ORD-2009-018-Zoning Ordinance Amendment Establishing Regulations for Drive Thru Facilities

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Review of a proposal to amend the Orange County Zoning Ordinance to establish regulations for drive-thru facilities ISSUE: •Concern has been expressed over the pollution generated by vehicles idling within adrive-thru lane and what effect- this would have on the environment as well as passing pedestrians, •There is also concern over the interaction between vehicles attempting to park versus those attempting to access the drive-thru, •Currently there are no regulations governing the development/use of drive-thru facilities, •Drive-thru facilities are banned within the Hillsborough Area Economic Development District and within the Efland Cheeks Overlay Zoning District (ECOD), which was adopted in 2008 PROPOSAL: Staff recommended adopting regulatory standards that would include the following standards: •Require a fifty (50) foot setback for such facilities from property lines, •Require atwenty-five (25) foot vegetative buffer separating the drive-thru lane from pedestrian and parking areas, •Require that menu boards utilized in connection with drive-thru facilities shall not be visible from external roadways, •Limit the overall number of drive-thru facilities that can be developed within amulti-use non- residential development to one (1) per ten (10) acres with a maximum cap of five (5) per project, •Require one hundred eighty (180) feet of drive isle to support drive-thru facilities, Planning Board Recommendation: The Planning Board reviewed this item at their April 1, 2009 meeting where the following motion was made: •Recommend the County initiate a comprehensive and countywide awareness education program about idling and the contaminants it puts in our air, and •Recommend the BOCC disregard staff's two (2) options and take no action on adopting regulations banning development of drive-thru facilities within the County's planning jurisdiction (Option 1) or adopting comprehensive development standards for drive-thru facilities (Option 2). Administration Recommendation: •Receive the Planning Board recommendation, •If necessary, deliberate further on the proposed amendment, •Close the public hearing, and •Adopt Option Two (2) -specifically adopt the proposed regulations detailed within Attachment One (1) of the packet. Commissioner Pelissier asked if there are possibilities of a standalone drive-thru facility and Craig Benedict said yes. The existing regulations allow this.