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Bucksport City Zoning Code

ARTICLE IX

Dimensional Standards

§ 100-53 General provisions.

All land uses identified in § 100-14 are subject to compliance with the dimensional standards set forth in this article, as applicable.
Before any land use may be approved, the reviewing authority must determine that the land use complies with applicable dimensional standards.
The minimum land area and street or shoreline frontage required for any land use is based on the requirements of the primary district in which the land use is located. The primary district is the district in which more than 50% of the principle structure is located.
If the land area requirement cannot be fully met with land in the primary district, land may be merged from other districts to meet the requirements. Merging of land may only be allowed if the following conditions are met:
The merged land is contiguous to the land in the primary district and all of the land must be in the same ownership;
The merged land is not included in land area required for another land use;
The merged land is not identified as land that may not be included to meet land area requirements, in accordance with § 100-54B; and
The land use is allowed in the districts governing the merged land.
If the street or shoreline frontage requirement for any land use cannot be fully met with land in the primary district, land may be merged from other districts to meet the requirement. Merging of land may only be allowed if the following conditions are met:
The merged land is contiguous to the land in the primary district and all of the land must be in the same ownership;
The frontage added from the merged land is contiguous with the frontage of the land in the primary district and not included in the street or shoreline frontage required for another land use;
The land use is allowed in the districts governing the merged land.
In any shoreland district, if more than one principal commercial or noncommercial structure or use, or more than one residential dwelling unit, is constructed or established on a single lot, all applicable dimensional requirements must be met for each additional dwelling unit, principal structure or use or combination thereof.
Notwithstanding the provisions in § 100-53E, dwelling units in a commercial or noncommercial structure in the DTS District are not subject to compliance with dimensional standards, as identified in § 100-61.
In any non-shoreland district, if more than one principal structure or use is constructed or established on a single lot, all applicable dimensional requirements for each additional principal structure or use must be met.
Nonconformity with dimensional standards may be allowed as provided for in Article XI and § 100-9.

§ 100-54 Land area.

Every land use must be provided with a minimum amount of land area, except as otherwise noted in this section. Minimum land area requirements for each district are identified in § 100-61A.
Minimum land area.
Minimum land area requirements are applicable to each principal structure of a land use, except as otherwise specified in § 100-61A. The following land uses identified in § 100-14 are not subject to minimum land area requirements, except as otherwise noted:
Accessory land uses, except:
Individual private campsites [see § 100-38M(1)].
Agriculture, except:
Commercial agriculture with principal structures.
Aquaculture (in the CFMA District only).
Cemeteries.
Commercial fisheries (in the CFMA District only).
Home-based businesses.
Intrastate/interstate pipelines (pipelines and ancillary equipment only).
Intrastate/interstate transmission lines (transmission lines and ancillary equipment only).
Public bathrooms (except if identified as a principal structure in any shoreland district).
Public information centers (except centers with staff or if identified as a principal structure).
Rail transportation facilities (rail lines and ancillary equipment only).
Seasonal land uses, except:
Any use with permanent principal structures;
Any use with temporary or permanent principal structures in any shoreland district; or
Campgrounds in any shoreland district (see § 100-50A).
Site-work land uses.
Small facilities for educational, scientific or nature interpretation use, except any use with temporary or permanent principal structures in any shoreland district.
Timber harvesting.
Utility transport systems.
Land uses comprising a commercial or noncommercial multiple occupancy of a structure are not individually subject to compliance with minimum land area requirements.
The following land may not be included to meet minimum land area requirements:
Land located below a shoreline.
Land within a legal right-of-way or easement.
Land located beneath any public or private road.
Landlocked land with no access via a legal right-of-way or easement.
Land reserved for road realignment or widening purposes, as may be required in accordance with § 100-36F(6).
Lots that have been divided by a public or private road are considered noncontiguous, except any lot that has been divided by a road constructed after September 22, 1971, by the owner of that lot.

§ 100-55 Street frontage.

