The Town of Rockland is hereby divided into the following types of districts:

Overlay zones. There are three types of overlay zones in the Town of Rockland, as shown on the Official Zoning Map. Regulations of the overlay zones apply in addition to those of the underlying district(s). The overlay zones are:

Rural Conservation (RC). This district is intended to protect the rural character of that portion of Rockland which is subject to natural limitations or in public or semipublic use as open space and to provide for wildlife, recreation, forestry and conservation uses in general.

Low-Density Residential (R1). This district is intended to provide for single-family and two-family dwellings in areas without public sewer services and free from negative impacts associated with incompatible commercial or similar uses.

Moderate- to High-Density Residential (R2). This district is intended to provide areas for moderate-to-high-density residential development and compatible activities in areas with public sewer capacity.

Neighborhood Business (NB). This district is intended to provide for commercial and mixed-use development within key neighborhoods and at relatively high density for the purpose of meeting the needs of residents for goods and services.

General Business (GB). This district is intended to provide areas within the Town for the general development of business and industry requiring significant land areas and attracting business from within both the region and the Town.

Downtown Overlay. The purpose of this zone is to encourage business in the core areas of the hamlets of Roscoe and Livingston Manor by waiving parking requirements for the parcels within the overlay zone. Such parking requirements of the underlying district remain in effect for any parcels outside the overlay zone.

Aquifer Protection Overlay. The purpose of this zone is to assist in the preservation of public health, general welfare, and safety of residents and to facilitate the adequate provision of water through the elimination or prevention of groundwater contamination in the vicinity of the well(s) which supply public water.

Watershed Protection Overlay. The purpose of this zone is to assist in the preservation of public health, general welfare, and safety of residents and to facilitate the adequate provision of water through the elimination or prevention of groundwater contamination in the vicinity of the well(s) which supply public water.

Zoning district boundary lines are intended generally to follow or connect the center lines of rights-of-way; existing lot lines; the mean water level of rivers, streams and other waterways; or Town boundary lines, all as shown on the Zoning Map; but where a district boundary line does not follow such a line, its position is shown on said Zoning Map by a specific dimension or relationship to such a line.

Where a district boundary line divides a lot of record at the time such line is established, the Planning Board may allow the extension of activities permitted in one district to the other as a special use.

When the specific location of a zoning district boundary line cannot be ascertained, the Code Enforcement Officer shall request the Planning Board to render an interpretation which shall then be used as the basis for applying zoning standards.

Whenever any owner or occupant of any property in the Town of Rockland shall, for any purpose or in any manner: establish a new use; clear, excavate or grade land in advance of expanding an existing use or establishing a new use (except for construction of a driveway onto a property, lawn or pasture); change an existing use; make permanent improvements; erect a new building; or move, alter, add to or enlarge any existing land use or building, such owner or occupant shall first comply with the requirements of this chapter and obtain a zoning permit, unless specifically exempted from such requirements by this chapter. A zoning permit shall be required whenever a change in land use occurs, regardless of whether any new construction is involved or not; excepting that agricultural harvesting, grazing, tilling and crop rotation shall be exempt from all permit requirements.

If a proposed use is not specifically listed in any category of uses or within any zoning district on the Schedule of District Regulations, the Planning Board shall render a formal determination as to whether or not the use is permitted in a given district, and if the use is permitted, it shall then process the application as a special use. The Planning Board shall make its determination on the basis of similarities of the use to other specifically listed uses within various districts, taking into consideration the impacts of the use on the community and the neighborhood in which it is proposed. This shall not permit the Planning Board to reclassify uses which are already listed nor shall the Planning Board allow any use which is not listed in a particular district if that use is already permitted in another district.

Minimum development standards. The development standards contained herein are minimums and shall apply to each dwelling unit unless otherwise specifically provided. A two-family dwelling shall, for example, ordinarily require the equivalent of two minimum sized lots insofar as lot area, as will any two dwelling units on the same property. Conversions of existing structures or redevelopments of existing uses for two-family or multifamily dwelling use, regardless of whether or not such conversions involve structural alterations, shall be subject to the multifamily dwelling standards of this chapter with the following exceptions:

Corner lots. No obstruction to vision (other than an existing building, post, column or tree) exceeding 30 inches in height above the established grade of the street at the property line shall be erected or maintained on any lot within the triangle formed by the street lot lines of such lot and a line drawn between points along such street lot lines 75 feet distant from their points of intersection.

