(A) General requirements.
(1) Backing onto a street.
(a) No parking area shall be designed to require or encourage parked vehicles to back into a public street in order to leave a parking space, except for:
1. A driveway serving one dwelling; or
2. A driveway that enters onto a local street or parking court.
(b) Parking spaces may back onto an alley.
(2) Design. Every required parking space shall be designed so that each motor vehicle may proceed to and from the parking space provided for it without requiring the moving of any other vehicle, unless specifically permitted otherwise.
(3) Buffer yards or street right-of-way. Parking areas shall not be within a required buffer yard or street right-of-way.
(4) Separation from street. Except for parking spaces immediately in front of individual dwellings, all areas for off-street parking, off-street loading and unloading and the storage or movement of motor vehicles shall be physically separated from the street by a continuous grass or landscaped planting strip, except for necessary and approved vehicle entrances and exits to the lot.
(5) Stacking and obstructions. Each lot shall provide adequate area upon the lot to prevent back-up of vehicles on a public street while awaiting entry to the lot, or while waiting for service at a drive-through facility.
(B) Size and marking of parking spaces.
(1) Each parking space shall be a rectangle with a minimum width of nine feet and a minimum length of 18 feet, except the minimum sized rectangle shall be eight feet by 22 feet for parallel parking and except where a larger space is required by division (C) below.
(2) For handicapped spaces, see division (G) below.
(3) All spaces shall be marked to indicate their location, except those of a one- or two-family dwelling.
(C) Aisles. Parking spaces and aisles shall be designed and built in conformance with the following:
Angle of Parking | Parking Space Min. Width (feet) | Parking Space Min. Depth (feet) | Aisle Width - One- Way Traffic (feet) | Aisle Width - Two- Way Traffic (feet) |
90 degrees | 9 | 18 | 20 | 22 |
55 to 89 degrees | 10 | 22 | 18 | 22 |
35 to 54 degrees | 10 | 21 | 15 | 20 |
1 to 34 degrees | 10 | 19 | 12 | 20 |
Parallel | 8 | 22 | 12 | 20 |
Min. = Minimum | ||||
(D) Accessways and driveways.
(1) Width of driveway at entrance onto a public street.
Width of Driveway at Entrance onto a Public Street, at the Edge of the Cartway* | One-Way Use* | Two-Way Use* |
Minimum | 12 feet | 22 feet |
Maximum | 20 feet | 30 feet |
* This standard may be revised where a different standard is required by PennDOT for an entrance to a state road, or where the applicant demonstrates to the Zoning Officer that a wider width is needed for truck access | ||
(2) Drainage. Adequate provisions shall be made to maintain uninterrupted parallel drainage along a public street at the point of driveway entry. The township may require an applicant to install an appropriate type and size of pipe at a driveway crossing.
(E) Paving, grading and drainage.
(1) Parking and loading facilities and including driveways shall be graded and adequately drained to prevent erosion or excessive water flow across streets or adjoining properties.
(2) Except for landscaped areas, the township may require all required parking, loading facilities and driveways serving principal nonresidential uses (other than agricultural uses) or serving apartment or townhouse uses to be surfaced with asphalt, concrete, paving block or other low-dust materials pre-approved by the township.
(a) Parking areas that are not used on a daily basis or that are only used seasonally may be approved to be maintained in stone, grass or other suitable surfaces. For example, such parking spaces may be allowed to be grass, while major aisles are covered by stone.
(b) If the design and materials are found to be acceptable by the Township Engineer, portions of parking areas may be covered with a low-dust porous parking surface that is designed to promote ground water recharge. This might include porous asphalt or pervious concrete placed over open graded gravel and crushed stone. Porous parking surfaces shall not be allowed in areas routinely used by heavy trucks.
(c) Curbing should not be required in parking areas except where absolutely necessary to control stormwater runoff.
(d) The township may require pavement of an area in asphalt, concrete or similar impervious surface, with a raised edge, where it is necessary to contain potential spills of hazardous substances.
(G) Parking for persons with disabilities/handicapped parking.
(1) Number of spaces. See requirements under the Federal Americans With Disabilities Act for parking for persons with disabilities. The following is a summary of some of the relevant requirements in effect as of the enactment date of this chapter.
Total No. of Parking Spaces on the Lot | Required Minimum No./Percent of Ada-accessible Parking Spaces |
Total No. of Parking Spaces on the Lot | Required Minimum No./Percent of Ada-accessible Parking Spaces |
1 to 25 | 1 van-accessible |
26 to 50 | 2, 1 of which must be van-accessible |
51 to 75 | 3, 1 of which must be van-accessible |
76 to 100 | 4, 1 of which must be van-accessible |
101 to 150 | 5, 1 of which must be van-accessible |
151 to 200 | 6, 1 of which must be van-accessible |
201 to 300 | 7, 1 of which must be van-accessible |
301 to 400 | 8, 1 of which must be van-accessible |
401 to 500 | 9, 2 of which must be van-accessible |
501 to 1,000 | 2% of total number of spaces, 1/8th of which must be van-accessible |
1,001 or more | 20 plus 1% of spaces for each 100 over 1000 spaces, 1/8 of which must be van-accessible |
(2) Location. Handicapped parking spaces shall be located where they would result in the shortest reasonable accessible distance to a handicapped accessible building entrance. Curb cuts shall be provided as needed to provide access from the handicapped spaces.
(3) Minimum size and slope. See requirements of the Americans With Disabilities Act regulations.
(4) Marking. All required handicapped spaces shall be well-marked in compliance with the Americans With Disabilities Act. Such signs and/or markings shall be maintained over time.
(5) Paving. Handicapped parking spaces and adjacent areas needed to access them with a wheelchair shall be covered with a smooth surface that is usable with a wheelchair.
(H) Paved area setbacks (including off-street parking setbacks).
(1) Intent. To ensure that parked or moving vehicles within a lot do not obstruct sight distance or interfere with pedestrian traffic, to aid in stormwater management along streets and to prevent vehicles from entering or exiting a lot other than at approved driveways.
(2) New or expanded vehicle parking or storage. Any new or expanded vehicle parking or vehicle storage area serving a principal nonresidential use shall be separated from a public street by a planting strip. The planting strip shall have a minimum width of 15 feet and be maintained in grass or other attractive vegetative groundcover. The planting strip may be on one or both sides of any sidewalk, provided the planting width totals 15 feet. This 15 feet width shall be increased to 25 feet for a lot including 100 or more parking spaces.
(a) The planting strip shall not include heights or locations of plants that would obstruct safe sight distances, but may include deciduous trees that allow motorists to maintain views under the leaf canopy.
(b) The planting strip may be placed inward from the shoulder of an uncurbed street or inward from the curb of a curbed street. The planting strip may overlap the street right-of-way, provided it does not conflict with PennDOT requirements, and provided that the township and PennDOT as applicable maintain the right to replace planting areas within the right-of-way with future street improvements.
(c) Approximately perpendicular driveway crossings may be placed within the planting strip. Mostly vegetative stormwater channels may be placed within the planting strip.
(d) The following shall be prohibited within the planting strip:
1. Paving, except as allowed by division (H)(2)(c) above, and except for street widenings that may occur after the development is completed;
2. Fences; and
3. Parking, storage or display of vehicles or items for sale or rent.
(e) Where feasible, where a sidewalk is not installed, this setback should include an unobstructed generally level width running parallel to a street that is suitable for a person to walk.
(Ord. 126, passed 3-18-2010; Ord. 126A, passed 2-7-2013)