Town of Oconomowoc, WI Article VII Design Standards

§ 265-35 Functional street classifications.

A. Arterial streets. Arterial streets shall be arranged so as to provide ready access to centers of employment, centers of governmental activity, community shopping areas, community recreation and points beyond the boundaries of the community. They shall also be properly integrated with and related to the existing and proposed system of major streets and highways and shall be, insofar as practicable, continuous and in alignment with existing or planned streets with which they are to connect. They shall provide for efficient, safe and direct connection to, or separation of, neighborhoods and for circulation to destinations outside the residential area.

B. Collector streets. Collector streets shall be arranged so as to provide ready collection of traffic from residential areas and conveyance of this traffic to the arterial street and highway system and shall be properly related to the mass transportation system, to special traffic generators such as schools, churches and shopping centers and other concentrations of population and to the arterial streets into which they feed. They provide for circulation to serve local traffic moving between minor streets and arterial streets.

C. Minor streets. Minor streets shall be arranged to conform to the topography, to discourage use by through traffic, to permit the design of efficient storm and sanitary sewerage systems and to require the minimum street area necessary to provide safe and convenient access to abutting property.

§ 265-36 Street arrangement.

A. In any new subdivision, the street layout shall conform to the arrangement, width and location indicated on the Official Map, Comprehensive Plan or component neighborhood development plan of the Town. In areas for which such plans have not been completed, the street layout shall recognize the functional classification of the various types of streets and shall be developed and located in proper relation to existing and proposed streets, to the topography, to such natural features as streams and tree growth, to public convenience and safety, to the proposed use of the land to be served by such streets, and to the most advantageous development of adjoining areas. The subdivision shall be designed so as to provide each lot with satisfactory access to a public street.

B. All proposed streets in the new development shall extend to the boundary lines of the tract being subdivided unless prevented by topography or other physical conditions or unless, in the opinion of the Town Plan Commission, such extension is not necessary or desirable for the coordination of the layout of the subdivision or for the advantageous development of the adjacent tracts.

C. Reserve strips or "spite strips" shall not be allowed on any plat to control access to streets or alleys from abutting property except where control of such strips is placed with the Town under conditions approved by the Town Plan Commission.

D. Alleys shall be provided in commercial and industrial districts for off-street loading and service access unless otherwise required by the Town Plan Commission, but shall not be approved in residential districts. Dead-end or crooked alleys shall not be approved, and alleys shall not connect to an arterial street.

E. Cul-de-sac streets designed to have one end permanently closed shall normally not exceed 1,000 feet in length. Construction standards shall comply with the provisions of Chapter 260, Streets and Sidewalks, Article I, of the Town Code.

F. Half streets are streets which are only a portion of the required width and are usually platted along property lines. These half streets shall be prohibited except where it is deemed essential for the reasonable development of the subdivision in conformity with the other requirements of these regulations; and where the Commission finds it will be practical to require the dedication of the other half when the adjoining property is subdivided, the other half of the street shall be platted within such tract.

G. Street names shall be required for all proposed public streets and shall not duplicate or be confused with the name of an existing street within the Town. Streets that are extensions, or that are proposed to be aligned with existing named streets, must bear the names of these streets. Street signs shall be required at all intersections and shall be installed by the subdivider. Their location and design shall be determined and approved by the Town.[1]

[1] Editor's Note: See also Ch. 85, Address System.

§ 265-37 Street width.

The right-of-way of all streets shall be as set forth in the Town road specifications resolution.

A. Where a subdivision or minor land division abuts or contains an existing or proposed major highway or classified as an arterial or collector highway and which may be shown on the Waukesha County Established Street and Highway Width Map, the Town may require a frontage road or a nonaccess reservation along the property contiguous to such highway, or other treatment as may be necessary for adequate protection of residential properties and to separate minor and arterial traffic and prohibit direct private vehicular access to such arterial or collector highway.

B. Where the proposed subdivision or minor land division abuts any other Town road, mill tax road or other street which the Town deems necessary to preserve as a public or future public right-of-way, additional land shall be dedicated to bring the width of the right-of-way up to Town road standards.

§ 265-38 Street grades.

A. Unless necessitated by exceptional topography subject to the approval of the Plan Commission, the maximum center-line grade of any public way shall not exceed the following, and the grade of any street shall in no case exceed 10% or be less than 1/2 this minimum for all other streets:

(1) Arterial streets: 6%.

(2) Collector streets: 6%.

(3) Minor streets, alleys and frontage streets: 10%.

B. Street grades shall be established wherever practicable so as to avoid excessive grading, the promiscuous removal of ground cover and tree growth, and the general leveling of the terrain. Tree removal within the right-of-way shall be as required by the Town Board and may be required by the County Highway Commission along county trunk highways where it is necessary to obtain proper vision or additional pavement width. All changes in street grades shall be connected by vertical curves of a minimum length equivalent in feet to 15 times the algebraic difference in the rates of grade for arterial streets and 1/2 this minimum for all other streets.

C. When a continuous street center line deflects at any one point by more than 5°, a circular curve shall be introduced having a radius of curvature on such center line of not less than the following:

(1) Arterial streets and highways: 500 feet.

(2) Collector streets: 300 feet.

(3) Minor streets: 100 feet.

D. A tangent at least 100 feet in length shall be provided between reverse curves on arterial and collector streets.

§ 265-39 Intersection design.

A. Streets shall intersect at right angles, and not more than two streets shall intersect at one point.

B. Intersections must be approached on all sides by grades not to exceed 4% for a distance of at least 50 feet in length unless exceptional topography would prohibit these grades.

