16.12.020 Vehicular Access and Circulation.
A. Intent and Purpose. The intent of this section is to manage vehicle access to development through a connected street system, while preserving the flow of traffic in terms of safety, roadway capacity, and efficiency.
B. Applicability. This section shall apply to all public streets within the City and to all properties that abut these streets.
C. Access Permit. Access to a public street requires an access permit in accordance with the following procedures:
1. Permits for access to City streets shall be subject to review and approval by the City Engineer based on the standards contained in this Section, and the provisions of Section 16.12.060 – Public Facilities Standards. An access permit may be in the form of a letter to the applicant, or it may be attached to a land use decision notice as a condition of approval.
2. Permits for access to State highways shall be subject to review and approval by Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT), except when ODOT has delegated this responsibility to the City or the County. In that case, the City or County shall determine whether access is granted based on its adopted standards.
3. Permits for access to County highways shall be subject to review and approval by the County, except where the County has delegated this responsibility to the City, in which case the City shall determine whether access is granted based on adopted County standards.
D. Traffic Impact Analysis. The City or other agency with access jurisdiction may require a traffic study prepared by a qualified professional to determine access, circulation, and other transportation requirements. The City requires either a Transportation Assessment Letter or a Traffic Impact Analysis pursuant to Section 17.20.060 for proposed land use actions unless waived by the City Engineer. (See also, Public Facilities Standards, Section 16.12.060.)
E. Conditions of Approval. The City or other agency with access permit jurisdiction may require the closing or consolidation of existing curb cuts or other vehicle access points, recording of reciprocal access easements (i.e., for shared driveways), development of a frontage street, installation of traffic control devices, and/or other mitigation as a condition of granting an access permit to ensure the safe and efficient operation of the street and highway system. Access to and from off-street parking areas shall not permit backing onto a public street.
F. Access Options. When vehicle access is required for development (i.e., for off-street parking, delivery, service, drive-through facilities, etc.), access shall be provided by one of the following methods (a minimum of ten [10] feet per lane is required). These methods are “options” to the developer/subdivider, unless a method is specifically required by the City Engineer.
1. Option 1: Access is from an existing or proposed alley or mid-block lane.
2. Option 2: Access is from a private street or driveway connected to an adjoining property that has direct access to a public street (i.e., “shared driveway”). A private street may only be developed as part of a Planned Unit Development. A public access easement covering the driveway shall be recorded in this case to assure access to the closest public street for all users of the private street/drive.
3. Option 3: Access is from a public street adjacent to the development parcel. If practicable, the owner/developer may be required to close or consolidate an existing access point as a condition of approving a new access. Street accesses shall comply with the access spacing standards in Section G, below.
4. Frontage on an Arterial Street: New residential land divisions fronting onto an arterial street shall be required to provide alleys or secondary (local or collector) streets for access to individual lots. When alleys or secondary streets cannot be constructed due to topographic or other physical constraints, access may be provided by consolidating driveways for clusters of two (2) or more lots (e.g., includes Planned Unit Developments and mid-block lanes).
5. Double-Frontage Lots: When a lot has frontage onto two (2) or more streets, access shall be provided first from the street with the lowest classification. For example, access shall be provided from a local street before a collector or arterial street. Except for corner lots, the creation of new double-frontage lots shall be prohibited in all residential zones, unless topographic or physical constraints require the formation of such lots. When double-frontage lots are permitted in all residential zones, a landscape buffer with trees and/or shrubs and ground cover not less than ten (10) feet wide shall be provided between the back yard fence/wall and the sidewalk or street; maintenance shall be assured by the owner (i.e., through homeowner’s association, etc.).
G. Access Spacing. Driveway accesses shall be separated from other driveways and street intersections in accordance with the following standards and procedures:
1. Local Streets: A minimum of twenty-two (22) feet separation (as measured from the sides of the driveway/street) shall be required on local streets (i.e., streets not designated as collectors or arterials), except as provided in subsection 3, below.
2. Arterial and Collector Streets: Access spacing on collector and arterial streets, and at controlled intersections (i.e., with four-way stop sign or traffic signal) shall be determined based on the policies and standards contained in the City’s Transportation System Plan. Access to state highways shall be subject to the requirements of the Oregon Highway Plan and OAR Chapter 734, Division 51.
The standards for driveway and street spacing on local public streets are established in Table 8 of the Transportation System Plan and are included below as Table 16.12-A.
|
Street Classification |
Spacing between Public Streets (Min. – Max.) |
Minimum Spacing between Driveways and Other Driveways or Public Streetsc |
|---|---|---|
|
Minor Arterial |
660 – 1,000 feet |
300 feet |
|
Collector Street |
220 – 440 feet |
100 feet |
|
Neighborhood Connector |
200 feet |
22 feet |
|
Local Street |
200 feet |
22 feet |
aExceptions may be made by the City Engineer.
bAs measured by straight curb between access points.
cPublic streets within the IAMP Overlay Zone are subject to the standards in HRMC 17.20.030(D).
dPrivate access to arterial roadways shall only be granted through a requested variance of access spacing standards when access to a lower classification facility is not feasible.
The standards for street spacing on state highways in the Hood River Urban Growth Boundary (UGB) are established in the Oregon Highway Plan and OAR Chapter 734, Division 51. Standards for District highways are presented below in Table 16.12-B.
|
Facility |
|||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
>= 55 mph |
50 mph |
40 & 45 mph |
30 & 35 mph |
<= 25 mph |
|
|
District Highway c |
700 feet |
550 feet |
500 feet |
350 feet |
350 feet |
aMeasurement of the approach road spacing is from center to center on the same side of the roadway.
bThe Urban standard applies within UGBs unless a management plan agreed to by ODOT and the local government(s) establishes a different standard.
cOR 281 and US 30 are currently classified as District Highways
H. Shared Driveways. The number of driveways and private street intersections with public streets shall be minimized by the use of shared driveways with adjoining lots where feasible. The City shall require shared driveways as a condition of land division or site design review, as applicable, for traffic safety and access management purposes in accordance with the following standards:
1. Shared driveways and frontage streets may be required to consolidate access onto a collector or arterial street. When shared driveways or frontage streets are required, they shall be stubbed to adjacent developable parcels to indicate future extension.
