Newbury, MA Zoning Ordinance

Newbury City Zoning Code

ARTICLE XI

ADMINISTRATION

§ 97-11 Administration.

Enforcement.

Authority to enforce. This Bylaw shall be enforced by the Select Board or a Building Commissioner appointed by them. No building shall be built or altered and the use of a building shall not be changed without a permit having been issued by the appropriate permitting authority or the Building Commissioner.

(2)

Granting of building permits.

The Building Commissioner shall not grant a permit for the use, construction or alteration of any building unless the provisions of this Bylaw have been met.

(3)

Building permit requirements.

(a)

No building shall be erected, moved, placed on a lot, added to or structurally altered until a permit therefore has been issued by the Building Commissioner.

(b)

No excavation for a building foundation nor work on a foundation shall be commenced, until a building permit has been issued by the Building Commissioner.

(c)

No building permit shall be issued unless the application for such permit complies with the Building Code and this Bylaw, and is accompanied by such written information, plans, elevations and sections, specifications and other data necessary as determined by the Building Commissioner, for a full and accurate description of the proposed construction, alteration or use. A record of such applications shall be kept on file in the office of the Building Commissioner.

(d)

Lapse of building permit. A building permit shall lapse if construction has not begun within six months from the issuance of the building permit. A permit shall remain valid only if the use, construction or alteration for which it was issued proceeds in good faith continuously to completion except for good cause shown.

(4)

Changes in approved construction, alteration, or use. If subsequent to the issuance of a special permit, variance, or building permit, changes in approved construction, alteration or use are desired, the applicant shall inform the Building Commissioner in writing of these changes and his written approval must be obtained in advance of any work commencing. Said notification shall be confirmed in writing to the Building Commissioner together with appropriate revised plans and specifications within one week from said approval and the building permit shall be amended accordingly. If a site plan approval, special permit or variance has been issued, written approval from the permit granting authority is required before the Building Commissioner will accept the proposed changes, unless otherwise provided in the permit granting authority permit.

(5)

Certified plot plan. Within 21 days after the completion of the foundation, the applicant shall file with the Building Commissioner, a plot plan based upon an actual current survey, showing the location of the foundation on the lot and first floor elevation prepared by a registered land surveyor who shall certify on the plan that the location of the foundation complies with this Bylaw and any relief granted hereunder.

(6)

Violation of building permits. If the Building Commissioner finds that any of the provisions of this Bylaw are being violated, he shall notify in writing the person responsible for such violation, indicating the nature of the violation, and order the action necessary to correct it. The Building Commissioner shall order discontinuance of illegal use of land or buildings, or construction of buildings, or work related thereto; removal of illegal buildings, additions, alterations or structural changes; and shall take any other action authorized by this Bylaw to ensure compliance with its provisions.

(7)

Appeals to Board of Appeals. If the Building Commissioner is requested in writing to enforce this Bylaw against any person allegedly in violation, the Building Commissioner shall respond, in writing, within 14 days of receipt of such request and state any enforcement measures and any other action taken or state a refusal to act and the reasons for that refusal or determination. Any person (including any Town board) aggrieved by an action taken or determination made by the Building Commissioner in the administration of this Bylaw may appeal within 30 days thereafter to the Board of Appeals in accordance with the requirements of G.L. c. 40A §§ 8 and 15 by filing with the Town Clerk notice of appeal in accordance therewith. The Town Clerk shall transmit copies thereof to the Board of Appeals and Building Commissioner.

(8)

Penalty for violation. Whoever violates any of the provisions of this Bylaw shall be punishable by a fine of $300 for each offence. Each day that such violation is permitted to exist shall constitute a separate offence. The imposition of a penalty shall not excuse the violation and shall not be held to prevent the enforced removal of prohibited conditions where they continue to exist as a violation of this Bylaw.

Zoning Board of Appeals.

(1)

Establishment. There is hereby established a Zoning Board of Appeals of 3 members and 2 associate members to be appointed by the Select Board, such 3 members to be appointed for terms of such length and so arranged so that the term of 1 member shall expire in each year. Such Board shall act on all matters within its jurisdiction under this Bylaw and under Chapter 40A of the General Laws in the manner prescribed in said Chapter 40A. Said Zoning Board of Appeals shall not be authorized to appoint a Zoning Administrator under the provisions of Section 13 of said Chapter 40A or under the provisions of any other applicable law.

(2)

Variances. The Zoning Board of Appeals shall be permitted to grant dimensional variances in accordance with the provisions of G.L. c. 40A § 10.

Reserved.

Definitions.

(1)

General.

(a)

For the purposes of this Bylaw, the following words and phrases shall have the following meanings, except that terms (including without limitation, appurtenant structure, base flood, development, flood, flooding, flood elevation determination, flood-prone area, flood-proofing mean sea level, mobile home, new construction, regulatory floodway, sand dunes, structure, substantial improvement and water surface elevation) used in Section 97-4E of this Bylaw, including all sections thereof inclusive shall be as set forth in Section 1909.1, Subchapter B of Chapter X of Title 24 of the Code of Federal Regulations, a copy of which Section 1909.1 shall be kept on file with the Town Clerk, the Planning Board and the Building Inspector.

(2)

Written Definitions.

