[Added 4-29-1997]
A. Purpose. This district has been established in recognition of the need to provide adequate housing to meet the unique requirements of senior citizens with respect to design and proximity to open space, recreation and shopping areas. It is intended that this zone provide an opportunity for the development of assisted living residential opportunity. The area included within this zone is proximate to a major street system, including State Highway Route 34 and Route 537, along with the commercial uses thereon, while also providing the advantages of an open, rural residential atmosphere due to the adjacent AG District zoning. In addition, the following provisions recognize that current infrastructure limitations require water to be obtained from groundwater sources and that the Raritan-Magothy Aquifer is the shallowest aquifer with the capability of serving an assisted living residence permitted by the terms of this section without potential adverse impact upon existing wells in the area in and around the B-1A District and that any such development shall therefore be required to utilize such aquifer for groundwater requirements.
B. Permitted principal uses. The following shall be permitted as principal uses:
(1) Assisted living residences.
(2) All principal uses permitted in the AG Agricultural District Development. Such uses shall be in accordance with the requirements and standards set forth in these regulations for the AG Agricultural District, provided for in this chapter, and the schedule of limitations applicable thereto.
C. Conditional uses. The following shall be permitted as conditional uses:
(1) All conditional uses permitted in the AG Agricultural District. Development of such uses shall be in accordance with the requirements and standards set forth for conditional uses in the AG Agricultural District and provided for by this chapter and the schedule of limitations applicable thereto.
D. Design standards.
(1) The design standards applicable in the AG Agricultural District under this chapter shall apply to any permitted or accessory or conditional use otherwise allowed in the AG Agricultural District.
(2) An assisted living residence shall be subject to the following design standards:
(a) Any such development shall be required to utilize the Raritan-Magothy Aquifer as the exclusive source of groundwater for any water delivery systems to the development, whether potable or nonpotable.
(b) Any such development shall include the following:
[1] Outdoor recreational facilities, such as shuffleboard Courts, boccie Courts or putting greens;
[2] Indoor recreational facilities, with a minimum area of 500 square feet, for activities such as card games, board games, etc., and for the showing of movies;
[3] A library with a minimum area of 200 square feet;
[4] Congregate dining facilities (the minimum area shall be 3.33 square feet per person based upon the maximum number of permitted residents of facility);
[5] Health care facilities and services, including but not limited to security facilities, administrative offices and storage facilities; any such administrative office shall be located entirely within the principal building and shall only be used to provide administrative services for the assisted living residence;
[6] Gift shops/convenience shops with personal hygiene aids, sundries and reading materials;
[7] Walking facilities, which shall include landscaped seating areas at its beginning, midpoint and end;
[8] Laundry rooms (one for each 30 units; minimum of one per floor);
[9] Physical therapy facilities;
[10] A worship area with a minimum area of 150 square feet; and
[11] An indoor exercise area with a minimum area of 400 square feet.
(c) A minimum all-season evergreen buffer shall be provided around the perimeter of the site, designed in accordance with the standards set forth in § 102-115 of this chapter.
(3) Parking requirements. The following parking requirements shall apply as design standards for an assisted living residence:
(a) Required parking spaces may be provided by any combination of enclosed or open spaces, but in no event shall the parking facilities be more than 150 feet from the building that they are intended to serve.
(b) The arrangement and location of internal roads, garages and parking areas shall be subject to the approval of the Planning Board and shall be designed to ensure safe and adequate circulation for senior citizen residents and their guests.
(c) Curb ramps shall be provided at all street corners in parking areas and at designated pedestrian crossings.
(d) Reasonable yard lighting shall be provided to illuminate the parking areas, walkways, driveways and premises at night and shall be shielded from all residences.
(4) Architectural standards. The following architectural design requirements shall apply as design standards for an assisted living residence. The architectural design of all buildings devoted to assisted living residences must be consistent with the ultimate purpose of achieving independent, self-reliant and pleasant living arrangements for senior citizens and should take into account the desires and needs of older persons for privacy and participation in social and community activities. At the same time, provisions should be made to accommodate the limitations that sometimes accompany advanced years so that independent living can be sustained. Such provisions shall include but not be limited to the following:
(a) The threshold of rooms shall be flush with the floor;
(b) Grab bars shall be provided beside toilets and in bathtubs or shower stalls;
(c) Ramps shall be provided leading to all structures;
(d) Dwelling units and structures containing dwelling units and support services functions and facilities for the residents thereof shall be designed and constructed so as to be free of architectural barriers which should prohibit or limit access to or utilization of the dwelling units by physically handicapped or disabled individuals;
(e) The use of stairways shall be minimized; and
(f) The development shall be restricted to the satisfaction of the Planning Board to the effect that no unit shall be occupied by more than two persons. At least 50% of all units shall be restricted to occupancy by one person.
