CITY OF HOMER        

HOMER, ALASKA

Planning

 

ORDINANCE 04-52

 

AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF HOMER, ALASKA AMENDING HOMER CITY CODE 21.48.060 9(h) LANDSCAPING, AND 21.61.105(l)(7) LANDSCAPING.

 

WHEREAS,  landscaping requirements were developed for the Central Business District and for Large Retail and Wholesale developments; and

 

WHEREAS,  those requirements included specifications for dividers and islands within  parking lots; and


            WHEREAS,  new information has shown that parking lot dividers and islands in northern climates may not always be practical or facilitate good plant survival; and

 

WHEREAS, the Homer Advisory Planning Commission held a public hearing on the matter on October 20, 2004.   

 

NOW, THEREFORE, THE CITY OF HOMER HEREBY ORDAINS:

 

Section 1.  Homer City Code 21.48.060(h) Landscaping Requirements is hereby amended to read as follows:

 

h. Landscaping Requirements.  All development on lands in this zoning district shall conform to the following:

1. Landscaping shall include the retention of native vegetation to the maximum extent possible and shall consist of the following:

a. Buffers:

i. 3 feet minimum width along all lot lines where setbacks permit;

ii. 10 feet minimum width adjacent to right‑of‑ways, except alleys, and in parking lots with 12 spaces or more;

iii.  15 feet minimum from the top of the bank of the defined drainage channel or stream.

b. Dividers and islands Parking Lots:

i. 10 percent of the lot area of parking areas with 24 spaces or more; Parking lots of 24 spaces or more, 10 percent of the parking lot shall consist of landscaped dividers and islands.

 

 

 

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ii. Installed after 12 contiguous spaces in parking lots with 24 spaces or more.  Parking lots containing no more than one double loaded parking corridor with 15-foot minimum buffers are excluded from the requirement of subparagraph (i) above.

 

2. Topsoil addition, final grading, seeding, and all plantings of flora must be completed within nine months of occupancy, or within the first growing season after occupancy, whichever comes first.  Required landscaping will be maintained thereafter, with all shrubs, trees, and groundcover being replaced as needed.

 

Section 2.                        Homer City Code 21.61.105(l)(7)  Landscaping is hereby amended to read as follows:

 

7.  Landscaping.

a.  Landscaping shall not be less than 15 percent of the total lot area and shall include the retention of existing native vegetation to the maximum extent possible.  The coverage of shrubs, trees and hedges shall be measured from their drip lines.

i.  Buffers:

1. 3 feet minimum width along all lot lines where setbacks permit;

2. 10 feet minimum width adjacent to rights‑of‑way, except alleys, and in parking lots of more than 30 spaces;

ii.  Dividers and Islands Parking Lots:

1.  10 percent of the lot area of parking lots with more than 24 spaces; Parking lots of 24 spaces or more, 10 percent of the parking lot shall consist of landscaped dividers and islands;

2.  Installed after 12 contiguous spaces in parking lots with more than 24 spaces. Parking lots containing no more than one double loaded parking corridor with 15-foot minimum buffers are excluded from the requirement of subparagraph (i) above.

b.  General landscaping shall be additionally provided as needed to achieve the minimum required landscape coverage.

c.  Required landscaping shall be limited to the following materials:

i.   Living ground cover;

ii. Permeable, continuous non –living ground cover;

iii. Living plant life other than ground cover;

iv.  Retained native vegetation;

v.   Natural or man‑made features, including but not limited to, boulders and planters;

vi.  Pedestrian ways;

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vii. Public spaces.

d.  Separate sections of landscaping shall be composed of the required materials in any combination as follows:

i.  Living plant life other than ground cover or natural vegetation shall have  minimum coverage of 5 percent;

 

 

ii.  Living ground cover shall have a maximum coverage of 80 percent;

iii.  Permeable non‑living ground cover shall have a maximum coverage of 10 percent;

iv.  Natural or man‑made features shall have a maximum coverage of 10 percent;

v.  Pedestrian ways or public spaces shall have a maximum coverage of 50 percent.

e.  Topsoil addition, final grading, seeding, and all planting of flora must be complete within nine months of occupancy, or within the first growing season after occupancy, whichever comes first.  Required landscaping will be maintained thereafter, with all shrubs, trees, and groundcover being replaced as needed.

 

Section 3.  This ordinance is of a permanent and general character and shall be included in the City code. 

 

 

 

            ENACTED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF HOMER, ALASKA, this __________ day of ______________________, 2004.

 

CITY OF HOMER

 

_______________________________

JAMES C. HORNADAY, MAYOR

 

ATTEST:

 

___________________________

MARY L. CALHOUN, CMC, CITY CLERK

 

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Ordinance 04-52

 

AYES:

NOES:

ABSTAIN:

ABSENT:

 

First Reading:

Public Hearing:

Second Reading:

Effective Date:

 

Reviewed and approved as to form:

 

_____________________________              ___________________________

Walter E. Wrede                                                  Gordon J. Tans

City Manager                                                               City Attorney

 

Fiscal Note: NA