*Accessory Structure:* A structure which houses or is being used for something other than an allowed principal use.
*Adult Arcade:* an establishment or portion thereof where, for any form of consideration, one or more still or motion picture projectors, slide projectors, or similar machines, or other image producing machines, for viewing by five (5) or fewer persons each, are used to show films, motion pictures, video cassettes, computer displays, slides, or other photographic reproductions which are characterized by the depiction or description of "Specified Sexual Activities" or "Specified Anatomical Areas."
*Adult Bookstore, Adult Novelty Store Or Adult Video Store:* a commercial establishment which has as a substantial portion of its stock in trade or a substantial portion of its revenues or devotes a substantial portion of its interior business or advertising to the sale, rental or viewing for any form of consideration, of any one or more of the following: books, magazines, periodicals or other printed matter, or photographs, films, motion pictures, video cassettes, slides, computer software or other visual representations which are characterized by the depiction or description of "Specified Sexual Activities" or "Specified Anatomical Areas"; or instruments, devices or paraphernalia which are designed for use in connection with "Specified Sexual Activities."
*Adult Cabaret:* a nightclub, bar, restaurant, bottle club, or similar commercial establishment, whether or not alcoholic beverages are served, which features: a. persons who appear semi-nude, b. live performances which are characterized by the exposure of "Specified Anatomical Areas" or by "Specified Sexual Activities"; or c. films, motion pictures, video cassettes. Computer software, slides, or other photographic reproductions which are characterized by the depiction or description of "Specified Sexual Activities" or "Specified Anatomical Areas."
*Adult Dance Club:* an establishment which, as its principal form of entertainment, permits a person or persons to perform in a state of nudity as defined in M.G.L. ch 272 § 31.
*Adult Entertainment Business:* shall mean those businesses meeting one or more of the following definitions: Adult Arcade, Adult Bookstore, Adult Novelty Store or Adult Video Store, Adult Cabaret, Adult Dance Club, or Adult Theater.
*Adult Theater:* a theater, concert hall, auditorium, or similar commercial establishment which, for any form of consideration, regularly features persons who appear semi-nude or live performances which are characterized by exposure of "Specified Anatomical Areas" or by "Specified Sexual Activities."
*Alteration:* Any construction, addition, or renovation to an existing structure, other than minor repairs, that requires a building permit. Also, a change in a mechanical, plumbing, gas, or electrical system that involves an extension, addition, or change to the arrangement, type, or purpose of the original installation and that requires a permit.
*Animal Boarding Kennels:* Facilities primarily for boarding of pets for extended periods, at least overnight, including care, feeding and grooming thereof.
*Animal Daycare:* Daytime care of animals including washing and grooming, without overnight care.
*Assisted Living or Life Care:* Residence or facility licensed by the State to provide supervision or assistance with activities of daily living (ADLs); coordination of services by outside health care providers; and monitoring of resident activities to help to ensure their health, safety, and well-being.
*Basement:* That portion of a building that is partly or completely below grade, which is not defined as a Story Above Grade.
*Bedroom:* shall mean a bedroom as defined in 310 CMR 15.002 of the State Environmental Code.
*Building:* A combination of any materials, whether portable or fixed, having a roof, the purpose of which is the shelter of persons, animals, property or processes. For the purpose of this definition, "roof" shall include an awning or any similar covering whether or not permanent in nature. The word "building" shall be construed where the context allows as though followed by the words "or parts thereof". Building includes open porches, open breezeway and other roofed areas.
*Building Supply Store:* Building for retail or wholesale sales of lumber, masonry supplies, roofing materials or similar merchandise.
*Bus Terminals/Railroad Terminals:* Facilities intended for the boarding and discharge of passengers, dispatch of buses and railroads as well as fueling and minor routine maintenance such as oil changes for buses.
*Child Care Facility:* A child care center or a school-aged child care program, as those terms are defined in Massachusetts General Laws, Chapter 15D, Section 1A.
*Commercial Parking Lot or Structure:* Imperviously paved areas, pervious areas intended for parking, and open or enclosed buildings primarily intended for the parking of passenger vehicles such as automobiles, vans, pick-up trucks, etc. This does not include parking areas for other approved uses.
*Common Wall/Floor:* A wall or floor that is connected, usable and heated on both sides of the existing dwelling.
*Contractor's Yard:* Office and shop buildings for a construction company or landscape contractor, including parking of equipment, and storage of materials. Bulk material storage, such as sand, gravel, loam, etc., must be limited to thirty (30) cubic yards of each material.
*Convenience Stores:* Retail establishment that sells food, liquor, other beverages, "over the counter" drugs, household supplies, tobacco products, lottery tickets and/or sundries.
*Dwelling, Multi-Family:* A single structure providing complete, independent living facilities for three or more families.
*Dwelling, Single Family:* A single structure providing complete, independent living facilities for one family.
*Dwelling, Two Family:* A single structure providing complete, independent living facilities for not more than two families.
*Dwelling Unit:* a single unit providing complete, independent living facilities for one (1) or more persons including permanent provision for living, sleeping, eating, cooking and sanitation.
*Feed Store:* A retail store catering to pet owners and farmers, selling pet and livestock feeds in bags or containers, rather than in bulk, along with associated products.
*Fence:* Any structure constructed of natural or manufactured materials, including but not limited to; wood, metal, plastic, wire mesh, or masonry erected for the purpose of screening one property from another either to assure privacy or to protect the property screened. For the purpose of this Bylaw, a masonry wall is considered to be a fence.
*Flicker:* Alternating light and shadow caused by sunlight passing through the moving rotor of a wind turbine.
*Floor Area, Gross:* shall mean the total square feet of floor space under a roof within the outside dimensions of a building including each floor level, without deduction for hallways, stairs, closets, thickness of walls, columns, or other features. Unfinished attics and suspended basements outside the thermal envelope shall not be counted as gross floor area.
*Floor Area Ratio (FAR):* shall be construed as a mathematical expression determined by dividing total gross floor area of a building by the area of the lot on which it is located. For example, a lot with 12,000 square feet in a district with a maximum FAR of .25 could contain no more than 3,000 square feet of gross floor area (12,000 X .25 = 3,000).
*Footprint:* shall mean the total square feet to the outermost dimensions of a structure and/or building including decks, porches, and staircases.
*Grade Plane:* A reference plane representing the average of finished ground level adjoining the building at exterior walls. Where the finished ground level slopes away from the exterior walls, the reference plane shall be established by the lowest points within the area between the building and the lot line or, where the lot line is more than six feet (1829 mm) from the building, between the building and a point six feet (1829 mm) from the building.
*Groundwater:* All water found beneath the surface of the ground.
*Hazardous Material Storage:* Storage of all substances defined as toxic or hazardous under Massachusetts General Laws. Chapters 21C and 21E, and 310 CMR 30.00; as well as such products as solvents and thinners in quantities greater than those associated with normal household use.
*Height, Building:* The dimension in feet as measured from the mean level of the established grade at the building to the highest point of the roof (including parapet) for flat roofs, to the deck line for mansard roofs, and to the mean height (midpoint) between the highest eaves and ridge of the main body of the roof for gable, hip, shed, saltbox, and gambrel roofs, or combinations thereof. Height restrictions shall not apply to chimneys, spires, cupolas, bulkheads, TV antennae and other appurtenances not intended for human occupancy. Grade measurements are to be taken from existing, undisturbed topography.
*Height, Wind Turbine:* The distance from the average grade at the base of the tower (or structure to which it is attached) to the tip of the rotor blade at its highest point, or blade-tip height.
*Heliports:* Facilities for landing and takeoff of rotary wing aircraft, as well as facilities for aircraft fueling and maintenance, and air traffic control.
*Hospital and Medical Center:* An institution that provides medical, surgical, or psychiatric care and treatment for the sick or the injured; may also include related services for in-patient and/or out-patient medical, surgical, or psychiatric care.
*Impervious Material:* Material or structure on, above, or below the ground that does not allow precipitation or surface water to penetrate into the ground.
*Industrial Clean-up Services:* Service companies including hazardous material spill clean-up firms, asbestos removal firms, janitorial firms, and similar facilities.
*Light Manufacturing:* Facilities engaged in the transformation of materials, predominantly from previously prepared materials, or finished products or parts, including processing, fabrication, assembly, treatment, packaging incidental storage and distribution of such products.
*Lot:* An area or parcel of land or any part thereof, in separate or common ownership, designated on a plan filed with the Building Commissioner by its owner or owners as a separate lot and having boundaries identical with those recorded in the Southern Essex Registry of Deeds.
*Lot Coverage, Maximum:* The percentage of the total area of a lot covered by buildings and/or structures.
*Lot, Frontage:* The continuous portion of the line separating a lot from a street to which the owner of the lot has a legal right of access and from which the owner could provide for vehicular access to the principal building or a required parking space. When a lot is bounded by more than one street, frontage shall be on the street designated by the property owner or, if not so designated, on the street with the longest frontage. However, in the case of a lot bounded by two streets forming an interior angle of more than 135 degrees, their combined frontage between lot lines may be used to satisfy the lot frontage requirement.
*Lot Line, Front:* The property line dividing a lot from a street right-of-way.
*Lot Line, Rear:* Any lot line which is parallel to or within 45 degrees of being parallel to a front lot line, except for a lot line that is itself a front lot line, and except that in the case of a corner lot, the owner shall have the option of choosing which of the two lot lines that are not front lot lines is to be considered the rear lot line. In the case of a lot having no street frontage or a lot of odd shape, only the one lot line furthest from any street shall be considered a rear lot line.
*Lot Line, Side:* Any lot line not a front or rear lot line.
*Lot, Non-conforming:* Any Lot which does not conform to the dimensional and area requirements in this ordinance for the district in which it is located; provided, that such Lot was in existence and lawful at the time the applicable provisions of this or prior zoning ordinances became effective, and meets the requirements of G.L. c. 40A sec. 6 par. 4
*Manufacturing:* Facilities engaged in the mechanical or chemical transformation of materials or substances into new products, including the assembly of component parts, the fabrication of products, treatment of articles or merchandise, and the blending of materials such as lubricating oils, plastics, resins or liquors.
