Current through Register Vol. 49, No. 13, September 23, 2024
Subpart
1.
Visual screens required.
The uses described
in item A must be screened when abutting or adjacent to a residential district.
Screening shall consist of an obscuring wall or obscuring fence, or other
visual screen having a minimum height as required in item A. Whenever visual
screens are required, the following standards apply.
A. Height regulations:
(1) commercial or office uses, 4-1/2
feet;
(2) hospital ambulance,
delivery, and service areas, six feet;
(3) utility buildings, stations, or
substations, six feet; and
(4)
outdoor storage or service areas for nonresidential or multifamily uses, six
feet.
B. Visual screens
must be located completely within the lot line.
C. Visual screen locations must conform with
front yard setback lines in residential districts.
D. Upon approval of the board, a required
visual screen may be located on the opposite side of an alley right-of-way from
the nonresidential zone, when mutually agreeable to affected property owners.
Maintenance is the responsibility of the person required to erect the
screen.
E. The land between the
screen and the property line must be landscaped and maintained so that all
plant materials are healthy and the area is free from refuse and
debris.
F. Required visual screens
must have no opening for pedestrians or vehicles except as shown on an approved
site plan.
Subp. 2.
Landscaping of off-street parking lots.
All off-street
parking lots of more than four parking spaces must be landscaped as
follows:
A. A landscaped area at least
eight feet in width must be provided between parking lots and the abutting
street. Screening within this area must include a masonry wall, decorated
fence, berm, or hedge that forms a screen between three and 3-1/2 feet in
height, plus one deciduous shade tree planted every 40 feet on
center.
B. A landscaped area at
least six feet in width must be provided along side and rear lot lines between
parking lots and abutting residential uses. Screening within this area must
include a fence or wall at least 90 percent opaque, between 4-1/2 and six feet
in height, plus at least one tree and five shrubs for every 50 lineal feet of
property line.
C. Off-street
parking lots larger than 50 spaces must include 300 square feet of landscaped
islands for every 50 spaces over 50. Each landscaped island must be a minimum
of ten feet in width and 300 square feet in area.
Subp. 3.
Landscaping of open
areas.
The remainder of any landscaped area not occupied by trees
or shrubs must be covered with turf grass, native grasses, or other perennial
flowering plants, vines, shrubs, or trees.
Subp. 4.
Plant materials; standards and
maintenance.
Plant materials used in visual screens, parking lot
landscaping, or other applications must meet the following standards:
A. The genus and species of all plant
materials must be identified on all plans submitted for permit
approval.
B. The species, size,
location, and spacing of plant materials must be appropriate for the purpose
intended, and must be planted within 180 days from the date of issuance of a
certificate of occupancy.
C. At the
time of planting, minimum plant sizes are as follows: shade trees must be 1-1/2
inch caliper, ornamental trees must be six to eight feet overall height,
conifers must be four to six feet overall height, and shrubs used for screening
must be 15 to 18 inches overall height.
D. Wherever plant materials are used to
satisfy a visual screen requirement, planting must be sufficiently dense to
provide an unbroken visual barrier within a maximum of two growing seasons
after the time of planting.
E. The
owners are responsible for maintaining all landscaping in a healthy and growing
condition and keeping it free from refuse and debris. Dead plant materials must
be removed within a reasonable time and replaced during the normal planting
seasons. Plant materials shall be warrantied for a minimum of two
years.
Statutory Authority: MS s
15B.06