E. Accessory uses.
(1) The following accessory uses shall be permitted in connection with an assisted living residence as a principal use:
(a) Linen service facilities,
(b) Nursing services,
(c) Housekeeping services,
(d) Beautician services,
(e) Meeting rooms,
(f) Social rooms.
(g) Snack bars/ice cream parlors.
(h) Medical offices for visiting doctors.
(2) All support facilities, functions and services shall be designed and made available only for the use and benefit of resident users of the assisted living residence and their guests.
(3) Solar energy panels mounted at ground level, located in rear or side yards only and which shall be screened from view from public streets and neighboring properties by screening planting, fencing or a combination thereof such as to provide the proper shielding after two growing seasons. Location and screening requirements do not apply to solar energy panels mounted flush or nearly flush with building sides or roofs. [Added 8-10-2011]
(4) Wind energy systems; subject to § 102-82.1. [Added 8-10-2011]
[Amended 7-9-2008; 8-10-2011; 5-14-2014]
A. Purpose. The purpose of the D Distillery and Bottling Plant District is to acknowledge existing historic structures and historic land uses. The standards are intended to require maximum attention to proper site designing, including the location of structures and parking areas, proper ingress and egress, developing of an interior street system, erosion control, architectural design, landscaping and the compatibility of any proposal with the natural foliage, soils, contours, drainage patterns and the need to avoid visual intrusions and performance nuisances upon adjacent residences or residential zones. It is intended that existing foliage, natural features and existing structures be retained and enhanced in relation to the site as well as the surrounding area.
B. Principal permitted uses on the land and in buildings. The following shall be permitted as principal uses:
(1) Professional, medical and general office buildings only as a conditional use after application to, review by and approval by the approving authority. See § 102-11.
(2) Agricultural uses and farm uses, including nurseries and greenhouses.
(3) Detached single-family dwellings subject to the A-5 Rural Residential District requirements (see § 102-85.1 for requirements).
(4) Warehousing.
(5) Distilleries, bottling plants, and microbreweries and associated manufacturing and processing operations.
(6) Assisted living facilities, subject to the requirements of the B-1A District (see § 102-111 for requirements) and the B-1A Schedule of Limitations (see § 102-114 for requirements).
(7) Flex space - defined as a maximum 3,000 square feet of combined warehouse/office space for local contracting businesses such as electricians, plumbers, roofers, etc. only as a conditional use after application to, review by, and approval by the approving authority. See § 102-11.
(8) Indoor recreational and training facilities only as a conditional use after application to, review by and approval by the approving authority. See § 102-11.
(9) Climate-control self storage facilities.
(10) Public utilities are permitted only as a conditional use; see § 102-11.
(11) Building or land used exclusively by federal, state, county or Township government for public purposes for use in conjunction with the adjoining county property.
(12) Public recreational uses, including but not limited to outdoor sports, swimming pool, playgrounds, parks, ballfields and community centers.
C. Accessory uses. The following shall be permitted as accessory uses:
(1) Parking, fences and walls.
(2) Guard houses, employee cafeterias and customary accessory uses.
(3) Temporary construction trailers and one temporary sign, nonlighted and not exceeding 30 square feet in area for each of two sides and not exceeding eight feet in height, advertising the prime contractor, subcontractor(s), architect, financing institution and similar data for the period of construction beginning with the issuance of a construction permit and concluding with the issuance of a certificate of occupancy or one year, whichever is less, provided that said trailer and sign are on the site where construction is taking place.
(4) Limited outdoor storage areas for materials and equipment which are incidental to the main use of the lot are permitted as accessory uses to the principal use on the lot. Such storage areas shall be screened from view of adjacent properties by screening with adequate walls, fences, landscaping or a combination of these elements, such screening to be approved as part of the site plan.
(5) Child care centers; see § 102-52 for requirements.
(6) Antennas, per requirements of § 102-49.
(7) Wind energy systems; subject to § 102-82.1.
(8) Business offices, research and development and product testing operations associated with a distillery, bottling plant or microbrewery.
(9) Farm stand, temporary seasonal, subject to § 102-92.
(10) Solar energy panels mounted at ground level, located in rear or side yards only, and which shall be screened from view from public streets and neighboring properties by screening planting, fencing or a combination thereof such as to provide the proper shielding after two growing seasons. Location and screening requirements do not apply to solar energy panels mounted flush or nearly flush with building sides or roofs.
(11) Restaurants, tearooms and coffee houses associated with a microbrewery, in accordance with state and federal law, containing a maximum gross floor area of 3,000 square feet and 125 seats.
