D.C. Mun. Regs. tit. 11, r. 11-U802

Current through Register Vol. 71, No. 49, December 6, 2024

Rule 11-U802 - SPECIAL EXCEPTION USES (PDR)

802.1

The following uses shall be permitted in a PDR zone if approved by the Board of Zoning Adjustment as a special exception under Subtitle X, Chapter 9, subject to the applicable conditions of each paragraph below:

(a) Animal sales, care, and boarding uses not meeting the conditions of matter-of-right of Subtitle U § 801.1(b), subject to the following conditions:

(1) Animal uses, including animal boarding, pet grooming establishments, pet shops, veterinary boarding hospitals, and animal shelters shall be subject to the following:

(A) The use shall be located and designed to create no objectionable conditions to adjacent properties resulting from animal noise, odor or waste;

(B) All animal waste shall be placed in closed waste disposal containers and shall utilize a qualified waste disposal company to collect and dispose of all animal waste at least weekly. Odor shall be controlled by means of an air filtration system or an equivalently effective odor control system;

(C) The property shall not abut a residential use or residential zone;

(D) External yards or other exterior facilities for the keeping of animals shall not be permitted; and

(E) The Board of Zoning Adjustment may impose additional requirements as it deems necessary to protect adjacent or nearby properties;

(2) Any use that trims or cleans domestic pets for a fee shall also be permitted to engage in the sale of pet supplies as an accessory use; and

(3) Any use that boards animals as an independent line of business in association with a veterinary hospital for reasons other than convalescence shall be subject to the following additional criteria:

(A) The use may board any animal permitted to be lawfully sold in the District of Columbia, pursuant to D.C. Official Code § 8-1808(h)(1), except domesticated dogs;

(B) No more than fifty percent (50%) of the gross floor area of the use may be devoted to the boarding of animals; and

(C) Pet grooming, the sale of pet supplies, and incidental boarding as necessary for convalescence, are permitted as accessory uses. Any business engaged in the sale of dogs, cats, birds, tropical fish and/or other domesticated pets, as permitted by the D.C. Official Code § 8-1808(h)(1), including related supplied and equipment;

(b) Community solar facility not meeting the requirements of Subtitle U § 801.1(g), subject to the following:

(1) Provision of a landscaped area at least five feet (5 ft.) wide facing public space, residential use, or parks and recreation use, regardless of zone, that

(A) Maintains as many existing native trees as possible;

(B) Includes a diverse mix of native trees, shrubs, and plants, and avoids planting a monoculture;

(C) Ensures all trees measure a minimum of six feet (6 ft.) in height at the time of planting; and

(2) The Application, including the landscape plan, shall be referred to the District Department of Energy and Environment for review and report;

(c) Eating and drinking establishments with a live performance, night club or dance venue, subject to the following conditions:

(1) The use shall be located and designed so that it is not likely to become objectionable to neighboring property because of noise, traffic, parking, loading, number of attendees, waste collection, or other objectionable conditions;

(2) The property shall not abut a residential use or residential zone;

(3) There is no property containing a live performance, night club or dance venue either in the same square or within a radius of one thousand feet (1,000 ft.) from any portion of the subject property;

(4) External performances or external amplification shall not be permitted; and

(5) The Board of Zoning Adjustment may impose additional requirements as it deems necessary to protect adjacent or nearby residential properties, including but not limited to:

(A) Soundproofing;

(B) Limitations on the hours of operation; and

(C) Expiration on the duration of the special exception approval;

(d) Emergency shelter not meeting the conditions of Subtitle U § 801.1(j), subject to the following conditions:

(1) There shall be a maximum limit of three hundred (300) persons, not including resident supervisors or staff and their families, provided that for facilities over one hundred and fifty (150) persons the Board of Zoning Adjustment finds that the program goals and objectives of the District of Columbia cannot be achieved by a facility of a smaller size at the subject location and there is no other reasonable alternative to meet the program needs of that area of the District;

(2) There shall be no other property containing an emergency shelter use for five (5) or more persons in the same square or within a radius of one thousand feet (1,000 ft.) from any portion of the property;

