[Amended 5-2-1977 ATM, Art. 13 (Amdt. No. 50)]
No dwelling shall be erected, reconstructed,
remodeled or altered so that there will be less than living bulk of
at least 5,000 cubic feet or less than 500 square feet of livable
floor area per dwelling unit in multiple units and apartments.
[Added 6-16-1999 ATM, Art. 54 (Admt. No. 110)]
The Inspector of Buildings may grant a building
permit for the construction or placement of a temporary structure
on property located in any zoning district for a period of six months.
The Inspector of Buildings shall grant the building permit for the
purposes of a construction project or to meet emergency needs. The
Building Inspector may grant an extension of six months if the applicant
applies before the initial six-month period expires. At the expiration
of the of the initial six-month period or extension thereof, the temporary
structure must be removed unless, in the Inspector's judgment, the
structure's continuance will serve public welfare or safety. If said
temporary structure is used for human habitation while repairs are
made to a permanent dwelling, Board of Health standards for septage
disposal must be followed. The Inspector of Buildings may not grant
more than two six-month extensions to the original permit for a temporary
structure without approval by the Zoning Board of Appeals for which
good faith and personal hardship must be shown.
[Added 6-12-2000 ATM, Art. 25 (Amdt. No. 142)]
Any container or device as defined in the definitions[1] as "storage containers/trailers," with or without wheels,
which may be used in place of a structure for storage of materials,
supplies, or equipment, is prohibited in all residential districts
except by special permit by the Zoning Board of Appeals; but not including
storage containers used by agricultural, horticultural or floricultural
enterprises for purposes of storage of perishable materials such as
hay, shavings, and plants. The SPGA shall establish conditions for
placement and use of the storage containers/trailers, including, but
not limited to, location, screening, access, content, repair and maintenance,
height, and disposal when use is discontinued.
[Added 6-11-1990 ATM, Art. 24 (Amdt. No. 81); amended 11-17-2008 5-2-2005 ATM, Art. 26 (Amdt. No. 154); 11-17-2008 STM, Art. 7 (Amdt. No. 166)]
A.
Purpose. The Town of Georgetown sets forth the following requirements in an effort to provide multiple housing choices for people of all economic backgrounds and to address the needs of current and future Georgetown residents by providing permanent affordable housing. The primary purpose of § 165-71 is to increase the supply of rental and ownership housing for low- and moderate-income households in Georgetown, contribute affordable housing units to the Town's Subsidized Housing Inventory (SHI), sustain a viable community making multiple housing options available for future generations in Georgetown and ensure that all units established under this bylaw count towards the satisfaction of the Town's affordable housing requirements under the Comprehensive Permit Law, MGL c. 40B, §§ 20 - 23.
B.
AFFORDABLE HOUSING TRUST FUND (THE "FUND")
AFFORDABLE HOUSING UNIT
DEED RIDER
QUALIFIED AFFORDABLE HOUSING UNIT PURCHASER OR TENANT
RESALE OF AFFORDABLE HOUSING UNITS
VACANT AFFORDABLE RENTAL HOUSING UNITS
Definitions.
An account established in accordance with MGL chapter 44 § 55C and operated for the exclusive purpose of creating and preserving affordable housing in the Town of Georgetown.
A rental or homeownership unit that is subject, upon initial
rent or sale, to certain price restrictions and tenant or owner eligibility
requirements, and upon subsequent sale or rent, to certain restrictions
intended to protect the affordability of the unit, all in accordance
with the most recent program guidelines issued by the Massachusetts
Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) for the Local
Initiative Program (LIP) or successor program.
A deed restriction or other legally binding instrument in
a form consistent with the LIP requirements and acceptable under LIP
that will ensure the affordability of the affordable housing unit(s)
for a term of years established by the Planning Board, but in no event
less than the term required by the LIP.
Regulated under the LIP deed rider, an individual or family
with household income that does not exceed 70%, or such greater amount
as then in effect pursuant under the LIP requirements, of the median
income for the primary metropolitan statistical area, with adjustments
for household size, as reported by the most recent information from
DHCD.
The resale procedures and prices of affordable housing units
shall be as set forth in the deed rider.
In the event that an affordable rental housing unit becomes
vacant for a term beyond that designated in the deed rider, the Town
of Georgetown shall have the right of first refusal to purchase said
unit and the Georgetown Board of Selectmen, Housing Authority, Affordable
Housing Task Force, and the Planning Board shall be notified in writing
of vacant affordable housing rental units.
C.
Applicability.
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Any proposed development containing residential units that would create three or more attached or detached new housing units shall provide affordable housing units or housing contribution payments in accordance with this § 165-71. These requirements for such affordable housing units or housing contribution payments shall be made a condition of any special permit, variance, finding pursuant to MGL c. 40A, § 6, Open Space Residential Development (Article VII), Independent Senior Housing (Article XVII), or subdivision approval granted for any project creating three or more housing units.
