§ 16-11.011. Sidewalks.

(1)

Public sidewalks shall be located along all public streets and shall consist of two zones: an amenity zone and a walk zone.

(2)

Amenity zone requirements: The amenity zone shall be located immediately adjacent to the curb. Width shall be measured from back (building side) of curb to the walk zone. Minimum width shall be five feet. This zone is reserved for the placement of street trees and street furniture including utility and light poles, public art, waste receptacles, fire hydrants, traffic signs, traffic control boxes, newspaper boxes, transit shelters and similar elements in a manner that does not obstruct pedestrian access or motorist visibility. Such elements, where installed, shall be of a type specified by the director in accordance with uniform design standards for placement of such objects in the public right-of-way.

(3)

Walk zone requirements: The walk zone shall be located immediately contiguous to the amenity zone and shall be a continuous hardscape for a minimum width of 10 feet for arterial and collector streets and six feet for all other streets. Said zones shall contain a consistent cross-slope not exceeding two percent. No fixed elements, including pole mounted signage, traffic control boxes or other utility structures, shall be placed above ground in the walk zone for a minimum height of eight feet.

(4)

Paving: All sidewalk paving shall be of a type specified in accordance with uniform design standards for placement of such objects in the public right-of-way. Any existing decorative hardscape treatment of sidewalks, including amenity zone and sidewalk walk zone areas, shall be retained as part of any new development or replaced with materials that match in size, shape, and color.

(5)

Street tree planting requirements: Street trees are required and shall be planted in the ground within the amenity zone and spaced equidistance and on-center between street lights a maximum of 40 feet apart. All newly planted trees shall be single-stemmed at a minimum of three inches in caliper (measured 36 inches above ground), shall be a minimum of 12 feet in height at the time of planting and shall be limbed up to a minimum height of seven feet. Trees shall be planted with a minimum of 40 square feet of evergreen ground cover such as mondo grass or liriope spicata. All tree plantings, replacement and removal shall be approved by the city arborist.

(6)

Pedestrian and street lights shall be placed equidistant and on-center between required street trees within the amenity zone.

(7)

Where property within the district abuts an R district without an intervening street, the sidewalk area within 20 feet of such districts shall taper when necessary to provide a smooth transition to the existing R districts sidewalk. In the event that the abutting R district has no existing sidewalk the sidewalk shall taper to a width of six feet, measured from the street curb, or as approved by the Director of the Office of Zoning and Development.

(8)

Adjustments to the sidewalk requirements may be permitted by the Director of the Office of Zoning and Development upon a finding that one or more of the site conditions set forth in subsections (8)(a) through (8)(f) below are present on the site. The applicant requesting the adjustment must provide documentation establishing the presence of the site condition(s) relied upon. If the adjustment results in the waiver of the sidewalk requirement on the site, the applicant shall construct sidewalks of equal or greater length along adjoining streets in a specific location approved by the director.

a.

Trees exist within the proposed sidewalk zone having a diameter at breast height (DBH) of six inches or more;

b.

Topographic conditions exist that would locate the proposed sidewalk walk zone 12 or more inches above or below the top surface of the finished curb;

c.

Topographic conditions exist that would prevent driveway access to the property upon completion of the proposed sidewalk;

d.

Physical conditions exist such as existing structures, existing utility devices, or rock outcroppings that obstruct the installation of the proposed sidewalk;

e.

The existence of an overlay zoning district pursuant to chapter 20 of part 16, an Overlay SPI District, or the BeltLine Overlay District; or

f.

Sidewalk improvements for the proposed sidewalk zone that are planned, approved, and publicly-funded by the City of Atlanta.

( Ord. No. 2018-11(18-O-1023), § 12.H, 5-16-18 )