(3) The use shall not be located within one thousand feet (1,000 ft.) of a waste-related services use; and

(4) The use shall not be permitted in the PDR-3, PDR-4, or PDR-7 zones;

(e) Entertainment, assembly, and performing arts uses, subject to the following conditions:

(1) The use shall be located and designed so that it is not likely to become objectionable to neighboring property because of noise, traffic, parking, loading, number of attendees, waste collection, or other objectionable conditions;

(2) The property shall not abut a residential use or residential zone;

(3) There is no property containing a live performance, night club or dance venue either in the same square or within a radius of one thousand (1,000 ft.) from any portion of the subject property;

(4) External performances or external amplification shall not be permitted; and

(5) The Board of Zoning Adjustment may impose additional requirements as it deems necessary to protect adjacent or nearby residential properties, including but not limited to:

(A) Soundproofing;

(B) Limitations on the hours of operation; and

(C) Expiration on the duration of the special exception approval;

(f) Production, distribution, and repair (PDR) uses that involve the excavation of clay, sand, or gravel for commercial purposes, or the manufacturing, processing, mixing, storing, or distributing of concrete or asphalt, or the materials that are used to make concrete or asphalt, subject to the following conditions:

(1) The use shall meet the Standards of External Effects in Subtitle U § 804;

(2) No portion of the facility, including the land used by such facility, shall be located within two hundred feet (200 ft.) of a residential, parks and recreation, retail, office, institutional, or local government use, or a R, RF, or RA zone;

(3) There shall be no truck access, parking, standing, or queuing to the facility from any street or block-long portion of a street for which fifty percent (50%) or more of the abutting properties on either side are a Residential use;

(4) No truck dumping or picking up excavation, concrete or asphalt, or related materials, shall park, stand, or queue for the facility along any public right-of-way, and the location of the facility shall provide access from a paved street with a road base capable of withstanding anticipated load limits;

(5) Any facility located within five hundred feet (500 ft.) of a residential zone shall not be in operation between 7:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. Hours of operation shall include the arrival and departure of trucks;

(6) The facility shall be enclosed on all sides by an opaque screen, fence, or wall at least ten feet (10 ft.) in height. The use of barbed wire or razor wire that is visible from residential zones or public space is prohibited;

(7) The side of the facility facing public space, residential, parks and recreation, retail, office, institutional, or local government uses shall contain a landscaped area of evergreen trees measuring a minimum of eight feet (8 ft.) in height, which shall be maintained in a healthy growing condition;

(8) The application shall contain:

(A) A site plan showing the layout of the proposed facility, including fences and screens, street access, parking, and queuing areas;

(B) A landscape plan showing the planting locations and soil preparation techniques;

(C) A lighting plan showing the proposed lighting locations and illumination spread, and noting the proposed height and wattage of the lighting fixtures;

(D) A traffic study which indicates truck routes to and from the facility on streets abutting residential neighborhoods, with the objective of minimizing potential adverse impacts on adjacent neighborhoods; and

(E) A description of the facility's methods and specifications for the control of odor, dust, smoke and other air pollutants, and noise; and

(9) The Office of Zoning shall submit the application to the Office of Planning for coordination, review, report, and impact assessment, along with reports in writing of all relevant District departments and agencies, including, but not limited to, the Departments of Public Works, Transportation, Health, and Energy and Environment, and if a historic district or historic landmark is involved, the Historic Preservation Office;

(g) Repair of automobiles (any devoted use), including body work, in a PDR-1, PDR-2, PDR-5, or PDR-6 zone within two hundred feet (200 ft.) of a residential zone or residential development, subject to the following conditions:

(1) The use shall meet the Standards of External Effect in Subtitle U § 804;

(2) All vehicles shall be parked or stored completely on the site but shall not be located within any required buffer area or yard adjacent to a residential zone;

(3) No vehicles shall be parked in such a manner as to block or impede the flow of vehicular, pedestrian or bicycle traffic along public rights-of-way around, adjacent or neighboring the site; and

