Permitted Use Descriptions

Heavy Retail and Service

A retail and/or service establishment where a) outdoor service or storage areas or partially enclosed structures are used in conjunction with the business, or b) the sale of goods or services to the general public at retail is secondary to the sale of goods or services to contractors, service professionals and the like at wholesale. This use includes, but is not limited to, equipment rental and leasing, lumberyards and other building material and building supply establishments; auto parts establishments, commercial greenhouses and garden centers; landscape, construction and lawn maintenance contractor yards; contractor’s offices and storage; bulk materials sales and storage; swimming pool sales; deck and patio sales, playground equipment sales; and recreational vehicle and mobile home dealers. Outdoor sales areas and outdoor storage are permitted as accessory uses. “Heavy retail and service” does not include: home improvement center, retail sales, personal services, pawn shops, motor vehicle sales and leasing or adult uses, as defined herein.

Office, Business or Professional

An office used for business, professional or administrative uses, which may or may not offer services to the public, and is engaged in the processing, manipulation or application of business information or professional expertise. This use may include, as accessory uses, facilities not available for use by the general public such as meeting facilities, employee amenities such as exercise rooms and food service. This use does not involve the fabricating, assembling, warehousing or repair of physical products, and does not include medical/dental clinics, financial institutions or professional training centers.

Manufacturing, Heavy

Activities or processes that may involve the storage of large volumes of highly flammable, toxic matter or explosive materials needed for the manufacturing process, and may involve outdoor operations. Typical heavy manufacturing uses include, but are not limited to: concrete batch plants; concrete, tile or brick manufacturing; automobile, truck and tire assembly; ammonia or chlorine manufacturing; metal casting or foundries; grain milling or processing; metal or metal ore production, refining, smelting or alloying; petroleum or petroleum product refining; boat, pool and spa manufacturing; slaughtering of animals; glass manufacturing, paper manufacturing, and wood or lumber processing. The assembly, fabrication or processing of goods and materials using processes that ordinarily have greater-than-average impacts on the environment, or that ordinarily have significant impacts on the use and enjoyment of adjacent property in terms of noise, smoke, fumes, odors, glare or health and safety hazards, are considered heavy manufacturing.

Manufacturing, Light

The assembly, fabrication or processing of goods and materials using processes that ordinarily do not create noise, smoke, fumes, odors, glare or health or safety hazards outside of the building or lot where such assembly, fabrication or processing takes place.

Medical Cannabidiol

Any pharmaceutical-grade cannabinoid that has a tetrahydrocannabinol level consistent with Iowa Code Chapter 124E.

Recycling Facility

A facility where newspapers, magazines, books and other paper products, glass, metal cans and other products are received, sorted, reprocessed and/or treated as part of a process to return such products to a condition in which they may be used again as a raw material in finished products. This use does not include a junkyard as defined herein.

Research and Development Use

Facilities for laboratory research in scientific, medical or technology intensive fields such as biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, genetics, plastics, polymers, resins, coatings, fibers, fabrics, films, heat transfer and radiation research, but not facilities for the manufacture or sale of products, except as incidental to the main purpose of the laboratory or research facility.

Warehouse/Distribution

Includes structures or areas, or a portion thereof, used principally for the storage or distribution of goods and merchandise to retailers, nonresidential users or to other wholesalers. This use shall not include “manufacturing, light/assembly,” as defined herein.

Office, Government

An office of a local, state or federal government organization. This use is distinct from a public service facility, as defined herein.

Public Service Facility

A facility owned and operated by a governmental entity used to provide a public safety or public service, including but not limited to police and fire stations, public works facilities for road or utility maintenance, vehicle maintenance garages, workshops, storage, offices, communications and dispatch, school bus maintenance and storage, and park maintenance facilities.

Transportation Operations Facility

A facility, which may include outdoor facilities and buildings, where buses, trains, taxicabs or other delivery vehicles are stored and/or dispatched, where loading and unloading of passengers and freight may be carried on regularly. This use is distinct from a public service facility, as defined herein.