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Town of Blackstone, MA
Worcester County
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Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Code
New Laws (0) Index
A. 
Number of spaces. Adequate off-street parking must be provided to service all increases in parking demand created by new structures or additions or created by change of use. The number of parking spaces provided must be as required in § 123-15B, unless the special permit granting authority or the Planning Board in either performing site plan review or responding to a request for determination by the Building Inspector finds that a lesser provision would be adequate for all parking needs because of such special circumstances as shared parking for uses having peak parking demands at different times, unusual age or other characteristics of site users, company-sponsored carpooling, or other measures which reduce parking demand.
[Amended by 4-25-1988 ATM, Art. 33; 5-29-2007 ATM, Art. 17]
B. 
Table of Requirements.
[Amended by 4-25-1988 ATM, Art. 33]
Use
Parking Spaces Required
Dwellings
  Single-family
2 per dwelling unit
  Other
1 1/2 per dwelling unit
Hotel, motel or boarding or rooming house
1 per guest unit
Retail sales or service
1 per 200 square feet of leasable floor area, but not fewer than 3 per separate enterprise
Office
  Professional
1 per 150 square feet of leasable floor area, but not fewer than 3 per separate office suite
  Other
1 per 250 square feet of leasable floor area
Restaurant or place of assembly
1 per 3 persons maximum occupancy as allowed under the State Building Code
Commercial recreation
1 per 2 persons participant capacity, plus 1 per 3 persons spectator capacity
Nursing home or hospital
1 per 4 beds
Industrial, wholesale or warehouse
1 per 1 1/4 employees per shift, but not less than 1 per 1,000 square feet of storage area, plus 1 per 400 square feet of production area, plus 1 per 180 feet of office area
Other
Individually determined by the Building Inspector, except that determination will be by the Planning Board in cases referred to that Board by the Building Inspector for site plan review
C. 
Location of spaces. Required parking spaces must be on the same lot as the use they serve, except that crediting the following may be authorized on special permit by the Planning Board for cases where both the use and the parking are located within either or both the Commercial District or the Village Overlay District, upon determination by the Planning Board that, subject to conditions regarding location, egress design, landscaping and screening, or other matters doing so will be more beneficial to the vicinity than the alternative of requiring all demand to be met on site, and will not result in departure from historic patterns of land or street usage or substantially add to congestion or hazard:[1]
[Added by 5-29-2007 ATM, Art. 17]
(1) 
Legal on-street parking spaces not otherwise assigned or credited, if on the same side of the street and extending not more than 10 feet beyond the extended side lines of the premises.
(2) 
Off-street spaces on a separate lot either in the same ownership as the premises in question or subject to a recorded agreement assuring the availability of those spaces for the duration of the use in question.
[1]
Editor's Note: Former Subsection C, dealing with landscaping of off-street parking areas, was repealed by 4-25-1994 ATM, Art. 23. See now § 123-18.1.
D. 
No off-street parking area shall be maintained within 10 feet of a street line and, if servicing a use not allowed in a residential district, not within 10 feet of said district bounds.
[Amended by 6-5-1972 STM, Art. 5]
E. 
Driveways. Use of land for shared driveways is permitted in all districts, However, a shared driveway shall not be considered to adequately provide access for parking as required by this chapter on any lot for which a shared driveway is proposed as the sole means of access for parking unless the Planning Board so authorizes in performing site plan review under § 123-2C of the Zoning Bylaw or under a special permit. Authorization shall be granted only if all shared portions of the drive are to be paved and the Board determines that the arrangement improves public safety, such as by reducing the number of curb cuts on a major road or by avoiding a driveway at a potentially dangerous location; or serves environmental protection, such as by eliminating a wetlands crossing; and unless the Board further finds that the use of a shared driveway does not circumvent the intent of the Subdivision Control Law.[2]
[Added by 5-18-1996 ATM, Art. 27; amended by 11-8-1999 STM, Art. 16]
[2]
Editor's Note: See Ch. 191, Subdivision of Land.
[Amended by 6-5-1972 STM, Art. 5; 9-20-1982 STM, Art. 4; 6-7-1993 Adjourned Session of 4-26-1993 ATM, Art. 25]
A. 
No activity shall be permitted in any district unless it can be demonstrated that its operation will be so conducted that the following standards will be met:
(1) 
No vibration, odor or flashing shall be normally perceptible more than 400 feet from the premises if located in the Industrial or Commercial Districts or more than 100 feet from the premises if located in a residence district. Interference originating in Commercial or Industrial Districts shall not normally be perceptible more than 100 feet within a residential district.
(2) 
Cinders, dust, fumes, gases, radiation or trash or other waste shall be effectively confined to the premises or disposed of.
(3) 
On-site disposal of industrial wastes (as defined in Title 5 of the Massachusetts Environmental Code) shall be allowed only in volumes and concentration such that resultant groundwater quality at the boundaries of the premises will not fall below the standards established by DEQE in Drinking Water Standards of Massachusetts.
(4) 
Premises involving the preparation, use or storage of toxic or hazardous materials shall make provisions to protect against discharge or loss of such materials through corrosion, accidental damage, spillage or vandalism through such measures as provision for spill control in the vicinity of chemical or fuel delivery points, secure storage areas for toxic or hazardous materials and indoor storage provisions for corrodible or dissolvable materials.
B. 