(4) All lighting of the site shall be arranged and shielded to reduce glare and avoid light spill onto any adjacent residential property;

(h) Retail, large format, subject to the following conditions:

(1) The development standards and design guidelines contained within this section apply to all new large format retail establishments with single tenant space of fifty thousand (50,000) gross square feet or greater;

(2) The use shall be located so that it is not likely to become objectionable to adjoining and nearby property because of noise, traffic, parking, loading, deliveries, lighting, trash compacting and collection, hours of operation, or otherwise objectionable conditions;

(3) Sufficient automobile parking, but not less than that required in Subtitle C, Chapter 7, shall be provided to accommodate the employees and customers;

(4) An application under this section shall include the following information:

(A) A general site and development plan, indicating the proposed use, location, dimensions, number of stories, and height of building;

(B) A study of site characteristics and conditions;

(C) A description of existing topography, soil conditions, vegetation and drainage consisting of written material, plats, maps and photographs;

(D) Proposed topography including street grades and other grading contours;

(E) Identification of mature trees to remain and percent of site to be covered by impervious surface;

(F) Proposed drainage and sewer system and water distribution;

(G) Proposed treatment of existing natural features, such as steep slopes, ravines, natural watercourses;

(H) Proposed method of solid waste collection;

(I) Estimated water consumption (gallons per year);

(J) A transportation study, containing the following:

(i) Proposed circulation plan, including the location of vehicular and pedestrian access ways, other public space and the location and number of all off-street parking and loading spaces, loading berths and service delivery spaces;

(ii) Estimated number and type of trips assumed to be generated by project, and assumed temporal and directional distribution;

(iii) Traffic management requirements (lights, stop signs, one-way streets, etc.);

(iv) Relationship of the proposed project to the mass transit system (nearest bus stops and routes, nearest Metrorail stations, etc.);

(v) Vehicular trip generation, trip assignment and before-and-after capacity analyses and level of service at critical intersections; and

(vi) Any other information needed to fully understand the final building proposed for the site;

(5) An applicant requesting approval under this section must demonstrate that the proposed use, building, or structure, including the siting, architectural design, site plan, landscaping, sidewalk treatment, and operation, will:

(A) Be in context with the surrounding street patterns;

(B) Minimize unarticulated blank walls adjacent to public spaces through facade articulation, materials, display windows, entries, and other architectural efforts; and

(C) Not result in light spillage off the site;

(6) Where additional stores or individual uses are located within a large format retail use, each such store shall have at least one (1) exterior customer entrance;

(7) The following list should be considered as guidelines for the design of large format retail buildings:

(A) Building design shall incorporate architectural features and patterns to provide visual interest;

(B) Exterior walls shall feature projections and recesses;

(C) Building roofs shall incorporate pitched rooflines and detailed roofing materials;

(D) Building materials shall include stone, wood, brick, glass, and metal in keeping with the surrounding architectural context;

(E) Entryways shall be well- marked and engaging and provide connection via wide sidewalks to primary streets and parking;

(F) Building design shall incorporate sustainable measures to include solar energy, geothermal heating and cooling, and use of permeable paving for surface parking areas; and

(G) Landscaping shall be provided in the rear and side yards to screen and limit visibility of storage areas;

(8) This section shall not apply to the following:

(A) Large format retail that would occupy a planned unit development approved as of September 5, 2016; or

(B) Large format retail that would occupy a project with a completed review meeting the definition of large format retail;

(i) Self-storage establishment uses not meeting the requirements for such uses of Subtitle U § 801.1, subject to the applicant demonstrating with documentation the following;

(1) The uses, buildings, or features at the size, intensity, and locations proposed, will substantially advance the purposes of creating an active streetscape and will not adversely affect neighboring property or be detrimental to the health, safety, convenience, or general welfare of persons living, working, or visiting in the area;

(2) The architectural design of the project will enhance the urban design features of the immediate vicinity in which it is located; and

(3) Vehicular access and egress are located and designed so as to minimize conflict with principal pedestrian ways, to function efficiently, and to create no dangerous or otherwise objectionable traffic conditions;

