A.
Breton Bay is an important and unique resource necessary
to the economic viability of Leonardtown. This district is intended
to promote the development and redevelopment of land along Breton
Bay with a mixture of uses and activities which are either dependent
upon or appropriate to the waterfront. To complement and strengthen
the function of the waterfront area, certain recreation, shopping,
business and residential uses are permitted.
B.
The purpose of this district is to ensure compatibility
with development in the downtown commercial and historic district,
compatibility with architecture, landscaping and site design for development
within the district and public access to the waterfront, with proper
emphasis on pedestrian movement and its separation from vehicular
traffic.
C.
Coordination of site plans, landscaping and pedestrian and traffic movement is a necessary concern for review and approval of uses to assure that waterfront development uses can function harmoniously and compatibly with less-intensive uses permitted to complement and strengthen the waterfront area. Therefore, all uses permitted in this district shall be subject to procedures established for review and approval as identified in §§ 155-24, 155-39 and 155-40 of this chapter (see C-SC District provisions in Article IV and Article IX) to assure compatibility among uses and to assure proposed uses achieve the purpose of the district. The applicant is encouraged to seek the advice of the Town’s administrative staff, and/or professional designers, architects, planners, and engineers, prior to the preparation of plans for any development within this district.
[Amended 11-12-2002 by Ord. No. 108; 5-9-2011 by Ord. No.
149]
[Amended 5-9-2011 by Ord.
No. 149; 7-11-2016 by Ord. No. 176]
No building or premises shall be erected, structurally altered,
enlarged or maintained nor shall any land be used, except for the
following purposes:
A.
Restaurants and outdoor eating facilities;
B.
Specialty shops, under 5,000 square feet, such as art, gift, antique,
import, health and natural goods, including uses of a more general
commercial nature which do not detract from the purpose of the waterfront
or which are necessary to its economic viability;
C.
Office buildings;
D.
Mixed use buildings: residential/retail/office;
E.
Social, cultural facilities, public parks and open space;
F.
Museums or similar interpretive facilities;
G.
Public facilities;
H.
Publicly owned boat docking or slip facilities;
I.
Breweries, distilleries and wineries.
[Amended 8-12-2019 by Ord. No. 193]
Unspecified uses of land, buildings or structures
in the C-M District shall be permitted only after Planning and Zoning
Commission review and recommendation and with the approval of the
Board of Appeals based on their finding that such uses are consistent
with the purposes for the C-M District.
[Added 5-9-2011 by Ord. No. 149]
Standards for height, bulk and area are summarized in Chart
A, Height, Area and Bulk Requirements.[1] No single structure within the C-M district may have a
first floor greater than 10,000 square feet in floor area.
[1]
Editor's Note: Chart A is included as an attachment to this chapter.
[Added 5-9-2011 by Ord. No. 149]
A.
Site planning for commercial uses in the C-M District. Commercial
buildings shall be so grouped in relation to parking areas that establishments
can be visited with a minimum of internal automotive movement. Facilities
and access routes for deliveries, servicing and maintenance shall,
so far as reasonably practicable, be separated from customer access
routes and parking areas.
(1)
Sites should be developed in a coordinated manner to complement
adjacent structures through placement, architecture and size or mass.
Commercial uses shall be designed to reduce the visual impact of a
single larger building mass in keeping with the scale of existing
structures in Leonardtown.
(2)
Whenever possible, commercial buildings on the same site should
be clustered and incorporate plazas, courtyards, pocket parks, and
other pedestrian use areas.
(3)
Sites occupied by commercial uses should be designed to avoid
the appearance of domination by automobiles. Positive methods to achieve
this guideline include:
(a)
Orienting buildings to fronting streets and placing some of
the parking at the rear and/or sides.
(b)
Designing the required parking area into a series of smaller,
discrete, connected lots rather than a large uninterrupted parking
lot(s).
(c)
Providing well-defined pedestrian walkways through parking areas
and from public sidewalks into the site. Well-defined walkways utilize
pavers, changes in color, texture, and composition of paving materials
and vertical plantings such as trees and shrubs. The minimum width
of walkways should be five feet.
B.
Building design for commercial uses.
(1)
Buildings should reflect an individual design that has considered
site location, waterfront presence, intended use, and the character/building
mass of surrounding development.
(2)
A consistent visual identity should be applied to all sides
of buildings visible to the general public. All sides should have
an equivalent level of quality of materials, detailing and window
placement. Abrupt ending of architectural details should be avoided
with no radical change in details, features or materials.
(3)
Buildings should utilize features that celebrate their presence
in a waterfront-oriented district. Positive methods to achieve this
objective include retaining views of the water in building placement
and design, use of quality building materials, placement of windows
and doors to maximize views of Breton Bay, use of porches, porticos
or canopies, changes in floor level, and projections that provide
building shadows that visually break up long, flat building facades.
(4)
Buildings should avoid long, blank, uninterrupted roof planes
that obscure views to the water from surrounding properties. Positive
methods to achieve this objective include height variations to give
the appearance of distinct elements or offsets in the roofline to
provide architectural interest and variety to the massing of the building
and to relieve the effect of a single, long roof.
(5)
Large buildings should use articulation in a clear rhythm to
emphasize architectural elements (like windows, entries, balconies,
etc.) that create a complementary pattern of rhythm, dividing large
buildings into smaller identifiable pieces.
(6)
Buildings facing streets or the waterfront should incorporate
pedestrian-scaled entrances. Pedestrian-scaled entrances are those
that provide an expression of human activity or use in relation to
building size. Doors, windows, entrances and other features should
be designed to respond to the size of the human body and not give
the appearance of anonymity or overwhelming the building's users.
(7)
Building design should incorporate traditional building materials
such as masonry, stone, heavy timbers, brick or other natural-appearing
materials.
(8)
Building colors should accent, blend with, or complement surroundings.
Bright or brilliant colors should be reserved for trim and accents.
(9)
Outdoor storage areas, mechanical equipment and trash receptacles
should not be visible from adjacent streets and pedestrian walkways.
The method of screening such areas from view should be architecturally
integrated with the building with respect to materials, shape and
size.
(10)
Materials used for site features such as fences, screen walls,
and signs should be visually attractive and designed and located to
complement building design through materials, color, shape and size.
