Charlestown City Zoning Code

Generally. The Zoning Board of Review may permit in a R-3A district or R-2A district a mobile home park by special use permit provided that:

Planning Commission review. A complete application shall be reviewed by the Planning Commission within forty-five days after receipt. The Planning Commission shall make an advisory recommendation based on the proposed development's consistency with the Town's Comprehensive Plan, the suitability of the land for the use proposed, and its compatibility with abutting land uses. The advisory opinion shall be used as part of the special use permit review by the Zoning Board.

Site plan approval required. A site plan for a mobile home park development shall be presented to the Planning Commission for review as required for a commercial use in ARTICLE XII, Development Plan Review and Land Development Review, after a special use permit has been granted. Building permits shall be issued only for compliance with the conditions required by the Board, and an approved site plan of the Planning Commission.

Permitted uses. Only mobile home parks shall be permitted as principal uses. Uses directly accessory to a mobile home park such as parking areas, carports, service buildings, recreation areas and facilities, and offices for management of the development are permitted.

Standards. The following minimum standards shall apply to all mobile home parks:

Conformity with Subdivision Regulations. Where a mobile home park requires the subdivision of land as defined in the Charlestown Subdivision Regulations all the applicable provisions of those Regulations shall be followed.

Generally. The Zoning Board of Review may permit in a R-3A district or R-2A district multifamily dwellings by special use permit provided that:

Planning Commission review. A complete application shall be reviewed by the Planning Commission within forty-five days after receipt. The Planning Commission shall make an advisory recommendation based on the proposed development's consistency with the Town's Comprehensive Plan, the suitability of the land for the use proposed, and its compatibility with abutting land uses. The advisory opinion shall be used as part of the special use permit review by the Zoning Board.

Site plan approval required. A site plan for multifamily dwellings shall be presented to the Planning Commission for review as required for a commercial use in ARTICLE XII, Development Plan Review and Land Development Review, after a special use permit has been granted. Building permits shall be issued only for compliance with the conditions required by the Board, and an approved site plan of the Planning Commission.

Permitted uses. Only multifamily structures shall be permitted as principal uses under the special use permit. Uses directly accessory to multifamily housing such as parking areas, carports, service buildings, recreation areas and facilities, and offices for management of the development are permitted.

Standards. The following minimum standards shall apply to all multi-family dwellings and multi-family developments (more than one building). Such developments may also include two-family dwellings:

Separation of structures. Where a multifamily development is to be constructed as a complex of separate structures, the requirement of § 218-3, Conformity required, relating to principal residential buildings shall not apply.

Conformity with subdivision regulations. Where a multifamily development requires the subdivision of land as defined in the Charlestown Subdivision Regulations all the applicable provisions of those Regulations shall be followed.

Purpose. The purpose of conservation development is to allow the flexibility to design residential development to achieve the following objectives, not listed in any order of priority, pursuant to the Charlestown Comprehensive Plan as it relates to resource protection, land use and community services:

Applicability. Conservation development is required for any major subdivision, and is encouraged but not required for all subdivisions of three or more lots. The Charlestown Planning Commission may, at its discretion, permit a conventional subdivision where a conservation development would otherwise be required if the applicant can prove to the satisfaction of the Planning Commission that a conventional subdivision will serve the best interests of the town, and where such conventional subdivision is found to be consistent with the intent and purposes of these regulations, is not based on economic considerations, and will provide the best site layout and design.

Subdivision approval required. No clearing of vegetation, land disturbance, or construction within a conservation development subdivision shall begin until the preliminary plan has been approved by the Charlestown Planning Commission. Land that has been environmentally disturbed or damaged, for example, by removal or excavation of soil or mineral resources, must be restored to a condition satisfactory for redevelopment prior to final plan approval.

Standards.

An ADU shall provide completely independent living facilities for one or more persons. An ADU is intended for year-round occupancy or otherwise to be the primary residence of the person or persons who will occupy it regardless of family relationship to the property owner. The property owner may occupy either the primary dwelling or the ADU. For the purposes of this subsection, the term property owner includes a person or persons, a trust, or a legal entity such as a corporation or limited liability company. An ADU permitted under this section shall not be offered or rented for tourist or transient use or through a hosting platform, as such terms are defined in § 42-63.1-2.

An ADU that meets the requirements of §§ 45-24-31 and 45-24-73(a) shall be a permitted use in all residential zoning districts. An ADU that meets the requirements of §§ 45-24-31 and 45-24-73(a) shall be permitted through an administrative building permit process only.

One ADU per lot shall be allowed by right under the following circumstances:

Uniform Standards. An ADU shall have no more than two bedrooms and comply with the following standards:

Any ADU permitted by right under the provisions of this section that is not part of a larger development proposal shall be approved administratively. Prior to the issuance of a building permit, the Building Official shall review the application for an ADU and make the following determinations:

An accessory dwelling unit may be counted towards Charlestown's affordable housing goals pursuant to the relevant requirements of Chapter 53 of Title 45 of the RI General Laws, and may be counted towards the ten (10) percent of the year-round housing units in Charlestown as required by the RI Low and Moderate Income Housing Act, if the tenant of the unit has a one-year lease and the following conditions are met:

Accessory dwelling units eligible to be counted toward Charlestown's affordable housing goal under this section shall be counted as one-half (0.5) units each in every year for which documentation required to establish eligibility is provided annually to Rhode Island Housing by the selected approved monitoring agent.

