§ 27-459. R-4 garden apartment district.

(a)

Generally. The purpose of the R-4 garden apartment district is to accommodate low-rise multiple-family development at moderate densities. This is the most appropriate district for apartment development in the suburban areas of the city. It is anticipated that garden apartment buildings will be in clusters on sites large enough to allow several buildings. Sites should be carefully planned with maximum privacy and safety and adequate landscaping over the entire site. Such projects are most appropriate on arterial or collector streets or as transitions between business and single-family neighborhoods. This section applies to the R-4 garden apartment district.

(b)

Permitted uses. In the R-4 garden apartment district, no building, structure or land shall be used and no building shall be hereafter erected, converted, or structurally altered unless otherwise provided in this article, except for one or more of the following uses:

(1)

Any use permitted in the R-2 two-family district, under the requirements of that district.

(2)

Garden apartment buildings or townhouses.

(c)

Height and area standards. All buildings, structures and other uses of land shall conform to the following minimum standards:

(1)

Height shall be not more than 2½ stories or 35 feet, except that buildings designed for senior and/or retired persons my be up to three stories.

(2)

Setback from property lines shall be as follows:

a.

Front yard: Not less than 25 feet from any public street.

b.

Side yard, interior: Not less than ten feet between any building and any property line.

c.

Side yard, corner: Not less than 25 feet from any public street.

d.

Rear yard: Not less than 25 feet between any building and the property line of the project.

e.

For parking and other paved areas: Not less than 25 feet from any street line and not less than six feet from any property line.

(3)

Lot area shall be not less than 3,000 square feet per dwelling unit.

(4)

Minimum floor area shall be 380 square feet of habitable floor area for each dwelling unit.

For additional standards and information, see division 8 of this article.

(d)

Parking standards. One and one-half parking spaces shall be provided for each dwelling unit that has one bedroom or less. Two parking spaces shall be provided for each dwelling unit that has two bedrooms or more. For additional standards and information, see division 9 of this article.

(e)

Signs. Uses other than single-family or two-family dwellings shall be permitted one wall sign and one monument sign. For additional standards and information, see division 11 of this article.

(f)

Landscaping and screening. A reasonable amount of landscaping is required on all projects with emphasis on softening the visual impact of parking and enhancing the overall appearance. Trees are required at not less than one per 4,500 square feet of site area. For additional standards and information, see division 10 of this article.

(g)

Planned zoning. All rezoning cases are reviewed relative to likely impacts of the proposed use on neighboring property and on the community in general. It is recognized that the manner in which a building is designated and located on a site, the visual perception of the project by nearby property owners, and the way that vehicular traffic and surface water are handled are important to the public welfare, yet may vary widely within the framework of these regulations and standards. Many such critical issues can be resolved in the public interest at time of rezoning by use of the planned zoning process. This process involves submittal and approval of development plans at the time of zoning, a practice that may enhance neighborhood relationships and minimize traffic and other impacts on the public in general. The planned zoning equivalent to this district is RP-4 and the procedures are set out in section 27-212.

(Ord. No. 64690, § 1(27-31), 8-30-1984; Ord. No. O-65-02, § 5, 8-29-2002)