9-400.050 - SCREENING OF EQUIPMENT

The standards of this Section apply to equipment in new development, replacement equipment that is added to serve existing buildings, and condominium conversions. These standards do not apply to existing equipment that serves existing buildings. The Zoning Administrator may waive or modify screening requirements for equipment.

(a)

General Requirements. All exterior mechanical equipment, whether on a roof, on the side of a structure, or located on the ground, must be screened from public view from an adjacent public road. Exterior mechanical equipment to be screened includes, without limitation, heating, ventilation, air conditioning,

refrigeration equipment, plumbing lines, ductwork, transformers, smoke exhaust fans, water meters, backflow preventers, and similar utility devices.

(1)

Screening must be architecturally integrated into the main structure with regard to materials, color, shape, and size to appear as an integral part of the building or structure.

(2)

Equipment must be screened on all sides, and screening materials must be opaque.

(3)

When screening with plants, evergreen types of vegetation must be planted and maintained. Plant material sizes and types must be selected and installed so that, at the time of building occupancy, such plants effectively screen their respective equipment.

(4)

The use of chain link for the purpose of screening is prohibited.

(b)

Requirements for Specific Types of Mechanical Equipment. The following additional screening standards apply to the specified types of mechanical equipment:

(1)

Roof-Mounted Equipment.

(A)

Whenever feasible, roof-mounted equipment screening must be constructed as an encompassing monolithic unit or a series of architecturally similar screening units on large roofs, rather than as several individual screens (i.e., multiple equipment screens, or "hats," surrounding individual elements are not permitted).

(B)

The height of the screening element must equal or exceed the height of the structure's tallest piece of installed equipment.

FIGURE 9-400.070-1: SCREENING OF ROOF MOUNTED EQUIPMENT

(2)

Ground-Mounted Equipment. Ground-mounted equipment that faces a street must be screened to a height of 12 inches above the equipment, unless such screening conflicts with utility access, in which case reasonable accommodation must be allowed.

(A)

Acceptable screening devices consist of decorative walls and/or berms (3:1 maximum slope) with supplemental plant materials, such as trees, shrubs, and groundcovers.

(B)

For screen walls that are three feet high or lower, vegetative materials may be substituted for 50 percent of the screening device.

(C)

This requirement does not apply to incidental equipment in the interior of a lot that is not visible from the street. However, electrical substations, water tanks, sewer pump stations, and similar utilities are required to be screened and secured with an eight-foot-high wall.

FIGURE 9-400.070-2: SCREENING OF GROUND MOUNTED EQUIPMENT

(3)

Exterior Wall Equipment. Wall-mounted equipment, including, without limitation, electrical meters, electrical distribution cabinets, and valves and cabinets that face a street or public parking and are not recessed and/or separated from the street by intervening building(s) or walls or gates, must be screened. Screening devices must incorporate elements of the building design (e.g., shape, color, texture, and material). For screen walls that are three feet in height or lower, vegetative materials may be substituted for 50 percent of the screening device.

(c)

Exceptions in Agricultural Zones and the I-G General Industrial Zone. Due to size and physical characteristics, outdoor equipment that is ancillary to farming operations in the Agricultural Zones and industrial operations in the I-G General Industrial zone does not have to be fully screened from view. In these cases, operators of such equipment are only required to provide screening from view of public roads for the outdoor storage of such equipment to the extent feasible.