Land area required for any land use must be provided with a minimum amount of street frontage, except as otherwise noted in this section. Minimum street frontage requirements for each district are identified in § 100-61B.
Minimum street frontage requirements are applicable to each principal structure of a land use, except as otherwise specified in § 100-61B, Minimum street frontage, notes.
Minimum street frontage requirements are not applicable if the land area in the primary district for a land use is accessed only by deeded easement or the land area is located on the main portion of a rear lot, also known as a "flag lot."
Land uses comprising a commercial or noncommercial multiple occupancy of a structure are not individually subject to compliance with minimum street frontage requirements.

§ 100-56 Shoreline frontage.

Land area required for any land use located within a shoreland district must be provided with a minimum amount of shoreline frontage, except as otherwise noted in this section. Minimum shoreline frontage dimensions for each district are identified in § 100-61C and apply to any portion of land within 100 feet of a shoreline (75 feet in the SPO and TBO Districts), whether or not the land physically connects with the shoreline. When only two boundary lines of a lot are located in this area, each line must be identified as a side lot line for the purposes of determining compliance with minimum shoreline frontage requirements.
Minimum shoreline frontage requirements are applicable to each principal structure of a land use, except as otherwise specified in § 100-61C, Minimum shoreline frontage, notes.
Land uses comprising a commercial or noncommercial multiple occupancy of a structure are not individually subject to compliance with minimum shore frontage requirements.

§ 100-57 Front, side and rear setbacks.

All principal structures of any size and all accessory structures with a floor area of more than 500 square feet are subject to compliance with minimum front, side and rear setbacks, as identified in § 100-61D, E and F, except as otherwise identified in this section. Setbacks are measured horizontally from the property boundaries, or from the boundaries of a right-of-way or easement for a road, whichever is closer to the structure.
The following structures have front, side and rear setback requirements that may differ from those identified in § 100-61D, E and F:
Wireless telecommunication towers (§ 100-43B).
Parking lots [§ 100-51H(1)].
Decks, porches, stairs, ramps (§ 100-38D).
Driveways, roads and sidewalks are not subject to setback requirements from property boundaries.

§ 100-58 Shoreline setback.

[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. II)]
All principal and accessory structures located within any shoreland district are subject to compliance with minimum shoreline setback requirements, as identified in § 100-61G. Setbacks are measured horizontally from the shoreline of a water body, tributary stream or wetland, as applicable. When a structure is located adjacent to a coastal bluff, setbacks are measured horizontally from the top the coastal bluff if the bluff has been identified as unstable or highly unstable on the most recent coastal bluff maps published by the Maine Geological Survey. If the applicant and the reviewing authority are in disagreement as to the specific location of the coastal bluff, or where the top of the bluff is located, the applicant may at his or her expense employ a Maine licensed professional engineer, a Maine licensed soil scientist, a Maine state geologist, or other qualified individual to make a determination. If agreement is still not reached, the applicant may appeal the matter to the Board of Appeals.
The water body, tributary stream, or wetland setback provision does not apply to structures which require direct access to the water body or wetland as an operational necessity, such as piers, docks and other functionally water-dependent uses.
In the RPO District, structures, roads, parking spaces or other regulated objects specifically allowed in that district are subject to the following setbacks, except as provided for in § 100-8E:
One hundred feet from the shoreline of great ponds or rivers that flow to great ponds.
Seventy-five feet from the shoreline of other water bodies, tributary streams or wetlands.
The following land uses have shoreline setback requirements that may differ from those identified in § 100-61C:
Individual private campsites [§ 100-38M(1)].
Sheds [§ 100-38S(1)].
Solar energy systems (§ 100-38U).
Windmills (§ 100-38W).
Septage storage and dewatering facilities [§ 100-46L(1)].
Mineral extractions (§ 100-47I).
Driveways [§ 100-51C(4)].
Retaining walls [§ 100-51F(1)].
Parking lots [§ 100-51H(1)].
Roads and sidewalks [§ 100-51I(2)].
Stairs/ramps for water access (§ 100-51J).
Subsurface wastewater disposal systems [§ 100-51K(2)].
Zero setback shoreline structures (§ 100-51M).

