Ordinance No. 131 Consolidated Land Use Ordinance

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even manner. Plans should avoid placing garage doors and openings on the front facade of a building. If the garage door or opening is placed on the front facade, it shall not be located on the building's leading edge facing the street, but shall be setback at least six feet from the front line of the building or an approved front yard encroachment (such as a porch, or a deck over a tuck - under garage). 2. Primary entries to nonresidential or mixed -use buildings shall be emphasized through the use of architectural features such as roofs, recessions into the facade, or other details that express the importance of the entrance. At least 60 percent of the first floor facade that faces a public street or sidewalk shall be windows or doors of clear or lightly -tinted glass that allow views into and out of the building. The windows shall be distributed in a more or less even manner. The use of traditional window dimensions and a one -over -one or two -over -one sash arrangement is strongly preferred. Buildings shall have entrances to a street or public open space placed no more than sixty (60) feet apart. Buildings are strongly encouraged to use awnings on the front facade, particularly over the main entry. The awning should be compatible in style, material and color to the rest of the building, and the width of the awning should fit the geometry of the building facade. There may be signage on the end panel or front valance of an awning, proportional to the space available. The installation of the awning should not hide any architectural detail or character features of the building. 2. Side and Rear Facades. The exterior materials and appearance of the rear and side walls of any building shall be similar to and compatible with the front of the building. Where the facade is visible from a public street or right-of-way or any residential district and concrete -block construction is used, the facade shall use integrally colored block or textured block. Any exterior building wall adjacent to or visible from a public street, public open space, or abutting property may not exceed sixty feet (60') in length without significant visual relief consisting of one or more of the following: 1. The facade shall be divided architecturally by means of significantly different materials or textures; 2. Horizontal offsets of at least four feet (4') in depth; 3. Vertical offsets in the roofline of at least four feet (4'); or 4. Fenestration at the first -floor level which is recessed horizontally at least one foot (F) into the facade. 6. Architectural variety. The use of a variety of architectural features and building materials is encouraged to give each building or group of buildings a distinct character. When accent colors are proposed, the number of colors should be limited to prevent a gaudy appearance. Materials. All buildings shall be constructed with materials that are attractive in appearance, durable with a permanent finish, and of high quality. New mixed -use or commercial buildings erected within the Gateway District shall be of masonry construction, an equivalent, or better. Exterior building materials shall be classified as either primary, secondary, or accent materials. Primary materials shall cover at least sixty percent (60%) of the facade of a building. Secondary materials may cover no more than thirty percent (30%) of the facade. Accent materials may include door and window frames, lintels, cornices and other minor elements, and may cover no more than ten percent (10%) of the facade. 1. Primary materials may be face brick, stone, glass, architectural concrete or precast concrete units (integrally colored block or textured block), provided that surfaces are molded, serrated examples or treated with a textured material in order to give the wall surface a three-dimensional character. 2. Secondary materials may be decorative block or integrally colored stucco, fiber cement siding (integrally colored or painted) with hidden seams. Synthetic stucco may be used as a secondary material on upper floors only. 3. Accent materials may be wood, metal or fiber cement when used in trim, fascia or soffit if appropriately integrated into the overall building design and not situated in areas which will be subject to physical or environmental damage. Updated January 2025 — Gem Lake Consolidated Land Use Ordinance No. 131 56