Solano County Zoning Code § 28.73 Recreation, Education, and Public Assembly Uses

A. General Requirements

Recreational uses, as permitted in the applicable zoning district, shall meet the following standards:

1. Access. Shall provide adequate truck loading area as required by the Zoning Administrator or Planning Commission, together with ingress and egress designed to avoid traffic hazard and congestion; All connections to County roads shall meet the encroachment permit requirements of the Director of Resource Management, which generally include, but shall not be limited to, paving of the connection within the County road right-of-way.

2. Exterior Lighting. Lighting capable of providing adequate illumination for security and safety and directed away from adjacent properties and public rights-of-way to prevent offensive light or glare.

3. Roads. Shall be located on a public road or a private road in accordance with the general development standards set forth in Section 28.70.10.

4. Setbacks. Minimum setback from an adjacent street shall be the same as required for the main building.

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5. Screening of Parking. Amusement places or places of commercial recreation shall provide ingress and egress designed so as to avoid traffic congestion; shall provide a minimum six foot solid board fence or masonry wall separating parking areas from abutting residential property; and shall show that adequate controls or measures will be taken to prevent offensive noise, light or vibration.

B. Specific Requirements

The specific recreational uses listed below shall comply with the general requirements in subsection (A) of this section and the following specific standards:

1. Hunting and Fishing Clubs.

Facilities must be connected to an approved sewage disposal system.

2. Marinas

• a. Shall provide sufficient and conveniently located restrooms, showers, garbage disposal facilities, parking, and sewage pumpout facilities.

• b. Floating homes and live aboard boats may not exceed 10% of the total authorized boat berths.

3. Stable, Public without Horse Shows

• a. Public stables standards. Public stables shall meet the following standards:

  • (1) All public stables shall provide on-site parking, loading, and vehicular turn-around space, together with ingress and egress so designed to avoid traffic hazards and congestion; shall not constitute a nuisance or hazard to nearby properties due to trespass, odor, dust, noise and drainage. Certain facets of the operation which are determined not to be offensive, such as grazing, storage, etc., may be granted exceptions by the authority acting on the permit application to vary the minimum distance requirements.

  • (2) The minimum lot area upon which two or fewer horses may be kept is one acre. One additional horse may be kept for each twenty thousand square feet by which the parcel of land exceeds one acre.

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• (3) Subject to the provisions of the applicable zoning district, public stables shall comply with the standards in Table 28-73A below:

• Where the front property line lies within a County road easement, the setback shall be measured from the outer easement line.

(Ord. No. 1840, § 23; Ord. No. 1861, §4)

A. General Requirements

Educational uses, as permitted in the applicable zoning district, shall meet the following standards:

1. Access. Shall provide adequate truck loading area as required by the Zoning Administrator or Planning Commission, together with ingress and egress designed to avoid traffic hazard and congestion; All connections to County roads shall meet the encroachment permit requirements of the Director of Resource Management, which generally include, but shall not be limited to, paving of the connection within the County road right-of-way.

2. Roads. Shall be located on a public road or a private road in accordance with the general development standards set forth in Section 28.70.10.

3. Setbacks. Minimum setback from an adjacent street shall be the same as required for the main building.

4. Screening of Parking. Amusement places or places of commercial recreation shall provide ingress and egress designed so as to avoid traffic congestion; shall provide a minimum six foot solid board fence or masonry wall separating parking areas from abutting residential

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property; and shall show that adequate controls or measures will be taken to prevent offensive noise, light or vibration.

B. Specific Requirements

The specific educational uses listed below shall comply with the general requirements in subsection (A) of this section and the following specific standards:

1. Agricultural Education.

Agricultural education, conducted as an incidental activity to the production and/or processing of crops and other agricultural products, shall be permitted, subject to the permitting requirements and standards below:

A. Permit requirements.

• (1) Minor Facility. An administrative permit is required for any minor agricultural education facility which meets the requirements in a-c below:

  • i. No new buildings or structures are proposed,

  • ii. No building occupancy changes are required

  • iii. Not more than 25 people per day are visiting the site

• (2) Major Facility. A minor use permit is required for any major agricultural education facility.

