§ 48-864. Hotel district.

(a)

Intent. This hotel district is intended to serve the visitor population by catering to the tourist needs typically associated with a family-beach community. All hotel and auxiliary structures shall meet or exceed the fire code requirements for commercial buildings in the state as per the town standards.

(b)

Permitted uses. Permitted uses in the hotel district are as follows:

(1)

Hotel, provided that hotel suites comprise no more than 33 percent of the total units in the building.

(2)

Motel.

(3)

Motor lodge/motor inn.

(4)

Hotel condominium.

(5)

Offices including business, financial, government, medical and professional.

(6)

Restaurant.

(7)

Retail uses with a maximum allowable gross square footage of 10,000 square feet.

(8)

Customary accessory uses and structures, including birth centers with medical offices and commercial and recreational facilities associated with a hotel, i.e., bath and tennis club, restaurant, and gifts/specialty shop.

(9)

Reserved.

(10)

Off-site accessory uses permitted in conjunction with the principal hotel structure shall be allowed on parcels within the village hotel district or adjoining parcels zoned C-2, village commercial.

(c)

Conditional uses. The following uses are permitted in the hotel district, subject to the requirements of this hotel district and additional regulations and requirements imposed by the board of commissioners as provided in article XIV of this chapter.

(1)

Telephone switching station and electric substation, provided that the following conditions are met:

a.

The utility structure shall meet the development standards of the district in which it is located including, but not limited to, setbacks, open space requirements, height, and buffer requirements.

b.

No open storage is allowed.

c.

All utility structures requiring a building permit shall be architecturally designed to conform to the district in which they are located.

d.

All utility structures shall be visually buffered from all adjacent properties and rights-of-way in accordance with section 48-482(1), buffer yard A.

e.

Should the use for which the structure was allowed be discontinued, then the property upon which the structure is located shall be subject to the allowed uses and all development standards of that district.

(2)

Restaurant, drive-in, subject to other requirements of this chapter and provided that the following conditions are met: The boundaries of the entire site, if located within 50 feet of an existing residential use or district, shall be buffered from all adjacent properties and rights-of-way in accordance with section 48-482(1), buffer yard A.

(3)

Child day care center, subject to other requirements of this chapter and provided that the following conditions are met:

a.

The facility shall adhere to the minimum requirements of and be licensed by the state department of human resources, division of facility services, child day care section.

b.

Pickup and dropoff areas shall be provided separate from the drive-aisle. The pickup and dropoff areas shall be designed so that no child is required to cross the parking lot or any other traffic areas.

c.

All outdoor recreational areas shall be buffered from adjacent residential uses and districts (R-1, R-2, R-3, CR, SED-80, SPD-20, and SPD-C) in accordance with section 48-482(3), buffer yard C. The buffer shall be placed on the exterior side of any required fencing.

(d)

Fire code requirements. All hotel and auxiliary structures will meet or exceed the fire code requirements for commercial buildings in the state as per the town standards. The structures shall be sprinkler protected in accordance with section 20-121 et seq. A fire flow test of the water supply for the sprinkler system serving or intended to serve the structures shall be conducted at the developer's expense by the town fire department or by an independent testing firm. If the test is conducted by an independent testing firm, it shall be made under the direct supervision of the town fire chief or his designee. A fee, in accordance with the most recently adopted consolidated fee schedule, shall be paid by the developer. If the flow is found to be deficient according to the insurance service office standards applicable to the town, the developer shall bring the fire flow up to the established requirements set out in the insurance service office standards. The fire flow test shall be made prior to the issuance of a building permit.

(e)

Development standards. Development standards in the hotel district shall be as follows:

(1)

For hotels:

Coverage:

Building Height	Maximum Building	Maximum Parking	Minimum Landscaped
1 to 28 feet	45 percent	35 percent	20 percent
29 to 48 feet	40 percent	40 percent	20 percent
49 to 60 feet	35 percent	45 percent	20 percent

 

Maximum lot coverage for off-site parking as specified in town code section 48-864(b), permitted uses, shall not exceed 80 percent of the total lot area.

