Newark Municipal Code Ch. 17.14 Old Town (-Ot) Overlay District

This overlay district provides supplementary design standards and modifies development standards for base districts located within the Old Town Newark Specific Plan Area. The overlay district accommodates a range of medium and high-density housing, and retail and service commercial uses; and encourages development in a vertical mixed-use pattern. It enforces design standards to support pedestrian connections, human-scaled design, housing opportunity, commercial viability, usable open spaces, and financial feasibility.

(Ord. No. 532, § 4(Exh. B), 10-14-2021)

The standards and regulations of this chapter apply to the planning area designated in the Old Town Specific Plan and areas designated with the -OT extension on the zoning map. Except as provided in this chapter, all new structures and development, as well as alterations to existing structures, shall comply with the requirements of the base zoning district.

(Ord. No. 532, § 4(Exh. B), 10-14-2021)

Any use permitted in the underlying district which is combined with an -OT overlay district, shall be allowed subject to the permitting levels of the underlying district. Additionally, the following uses are permitted in the CMU-OT district, subject to a minor use permit:

A. Custom manufacturing.

B. Food and beverage manufacturing (small scale).

(Ord. No. 532, § 4(Exh. B), 10-14-2021)

A. Facade Length. For buildings with facade lengths greater than sixty feet along Thornton Avenue, place an entry point at least every fifty feet along the Thornton Avenue frontage.

B. Ground-Floor Residential. Where residential uses occupy the ground-floor, the following requirements shall apply:

1. Residential units shall not be permitted on the ground-floor of a development fronting on Thornton Avenue, but may be located elsewhere on the ground-floor if set back a minimum of ten feet from the property line.

2. Stoops and/or common areas, such as lobbies, community rooms, and work-out spaces, are permitted on the ground-floor of Thornton Avenue frontage, up to the property line, as long as one or more windows or openings provide transparency into the common space.

C. Mixed-Use Residential Buildings. Mixed-use residential buildings shall meet the following standards:

1. On corner lots, residential lobbies shall be located on Thornton Avenue or within fifty feet from Thornton Avenue. If there is not enough Thornton Avenue frontage for a residential lobby and a retail space, the Thornton Avenue frontage shall accommodate the retail space and the residential entry may be placed elsewhere. In a building with two or more retail entrances and a residential lobby on a single frontage, retail entrances shall be located adjacent to one another, such that residential lobbies do not break up continuous retail or inhibit future demising.

2. Work with the structural grid to minimize interruptions by columns. Place columns to maximize flexibility for reconfiguring commercial spaces over time. Maintain spacing of a minimum of fifteen feet in all directions.

3. Restaurants and food service businesses shall locate vents away from pedestrian areas and usable open spaces. Vents shall be located at least ten feet above grade on the Thornton Avenue frontage and adjacent to usable open spaces.

D. Open Space. Open space shall be designed as required by subsection 17.07.030.D, with the following exceptions:

1. Location. Notwithstanding subsections 17.07.030.D.1.b.ii and 17.07.030.D.2.d.i, required open space for single-, two-, or multi-unit buildings may be located in a required front or street side setback.

2. Minimum Dimensions. Notwithstanding subsection 17.07.030.D.2.b.ii, common open space shall have a minimum dimension of ten feet in any direction.

3. Screening. Required private open space shall be screened by a fence not less than six feet in height located at ground level and by a railing not less than forty-two inches in height when located on a balcony. Fencing and railings do not need to be solid.

E. Commercial Entrances on Corner Lots. For lots with two or more frontages and containing at least twenty feet of frontage on Thornton Avenue:

1. At least one retail entrance shall be located on Thornton Avenue or at the corner intersection of the lot lines.

2. Notwithstanding subsection 17.08.040.F.4, corner parcels need not locate building entrances at a forty-five-degree angle.

F. Small Vendors. The overlay district accommodates small commercial vendor spaces, such as flower shops and craft vendors through tenant space demising. Notwithstanding subsection 17.08.040.A, small commercial vendor space may be accommodated as follows:

1. A space with a minimum dimension of two feet may be built into an exterior wall as a shelf for vending outdoors for existing or new development.

2. For an existing non-conforming commercial tenant space, further demising is allowed for the establishment of a stall or pop-up vendor with a minimum depth of five feet.

G. Back of House. Commercial loading, trash, and other back of house functions shall be accessed from alleys or rear of buildings, away from Thornton Avenue, unless the parcel does not have secondary access, so that they are accessible for deliveries and employees, and not disruptive to pedestrian circulation.

