§ 12K.4. Development standards.

12K.4.A. Buffers and landscaping.

1.

All developments to include single family detached residential subdivisions shall provide a minimum 100-foot wide natural, undisturbed buffer (except for approved access and utility crossings, improvements, and replantings where sparsely vegetated subject to the approval of the Fulton County Arborist), with an additional ten-foot setback interior to the buffer, along the South Fulton Parkway and along the rights-of-way of public roads which intersect the Parkway for a distance of 300 feet measured from the intersection with the South Fulton Parkway.

2.

A minimum 15-foot wide landscape strip along all public and private streets, except as noted in 12K.4.A.1., when Article 4 of the Zoning Resolution otherwise specifies a smaller landscape strip.

3.

Subject to the approval of the director, street trees may be placed in public rights-of-way.

4.

A minimum ten-foot wide landscape strip along any interior property line adjacent to a nonresidential zoning and/or use.

5.

Hardwood shade trees, e.g., maples and oaks, a minimum of 2½" caliper, shall be planted in all landscape strips and minimally spaced as specified by the Tree Preservation Ordinance.

12K.4.B. Screening.

1.

Refuse areas and receptacles shall be placed in the least visible location from public streets and shall be enclosed on 3 sides with opaque walls. The 4th side shall be a self-closing gate made from non-combustible materials. Opaque walls shall be a minimum of 12 inches higher than the receptacle. Wall materials shall be non-combustible brick, stone, or split concrete masonry block. Refuse receptacles shall not be placed within 50 feet of an existing residential or AG-1 (Agricultural) zoning district.

2.

Accessory site features located on the ground shall be screened from view from any public right-of-way and/or any residence, residential zoning category, or AG-1 zoning category by one of the following: placement behind the building, 100 percent opaque fencing, berm or vegetative screen planted to buffer standards.

3.

Accessory structures on a roof shall be located to the rear of the roof and shall be screened by a parapet or other architectural feature as approved by the director.

4.

Loading docks and bay doors fronting the South Fulton Parkway are prohibited.

5.

Loading docks shall be screened by a continuous hedge of evergreen shrubs. Shrubbery shall be a minimum height of five feet at time of planting.

6.

Vending machines shall be located inside a building or screened from the view of all public streets and residentially or AG-1 (Agricultural) zoned or developed properties.

7.

Retaining walls shall be faced with or constructed of stone, brick, or decorative concrete modular block only.

12K.4.C. Pedestrian paths.

1.

Sidewalks are required along all public and private road frontages.

2.

Pedestrian paths shall be illustrated on the site plan submitted at the time of application for a Land Disturbance Permit.

3.

Except in truck loading and parking areas of industrial and warehouse-distribution uses, internal walkways (paths) are required from the public sidewalk to the main entrance of the principle use of the property and to adjacent buildings within the same development.

4.

All sidewalks and pedestrian walkways (paths) shall meet applicable Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) standards.

5.

Pedestrian paths may be constructed of either colored/textured materials or conventional sidewalk materials and shall be clearly identified.

6.

Paths shall be designed to minimize direct auto-pedestrian interaction by such means as sidewalks, striping, and signs..

7.

Paths shall be connected to crosswalks at intersections where applicable.

8.

Street furniture shall be located outside the specified width of any pedestrian path.

9.

Paths and sidewalks shall be connected to green space and open space and connectivity shall be illustrated on the site plan submitted at the time of application for a Land Disturbance Permit.

10.

Pedestrian paths shall be a minimum width of five feet.

11.

Multi-use paths for bicycles and pedestrians may be substituted for the required sidewalks as approved by the Director and the Transportation Administrator when the path is part of the Fulton County Bicycle and Pedestrian Plan.

12.

Multi-use paths designed for use by bicyclists and pedestrians shall be 12 feet wide.

13.

Multi-use paths designed with separate paths for bicyclists and pedestrians shall be 15 feet wide, ten feet for bicycles and five feet for pedestrians.

14.

