Chapter 17.145
ACCESS MANAGEMENT

Sections:

17.145.010    Intent and purpose.

17.145.020    Legal access.

17.145.030    Access permit required.

17.145.040    Access options.

17.145.050    Access spacing.

17.145.010 Intent and purpose.

The purpose of these access management standards is to ensure safe and efficient access and circulation to the public street system, while preserving the flow of traffic in terms of safety and roadway capacity. These standards attempt to balance the right of reasonable access to private property with the right of all citizens to safe and efficient use of the public roadway system. These standards are designed to reduce traffic accidents, personal injury, and property damage attributable to unsafe access, and thereby improve the safety and operation of the roadway network. The intent is to protect the substantial public investment in the existing transportation system and reduce the need for expensive remedial measures. [Ord. 344, 2004; Ord. 93 § 3.4(1), 1987].

17.145.020 Legal access.

All parcels of land shall have access to a public street or alley. Vehicular access shall be provided to all parcels of land from a dedicated public street or alley and lot frontage for residential uses shall be not less than 30 feet in width, unless otherwise provided. [Ord. 344, 2004; Ord. 93 § 3.4(2), 1987].

17.145.030 Access permit required.

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 department of community services based on the standards contained in this title. An access permit may be in the form of a letter to the applicant, attached to a land use decision notice as a condition of approval, or included in the building permit review.

(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. In that case, the city shall determine whether access is granted based on its adopted standards.

(3) Approval of proposed developments that require an access permit from North Bend/ODOT shall be contingent upon the city/agency issuing an access permit. The city shall impose a condition of approval that requires the developer to obtain an access permit prior to the issuance of building permits.

(4) 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, control or reserve strips, 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.

(5) An access permit is tied to the specific use, not a specific lot/parcel. A new access permit is required for any change in use or expansion of an existing use in order to determine that the access is safe and appropriate for the proposed use based on the standards contained in this title. [Ord. 344, 2004; Ord. 93 § 3.4(3), 1987].

17.145.040 Access options.

A development shall provide vehicular access according to one of the following methods:

(1) From a public street or alley abutting the subject lot/parcel.

(2) From a driveway connected to an adjoining property that has direct access to a public street (i.e., “shared driveway”). An access easement covering the driveway shall be recorded in this case to assure access to the closest public street for all users of the driveway.

(3) Residential Development on Arterial Streets. 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 or more lots (e.g., includes flag lots and mid-block lanes). An on-site turnaround so vehicles are not required to back out into an arterial street must be provided.

(4) Number of Access Points. For multiple-family, commercial, industrial, and public/institutional developments, the number of access points shall be minimized to protect the function, safety and operation of the street(s). Shared access may be required in order to maintain the required access spacing, and minimize the number of access points.

(5) Shared Driveways. The number of driveways onto public streets shall be minimized by the use of shared driveways with adjoining lots/parcels where feasible. When shared driveways for nonresidential uses are required, an internal access driveway shall be stubbed to adjacent developable lots/parcels to allow for future extension and access to the shared driveway.

(6) Joint and Cross Access. New commercial development shall provide cross-access driveways and pedestrian pathways to allow circulation between sites without having to access the adjacent public street. Cross-access driveways shall be improved and stubbed to adjacent developable lots/parcels to create the opportunity for future extension. As a condition of approval, the landowner shall record an access easement to grant reciprocal access to adjacent lots/parcels.

(7) Fire Access and Parking Area Turnarounds. 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 turnaround areas for service and delivery vehicles so that all vehicles may enter the street in a forward manner.

(8) Reserve Strip. The city may require the developer to establish reserve strips to control access to a street in order to prevent access to abutting property, to assure the proper extension of street patterns, and to assure the orderly development of land lying beyond the street. Control and disposal of the reserve strip shall be placed under the jurisdiction of the city. A reserve strip is a one-foot-wide strip of land contiguous to a road. [Ord. 344, 2004; Ord. 93 § 3.4(4), 1987].

17.145.050 Access spacing.

Street, alley or driveway intersections accessing onto a public street shall be separated from other street, alley, or driveway intersections according to the following (Measurement is made from the inside of curb to inside of curb):

(1) Arterial Streets. The minimum access spacing between access points shall be 500 feet.

(2) Collector Streets. The minimum access spacing between access points shall be 300 feet.

(3) Arterial/Arterial Intersections. The minimum access spacing from the intersection shall be 300 feet.

(4) Arterial/Collector Intersections. The minimum access spacing from the intersection shall be 300 feet.

(5) Collector/Collector Intersections. The minimum access spacing from the intersection shall be 150 feet, if practicable, otherwise 100 feet.

(6) On state highways, ODOT standards supersede city standards.

(7) Existing undeveloped lots or parcels cannot be denied access. The maximum access spacing possible should be provided.

(8) In cases where existing development undergoes an expansion, intensification or change of use, existing developed lots/parcels cannot be denied access to a street where there is an existing access point. The existing access point may be required to relocate in order to comply with access spacing standards or to maximize spacing to the greatest extent possible. A temporary access point may be allowed until an alternate access point, such as a shared driveway, that better meets the standard becomes available. [Ord. 344, 2004; Ord. 93 § 3.4(5), 1987].