*Mining or Quarrying:* Removal, relocation and/or processing of earth products such as stone, gravel, sand, topsoil or mineral ores or other geological material. Processing shall include crushing, screening, intraplant conveying, washing and storage of products. Concrete and asphalt batch and mixing plants are included in this use.
*Mini-Storage Warehouses:* A building consisting of individual, small, self-contained units that are leased or owned for the storage of business and household goods or contractors supplies.
*Mixed Use Structure:* A building which contains nonresidential or hotel uses on the first floor and may contain such uses on any other floor and also may contain one (1) or more residential units on any floor other than the first floor.
*Mobile Home or House Trailer:* A dwelling or residence designed as year-round living quarters, whether so used or not, and built on a chassis to be moved from site to site, whether used with or without a foundation.
*Museum:* An institution devoted to the procurement, care, study, and the public display of objects of lasting interest or value.
*Nacelle:* The frame and housing at the top of the tower that encloses the gearbox and generator and protects them from the weather.
*Non-Profit Recreational Facility:* Recreational facility- a playground, ball field, gym or swimming pool or structure for other recreational pursuits, operated by a not-for-profit entity.
*Nursing Home:* An extended or intermediate care facility licensed or approved to provide full-time convalescent or chronic care to individuals who, by reason of advanced age, chronic illness or infirmity, are unable to care for themselves.
*On-Site Wind Facility:* A wind project which is located at a commercial, industrial, agricultural, institutional, or public facility that will consume more than 50% of the electricity generated annually by the project on-site.
*Open Storage:* Storage of raw materials, finished goods and equipment or household goods, appliances and products, or the like, which are open to view from a public right of way.
*Performing Arts Center.* A multi-use performance space that is intended for use by various types of the performing arts, including dance, music and theatre.
*Rated Nameplate Capacity:* The maximum rated output of electric power production equipment. This output is typically specified by the manufacturer with a "nameplate" on the equipment.
*Open Storage of Raw Materials, Etc.:* Storage of products, other than products of a mining operation (such as stone, crushed stone, gravel, sand and loam) in the open air, not inside a building. This does not include storage of small quantities of materials incidental to other permitted uses, such as a contractor's yard.
*Recharge Areas:* Areas that collect precipitation or surface water and transmit it to aquifers. Recharge areas may include areas designated as Zone I, Zone II, or Zone III.
*Reconstruction:* Shall mean the structural alteration of the existing building, but shall not include the demolition and rebuilding thereof.
*Rehabilitation Center:* A facility not providing overnight accommodations that provides outpatient therapy and training for rehabilitation, to help their clients regain skills needed to function. The center may offer occupational therapy, physical therapy, vocational training, and special training such as speech therapy.
*Rehabilitation Residence:* Residence for persons recovering from treatment for alcohol and drug abuse.
*Retail Establishment Selling General Merchandise:* Retail establishment selling such items as shoes, clothing and accessories, dry goods, household wares, appliances and equipment, furniture, hardware, books, jewelry, gifts, sporting goods, stationery, automotive parts and accessories.
*Retail/Service Kiosk Automated Teller Machines:* Stand-alone structures providing services or entertainment, as opposed to products, to the general public including but not limited to banking - including integrated ATMs, real estate and insurance, and establishments providing personal services.
*Rotor:* The blades and hub of the wind turbine that rotate during turbine operation.
*Sales by Vending Machines:* Sales by a machine that automatically dispenses consumer goods such as videos, compact disks, cigarettes, food, or beverages when money is inserted.
*Shopping/Business Center:* A shopping/business center or complex with smaller shops/business uses, which is planned, constructed and managed as a total entity and where no one retail and/or service use exceeds twenty-five thousand (25,000) square feet and where the total gross square feet of the principle structure shall not contain more than seventy thousand (70,000) gross square feet and which includes onsite parking.
*Specified Anatomical Areas:* shall include any of the following:
1)		Less than completely and opaquely covered human genitals, pubic region, buttocks, anus, or female breasts below a point immediately above the top of the areolae; or
2)		human male genitals in a discernibly turgid state, even if completely and opaquely covered.
*Specified Sexual Activities:* shall mean and include any of the following:
1)		the fondling or other intentional touching of human genitals, pubic region, buttocks, anus, or female breasts; or
2)		Sex acts, normal or perverted, actual or simulated, including intercourse, oral copulation, or sodomy; or
3)		masturbation, actual or simulated; or
4)		human genitals in a state of sexual stimulation, arousal or tumescence; or
5)		excretory functions as part of or in connection with any of the activities set forth in this definition.
*Story:* That portion of a building included between the upper surface of a floor and the upper surface of the floor or roof next above, excluding attics that have no habitable area and that are used solely for storage and to house mechanical equipment. Intermediate level(s) such as mezzanines, lofts, and penthouses shall be counted as a story.
*Story above Grade:* Any story having its finished floor surface entirely above grade, except that a basement shall be considered as a story above grade where the finished surface of the floor above the basement is:
a.		More than 6 feet (1829 mm) above grade plan;
b.		More than 6 feet (1829 mm) above the finished ground level for more than 50 percent of the total building perimeter;
c.		More than 12 feet (3658 mm) above the finished ground level at any point.
*Street:* shall mean:
1)		a public way or a way which the Town Clerk certifies is physically constructed and maintained and used as a public way; or
2)		a private way shown on a definitive subdivision plan endorsed subsequent to 1953 and built to the specifications set forth therein; or
3)		a way presently having in the opinion of the Planning Board sufficient width, suitable grades and adequate construction to provide for the needs of vehicular traffic in relation to the proposed uses of the land abutting thereon or served thereby, and for the installation of municipal services to serve such land and the buildings erected or to be erected thereon.
*Structure:* A combination of materials assembled at a fixed location to give support or shelter, such as a building, framework, retaining wall, tent, reviewing stand, platform, bin, fence, sign, flagpole, recreational tramway, mast for radio antenna or the like. The word "structure" shall be construed, where the context allows, as though followed by the words "or part or parts thereof."
*Substantial Evidence:* Such evidence as a reasonable mind might accept as adequate to support a conclusion.
*Suspended Basement:* A storage area suspended below a residential dwelling that:
a.	Is 250 s.f. or less measured from the exterior sides of outside wall to outside wall with deductions only for mechanical equipment;
b.	Can only be accessed from the exterior and has no access directly into the dwelling unit;
c.	Has a maximum ceiling height of 6'-2", measured from finished floor to ceiling framing;
d.	Is unfinished on the interior and unconditioned.
*Temporary Trailer:* A trailer serving as an office, workshop or storage facility during the construction of a building with a permitted use, or serving as temporary quarters for a building establishment undergoing repair or renovation.
*Toxic or Hazardous Material:* Any substance or mixture of physical, chemical, or infectious characteristics posing a significant, actual, or potential hazard to water supplies or other hazards to human health if such substance or mixture were discharged to land or water of the Town of Newbury. Toxic or hazardous materials include, without limitation, synthetic organic chemicals, petroleum products, heavy metals, radioactive or infectious wastes, acids and alkalis, and all substances defined as Toxic or Hazardous under Massachusetts General Laws (MGL) Chapters 21C and 21E and 310 CMR 30.00, and also include such products as solvents and thinners in quantities greater than normal household use.
*Trailer:* A furnished vehicle drawn by a truck or automobile and used when parked as a dwelling or office.
*Truck, Train and Bus Maintenance Facilities:* Facilities intended for the performance of routine as well as specialized, large-scale, major maintenance and repairs of trucks, trains or buses. This use includes fueling facilities.
*Truck Terminals:* Facilities intended to shelter truck, and to provide facilities for fueling and minor routine maintenance on trucks. This includes dispatching facilities.
*Use, Accessory:* A purpose subordinate to and dependent upon the principal use of a lot.
See Mixed Use Structure
*Use, Principal:* The main or primary purpose for which a structure or lot is designed, arranged, or intended or for which it is permitted to be used, occupied or maintained under this Bylaw.
*Utility-Scale Wind Facility:* A commercial wind facility, where the primary use of the facility is electrical generation to be sold to the wholesale electricity markets.
*Water and Wastewater Systems:* Facilities which take raw and/or contaminated water and treat it by physical, chemical and biological means so as to render it potable. Also, facilities that treat industrial and domestic waste in the same manner, so as to render it suitable for discharge into waterways. Such facilities are central processing systems and do not include wells and on-lot sewage disposal systems (septic tanks and leaching systems) intended for single residential, commercial or industrial facilities.
*Water Transport of Goods and People:* Water taxis, ferries, excursion boats, party boats for fishing, and similar uses.
*Wholesale Trade, Warehousing and Distribution:* Facilities intended to provide indoor storage of products and materials, not manufactured on the premises, and which will be further transported to other locations.
*Wind Energy System/Wind Energy Facility:* All equipment, machinery and structures utilized in connection with the conversion of wind to electricity. This includes, but is not limited to, transmission, storage, electrical collection and supply equipment, substations, transformers, service and access roads, and one or more wind turbines.
*Wind Monitoring or Meteorological ("test" or "met") Tower:* A temporary tower equipped with anemometer, wind vane, and other equipment to measure wind speed and direction, used to determine how much wind power a site can be expected to generate.
*Wind Turbine:* A single device that converts kinetic wind energy into rotational energy that drives an electrical generator. A wind turbine typically consists of a tower, nacelle body and components, and rotor with two or more blades.
*Wireless Communication Facilities:* shall mean the provision of the following types of services: cellular telephone service, personal communications service, enhanced specialized mobile radio service, and radio transmission.
*Zone II:* The area of an aquifer which contributes water to a well under the most severe pumping and recharge conditions that can be realistically anticipated (180 days of pumping at safe yield with no recharge from precipitation) as defined in 310 CMR 22.00.
*Zoning Map:* The Zoning Districts and Zoning Overlay Districts, as detailed on a set of maps together entitled "Official Zoning Map of the Town of Newbury," with all boundary lines designated thereon; said Zoning Map shall hereby be part of this Bylaw and shall be on file in the office of the Town Clerk.

