ARTICLE IX-1
Retirement Community Overlay District
A. AUTHORITY: A Retirement
Community Overlay District is hereby
established in the Town of
B. PURPOSE: The Retirement Community Overlay District
shall serve the following purposes:
1. To provide
for appropriate sites within the town for the development of housing and
related facilities to serve the needs of people age sixty-two (62) years and
older.
2. To regulate
the intensity and mix of the different types of housing units required to meet
the needs of these senior citizens so as to provide ample outdoor and livable
space and to retain a sense of personal identity, intimacy and human scale
within the development.
3. To provide
ample‑sized meeting rooms and recreational facilities for the comfort and
convenience of the residents.
4. Through site
plan review by the Planning Board, to provide for review of the bulk, height
and spacing of buildings, architectural design of the buildings, and the
circulation and parking pattern within the development to ensure that adequate
light, air, privacy and open space for passive recreation and landscaped
amenities are provided.
5. To provide
such accommodation in a manner harmonious with the surrounding land uses while
protecting the natural resources and open space.
6. To preserve
the town’s residential character.
C. APPLICABILITY:
The Retirement Community Overlay District shall only apply to the Residential B
and Commercial Districts.
D. DEFINITIONS:
Building Height - The vertical distance from the mean finished grade
of the ground adjoining the building to the highest point on the roof for flat
or shed roofs, to the deck line for mansard roof, and to the mean height
between eaves and ridges for gable, hip and gambrel roofs. Not included are
spires, cupolas, TV antennae, or other part of structures which do not include
potentially habitable floor space.
Common
Area - Any land area, other than Open
Space, set aside for common ownership as a result of a Retirement Community
Development, including areas for common facilities. The following uses shall be allowed within
the Common Area: active recreation such as tennis courts, swimming pools, etc.;
and community water and sewer systems.
Common
Facilities - Built facilities which
are commonly owned by the property owners within a Retirement Community
Development. Common facilities may be
proposed but are not required. They may include
streets, rights-of-way, common buildings, wells, water and waste treatment
systems, and recreation facilities.
Homeowners
Association - A private non-profit
organization (corporation, association, or other legal entity) established by
the developer to manage, maintain, support, and finance the common facilities
and open space of a Retirement Community Development, and to enforce certain
covenants and restrictions.
Open
Space - Undeveloped land set aside
for common or individual ownership as a result of a Retirement Community
Development, with conservation easements and other deeded restrictions to
ensure that the land will remain permanently open and undeveloped. A condition of approval under the Retirement
Community Overlay District is that Open Space may not be further subdivided. Only the following uses shall be allowed
within the Open Space: passive recreation, gardening, and horticulture.
Retirement
Community Development - A form of
residential development where the density of dwelling units is no greater than
would be permitted in the district in which the Retirement Community
Development is located, but where the lot size and other dimensional standards
may be reduced in exchange for the preservation of permanently protected open
space, recreational land, forests, and/or farmland.
E. PERMITTED
USES: In this district land may be used and buildings may be erected, altered
or used for:
1. Detached
and/or attached single‑family uses and accessory uses thereto with a
maximum of three (3) bedrooms per dwelling unit.
2. Duplex
dwelling units with a maximum of three (3) bedrooms per dwelling unit.
3. Recreation
buildings and grounds for activities, games and sports not carried on for
financial gain.
4. Accessory
buildings for the storage, repair and maintenance of equipment and vehicles
used in the operation of a retirement community.
5. Dining
rooms, meeting facilities, and health care facilities necessary to provide
services to residents of the development if appropriate.
F. OCCUPANCY
ELIGIBILITY: Occupancy is restricted to persons age sixty-two (62) years or older,
with the following exceptions:
1. A spouse
under sixty-two (62) years old married to a resident over the age of sixty-two
(62).
2. Adults
between the age of eighteen (18) and sixty (62) only if their presence is
required to minister to a resident over the age of sixty-two (62).
G. MINIMUM
REQUIREMENTS shall be as follows:
1. TRACT SIZE:
A proposed site shall consist of at least ten (10) acres of contiguous land in
single or consolidated ownership and may include parcels separated by existing
public roads, provided that such parcels abut.
The development shall be non-subdividable. Multiple lots shall be consolidated prior to
approval under this ordinance.
