26-50 Special Ground Floor Level Provisions for Qualifying Ground Floors
This Section, inclusive, specifies ground floor level requirements that establish ground floor use and depth requirements, the maximum width for certain uses, and parking wrap and screening requirements that apply to Quality Housing buildings in certain Residence Districts subject to supplemental provisions for qualifying ground floors.
For buildings, or portions thereof, with ground floor use and depth requirements, uses on the first story of a building, and within 15 feet of the ground floor level street wall, shall be limited to community facility uses, except for lobbies, entrances and exits to accessory parking facilities, and entryways to subway stations, as applicable, provided in accordance with Section 26-53 (Maximum Width of Certain Uses). However, such minimum depth requirement may be reduced, to the minimum extent necessary, to accommodate vertical circulation cores or structural columns associated with upper stories of the building.
The maximum width of lobbies, entrances and exits to accessory off-street parking facilities, and entryways to subway stations shall be as set forth in this Section.
(a) Ground floor lobbies
Lobbies accessing uses not permitted on the ground floor level shall be permitted, provided that the width of such lobbies, in total, does not exceed 25 percent of the street wall width of the building or more than 20 linear feet of street wall frontage on a wide street or 30 linear feet on a narrow street, whichever is less. However, the width of such lobbies need not be less than 10 feet.
(b) Entrances and exits to accessory parking facilities
Entrances and exits to accessory off-street parking facilities, where permitted on the ground floor level, or portion thereof, shall not exceed a street wall width equal to the sum of five feet plus the maximum curb cut width for the applicable district. Where no specified maximum curb cut width is set forth for the district, the curb cut regulations for buildings containing residences in R6 through R8 Districts with a letter suffix, found in paragraph (e) of Section 25-631 (Location and width of curb cuts in certain districts), shall be applied.
(c) Entryways to subway stations
Entryways to subway stations may be provided on the ground floor level of a building without restriction in street wall width.
All accessory off-street parking spaces on the ground floor level of a building shall be wrapped by floor area in accordance with paragraph (a) or, where applicable, screened in accordance with applicable provisions of paragraph (b) of this Section.
(a) Along typical street wall frontages
For the ground floor level, or portions thereof, of buildings with a street wall width of 100 feet or less along a street frontage, any portion of an accessory off-street parking facility that is located above curb level, except for permitted entrances and exits, shall be located behind permitted floor area so that no portion of such facility is visible from adjacent public sidewalks or publicly accessible areas. Such floor area shall have a minimum depth of 15 feet, as measured perpendicular to the street wall of the building.
(b) Along wide street wall frontages
For portions of ground floor levels of buildings with a street wall width exceeding 100 feet along a street frontage, at least 100 feet of such frontage shall comply with the provisions of paragraph (a) of this Section. Any portion of such an accessory off-street parking facility that is located above curb level within the portion of such ground floor level street wall in excess of 100 feet, may either be wrapped by floor area in accordance with paragraph (a) of this Section, or shall be subject to the following design requirements:
(1) any non-horizontal parking deck structures shall not be visible from the exterior of the building in elevation view;
(2) opaque materials shall be located on the exterior building wall between the bottom of the floor of each parking deck and no less than three feet above such deck; and
(3) a total of at least 50 percent of such exterior building wall, or portion thereof, with adjacent parking spaces shall consist of opaque materials which may include permitted signs, graphic or sculptural art, decorative screening or latticework or living plant material.