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Bridging the Fox Cities

Welcome to the Town of Menasha

LANDSCAPE STANDARDS

1) Intent. The following landscape standards shall be established as part of the Landscape Plan to ensure the following:

a) Neighboring properties are shielded from subject site uses;

b) Subject site is shielded from the negative impacts of adjacent uses, including streets or railroads; and

c) The appearance and desirability of the development contributes to the overall aesthetics, health, safety and welfare of the Town.

2) Generally. The following shall establish the standards for the preparation and submission of required plans for landscape and screening:

a) Landscape Plan Required. A Landscape Plan shall be required for all projects requiring Site Plan Review, unless deemed unnecessary by the Director of Community Development.

b) Content of Landscape Plan. At a minimum, all Landscape Plans shall meet the Landscape Development Standards of this Section.

3) Timing of Landscape Improvements. All landscaping shall be completed before final occupancy is granted. If it is not possible, due to weather conditions, then the applicant shall submit a bond or letter of credit in the amount for the cost of completing such landscaping as required in the Landscaping Plan.

4) Landscape Open Space. All open space or open areas required by the yard requirements of the zoning district or as required for storm water control or other purposes shall be landscaped in accordance with the standards set forth in this Section.

5) Landscape Development Standards.

a) General Requirements. The following Landscape Development Standards apply to all new developments:

1) All landscaping shall not obstruct pedestrian walkways, vehicular use of driveways, and parking stalls.

2) Stormwater control devices, such as detention basins and ponds, culverts, and rip rap structures shall be landscaped to reduce their visual impacts. Such landscaping shall not negatively impact the operation of such devices, but may include evergreen plantings, shrubs, hedges, and other suitable planting materials that will control siltation and erosion.

3) Fire hydrants shall be free from obstruction on all sides by a minimum of three (3) feet.

4) Landscaping, other than ground cover, shall not be placed over any existing or proposed utility easements.

5) Environmentally sensitive areas, including wetlands, designated by the Town shall be preserved and untouched by development.

6) Berms shall be designed to the following standards:

(a) Berms shall not be placed over existing or proposed utility easements.

(b) Maximum four (4) feet in height, unless otherwise approved by the Director of Community Development on a case by case basis, and shall comply with the approved drainage plan.

(d) Vegetative cover or other landscaping placed on top of berms and berms located near rights-of-way shall require staff approval.

(e) The Town strongly discourages berms if they would replace existing vegetation that could be used as screening.

7) Screen fencing should complement the development. Chain link and barbed wire fencing shall be prohibited in all developments.

b) Multi-Family Site Landscaping Requirements. The following Landscape Development Standards apply to multi-family residential uses:

1) Buffer Strip Requirements. All multi-family developments shall utilize screening or buffering between land uses. Buffers shall be composed of landscaping plantings, earthen berms or screen fencing.

(a) Buffer strips shall be provided along the periphery of the development site, except where cross access, utilities or special circumstances prohibit.

(b) Screen fencing or walls shall be of wood, face brick, or other material approved by the Director of Community Development. When a fence has two distinct sides, the one with protruding posts, studs, etc. shall face the development site.

2) Planting Material Requirements. All multi-family developments shall provide planting material as follows:

(a) Trees. At least one (1) tree per three thousand five hundred (3,500) square feet of site area.

(1) Deciduous trees shall have a trunk diameter of at least two (2) inches measured at six (6) inches above the ground, and shall be a minimum of four to six (4-6) feet in height at the time of planting.

(2) Evergreen trees shall be at least four to six (4-6) feet in height at the time of planting.

(b) Shrubs. At least one (1) shrub per one thousand (1,000) square feet of site area.

(1) Non-flowering shrubs shall be at least twenty-four (24) inches in height at the time of planting.

(c) Ground Cover. Areas of the site that are not occupied by buildings, paving, or accessory structures shall have ground cover.

(1) Ground cover includes low-growing, living plant material such as perennials, grass, ivy, and similar plants. For purposes of this Ordinance, chipped wood, bark, similar mulching materials or nonliving artificial plant materials are not acceptable substitutes for required ground cover.

c) Commercial Site Landscaping Requirements. The following landscape requirements apply to commercial uses, which include all commercial, office and institutional uses:

1) Buffer Strip Requirements. All commercial developments shall utilize screening or buffering between land uses. Buffers shall be composed of landscaping plantings, earthen berms or screen fencing.

(a) Buffer strips shall be provided along the periphery of the development site, except where cross access, utilities or special circumstances prohibit.