The Zoning Agent may require that applicants furnish evidence of probable compliance with the above requirements, whether by example of similar facilities or by analysis and certification by a professional engineer. Issuance of a permit on the basis of that evidence shall indicate acceptance of the conformity of the basic structure and equipment, but future equipment changes and operating procedures must be such as to also comply with these requirements.
[Added by 6-26-1969 STM, Art. 1]
A. 
Illumination, motion and location regulations.
(1) 
Signs shall be illuminated only by internal illumination or steady, stationary, shielded light directed solely at the sign without causing glare for motorists, pedestrians or neighborhood residential premises.
(2) 
Except for indicators of time and temperature, no sign or part of any sign shall flash or move.
B. 
Temporary signs. Temporary signs listed below shall be allowed for up to 12 months in any district without necessity of a permit:
(1) 
An unlighted sign of up to 10 square feet pertaining to construction, sale or lease of the premises or subdivision while under development.
(2) 
Signs inside display windows covering not more than 30% of window area, illuminated by building illumination.
C. 
Permitted accessory signs in residence districts.
(1) 
One sign for each family residing on the premises indicating the owner or occupant or pertaining to a permitted accessory use, provided that no sign shall exceed two square feet in area.
(2) 
One sign not over 10 square feet in area pertaining to permitted buildings and uses of the premises other than dwellings and their accessory uses.
D. 
Permitted accessory signs in Business and Industrial Districts.
[Amended by 12-28-1972 STM, Art. 2; 4-28-1986 ATM, Art. 38]
(1) 
Signs attached to a building, provided that they aggregate not more than 15% of the area of the wall to which they are attached. Roof signs shall not be permitted.
(2) 
Freestanding signs, provided that they aggregate not more than 60 square feet in area on any premises and are not located in a required side or rear yard.
[Amended by 5-29-2001 ATM, Art. 25]
(3) 
Regardless of the provisions of Subsection D(1) and (2), the total area of all accessory signs, either attached to a building or freestanding, shall aggregate not more than 1 1/2 square feet per foot of lot frontage on the street toward which they are oriented.
E. 
Permitted nonaccessory signs. No nonaccessory signs shall be erected, except that a nonaccessory directional sign, designating the route to an establishment not on a state highway, may be erected and maintained in any district on special permit from the Board of Appeals, subject to their finding that such sign will promote the public interest, will not endanger the public safety and will be of such size, location and design as will not be detrimental to the neighborhood.
[Amended by 12-28-1972 STM, Art. 2]
F. 
Administration.
(1) 
No sign, except those specifically exempted by this chapter, shall be erected without a permit issued by the Building Inspector, application for which shall be accompanied by such scale drawings or photographs as the Building Inspector may require.
(2) 
Legally nonconforming signs shall be governed by § 123-10, Nonconforming uses and structures.
[Amended by 1-9-1978 STM, Art. 5]
[1]
Editor's Note: Former § 123-18, Design, landscaping and performance standards applicable in Industrial Park Districts, added by 4-28-1986 ATM, Art. 38, as amended, was repealed by 5-29-2001 ATM, Art. 25.
[Added by 4-25-1994 ATM, Art. 23]
A. 
Buffering. All parking areas for more than four vehicles and all outdoor equipment or materials storage areas of 1,000 square feet or larger shall be buffered from each property line, including the street line, by:
(1) 
An intervening building;
(2) 
At least 25 feet depth of vegetated area (retained natural growth or planted materials); or
(3) 
At least a four-foot depth of dense trees and shrubs or a vegetated berm, supplemented with fencing as needed to effectively obscure visibility of parked cars.
B. 
Parking area plantings. At least 2% of the interior area of parking areas for 20 or more vehicles shall be unpaved planting areas, each 40 square feet or larger, providing at least one tree per eight parking spaces or fraction thereof, located to assist in guiding traffic, provide shading or preserve existing trees.
[Added by 11-8-1999 STM, Art. 18]
A. 
Fixtures. Lighting fixture types are defined as follows:
(1) 
Type 1. No light cutoff.
(2) 
Type 2. Luminaire shielded such that peak candlepower is at an angle of 75º or less from vertical and essentially no light is emitted above the horizontal.
(3) 
Type 3. Luminaire shielded such that total cutoff is at less than 90º from vertical, and no light source is in direct view of an observer five feet above the ground at any point off the premises.
B. 
Lighting limitations. The following limitations shall be observed by all uses, unless granted a special permit by the Zoning Board of Appeals upon determination by the Board that it is inherently infeasible for that use (e.g., public outdoor recreation) to meet these standards, and that all reasonable efforts have been made to avoid light overspill onto residential premises and glare on public roads.
Lighting Limitations
[Amended by 5-29-2001 ATM, Art. 25]
District
I, C
R1, R2, R3
Maximum luminaire mounting height (feet)
  Fixture Type 1
20
10
  Fixture Type 2
30
15
  Fixture Type 3
40
20
Maximum off-site overspill (foot-candles)
  Fixture Type 1
0.3
0.2
  Fixture Type 2
1.0
0.3
  Fixture Type 3
3.0
0.5
C. 
Flashing. No flickering or flashing lights shall be permitted. Processes, such as arc welding, which create light flashes shall be confined within buildings or shielded to prevent either direct glare or flashing reflected from the sky.
D. 
Lighting plan. An exterior lighting plan may be required where compliance with these requirements is not apparent to include indication of location, mounting height and orientation of luminaires and sufficient technical information on the fixtures to determine their type and resulting illumination levels.