ARTICLE XI

Off Street Parking and Loading Requirements

 

Section 11.01            Vehicle Access Control

Section 11.02 Required Off-Street Parking

Section 11.03 Off-Street Parking Lot Layout, Construction and Maintenance

Section 11.04            Off-Street Service Areas 

 

Section 11.01            Vehicle Access Control

 

In order to promote the safety of motorists and pedestrians, to minimize traffic congestion and conflict by reducing the points of contact, to assure safe access by emergency vehicles, and to promote the general welfare by preserving the traffic carrying capacity of arterial, secondary and minor roads, the following regulations shall apply.

 

                        (a)        Arterial Roads

 

                                    For the purposes of this section, the following roads shall be designated as arterial roads:

 

1. Bethel Valley Road from the intersection with South Illinois Avenue to 7,500 feet west of Scarboro Road/Pumphouse Road.

 

(Ord. No. 9-00 Revised Effective 4/20/00)

                                                           

2. Briarcliff Avenue from Deerfield Lane to Laboratory Road.

 

3. Bus Terminal Road from Emory Valley Road to Laboratory Road.

 

4. Ed­gem­oor Ro­ad (SR 170) from South Illinois Avenue (SR 62) to Melton Lake Drive.

 

(Ord. No. 9-00 Revised Effective 4/20/00)

 

5. Emory Valley Road from Lafayette Drive to Melton Lake Drive.

 

6. Fairbanks Road from Emory Valley Road to Oak Ridge Turnpike (S.R. 95).

 

7. North Illinois Avenue and South Illinois Avenue (SR 62) from the northern boundary of the City to the southern boundary of the City.

 

(Ord. No. 9-00 Revised Effective 4/20/00)

 

8. Laboratory Road from Lafayette Drive to Oak Ridge Turnpike (S.R. 95).

 

9. Lafayette Drive from Oak Ridge Turnpike (S.R. 95) to South Illinois Avenue (S.R. 62).

 

10. Melton Lake Drive from Oak Ridge Turnpike (S.R. 95) to Edgemoor Road (S.R. 170).

 

11. Oak Ridge Turnpike (S.R. 95) from the western to the eastern boundaries of the city.

 

12. Rutgers Avenue from Oak Ridge Turnpike (S.R. 95) to South Illinois Avenue (S.R. 62).

 

13. Scarboro Road from South Illinois Avenue (S.R. 62) to Bethel Valley Road.

 

14. South Tulane Avenue from Oak Ridge Turnpike (S.R. 95) to South Illinois Avenue (S.R. 62).

 

15. East Tulsa Road from South Illinois Avenue (S.R. 62) to Tuskegee Drive.

 

16. Tuskegee Drive from South Illinois Avenue (S.R. 62) to Tulsa/ East Tulsa Roads past Wiltshire Drive to the Oak Ridge Turnpike.

17. Tulsa Road from South Illinois Avenue to East Tulsa/Tuskegee Drive

 

18. Raccoon Road from South Illinois Avenue to Oak Ridge Turnpike.

 

19. Robertsville Road from Oak Ridge Turnpike to Jefferson Avenue.

 

20. Jefferson Avenue from Oak Ridge Turnpike to Robertsville Road.

 

21. New York Avenue from Oak Ridge Turnpike to West Tennessee Avenue.

 

22. West Tennessee Avenue from New York Avenue to Kentucky Avenue and East Tennessee Avenue from Kentucky Avenue to Florida Avenue.

 

23. Florida Avenue from Oak Ridge Turnpike to East Tennessee Avenue.

 

24. Georgia Avenue from Oak Ridge Turnpike to East Tennessee Avenue.

 

(Ord. No. 3-97 Revised Effective 2/27/97)

 

 

                        (b)            General Conditions/Requirements

 

1. Submission of Plan for Approval

The location and design of driveways and/or accesses providing vehicular access from arterial, secondary and minor roads to any existing lot or lots proposed for creation by the subdivision of property in all zoning districts shall be specified in an access plan submitted by the applicant to the City Manager or the City Manager’s designee for review and approval provided, however, that access to arterial roads shall be subject to approval by City Council.  No curbs or rights-of-way shall be cut, paved or otherwise altered until written approval of the access plan has been secured from the City Manager or the City Manager’s designee and any other governmental agency owning or controlling the road right-of-way.

 

2. Traffic Impact Study

 

The City Manager or the City Manager’s designee may require a traffic impact study by a qualified registered professional engineer to assess the traffic impacts of a proposed access to the adjoining and nearby public roadways and intersections when the expected number of trips generated by the proposed building or land use exceeds an estimated 1,000 vehicle trips per day. 

 

Unless otherwise specified by the City Manager or the City Manager’s designee, the study shall address trip generation and directional distribution, traffic assignment to roadways and access locations, 24 hour and peak hour traffic forecasting (non-site and on-site), capacity analysis and level of service for adjoining roadways and nearby intersections before and after the proposed development, and recommendations for roadway improvements and traffic control modifications.  All traffic data used in the study shall be consistent with land use and density data as referenced in Trip Generation, Fourth Edition, 1987, published by the Institute of Transportation Engineers, or the latest subsequent edition; current City and State traffic counts for surrounding public roadways; and the marketing study for the proposed building or land use.

 

(Ord. No. 7-90 Revised Effective 3/22/90)

 

3. Approval for Specific Land Use

The approval of any access hereunder shall be approval of access for the land use(s) specified in the access plan and any change in such land use(s) that would increase traffic and impact the safe and efficient flow of traffic shall require a new approval of access.

 

4. Expiration of Approval

 

Any access approved hereunder shall be constructed within eighteen (18) months of approval or such approval shall terminate.