C. The minimum turning radius at an intersection shall not be less than 40 feet.

D. Vision triangles providing unobstructed views in both directions perpendicular to the line of sight shall be maintained at all intersections in accordance with the Town Zoning Code. Where intersections occur at county trunk highways, the following standards shall apply:

	Type of Vision Corner	Average Daily Traffic on County Road	Distance Measured Along Center Line from Point of Intersection of Two Road Center Lines (feet)	Distance Along Center Line of Side Road (feet)
		Most Current Count Available	Side A	Side B
	1	Over 5,000	300	100
	2	2,000 to 5,000	200	100
	3	500 to 2,000	150	100
	4	Less than 500	120	90

E. No building obstruction to view is permitted in this triangular area, and appropriate statements regarding those restrictions shall be provided on the plat or survey document.

F. If a proposed street is to enter a Town, county or state arterial and it is deemed a hazardous entrance by the governing body having jurisdiction over the road, it will be the responsibility of the subdivider to correct the potential hazard through an agreement with the governing body or else relocate the proposed entrance to a more suitable location.

G. The following distances between intersections must be observed:

(1) Minor and collector streets may not empty into state and federal highways at intervals less than 1,300 feet and into arterials at intervals less than 1,000 feet. They shall be in alignment with existing and planned streets entering the above highways from the opposite side.

(2) If the intersections on minor and collector streets are not in alignment, the distance between streets opening up on opposite sides of any existing or proposed streets must be at least 150 feet measured along the intersecting center line. Where the streets enter on the same side, the intersection distance measured from the center line shall be at least 300 feet.

§ 265-40 Blocks.

The width, length, and shapes of blocks shall be suited to the planned use of the land; zoning requirements; the need for convenient access, control and safety of street traffic; and the limitations and opportunities of topography.

A. The lengths, widths and shapes of blocks shall be determined by provisions for building sites suitable to meet the needs of the type of use contemplated; zoning ordinance requirements pertaining to lot size and dimensions; needs for convenient access; circulation, control and safety of street traffic; limitation and opportunities of topography. Block lengths shall normally not exceed 2,000 feet or be less than 600 feet in length.

B. Pedestrianways of not less than 10 feet in width may be required near the center and entirely across any block over 900 feet in length where deemed essential by the Town Plan Commission to provide adequate pedestrian circulation or access to schools, parks, shopping centers, churches or transportation facilities.

C. Blocks shall have sufficient width to provide for two tiers of lots of appropriate depth except where otherwise required to separate residential development from through traffic. The width of lots or parcels reserved or laid out for commercial or industrial use shall be adequate to provide for off-street service and parking required by the use contemplated and the area zoning restrictions for such use.

§ 265-41 Lots.

The size, shape and orientation of lots shall be appropriate for the location of the subdivision and for the type of development and use contemplated and shall conform in all respects to the lot size and width requirements set forth in the Town Zoning Code. The lots should be designed to provide an aesthetically pleasing building site and a proper architectural setting for the buildings contemplated.

A. Side lot lines shall be at right angles to straight street lines or radial to curved street lines on which the lots face. Lot lines shall follow municipal boundary lines rather than cross them.

B. Double-frontage and reverse-frontage lots shall be prohibited except where necessary to provide separation of residential development from through traffic or to overcome specific disadvantages of topography and orientation.

C. Lots shall normally have a minimum average depth of 150 feet. Excessive depth in relation to width shall be avoided if possible, and a proportion of 2:1 is considered to be a desirable ratio under normal conditions. The depth of lots or parcels reserved or laid out for commercial or industrial use shall be adequate to provide for off-street service and parking required by the use contemplated and the area zoning restrictions for such use.

D. Corner lots shall be 20% wider than the minimum width as required for lots less than 150 feet in width. Where the required minimum average width of lots is 150 feet or greater, corner lots shall not be required to be increased in width.

E. Lands lying between the meander line and the water's edge and any otherwise unplattable lands which lie between a proposed subdivision and the water's edge shall be included as part of lots, outlots or public dedications in any plat abutting a lake or stream. All lands under option to the subdivider or to which he holds any interest that abut the proposed subdivision and a lake or stream shall also be included.

F. All lots must abut a public street for at least 60 feet, except that dimension may be reduced on culs-de-sac or sharp curves where the lot lines radiate from the street. However, under special conditions a private road may be utilized in accordance with the applicable provisions of the Zoning Code.

G. Lots abutting navigable water shall be designed for use by one family only.

§ 265-42 Public sites and open spaces.

In the design of the plat, due consideration shall be given to the reservation of suitable sites of adequate area for future school, parks, playgrounds, drainageways and other public purposes. If designated on the Comprehensive Plan, Comprehensive Plan component, Official Map or component neighborhood development plan, such areas shall be made a part of the plat as stipulated in § 265-10 of these regulations. If not so designated, consideration shall be given in the location of such sites to the preservation of scenic and historic sites, stands of fine trees, marshes, lakes and ponds, streams, shorelands and ravines and other natural features.

§ 265-43 Easements.

A. Pedestrian easements or dedications, not less than 10 feet in width, shall be required where deemed necessary to provide access to playgrounds, parks, schools, shopping centers or other community facilities.

B. Utility easements shall be provided as may be deemed necessary to those utility companies having installations in the plat. The utility companies shall review all plats to determine whether easements will be necessary and where they should be required.

C. Where a subdivision is traversed by a drainageway or stream, an adequate easement shall be provided as deemed necessary by the Town Engineer. The location, width, alignment and improvement of such drainageway or easement shall be subject to approval by the Town Engineer or the county; and parallel streets or parkways may be required in connection therewith. Where necessary, stormwater drainage shall be maintained by landscaped, open channels of adequate size and grade to hydraulically accommodate maximum potential volumes of flow, subject to review and approval by the Town Engineer. Where deemed necessary, the Town or county may require these channels to be enclosed with pipe.