Chapter 17.33
OPEN SPACE – OS
Sections:
17.33.010 Type of use.
An open space zone is a zone for a wide variety of lands to be preserved for park, open space, and greenbelt purposes including but not limited to natural areas and natural features with scenic or recreational value; land that may provide public access to water bodies, natural areas, and parking; lands which define through their natural features, land use boundaries or city boundaries; lands that visually or physically connect natural areas or provide important linkages for recreation and wildlife habitat; and environmentally sensitive areas, including severe landslide hazard areas, steep slopes, floodways or one-hundred-year floodplains, wetlands, stream corridors and habitat for established, threatened, endangered or highly sensitive wildlife species.
This zone is established to designate land which has been donated or acquired through incentives, trades, purchase of land, easements, or transfer of development rights by the city or other governmental agencies for open space use and to regulate the use of these lands and other land in private ownership which cannot be developed without severe environmental impacts.
The following environmentally sensitive natural features should remain undeveloped and in the open space system: significant landslide hazard areas, slopes with a grade of forty percent or more, floodways of one-hundred-year floodplains, wetlands, stream corridors, and areas with unstable or defective soil permeability.
A land so designated may generally be used for agriculture, including pasture or crop land but specifically excluding livestock, poultry, machinery, and equipment sheds or barns; conservation areas including forest, wildlife, and wetlands preserves; parks, natural scenic areas, excluding commercial amusement devices or operations; water retention areas; powerline corridor; and buffering between different types of land use. However, these lands are also subject to the provisions of the city park, trail and open space plan. Specific requirements for use of open space land will be established by the city council at the time of zoning or rezoning.
Lands preserved for open space should provide multiple open space benefits whenever possible, including active and passive recreation opportunities, scenic amenities, fish and/or wildlife habitat. Waterways and adjacent lands and wetlands designated as open space shall not be built upon or impacted in such a way as to degrade the natural area. Parking and landscaping shall comply with the requirements of this title. (Ord. 442 § 6 (Exh. F), 2016: Ord. 20.M § 11.7, 1991)