H. Refuse Collection. To supplement regulations in Section 17.17.120 (trash and recycling collection areas), the following standards apply to existing businesses and new development. The intent is to facilitate organized, consolidated, and clean refuse areas that do not obstruct the public realm:

a. Location. Notwithstanding the requirements of subsection 17.17.120.B.2.b, waste and recycling storage areas may be located within parking areas, required street side setback, and be visible from the public right-of-way, and—in the case of existing buildings only may be located in the front yard setback—if they meet the screening and enclosure requirements in subsection 17.17.120.B.2. Storage areas may also be located in, and replace, a required parking space, if screening and enclosures are designed to the satisfaction of the community development director.

b. Screening and Enclosures. Existing properties and businesses shall construct screening and roofed enclosures for refuse, as specified in subsection 17.17.120.B.2.d and e, as a condition of any building permit valued at fifty thousand dollars or higher, or upon approval of a change of use/use permit.

c. Drainage. Existing properties and businesses shall provide floor drains in trash enclosures, as specified in subsection 17.17.120.B.2.j, as a condition of any building permit valued at one hundred thousand dollars or higher.

d. Shared Containers. Shared containers or dumpsters may service two or more commercial tenants on a single parcel, or two or more abutting parcels, to consolidate the space devoted to refuse containers.

e. Pick-up Operations. On pick-up days, containers shall be placed back in enclosures or storage locations immediately following pick-up.

(Ord. No. 532, § 4(Exh. B), 10-14-2021)

A. Outdoor Dining. To supplement regulations in Section 17.26.170 (outdoor dining), the following guidelines encourage outdoor dining adjacent to the building edge:

1. Connect restaurant interiors to outdoor seating areas at windows or other openings.

2. Provide movable seating to facilitate flexibility in dining configurations and to support public health.

3. Provide shade opportunities with awnings or colonnades.

B. Architectural Features. New developments should incorporate public art, such as murals, gates, screens, and sculpture, as part of the building exterior.

(Ord. No. 532, § 4(Exh. B), 10-14-2021)

Notwithstanding Chapter 17.23, the following modifications to parking standards shall apply:

A. Vehicle Parking Requirements. This chapter modifies the requirements in Table 17.23.040 as follows:

1. Multi-Unit Residential Building: Minimum of one and one-quarter spaces per unit; maximum of two spaces per unit. No additional guest parking required.

2. Group Residential: One-quarter per bedroom.

B. Parking Credits.

1. On-street parking along a lot's corresponding frontage lines shall be counted toward the parking requirement. Where an on-street parking space is adjacent to multiple lots, the credit shall be given to the development on the lot whose frontage contains more than fifty percent of the parking space length.

[Figure: FIGURE 17.14.060.B.1: ON-STREET PARKING CREDIT]

FIGURE 17.14.060.B.1: ON-STREET PARKING CREDIT

2. Where a use with a legal nonconforming parking deficiency is replaced, the new use shall receive a parking credit equal to the number of required automobile parking spaces unmet (based on this zoning) by the previous use.

C. Driveway Access. New driveway access to sites on Thornton Avenue which require vehicular movement across the sidewalk on Thornton Avenue shall be prohibited. Exceptions shall be granted where required by law; as applied to parcels owned, leased or controlled by the city; or in the case of interior lots or where sites are not accessible from any other public right of way.

D. Location. No off-street surface parking spaces shall be located between the front lot line and the front wall of a building fronting Thornton Avenue, except upon the granting of a minor use permit. To grant such a minor use permit, the city shall make the following findings:

1. That the parking spaces are required by Section 17.23.040.

2. That there is no other feasible way to provide the required parking.

3. That all applicable provisions of the design standards in Section 17.23.090 have been met.

E. Long-Term Bicycle Parking Requirements. This chapter modifies the requirements in subsection 17.23.070.B.1.a as follows:

1. Residential Uses. A minimum of one long-term bicycle parking space shall be provided for each apartment in a multi-unit development, and for each bedroom in a group residential, and/or single room occupancy.

F. Multiple Uses. Retail parking shall be separated from residential parking in parking structures; retail parking areas shall not have access to residential entrances or parking spaces.

G. Mechanical Lifts. Mechanical parking lifts may be used for parking spaces intended and required for frequent users, such as residents and employees. Parking spaces intended and required for visitors, customers or infrequent users shall not use mechanical lifts unless an attendant is provided during all operating hours of the use the parking is intended to serve. Lift design must allow for removal of any single vehicle without necessitating the temporary removal of any other vehicle.

H. Wrapped Structured Parking. Structured parking is encouraged, but must be concealed from Thornton Avenue by wrapping with commercial or habitable uses. Alternatively, structured parking may be designed with sufficient architectural treatment, subject to the approval of the community development director. Unutilized air shafts between parking structures and wrapped uses are prohibited.

I. Unbundled Parking. Residential parking spaces in multifamily or mixed-use rental projects shall be leased separately from dwelling units. No resident shall be required to lease a parking space.

(Ord. No. 532, § 4(Exh. B), 10-14-2021)