(4) Inability to meet one or more of the requirements of Subtitle U § 801.1 for a self-storage establishment use as a result of the property's size, shape, or topography, or the configuration of an existing building on the site proposed to be converted to a self-storage establishment;

(5) The reduced depth of the space that could be provided is not practical for the operation of a self-storage establishment; and

(6) The use proposed for the ground floor provides employment as permitted within the applicable PDR zone;

(j) Service uses not meeting the conditions for such uses of Subtitle U § 801.1 for a self- storage establishment or whose principal use is the administration of massages, subject to the following conditions:

(1) The use shall not be objectionable because of its effect on the character of the neighborhood or because of noise, traffic, or other conditions; and

(2) The Board of Zoning Adjustment may impose additional requirements as it deems necessary to protect adjacent or nearby residential properties, including but not limited to:

(A) Limitations on the hours of operation; and

(B) Expiration on the duration of the special exception approval;

(k) Utility (basic) uses not meeting the conditions for such uses of Subtitle U § 801.1; however, if the use is an electronic equipment facility (EEF), the Board of Zoning Adjustment shall consider:

(1) How the facility, as a consequence of its design, operation, low employee presence, or proximity to other EEFs, will not inhibit future revitalization of the neighborhood, reduce the potential for vibrant streetscapes, deplete street life, or inhibit pedestrian movement;

(2) The impact of the facility on other relevant factors, including the following:

(A) Absence of retail uses or of a design capable of accommodating retail uses in the future;

(B) Presence of security or other elements in the design that could impair street life and pedestrian flow;

(C) Disruption of or elimination of existing officially proposed pedestrian or vehicular routes; and

(D) Inability of the EEF to be adapted in the future for permitted uses;

(3) The economic development potential of the area in which the facility is proposed to be established, giving greater weight to these factors if the facility is to be located in proximity to an existing or proposed Metrorail station or along a pedestrian corridor;

(4) The economic benefits the proposed facility will have on adjacent properties, including the potential for increased business activity within the neighborhood, if that activity will foster economic development; and

(5) The design appearance, landscaping, parking and other such requirements it deems necessary to protect adjacent property and to achieve an active, safe, and vibrant street life; and

(l) Waste-related service uses not permitted under Subtitle U § 801.1, but not including hazardous waste, subject to the following conditions:

(1) Regardless of use, the facility shall comply with the following:

(2) The use shall meet the Standards of External Effects in Subtitle U § 804.

(3) Vehicular access shall be provided from a paved street with a road base capable of withstanding anticipated load limits;

(4) Truck access or queuing to the site shall not be provided adjacent to any residential zone;

(5) Truck access, parking, standing or queuing to the facility shall not be provided from any street or block-long portion of a street for which fifty percent (50%) or more of the abutting properties on either side are residential uses;

(6) Parking space shall be provided on-site for each commercial vehicle operated by the facility;

(7) The facility shall be configured in such a manner that trucks entering or leaving the facility shall not back in from or back out onto any public right-of- way;

(8) If the facility serves the public, all parking and queuing space shall be provided on-site to accommodate projected peak demand;

(9) All uses other than a solid waste handling facility:

(A) No portion of the facility, including any structure, loading docks and truck bays, storage, transfer equipment, truck parking, or other similar processing equipment and operations, shall be located within two hundred feet (200 ft.) of an existing residential use or residential zone;

(B) The facility shall be enclosed on all sides by an opaque fence or wall at least ten feet (10 ft.) high;

(C) Any side of the facility facing a public right-of-way or residential zone shall be landscaped;

(D) The site shall be maintained free of litter, trash, debris, and any other non-recyclable materials;

(E) All storage of waste or recycled materials shall be contained in sturdy containers or enclosures that are fully covered, secured, and maintained in good condition and approved by the Fire and Emergency Medical Services Department;

(F) All storage of waste or recycled materials shall not be located outside the facility structures so that it is visible above the height of a required fence or wall;

