23.47A.006

A. The following uses, where identified as administrative conditional uses on Table A for 23.47A.004, or other uses identified in this Section 23.47A.006 , may be permitted by the Director when the provisions of both Section 23.42.042 and this subsection 23.47A.006.A are met: 1. Drinking establishments. Drinking establishments in NC1 and NC2 zones may be permitted as a conditional use subject to the following: a. The size of the drinking establishment, design of the structure, signing and illumination must be compatible with the character of the commercial area and other structures in the vicinity, particularly in areas where a distinct and definite pattern or style has been established. b. The location, access and design of parking must be compatible with adjacent residential zones. c. Special consideration will be given to the location and design of the doors and windows of drinking establishments to help ensure that noise standards will not be exceeded. The Director may require additional setbacks and/or restrict openings where the drinking establishment is located on a lot that abuts or is across from a residential zone. d. Drinking establishments must not generate traffic that creates traffic congestion or further worsens spillover parking on residential streets. 2. Park and ride facilities. Park and ride facilities on surface parking lots in NC2, NC3, C1, and C2 zones may be permitted as conditional uses in a Type II decision, subject to the following: a. The park and ride facility shall have direct vehicular access to a designated arterial improved to City standards in subsection 23.53.015.B. b. If the proposed park and ride facility is located on a lot containing required accessory parking for other uses, there must be no substantial conflict in the principal operating hours of the park and ride facility and other uses on the lot. c. The Director may require noise mitigation, vehicular access control, signage restrictions, landscaping and screening in addition to that required for surface parking areas, and other measures to provide comfort and safety for pedestrians and bicyclists. The purpose of these measures is to ensure the compatibility of the park and ride facility with the surrounding area. 3. Residential Uses in C2 zones. a. Residential uses may be permitted in C2 zones as a conditional use subject to the following criteria: 1) The residential use generally should not be located in an area with direct access to major transportation systems such as freeways, state routes and freight rail lines. 2) The residential use generally should not be located in close proximity to industrial areas and/or nonresidential uses or devices that have the potential to create a nuisance or adversely affect the desirability of the area for living purposes as indicated by one of the following: i. The nonresidential use is prohibited in the NC3 zone; ii. The nonresidential use or device is classified as a major noise generator; or iii. The nonresidential use is classified as a major odor source. 3) In making a determination to permit or prohibit residential uses in C2 zones, the Director shall take the following factors into account: i. The distance between the lot in question and major transportation systems and potential nuisances; ii. The presence of physical buffers between the lot in question and major transportation systems and potential nuisance uses; iii. The potential cumulative impacts of residential uses on the availability for nonresidential uses of land near major transportation systems; and iv. The number, size and cumulative impacts of potential nuisances on the proposed residential uses. b. Residential uses required to obtain a shoreline conditional use permit are not required to obtain an administrative conditional use permit. c. Additions to, and accessory structures on the same lot as, existing residential structures are permitted outright. 4. Medical service uses. Medical service uses over 10,000 square feet, outside but within 2,500 feet of a medical Major Institution overlay district boundary, may be approved as administrative conditional uses, except that they are permitted outright if included in an adopted master plan or dedicated to veterinary services. In order to approve a medical service use under this subsection, the Director must determine that an adequate supply of commercially zoned land for businesses serving neighborhood residents will continue to exist. The following factors will be used in making this determination: a. Whether the amount of medical service uses existing and proposed in the vicinity would result in an area containing a concentration of medical services with few other uses; and b. Whether medical service uses would displace existing neighborhood-serving commercial uses at street level or disrupt a continuous commercial street front, particularly of general sales and services uses, or significantly detract from an area's overall neighborhood-serving commercial character. 5. Change of One Nonconforming Use to Another. A nonconforming use may be converted by an administrative conditional use authorization to a use not otherwise permitted in the zone based on the following factors: a. New uses are limited to those permitted in the next more intensive zone; b. The relative impacts of size, parking, traffic, light, glare, noise, odor and similar impacts of the two uses, and how these impacts could be mitigated; and c. The Director must find that the new nonconforming use is no more detrimental to property in the zone and vicinity than the existing nonconforming use. 6. Lodging uses in NC2 zones are permitted up to 25,000 square feet, when all of the following conditions are met, except that bed and breakfasts in existing structures are permitted outright with no maximum size limit: a. The lodging use contains no more than fifty units; b. The design of the development, including but not limited to signing and illumination, is compatible with surrounding commercial areas; and c. Auto access is via an arterial street. 