Groton City Zoning Code
§ 218-8.1
Off-street parking and loading.
A.
Performance requirements. Adequate parking must be available to service the net increase in parking demand created by new construction, additions or change of use.
B.
Number of spaces. The standards below must be met for the additional parking demand created by new buildings, additions or changes of use. No loading area shall be counted as parking space. The Planning Board may waive the parking requirements when requested to do so by the site plan review applicant, who shall provide specific circumstances and the justification and public purpose of the waivers requested.
Parking Schedule | ||
|---|---|---|
Land Use | Minimum1 (number of spaces) | Maximum2 (number of spaces) |
Single-family or two-family dwellings with more than 1 bedroom | 2 per unit | Not applicable |
Multifamily dwellings | 1.5 per unit | 3 per unit |
Places of public assembly | 1 per 5 seats | 1 per 3 seats |
Public and private schools | 1.5 per classroom, plus 1 per 5 seats in an auditorium | 1 per 3 seats per classroom, plus 1 per 3 seats in an auditorium |
Day-care center and preschools | 1 per 8 children capacity | 1 per 4 children capacity |
Libraries and museums | 1 per 1,000 GFA | 2 per 1,000 GFA |
Hotels, motels and lodger accommodations without function rooms and/or eating establishments | 1.25 per each sleeping room accommodation | 1.5 per each sleeping room accommodation |
Hotels, motels and lodger accommodations with function rooms and/or eating establishments | 1 per each sleeping room accommodation; plus 1 per every 5 seats in the function hall; plus 1 per every 3 seats in an eating establishment | 1.25 per each sleeping room accommodation plus 1 per every 3 seats in the function hall; plus 1 per every 2 seats in an eating establishment |
Bed-and-breakfast | 1 per guestroom in addition to the number of spaces required for the on-site residence of the owner | 1.25 per guestroom in addition to the number of spaces required for the on-site residence of the owner |
Hospitals, residential rehabilitation facilities, nursing homes and elder care facilities | 1 for every 2 beds, plus 4 per 1,000 GFA of in-patient treatment area, and 5 for every 1,000 GFA of out-patient treatment area | 1 for every 1.5 beds, plus 3 per 1,000 GFA of in-patient treatment area, and 4 for every 1,000 GFA of out-patient treatment area |
Assisted living facilities | 1 per unit | 1.5 per unit |
Out-patient clinics | 3 per treatment area | 5 per treatment area |
Medical, dental or other health care offices | 5 per 1,000 GFA | 10 per 1,000 GFA |
Business or professional office | 3 per 1,000 GFA | 5 per 1,000 GFA |
Freestanding retail | 3 per 1,000 GFA | 5 per 1,000 GFA |
Supermarket | 3 per 1,000 GFA | 5 per 1,000 GFA |
Shopping center | 3 per 1,000 GFA | 5 per 1,000 GFA |
Bank | 2 per 1,000 GFA | 4 per 1,000 GFA |
Restaurant, sit down | 5 plus 1 for every 3 seats | 5 plus 1 for every 2 seats |
Restaurant, take-out | 5 per 1,000 GFA | 10 per 1,000 GFA |
Personal service establishment | 3 per 1,000 GFA | 5 per 1,000 GFA |
Industrial establishments | 1 per 1,000 GFA | 2.5 per 1,000 GFA |
Mixed and other uses | To be determined by the Planning Board during major site plan review or by the Building Commissioner and Land Use Director during minor site plan review | To be determined by the Planning Board during major site plan review or by the Building Commissioner and Land Use Director during minor site plan review |
NOTES: | |
1 | Computations shall be rounded to the highest number. |
2 | Computations shall be rounded to the highest number. |
C.
Parking area design location.
(1)
Location. Required parking shall be on the same premises as the activity it serves in the R-B, VCB, NB, GB or I Districts. Each parcel in the VCB District shall be credited with five on-street parking spaces if the parcel is located where on-street parking or a municipal parking lot is available. Such on-street parking spaces shall not qualify as meeting parking requirements for the purposes of § 218-2.5B, Applicability.
