Standish City Zoning Code
PART 6
Growth Management
§ 181-141 Purpose and intent.
The purpose of this Part 6 is to protect the health, safety and general welfare of the residents of Standish through placing limitations on residential development and meeting the following:
A.
To provide for the immediate housing needs of the existing residents of Standish.
B.
To ensure fairness in allocation of building permits.
C.
To plan for continued residential population growth of Standish which would be compatible with orderly and gradual expansion of community services including, but not limited to, education, public safety, transportation infrastructure, waste disposal and health services.
§ 181-142 Applicability.
§ 181-143 Terms defined.
As used in this Part 6, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
A permit as defined by and issued in accordance with § 181-53 of the Standish Zoning Ordinance.
A room or group of rooms designed and equipped exclusively for use as living quarters for a family, including provisions for living, sleeping, cooking and eating. The term shall include, but not be limited to, manufactured housing, modular/mobile homes, apartment unit, duplexes and multiplexes and condominium units. The term shall not include trailers or recreational vehicles used for overnight or temporary lodging only.
A permit issued, in accordance with the provisions of this Part 6, by the Code Enforcement Officer (CEO) to allow the establishment of a new dwelling unit.
A person or persons occupying a dwelling unit and living as a single housekeeping unit, as distinguished from a group occupying a boarding house, lodging residence, hotel or motel.
A fabricated pre-assembled dwelling unit designed to be transported after fabrication and to be used as living quarters. The term "manufactured housing" may include the term "modular home" and "mobile home", except that the fabricated single-family modular home is assembled on the building site on a permanent foundation.
For the purposes of this Part 6, subdivisions shall mean only those subdivisions as defined in 30 M.R.S.A. § 4401(4),[1] as amended, and approved by the Planning Board after May 26, 1976. In addition, any lots shown on a subdivision plan, but not subject to Planning Board review shall not be considered a lot in a subdivision.
A person shall be defined to include an individual's spouse, parents, siblings and members of his or her immediate family unless the spouse, parents, sibling or immediate family member can demonstrate that the person seeking the growth permit owned the title to the property that is the subject of the growth permit independently of his spouse, parents, siblings or immediate family members.
[1]
Editor's Note: See now 30-A M.R.S.A. § 4401(4).
§ 181-144 Exemptions.
[Amended 7-8-2008 by Order No. 104-07; 7-8-2008 by Order No. 164-07; 6-7-2011; 8-12-2014 by Order No. 65-14; 5-13-2025 by Order No. 22-25]
This Part 6 shall not apply to the following:
A.
The repair, replacement, reconstruction or alteration of any existing building or structure, provided the number of dwelling units is not increased, regardless of the need for a variance.
B.
Dwelling units constructed by the York and Cumberland Housing Authority, an agency of the state or federal government, or by a private developer or contractor with a continuing age restriction of persons 55 years of age or older. Any conversion of these units eliminating the age restriction would require a growth permit.
C.
Lots in subdivisions that have received Planning Board final approval prior to the adoption of this Part 6.
D.
Dwelling units for family members built on family gift lots as defined by 30-A M.R.S.A. § 4401(4)D-4, as may be amended from time to time, except that no more than one new exempt dwelling shall be allowed by gift per family per year.
E.
Accessory dwelling units approved by the Code Enforcement Officer pursuant to § 181-35.5 of the Zoning Ordinance of the Town of Standish.
F.
New dwelling units located within a Form Based Code Village District on lots in subdivisions having received Planning Board approval.
§ 181-145 Administration; maximum number of dwelling units.
[Amended 2-13-2007 by Order No. 186-06]
A.
Unless and/or until this Part 6 is amended, the maximum number of new growth permits issued shall be 85, from July 1, 2006 to June 30, 2007, and annually thereafter from July 1 to June 30. In addition, from July 1, 2006 to June 30, 2007, two additional growth permits shall be for affordable housing constructed by Habitat for Humanity or a similar not-for-profit organization; and annually thereafter from July 1 to June 30, nine additional growth permits shall be for affordable housing.
B.
In the event that fewer than 85 permits are issued in any one year, up to 15 of the unused permits may be issued in the following year on a first-come, first-served basis notwithstanding any other provision of this section to the contrary, in addition to the 85 that would otherwise be available.
C.
Effective July 1, 2007, no more than 25 of the growth permits shall be issued annually for dwelling units located within the Rural (RU) District.
D.
No more than 75% of the growth permits shall be issued annually for dwelling units within subdivisions, and no more than 15 growth permits shall be issued in any year for dwellings in a single subdivision; provided, however, that effective July 1, 2007, no more than 20 growth permits shall be issued annually for dwelling units within subdivisions located within the Rural (RU) District, and no more than five growth permits will be allocated for dwelling units in a single subdivision located within the Rural (RU) District; and provided further that any applicant with a pending subdivision application for a subdivision located in the Rural (RU) District that has obtained at least one substantive review from the Planning Board prior to July 1, 2007, shall not be subject to this five-permit limitation for that subdivision.
