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AN ORDINANCE AMENDING THE ZONING ORDINANCE

OF THE TOWN OF DUCK, NORTH CAROLINA REGARDING RESIDENTIAL DRIVEWAYS AND PARKING AREAS

Ordinance No. 08-02

WHEREAS, the Town Council of the Town of Duck may enact ordinances to protect the health, safety, and welfare of its citizens under the North Carolina General Statutes § 160A-174; and

WHEREAS, the Town Council and the Planning Board have solicited public input and professional advice regarding driveways and parking areas; and

WHEREAS, the Town’s adopted CAMA Core Land Use Plan provides in Chapter IX, Plan for the Future, a series of goals, policies, and objectives that support the adoption and enforcement of regulations to regulate land use, development and redevelopment of properties in accordance with the Land Use Plan in order to protect the public health, safety, and welfare; and

WHEREAS, within the CAMA Core Land Use Plan, Objectives #1c, #6a and #12a state that the town will:

Adopt and apply development policies that balance protection of natural resources and fragile areas with residential and economic development.

WHEREAS, within the CAMA Core Land Use Plan, Objective #19g with respect to residential development states:

OBJECTIVE #19g: Encourage new residential development to respect the rights and consider the concerns of adjoining property owners with respect issues such including storm water runoff, line of sight, and vegetative buffer installation;

NOW THEREFORE BE IT ORDAINED by the Town Council for the Town of Duck, North Carolina that the Zoning Ordinance shall be amended as follows:

PART I. Amend Section 156.092, Parking lot requirements for single-family and two-family (duplex) dwelling units, of the Zoning Ordinance of the Town of Duck, to read as follows:

Section 156.092. – Off-street parking requirements for single-family and two-family (duplex) dwellings.

Permanent off‑street parking spaces shall be provided in accordance with the following requirements prior to the completion of construction of any building or structure, or at the time any building or structure is enlarged or increased in capacity by adding bedrooms or bedroom equivalents, or when modifications to properly authorized existing parking facilities are requested as part of a building permit or land disturbance permit, or when increasing septic capacity to accommodate more individuals in a home than two per bedroom, or before conversion from one (1) zoning use or occupancy to another.

(A) Required off‑street parking spaces and loading spaces are permanent areas and shall not be used for any other aboveground purpose. Changes to driveway and parking areas following the initial certificate of occupancy for a project shall be subject to Town review as provided herein, and if to be performed independently of any project for which a building permit shall be obtained, shall be subject to issuance of a land disturbance permit.

(B) Sufficient maneuvering space, not less than 10' x 10', shall be provided on lots accessed from N.C. Highway 12.

(C) Required parking spaces shall be graded and improved with loose stone surface (gravel), porous pavers, or other similar semi-permeable materials. Loose stone surface shall be bordered in a manner which retains the stone in the parking area. Parking spaces may be improved with asphalt or concrete, subject to review and approval of the Director of Community Development, if there is a topographic condition that warrants such improvement.

(D) The parking area, the surface materials, and dimensions shall be depicted on a survey and presented at the time a building permit for the subject property is obtained. Installation of the parking improvements shall be verified by the Zoning Administrator before the release of the certificate of occupancy. Individual parking spaces do not need to be demarked in any fashion on the site; however, the required amount of parking area shall be drawn to scale on a site survey. The parking area may be located within the front yard setback area of the property but no closer than five (5) feet to any property line and shall conform to all applicable Dare County Health Department regulations for on-site wastewater treatment. The lot coverage calculations shall include only the impervious surfaces, as defined in Section 2, located on the site. No parking areas, pervious or impervious shall be altered subsequent to the issuance of an occupancy permit unless otherwise provided herein.

(E) Individual drive aisles shall be a minimum width of twelve (12) feet and a maximum width of twenty (20) feet, measured at the right-of-way line. Circular or multiple curb cut driveway access shall be limited to a combined total width of twenty-four (24) feet measured at the right-of-way line. For circular or multiple curb cut driveways, each drive aisle shall be separated by a minimum distance of twenty-five (25) feet measured at the right-of-way line. ~~Drive aisles shall be a minimum twelve (12) feet in width,~~ Driveways shall be improved with concrete, asphalt, loose stone surface (gravel), porous pavers, or other similar semi-permeable materials, and shall be located no closer than five feet to a side or rear lot line. Loose stone surface shall be bordered in a manner which retains the stone in the driveway area. The drive aisle shall be provided to facilitate emergency vehicle access and vehicle maneuvering and shall provide access from the street to the front plane of the dwelling unit, unless access to the driveway is provided from the house by a similarly improved walkway. One parking space, located at the end of the drive aisle closest to the structure, may be located in the drive aisle. Parallel or perpendicular parking spaces may be provided along the length of this drive aisle on either side. Parking spaces may be provided under the house outside of designated drive aisle areas; such under-house parking spaces may be stacked and blocked in by no more than one parking space located at the end of the drive aisle closest to the structure. Parking spaces may be stacked in improved areas outside the required 12’ drive aisle.

(F) Nonrental parking deferral. Installation of all required parking, except for two (2) improved parking spaces for single‑family and four (4) improved parking spaces for two‑family uses may be deferred provided:

1. The dwellings are not participating or listed in any commercial rental and/or leasing program nor are they rented or leased by the property owners individually.

2. A valid survey shall be submitted at the time of application for deferral under this subparagraph designating an area on the lot in accordance with this section indicating the required number of parking spaces as determined by Section 41 and approved by the town.

(G) ~~Access to a single-family lot from a public or private right-of-way shall not exceed 20 feet in width measured the right-of-way line.~~ On an individual single family lot, driveways and parking areas shall not exceed a single or combined width of seventy-five percent (75%) of the lot width.

(H) All legally existing parking areas or parking areas under construction with an approved building or land disturbance permit as of August 1, 2007 are grandfathered with respect to the materials used for improvement of the parking areas. Future development activity on such grandfathered sites with concrete, asphalt, or pavers in parking areas shall not be required to replace such materials with gravel. However, all newly installed parking areas will be required to meet the standards in this section.

PART II. This ordinance shall be effective upon its adoption.

______________________

Neil Morrison, Mayor

ATTEST:

______________________________

Town Clerk

Date adopted: ________________

Motion to adopt by: ________________

Vote: AYES NAYS