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This text amendment proposes
changes to the Zoning Ordinance related to two categories of
commercial uses: Category 12-Commercial retail and Category
13-Commercial business and personal services. The
proposed changes broaden the uses allowed in various
districts. The changes also seek to reduce approval
requirements where appropriate, particularly by
consolidating approvals up-front where possible. The
proposed changes are also intended to bring more consistency
to the regulations by adjusting requirements so that more
review is provided in the C-1/Neighborhood Commercial and
CV/Village Commercial districts as compared to the more
intense C-2/Commercial Highway and C-3/Commercial Shopping
Center districts.
More specifically, the
proposed amendments accomplish the following:
·
Allows more
(up to 20,000 sq. ft. compared to the existing 5,000 sq. ft.
limit) retail/shopping center uses in the C-1/Commercial
Neighborhood and CV/Commercial Village zones without
approval of a special permit. The 5,000 sq.ft. to 20,000
sq.ft. levels of retail/shopping center are proposed to be
allowed by approval of an Administrative permit, subject to
certain standards that limit the size and scale of
individual retail uses to one appropriate in these
neighborhood oriented areas. Hence, a 20,000 sq. ft.
building with a 10,000 sq. ft. footprint would not be
allowed administratively, but four 5,000 square foot retail
uses each built to a smaller “townhouse” scale footprint
could be approved administratively. As the administrative
approval could be processed concurrent with required site
plans, one separate step in the approval process is
eliminated, saving potential time in the process.
·
Clarifies the
distinction between “Retail Sales Establishment” and
“Shopping Center,” which has historically created confusion
and potential delays. Allows shopping centers over 50,000
sq. ft. in the C-2 Commercial Highway district, with
approval of a special exception (not currently allowed,
although a single store of more than 50,000 sq. ft. is
allowed by special exception). For consistency, also adds
requirement for special exception for a shopping center over
50,000 sq. ft. for the C-3 commercial district (now up to
200,000 sq.ft. shopping center allowed by right), in
recognition that a large center could potentially have
significant impacts. Although this change adds an
additional approval requirement for large shopping centers
in the C-3 district at the onset, this change is offset by a
decrease in subsequently required approvals for individual
uses.
·
Clarifies and
expands the uses that can be placed within an approved
“Shopping Center” without the need for further approvals, to
include most office, eating establishment, retail, personal
service and business uses. For example, if a fast food
eating establishment wants to locate within an approved
shopping center, it currently requires special permit
approval. This recently occurred where a Pizza Hut
carry-out restaurant wanted to locate at Bealeton Station
shopping center. The proposed change would allow the use to
go into an existing approved shopping center provided all
zoning Ordinance requirements can be met (i.e. parking). As
amendments to additional categories of uses in the zoning
Ordinance are proposed, it is anticipated that additional
uses will be identified to be allowed by-right in a shopping
center, including such uses as amusement arcades, auto-parts
shops (no installation), indoor technical schools, etc.
·
Eliminates
certain specific categories of retail uses (antique shops
over 3,000 sq. ft., furniture stores, gift shops) allowing
these retail uses to go anywhere where retail/shopping
center uses are allowed subject to the same limitations as
retail/shopping center uses. Note, the “antique shops less
than 3,000 square feet” is maintained as a separate category
to allow such small shops to continue to be considered in
the RC/RA and R-1 districts, where other retail uses are not
allowed.
·
Eliminates the
distinction between professional offices and business
offices, combining them into a single “office category” that
is then categorized by size. As with retail, a new category
is introduced for offices 5,000 sq. ft. to 20,000 sq. ft. in
size, allowing increased levels of office space in the C-1
and CV zoning districts with approval of an administrative
permit rather than a special permit.
·
Creates a new
laundry/dry-cleaning category, for drop-off and pick-up only
(as opposed to processing), allowed in every commercial
district and I-1 light industrial. Also changes the
break-point for other laundry/dry-cleaning facilities from
3,000 sq. ft. to 5,000 sq. ft., consistent with other uses
in the commercial business category.
·
Adds “repair
service establishment;” “furniture repair, cabinet making,
upholstery,” “barber/beauty shop”; “carpentry, plumbing,
electrical, printing, welding, sheet metal shops” and
“photographic studio” to additional zoning districts. Also
changes approvals required in some cases. All changes are
highlighted in red. The proposed changes are intended to
eliminate gaps and inconsistencies in the Ordinance. Uses
allowed in the smaller scale neighborhood oriented districts
(C-1 and CV) are added to the other commercial districts
where not currently allowed. For example, “furniture
repair, cabinet making, upholstery;” shops over 5,000 sq.
ft. are now allowed in C-1 with a special permit, but are
not allowed at all in C-2, C-3 or CV. The proposed language
adds the use to the additional commercial districts. The
proposed changes also bring more consistency to where a use
is allowed by-right versus with a special permit; in some
cases uses allowed in the smaller scale neighborhood
oriented districts by right require more stringent approvals
in other commercial districts. For example, currently a
“laundry, dry-cleaning establishment, laundromat” use is
allowed in C-1 and CV by-right, with a special permit
required in C-2. The proposed change makes the use a
special permit in the lower density, neighborhood oriented
districts, and makes the use by right-in the more intense
C-2 district.
·
Eliminates
barber/beauty shop from the rural and residential districts;
however, it is proposed these uses be added back in as a
home occupation under separate amendment. The existing
standards for the barber/beauty shop in rural and
residential zones already require that the use meet the home
occupation standards.
·
Creates a
drive-through facility as a separate use requiring a special
permit, regardless of whether or not it is associated with a
bank, a restaurant, a drug-store or any other use.
·
Adds
additional commercial uses to the I-1/Industrial district to
allow development of more flex/warehouse/office type uses as
opposed to only pure industrial uses. New uses added
include: offices, repair services, laundry/dry cleaning
facilities, barber/beauty shop and photographic studio.
·
Offices are
currently allowed in rural and residential zones under two
categories: “Office, professional 3 or less employees” and
“Office, professional 6 or less employees.” The text
amendment combines the offices uses into a single category
“Office, 6 or less employees.” The change broadens the
types of offices allowed in these districts, but continues
to require a special permit for all such offices and
continues to limit the number of employees to six.
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