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Willful evasion of this section of the Georgetown Zoning Bylaw
is prohibited. Willful evasion is defined as follows: segmenting land
or properties with the intention of avoiding inclusionary housing
requirements by either subdividing one parcel of land into two parcels
of land in such a manner that each parcel will have less than three
units of housing or purposefully dividing a large development into
phases that would develop less than three units of housing during
each phase. Residential developments subject to this section shall
include new housing units created by new construction or new housing
units created by remodeling or conversion of an obsolete or unused
building or other structure from its original use to an alternate
use.
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Where a permitting board approves a project under this bylaw
"with conditions," and said approved project accompanies a special
permit or variance application to a different permitting board, the
conditions imposed by the first permitting board shall be incorporated
into the issuance, if any, of a special permit or variance by the
second permitting board.
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D.
Requirements. At least 10% of the new housing units in any residential development shall be designated as and/or fulfill the requirements of affordable housing requirements of this bylaw. In accordance with § 165-128, the percentage of affordable housing within an independent senior housing project shall be no less than 20%.
E.
General requirements.
(1)
Consultation: Developers whose projects are subject to this bylaw
are encouraged to consult with the Affordable Housing Task Force,
or other such entity, on affordable housing early in the development
process concerning the Town's affordable housing needs and the optimum
manner in which the Town's needs and the developer's affordable housing
requirements can be met by the proposed development consistent with
any affordable housing planned production plan or strategy then in
effect in the Town. The Affordable Housing Task Force, or other such
entity, on affordable housing may consult with and give advice to
the Planning Board during the development process and, as a part of
the process, may submit written reports to the board reviewing any
proposed development subject to the bylaw.
(2)
Comparability: Unless otherwise conditioned by the permitting board
to ensure compliance with the bylaw and due to unique site conditions
such as soil, shape, topography limiting the placement of the buildings
on the site, all affordable housing units shall be dispersed throughout
the development and shall be indistinguishable from market-rate units
except in interior finish, fixtures, and appliances. The number of
bedrooms in affordable housing units shall be comparable to the bedroom
mix in market-rate units in the development.
(3)
Selection process: The selection of qualified affordable housing
unit purchasers or tenants shall be conducted as follows:
(a)
Marketing plan: The developer shall prepare an affirmative fair
marketing plan acceptable under the LIP for marketing the affordable
housing units created under this bylaw which describes how the affordable
housing units will be marketed to potential homebuyers. This plan
shall include a description of the lottery or other process to be
used for selecting buyers and/or renters. The marketing plan must
describe how the applicant will accommodate local preference requirements
of this bylaw in a manner that complies with the nondiscrimination
in tenant or buyer selection guidelines under the LIP. The duration
and design of the plan shall reasonably inform all those seeking affordable
housing, both within and outside the Town, of the availability of
such units.
(b)
Local preference: To the extent practicable, local preference
shall be included in each development for the maximum number of the
affordable housing units created in any development subject to this
bylaw that is permitted subject to DHCD guidelines. To the extent
permitted by DHCD, local preference for all sales and resales shall
be granted to Georgetown residents as follows:
[1]
An individual or family or a parent or child of an individual
maintaining a primary residence in the Town of Georgetown;
[2]
An individual who is employed as a full-time employee in the
Town of Georgetown;
[3]
An individual who is employed as a full-time employee by the
Town of Georgetown or by the Georgetown School District.
(4)
Developers may sell affordable for-sale units to the Town, the Georgetown
Housing Authority, or to a private nonprofit entity serving Georgetown
for the purpose of providing affordable housing opportunities and
to permit such entity to market the affordable housing units and manage
the choice of buyers.
(5)
LIP approval. The affordable housing units must be approved under
the LIP or by DHCD under other programs that qualify for listing on
the SHI. It shall be the responsibility of the developer to work with
the Town and facilitate the preparation and submission of an application
for approval under the LIP of the affordable housing units, and all
costs of such application shall be borne by the developer. The developer
shall deposit a document review fee in an amount to be determined
by the permitting board, which shall be deposited into a special municipal
account pursuant to MGL c. 44, § 53G.
F.
Fractional affordable housing units and housing contribution payments.
All projects consisting of three or more housing units shall be required
to use the following calculations to determine the number of on-site
affordable units required under the bylaw as well as the amount of
a contribution payment for whole or fractional units that may be accepted
by the permitting board in lieu of providing on-site units.