Newbury City Zoning Code

ARTICLE XI

ADMINISTRATION

§ 97-11 Administration.

Enforcement.

(1)

(2)

Granting of building permits.

The Building Commissioner shall not grant a permit for the use, construction or alteration of any building unless the provisions of this Bylaw have been met.

(3)

Building permit requirements.

(a)

No building shall be erected, moved, placed on a lot, added to or structurally altered until a permit therefore has been issued by the Building Commissioner.

(b)

No excavation for a building foundation nor work on a foundation shall be commenced, until a building permit has been issued by the Building Commissioner.

Zoning Board of Appeals.

(1)

(2)

Variances. The Zoning Board of Appeals shall be permitted to grant dimensional variances in accordance with the provisions of G.L. c. 40A § 10.

Reserved.

Definitions.

(1)

General.

(a)

(2)

Written Definitions.

*Accessory Structure:* A structure which houses or is being used for something other than an allowed principal use.
*Adult Arcade:* an establishment or portion thereof where, for any form of consideration, one or more still or motion picture projectors, slide projectors, or similar machines, or other image producing machines, for viewing by five (5) or fewer persons each, are used to show films, motion pictures, video cassettes, computer displays, slides, or other photographic reproductions which are characterized by the depiction or description of "Specified Sexual Activities" or "Specified Anatomical Areas."
*Adult Bookstore, Adult Novelty Store Or Adult Video Store:* a commercial establishment which has as a substantial portion of its stock in trade or a substantial portion of its revenues or devotes a substantial portion of its interior business or advertising to the sale, rental or viewing for any form of consideration, of any one or more of the following: books, magazines, periodicals or other printed matter, or photographs, films, motion pictures, video cassettes, slides, computer software or other visual representations which are characterized by the depiction or description of "Specified Sexual Activities" or "Specified Anatomical Areas"; or instruments, devices or paraphernalia which are designed for use in connection with "Specified Sexual Activities."
*Adult Cabaret:* a nightclub, bar, restaurant, bottle club, or similar commercial establishment, whether or not alcoholic beverages are served, which features: a. persons who appear semi-nude, b. live performances which are characterized by the exposure of "Specified Anatomical Areas" or by "Specified Sexual Activities"; or c. films, motion pictures, video cassettes. Computer software, slides, or other photographic reproductions which are characterized by the depiction or description of "Specified Sexual Activities" or "Specified Anatomical Areas."
*Adult Dance Club:* an establishment which, as its principal form of entertainment, permits a person or persons to perform in a state of nudity as defined in M.G.L. ch 272 § 31.
*Adult Entertainment Business:* shall mean those businesses meeting one or more of the following definitions: Adult Arcade, Adult Bookstore, Adult Novelty Store or Adult Video Store, Adult Cabaret, Adult Dance Club, or Adult Theater.
*Adult Theater:* a theater, concert hall, auditorium, or similar commercial establishment which, for any form of consideration, regularly features persons who appear semi-nude or live performances which are characterized by exposure of "Specified Anatomical Areas" or by "Specified Sexual Activities."
*Alteration:* Any construction, addition, or renovation to an existing structure, other than minor repairs, that requires a building permit. Also, a change in a mechanical, plumbing, gas, or electrical system that involves an extension, addition, or change to the arrangement, type, or purpose of the original installation and that requires a permit.
*Animal Boarding Kennels:* Facilities primarily for boarding of pets for extended periods, at least overnight, including care, feeding and grooming thereof.
*Animal Daycare:* Daytime care of animals including washing and grooming, without overnight care.
*Assisted Living or Life Care:* Residence or facility licensed by the State to provide supervision or assistance with activities of daily living (ADLs); coordination of services by outside health care providers; and monitoring of resident activities to help to ensure their health, safety, and well-being.
*Basement:* That portion of a building that is partly or completely below grade, which is not defined as a Story Above Grade.
*Bedroom:* shall mean a bedroom as defined in 310 CMR 15.002 of the State Environmental Code.
*Building:* A combination of any materials, whether portable or fixed, having a roof, the purpose of which is the shelter of persons, animals, property or processes. For the purpose of this definition, "roof" shall include an awning or any similar covering whether or not permanent in nature. The word "building" shall be construed where the context allows as though followed by the words "or parts thereof". Building includes open porches, open breezeway and other roofed areas.
*Building Supply Store:* Building for retail or wholesale sales of lumber, masonry supplies, roofing materials or similar merchandise.
*Bus Terminals/Railroad Terminals:* Facilities intended for the boarding and discharge of passengers, dispatch of buses and railroads as well as fueling and minor routine maintenance such as oil changes for buses.
*Child Care Facility:* A child care center or a school-aged child care program, as those terms are defined in Massachusetts General Laws, Chapter 15D, Section 1A.
*Commercial Parking Lot or Structure:* Imperviously paved areas, pervious areas intended for parking, and open or enclosed buildings primarily intended for the parking of passenger vehicles such as automobiles, vans, pick-up trucks, etc. This does not include parking areas for other approved uses.
*Common Wall/Floor:* A wall or floor that is connected, usable and heated on both sides of the existing dwelling.
*Contractor's Yard:* Office and shop buildings for a construction company or landscape contractor, including parking of equipment, and storage of materials. Bulk material storage, such as sand, gravel, loam, etc., must be limited to thirty (30) cubic yards of each material.
*Convenience Stores:* Retail establishment that sells food, liquor, other beverages, "over the counter" drugs, household supplies, tobacco products, lottery tickets and/or sundries.
*Dwelling, Multi-Family:* A single structure providing complete, independent living facilities for three or more families.
*Dwelling, Single Family:* A single structure providing complete, independent living facilities for one family.
*Dwelling, Two Family:* A single structure providing complete, independent living facilities for not more than two families.
*Dwelling Unit:* a single unit providing complete, independent living facilities for one (1) or more persons including permanent provision for living, sleeping, eating, cooking and sanitation.
*Feed Store:* A retail store catering to pet owners and farmers, selling pet and livestock feeds in bags or containers, rather than in bulk, along with associated products.
*Fence:* Any structure constructed of natural or manufactured materials, including but not limited to; wood, metal, plastic, wire mesh, or masonry erected for the purpose of screening one property from another either to assure privacy or to protect the property screened. For the purpose of this Bylaw, a masonry wall is considered to be a fence.
*Flicker:* Alternating light and shadow caused by sunlight passing through the moving rotor of a wind turbine.
*Floor Area, Gross:* shall mean the total square feet of floor space under a roof within the outside dimensions of a building including each floor level, without deduction for hallways, stairs, closets, thickness of walls, columns, or other features. Unfinished attics and suspended basements outside the thermal envelope shall not be counted as gross floor area.
*Floor Area Ratio (FAR):* shall be construed as a mathematical expression determined by dividing total gross floor area of a building by the area of the lot on which it is located. For example, a lot with 12,000 square feet in a district with a maximum FAR of .25 could contain no more than 3,000 square feet of gross floor area (12,000 X .25 = 3,000).
*Footprint:* shall mean the total square feet to the outermost dimensions of a structure and/or building including decks, porches, and staircases.