2. DENSITY: The
maximum allowable density of the site shall be calculated based on the following:
TOTAL area of tract
MINUS area of all undevelopable lands which shall
include all surface waters on the tract, all lands with slopes of 25 percent or
greater, wetlands, and all lands located in the Floodplain District as defined
in Article XVIII of the Zoning Ordinance
EQUALS total developable area
TOTAL developable area
MINUS area of all street and /or road rights-of-way
within the development
DIVIDED by the minimum lot size for the district in
which the project is located as specified in the Zoning Ordinance
MULTIPLIED by two (2)
EQUALS the maximum number of dwelling units permitted
(rounded to the nearest whole number)
Applicants shall show that the site characteristics
can accommodate the proposed density.
Adequate and appropriate on-site space must be provided in each
development for parking, buildings, water, sewage, utilities, and all other
infrastructure and facilities, regardless of the maximum allowable densities.
3. BUILDING
HEIGHT: No building erected in this district shall exceed thirty-five (35) feet
in height.
4. FRONTAGE ON
NEAREST PUBLIC RIGHT-OF-WAY: One hundred
and fifty (150) feet.
5. SITE
PERIMETER BUFFER: Each development must be situated within a permanently
protected undeveloped site perimeter buffer, identified on the site plan, not
less then fifty (50) feet wide which, unless already wooded and satisfactory to
the Planning Board, is planted and landscaped to provide a visual barrier
between the development and all adjacent property. The Planning Board may require additional
buffer width where unique circumstances of an abutting use or property
warrant. The intent is to insure
adequate screening where mixed uses abut.
The Site Perimeter Buffer can be counted toward the 50% set aside of
permanently protected Open Space.
6. SETBACKS:
All structures shall be set back at least fifty (50) feet from all adjoining
property lines. There shall be a minimum
of twenty-five (25) feet between all buildings.
7. OPEN SPACE:
The overall site must have a minimum of fifty percent (50%) common open space,
of which no more than twenty‑five percent (25%) may be wetlands, slopes
over twenty‑five percent (25%), or lands located in the Floodplain
District as defined in Article XVIII of the Zoning Ordinance. This requirement
does not apply to those slopes over twenty‑five percent (25%) which have
been created by prior human activity, which shall be regraded to less than
twenty‑five percent (25%). Open
space must be contiguous in a layout acceptable to the Planning Board. Rights-of-way, streets, driveways, and/or
parking areas shall not be counted as Open Space.
8. UTILITIES: A proposed site shall be connected to either
a community or municipal water and sewer system. The water system within the site shall be
designed to provide the maximum flow practical for fire‑fighting purposes
as required by the State of NH Building Code (RSA 155-A). Each development shall conform to the
regulations promulgated by the NH Department of Environmental Services with
respect to water, sewerage, garbage, and other health measures. All utilities such as electric, telephone,
and cable shall be required to be placed underground.
9. LIGHTING: Roads and
main access ways to buildings shall include adequate lighting. The use of “full
cut-off” type lighting shall be required for all public areas. A formal
site-wide lighting plan shall be submitted, requiring Planning Board
approval. Lighting of common and public
areas shall be independently controlled from residential units and shall be
minimized or turned off at an agreed upon “no later than” time at night. Light trespass, nuisance glare, and
over-illumination due to excess wattage or inappropriate lighting type shall be
prohibited. Adequate lighting for
pedestrian safety shall be provided.
10. PEDESTRIAN
TRAFFIC: The use of interconnecting walkways, trails
and natural walking paths shall be an integral part of the design of any
development to facilitate access between common areas, groups of dwelling units
and open space areas. Easements shall be requested where trails or potential
trails on abutting lands may allow for a local connection. Appropriate timing and restrictions may
apply. Primary walkways and sidewalks shall meet Americans with Disabilities
Act (ADA) requirements. Trails and
natural walking paths are exempt from this requirement, but the Board
encourages maximizing accessibility to residents.
11. BUILDING DESIGN: Architectural
renderings and/or elevations of all buildings and all accessory buildings shall
be provided which the Planning Board will evaluate in accordance with the Site
Plan Review Regulations to confirm that proposed development is an appropriate
scale and arrangement in light of the underlying zoning district, the
prominence of the site, viewsheds, adjacent uses and the surrounding neighborhood.