7. A recycling use that is located on the same development site as a solid waste transfer station may be permitted as a conditional use in Commercial 2 (C2) zones subject to the following additional provisions: a. Accessory structures including entrance/exit kiosks, walls, screening, and other minor incidental improvements, are permitted; b. A setback of at least 65 feet is provided between any façade of the principal structure containing the recycling use and any lot line that abuts or is across a street from a residentially zoned lot; c. Trucks allowed to access the recycling use to drop off recyclables shall not exceed a maximum of two axles; d. Rooftop features on the principal structure shall not exceed the maximum height limit of the zone; e. All transfer, handling, and compacting of recyclable materials shall be conducted within an enclosed structure; f. Outdoor storage is prohibited. g. 60 percent of the C2-zoned portion of the development site is maintained as open space. For these purposes, surface parking and driveways are not considered open space. h. Office use and crew space use accessory to a solid waste transfer station use on the same development site may be allowed within a structure containing a recycling use. 8. Parking and driveways accessory to a solid waste transfer station. Parking and driveways on property in a C2 zone are permitted as a conditional use accessory to a solid waste transfer station according to the following provisions: a. The parking is on property that is part of the same development site as the solid waste transfer station use; b. The parking meets the criteria of Section 23.50.014.A; c. The parking is subject to analysis in a transportation plan, if a transportation plan is required by the Director pursuant to subsection 23.50.014.B.7.c. d. Surface parking is not across the street from a residentially zoned lot. e. A setback of at least 65 feet is required between surface parking spaces and any lot line that abuts or is across a street from a commercially zoned lot; and f. Driveways providing access to parking or access to the solid waste transfer station are on the same development site as the solid waste transfer station use. B. The following uses, identified as Council Conditional Uses on Table A of Section 23.47A.004 , may be permitted by the Council when the provisions of Section 23.42.042 are met, subject to the following additional provisions: 1. In C1 and C2 zones, new bus bases for 150 or fewer buses, and existing bus bases that are proposed to be expanded to accommodate additional buses, according to the following standards and criteria. a. The bus base has vehicular access, suitable for use by buses, to a designated arterial improved to City standards; and b. The lot includes adequate buffering from the surrounding area and the impacts created by the bus base have been effectively mitigated. c. The Council may require mitigating measures, which may include, but are not limited to: 1) Noise mitigation, 2) An employee ridesharing program, 3) Landscaping and screening, 4) Odor mitigation, 5) Vehicular access controls, and 6) Other measures to ensure the compatibility of the bus base with the surrounding area. 2. Helistops in NC3, C1 and C2 zones as accessory uses, according to the following: a. The helistop is used solely for the takeoff and landing of helicopters serving public safety, news gathering or emergency medical care functions; is a public facility that is part of a City and regional transportation plan approved by the City Council; or is part of a City and regional transportation plan approved by the City Council and is not within 2,000 feet of a residential zone. b. The helistop is located so as to minimize impacts on surrounding areas. c. The lot includes sufficient buffering of the operations of the helistop from the surrounding area. d. Open areas and landing pads are hard-surfaced. e. The helistop meets all federal requirements, including those for safety, glide angles and approach lanes. 3. Work-release centers in all NC zones and C zones, according to the following standards and criteria: a. Maximum Number of Residents. No work-release center may house more than 50 persons, excluding resident staff. b. Dispersion Criteria. 1) Each lot line of any new or expanding work-release center must be located 600 feet or more from any residential zone, any lot line of any assisted living facility, congregate residence, domestic violence shelter or nursing home, and any lot line of any school. 2) Each lot line of any new or expanding work-release center must be located one mile or more from any lot line of any other work-release center. c. The Council's decision shall be based on the following criteria, after review by the Director and the Seattle Police Department: 1) The applicant must demonstrate the need for the new or expanding facility in the City; 2) The applicant must demonstrate that the facility can be made secure through a security plan to appropriately monitor and control residents, through a staffing plan for the facility, and through compliance with the security standards of the American Corrections Association; 3) Proposed lighting must be located so as to minimize spillover light on surrounding properties while maintaining appropriate intensity and hours of use to ensure that security is maintained; 4) The facility's landscape plan must meet the requirements of the zone while allowing visual supervision of the residents of the facility; 5) Appropriate measures must be taken to minimize noise impacts on surrounding properties; 6) The impacts of traffic and parking must be mitigated; 7) The facility must be well-served by public transportation or the facility must demonstrate a commitment to a program of encouraging the use of public or private mass transportation; 8) Verification from the Department of Corrections (DOC) must be provided that the proposed work-release center meets DOC standards for such facilities and that the facility will meet state laws and requirements. (Ord. 125558 , § 15, 2018; Ord. 123872, § 3, 2012; Ord. 123209, § 53, 2009; Ord. 123046, § 65, 2009; Ord. 122935, § 4, 2009; Ord. 122311 , § 44, 2006.)