*Grade Plane:* A reference plane representing the average of finished ground level adjoining the building at exterior walls. Where the finished ground level slopes away from the exterior walls, the reference plane shall be established by the lowest points within the area between the building and the lot line or, where the lot line is more than six feet (1829 mm) from the building, between the building and a point six feet (1829 mm) from the building.
*Groundwater:* All water found beneath the surface of the ground.
*Hazardous Material Storage:* Storage of all substances defined as toxic or hazardous under Massachusetts General Laws. Chapters 21C and 21E, and 310 CMR 30.00; as well as such products as solvents and thinners in quantities greater than those associated with normal household use.
*Height, Building:* The dimension in feet as measured from the mean level of the established grade at the building to the highest point of the roof (including parapet) for flat roofs, to the deck line for mansard roofs, and to the mean height (midpoint) between the highest eaves and ridge of the main body of the roof for gable, hip, shed, saltbox, and gambrel roofs, or combinations thereof. Height restrictions shall not apply to chimneys, spires, cupolas, bulkheads, TV antennae and other appurtenances not intended for human occupancy. Grade measurements are to be taken from existing, undisturbed topography.
*Height, Wind Turbine:* The distance from the average grade at the base of the tower (or structure to which it is attached) to the tip of the rotor blade at its highest point, or blade-tip height.
*Heliports:* Facilities for landing and takeoff of rotary wing aircraft, as well as facilities for aircraft fueling and maintenance, and air traffic control.
*Hospital and Medical Center:* An institution that provides medical, surgical, or psychiatric care and treatment for the sick or the injured; may also include related services for in-patient and/or out-patient medical, surgical, or psychiatric care.
*Impervious Material:* Material or structure on, above, or below the ground that does not allow precipitation or surface water to penetrate into the ground.
*Industrial Clean-up Services:* Service companies including hazardous material spill clean-up firms, asbestos removal firms, janitorial firms, and similar facilities.
*Light Manufacturing:* Facilities engaged in the transformation of materials, predominantly from previously prepared materials, or finished products or parts, including processing, fabrication, assembly, treatment, packaging incidental storage and distribution of such products.
*Lot:* An area or parcel of land or any part thereof, in separate or common ownership, designated on a plan filed with the Building Commissioner by its owner or owners as a separate lot and having boundaries identical with those recorded in the Southern Essex Registry of Deeds.
*Lot Coverage, Maximum:* The percentage of the total area of a lot covered by buildings and/or structures.
*Lot, Frontage:* The continuous portion of the line separating a lot from a street to which the owner of the lot has a legal right of access and from which the owner could provide for vehicular access to the principal building or a required parking space. When a lot is bounded by more than one street, frontage shall be on the street designated by the property owner or, if not so designated, on the street with the longest frontage. However, in the case of a lot bounded by two streets forming an interior angle of more than 135 degrees, their combined frontage between lot lines may be used to satisfy the lot frontage requirement.
*Lot Line, Front:* The property line dividing a lot from a street right-of-way.
*Lot Line, Rear:* Any lot line which is parallel to or within 45 degrees of being parallel to a front lot line, except for a lot line that is itself a front lot line, and except that in the case of a corner lot, the owner shall have the option of choosing which of the two lot lines that are not front lot lines is to be considered the rear lot line. In the case of a lot having no street frontage or a lot of odd shape, only the one lot line furthest from any street shall be considered a rear lot line.
*Lot Line, Side:* Any lot line not a front or rear lot line.
*Lot, Non-conforming:* Any Lot which does not conform to the dimensional and area requirements in this ordinance for the district in which it is located; provided, that such Lot was in existence and lawful at the time the applicable provisions of this or prior zoning ordinances became effective, and meets the requirements of G.L. c. 40A sec. 6 par. 4
*Manufacturing:* Facilities engaged in the mechanical or chemical transformation of materials or substances into new products, including the assembly of component parts, the fabrication of products, treatment of articles or merchandise, and the blending of materials such as lubricating oils, plastics, resins or liquors.
*Mining or Quarrying:* Removal, relocation and/or processing of earth products such as stone, gravel, sand, topsoil or mineral ores or other geological material. Processing shall include crushing, screening, intraplant conveying, washing and storage of products. Concrete and asphalt batch and mixing plants are included in this use.
*Mini-Storage Warehouses:* A building consisting of individual, small, self-contained units that are leased or owned for the storage of business and household goods or contractors supplies.
*Mixed Use Structure:* A building which contains nonresidential or hotel uses on the first floor and may contain such uses on any other floor and also may contain one (1) or more residential units on any floor other than the first floor.
*Mobile Home or House Trailer:* A dwelling or residence designed as year-round living quarters, whether so used or not, and built on a chassis to be moved from site to site, whether used with or without a foundation.
*Museum:* An institution devoted to the procurement, care, study, and the public display of objects of lasting interest or value.
*Nacelle:* The frame and housing at the top of the tower that encloses the gearbox and generator and protects them from the weather.
*Non-Profit Recreational Facility:* Recreational facility- a playground, ball field, gym or swimming pool or structure for other recreational pursuits, operated by a not-for-profit entity.
*Nursing Home:* An extended or intermediate care facility licensed or approved to provide full-time convalescent or chronic care to individuals who, by reason of advanced age, chronic illness or infirmity, are unable to care for themselves.
*On-Site Wind Facility:* A wind project which is located at a commercial, industrial, agricultural, institutional, or public facility that will consume more than 50% of the electricity generated annually by the project on-site.
*Open Storage:* Storage of raw materials, finished goods and equipment or household goods, appliances and products, or the like, which are open to view from a public right of way.
*Performing Arts Center.* A multi-use performance space that is intended for use by various types of the performing arts, including dance, music and theatre.
*Rated Nameplate Capacity:* The maximum rated output of electric power production equipment. This output is typically specified by the manufacturer with a "nameplate" on the equipment.
*Open Storage of Raw Materials, Etc.:* Storage of products, other than products of a mining operation (such as stone, crushed stone, gravel, sand and loam) in the open air, not inside a building. This does not include storage of small quantities of materials incidental to other permitted uses, such as a contractor's yard.
*Recharge Areas:* Areas that collect precipitation or surface water and transmit it to aquifers. Recharge areas may include areas designated as Zone I, Zone II, or Zone III.
*Reconstruction:* Shall mean the structural alteration of the existing building, but shall not include the demolition and rebuilding thereof.
*Rehabilitation Center:* A facility not providing overnight accommodations that provides outpatient therapy and training for rehabilitation, to help their clients regain skills needed to function. The center may offer occupational therapy, physical therapy, vocational training, and special training such as speech therapy.
*Rehabilitation Residence:* Residence for persons recovering from treatment for alcohol and drug abuse.
*Retail Establishment Selling General Merchandise:* Retail establishment selling such items as shoes, clothing and accessories, dry goods, household wares, appliances and equipment, furniture, hardware, books, jewelry, gifts, sporting goods, stationery, automotive parts and accessories.