Paths should be direct and convenient routes between points of origin (such as a bus stop) and destination (such as a shop, bank, etc).

15.

Paths not visible from a public street shall be illuminated.

12K.4.D. Lighting.

1.

A photometric plan for open parking lots and paths shall be submitted at the time of application for a Land Disturbance Permit.

2.

Any lighting fixture shall be a cutoff luminary whose source is completely concealed with an opaque housing. Fixtures shall be recessed in the opaque housing. Drop dish refractors are prohibited. The wattage shall not exceed 420 watts/480 V per light fixture. This provision includes lights on mounted poles as well as architectural display and decorative lighting visible from a street or highway. Wall pack lighting shall be cut-off down directional a maximum of 250 watts. Canopy lighting shall be cut-off down directional a maximum of 250 watts. Canopy lighting shall be cut-off luminaries with a maximum lamp wattage of 400 watts.

3.

Light sources (lamps) shall be incandescent, fluorescent, metal halide, mercury vapor, natural gas, or color corrected high-pressure sodium (CRI of 60 or better). The same type must be used for the same or similar type of lighting on any one site.

4.

Mounting fixtures must be modified in such a manner that the cone of the light is not directed at any property line. The minimum mounting height for a pole is 12 feet. The maximum mounting for a pole is 28 feet. Any fixture and pole located within 20 feet of a residential zoning shall be a type four or forward throw distribution.

5.

All site lighting shall be designed so that the illumination as measured in foot-candles at any one point meets the following standards: Minimum and maximum levels are measured at any one point. Average level is not to exceed the calculated value and is derived using only the area of the site included to receive illumination. Points of measure shall not include the area of the building or areas which do not lend themselves to pedestrian traffic. Also, if the major portion of the lighting design is to be in the front of a building, the average level should not be affected by adding a light or two in the back of the same building, which would raise the average of the intended area for lighting.

6.

Future renovations, upgrades, or additions to existing facilities prior to the effective date of this ordinance shall not exceed existing illumination levels below. The entire site must be bought into conformance with this article should a renovation, upgrade, or addition occur that would require a land disturbance permit.

Location or Type of Lighting	Minimum Level	Average Level	Maximum Level
Area for display of Outdoor Merchandise	1.0	5.0	15.0
Commercial, Office, and Public/Semi-Public Parking Areas	0.6	2.40	10.0
Multi-Family Residential Parking Areas	0.2	1.50	10.0
Walkways and Streets	0.2	2.00	10.0
Landscape and Decorative	0.0	0.50	5.0

 

7.

Blue-white colors of florescent, mercury vapor lamps, metal halide, high-pressure sodium with CRI of less than 60 are prohibited.

8.

Ground level, low wattage/voltage up-lights to accent features in landscape strips are permitted.

9.

Low intensity, downward shielded lighting along pedestrian paths and in parking lots is required.

10.

All site lighting shall be architecturally compatible with the buildings on a site. Lights shall be architecturally decorative with a historical style (includes shepherds crooks, pole top, and bollard).

11.

Exterior wall-mounted lights shall be directed downward fully shielded to prevent spillage. The bottom of wall-mounted light fixtures shall be no higher than seven feet above grade.

12.

Soffit mounted light fixtures shall be recessed into the soffit or otherwise fully shielded.

13.

Ground mounted or other upward directional lighting is allowed to accent architectural features.

14.

Unshielded floodlights, wall packs, NEMA head style fixtures, sag/convex lens mounted on shoebox fixtures, cobra, neon and dome lights are prohibited.

12K.4.E. Building materials and architectural treatments.

1.

Developments shall include architecture elements such as columns, arcades, covered entry-walkways, arches, facade offsets, windows, balconies, offset walls, clock towers, cupolas and/or courtyards.

2.

The exterior wall materials of all nonresidential buildings shall consist of a minimum of 60 percent (per vertical wall plane) of the following: brick, precast concrete, natural or precast stone, or tinted glass (or an equivalent alternative treatment approved by the Director of Environment and Community Development).

3.

