Georgetown City Zoning Code
ARTICLE III
Rate of Development
[Added 6-26-1995 ATM, Art. 6 (Amdt. No. 92)]
§ 165-12 Purpose.
The purpose of this article is to protect and promote the public health, safety, welfare, education and preserve rural community character of the Town of Georgetown (the Town) by maintaining the growth of the Town at a manageable rate and to ensure that adequate time exists for the Town to expand its resources to provide those services necessary to meet the educational, infrastructure and public safety needs of the residents. The rate of development in the Town should not exceed the ability of the Town to provide adequate schools, roads, police, fire protection and other services necessary and appropriate to safeguard the health, welfare and safety of the current and future residents.
§ 165-13 Applicability.
[Amended 6-14-1999 ATM, Art. 39 (Amdt. No. 136); 10-23-2000 STM, Art. 14 (Amdt No. 145); 10-17-2005 STM, Art. 6 (Amdt. No. 156)]
This article shall apply to the issuance of all building permits for construction of all new residential dwelling units, with exemptions as set forth in § 165-17 herein. This article shall be effective through December 31, 2010. This chapter may be extended without lapse of its provisions, conditions and limitations by vote of a Town meeting of the Town prior to December 31, 2010.
§ 165-14 New dwelling unit limitation Town-wide.
A.
Building permits shall not be issued authorizing construction of (or conversion to) more than 24 residential dwelling units Town-wide in any twelve-month period. The number of residential dwelling units to be allowed in any month shall be determined by subtracting from 24 units the total authorized (minus permits withdrawn or expired without use) in the preceding 11 months. The 11 months prior to enactment of this provision shall be used to establish unit availability during the first year after enactment.
[Amended 6-14-1999 ATM, Art. 40 (Amdt. No. 137); 10-23-2000 STM, Art. 15 (Amdt. No. 146); 10-17-2005 ATM, Art. 6 (Amdt. No. 156)]
B.
Applications refused because of this limitation shall be held and acted upon in chronological sequence based upon the time of complete application to the Building Commissioner's office.
§ 165-15 Individual development phasing.
[Amended 6-14-1999 ATM, Art. 41 (Amdt. No. 138); 10-23-2000 STM, Art. 17 (Amdt. No. 148)]
Building permits shall not be issued authorizing construction of more than five residential dwelling units (exclusive of unused authorizations which have lapsed or have been withdrawn) in any twelve-month period on any set of lots which were created from land which, as of July 1, 1994, was contiguous and in the same ownership (or in different ownerships each involving one or more of the same principals) unless the Planning Board has granted a special permit for rapid development. Such special permit shall be granted only upon Planning Board determination that in addition to the special permit criteria of § 165-9, such development also would serve a salient housing need, would be infeasible if limited to five units over 12 months and would not overburden public services.
§ 165-16 Procedures.
[Amended 10-23-2000 STM, Art. 17 (Amdt. 148)]
No applicant may have more than two requests for a single-family residential dwelling unit building permit pending before the Building Inspector in any given month. No more than five residential dwelling unit building permits shall be issued to any one applicant in any twelve-month period. The procedures for issuing the residential dwelling unit building permits referred to herein shall be as follows:
A.
The applicant must complete and file a request to submit an application for a building permit to the Building Department. The applicant should submit the request to submit an application for a building permit only after having completed a building permit application package for the subject property.
B.
The Building Department will accept requests to submit an application for a building permit on a first-come-first-served basis during normal business hours. The Department will assign consecutive numbers to requests to submit an application for building permits as each is received and will stamp the date of receipt of each request. Applicants may not submit during any period more requests to submit an application for building permits than that number of residential dwelling unit building permits to which the applicant would be entitled during such period in accordance with this article.
C.
The Building Department will notify each applicant in the order that requests to submit an application for a building permit are received of its standing, based on the order of submission of requests, to submit a building permit application, such standing to be on a first-come-first-served basis. The Department shall not accept a greater number of applications than the number of residential dwelling unit building permits that may be issued during any month in accordance with this article.
D.
The applicant must submit the building permit application by delivery in hand within 10 days after notification from the Building Department that it will accept a building permit application. If a building permit application is not received within such ten-day period, the applicant must submit a new request to submit an application for a building permit, and will be assigned the then next consecutive request number. No building permit application will be accepted other than by delivery in hand. Building permit applications will be accepted during regular office hours only.
E.
Building permit application packages that are incomplete or rejected for any reason will be returned to the applicant. The applicant may then file a new request to submit an application for a building permit and will be assigned the then next consecutive request number.
F.
If a building permit location is accepted by the Building Department, a building permit may be issued at any time within 30 days of such submission, but not necessarily in the order of which applications were received.
G.
If a building permit application is submitted in one month and the building permit is not issued until a subsequent month, the permit shall be counted as having been issued in the month in which the application was submitted, for the purpose of determining compliance with this article.
§ 165-17 Exemptions.
This article shall not apply to building permits for the construction of the following:
A.
Any unit of affordable housing to be built under any program or statute intended to assist the construction of low- or moderate-income housing, as defined in the applicable statute or regulation, including Town bylaws.
[Amended 10-23-2000 STM, Art. 16 (Amdt. No. 147)]
B.
Restoration, expansion, alteration or reconstruction of a dwelling in existence as of the effective date of this provision.
C.
Permits for nonresidential purposes.
D.
Independent senior housing permitted under Article XVII of Chapter 165 of the Code of the Town of Georgetown.
[Added 10-23-2000 STM, Art. 12 (Amdt. No. 143)]
§ 165-18 Definitions.
As used in this article, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
APPLICANT
Individuals, partnerships, corporations, trusts and other legal entities in which the applicant of record holds a legal or beneficial ownership of greater than 1%.
DEVELOPMENT
Lots which were at any time after January 1, 1980, part of contiguous property under common ownership, or a development approved pursuant to Chapter 365, Subdivision Regulations, Chapter 165, Zoning, or any other applicable land use regulation.
§ 165-19 Separability.
The provisions of this article are hereby declared to be separable, and if any such provision or the application of such provision to any person or circumstance shall be held invalid or unconstitutional, such invalidity or unconstitutionality of any of the remaining provisions of this article or the application of such provision to any person or circumstance other than those as to which such provision is held to be invalid.