*Retail/Service Kiosk Automated Teller Machines:* Stand-alone structures providing services or entertainment, as opposed to products, to the general public including but not limited to banking - including integrated ATMs, real estate and insurance, and establishments providing personal services.
*Rotor:* The blades and hub of the wind turbine that rotate during turbine operation.
*Sales by Vending Machines:* Sales by a machine that automatically dispenses consumer goods such as videos, compact disks, cigarettes, food, or beverages when money is inserted.
*Shopping/Business Center:* A shopping/business center or complex with smaller shops/business uses, which is planned, constructed and managed as a total entity and where no one retail and/or service use exceeds twenty-five thousand (25,000) square feet and where the total gross square feet of the principle structure shall not contain more than seventy thousand (70,000) gross square feet and which includes onsite parking.
*Specified Anatomical Areas:* shall include any of the following:
1)		Less than completely and opaquely covered human genitals, pubic region, buttocks, anus, or female breasts below a point immediately above the top of the areolae; or
2)		human male genitals in a discernibly turgid state, even if completely and opaquely covered.
*Specified Sexual Activities:* shall mean and include any of the following:
1)		the fondling or other intentional touching of human genitals, pubic region, buttocks, anus, or female breasts; or
2)		Sex acts, normal or perverted, actual or simulated, including intercourse, oral copulation, or sodomy; or
3)		masturbation, actual or simulated; or
4)		human genitals in a state of sexual stimulation, arousal or tumescence; or
5)		excretory functions as part of or in connection with any of the activities set forth in this definition.
*Story:* That portion of a building included between the upper surface of a floor and the upper surface of the floor or roof next above, excluding attics that have no habitable area and that are used solely for storage and to house mechanical equipment. Intermediate level(s) such as mezzanines, lofts, and penthouses shall be counted as a story.
*Story above Grade:* Any story having its finished floor surface entirely above grade, except that a basement shall be considered as a story above grade where the finished surface of the floor above the basement is:
a.		More than 6 feet (1829 mm) above grade plan;
b.		More than 6 feet (1829 mm) above the finished ground level for more than 50 percent of the total building perimeter;
c.		More than 12 feet (3658 mm) above the finished ground level at any point.
*Street:* shall mean:
1)		a public way or a way which the Town Clerk certifies is physically constructed and maintained and used as a public way; or
2)		a private way shown on a definitive subdivision plan endorsed subsequent to 1953 and built to the specifications set forth therein; or
3)		a way presently having in the opinion of the Planning Board sufficient width, suitable grades and adequate construction to provide for the needs of vehicular traffic in relation to the proposed uses of the land abutting thereon or served thereby, and for the installation of municipal services to serve such land and the buildings erected or to be erected thereon.
*Structure:* A combination of materials assembled at a fixed location to give support or shelter, such as a building, framework, retaining wall, tent, reviewing stand, platform, bin, fence, sign, flagpole, recreational tramway, mast for radio antenna or the like. The word "structure" shall be construed, where the context allows, as though followed by the words "or part or parts thereof."
*Substantial Evidence:* Such evidence as a reasonable mind might accept as adequate to support a conclusion.
*Suspended Basement:* A storage area suspended below a residential dwelling that:
a.	Is 250 s.f. or less measured from the exterior sides of outside wall to outside wall with deductions only for mechanical equipment;
b.	Can only be accessed from the exterior and has no access directly into the dwelling unit;
c.	Has a maximum ceiling height of 6'-2", measured from finished floor to ceiling framing;
d.	Is unfinished on the interior and unconditioned.
*Temporary Trailer:* A trailer serving as an office, workshop or storage facility during the construction of a building with a permitted use, or serving as temporary quarters for a building establishment undergoing repair or renovation.
*Toxic or Hazardous Material:* Any substance or mixture of physical, chemical, or infectious characteristics posing a significant, actual, or potential hazard to water supplies or other hazards to human health if such substance or mixture were discharged to land or water of the Town of Newbury. Toxic or hazardous materials include, without limitation, synthetic organic chemicals, petroleum products, heavy metals, radioactive or infectious wastes, acids and alkalis, and all substances defined as Toxic or Hazardous under Massachusetts General Laws (MGL) Chapters 21C and 21E and 310 CMR 30.00, and also include such products as solvents and thinners in quantities greater than normal household use.
*Trailer:* A furnished vehicle drawn by a truck or automobile and used when parked as a dwelling or office.
*Truck, Train and Bus Maintenance Facilities:* Facilities intended for the performance of routine as well as specialized, large-scale, major maintenance and repairs of trucks, trains or buses. This use includes fueling facilities.
*Truck Terminals:* Facilities intended to shelter truck, and to provide facilities for fueling and minor routine maintenance on trucks. This includes dispatching facilities.
*Use, Accessory:* A purpose subordinate to and dependent upon the principal use of a lot.
See Mixed Use Structure
*Use, Principal:* The main or primary purpose for which a structure or lot is designed, arranged, or intended or for which it is permitted to be used, occupied or maintained under this Bylaw.
*Utility-Scale Wind Facility:* A commercial wind facility, where the primary use of the facility is electrical generation to be sold to the wholesale electricity markets.
*Water and Wastewater Systems:* Facilities which take raw and/or contaminated water and treat it by physical, chemical and biological means so as to render it potable. Also, facilities that treat industrial and domestic waste in the same manner, so as to render it suitable for discharge into waterways. Such facilities are central processing systems and do not include wells and on-lot sewage disposal systems (septic tanks and leaching systems) intended for single residential, commercial or industrial facilities.
*Water Transport of Goods and People:* Water taxis, ferries, excursion boats, party boats for fishing, and similar uses.
*Wholesale Trade, Warehousing and Distribution:* Facilities intended to provide indoor storage of products and materials, not manufactured on the premises, and which will be further transported to other locations.
*Wind Energy System/Wind Energy Facility:* All equipment, machinery and structures utilized in connection with the conversion of wind to electricity. This includes, but is not limited to, transmission, storage, electrical collection and supply equipment, substations, transformers, service and access roads, and one or more wind turbines.
*Wind Monitoring or Meteorological ("test" or "met") Tower:* A temporary tower equipped with anemometer, wind vane, and other equipment to measure wind speed and direction, used to determine how much wind power a site can be expected to generate.
*Wind Turbine:* A single device that converts kinetic wind energy into rotational energy that drives an electrical generator. A wind turbine typically consists of a tower, nacelle body and components, and rotor with two or more blades.
*Wireless Communication Facilities:* shall mean the provision of the following types of services: cellular telephone service, personal communications service, enhanced specialized mobile radio service, and radio transmission.
*Zone II:* The area of an aquifer which contributes water to a well under the most severe pumping and recharge conditions that can be realistically anticipated (180 days of pumping at safe yield with no recharge from precipitation) as defined in 310 CMR 22.00.
*Zoning Map:* The Zoning Districts and Zoning Overlay Districts, as detailed on a set of maps together entitled "Official Zoning Map of the Town of Newbury," with all boundary lines designated thereon; said Zoning Map shall hereby be part of this Bylaw and shall be on file in the office of the Town Clerk.