§ 181-146 Application procedure.
A.
All growth permit applications shall be submitted in person to the Code Enforcement Officer or his/her assistant or agent (hereinafter the CEO) during normal office hours on the form designated growth permit application. No growth permit applications shall be accepted by mail.
B.
The CEO shall indicate on the application form the date and time the growth permit application was received and provide the applicant with a receipt, when said application is complete. The applications shall be reviewed in the order in which they were received. Only complete applications will be accepted.
C.
The growth permit application shall be accompanied by a nonrefundable administrative fee in an amount as determined by the Town Council, documentation establishing the applicant's right, title and interest to the property, and one copy of a subsurface wastewater disposal system application form (HHE200), and/or confirmation for eligibility of a sewer user unit.
D.
A separate application shall be required for each dwelling unit. No person, partnership, or corporation shall be issued more than 15 permits annually. Corporations shall be treated as the same corporation for purposes of this Part 6 if they share common directors and/or shareholders. Any person or corporation that is a partner in a partnership shall be considered the same person as the partnership.
§ 181-147 Issuance procedure.
A.
Growth permit applications shall not be accepted by the CEO until on or after the effective date of this Part 6. Growth permit applications shall be on file with the CEO. From that time on, applications will be accepted, and growth permits issued, as provided for herein.
(1)
Growth permits shall be available on a first-come, first-served basis.
(2)
The CEO shall notify an applicant once the applicant is entitled to have a growth permit issued.
(3)
Expired growth permits shall be available for reissue.
(4)
The CEO shall issue growth permits for all complete applications if they do not outnumber the supply of growth permits.
(5)
If applications exceed supply for any given year, permits shall be issued on the basis of the order complete applications were received by the CEO. Those on the list who do not get a permit for that year shall have first priority to get a permit in the next year, in the order in which the applications were deemed to be complete.
B.
If, at the end of the fiscal year, there are any unissued growth permits still available, no more than 15 may be carried over to the next year.
§ 181-148 Replacement with building permit and expiration.
A.
A growth permit shall be replaced by a building permit for a dwelling on the specific site for which the growth permit was issued. A growth permit which has not been replaced with a building permit within 90 days of growth permit approval by the CEO shall be considered expired and must be resubmitted for consideration. Resubmitted growth permit applications will not have any priority over other growth permit applications.
[Amended 2-8-2011 by Order No. 121-10]
B.
Expired permits shall be available for reissuance.
§ 181-149 Transferability.
Growth permits are not transferable. They shall be valid for construction on the lot specified on the application and by the applicant; provided however, that such valid permits shall be transferable to new owners of the lot should the property change hands, but only if the new owners are otherwise eligible for such permit had they been the original applicant. If a Permit is transferred, the date of issuance remains unchanged.
§ 181-150 Conflict with other ordinances.
§ 181-151 Severability.
Should any section or provision of this Part 6 be found by the courts to be invalid, illegal, or unenforceable, such decision shall not affect any other section or provision of this Part either singly or collectively.
§ 181-152 Violations.
A.
A violation of this Part 6 shall be deemed to exist when any person, partnership or corporate entity engages in any construction activity directly related to the erection or placement of a dwelling unit, upon any land within the Town without first having obtained a growth permit from the CEO.
B.
If a dwelling unit has been constructed or placed, without a growth permit, it shall be deemed a violation for any person, firm, or corporate entity to sell, lease, rent or occupy such dwelling unit until such permit has been duly issued.
§ 181-153 Notice of violations; legal action.
When a violation of any provision of this Part 6 shall be found, the CEO shall send a written notice of the violation to the responsible party or parties. If the notice does not result in the correction of the violation, the CEO may institute any and all actions and proceedings, either legal or equitable, including seeking injunctive relief, the imposition of fines, removal of the structure, or other action that may be appropriate or necessary to enforce the provisions of this Part 6. The remedies set forth herein are intended to be cumulative and not exclusive of each other.
§ 181-154 Penalties.
A.
Any person owning or controlling the use of any dwelling unit being constructed or occupied in violation of this chapter shall be liable to be fined not less than $100 or more than $2,500 for each day such a violation (i.e. construction activity, unlawful occupancy) continues after notification by the CEO.
§ 181-155 Appeals.
The Appeals Board may, upon written application of an aggrieved party and after public notice, hear appeals from determinations of the CEO in the administration of this Ordinance. Following such hearing, the Appeals Board may reverse the decision of the CEO only upon a finding that the decision is clearly contrary to the specific provisions of this Part 6.
§ 181-156 Automatic review.
This Part 6 shall be reviewed by the Planning Board in June 2006 to assess the efficacy of this Part 6 and to ensure that the annual maximum growth rate has not become inconsistent with the Town's capital program requirements to establish, maintain, or enlarge needed public facilities and services. Based on its review the Planning Board may recommend amending this Part 6.