Purpose. The purpose of a residential compound is to offer an alternative to conventional subdivisions in order to maintain the rural character of certain parcels by reducing the number of buildable lots and impervious road surface. A residential compound is intended to be sensitive to natural features and physical qualities of the land that may not be otherwise preserved through a conventional subdivision. To achieve these purposes, procedures are established in this section so that the Planning Commission may authorize the creation of residential compounds through either minor or major subdivision review.

Subdivision Approval Required. No construction within a residential compound shall begin until a preliminary plan of such has been approved by the Planning Commission as a subdivision according to the Charlestown Subdivision and Land Development Regulations.

Density. The allowable density for a residential compound shall be no more than fifty percent (50%) of the number of lots which would be allowed under a conventional subdivision, determined by the submittal of a yield plan, as defined in the Charlestown Subdivision and Land Development Regulations, and accepted by the Planning Commission. If the yield plan indicates an odd number of lots, the half lot resulting from the fifty percent (50%) reduction shall be rounded down to the nearest whole number, except as provided below. By way of example, if the yield plan shows five (5) lots, only two (2) lots shall be permitted. Rounding up is only permitted as follows:

Lots. Individual lot sizes may vary, except that no single lot in the R-40 Zone shall have an area of less than 20,000 square feet, and no single lot in the R-2A and R-3A Zones shall have an area of less than one (1) acre. An existing frontage lot of record, and/or a frontage lot that could be created on the parcel without the construction of the public road as shown on the yield plan, can be incorporated into the residential compound at a one to one ratio. There shall be no more than five (5) developable lots served by a single common private way.

Minimum Frontage Requirement. Any parcel of land that is to be subdivided into a residential compound shall have a minimum frontage of fifty (50) feet on a public street. All interior lots within the residential compound shall have physical access, with variable frontage lengths, to a private way. As a condition of approval, the Planning Commission must find that the proposed frontage for all lots shall ensure adequate vehicular access for normal and emergency purposes within the residential compound.

Private Way Requirements. The private way constructed to provide access to the lots in a residential compound shall connect to a public street, and shall not under any circumstances be connected to any other private way. For design standards of a residential compound private way, see the Charlestown Subdivision and Land Development Regulations.

Ownership and Maintenance of Private Way. The private way in a residential compound may be owned in common, in equal portions and in perpetuity by the property owners of each residential compound, or may be owned in fee by one landowner in the compound with easement rights provided to the other landowners within the compound. To ensure the maintenance of the private way, an applicant for a residential compound shall file with the Planning Commission a mandatory homeowners' association plan, which shall be a condition of approval of any residential compound. At a minimum, the mandatory homeowners' association plan shall provide for the maintenance of the private way, repair, snow removal, and other improvements that individual future homeowners may require, in accordance with this Ordinance and the Charlestown Subdivision and Land Development Regulations. The homeowners' association shall indemnify, hold harmless and release the Town from all liability and all damages resulting from any action brought by a third party, including individual future homeowners, in any court due to the failure of the homeowners to repair, use, or maintain the private way to the standards established by the regulations. The owner or owners of the private way, for themselves, their successors, heirs, and assigns in consideration of the Planning Commission approving a residential compound thereby waive all rights to have the private way accepted in the highway system of the Town of Charlestown pursuant to R.I.G.L. § 24-2-8.1.

Exception to Common Private Way. A residential compound may be developed without a common private way if it consists of two lots only, and one lot has the minimum required frontage on a public road for the respective zoning district. The second lot must have a minimum frontage of twenty-five (25) feet contiguous with that of the frontage lot. Access to the second lot may be by its own driveway from the public road, or by means of a common driveway and appropriate access easement.

Perimeter Buffer. The Planning Commission may require a vegetated buffer of open space, which may include wetlands, around the entire perimeter of the subdivision, excluding the private way, to provide a visual and audio screen between adjacent land uses, with consideration given to the presence of natural resources on an adjacent parcel that would be protected by a buffer. No structure may be built in the perimeter buffer, with the exception of stormwater control and drainage structures, and waterfront structures, such as docks, piers or boathouses. The width of the buffer shall be as determined by the Planning Commission, with consideration of the ameliorative effects of the following:

Restrictions. Any subdivision restrictions imposed by the Planning Commission shall be noted on the subdivision plan and in any deeds recorded in the Land Evidence Records of the Town conveying any lots in an approved residential compound. In addition, the following notations shall be added to the final plans:

Other Conditions. The Planning Commission may impose such other conditions it deems necessary to protect the public health, safety, and welfare, including but not limited to, drainage, building envelope, setbacks, roadway location, buffers, and lot arrangements.