Newbury City Zoning Code

ARTICLE XI

ADMINISTRATION

§ 97-11 Administration.

Enforcement.

(1)

(2)

Granting of building permits.

The Building Commissioner shall not grant a permit for the use, construction or alteration of any building unless the provisions of this Bylaw have been met.

(3)

Building permit requirements.

(a)

No building shall be erected, moved, placed on a lot, added to or structurally altered until a permit therefore has been issued by the Building Commissioner.

(b)

No excavation for a building foundation nor work on a foundation shall be commenced, until a building permit has been issued by the Building Commissioner.

Zoning Board of Appeals.

(1)

(2)

Variances. The Zoning Board of Appeals shall be permitted to grant dimensional variances in accordance with the provisions of G.L. c. 40A § 10.

Reserved.

Definitions.

(1)

General.

(a)

(2)

Written Definitions.

*Accessory Structure:* A structure which houses or is being used for something other than an allowed principal use.
*Adult Arcade:* an establishment or portion thereof where, for any form of consideration, one or more still or motion picture projectors, slide projectors, or similar machines, or other image producing machines, for viewing by five (5) or fewer persons each, are used to show films, motion pictures, video cassettes, computer displays, slides, or other photographic reproductions which are characterized by the depiction or description of "Specified Sexual Activities" or "Specified Anatomical Areas."
*Adult Bookstore, Adult Novelty Store Or Adult Video Store:* a commercial establishment which has as a substantial portion of its stock in trade or a substantial portion of its revenues or devotes a substantial portion of its interior business or advertising to the sale, rental or viewing for any form of consideration, of any one or more of the following: books, magazines, periodicals or other printed matter, or photographs, films, motion pictures, video cassettes, slides, computer software or other visual representations which are characterized by the depiction or description of "Specified Sexual Activities" or "Specified Anatomical Areas"; or instruments, devices or paraphernalia which are designed for use in connection with "Specified Sexual Activities."
*Adult Cabaret:* a nightclub, bar, restaurant, bottle club, or similar commercial establishment, whether or not alcoholic beverages are served, which features: a. persons who appear semi-nude, b. live performances which are characterized by the exposure of "Specified Anatomical Areas" or by "Specified Sexual Activities"; or c. films, motion pictures, video cassettes. Computer software, slides, or other photographic reproductions which are characterized by the depiction or description of "Specified Sexual Activities" or "Specified Anatomical Areas."
*Adult Dance Club:* an establishment which, as its principal form of entertainment, permits a person or persons to perform in a state of nudity as defined in M.G.L. ch 272 § 31.
*Adult Entertainment Business:* shall mean those businesses meeting one or more of the following definitions: Adult Arcade, Adult Bookstore, Adult Novelty Store or Adult Video Store, Adult Cabaret, Adult Dance Club, or Adult Theater.
*Adult Theater:* a theater, concert hall, auditorium, or similar commercial establishment which, for any form of consideration, regularly features persons who appear semi-nude or live performances which are characterized by exposure of "Specified Anatomical Areas" or by "Specified Sexual Activities."
*Alteration:* Any construction, addition, or renovation to an existing structure, other than minor repairs, that requires a building permit. Also, a change in a mechanical, plumbing, gas, or electrical system that involves an extension, addition, or change to the arrangement, type, or purpose of the original installation and that requires a permit.
*Animal Boarding Kennels:* Facilities primarily for boarding of pets for extended periods, at least overnight, including care, feeding and grooming thereof.
*Animal Daycare:* Daytime care of animals including washing and grooming, without overnight care.
*Assisted Living or Life Care:* Residence or facility licensed by the State to provide supervision or assistance with activities of daily living (ADLs); coordination of services by outside health care providers; and monitoring of resident activities to help to ensure their health, safety, and well-being.
*Basement:* That portion of a building that is partly or completely below grade, which is not defined as a Story Above Grade.
*Bedroom:* shall mean a bedroom as defined in 310 CMR 15.002 of the State Environmental Code.
*Building:* A combination of any materials, whether portable or fixed, having a roof, the purpose of which is the shelter of persons, animals, property or processes. For the purpose of this definition, "roof" shall include an awning or any similar covering whether or not permanent in nature. The word "building" shall be construed where the context allows as though followed by the words "or parts thereof". Building includes open porches, open breezeway and other roofed areas.
*Building Supply Store:* Building for retail or wholesale sales of lumber, masonry supplies, roofing materials or similar merchandise.
*Bus Terminals/Railroad Terminals:* Facilities intended for the boarding and discharge of passengers, dispatch of buses and railroads as well as fueling and minor routine maintenance such as oil changes for buses.
*Child Care Facility:* A child care center or a school-aged child care program, as those terms are defined in Massachusetts General Laws, Chapter 15D, Section 1A.
*Commercial Parking Lot or Structure:* Imperviously paved areas, pervious areas intended for parking, and open or enclosed buildings primarily intended for the parking of passenger vehicles such as automobiles, vans, pick-up trucks, etc. This does not include parking areas for other approved uses.
*Common Wall/Floor:* A wall or floor that is connected, usable and heated on both sides of the existing dwelling.
*Contractor's Yard:* Office and shop buildings for a construction company or landscape contractor, including parking of equipment, and storage of materials. Bulk material storage, such as sand, gravel, loam, etc., must be limited to thirty (30) cubic yards of each material.
*Convenience Stores:* Retail establishment that sells food, liquor, other beverages, "over the counter" drugs, household supplies, tobacco products, lottery tickets and/or sundries.
*Dwelling, Multi-Family:* A single structure providing complete, independent living facilities for three or more families.
*Dwelling, Single Family:* A single structure providing complete, independent living facilities for one family.
*Dwelling, Two Family:* A single structure providing complete, independent living facilities for not more than two families.
*Dwelling Unit:* a single unit providing complete, independent living facilities for one (1) or more persons including permanent provision for living, sleeping, eating, cooking and sanitation.
*Feed Store:* A retail store catering to pet owners and farmers, selling pet and livestock feeds in bags or containers, rather than in bulk, along with associated products.
*Fence:* Any structure constructed of natural or manufactured materials, including but not limited to; wood, metal, plastic, wire mesh, or masonry erected for the purpose of screening one property from another either to assure privacy or to protect the property screened. For the purpose of this Bylaw, a masonry wall is considered to be a fence.
*Flicker:* Alternating light and shadow caused by sunlight passing through the moving rotor of a wind turbine.
*Floor Area, Gross:* shall mean the total square feet of floor space under a roof within the outside dimensions of a building including each floor level, without deduction for hallways, stairs, closets, thickness of walls, columns, or other features. Unfinished attics and suspended basements outside the thermal envelope shall not be counted as gross floor area.
*Floor Area Ratio (FAR):* shall be construed as a mathematical expression determined by dividing total gross floor area of a building by the area of the lot on which it is located. For example, a lot with 12,000 square feet in a district with a maximum FAR of .25 could contain no more than 3,000 square feet of gross floor area (12,000 X .25 = 3,000).
*Footprint:* shall mean the total square feet to the outermost dimensions of a structure and/or building including decks, porches, and staircases.
*Grade Plane:* A reference plane representing the average of finished ground level adjoining the building at exterior walls. Where the finished ground level slopes away from the exterior walls, the reference plane shall be established by the lowest points within the area between the building and the lot line or, where the lot line is more than six feet (1829 mm) from the building, between the building and a point six feet (1829 mm) from the building.
*Groundwater:* All water found beneath the surface of the ground.
*Hazardous Material Storage:* Storage of all substances defined as toxic or hazardous under Massachusetts General Laws. Chapters 21C and 21E, and 310 CMR 30.00; as well as such products as solvents and thinners in quantities greater than those associated with normal household use.
*Height, Building:* The dimension in feet as measured from the mean level of the established grade at the building to the highest point of the roof (including parapet) for flat roofs, to the deck line for mansard roofs, and to the mean height (midpoint) between the highest eaves and ridge of the main body of the roof for gable, hip, shed, saltbox, and gambrel roofs, or combinations thereof. Height restrictions shall not apply to chimneys, spires, cupolas, bulkheads, TV antennae and other appurtenances not intended for human occupancy. Grade measurements are to be taken from existing, undisturbed topography.
*Height, Wind Turbine:* The distance from the average grade at the base of the tower (or structure to which it is attached) to the tip of the rotor blade at its highest point, or blade-tip height.
*Heliports:* Facilities for landing and takeoff of rotary wing aircraft, as well as facilities for aircraft fueling and maintenance, and air traffic control.
*Hospital and Medical Center:* An institution that provides medical, surgical, or psychiatric care and treatment for the sick or the injured; may also include related services for in-patient and/or out-patient medical, surgical, or psychiatric care.
*Impervious Material:* Material or structure on, above, or below the ground that does not allow precipitation or surface water to penetrate into the ground.
*Industrial Clean-up Services:* Service companies including hazardous material spill clean-up firms, asbestos removal firms, janitorial firms, and similar facilities.
*Light Manufacturing:* Facilities engaged in the transformation of materials, predominantly from previously prepared materials, or finished products or parts, including processing, fabrication, assembly, treatment, packaging incidental storage and distribution of such products.
*Lot:* An area or parcel of land or any part thereof, in separate or common ownership, designated on a plan filed with the Building Commissioner by its owner or owners as a separate lot and having boundaries identical with those recorded in the Southern Essex Registry of Deeds.
*Lot Coverage, Maximum:* The percentage of the total area of a lot covered by buildings and/or structures.
*Lot, Frontage:* The continuous portion of the line separating a lot from a street to which the owner of the lot has a legal right of access and from which the owner could provide for vehicular access to the principal building or a required parking space. When a lot is bounded by more than one street, frontage shall be on the street designated by the property owner or, if not so designated, on the street with the longest frontage. However, in the case of a lot bounded by two streets forming an interior angle of more than 135 degrees, their combined frontage between lot lines may be used to satisfy the lot frontage requirement.
*Lot Line, Front:* The property line dividing a lot from a street right-of-way.
*Lot Line, Rear:* Any lot line which is parallel to or within 45 degrees of being parallel to a front lot line, except for a lot line that is itself a front lot line, and except that in the case of a corner lot, the owner shall have the option of choosing which of the two lot lines that are not front lot lines is to be considered the rear lot line. In the case of a lot having no street frontage or a lot of odd shape, only the one lot line furthest from any street shall be considered a rear lot line.
*Lot Line, Side:* Any lot line not a front or rear lot line.
