gross lot area shall be built and maintained as public space .

         (h)   Maximum building height, subject to the height restrictions (Map 1).

            [i]   38 to 75 feet for various properties as shown on Map 1.

         (i)   Parking requirements.

            [i]   Parking shall be provided at a rate of 1.5 parking space per unit plus 10% for guest parking. (This shall be added to Article XIX, Off-Street Parking and Loading as § 255-135.B.(14), Apartment  Buildings .)

         (j)   Bedrooms per dwelling unit.

            [i]   All apartment  buildings shall have the following distribution of unit types:

               Studio and 1 bedroom units – minimum 50% of total units.

               2 bedroom units – maximum of 45% of total units.

               3 bedroom units – maximum of 5% of total units.

               4 bedrooms or more – not permitted.

      (2)   Apartment unit maximum. A maximum of 900 apartment units shall be permitted within the GFW- Greater Fort Washington District. In the event multiple applications are pending before the Township which, if granted, would exceed the 900 unit maximum, the applications will be considered in the order in which preliminary approval is granted. When preliminary approval of an application would cause the number of approved apartment units to exceed 900 units in the GFW district, the application shall be denied. Conditional use approval for apartment units shall be conditioned upon compliance with the unit maximum at the time of preliminary plan approval.

   D.   (Reserved)

   E.   Highway and interchange uses – freestanding retail sales.

      (1)   Adequate provisions shall be made to accommodate increased traffic on public streets as required by § 255-291, Traffic control.

      (2)   The provisions of § 255-293, Lot , yard and bulk regulations, shall apply to this use , except as noted below:

         (a)   The maximum building area shall be 15,000 square feet.

      (3)   Fuel dispensing may be provided as an accessory use , provided the following criteria and standards are met:

         (a)   There shall be no more than sixteen fueling positions.

         (b)   Tools and/or equipment needed for incidental activities, such as window cleaning and checking/adding air to vehicle tires, may be provided.

         (c)   Fuel storage and dispensing equipment shall be located entirely outside of any floodplain and all fuel storage facilities shall be underground.

         (d)   Canopies over fuel dispensing positions may be installed to protect users from poor weather conditions, provided they are no taller than 20 feet.

      (4)   Overnight rest facilities or publically available electric hookups are prohibited, as are showers or other similar personal hygiene facilities, except for customarily available public rest rooms.

      (5)   Signs permitted for highway and interchange uses are provided for in § 255-155.B.

      (6)   Site lighting shall be designed so as to shield the source of illumination and eliminate glare that will be seen by motorists passing by on adjacent roadways and limited access highways.

      (7)   Off-street parking and loading areas.

         (a)   Parking shall be provided as required in this article in § 255-294, Parking, and in Article XIX, Off-Street Parking.

         (b)   Parking and loading areas shall be designed so as to ensure the safe, orderly and efficient movement and use of the site by both motorists and pedestrians.

         (c)   Conflicts between vehicular and pedestrian movements shall be minimized to the greatest extent practical. Solutions such as changing the materials, color and texture of parking areas, driving lanes and pedestrian routes shall be utilized to clearly define and differentiate the vehicular and pedestrian circulation patterns and pathways.

         (d)   Landscaping and pedestrian pathways shall be installed and maintained in all parking areas.

      (8)   Architectural and design standards. In addition to the Design Standards: Appendix A in Article IV, § 212-35.2 of the Subdivision and Land Development Ordinance, buildings shall be designed as indicated below.

         (a)   Other than roofing material, no less than 80% of the primary building's exterior facade, excluding window and door openings, shall be faced with natural building materials, such as wood, stone and/or brick, or man-made materials that are engineered and designed to replicate these natural materials, provided that all proposed materials other than trim materials shall be non-white in color to reduce the potential amount of light reflected glare.

         (b)   Steel or other metals shall not be used on building exteriors, except as may be needed for roofing, window trim, gutters and downspouts.

         (c)   Unpainted concrete block, except when textured or tinted is prohibited on building exteriors.

         (d)   Waste receptacles and other outdoor furniture shall be designed as an integral part of the site’s design and shall be consistent with and incorporated into the site’s overall architectural character.

         (e)   All mechanical equipment shall be visually screened from all public rights-of-way. The screening shall be architecturally appropriate and designed as an integral part of the site’s design.

         (f)   All applications shall include building elevations depicting the proposed materials and colors of the buildings , as well as a materials and colors legend.