(G) If the facility is located within five hundred feet (500 ft.) of a residential zone, it shall not be in operation between 7:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. or any time on Sunday. Hours of operation shall include the arrival and departure of trucks and delivery and removal of materials and equipment; and

(H) The facility shall be administered by on-site personnel during the hours the facility is open;

(10) A solid waste handling facility:

(A) All solid waste handling activities, including depositing, processing, separation, and loading, shall be within a fully enclosed building to minimize the adverse impacts due to noise, traffic, parking, odors, rodents and other disease vectors, dust, litter, fire hazards, decomposition gases, wastewater, vehicle and other pollution, and other hazards or objectionable conditions;

(B) The facility shall be enclosed on all sides by an opaque fence or wall at least ten feet (10 ft.) high. The facility shall be secured from unauthorized deposit and removal of solid waste or other materials when attendants are not present;

(C) No portion of the facility, including any structure, loading dock, truck bay, storage container, transfer equipment, or any other processing equipment or operation, shall be located within three hundred feet (300 ft.) of a property in a residential zone or located within fifty feet (50 ft.) of any adjacent property used as a parks and recreation use, retail, office, institutional, or local government use;

(D) The facility shall be designed to have access to a railway siding or spur to enable the transportation by rail of solid waste out of the District of Columbia unless the Board of Zoning Adjustment finds that the applicant has demonstrated by substantial evidence that the use of rail is not practically, economically, or physically feasible;

(E) In determining whether to grant a special exception, the Board of Zoning Adjustment shall not take into consideration whether the District of Columbia government issued the applicant an interim operating permit for the facility. The granting of a special exception to a facility does not authorize that facility to operate, unless the facility has been granted all other forms of permission required for solid waste handling facilities, including, but not limited to, a valid interim operating permit or solid waste facility permit. A solid waste handling facility that has been granted a special exception remains obligated to abide by all laws applicable to solid waste handling facilities and is subject to all claims or enforcement actions that may arise from violations of the laws; and

(F) Any otherwise valid interim permit issued by the District government to the operator of a solid waste handling facility shall be given effect by the Board of Zoning Adjustment only during the pendency of the Board of Zoning Adjustment's consideration of an application. In the event the Board of Zoning Adjustment denies the application, the continued operation of the facility shall be unlawful. In the event the Board of Zoning Adjustment grants an application, it may provide the applicant a reasonable time in which to construct the facility as approved by the Board of Zoning Adjustment; and

(11) The applicant shall provide credible evidence to the Board of Zoning Adjustment to demonstrate the ability of the facility and its ancillary elements to comply with all applicable regulations. The evidence shall include, but not be limited to, the following:

(A) An indication of the site and description of land uses within one-quarter (1/4) of a mile of the site;

(B) A site plan showing the layout of the proposed facility, including main buildings, fences and screens, access to rail if available, street access, parking and queuing areas, and a functional diagram indicating the proposed use of the site;

(C) An operating plan indicating types of waste to be accepted at the facility and estimates of the volume and number of trips of incoming and outgoing materials daily and during peak periods;

(D) A plan for preventing and controlling offensive noises, odors, and rodents and other disease vectors;

(E) A traffic study that indicates truck routes to and from the facility on streets, to the extent possible, that are major arterials and highways that do not abut residential neighborhoods along the way; and

(F) A certified statement by an architect or engineer licensed in the District of Columbia that the facility as sited and designed to the best of his or her professional knowledge and belief is capable of complying with this subsection and all other applicable regulations of the District of Columbia government, including, without limitation, regulations adopted pursuant to the Solid Waste Facility Permit Act of 1995, effective February 27, 1996 (D.C. Law 11-94, as amended; D.C. Official Code §§ 8-1051 to 8-1063 (2012 Repl.)).

D.C. Mun. Regs. tit. 11, r. 11-U802

Final Rulemaking published at 63 DCR 2447 (9/6/2016); amended by Final Rulemaking published at 65 DCR 6048 (6/1/2018); amended by Final Rulemaking published at 66 DCR 12144 (9/13/2019); amended by Final Rulemaking published at 67 DCR 14508 (12/11/2020)