(12) Public tours of micro brewery facilities between the hours of 9:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m.
(13) Cultural center (museum) as an accessory use to a distillery and bottling plant only. The cultural center shall be limited to displaying historical, educational and artistic exhibits of the distillery and bottling plant. The cultural center shall be open to business colleagues or as educational tours to civic groups and the general public.
D. Building height. No building shall exceed 35 feet in height, and it shall have no more than 2 1/2 floor levels above the ground.
(1) Maximum floor area ratio shall be 20%.
(2) Landscaping, grading and drainage.
(a) Buffer requirements: 200 feet from Country Route 537, 50 feet from Laird Road, and 40 feet from surrounding properties.
(b) All portions of the property not utilized by buildings or paved surfaces shall be landscaped utilizing combinations such as fencing, shrubbery, lawn area, ground cover, rock formations, contours, existing foliage and the planting of conifers and/or deciduous trees native to the area in order to maintain or reestablish the tone of vegetation of the area and lessen the visual impact of the paved areas and structures.
(c) The established grades on any site shall be planned for both aesthetics and drainage purposes. The grading plan, drainage facilities and landscaping shall be coordinated to prevent erosion and silting, as well as to assure that the capacity of any natural or man-made drainage system is sufficient to handle the water generated and anticipated both from the site and contribution upstream areas.
(3) All applications for site plan approval in the D Distillery and Bottling Plant District shall submit an NJDEP preliminary Phase I environmental site assessment.
F. Minimum off-street parking.
(1) Off-street parking shall be located on the site with the building it is intended to serve and shall be within 400 feet of the building it is intended to serve but shall not be located in any buffer zone.
(2) One space is required for every vehicle owned and/or operated by the use and operating from the site.
(3) One space is required for every 200 square feet of gross floor area or fraction thereof devoted to offices.
(4) One space is required for every 700 square feet of gross floor area or fraction thereof devoted to the distillery and bottling plant or microbrewery and associated processing use.
(5) One space is required for every 3,000 square feet of gross floor area or fraction thereof devoted to storage, warehouse, shipping and receiving.
(6) One space for every two seats in a restaurant, tearoom or coffee house.
G. Minimum off-street loading and unloading areas.
(1) Off-street loading and unloading shall be located in side and rear yards only. All loading areas shall be screened from the street by decorative masonry or brick walls or massed conifers at least five feet in height and providing an all-season screen.
(2) Each space shall be located so that any vehicles being loaded or unloaded or maneuvering into a loading space do not interfere with any other parking or loading spaces, driveway, aisle, fire lane or street right-of-way. All loading and unloading shall take place on the building site.
(3) There shall be at least one trash and garbage pickup location provided for each building by either a location within the building or in a pickup location outside the building which shall be steel-like, totally enclosed and located in a manner to be obscured from view from parking areas, streets and adjacent residential uses or zoning districts by a fence, wall, planting or combination thereof. If located within the building, the doorway may serve both the loading and trash/garbage functions. If a container is used for trash/garbage functions and is located outside the building, it may be located adjacent to or within the loading space, provided that the container in no way interferes with or restricts loading and unloading functions.
(4) One loading space is required for every 10,000 square feet or fraction thereof of gross floor area for warehousing, indoor storage, shipping and receiving, plus one space shall be provided for every 20,000 square feet or fraction thereof of gross floor area for the distillery and bottling plant or microbrewery and associated processing operations.
H. Signs. Only signs related to the use on the premises are permitted, in accordance with the following:
(1) Directional signs may be permitted as approved on the site plan and are not considered part of the maximum sign area.
(2) One externally illuminated freestanding sign may be erected along a street right-of-way. It must not be more than eight feet high, with not more than 50 square feet in area for each of two sides, and shall be set back from the future street right-of-way at least 10 feet.
(3) One externally illuminated attached sign may be permitted, provided that the area of the sign does not exceed the equivalent of 5% of the area of the wall on which it is attached or 180 square feet, whichever is smaller, and the top of the sign is not higher than the base of the roof.
(4) All other sign requirements shall be in accordance with the requirements in § 102-123, Signs.
(5) See § 102-123C for seasonal decoration requirements.
I. Recyclable material storage. For each site plan application, the applicant shall provide an estimate of the quantity of mandated recyclable materials (including but not limited to newspaper, glass bottles, aluminum cans, tin and bimetal cans, high-grade paper and corrugated cardboard) that will be generated by the development during each week. A separate storage area must be provided to accommodate a one-week to four-week accumulation of recyclable material. The approving authority may require the location of one or more common storage areas at convenient locations within the development.