The exterior wall materials of all residential buildings shall consist of a minimum of 60 percent (per vertical wall plane) of the following: brick, stone, stucco, Hardi-plank siding, solid plank, or cementitious plank (or an equivalent alternative treatment approved by the Director of Environment and Community Development).

4.

Accent wall materials on residential and nonresidential buildings shall not exceed 40 percent per vertical wall plane.

5.

Prohibited exterior finishes (except on mechanical penthouses and roof screens) are highly reflective, shiny, or mirror-like materials, exposed unfinished foundations, exposed plywood or particle board, unplastered, corrugated steel, exposed standard concrete masonry block, vinyl and aluminum siding.

6.

To the extent the rear and/or side of a building is visible from a public street or an adjacent agriculturally or residentially zoned or developed property, architectural treatments shall continue through the rear and sides of the building.

7.

The principle entry area of a building shall be articulated and express greater architectural detail than other portions of the building.

8.

Outparcel buildings shall have architectural features consistent with the principal buildings.

9.

Permitted colors for exterior walls, building components, sign structures, accent and decorative elements shall be as specified by Table 12K or as approved by the director.

Table 12K
Permitted Colors for Exterior Walls, Building Components, Sign Structure,
Accent and Decorative Elements
The following numbers refer to the Pantone Matching System, an international color matching system

Exterior Building Walls, Building Components, Sign Structure, Accent and Decorative Elements	Accent and Decorative Elements Only
Browns, Beiges and Tans 462 C to 468 C 4625 C to 4685 C 469 C, 474C, 475 C 4695 C to 4755 C 478 C, 719 C to 724 C 725 C to 731 C 476U to 482U 719U to 725U 726U to 732U	Greens 553 C to 554 C 560 C to 561 C 614 C to 616 C 3302 C to 3305 C 3295 C 342C, 343 C 3435 C 356 C, 357 C 5467 C to 5527 C 3305U, 3308U, 335U 336U, 341U-343 U 3415 U to 3435 U 349 U 356 U to 357 U 5535U to 5595U 553U to 559U
Reds 168 C, 181 C 483 C, 484 C 675C, 1685C, 4975 C	Grey 429 U to 433 U 443 U to 447 U Warm Grey 6U-11U Cool Grey 6U-11U 5467U to 5527U
Red-Browns 154 U, 1395 U 1405 U	Grey-Blue 5395U to 5455U 621U to 627U 642U to 644U 647U to 650U 654U to 656U 662U
	Green-Grey 5605U to 5665U

 

10.

Flat roofs and roof-mounted equipment shall be screened by a parapet or other architectural feature as approved by the director from the view of public and private streets and adjacent agriculturally and residentially zoned and/or developed properties.

11.

Sloped roofs shall be standing seam, metal, slate and concrete roof tiles and composition shingles.

12.

Building components such as burglar bars, steel gates, metal awnings and steel roll-down curtains are prohibited if visible from a public street.

13.

Vending machines, paper stands, and other similar devices must be located inside a building.

12K.4.F. Streetscape features.

1.

Benches, trash receptacles, drinking fountains, and other street furniture shall be compatible in material, color, finish and architectural style of the development.

2.

Marketing signage in streetscape features is prohibited.

12K.4.G. Parking.

1.

All off-street parking for townhouses and multi-family buildings shall be located to the side, rear or enclosed.

2.

A minimum of 50 percent of the required surface parking for out-parcels shall be located at the rear of the building.

3.

The required number of off-street parking spaces may be reduced as approved by the director.

4.

Shared parking shall be permitted as approved by the director.

5.

Non-residential developments shall provide parking for bicycles.

6.

Loading areas shall be located in the rear or side yards.

12K.4.H. Miscellaneous provisions. (Amended 03/03/04)

1.

Except as provided for in Article 19, the storage and/or sale of goods is prohibited in parking lots and other areas outside of the interior or permanently sheltered portions of a building.

2.

Storage of shopping carts is allowed without a permit.

(Amd. No. 11-0478, 6-1-11)