*Lot, Non-conforming:* Any Lot which does not conform to the dimensional and area requirements in this ordinance for the district in which it is located; provided, that such Lot was in existence and lawful at the time the applicable provisions of this or prior zoning ordinances became effective, and meets the requirements of G.L. c. 40A sec. 6 par. 4
*Manufacturing:* Facilities engaged in the mechanical or chemical transformation of materials or substances into new products, including the assembly of component parts, the fabrication of products, treatment of articles or merchandise, and the blending of materials such as lubricating oils, plastics, resins or liquors.
*Mining or Quarrying:* Removal, relocation and/or processing of earth products such as stone, gravel, sand, topsoil or mineral ores or other geological material. Processing shall include crushing, screening, intraplant conveying, washing and storage of products. Concrete and asphalt batch and mixing plants are included in this use.
*Mini-Storage Warehouses:* A building consisting of individual, small, self-contained units that are leased or owned for the storage of business and household goods or contractors supplies.
*Mixed Use Structure:* A building which contains nonresidential or hotel uses on the first floor and may contain such uses on any other floor and also may contain one (1) or more residential units on any floor other than the first floor.
*Mobile Home or House Trailer:* A dwelling or residence designed as year-round living quarters, whether so used or not, and built on a chassis to be moved from site to site, whether used with or without a foundation.
*Museum:* An institution devoted to the procurement, care, study, and the public display of objects of lasting interest or value.
*Nacelle:* The frame and housing at the top of the tower that encloses the gearbox and generator and protects them from the weather.
*Non-Profit Recreational Facility:* Recreational facility- a playground, ball field, gym or swimming pool or structure for other recreational pursuits, operated by a not-for-profit entity.
*Nursing Home:* An extended or intermediate care facility licensed or approved to provide full-time convalescent or chronic care to individuals who, by reason of advanced age, chronic illness or infirmity, are unable to care for themselves.
*On-Site Wind Facility:* A wind project which is located at a commercial, industrial, agricultural, institutional, or public facility that will consume more than 50% of the electricity generated annually by the project on-site.
*Open Storage:* Storage of raw materials, finished goods and equipment or household goods, appliances and products, or the like, which are open to view from a public right of way.
*Performing Arts Center.* A multi-use performance space that is intended for use by various types of the performing arts, including dance, music and theatre.
*Rated Nameplate Capacity:* The maximum rated output of electric power production equipment. This output is typically specified by the manufacturer with a "nameplate" on the equipment.
*Open Storage of Raw Materials, Etc.:* Storage of products, other than products of a mining operation (such as stone, crushed stone, gravel, sand and loam) in the open air, not inside a building. This does not include storage of small quantities of materials incidental to other permitted uses, such as a contractor's yard.
*Recharge Areas:* Areas that collect precipitation or surface water and transmit it to aquifers. Recharge areas may include areas designated as Zone I, Zone II, or Zone III.
*Reconstruction:* Shall mean the structural alteration of the existing building, but shall not include the demolition and rebuilding thereof.
*Rehabilitation Center:* A facility not providing overnight accommodations that provides outpatient therapy and training for rehabilitation, to help their clients regain skills needed to function. The center may offer occupational therapy, physical therapy, vocational training, and special training such as speech therapy.
*Rehabilitation Residence:* Residence for persons recovering from treatment for alcohol and drug abuse.
*Retail Establishment Selling General Merchandise:* Retail establishment selling such items as shoes, clothing and accessories, dry goods, household wares, appliances and equipment, furniture, hardware, books, jewelry, gifts, sporting goods, stationery, automotive parts and accessories.
*Retail/Service Kiosk Automated Teller Machines:* Stand-alone structures providing services or entertainment, as opposed to products, to the general public including but not limited to banking - including integrated ATMs, real estate and insurance, and establishments providing personal services.
*Rotor:* The blades and hub of the wind turbine that rotate during turbine operation.
*Sales by Vending Machines:* Sales by a machine that automatically dispenses consumer goods such as videos, compact disks, cigarettes, food, or beverages when money is inserted.
*Shopping/Business Center:* A shopping/business center or complex with smaller shops/business uses, which is planned, constructed and managed as a total entity and where no one retail and/or service use exceeds twenty-five thousand (25,000) square feet and where the total gross square feet of the principle structure shall not contain more than seventy thousand (70,000) gross square feet and which includes onsite parking.
*Specified Anatomical Areas:* shall include any of the following:
1)		Less than completely and opaquely covered human genitals, pubic region, buttocks, anus, or female breasts below a point immediately above the top of the areolae; or
2)		human male genitals in a discernibly turgid state, even if completely and opaquely covered.
*Specified Sexual Activities:* shall mean and include any of the following:
1)		the fondling or other intentional touching of human genitals, pubic region, buttocks, anus, or female breasts; or
2)		Sex acts, normal or perverted, actual or simulated, including intercourse, oral copulation, or sodomy; or
3)		masturbation, actual or simulated; or
4)		human genitals in a state of sexual stimulation, arousal or tumescence; or
5)		excretory functions as part of or in connection with any of the activities set forth in this definition.
*Story:* That portion of a building included between the upper surface of a floor and the upper surface of the floor or roof next above, excluding attics that have no habitable area and that are used solely for storage and to house mechanical equipment. Intermediate level(s) such as mezzanines, lofts, and penthouses shall be counted as a story.
*Story above Grade:* Any story having its finished floor surface entirely above grade, except that a basement shall be considered as a story above grade where the finished surface of the floor above the basement is:
a.		More than 6 feet (1829 mm) above grade plan;
b.		More than 6 feet (1829 mm) above the finished ground level for more than 50 percent of the total building perimeter;
c.		More than 12 feet (3658 mm) above the finished ground level at any point.
*Street:* shall mean:
1)		a public way or a way which the Town Clerk certifies is physically constructed and maintained and used as a public way; or
2)		a private way shown on a definitive subdivision plan endorsed subsequent to 1953 and built to the specifications set forth therein; or
3)		a way presently having in the opinion of the Planning Board sufficient width, suitable grades and adequate construction to provide for the needs of vehicular traffic in relation to the proposed uses of the land abutting thereon or served thereby, and for the installation of municipal services to serve such land and the buildings erected or to be erected thereon.
*Structure:* A combination of materials assembled at a fixed location to give support or shelter, such as a building, framework, retaining wall, tent, reviewing stand, platform, bin, fence, sign, flagpole, recreational tramway, mast for radio antenna or the like. The word "structure" shall be construed, where the context allows, as though followed by the words "or part or parts thereof."
*Substantial Evidence:* Such evidence as a reasonable mind might accept as adequate to support a conclusion.
*Suspended Basement:* A storage area suspended below a residential dwelling that:
a.	Is 250 s.f. or less measured from the exterior sides of outside wall to outside wall with deductions only for mechanical equipment;
b.	Can only be accessed from the exterior and has no access directly into the dwelling unit;
c.	Has a maximum ceiling height of 6'-2", measured from finished floor to ceiling framing;
d.	Is unfinished on the interior and unconditioned.
*Temporary Trailer:* A trailer serving as an office, workshop or storage facility during the construction of a building with a permitted use, or serving as temporary quarters for a building establishment undergoing repair or renovation.
*Toxic or Hazardous Material:* Any substance or mixture of physical, chemical, or infectious characteristics posing a significant, actual, or potential hazard to water supplies or other hazards to human health if such substance or mixture were discharged to land or water of the Town of Newbury. Toxic or hazardous materials include, without limitation, synthetic organic chemicals, petroleum products, heavy metals, radioactive or infectious wastes, acids and alkalis, and all substances defined as Toxic or Hazardous under Massachusetts General Laws (MGL) Chapters 21C and 21E and 310 CMR 30.00, and also include such products as solvents and thinners in quantities greater than normal household use.
*Trailer:* A furnished vehicle drawn by a truck or automobile and used when parked as a dwelling or office.
*Truck, Train and Bus Maintenance Facilities:* Facilities intended for the performance of routine as well as specialized, large-scale, major maintenance and repairs of trucks, trains or buses. This use includes fueling facilities.
*Truck Terminals:* Facilities intended to shelter truck, and to provide facilities for fueling and minor routine maintenance on trucks. This includes dispatching facilities.
*Use, Accessory:* A purpose subordinate to and dependent upon the principal use of a lot.
See Mixed Use Structure
*Use, Principal:* The main or primary purpose for which a structure or lot is designed, arranged, or intended or for which it is permitted to be used, occupied or maintained under this Bylaw.
*Utility-Scale Wind Facility:* A commercial wind facility, where the primary use of the facility is electrical generation to be sold to the wholesale electricity markets.
*Water and Wastewater Systems:* Facilities which take raw and/or contaminated water and treat it by physical, chemical and biological means so as to render it potable. Also, facilities that treat industrial and domestic waste in the same manner, so as to render it suitable for discharge into waterways. Such facilities are central processing systems and do not include wells and on-lot sewage disposal systems (septic tanks and leaching systems) intended for single residential, commercial or industrial facilities.
*Water Transport of Goods and People:* Water taxis, ferries, excursion boats, party boats for fishing, and similar uses.
*Wholesale Trade, Warehousing and Distribution:* Facilities intended to provide indoor storage of products and materials, not manufactured on the premises, and which will be further transported to other locations.
*Wind Energy System/Wind Energy Facility:* All equipment, machinery and structures utilized in connection with the conversion of wind to electricity. This includes, but is not limited to, transmission, storage, electrical collection and supply equipment, substations, transformers, service and access roads, and one or more wind turbines.
*Wind Monitoring or Meteorological ("test" or "met") Tower:* A temporary tower equipped with anemometer, wind vane, and other equipment to measure wind speed and direction, used to determine how much wind power a site can be expected to generate.
*Wind Turbine:* A single device that converts kinetic wind energy into rotational energy that drives an electrical generator. A wind turbine typically consists of a tower, nacelle body and components, and rotor with two or more blades.
*Wireless Communication Facilities:* shall mean the provision of the following types of services: cellular telephone service, personal communications service, enhanced specialized mobile radio service, and radio transmission.
*Zone II:* The area of an aquifer which contributes water to a well under the most severe pumping and recharge conditions that can be realistically anticipated (180 days of pumping at safe yield with no recharge from precipitation) as defined in 310 CMR 22.00.
*Zoning Map:* The Zoning Districts and Zoning Overlay Districts, as detailed on a set of maps together entitled "Official Zoning Map of the Town of Newbury," with all boundary lines designated thereon; said Zoning Map shall hereby be part of this Bylaw and shall be on file in the office of the Town Clerk.