Ordinance #155

Zoning
Site Plan Requirements - City of St. Croix Falls

CITY OF ST. CROIX FALLS

ORDINANCE NO. 1-00

AN ORDINANCE CREATING SECTION 14.065 OF THE GENERAL ORDINANCES OF THE CITY OF ST. CROIX FALLS REGULATING SITE PLANS

The Common Council of the City of St. Croix Falls do ordain as follows:

SECTION 1. Section 14.065 is hereby created to read as follows:

Section 14.065

SITE PLANS

Sections:

14.0651 Purpose 14.0652 When Required 14.0653 Procedure 14.0654 Submittal Requirements 14.0655 Review Criteria

14.0651 Purpose. The purpose of the site plan requirements set forth below are as follows:

A. To maintain and improve the quality of the environment;

B. To encourage the compatibility of the design and construction of new development with adjacent and nearby land uses;

C. To identify and resolve potential site planning problems prior to the preparation of final construction plans;

D. To provide that new development is approved and constructed in accordance with the availability of public facilities;

E. To administer effectively all adopted city ordinances and standards with respect to new development;

F. To provide clear and uniform site plan submittal and review procedures and requirements for applicants and the general public;

G. To provide the plan commission and city council with relevant information required to evaluate proposed site plans effectively;

H. To facilitate the efficient and effective public review of site plans.

14.0652 When Required.

A. Site plans shall be submitted and reviewed by the Plan Commission and approved

by the City Council prior to the issuance of a building permit for all "new development" as defined herein. No certificate of occupancy shall be issued until all of the requirements of this chapter and all other applicable provisions of this title and building codes have been met.

B. Site Plans shall be required for "new development" which is defined as follows:

Any new construction of properties with uses described as Planned Development, Multiple Family (4-Plex or larger), Commercial or Industrial.

14.0653 Procedure.

A. An application for site plan approval and the applicable fee shall be submitted to the City Clerk no less than 10 working days prior to the commission meeting at which the application shall be considered. The application shall be accompanied by 12 copies of the site plan, written material, and other information required in section 14.0654 and one 8 1/2" x 11 " reduction of the site plan.

B. The City Clerk shall review the site plan and accompanying material for conformance to this title and shall coordinate additional review as may be appropriate by other city departments and the city engineer. The clerk shall then refer the site plan and materials to the plan commission for its consideration of the application.

C. When reviewing an application, the Commission shall consider the review criteria of section 14.0655. The action of the commission shall be to recommend approval of the site plan with or without conditions, recommend denial of the site plan or recommend deferral for further study. The commission shall provide its report and recommendation to the city council within 30 days of receipt of the application.

D. Upon receipt of the report and recommendation of the Plan Commission, the City Council shall consider the proposed site plan in relation to the Commission report and the review criteria of section 14.0655. The action of the Council shall be to approve the site plan with or without conditions, deny it, or defer it for further study subject to the limitations of section 14,0655.

E. Following approval of a site plan and prior to issuance of a building pen-nit, the applicant shall be responsible for submittal to the City Council of four copies of the final approved site plan which shall include all changes or other pertinent information required by the Council.

F. An applicant who wishes to change an approved site plan, if such proposed changes increase density by more than 5 percent, or otherwise substantially alters parking, principal uses, drainage, or similar principal site plan elements, then such changes shall be reviewed and decided upon in the same procedure as set forth herein in section 14.0653.

14.0654 Submittal Requirements.

A list of items to be submitted with a site plan can be obtained from the City Clerk.

14.0655 Review Criteria.

Within sixty (60) days of the receipt of the report and recommendation of the Plan Commission by the City Council, the Council shall render a decision. If no decision is made by the Council within said 60 day period, the site plan shall be considered approved. The Council shall approve, deny, or approve subject to compliance with such modifications or conditions as it may deem necessary to carry out the purpose of these regulations and insure that the external design and site plan for all developments are in accordance with the provisions of this title. The Council shall impose such conditions as are necessary to carry out policies adopted by ordinance or resolution of the council.

When acting upon an application, the Council shall rely upon generally accepted site planning and design principles. In addition to the provisions and intent of this title, the comprehensive plan, all other applicable ordinances, and such policies as may be adopted by the council, the council shall also give important consideration during the review process to the following criteria for approval:

A. The existing natural topographic and landscape features of a site shall be incorporated into a development plan. Such plan shall include all prudent and necessary steps required to protect the natural environment of the site and surrounding areas during and after construction.

B. Site coverage, paved areas, lawn areas, building scale, setbacks, and open spaces shall be in proportion with existing and planned structures and spaces in the surrounding area.

C. Buildings shall be sited in an orderly, non-random fashion. Excessively long, unbroken building facades shall be avoided. Building materials and design features shall be consistent with the general design theme of the development.

D. Access to the site shall be provided by curb cuts which are limited and located in a manner to minimize traffic congestion and difficult turning movements.

E. The interior circulation of the site shall be designed to provide for the convenient and safe flow of pedestrians and non-pedestrian traffic on the site and onto and from public streets or sidewalks.

F. Sites shall be lighted with fixtures, when required, which relate to the scale and design of the development and which have an intensity high enough to maintain security and low enough to avoid being a nuisance.

F. Paved areas shall be only as large as necessary to serve parking, circulation, and open space needs. The appearance of paved areas shall be enhanced by landscaping. Monotonous, extended, or unbroken parking areas, driveways, and carport or garage structures shall be avoided. Parking structures and areas shall be separated from residential buildings by landscaped areas.

G. Outdoor activity areas, parking lots, storage yards, trash areas and other exterior features or uses shall be adequately landscaped or screened to minimize any potential nuisance features of the use of the site on existing or potential adjacent land uses.

1. Recyclable materials storage areas will be provided for any use which generates significant amounts of recyclable materials and such area will be appropriately screened.

J. The requirements of Section 8.15 dealing with storm water drainage, on-site detention and runoff control.

In addition to the above criteria, review of a site plan shall also include consideration of the conformance of the site plan with the ability of the city to provide in a timely and efficient fashion the needed public services and facilities required to adequately serve the proposed development. Public services reviewed shall include, but not be limited to, water, sanitary sewer, storm sewer, streets, sidewalks, traffic control, fire and police protection.

SECTION 2: This ordinance is effective upon its passage and publication.