Within the Special Bay Street Corridor District, visual corridors shall be provided east of Bay Street, prolonging Swan Street, Clinton Street, and Grant Street, as shown on Map 2 in the Appendix to this Chapter. The location of the visual corridor prolonging Grant Street may be located anywhere within the flexible location designated on Map 2.

(a)        General Requirements

The boundaries of visual corridors shall be considered street lines for the purposes of applying the use, bulk and parking provisions of this Resolution, except that such portion of the zoning lot:

(1)        shall continue to generate floor area ;

(2)        may be included for the purposes of calculating lot coverage ; and

(3)        shall be permitted to accommodate open, unscreened, tandem (one behind the other) accessory off-street parking spaces, provided that any such parking spaces are provided in accordance with DOT standards for on-street parking.

Such visual corridors shall be a minimum of 60 feet wide and shall be improved in accordance with paragraph (b) of this Section

(b)        Required improvements

All required visual corridors shall be improved as follows:

(1)        Where a visual corridor is utilized to provide access to accessory off-street parking, such visual corridor shall be improved to the minimum Department of Transportation (DOT) standards for public streets, from its intersection with Bay Street to at least the curb cut provided to such accessory off-street parking, or as deep as necessary to accommodate any parking located on the visual corridor, as applicable. Any remaining portion of the visual corridor may be improved in accordance with the standards in paragraph (b)(2)(ii) of this Section.

(2)        Where a visual corridor does not provide access to accessory off-street parking, such visual corridors, may either:

(i)        be improved to the minimum DOT standards for public streets; or

(ii)        be improved to provide an open area, as follows:

(a)        a minimum of 20 percent of the open area shall be planted with any combination of perennials, annuals, decorative grasses, shrubs or trees in planting beds, raised planting beds or planter boxes. Such planting bed shall extend to a depth of at least three feet, inclusive of any structure containing the planted material, and any individual planted area shall have a width of at least five feet;

(b)        the remainder of the open area, as applicable, may contain any combination of:

(1)        streetscape amenities including, but not limited to, benches or tables and chairs;

(2)        entertainment amenities including, but not limited to, water features, playgrounds, dog runs, game tables, courts or skateboard parks;

(3)        unenclosed eating or drinking establishments; or

(4)        streetscape-enhancing amenities including, but not limited to, lighting or sculptural artwork.

(c)        In no event shall fencing be permitted in any open area of the visual corridor, except along the portion of a lot line adjacent to a railroad right-of-way.