(1)
Requirements for fractional affordable housing units: When the calculation of § 165-71 results in a fractional affordable housing unit (FAHU) of 0.8 or 0.9, the developer shall provide a whole on-site unit for that fractional unit. When the calculation of § 165-71 results in a fractional affordable housing unit of 0.1 to 0.7, the developer shall provide a whole on-site unit or make a housing contribution payment in lieu of the fractional unit.
(2)
Housing contribution payments in lieu of fractional affordable housing
units: To make a housing contribution payment (HCP) in lieu of a qualifying
fractional affordable housing unit the developer shall enter into
a binding, written agreement with the Town of Georgetown (with appropriate
payment security arrangements) to provide such payment to the fund
established for this purpose.
(3)
Amount of housing contribution payments:
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For ownership developments of three to seven units, the amount
of the Housing Contribution Payment (HCP) shall be equal to:
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HCP = AMSP x (# of new units) x 4%
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For ownership developments of 11 units or more, the housing
contribution shall be equal to:
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HCP = AMSP (FAHU x 10) x 4%
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where:
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AMSP
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=
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The average market sales price for the market-rate units in
the subject development.
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For rental units, the per-unit contribution payment shall be
equal to the difference between the average market rental price for
the market-rate units in the subject development and the rent affordable
to a family of four at or below 80% of the median income, calculated
for a term of 10 years without adjustments for interest or inflation.
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G.
Off-site affordable housing creation. In order to ensure compliance with the requirements of this bylaw, the permitting board may, as a condition of its approval, permit the inclusionary housing requirement to be met through the provision of some or all required affordable housing units on an alternative site or multiple sites suitable for housing use. Affordable off-site housing units may be either new construction, a payment in lieu for an off-site housing contribution [as outlined in Subsection G(1) below] or, in extreme cases, located in a rehabilitated existing structure. All off-site affordable housing units shall be required to meet the Energy Star requirements for energy efficiency, include a lead paint test where applicable, and a review and inspection by an independent consultant selected by the permitting board. Unless otherwise conditioned by the board to ensure compliance with the requirements of this bylaw, all affordable off-site units that are newly created or replacing existing legal housing units shall be counted in the total number of housing units created by a proposed development. All affordable housing units provided under this subsection shall comply in all respects, other than on-site location, with the requirements of this bylaw.
(1)
Amount of in-lieu/off-site housing contribution payments: For ownership
developments the amount of the in-lieu/off-site housing contribution
payment (I/OHCP) shall be equal to:
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I/OHCP = AMSP x (# of affordable units) x .6
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H.
Regulations. Affordable housing production, housing contribution
payments and rental and resale restrictions required by this section
shall be governed by regulations promulgated together by the permitting
boards for purposes of carrying out their duties under this bylaw.
I.
Compliance.
(1)
Building permit conditions: All contractual agreements with the Town
of Georgetown and other documents necessary to ensure compliance with
this bylaw, including all documents required under LIP, shall be executed
and delivered to the Town board reviewing any qualifying project or
development prior to and as a condition of the issuance of a building
permit. The permitting Board may require any applicant to post bond
or other such surety, in an amount satisfactory to the Board, to ensure
compliance with all terms and conditions of any approval issued under
this bylaw. The Building Inspector shall not issue a building permit
with respect to any project or development subject to this bylaw unless
and until the permitting board has certified in writing to the Building
Inspector that all conditions of this bylaw precedent to such issuance,
including any such conditions that may be established by the permitting
board in any decision or approval, have been met.
(2)
Occupancy conditions:
(a)
Compliance: No occupancy or other use of any market-rate units
in a development subject to this bylaw shall be permitted until the
LIP deed rider, agreements with the Town of Georgetown and/or other
documents necessary to ensure compliance by the applicant (and any
purchasers of the affordable housing units) with any requirements
of this bylaw and under the LIP, have been executed and recorded,
a time-stamped copy of all recorded documents has been filed with
the Planning Office, and authority and permission granted by the permitting
board.
(b)
Housing contribution payments: Required housing contribution
payments shall be made with respect to each market-rate housing unit
or rental unit prior to issuance of an occupancy permit for the unit,
provided that such payments may be made at the time of conveyance
of each unit to an end user or upon occupancy by any tenant if appropriate
security arrangements to guarantee such payment have been made and
are in effect under an agreement with the Town.
(c)
Timing of construction: Unless otherwise directed by the permitting
board as a condition of approval, all affordable housing units shall
be provided concurrently and proportionately with the development
of market-rate units. To ensure compliance with this requirement,
the permitting board may establish a schedule for construction of
affordable and market rate housing units.
J.
Severability. In the event that one or more of the provisions of
this bylaw are found or determined to be illegal or unenforceable,
such finding shall not effect the validity of any other provisions
of this bylaw which provisions will remain in full force and effect.