12. LANDSCAPE PLAN: A landscaping
plan acceptable to the Planning Board shall be provided consistent with the
Landscaping and Off Street Parking and Loading requirements in the Site Plan
Review Regulations.
13. OFF‑STREET PARKING: Parking for this
district shall be provided in the following manner, and shall be in compliance
with the appropriate subsections of off‑street parking:
a. Two
(2) spaces per dwelling unit.
b. Adequate
visitor’s parking.
H. STREET
REQUIREMENTS:
1. All streets
and roads internal to the development shall be privately maintained unless the
Board of Selectmen, upon recommendation of the Planning Board, presents a
street to be a dedicated public roadway to the Town Meeting and the town
accepts the roadway.
2. Where retained
as private ways, streets shall be posted as such by standard street signs.
3. All streets
shall be designed and constructed consistent with local requirements, unless
the Planning Board determines that a modification of the width and/or
construction standards of said streets will not be detrimental to the
circulation or the safety of the development.
4. The number
of new access points to existing and proposed public streets and major through
roads shall be limited to two (2) unless otherwise determined by the Planning
Board.
I. ownership of open space and common Areas:
1. The
developer shall hold, manage and maintain Open Space, Common Land, and Common
Facilities within a Retirement Community Development until completion of all
improvements, whereupon the developer shall transfer the ownership and
management and maintenance responsibilities as set forth in Subsections I.2 and
3 below.
2. Common Areas
and Common Facilities within a Retirement Community Development shall be owned
by and bound by a homeowner’s or condominium association or similar form of
common ownership set by the developer. Membership in said association shall be
mandatory for property owners and made a required covenant in any deed issued
or passed. Articles of association or
incorporation must be acceptable to the Planning Board and to Town Counsel.
3. Open Space
shall be owned by one or a combination of the following:
a. A
homeowner’s or condominium association or similar form of common ownership set
forth by the developer;
b. A
conservation trust or private nonprofit organization such as the Society for
the Protection of NH Forests, The Audubon Society, or the Monadnock
Conservancy, which has as its purpose the preservation of open space through
ownership and control;
c. The
Town of Walpole, subject to acceptance by the Town;
e. The
State of New Hampshire for permanent open space uses;
d. A
private landowner such as a farmer or forest manager that will manage it for
uses consistent with the provisions of this ordinance.
J. permanent protection of open space: All
Open Space in a Retirement Community Development, whether held privately or in
common, shall be restricted in perpetuity as open space through the use of
conservation easements that legally restrict the development rights to that
property.
1. The easement
may be so worded as to permit or restrict public access, to allow or disallow
recreational development, and similar provisions.
2. The burden
of the easement conveyed hereby shall run with the property and shall be
enforceable against all future owners and tenants in perpetuity; the benefits
of this easement shall not be appurtenant to any particular parcel of land but
shall be in gross and assignable or transferable only to the State of New
Hampshire, the U.S. Government, or the Town of Walpole, consistent with Section
170(c)(1) of the U.S. Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended or to any
qualified organization within the meaning of Section 170(h)(3) of said Code,
which organization has among its purposes the conservation and preservation of
land and water areas and agrees to and is capable of enforcing the Purposes of
this Easement. Any such assignee or transferee shall have like power of
assignment or transfer.
K. SUBMISSION
AND REVIEW PROCEDURE:
3.
A completed
application for a Retirement Community Development shall contain at a minimum
the following information:
a. A
demonstrated need for additional Retirement housing;
b.
If applicable, a Subdivision Plan showing all the information required
in the Walpole Subdivision Regulations;
c. A
Site Plan showing all the information required in the Walpole Site Plan Review
Regulations;
d. Typical
architectural renderings and/or building elevations and floor plans of all
proposed buildings;
e.
A Landscaping Plan indicating the existing vegetation to be retained and
that to be removed as well as the type, size, and numbers of all proposed new
plantings;
f.
A Lighting Plan for the entire site;
g. Copies of all legal documents
associated with the development including the Homeowners Association By-Laws,
Articles of Incorporation, protective covenants and deed restrictions, etc.;
h.
A timetable for completion of the Retirement Community Development.
This
Article passed at the 2004 Town Meeting, March 9, 2004.