This chapter shall be known and may be cited as the "Zoning
Ordinance of the City of Melrose, Massachusetts," hereinafter referred
to as "this chapter."
This chapter is adopted pursuant to the authority granted by
MGL c. 40A and amendments thereto, herein called the "Zoning Act."
Where the Zoning Act is amended from time to time after the effective
date of this chapter and where such amendments are mandatory, such
amendments shall supersede any regulations of this chapter which have
been set forth on the basis of the Zoning Act in existence at the
effective date of this chapter.
This chapter is enacted for the following purposes: to lessen
congestion in the streets; to conserve health; to secure safety from
fires, panic and other dangers; to provide adequate light and air;
to prevent the overcrowding of land; to avoid undue concentration
of population and to facilitate the adequate provision of transportation,
water, sewerage, schools, parks and other public requirements; to
conserve the value of land and buildings; to encourage the most appropriate
use of land throughout the City; and to preserve and increase its
amenities and to encourage an orderly expansion of the tax base by
utilization, development and redevelopment of land. It is made with
reasonable consideration as to the character of the district and to
its peculiar suitability for particular uses, with a view to giving
direction or effect to land development policies and proposals of
the Planning Board, including the making of Melrose a more viable
and more pleasing place to live, work and play.