(2)
Configuration. Dimensions of space and aisles shall adequately provide for clearance and movement. The Planning Board shall adopt and from time to time amend standards for such dimensions, reflecting current vehicle size. Parking spaces shall not block access to dumpsters. Specially designated parking spaces for the physically handicapped shall be provided in conformance with the Rules and Regulations of the Architectural Access Board, 521 CMR and the Americans with Disabilities Act and current regulations of the American National Standards Institute (ANSI).
(3)
Access. Required off-street parking and loading spaces shall have adequate vehicular access to a street as determined by the Building Commissioner, or if site plan review is involved, the Planning Board. A parking area with more than 50 parking spaces shall have a minimum of two access points on a public way unless waived by the Planning Board.
(4)
Surface. Off-street parking, loading areas and access drives, if involving six or more parking spaces, shall be treated with bituminous or other paving material unless the Planning Board authorizes an alternative surface which, because of only seasonal or periodic use, will adequately prevent dust, erosion, water accumulation and unsightly conditions, and shall be provided where necessary with appropriate bumper and wheel guards. Illumination shall be so arranged and screened if necessary as to deflect light away from adjoining lots and abutting streets.
(5)
Backing. Parking areas shall be so designed that no vehicle will be required to back into a public way to exit from a parking space.
(6)
Maintenance. Parking spaces shall be cleaned, plowed and maintained in good condition at all times and shall not be used for any use that interferes with their availability for the need which they are required to serve.
(7)
Parking lot plantings. At least 5% of the interior of any parking lot having up to five spaces shall be maintained with landscaping, including trees, in plots of at least four feet in width unless waived by the Planning Board. At least 10% of the interior of any parking lot having from six to 50 spaces shall be maintained with landscaping, including trees, in plots of at least four feet in width. At least 15% of the interior of any parking lot having more than 50 spaces shall be maintained with landscaping, including trees, in plots of at least four feet in width. Trees and soil plots shall be so located as to provide visual relief and sun and wind interruption with the parking area and to assure safe patterns of internal circulations. The Planning Board shall adopt and may from time to time amend standards for such landscaping specifying types of plantings and other materials. Landscaping plantings (trees, shrubs, etc.) shall not consist of plantings that are identified as an invasive species by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources.
D.
Shared parking. When parking spaces are shared among different structures or uses, or among mixed uses, the site plan review applicant may propose properties with different owners. To implement shared on-site parking, the applicant shall provide analyses as part of site plan review to demonstrate that proposed uses are either competing or noncompeting.
(1)
Noncompeting uses. In mixed-use developments, applicants may propose a reduction in parking requirements based on an analysis of peak demands for noncompeting uses. Up to 75% of the requirements for the predominant use may be waived by the Planning Board if the applicant can demonstrate that the peak demands for two uses do not overlap. An applicant may use the latest peak demand analyses published by the Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE) or other source acceptable to the Planning Board.
(2)
Competing uses. In mixed-use developments, applicants may propose a reduction in parking requirements where peak demands do overlap. In these cases, the Planning Board may reduce the parking requirements of the predominant use by up to 30%.
E.
Parking lot layout.
(1)
Parking lots shall be designed to include median strips and landscape islands to improve internal circulation and provide shade and visual screening throughout the parking area. Additionally, landscaped or naturally vegetated islands should interrupt rows of parking. Parking spaces shall be located a minimum of 20 feet from the edge of the rights-of-way.
(2)
Parking lots and access drives shall be designed to prevent vehicles from stacking onto the public way. Parking areas shall be interconnected with abutting lots wherever feasible. Driveway entrances, exits, and typical lanes shall be a minimum of 24 feet in width.
(3)
Parking spaces shall be the following minimum dimensions:
Angle of Parking | Width of Space (feet) | Depth of Space (feet) | Width of Maneuvering Aisle (feet) |
|---|---|---|---|
90° | 9.0 | 18 | 24 (2-way traffic) |
60° | 10.5 | 22 | 18 (1-way traffic) |
45° | 13.0 | 25 | 14 (1-way traffic) |
Parallel | 9.0 | 22 | 14 (1-way traffic) |
Parallel | 9.0 | 22 | 18 (2-way traffic) |
F.
Shared driveways. A shared driveway shall not be adequate access except that, by special permit from the Planning Board, a shared driveway may be authorized to provide access to parking spaces on no more than three lots, provided that vehicular access to the buildable portion of each lot is possible from the street providing legal frontage to the lot without reliance on the shared driveway.