A. General. This section describes the intent for each of the city’s special purpose zones. These intent statements may be used to guide the interpretation of the regulations associated with each zone.

B. RO and RO-H Residential Office and Residential Office-Hospital Zone. The RO and RO-H are intended primarily to accommodate small-scale business and professional offices, medical and dental clinics, and banks and similar financial institutions at locations where they are compatible with residential uses. Some retail and personal services may be permitted if supplemental to the other uses allowed in the zone. This zone is intended for those areas that are in transition from residential to commercial uses along arterials or near the hospital. Conversion of residential uses to commercial uses is geared towards encouraging adaptive reuse of existing single-family structures that continue to appear in accord with the single-family residential character. The RO-H designation is to be used exclusively for the hospital area, located in the vicinity of 2nd Street NE and Auburn Avenue, and is intended to be used for medical and related uses and those uses compatible with the medical community.

C. P-1 Public Use Zone. The P-1 zone is intended to provide for the appropriate location and development of public uses that serve the cultural, educational, recreational, and public service needs of the community.

D. I Institutional Zone. The I zone is intended to provide an area wherein educational, governmental, theological, recreational, cultural and a broader list of public and quasi-public uses may be allowed to develop. It is further intended these areas feature a larger campus-like setting that includes a combination of uses and activities which may not be permitted outright within other zones. This district is not intended to include those smaller or singular public uses which are consistent with and permitted in other zones.

E. OS Open Space Zone. The OS zone is intended to provide for land uses that tend to be managed in a largely undeveloped character, including passive parks, watersheds, natural and urban conservancy shoreline areas, significant wildlife habitats, large storm water detention ponds or floodplain ponds, utility corridors with public access, and areas with significant development restrictions. Park lands included in the open space zone tend to be predominately passive in character and with relatively fewer developed facilities than parks included in the institutional zone. Private sites containing critical areas or shorelines may be included. (Ord. 6894 § 1 (Exh. B), 2022; Ord. 6677 § 2, 2018; Ord. 6434 § 1, 2012.)