Proposed Zoning Amendments for

Town of Tuftonboro

Town Meeting March 2008

 

 

Amendment Number 1:         Are you in favor of:

 

Amending the Zoning Ordinance by inserting the Table of Contents before Section 1, and inserting the adoption date into the title block and page footers, and moving the definitions section from Section 2 to the end of the document, and inserting the Tuftonboro Floodplain Development Ordinance after Section 13 Telecommunications Facilities.

 

The Planning Board recommends this amendment to make the Ordinance easier to use and understand.

 

 

Amendment Number 2:  Are you in favor of amending Section 2.1 of the Zoning Ordinance so the definitions read as follows:

 

Building Height:  The vertical distance measured from the average level of the grade at the Building line a point on the ground at the mean finish grade adjoining the foundation to the highest point of the roof, excluding chimneys, ventilators, silos, and other accessory features required above the roof.

 

Expansion:  Any increase in the intensity of the use of a Lot, Building, or Structure. This includes, but is not limited to: the addition of bedrooms to a Dwelling; the addition of Dwelling Units to a Lot; or the addition of seats to a restaurant.  This may result in a larger footprint or an increase in structure height.

 

Home Occupation: Any individual business or profession conducted within a Dwelling Unit or Accessory Structure which (a) is incidental to the Dwelling Unit, (b) does not change the character of the Dwelling Unit or the surrounding neighborhood, (c) is conducted by the resident owner/lessee, (d) employs no more than three additional employees besides the owner/lessee, (e) there is no exterior storage of materials or equipment nor permanent display of products visible from the Street, and (f) uses not more than the equivalent of  fifty (50%) percent (50%) of the Gross Floor Area of the Dwelling Unit.

 

Pervious Surface: Consists of porous material. Does not cause an increased runoff. Will allow water to pass through at a rate equal to or greater than the natural infiltration rate of the underlying soil.

 

The Planning Board recommends this amendment to clarify the intent of these terms in the Zoning Ordinance. Note that currently there is no definition in the Ordinance for Pervious Surface.

 

 

Amendment Number 3:         Are you in favor of amending Section 3.5.1 of the Zoning Ordinance so that the last sentence reads as follows:

 

Any use not specifically listed in the Table shall be deemed to be prohibited  is prohibited unless it is consistent with the permitted uses and the district purpose.

 

The Planning Board recommends this amendment to accommodate compatible uses that did not exist when the table of uses was created.

 

 

Amendment Number 4:         Are you in favor of amending Section 3.6 of the Zoning Ordinance so that Home Occupations and Special Home Occupations are removed from the Residential Uses section of the Table and inserted in the Commercial Uses section of the Table.

 

The Planning Board recommends this amendment in order to place these uses in the correct section of the Use Table and be consistent with the text in the Zoning Ordinance.

 

 

Amendment Number 5:         Are you in favor of amending Section 4.2 of the Zoning Ordinance by inserting the word “Impervious” into the eighth column heading as follows:

 

Max. %

Impervious

Coverage

Per Lot

 

The Planning Board recommends this amendment to clarify the type of lot coverage this standard includes.

 

 

Amendment Number 6:         Are you in favor of amending Section 5 of the Zoning Ordinance by deleting Section 5.2.1.

 

Changes:  No Building, Structure, or use which has been changed from a Non-Conforming Use to a conforming use shall be permitted to revert to a Non-Conforming Use.

 

The Planning Board recommends this amendment to remove any redundancy in the Zoning Ordinance which creates confusion.

 

 

Amendment Number 7:         Are you in favor of amending Section 5.1.3 of the Zoning Ordinance by inserting the word “Height” as follows:

 

Rebuilding:  The restoration of a non-conforming Structure damaged by fire or other causes shall be substantially completed in one year and there shall be no increase in volume, height, or floor space of such Structure.

 

The Planning Board recommends this amendment to provide clarification.

 

 

Amendment Number 8:         Are you in favor of amending Section 5.2.1 of the Zoning Ordinance so that the section reads as follows:

 

Fire Ruins:  No owner or occupant of land in any District shall permit fire or other ruins to be left on a site, but within one year shall remove such ruins and fill any excavation with solid fill to ground level, or shall Repair, replace, or rebuild the Structure.  All potential hazards such as foundation holes are required to be mitigated within 90 days after the fire event and until the structure is reconstructed.

 

The Planning Board recommends this amendment to ensure the safety of the community after a fire event.

 

 

Amendment Number 9:         Are you in favor of amending Section 6.3.3 of the Zoning Ordinance by inserting the words “Pervious Material” as follows:

 

Surface:  All parking areas and Access drives and aisles shall be surfaced with bituminous binder, concrete, asphalt, pervious material, compacted, or crushed stone placed in order to prevent erosion and raising of dust.  If paved, the Lots shall be striped to delineate parking spaces.

 

The Planning Board recommends this amendment to include a full range of surface materials.

 

 

Amendment Number 10:       Are you in favor of amending Section 7.3 of the Zoning Ordinance so that the Explanatory Note reads as follows:

 

Explanatory Note:

 

A.  The maximum aggregate area is the sum of all attached, projecting, and/or free standing Signs.  In no case can all of the Sign areas on a property exceed the maximum aggregate area identified above.

 

The Planning Board recommends this amendment to provide clarification.

 

 

Ammendment Number 11:    Are you in favor of amending the certification language in Articles 12.3.1 and 12.3.2 of the Zoning Ordinance by deleting the word “contiguous” and changing the word “defined” to the word “specified”.  The amended certifications would read as follows: 

 

“Based on my field investigation conducted on (date), Lots (lot numbers) contain at least ** Acres of non-wetland soil as specified by Article 12.5.3 of the Town of Tuftonboro Zoning Ordinance.

 

(** is the minimum number of acres required for a lot in the particular zone in which the parent tract is located.)

 

The Planning Board recommends this amendment to clarify the existing certification so that it conforms to Article 12.5.3 of the Zoning Ordinance.

 

 

Amendment Number 12:       Are you in favor of amending the certification language in Article 12.3.3 of the Zoning Ordinance by replacing the existing certification with this new one:

 

 “Based on my field investigation conducted on (date), newly configured Tax lots (lot numbers) contain adequate non-wetland soil area to support a State approved sewage disposal system.”

 

The Planning Board recommends this revision because the current certification is worded improperly.

 

Amendment Number 13:       Are you in favor of amending Section 13.2.9 of the Zoning Ordinance so that the definition of height reads as follows:

 

Height.  The distance measured from ground level to the highest point on the tower or other structure, including antennas including its attachments.

 

The Planning Board recommends this amendment to provide clarification.