design

INTRODUCTION

Reference Notes
upon to screen roof top mechanical units, then sight line diagrams must be included with the site plan application. Sight lines should be based upon standing height at the highest point of the curb on the side of the street opposite the property boundaries (Figure 1). NON-POWERED EQUIPMENT Ventilation stacks, fume hoods, exhaust vents, and other sorts of roof top mechanical installations which are not powered need not be screened. Equipment of this sort should be painted either to match the building colour scheme, or in a neutral colour to match the sky, such as light blue or grey.

SCREENING FOR ROOF TOP MECHANICAL UNITS

This reference note outlines a series of requirements for the adequate screening of roof top mechanical equipment on buildings. It is intended that this reference note will serve to expand and clarify the requirements for roof top mechanical screening outlined in the Planning and Building Department's Design Guidelines for Industrial Development. SITE PLAN REQUIREMENTS Through the Site Plan Approval Process, the location and size of all roof top mechanical equipment must be shown on site plan and elevation drawings, as well as the proposed method of screening. An acceptable appearance is required from all directions. The organization and screening of roof top mechanical units should ensure that the roof top elements form an integral part of the design concept of the building or development with respect to form, materials and colour. METHOD OF SCREENING The provision of acontinuous parapet, integral to the building construction, is regarded as the optimal method of screening for roof top mechanical units. Screening individual units or clusters of units using a visually opaque enclosure strongly related to the overall design of the building in terms of form, materials and colour, is also acceptable. Often sight lines will obscure roof top mechanical units located near the centre of large buildings. If sight lines are to be relied

An optimum method of screening roof top mechanical units is to integrate them with the building design.

VERIFICATION The provision of adequate roof top mechanical screening must be resolved through the Site Plan Approval Process, and will be verified as a part of the site inspection. Failure to provide adequate mechanical screening, in accordance with the guidelines outlined herein, may result in requirements for remedial action.

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Reference Notes

SCREENING FOR ROOF TOP MECHANICAL UNITS

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Reference Notes
opposite curb of any street bordering the subject property (Figure 3).
C

SCREENING FOR ROOF TOP MECHANICAL UNITS

REQUIREMENTS FOR SPECIFIC USES
C

Commercial, office, and residential development

Multiple Tenant Industrial Buildings

Complete screening of roof top mechanical units is required for all commercial developments, office buildings and multiple family residential apartment projects which are subject to site plan control.
C

Medium and High Rise Construction

Given the visual prominence of medium and high rise buildings from vantage points throughout Mississauga, complete screening of the roof top mechanical equipment serving these structures is required. Where possible, this should be achieved through the provision of a continuous parapet or a dedicated roof top equipment room which forms an integral part of the design concept for the building.
C

Roof top mechanical units for multiple tenant industrial buildings are to be screened from adjacent public streets. For developments of this sort, detailed proposals for screening all roof top mechanical units must be agreed upon and finalized through the site plan process. The construction of a parapet wall to screen the roof top mechanical units of all prospective tenants is the optimal method of screening in this situation.
C

Institutional Buildings

Roof top mechanical units for schools and other low rise institutional buildings should be screened according to the guidelines applicable to single tenant industrial buildings, as listed above.
C

Single Tenant Industrial Buildings

Power Centres

Industrial buildings are often located in less aesthetically sensitive areas of the City, which are removed from nearby residential development, and where concerns are most frequently related to the appearance of buildings from adjacent major roadways. In such circumstances, roof top mechanical units are to be screened from the bordering public streets to the extent of the limits of the property boundary at the street line. The units must not be visible to a person standing at the curb on the side of the street opposite the subject property (Figure 2). In the case of sites with multiple street frontages, the roof top units should not be visible from the
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By virtue of their form and location, often within view of residential areas, retail warehouse or "power centre" developments are considered a special case. In addition to being screened from all adjacent public streets in accordance with the criteria applied to the screening of roof top mechanical units for industrial buildings, roof top mechanical units for power centres should also be concealed from the view of those living in nearby low rise residential developments. Sight line diagrams based upon persons standing at the highest points of elevation in nearby residential neighbourhoods will be required as a part of the site plan submission.

June 1997

design

Reference Notes

SCREENING FOR ROOF TOP MECHANICAL UNITS

Volume 0297

June 1997