West Bloomfield Town
City Zoning Code
City Zoning Code
ARTICLE XI
Senior Housing District
§ 140-57 Purpose.
The purpose of a Senior Housing District shall be to provide specialized living quarters for elderly and retired citizens who wish to live independently but who prefer the advantages to be found in living in apartments designed specifically for community living of elderly citizens who do not require specialized continuing medical care. Senior Housing Districts are zoning districts created to accommodate senior housing units. They are unmapped floating districts created by the Town Board of the Town of West Bloomfield. A newly created Senior Housing District shall be drawn on the Official Zoning Map only after it has been created by the Town Board. Rezoning is required before any land may be used as a Senior Housing District. The procedure to be used for rezoning is that set forth in § 140-149.
§ 140-58 Qualifications for eligibility.
A.
The Senior Housing District may be applied to any lot or group of contiguous lots having a total area of at least three acres.
B.
The surrounding land uses, both current and projected, must be compatible with the living environment required by seniors and be free from potential health and safety issues.
§ 140-59 Permitted uses.
The following are permitted uses in the Senior Housing District:
A.
Senior citizen dwelling apartments for habitation expressly by elderly persons.
B.
Essential services, including buildings and facilities which are reasonably necessary to meet the proper maintenance, administration, security, off-street parking, storage, fencing, and utility system needs of the development.
C.
In addition, the following accessory uses are permitted, provided that such facilities are restricted in their use to residents of the development and their guests:
(1)
Meeting rooms, multipurpose rooms, lounges, lobby areas or other similar common spaces.
(2)
Game rooms, arts and crafts rooms, workshops, exercise rooms, libraries or other similar indoor recreation or leisure facilities.
(3)
Outdoor sitting areas, game areas, walking trails or other similar outdoor recreation or leisure facilities.
D.
The following accessory uses are permitted, provided that such facilities are managed as part of the building or complex of buildings and are restricted in their use to residents of the building or building complex and their guests, and further provided that there are no external advertising signs for such facilities:
(1)
A common kitchen and dining room.
(2)
A beauty shop and/or barbershop, provided that the maximum floor area devoted to such use is no more than 250 square feet.
(3)
A self-service laundry.
(4)
A coin-operated vending machine room, provided that the maximum floor area devoted to such use is no more than 250 square feet.
(5)
Office space for a visiting doctor, medical infirmary or clinic and/or social service delivery.
§ 140-60 Occupancy restrictions.
Occupancy of dwelling units shall be for residential purposes only.
A.
Each dwelling unit shall be subject to a recorded deed restriction limiting occupancy to at least one person 55 years of age or older.
B.
Notwithstanding the provisions of this section, one unit in a development may be occupied by a building superintendent or project manager and his/her family.
§ 140-61 Lot, yard and bulk requirements; public services; design standards.
A.
Lot and yard requirements.
(1)
Minimum lot area: three acres.
(2)
Minimum lot frontage: 200 feet.
(3)
Minimum front yard setback: 60 feet.
(4)
Minimum side yard setback: 40 feet.
(5)
Minimum rear yard setback: 30 feet.
(6)
Maximum building coverage: 40%.
(7)
Maximum lot coverage: 60%.
(8)
Height: No building shall be more than 2 1/2 stories or 35 feet high.
B.
Density. In each case, the Planning Board shall determine the appropriate unit density. Density shall not exceed 15 dwelling units per acre.
C.
Common open space. Usable common open space shall be provided at the ratio of 50 square feet per dwelling unit. Such space shall consist of both active and passive recreation amenities such as patio areas, shaded sitting areas, walking and jogging trails.
D.
Public services.
(1)
The following public services are required:
(a)
Public sanitary sewer or a common sanitary sewer system which is maintained.
(b)
Stormwater drainage facilities approved by the Town Engineer.
(c)
A fire alarm system in each unit with an alarm interconnection to the entire structure and an appropriate county public safety answering point, such as the Ontario County Sheriff's Department.
(d)
Cable television service.
(e)
Telephone service.
(2)
All utilities must be placed underground.
E.
Design standards.
(1)
Exterior design and architectural design shall provide that no exterior building wall be more than 125 feet long without a minimum six-foot offset.
(2)
Apartment sizes and amenities shall conform to all applicable federal or New York State standards as may be established from time to time for housing for the well elderly.
(3)
All exterior and architectural design plans must be approved by the Planning Board.
F.
Landscaping. Landscaping shall be approved by the Planning Board. Lot areas which are not required for buildings, structures or parking shall be landscaped with grass, decorative trees or shrubs. A plan which shows the location and plant species of plant material shall be provided.
G.
Parking ratio. Parking spaces shall be provided at a ratio of 1.5 parking spaces per dwelling unit and one visitor parking space per 10 dwelling units.
H.
Outdoor storage. Any outdoor storage of garbage and rubbish shall be in containers which are enclosed in such a way as to be concealed from the public view and inaccessible to children, dogs and vermin. Such appropriate enclosures shall include screens, fences, stockade fences, walls, etc.
I.
Buffers.
(1)
A ten-foot-wide landscaped area shall be provided along all property lines, excluding points of ingress and egress and property lines adjacent to existing commercial uses. This landscaped area shall be densely planted with a mixture of shrubs and trees. All of these shall be no less than six feet high to create an opaque screen.
(2)
All landscaped areas along property lines which are crossed by access drives may be planted with low shrubs no more than three feet high and with a branching habit no more than eight feet wide; further, no planting shall cause a hazardous condition by interfering with the normal line of sight (350 feet in either direction) needed for safe entering and exiting maneuvers by motor vehicles.
J.
Site plan review. Once land is rezoned, the site plan must be approved by the Planning Board pursuant to § 140-150.
§ 140-62 Miscellaneous regulations.
A.
In any project whereby offering plans for senior citizen multiple residence housing are required to be filed with the New York State Attorney General, the same must be filed with the Town Clerk not less than 96 hours prior to the time when such offering plan shall be filed with the New York State Attorney General.
B.
The Planning Board may waive or modify standards, if necessary, to comply or adjust to the requirements of state or federally funded projects.
C.
For all projects within this district; all parking areas, entries, corridors, passages, utility areas and front landscaping must be provided with adequate lighting for safety purposes. Lights shall be adjusted so as not to shine onto adjacent properties. Lights must be controlled by a time clock or positive photo cell switching so as to ensure adequate lighting during all dark hours.
D.
For all projects within this district, any owner of a building or premises used or erected as senior housing designated primarily to provide living and dining accommodations for persons over the age of 55 shall file with the Town Clerk a signed, sworn affidavit, on or before the first of January of every year, stating that all senior citizen multiple-resident housing requirements mandated by law or by regulations of the Town, county, state, or federal government, or any agencies thereof, are being and will continue to be complied with.
E.
In any project within this district, a designated utility area shall be provided for laundry purposes. At least one washer and one dryer for every 10 units must be provided.