§ 100-59 Lot coverage.

Nonvegetated surfaces, including, but not limited to, structures, driveways, parking areas, and other areas from which vegetation has been removed from a lot, are subject to maximum lot coverage requirements, as identified in § 100-61H. For the purposes of determining lot coverage, a leasehold interest, mortgage interest, or other estate less than fee simple does not create a separate lot.

§ 100-60 Structure height.

All principal and accessory structures are subject to compliance with maximum structure heights, as identified in § 100-61I. Any structure with no floor area, such as a transmission tower, chimney, windmill, antenna, cupola, dome, widow's walk or other similar feature, is not subject to maximum structure heights. The structure height must be measured between the mean original (prior to construction) grade at the downhill side of the structure and the highest point of the structure, excluding chimneys, steeples, antennas, and similar appurtenances with no floor area. The maximum height of nonconforming structures in any shoreland district is subject to compliance with the requirements of § 100-71.
The following land uses have maximum structure height requirements that may differ from those identified in § 100-61I:
Wireless telecommunication facility towers (§ 100-43B).
Intrastate/interstate transmission lines [§ 100-43F(1)].
Power generating facilities (§ 100-43H).
Retaining walls § 100-51F(1)].
Zero setback shoreline structures (§ 100-51M).

§ 100-61 Table of Dimensional Standards.

[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. II)]
KEY:
◘ - Identifies the required dimensional standard for each district.
#.# - Refers to applicable table notes.
KEY:
◘ - Identifies the required dimensional standard for each district.
#.# - Refers to applicable table notes.
Minimum land area (See also § 100-54).
KEY:
◘ - Identifies the required dimensional standard for each district.
#.# - Refers to applicable table notes.
KEY:
◘ - Identifies the required dimensional standard for each district.
#.# - Refers to applicable table notes.
Minimum street frontage (See also § 100-55).
KEY:
◘ - Identifies the required dimensional standard for each district.
#.# - Refers to applicable table notes.
KEY:
◘ - Identifies the required dimensional standard for each district.
#.# - Refers to applicable table notes.
Minimum shoreline frontage (See also § 100-56).
KEY:
◘ - Identifies the required dimensional standard for each district.
#.# - Refers to applicable table notes.
KEY:
◘ - Identifies the required dimensional standard for each district.
#.# - Refers to applicable table notes.
Minimum front setback (See also § 100-57).
KEY:
◘ - Identifies the required dimensional standard for each district.
#.# - Refers to applicable table notes.
KEY:
◘ - Identifies the required dimensional standard for each district.
#.# - Refers to applicable table notes.
Minimum side setback (See also § 100-57).
KEY:
◘ - Identifies the required dimensional standard for each district.
#.# - Refers to applicable table notes.
KEY:
◘ - Identifies the required dimensional standard for each district.
#.# - Refers to applicable table notes.
Minimum rear setback (See also § 100-57).
KEY:
◘ - Identifies the required dimensional standard for each district.
#.# - Refers to applicable table notes.
KEY:
◘ - Identifies the required dimensional standard for each district.
#.# - Refers to applicable table notes.
Minimum shoreline setback (See also § 100-58).
KEY:
◘ - Identifies the required dimensional standard for each district.
#.# - Refers to applicable table notes.
KEY:
◘ - Identifies the required dimensional standard for each district.
#.# - Refers to applicable table notes.
Maximum lot coverage (See also § 100-59).
KEY:
◘ - Identifies the required dimensional standard for each district.
#.# - Refers to applicable table notes.
KEY:
◘ - Identifies the required dimensional standard for each district.
#.# - Refers to applicable table notes.
Maximum structure height (See also § 100-60).
KEY:
◘ - Identifies the required dimensional standard for each district.
#.# - Refers to applicable table notes.
KEY:
◘ - Identifies the required dimensional standard for each district.
#.# - Refers to applicable table notes.