Applicability

Land Development and Subdivision Review Regulations Town of Smithfield, RI

SECTION X

CONSERVATION DEVELOPMENT

ARTICLE A. PURPOSE

Pursuant to and consistent with Section 5.6 of the Zoning Ordinance, the purposes of this section, entitled Conservation Development, are:

To protect natural resources, including but not limited to those areas containing woodlands, unique vegetation, streams, floodplains, wetlands, aquifers to their recharge areas, agricultural lands, wellheads and vernal pools, by setting them aside from development;
To preserve cultural, historical and archaeological resources;
To protect recreational resources;
To provide greater design flexibility and efficiency in the siting of services and infrastructure, including wastewater disposal systems and wells, and to reduce length of roads, utility runs, and the amount of paving required for residential development;
To provide for a diversity of lot sizes, building densities, and housing choices to accommodate a variety of age and income groups, and residential preferences, so that the population diversity of the community may be maintained;
To implement adopted municipal policies to conserve a variety of irreplaceable and environmentally important resources as set forth in the Comprehensive Plan,
To provide reasonable incentives for the creation of a contiguous greenway system within the Town;
To implement adopted land use, transportation and community service policies, as set forth in the Comprehensive Plan,
To protect areas of the Town with productive agricultural soils to encourage continued or future agricultural use by conserving blocks of land large enough to allow for efficient farm operations;
To create neighborhoods with direct visual and/or physical access to open land, with amenities in the form of neighborhood open space, and with a strong neighborhood identity;
To provide for the maintenance of open land set aside for active or passive recreational use, stormwater drainage or conservation lands;
To conserve and create scenic views and preserve the rural character of the Town; and,
To provide a buffer between new development and existing streets, neighborhoods, active farmland and adjacent park or conservation land.

ARTICLE B. APPLICABILITY

The Planning Board may require Conservation Developments only in the following zoning districts: Medium Density, Residential R-Med; Low Density, Residential R-80; and Residential Conservation R- 200.
In accordance with the standards set forth in this Section X, the Planning Board shall require that all major subdivisions or land development projects be developed as a Conservation Development, whether a subdivision or not, except as provided in subsection X.B.4 of this Section, below.
Administrative subdivisions and minor subdivisions shall not be required to be developed as a Conservation Development. However, if the applicant of a minor subdivision requests to do a conservation development, they may do so with the approval of the Administrative Officer.

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