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Town of Johnston
Town of Johnston Zoning Ordinance
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§ 340-25.2

Pet and animal services

[Added 8-13-2024 by Ord. No. 2024-10]

Veterinary, animal shelter, boarding, daycare and grooming services for animals, when permitted in the Use Table, are subject to the conditions of this section and the Rules and Regulations Governing Animal Care Facilities as established by the RI Department of Environmental Management (250-RICR-40-05-4).

  • A. Veterinary hospitals. A veterinary hospital is subject to the following conditions:
    • (1) The lot or parcel on which the veterinary hospital is to be located consists of at least 15,000 square feet.
    • (2) The veterinary hospital may include one accessory single-family residence, with no more than two bedrooms containing no more than 1,500 square feet of living area for the caretaker/employee family of the hospital only. The accessory residence shall be designed and constructed in such a way as to maintain the appearance of the use of the lot as a veterinary hospital.
    • (3) An application for a veterinary hospital use shall be considered a minor land development that must be reviewed by the Board.
    • (4) Plans must include the mitigation of impacts related to noise, solid waste disposal, handling and disposal of animal waste, facility lighting and sewer/septic disposal.
  • B. Animal shelter and boarding, daycare and grooming services for cats and dogs. Animal shelter and boarding, daycare and grooming services are subject to the following requirements:
    • (1) Minimum dimensional requirements. All outdoor runs or exercise areas shall comply with all dimensional setback requirements applicable to the principal structure. Outdoor runs or exercise areas shall not be located in front of the building.
    • (2) An operations and maintenance plan describing all proposed activities, including but not limited to: staffing numbers and hours, number of animals, types of services provided, retail sales, animal residence times, hours of operation, waste management protocols, health and safety protocols, emergency protocols.
    • (3) Parking, drop-off and pick-up areas. The facility must provide one off-street parking space for each employee and three short-term parking spaces for customer drop-off and pick-up of animals.
    • (4) Waste storage and removal. All indoor solid waste shall be collected and stored in covered receptacles in areas that are not readily accessible by animals. Outdoor waste storage containers shall be fully enclosed and shall remain closed at all times except when opened to accept waste, shall be stored at least 20 feet from all property boundaries and shall be screened from view by an enclosure. All waste shall be removed from the site not less than two times each week.
    • (5) Retail sales. Facilities may engage in retail sales of pet products reasonably related to the services provided by the facility. Sales shall be limited to customers of the services provided by the facility. Retail sales of animal food shall be limited to food consumed on-site.
    • (6) An application must include:
      • (a) Copies of its RIDEM licensing application and approval.
      • (b) A site plan/floor plan showing:
        • [1] Front desk/reception area and staff break areas.
        • [2] Parking and vehicle circulation plan.
        • [3] All doors and windows (interior and exterior).
        • [4] Waste storage (interior and exterior).
        • [5] Medicine and food storage areas (including refrigeration).
        • [6] All indoor and outdoor animal holding areas, including: rooms, enclosures, communal areas, cages, runs, medical treatment and quarantine areas (labeled with use and dimensions)
      • (c) The reviewing authority may set reasonable hours of operation; a limit to the number of animals housed in the kennel; and hours for outdoor exercise for the kenneled animals.
  • C. Breeding kennel. A breeding kennel is subject to the following conditions:
    • (1) The use must be located on a lot at least two acres in size.
    • (2) The use may have no more than four outside runs.
    • (3) Except for outside runs, the use shall be completely enclosed within a building and shall be no closer than 1,000 feet to any abutting residential property line.
    • (4) Fenced areas used by animals are prohibited in the front yard.
      • (a) All outside runs shall be enclosed by a solid fence or chain-link fence with arborvitae trees or similar evergreen trees that will block the use.
    • (5) An acceptable waste storage, management and removal program must be submitted for review and approval.
    • (6) An application for a breeding kennel shall be considered a minor land development that must be reviewed by the Planning Board. The Board may require the applicant to submit any other material deemed necessary to evaluate the proposal.
    • (7) In reviewing the application the Board must find that the use will not interfere or conflict with the peaceful enjoyment of neighboring residential uses.
    • (8) The Board may set reasonable hours of operation; a limit to the number of animals housed in the kennel; and hours for outdoor exercise for the kenneled animals.