[Added 5-4-1992 ATM, Art. 28 (Amdt. No. 89)]
The storage of more than two vehicles which
are wrecked or in a dismantled or partially dismantled condition,
or which have been discarded as junk, shall be prohibited unless any
one of the following conditions has been fulfilled:
[Added 5-2-1994 ATM, Art. 28 (Amdt. No. 91); amended 6-16-1997 ATM, Art. 61
(Amdt. No. 117)]
Lot, frontage is that portion of a lot fronting
on a street or way, said frontage to be measured continuously along
one street line between its side lot lines and their intersection
with the street line; no less than 75% of the required frontage width
is to be maintained to a perpendicular depth equal to the minimum
front yard requirements for that district, and no less than 25% of
the required frontage width is to be maintained to a perpendicular
depth equal to the minimum lot depth requirement for that district.
On a curve, the perpendicular depth shall be measured from a straight
line drawn between the side bounds tangent to the most center point
of the curve. Such street shall be either a way shown on the Official
Map, or a way shown on an approved subdivision plan. The grade of
a driveway shall be no greater than 12% starting at the edge of the
right-of-way and extending back for the first 25 feet of the lot.
A.
There shall be frontage adequate to serve each lot identified on a subdivision plan or any un-built upon lot which has frontage on an existing approved public way which is brought before the Planning Board for its approval or endorsement. "Frontage adequate to serve each lot" is defined as that frontage distance required by §§ 165-81 and 165-7 of this chapter, as amended, and, that no less than 30 feet of frontage of each such lot shall, in the opinion of the Planning Board, provide safe convenient access and egress to serve the future residents of the property, and in the opinion of the Fire and Police Chiefs, provide access suitable for emergency vehicles such as the ladder truck, police vehicles and those of other agencies charged with responsibility for protecting the public peace, safety and welfare.
B.
The Planning Board shall consider the existing condition
of each lots frontage, such as soils, water table, floodplain, slope,
elevation and any other naturally occurring or constructed barriers
and the opinions of the Police and Fire Chiefs in making its determination
of "frontage adequate to serve each lot."
C.
If, in the opinion of the Planning Board, the lot
does not possess frontage adequate to serve each lot, the Planning
Board shall render its reasons in writing to the developer. The developer
or assigned agent may then propose, using engineered drawings and
designs for explanation, as to how the lot's frontage physical characteristics
may be modified so as to meet the intended purpose of this section.
The developer is required to show on the engineered drawings, the
location (footprint) of the proposed buildings and proposed changes
in the frontage. Upon gaining the positive opinion of its members
that frontage adequate to serve each lot can be obtained as shown
on the engineered drawings, the Planning Board may approve or endorse
the plan brought before the Board.
D.
The Planning Board may waive construction of the frontage
adequate to serve each lot, subject to the granting of a special permit
by the Planning board for construction of a common drive.
E.
Drive, common. Subject to the granting of a special
permit by the Planning Board, a common drive may be constructed and
shared by not more than three lots, so long as the common drive is
located entirely within the lots being served. Every such common drive
must be shown on an engineered plan and must be regulated by a recorded
maintenance agreement which is satisfactory to the Planning Board
and Town Counsel and which runs in perpetuity with the land. The Planning
Board shall impose such conditions, to be made part of the special
permit, as are necessary to provide access adequate to serve each
lot, including conditions that assign responsibility for maintenance
and snow removal.
[Added 10-25-1999 STM, Art. 16 (Amdt. No. 140)]
A.
For any lot created after October 25, 1999, access
to each lot, except for corner lots, must be provided across the lot
frontage.
B.
Exceptions to this requirement may be granted by the
issuance of a special permit from the Planning Board. A lot frontage
access special permit may be granted for a lot in any residential
district, provided that:
(1)
The specific site is an appropriate location
for access to the lot given the current and projected traffic on the
roadway, and the sight distance to adjacent driveways and roadways;
and/or
(2)
Special environmental conditions exist, such
as wetlands and/or steep slopes such that access across the street
frontage would require wetland filling or extreme cutting and/or filling
of slopes or would be otherwise detrimental to the environment;
(3)
The access will not adversely affect the neighborhood;
(4)
There will be no nuisance or serious hazard
to vehicles or pedestrians;
(5)
The access is in harmony with the general purpose
and intent of this chapter.
[Added 5-2-2011 ATM, Art. 41 (Amdt. No. 178)]
A.
Subject
to the granting of a special permit by the Planning Board, a "court"
or "lane," as defined by and regulated in accordance with the Subdivision
Rules and Regulations[1] adopted by the Planning Board pursuant to MGL c. 41, § 81Q,
may be constructed and used provided it has been approved under a
definitive subdivision plan and/or an open space residential development
– special permit.