B. Standards for All Agricultural Education Facilities.

• (1) Operator. Shall be operated by the owner or occupant of the property.

• (2) Public Road Access. Shall be located on a public road.

• (3) Purpose of Educational Facility. Shall offer educational services for the purpose of furthering the understanding of agricultural crop or livestock production and processing.

• (4) No Removal of Agriculture. Shall not require the removal of any crops or grazing plants.

• (5) Hours of Operation. Shall be limited to 8:00am until 6:00 pm Mondays through Sunday.

(Ord. No. 1840, §24; Ord. No. 1861, §4)

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• A. General Requirements. Public assembly uses shall comply with the following general standards:

  1. General Development Standards. No use of land or buildings shall be conducted except in compliance with the general development standards in Sections 28.70.10 and 28.70.20.

  2. Access. Shall have ingress and egress designed so as to avoid traffic congestion and hazards. Unless required to be on a public road, a public assembly use shall have direct access from either a public or private road in accordance with the general development standards set forth in Section 28.70.10. Shall provide adequate truck loading area as required by the Zoning Administrator or Planning Commission, together with ingress and egress designed to avoid traffic hazard and congestion.

  3. Encroachment Permit Required. All connections to County roads shall meet the encroachment permit requirements of the Public Works – Engineering Division, which generally include, but shall not be limited to, paving of the connection within the County road right-of-way.

  4. Exterior Lighting. Public assembly uses shall provide lighting capable of providing adequate illumination for security and safety and directed away from adjacent properties and public rights-of-way to prevent offensive light or glare.

  5. Parking – Screening. When located in or adjacent to any R District, parking areas for a public assembly use shall be enclosed and screened by a minimum six-foot-high, solid board fence or a minimum six-foot-high masonry wall and shall provide traffic surfaces that are maintained in a dust-free manner.

  6. Notice. For a public assembly use located on a private road, notice of the public hearing to consider the use permit application or any revision or amendment of the permit shall be

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provided to all properties abutting that private road in addition to the notice otherwise required in Section 28.04.

7. Setbacks. The minimum setback from an adjacent street shall be the same as required for the main building. All public assembly uses where liquor is served shall be located at least 200 feet from any boundary of a residential district, unless a use permit is first secured.

8. Incidental Retail Uses. Public assembly uses of land, buildings, or structures may include incidental retail uses customarily found at such establishments.

9. Outdoor Storage. Outdoor storage incidental to the primary use of the parcel for public assembly purposes is permitted, provided the area devoted to outdoor storage is screened from public view.

• B. Specific Requirements. The specific public assembly uses listed below shall comply with each provision of subdivision (A) of this section and the following specific standards:

  1. Churches. Churches shall meet the following minimum development standards:

  • a. Located on a principal street on a minimum one-acre site.

• b. In R districts, except the R-R district, located on a site at least 1,500 feet from any other site containing a church or museum.

  • c. A six-foot-high decorative masonry wall shall be constructed and maintained on all side and rear property lines abutting R districts, excepting the rural residential (R-R) district. For property lines abutting R-R districts, a screen consisting of walls, fences, landscaping, berms or any combination to form a six-foot-high opaque screen shall be provided.

  • d. No building shall be located closer than 25 feet to any property line constituting the parcel boundary.

  • e. The required front yard setback as determined by the zone district shall be landscaped in accordance with a landscape and irrigation plan approved by the Department of Resource Management. At least two 24-inch box street trees are required for each 50 feet of street frontage or fraction thereof.

  • f. Landscaping shall be provided equivalent to at least 15 percent of the total parking area hardscape. The parking area hardscape includes parking stalls, sidewalks, and all driveways outside of the front yard setback. Such landscaping shall be located throughout the parking area and at a minimum shall include one 24-inch box tree for every five parking stalls.