Through lot requirements. A through lot shall be considered as having two street frontages, both of which shall be subject to the front yard requirements of this chapter.

Minimum lot frontage. All residential lots shall have a front lot line with a minimum length of 50 feet.

Flag lots. Development of new interior lots with limited lot frontage consisting of only an access right-of-way shall be permitted pursuant to the Town of Rockland Subdivision Regulations[1] provided:

Dwellings per lot. Except as specifically provided herein, and excluding preexisting nonconforming lots, no lot shall have on it more than one dwelling.

Uses per lot. In any district, a maximum of two permitted principal uses may occur on a single lot, provided that all area, yard and other requirements of this zoning law are met, as to each such use.

General application. No building or structure shall exceed in building height the number of feet permitted as a maximum on the Schedule of District Regulations[1] for the district where such building or structure is located.

Permitted exceptions. Height limitations stipulated elsewhere in this chapter shall not apply to church spires, belfries, cupolas, domes, monuments, water towers, chimneys, smokestacks, flagpoles, radio and transmission towers, farm buildings or similar noninhabited structures under 120 feet in height. Structures over 120 feet in height may be permitted as special uses provided they are sufficiently set back from adjoining properties to avoid any safety hazard connected therewith and meet all state and federal air safety and electronic communications standards.

Rear and side yard exceptions. Where the side wall of a building is not parallel with the side lot line or is irregular, the side yard may be varied. In such case, the average width of the side yard shall not be less than the otherwise required minimum width; provided, however, that such yard shall not be narrower at any point than 1/2 the otherwise required minimum width. The Town of Rockland Planning Board shall also have the discretion, in cases of "main street" businesses in Livingston Manor or Roscoe where no side yards are provided and/or buildings will directly adjoin, to permit zero lot line development. Additionally, the Planning Board shall have the authority, for good cause in relationship to the particular nature of the property, to modify any yard requirements as applied to accessory buildings and with site plan review, to authorize lot owners to encroach upon these yards for purposes of nonresidential building construction in the case of lots served by central sewer/water facilities.

Front yard exception. When an unimproved lot is situated adjacent to or between improved lots already having a principal building within the required front yard, the front yard for the unimproved lot may be reduced to the average depth of the front yards for the two nearest adjoining improved lots. Also, when such circumstances exist, no principal structure shall be set back further than this average depth plus 10 feet. The Planning Board shall also have the discretion in cases of "main street" businesses in Livingston Manor or Roscoe to permit zero lot line development, where no front yards are typically provided. The following illustration depicts how the front yard exception shall apply.

Provision of yard or other open space. No yard or other open space provided about any buildings for the purpose of complying with the provisions of this chapter shall be considered as providing a yard or open space for any other building, and no yard or other open space on another lot shall be considered as providing a yard or open space for a building on any other lot.

Waterfront yards. Any yard which borders on a lake, stream or body of water shall be not less than 50 feet in depth from the high-water mark, excluding boathouses and docks. All lots in new subdivisions approved after the adoption of this section shall be not less than 100 feet in depth from the high-water mark.

No accessory building permitted by this chapter shall be placed in any required side or front yard except as provided in this article.

Accessory buildings shall not cover more than 50% of any rear yard.

Accessory structures not attached to a principal structure shall:

Accessory structures attached to principal buildings shall comply with principal building requirements.

Storage trailers, railroad cars, bulk containers or retired manufactured housing units and recreational vehicles, truck bodies or other mobile units intended for storage and not otherwise constituting a storage container as defined in § 185-7 of this chapter shall not be used for purposes of accessory structures in connection with any use.

Private stables shall be limited to one horse per acre of land.

Accessory buildings shall only be permitted in connection with established principal structures and uses.

Storage containers (as defined in § 185-7) are permitted in the Rural Conservation (RC) District subject to the following requirements:

Storage containers (as defined in § 185-7) are permitted in the General Business (GB) District subject to the following requirements:

Exceptions.

Existing storage containers. Any storage container lawfully existing prior to the adoption of this section shall be allowed to continue, subject to the requirements of §§ 185-31 and 185-32 of this chapter, as applicable.

Penalties for offenses. Any person who violates any provision of this section shall be guilty of a violation of this chapter, punishable in accordance with § 185-39 of this chapter.