(2)

For commercial and office uses:

Coverage:

Maximum building: 25 percent.

Maximum parking: 45 percent.

Minimum landscaped area: 30 percent.

Landscaped space does not include parking, drives, or buildings, but does include walks, gazebos, fountains, plant material, other landscaping features, etc.

(3)

Building setback requirements, unless otherwise specified in article V of this chapter:

a.

For hotels one to three stories in height:

1.

The eastern setback shall be the CAMA line or 150 feet from mean high water, whichever is greater.

2.

A minimum of 45 feet from U.S. Highway 158 (South Croatan Highway) right-of-way or N.C. Highway 12 (South Virginia Dare Trail) right-of-way shall be provided.

3.

For the northern and southern boundaries, a minimum 25-foot natural or landscaped buffer shall be provided.

b.

For hotels above three stories in height:

1.

The eastern setback shall be the CAMA line or 150 feet from mean high water, whichever is greater, plus an additional 15 feet for each additional story above three. In addition to the CAMA setback, on the large parcel there is a village imposed large structure setback of 220 feet, plus an additional 15 feet for each additional story above three, from the first line of stable natural vegetation, following the recommendation of the National Hurricane Center.

2.

East of N.C. Highway 12, a minimum of 45 feet from N.C. Highway 12 (South Virginia Dare Trail) right-of-way, plus an addition 15 feet for each additional story above three, shall be provided. West of N.C. Highway 12, a minimum of 35 feet from U.S. Highway 158 (South Croatan Highway) right-of-way or N.C. Highway 12 (South Virginia Dare Trail) right-of-way, plus an additional one-foot building setback for each foot over 35-feet in building height, shall be provided.

3.

East of N.C. Highway 12, for the northern and southern boundaries, a minimum 35-foot natural or landscaped buffer plus an additional 15 feet for each additional story above three shall be provided. West of N.C. Highway 12, for the northern and southern boundaries a minimum 25-foot natural or landscaped buffer, plus an additional one-foot building setback for each foot over 35-feet in building height, shall be provided.

c.

For commercial and office uses:

1.

The eastern setback shall be the CAMA line or 150 feet from mean high water, whichever is greater.

2.

A minimum of 45 feet from U.S. Highway 158 (South Croatan Highway) right-of-way or N.C. Highway 12 (South Virginia Dare Trail) right-of-way shall be provided.

(4)

Building separation:

a.

There shall be a minimum ten-foot building separation between one-story buildings.

b.

There shall be a minimum 20-foot building separation between two-story buildings.

c.

There shall be a minimum 30-foot building separation between three-story buildings.

d.

There shall be a minimum 40-foot building separation between four-story buildings.

e.

There shall be a minimum 50-foot building separation between five-story buildings.

(5)

Maximum height:

a.

For hotel developments: 60 feet.

b.

For all other uses: 35 feet.

(6)

Loading zones: Off-street loading and unloading areas shall be provided in accordance with sections 48-164 through 48-167.

(7)

Vehicle access: Each lot that fronts on Mall Drive shall be entitled to one access (curb cut) onto this street except where the town has approved a unified access plan. When a unified access plan has been approved by the town, access to Mall Drive, US 158 (South Croatan Highway) and N.C. 12 (South Virginia Dare Trail) shall be in strict adherence with that approved access plan. All accessways shall be at least 100 feet from an intersection with N.C. 12 or U.S. 158.

(8)

Architectural: Each building cluster shall be architecturally compatible. A building cluster shall be a grouping of two or more businesses housed in either attached or detached structures in a definable district. Attaching will be encouraged.

(9)

Signage: There shall be a limitation on signage which will require architectural review committee approval, for uniform district conformity, and a building permit from the town. (See article VIII of this chapter for signage approval process.) As an alternative to the village hotel district sign, and applicable only to the village hotel district, one freestanding sign may be located on-site, subject to the following criteria:

a.

