§ 4-7
Permitted uses
[Added 12-6-2023 by Ord. No. 23-26]
- (a) A proposed land use that is not specifically listed may be presented by the property owner to the Zoning Board of Review for an evaluation and determination of whether the proposed use is of a similar type, character, and intensity as a listed permitted use. Upon such determination, the proposed use may be considered to be a permitted use or a use requiring a special use permit.
- (b) Notwithstanding any other provision of this appendix, the following uses are permitted uses within all residential zoning use districts of a municipality and all industrial and commercial zoning use districts except where residential use is prohibited for public health or safety reasons:
- (1) Households;
- (2) Community residences; and
- (3) Family daycare homes.
- (c) Any time a building or other structure used for residential purposes, or a portion of a building containing residential units, is rendered uninhabitable by virtue of a casualty such as fire or flood, the owner of the property is allowed to park, temporarily, mobile and manufactured home, or homes, as the need may be, elsewhere upon the land, for use and occupancy of the former occupants for a period of up to 12 months, or until the building or structure is rehabilitated and otherwise made fit for occupancy. The property owner, or a properly designated agent of the owner, is only allowed to cause the mobile and manufactured home, or homes, to remain temporarily upon the land by making timely application to the local building official for the purposes of obtaining the necessary permits to repair or rebuild the structure.
- (d) Notwithstanding any other provision of this appendix, appropriate access for people with disabilities to residential structures is allowed as a reasonable accommodation for any person(s) residing, or intending to reside, in the residential structure.
- (e) Notwithstanding any other provision of this appendix, an accessory dwelling unit in an owner-occupied residence that complies with R.I.G.L. AAA 45-24-31 and 45-24-73 shall be permitted as a reasonable accommodation for family members with disabilities or who are 62 years of age or older, or to accommodate other family members.
- (f) When used in this section the terms "people with disabilities" or "member, or members, with disabilities" means a person(s) who has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities, as defined in R.I.G.L. AA 42-87-1(7).
- (g) Notwithstanding any other provisions of this appendix, plant agriculture is a permitted use within all zoning districts of a municipality, including all industrial and commercial zoning districts, except where prohibited for public health or safety reasons or the protection of wildlife habitat.
- (h) Adaptive reuse. Notwithstanding any other provisions of this appendix adaptive reuse for the conversion of any commercial building, including offices, schools, religious facilities, medical buildings, and malls into residential units or mixed-use developments is a permitted use, under the following criteria:
- (1) Eligibility.
- a. Adaptive reuse development must include at least 50% of existing gross floor area developed into residential units.
- b. There are no environmental land use restrictions recorded on the property preventing the conversion to residential use by RIDEM or the U.S. EPA.
- (2) Density calculations.
- a. For projects that meet the following criteria, the residential density shall be 15 dwelling units per acre:
- 1. Where the project is limited to the existing footprint, except that the footprint is allowed to be expanded to accommodate upgrades related to the building fire code, and utility requirements.
- 2. The development includes at least 20% low- and moderate-income housing.
- 3. The development has access to public sewer and water service or has access to adequate private water, such as well and/or wastewater treatment systems approved by the relevant state agency for the entire development as applicable.
- b. For all other adaptive reuse projects, the residential density permitted in the converted structure shall be the maximum allowed that otherwise meets all standards of minimum housing and has access to public sewer and water services or has access to adequate private water, such as well and wastewater treatment systems approved by the relevant state agency for the entire development, as applicable.
- c. The density proposed for any adaptive reuse project shall be determined to meet all public health and safety standards.
- a. For projects that meet the following criteria, the residential density shall be 15 dwelling units per acre:
- (3) Dimensional requirements.
- a. Notwithstanding any other provisions of this appendix, existing building setbacks shall remain and are considered legal nonconforming.
- b. No additional encroachments shall be permitted into any nonconforming setback unless relief is granted by the permitting authority.
- c. Notwithstanding other provisions of this appendix, the height of the structure shall be considered legal nonconforming if it exceeds the maximum height of the zoning district in which the structure is located.
- 1. Any rooftop construction necessary for building or fire code compliance, or utility infrastructure is included in the height exemption.
- (4) Parking requirements.
- a. Adaptive reuse developments shall provide one parking space per dwelling unit. The applicant may propose additional parking in excess of one space per dwelling unit.
- b. The parking requirements and design standards in Article 14 shall apply to all uses proposed as part of the project unless otherwise approved by the applicable authority. The number of parking spaces required shall apply for all uses other than residential.
- (5) Allowed uses within an adaptive reuse project.
- a. Residential dwelling units are a permitted use in an adaptive reuse project regardless of the zoning district in which the structure is located, in accordance with the provisions of this section.
- b. Any nonresidential uses proposed as part of an adaptive reuse project must comply with the provisions of these regulations.
- (6) Development and design standards. Site design shall be in accordance with the Sections 6, 7, and 8, as applicable, of Appendix A, Land Development and Subdivision Regulations.
- (7) Procedural requirements.
- a. Adaptive reuse project shall be subject to the procedural requirements of these regulations and undergo either development plan review, or minor or major land development as determined therein.
- b. In addition to the checklist requirements for the applicable review process, the applicant shall provide the following information:
- 1. The proposed residential density and the square footage of nonresidential uses. Residential density under the provisions of Subsection (h)(2) shall be determined with the submission of a detailed floor plan as described in subsection (h)(7)2 of this Section to the Zoning/Building Official for their review and approval.
- 2. A floor plan to scale for each building indicating, as applicable, the use of floor space, number of units, number of bedrooms, and the square footage of each unit.
- (8) Specific and objective criteria. The specific and objective criteria for adaptive reuse projects are found in Sections 6, 7 and 8 of Appendix A, Land Development and Subdivision Regulations.
- (1) Eligibility.