5. Bond Requirements

 

Prior to the issuing of written approval of the access plan, the applicant may be required to provide a cash deposit, bond, certified check or other form of security acceptable to the City sufficient to complete access, roadway and traffic control improvements on the public right-of-way as specified in the approved plan.  The City Manager or the City Manager’s designee shall set the amount and time of the bond, based on the estimated cost of the plan.  Within thirty (30) days of the completion and acceptance of all provisions of the approved Plan, cash deposits, or unexpended or unobligated funds thereof shall be refunded, or other legal arrangements terminated.

 

6. Prohibition of Unsafe Access

 

Notwithstanding any other provisions of this Code to the contrary, any access may be denied which would constitute a threat or danger to the public and/or affect the safe and efficient flow of traffic when judged by commonly accepted and applied traffic engineering principles.

 

(Ord. No. 7-90 Revised Effective 3/22/90)

 

(c) Access Plan

 

An access plan is required for each building or use of land.  Such an access plan may be submitted by the applicant as a part of the off-street parking lot site plan, or in the case of issuance of a residential building permit, such information may be included on the site or plot plan.  Such plan shall specify the intended use(s) of the property.

 

1. For Commercial, Industrial, Office, Institutional and Apartment Complex Projects - The access plan, minimally drawn to a scale of 1 inch equals 50 feet, shall be submitted to the City Manager or  his designee.   The  plan  shall  denote the location of the driveway on the lot and length of all property lines abutting the public road; distances from intersections (centerline of intersection to centerline of driveway); areas proposed for roadway construction on the right-of-way including the width and length of driveways and deceleration lanes, radius of curves, typical pavement section, type of concrete curbs and any relocation of sidewalks; location of existing overhead and underground utilities, hydrants and drainage structures and any proposed relocations; road improvements proposed for dedication to the City and specific actions to be taken by the contractor to maintain safe driving conditions during roadway construction.

 

2. For Residential Housing - The access plan for residential use exclusive of apartment complexes shall include the following information:  proposed location of driveway on the lot from the side property line, length of all property lines abutting public streets, length and width of driveway from edge of public street pavement and location of existing overhead and on-grade utilities, hydrants and drainage structures.

(d) Design Criteria

 

The following minimum standards shall apply in the design of driveways to arterial roads and other public roads:

 

1. Number of Driveways Permitted

 

Access to an arterial, secondary or minor road shall be provided to any lot either by means of a marginal frontage road, shared access easement, or direct accessway.

 

(Ord. No. 7-90 Revised Effective 3/22/90)

 

Arterial Roads

 

Where the use of marginal frontage roads or the provision of common access easements to serve multiple lots with different ownership is unavailable or deemed unnecessary, there shall be no more than one driveway to any one arterial roadway from any lot with less than 300 feet of frontage on that roadway.

 

Lots having between 300 feet and 600 feet of frontage on any arterial roadway may have a second driveway to that roadway provided that, in the opinion of the City Manager or the City Manager’s designee,  an additional driveway is  justified based on trip generation or topography and that the impact to traffic on the roadway is minimal.

 

Lots having more than 600 feet of frontage to any one arterial roadway may have more than two driveways provided that, in the opinion of the City Manager or the City Manager’s designee, additional driveways are justified based on trip generation or topography and that the impact to traffic on the roadway is minimal.

 

All driveways serving the same lot shall be a minimum of 200 feet apart, measured from the centerline to centerline of the two driveways. 

 

Secondary and Minor Roads 

 

There shall be no more than one driveway to a secondary or minor road from any lot with 100 feet or less of frontage on that roadway except for duplex (two unit) residential units which shall be permitted no more than two (2) driveways on the lot. 

 

Lots having between 100 feet and 300 feet of frontage shall have no more than two (2) driveways to that road which shall be a minimum fifty (50) feet apart measured from the centerline to centerline of the two driveways. 

 

Lots having more than 300 feet of frontage to any secondary or minor road may have more than two driveways provided that, in the opinion of the City Manager or the City Manager’s designee, additional driveways are justified based on trip generation or topography and that the impact to traffic on the roadway is minimal.

 

(Ord. No. 7-90 Revised Effective 3/22/90)

 

 

2. Minimum Distance from Intersection

 

No driveway to an arterial road shall be established within one hundred and twenty-five (125) feet of an intersecting road. On secondary and minor roads, no driveway shall be established within thirty (30) feet of an intersecting road. Measurements shall be made along the edge of the pavement from the nearest point of tangency of the curve of the intersecting road pavement to the nearest point of radius return of the driveway.

 

3. Minimum Distance Between Driveways on Separate Lots

No two driveways serving separate lots on an arterial road shall be less than two hundred and fifty (250) feet apart. 

 

On secondary and minor roads and in all zoning districts except one-family residential and R-2, two-, three-, four-family Residential, no two driveways serving separate lots shall be less than twenty (20) feet apart.  The distance between driveways shall be measured from the nearest point of the radius return of the two driveways.

 

The minimum separation distance may be reduced provided that, in the opinion of the City Manager or the City Manager’s designee, using commonly accepted and applied traffic engineering principles, the following conditions exist:

 

a. Where the use of marginal frontage roads or shared access easements are not feasible or possible;

 

b. Where exceptional topographic constraints or unusual site conditions at the driveway location (such as in-place utility or drainage features) would make application of the standard exceptionally and/or practically difficult or unduly harsh;

 

c. Where application of this article would conflict with other sections of this article;

 

d. Where such reduction would not constitute a threat or danger to the safe and efficient flow of traffic.

 

(Ord. No. 7-90 Revised Effective 3/22/90)

 

4. Minimum Distance from Property Line