It is the purpose of this section to permit an applicant an opportunity to erect one permanent freestanding sign on-site as long as specific architectural, site, and building design standards developed by the town are adhered to. These standards are designed to preserve and promote open space on commercial sites, promote more landscaped area, reduce impervious surfaces, and to promote architectural and design standards that are indicative of our Nags Head heritage. A freestanding sign may be erected, subject to the following conditions:

1.

A freestanding sign shall not exceed ten feet in height above street grade.

2.

The freestanding sign shall require architectural review and approval by the town planning board and the board of commissioners.

3.

Only one freestanding sign shall be allowed per site.

4.

If a freestanding sign is erected under the provisions of this section, no roof signs shall be allowed for the site. If a developer qualifies for a freestanding sign, any existing roof sign shall be removed prior to the installation of the freestanding sign.

5.

A developer shall be allowed one freestanding sign based on adherence to the development points listed in this subsection (e)(9). The following development point system shall be used to determine the maximum allowable freestanding sign for a site.

6.

A developer must meet the minimum number of required points for each section if a freestanding sign is to be allowed:

SECTION I. BUILDING ARCHITECTURE.

The town has a rich architectural history. A combination of certain design elements, i.e. wraparound porches, cedar shake shingles, and cupolas, have helped to define our area and are an integral part of what allows our community to stand out from the rest. By encouraging these architectural designs we are not only promoting our heritage, we are preserving an aesthetic quality that has made our community a desirable place to live and vacation. (Construction specifications from the Residential Design Manual, Appendix A, as amended, shall be used as reference for the criteria below.)

Criteria	Development Points
1. A front porch along the entire front of the building or a wrap-around porch along two sides of a building that is not used for commercial purposes. The porch roof must be a lower pitch than the roof of the building	Three points
2. Cedar shake, natural wood exterior, or the use of hardiplank; must cover the entire exterior of a building excluding doors and windows	Three points
3. A 6 to 12 or greater building roof pitch (Note: All roofs must still observe the town height limitation of 35 feet)	Two points
4. The presence of functional wood shutters on all windows	One point
5. The presence of dormer(s) on the building. A dormer shall mean a window which is set upright in a sloping roof	Three point
6. The total area of the building's facade is made up of only 15 percent of glass or window area	Two points
7. The presence of a multipane window facades on single pane windows	One point
8. Lifesaving station watch tower, 10 feet × 10 feet, or greater	Three points
Coastal watch tower, 6 feet × 6 feet, or greater	One point
9. Hip roof or combination of hips and gables	Three points
10. Cedar shake shingles on entire roof (gable, hip, or shed; not mansard or parapet)	Three points
Minimum number of required points:	13 points

 

SECTION II. LANDSCAPED SPACE AND INTENSITY.

The town has made it a goal to preserve to the greatest extent possible the aesthetic and visual integrity of the town. This includes our natural and manmade environments. One way to accomplish this goal is to work with developers to try and preserve as much of a natural landscape as possible. By requiring more open space, providing for more protection of existing vegetation, and in providing more landscaping the town is working to lower the intensity of commercial development and afford greater protection of our natural environment.

Criteria	Development Points
1. Reduce the overall building coverage to 20 percent of the site area	Three points
2. Reduce the overall parking lot coverage to 40 percent of the site area	Three points
3. Increase the overall landscaped area of the site to 40 percent in accordance with the buffering requirements outlined in section 48-482 and section 48-862(h)	Three points
4. Preserve a minimum 15 percent of a site's existing natural vegetation and dune elevations. This 15 percent shall be based on a site's total lot area and can be utilized in conjunction with the site's required landscaped area	Three points
5. Placement of landscaping within, or next to, on-site impervious surface area to be no less than five percent of the total proposed landscaped area that is required for the site	Two points
Minimum number of required points:	Four points

 

SECTION III. BUILDING AND SITE DESIGN.