2. Access easements (i.e., for the benefit of affected properties) shall be recorded for all shared driveways, including pathways, at the time of final plat approval.
3. Exception. Shared driveways are not required when existing development patterns or physical constraints (e.g., topography, parcel configuration, and similar conditions) prevent extending the street/driveway in the future.
I. Street Connectivity and Formation of Blocks Required. In order to promote efficient vehicular and pedestrian circulation throughout the City, land divisions and large site developments shall produce complete blocks bounded by a connecting network of public and/or private streets, in accordance with the following standards:
1. Block Length and Perimeter: The maximum block length and perimeter shall not exceed
a. Four Hundred (400) feet length and 1,200 feet perimeter in the in the Central Business District;
b. Six Hundred (600) feet length and 1,600 feet perimeter in residential zones (R-1, R-2, and R-3);
c. Not applicable to the Industrial zone (I); and
d. Eight Hundred (800) feet length and 2,000 feet perimeter in all other zones.
2. Street Standards: Public and private streets shall also conform to criteria in Public Facilities Standards (Section 16.12.060), Pedestrian Access and Circulation (Section 16.12.030), and applicable Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) design standards.
3. Exception: Exceptions to the above standards may be granted when blocks are divided by one (1) or more pathway(s), in conformance with the provisions of Section 16.12.030. Pathways shall be located to minimize out-of-direction travel by pedestrians and may be designed to accommodate bicycles.
J. Future Street Plan (FSP) Required. Future Street Plans provide a guide for transportation circulation to the developing site and in the immediate area. A future street plan demonstrates how access can be provided to parcels within 600 feet of the boundaries of the site, and is a conceptual plan in that its adoption does not establish a precise alignment.
1. Applicability: The provisions of section 16.12.020(J) apply to all tentative major partition and subdivision plans within the Urbanizing Area as shown in Local Street Connectivity standards of the Transportation System Plan. A FSP shall be filed in conjunction with all applications for subdivisions and major partitions. The FSP shall contain the information in Subsection (2) and shall be subject to review and approval under Subsection (4), below. The Planning Director may reduce the amount of off-site area to be considered below 600 feet in one (1) or more directions in the following situations:
a. Due to topography, the existing street pattern, or other constraints, the proposed future street plan does not need to consider access for adjacent parcels or continuation of an appropriate street system within 600 feet.
b. The proposed street layout is consistent with a street pattern of an existing approved FSP.
2. Submittal Requirements: The Future Street Plan shall include sufficient dimensions and other data to verify conformance to the FSP criteria. The FSP shall incorporate the following details, both on-site and off-site:
a. The FSP shall be no larger than eleven (11) inches x seventeen (17) inches and may include several sheets;
b. The topography for slopes of fifteen percent (15%) or greater with contour intervals not more than ten (10) feet;
c. The name, classification, location, right-of-way width, centerline radius, grade of all existing and proposed streets, bike-ways, and pedestrian ways within the subject site;
d. Property lines and dimensions;
e. Existing and proposed streets and pedestrian/bicycle facilities and destinations, within 600 feet of the development;
f. Site access points for autos, pedestrians, bicycles; and
g. The conceptual future alignments of streets extending to allow for future traffic circulation and how access could be provided to adjacent parcels within 600 feet of the boundaries of the site.
3. Review Criteria: A proposed FSP shall comply with the relevant portions of the Title 17, the Transportation System Plan, and the following:
a. A future street plan shall:
1. Adequately serve local traffic (i.e., traffic with an origin in, and destination to, the area of the plan);
2. Provide for the logical extension, continuation, and interconnection of streets, to serve circulation and access needs;
3. Provide multi-directional access and circulation to the street system, avoiding maze-like and discontinuous street patterns;
4. Balance traffic distribution within an area, rather than concentrating traffic on a few streets;
5. Minimize the impact to natural resources and fit the landscape; and
6. Provide pedestrian access and create neighborhoods.
b. Wherever feasible, streets, alleys, and pedestrian-bicycle accessways shall connect on both ends to other streets, within the development and to existing and planned streets outside the development. Pedestrian/ bicycle accessways may connect on one (1) end to pedestrian and bicycle destinations. Exceptions for cul-de-sacs and dead-end streets are provided in 16.12.060(B)(13).
c. Pedestrian accessways shall be provided as required under 16.12.030.
4. Filing a Future Street Plan: Upon approval by the review authority, a FSP shall be made a matter of record by being recorded by the Planning Director on a future street index to be maintained by the Planning Department.
5. Compliance with or Revision to Future Street Plans. New developments shall be consistent with adopted FSP. Where proposed new development is not consistent with an existing plan, the applicant shall seek revision through a separate application or in conjunction with a land division or site plan review application. A revision to an approved future street plan shall be reviewed by the Planning Director as an administrative procedure. All revisions to future street plans must comply with review criteria for FSP.
K. Fire Access and Parking Area Turn – Arounds. A fire equipment access drive shall be provided for any portion of an exterior wall of the first story of a building that is located more than 150 feet from an existing public street or approved fire equipment access drive. Parking areas shall provide adequate aisles or turn-around areas for service and delivery vehicles so that all vehicles may enter the street in a forward manner. (Ord. 2062 §2 (Exh. B), 2021)