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• g. Parking areas shall have lighting capable of providing adequate illumination for security and safety. Any illumination shall be directed away from adjacent properties and public rights-of-way.

• h. Parking areas, including driveways and loading areas, used for primary circulation and for frequent idling of vehicle engines shall be designed and located to minimize the impact of noise on adjacent properties.

• i. Churches adjacent to agricultural activities shall provide sufficient buffer so as not to burden or interfere with normal agricultural operations.

• j. The development standards set forth in subdivisions (A)(1) through (9) of this section, inclusive, shall not apply to the review and consideration of any conditional use permit application that was filed prior to November 4, 1997. The minimum development standards for such applications are that the use shall be located on a principal street on a minimum one-half acre parcel, and in all districts shall maintain a minimum 10-footwide landscape strip on all property lines abutting R districts.

2. Clubs, Lodges and Fraternal Organizations. Clubs, lodges, and fraternal organizations shall comply with the following standards:

• a. Maintain a minimum 10-foot landscaped strip on all property lines abutting residential property.

3. Repealed.

4. Outdoor Theaters. Outdoor theaters or drive-in theaters shall be located only on a principal street; shall provide ingress and egress so designed as to avoid traffic congestion; shall be located sufficiently distant from any dwelling, barn or stable, and so screened from such buildings that any noise shall not disturb residents or farm animals; and any lighted signs and other lights shall be maintained in such a way as not to disturb neighboring residents or farm animals.

5. Public Stable with Horse Shows.

• a. Horse Show Standards. Subject to the provisions of the applicable zoning district, public stables with horse shows shall comply with the standards in Table 28-73B:

Table 28-73B Development Standards for Public Stables with Horse Shows

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Table 28-73B Development Standards for Public Stables with Horse Shows (Continued)

* Where the front property line lies within a county road easement, the setback shall be measured from the outer easement line.

b. Other Standards. Horse shows shall meet the following additional standards:

• (1) The minimum lot area upon which two or fewer horses may be kept is one acre. One additional horse may be kept for each 20,000 square feet by which the parcel of land exceeds one acre.

• (2) Public stables shall comply with the permitting requirements for the applicable zoning district.

• (3) All horse shows shall provide on-site parking, loading, and vehicular turn-around space, together with ingress and egress so designed to avoid traffic hazards and congestion; shall provide an emergency response plan to address fire protection and prevention and medical and emergency response; shall not constitute a nuisance or hazard to nearby properties due to trespass, odor, dust, noise and drainage. Certain facets of the operation which are determined not to be offensive, such as grazing, storage, etc., may be granted exceptions by the authority acting on the use permit application to vary the minimum distance requirements.

• (4) Horse shows shall be located no closer than 200 feet from any property line; shall provide adequate truck loading area as required by the Zoning Administrator or Planning Commission, together with ingress and egress designed to avoid traffic hazard and congestion; and shall show that odor, dust, noise or drainage will not constitute a nuisance or a hazard.

6. Special Events Facility. Except as otherwise provided for in this chapter, a special events facility may be permitted provided the facility complies with the following standards:

• a. Access. A small or medium special event facility may be located on a private road in compliance with the general requirements for public assembly uses. A large special event facility must be located on a public road.

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• b. Food Vendors. Permittee is responsible for ensuring the event organizer and food vendors utilized by the organizer secure food permits with the division of environmental health.

• c. Kitchen Facilities. Any kitchen at the facility used for the preparation, storage, handling, or service of food at events shall be permitted as a food facility by the division of environmental health.

• d. Overnight Lodging. A special event facility may include up to five guestrooms, providing overnight lodging for up to 10 event attendees, if approved by the zoning administrator or planning commission.

• e. Hours of Operation. All events shall start no sooner than 10:00 a.m. and end by 10:00 p.m. each day. Facility setup and cleanup shall be allowed between the hours of 8:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. All guests of an event other than those staying in approved overnight lodging facilities shall be off the property by 10:30 p.m.