As a community that can, and is, inundated by coastal storms and other natural disasters it is vital that the town encourage sound development principles. It is also important for the town to encourage sound building and site design criteria to ensure that existing and future commercial developments will complement each other. By encouraging development that addresses these concerns we are lowering the potential for loss of life and property during storm events.

Criteria	Development Points
1. Wind load design elements that exceed the minimum state building code requirements	Three points
2. Building to be placed above base flood level
By one foot:	Two points
By two feet:	Three points
By three feet or more:	Four points
3. Separation from an off-site building by at least 50 feet	One point
4. A stormwater management plan that provides on-site retention of the first 1½ inches of rainfall	One point
5. Installation of sidewalks across the front of the property along the nearest street right-of-way and show how future additions will connect to create a pedestrian system	One point
6. The building is on an elevated concrete or wood foundation rather than a slab on grade style foundation	Two points
7. The installation of bollard style parking lot lights	Three points
8. The use of elevated light poles that do not exceed 18 feet in height and provide shielding for the lights	Two points
9. Minimum architectural and security level lighting in accordance with article IX of this chapter. No internally illuminated signage or neon window signage.	Two points
10. Building footprint is not a square or rectangle. Footprint is a result of a dominant structure with additive structure extensions or combined structures of similar size and shape with a uniform roof design. Either style creates an "L," "T," or "H" building footprint.	Three points
Minimum number of required points:	Four points

 

b.

The following sign dimensions are authorized based on the number of development points incorporated into the building or site:

Sign Dimensions	Development Points
Eight square feet	16 points
12 square feet	18 points
16 square feet	20 points
24 square feet	22 points
32 square feet	24 points

 

c.

The maximum sign area allowed for a freestanding sign in the village hotel district shall be 32 square feet.

d.

If any of the development criteria selected by the applicant are eliminated from the site then the freestanding sign shall be reduced in area to the previous allowable sign area as prescribed in the above point system. If all the improvements are eliminated in total, then the freestanding sign shall be removed.

e.

If a developer does not desire to utilize any of these development standards, they shall be regulated to the existing district standards as outlined in section 48-842 and the town sign regulations in article VIII of this chapter.

(10)

Landscaping:

a.

For hotels: All landscape plans are to be submitted to the town as part of the site plan approval process. There shall be a minimum 20-foot landscaped or natural buffer around the district.

b.

For commercial and office uses: All commercial and office uses shall be buffered in accordance with section 48-481. There shall be a minimum 20-foot landscaped or natural buffer area required when a commercial use within the district abuts a residential use or designation. Fifty percent of this buffer is to be bermed or planted to a minimum height of 42 inches.

(11)

Ocean views: It is the developers' desire to maintain open views of the ocean/dunes whenever feasible. Therefore, criteria are hereby developed for a "visual window" or unobstructed panorama of the ocean vista between N.C. Highway 12 (South Virginia Dare Trail) and the Atlantic Ocean. In theory, if there were a 100 percent "visual window," there would be no obstruction above the primary dunes. On the other hand, if there were a zero percent "visual window," there would be a six-story building constructed from the north property line to the south property line. To determine the amount of openness of the ocean-front view, the "visual window" would be a percentage of the width of the lot measured at the first line of stable natural vegetation. The standard shall be that the vertical building mass or imaginary wall for either a one-story or two-story building shall have a 20 percent "visual window." For each additional story over two, the percentage of the "visual window" shall be as follows: three stories, 24 percent; four stories, 32 percent; five stories, 40 percent; and six stories, 48 percent.

(Code 1990, § 22-834; Ord. No. 03-10-046, § 8, 10-1-2003; Ord. No. 04-03-008, § II, 3-3-2004; Ord. No. 04-07-025, § II, 7-7-2004; Ord. No. 05-08-032, § I, 8-3-2005; Ord. No. 05-10-040, § II, 10-5-2005 Ord. No. 07-12-036, § I, 12-5-2007; Ord. No. 08-02-009, § I, 2-6-2008; Ord. No. 09-11-043, Pt. II, 11-4-2009)

Cross reference

Businesses and licensing, ch. 12.