(b) Screen fencing or walls shall be of wood, face brick, or other materials approved by the Director of Community Development. When a fence has two distinct sides, the one with protruding posts, studs, etc. shall face the development site.

2) Planting Material Requirements. All commercial developments shall provide planting material as follows:

(a) Trees. At least one (1) tree per three thousand five hundred (3,500) square feet of site area.

(2) Evergreen trees shall be at least four to six (4-6) feet in height at the time of planting.

(b) Shrubs. At least one (1) shrub per one thousand (1,000) square feet of site area.

(1) Non-flowering shrubs shall be at least twenty-four (24) inches in height at the time of planting.

(c) Ground Cover. Areas of the site that are not occupied by buildings, paving, or accessory structures shall have ground cover.

(d) Open Space Requirements. The B-4 and B-5 zoning districts include a thirty (30) percent open space requirement, as stated in the Winnebago County Town/County Zoning Ordinance.

(1) Right-of-way or roadway may not be used to calculate the open space requirement.

(2) Developments in the B-4 & B-5 zoning districts shall have enhanced landscaping in order to meet the intent of the district. The Director of Community Development will approve the enhanced landscaping plans in the B-4 and B-5 zoning districts, unless the Plan Commission conditions that it approves the Landscape Plan as part of the Town B-4/B-5 Conditional Use Permit.

3) Parking Lot Landscaping Requirements. All commercial parking lots requiring at least a minimum of twenty (20) or more parking spaces, as required by the Winnebago County Town/County Zoning Ordinance, shall provide landscaping in accordance with the provisions of this Ordinance.

4) Interior Island Landscaping Requirements. Interior parking lot islands shall be reviewed by Town staff on a case-by-case basis to determine if they are acceptable for the site (e.g. traffic flow, open space requirements, etc.). If deemed acceptable for the site, the interior island(s) should be landscaped.

d) Industrial Site Landscaping Requirements. The following Landscape Development Standards apply to industrial uses:

1) Buffer Strip Requirements. All industrial developments shall utilize screening or buffering between land uses. Buffers shall be composed of landscaping plantings, earthen berms or screen fencing.

(a) Buffer strips shall be provided along the periphery of the development site, except where cross access, utilities or special circumstances prohibit.

2) Plant Material Requirements. Landscaping shall be provided in the M-1 and M-2 districts and the Director of Community Development shall approve the landscape plan on a case-by-case basis.

e) Parking Lot Landscaping Requirements. The following landscape requirements shall apply to parking lots with twenty (20) or more parking stalls:

1) Each parking row, regardless of its length, should begin and end with a landscape island.

2) No parking space shall be more than ninety (90) linear feet away from either a landscaped parking island or landscaped buffer strip.

3) Shrubs within parking lots islands shall be maintained at a height not to exceed three (3) feet.

4) Parking lot landscape areas hall have a minimum width of eight (8) feet and a depth equal to the depth of the parking stall.

6) Alternative Landscape Plan/Methods. These standards, provided herein, provide specific requirements for site landscaping. However, the Town recognizes that because of the wide variety of types of developments and sites and the relationships between them, it is neither possible nor prudent to establish inflexible landscaping requirements. Therefore, the Town, by the discretion of the Director of Community Development, may either require more intensive or allow less intensive landscaping whenever it finds that such deviations will satisfy the intent set forth in this Section.

a) The alternative plan must indicate the type, number, location, coverage, and height (at planting and maturity) of the plantings.

b) Whenever the Town allows or requires deviation from the requirements set forth in this Section, it shall enter on the face of the Landscape Plan the reasons for allowing or requiring deviation from the requirements of this Section.

c) The Director of Community Development shall approve minor revisions to an approved landscaping plan. The revision must have at least the same amount of landscaping and similar types of plant species. A list of the new plant species shall be provided with the revision.

7) Maintenance Requirements. The following maintenance requirements apply to all new developments:

a) All landscaping shall be maintained for the life of the project.

b) Dead or damaged landscaping shall be replaced within one (1) month of notification by the Town, or if not possible at the current time, during the next planting season.

Table 1. Summary of Minimum Landscaping Requirements.

District	Trees (per 3,500 sq.ft. of site)	Shrubs (per 1,000 sq.ft. of site)	Ground Cover	Open Space
Multi-Family (R-5)	1	1	Required on all site areas without buildings and pavement	None
B-1, B-2, B-3, P-1	1	1		None
B-4, B-5	1	1		30%
M-1, M-2	Required (Discretion of Community Development Director)			None