• f. Operational Controls.

  • (1) Fugitive Dust. A special events facility located on a site with access from unpaved dirt roads and with unpaved on-site access roads and parking areas shall control fugitive dust with water trucks, sprinkler system or other practices acceptable to the applicable air quality management district, in sufficient quantities to prevent airborne dust.

  • (2) Noise. Outdoor amplified sound shall not exceed 65 dB when measured at the property lines.

  • (3) Light and Glare. Any proposed outdoor lighting used during events shall be downcast and shielded so that neither the lamp nor the reflector interior surface is visible from any off-site location.

  • (4) Odor. A special event shall not cause objectionable odors on adjacent properties.

• g. Parking. A special events facility must provide parking either on site or off site to accommodate all guests. No parking shall be allowed within any road right-of-way for 1,000 feet in either direction of any access point or access located on the site. The permittee shall place signs along the interior access ways and at 300-foot intervals on the applicant’s property along the road right-of-way indicating this parking restriction. These signs shall be posted no earlier than the day before the event and shall be removed no later than the day following the event. Parking shall be provided as follows:

  • (1) On-Site Parking. On-site parking shall be located in an open area with a slope of 10 percent or less, at a minimum ratio of one space per 2.5 attendees, on a lot free of combustible material.

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• (2) Off-Site Parking. If off-site parking is utilized, then off-site parking must be located outside of a road right-of-way and within 1,000 walking feet of the event site or shuttles must be provided. Written consent shall be obtained from the owners of all off-site parking areas. A minimum of one parking attendant shall be present at each lot used for off-site parking to assist in parking vehicles. For each off-site parking lot containing 50 or more vehicles, one parking attendant per each 50 vehicles shall be provided. For temporary parking lots, signs and directional signs shall be posted no earlier than the day before the event and shall be removed no later than the day following the event. For events that will require off-site parking, monitors shall be provided to direct traffic at all points of ingress, egress, and forks in private access roads and to turn away vehicles when authorized parking capacity is reached. If off-site parking is proposed, it shall be considered with the review of the land use permit for the event site.

• h. Sanitation. Permittee must provide sanitation facilities approved by the Division of Environmental Health of adequate capacity that are accessible to attendees and event staff, including restrooms, refuse disposal receptacles, potable water and wastewater facilities.

• i. Setbacks. A special events facility must be set back 100 feet from any property line and 200 feet from any residence on an adjoining parcel.

• j. Impacts to Agriculture. Prior to approving an application for a special events facility, the Zoning Administrator or Planning Commission shall consider potential impacts to commercial agricultural operations on adjacent properties.

• k. Use of Existing Structures. Existing structures used as part of a special events facility must comply and be permitted for commercial and public assembly occupancy and be in compliance with Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), where applicable.

• l. Construction of New Structures. Any new structure proposed for a special events facility shall not be located on land that has been used for agricultural production within the previous three years.

• m. Other Permits and Licenses. Must obtain any other required permits from Federal, State or local agencies. Shall obtain approvals from the Division of Environmental Health and the Fire Protection District prior to operation.

• n. Traffic Control. For any special event facility that will accommodate 500 people or more, the applicant shall prepare a diagram of proposed traffic routing and direction signs, along with an estimate of traffic volume expected for the facility. This shall be submitted with the land use permit application for the facility.

• o. Notice of Events. A special event facility located on a private road shall provide notice of each event, at least 30 days in advance of the event, to all residents abutting the

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private road and to the Sheriff and the Fire Protection District. This requirement may be waived by the Zoning Administrator or Planning Commission based on input from the residents abutting the road and the affected agencies.

• p. Insurance. The operator of a special event facility shall have commercial property insurance for the use.

(Ord. No. 1749, §4 (Exh. 4); Ord. No. 1821, §§11 – 13; Ord. No. 1840, §25; Ord. No. 1861, §4)