Palmer City Zoning Code
ARTICLE XIII
Floodplain District
§ 171-59 Purpose; uses; regulations.
[Amended 6-7-2004 ATM]
A.
Purpose.
(1)
The purposes of this district are:
(a)
To provide that lands in the Town of Palmer subject to seasonal or periodic flooding, as described hereinafter, shall not be used for residence or other purposes in such a manner as to endanger the health or safety of the occupants thereof.
(b)
To protect persons and property within the Town of Palmer from hazards of flood inundation by assuring the continuation of natural flow patterns and the maintenance of adequate and safe floodwater storage capacity.
(c)
To protect the community against pollution and costs which may be incurred when unsuitable uses occur along watercourses, wetlands, ponds, and reservoirs or in areas subject to flooding.
(2)
The Floodplain District is established as an overlay district to all other districts. All development, including structural and nonstructural activities, whether permitted by right or by special permit, must be in compliance with MGL c. 131, § 40, and with the requirements of the Massachusetts State Building Code pertaining to construction in floodplains.
B.
District delineation.
(1)
The Floodplain District is herein established as an overlay district. The district includes all special flood hazard areas within the Town of Palmer designated as Zone A or AE on the Hampden County Flood Insurance Rate Map (FIRM) issued by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) for the administration of the National Flood Insurance Program. The map panels of the Hampden County FIRM that are wholly or partially within the Town of Palmer are Panel Numbers 25013C0234E, 25013C0242E, 25013C0245E, 25013C0252E, 25013C0253E, 25013C0254E, 25013C0256E, 25013C0257E, 25013C0258E, 25013C0259E, 25013C0261E, 25013C0262E, 25013C0263E, 25013C0264E, 25013C0266E, 25013C0267E, 25013C0268E, 25013C0269E, 25013C0276E, and 25013C0278E, dated July 16, 2013. The exact boundaries of the district may be defined by the 100-year base flood elevations shown on the FIRM and further defined by the Hampden County Flood Insurance Study (FIS) report dated July 16, 2013. The FIRM and FIS report are incorporated herein by reference and are on file with the Planning Board.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I)]
(2)
The above-described Floodplain District is hereinafter also referred to as the "floodplain." The floodway is hereby defined to include both the area shown as within the floodway on the above-referenced maps and the area within the floodplain which lies 10 feet or more below the elevation of the floodplain limits. The boundaries of the floodway shall be determined by the limits of the more extensive of the aforesaid areas.
(3)
Within Zone A, where the one-hundred-year flood elevation is not provided on the FIRM, the developer/applicant shall obtain any existing flood elevation data and it shall be reviewed by the Building Inspector for its reasonable utilization toward meeting the elevation or floodproofing requirements, as appropriate, of this article and of the State Building Code. If the data is sufficiently detailed and accurate it shall be relied upon to require compliance with this chapter and the State Building Code.
(4)
Base flood elevation data is required for subdivision proposals or other developments greater than 50 lots or five acres, whichever is the lesser, within unnumbered A Zones.
C.
Notification of watercourse alteration. Notify in a riverine situation, the following of any alteration or relocation of a watercourse:
D.
Permitted uses. The following uses of low flood damage potential and causing no obstruction to flood flows shall be allowed, provided that they are permitted in the underlying district and they do not require structures, fill or storage of materials or equipment:
E.
Special permit uses. The following uses may be established in the floodplain, but not in the floodway, by special permit in accordance with the regulations in Article V, Administration and Enforcement:
(1)
Nonresidential buildings, structures, or uses which comply in all respects with the provisions of the underlying district, including excavation, filling, and storage of equipment or materials.
(2)
Construction and maintenance of at-grade roads, driveways, utilities and other associated roadway facilities when access to land that is not situated in the floodplain is not possible because of ownership patterns or the provisions of the rules and regulations governing subdivision of land in the Town of Palmer, Massachusetts.
F.
Use regulations.
(1)
Reference to existing regulations. The floodplain district is established as an overlay district to all other districts. All development in the district, including structural and nonstructural activities, whether permitted by right or by special permit, must be in compliance with MGL c. 131, § 40 and with the following:
(2)
Any variances from the provisions and requirements of the above-referenced state regulations may only be granted in accordance with the required variance procedures of these state regulations.
G.
General regulations:
(1)
The portion of any lot within the area delineated in Subsection B hereof may be used to meet the area and yard requirements for the district or districts in which the remainder of the lot is situated.
(2)
All encroachments, including fill, new construction, substantial improvements to existing structures and other development, are prohibited unless certification by a registered professional engineer is provided by the applicant, demonstrating that such encroachments shall not result in any increase in flood levels.
(3)
All substantial improvements to existing residential structures must have their lowest floor, including basements, elevated to or above the base flood levels.
(4)
All new nonresidential structures and substantial improvements to existing structures must have the lowest floor, including basement, elevated or floodproofed to or above the base flood level.
(5)
Mobile homes are prohibited within the floodway.