A.
General.
(1)
Any person wishing to submit a definitive plan of land to the Planning Board for its approval shall submit to the Planning Board a copy of Form B-1 (see appendix).[1] A preliminary plan of a subdivision may be submitted by
the subdivider to the Planning Board and to the Board of Health for
discussion and approval, modification or disapproval by each Board.
The submission of such a preliminary plan will enable the subdivider,
the Planning Board, the Board of Health and others to discuss and
clarify the problems of a subdivision before a definitive plan is
prepared. Therefore, it is strongly recommended that a preliminary
plan be filed in each case. A preliminary plan shall be submitted
for any nonresidential subdivision.
[1]
Editor’s Note: Form B-1 is included at the end of this chapter.
(2)
Such a plan shall be submitted with eight prints at
a regular Planning Board meeting. Notice of submission shall be sent
to the Town Clerk in accordance with MGL c. 41.
B.
Contents of plan. The preliminary plan shall show,
in a general way, the proposed subdivision and shall include the following:
(1)
The subdivision name, North point, date and scale,
legend and title "Preliminary Plan."
(2)
The name and address of the record owner of the land,
and the names of the subdivider, surveyor and engineer.
(3)
The location and names of all abutters as determined
from the most recent tax list or lists.
(4)
The location, names and present widths of existing
and proposed streets in the immediate vicinity and within the plan,
whether public or private.
(5)
The location and boundaries of existing areas dedicated
to other public uses and the location and character of all easements,
public or private, within or immediately adjacent to the plan.
(6)
Proposed lots and lot lines with approximate areas
and dimension.
(7)
Proposed storm drainage systems.
(8)
Proposed public areas, if any, and easements.
(9)
The location of all existing and proposed water and
sewer pipes indicating size of same.
(10)
Topographic plans of the subdivision, in a general
manner, including a clear and accurate disclosure of the grades of
the existing terrain adjacent to the subdivision, large trees and
natural watercourses. Existing buildings, together with fences and
walls, shall be shown.
(11)
Center-line profile of all proposed streets
and ways.
A.
General. Any person submitting a definitive plan of
a subdivision for approval by the Planning Board shall, either at
a regularly scheduled meeting of the Board or by registered mail,
file the following and shall comply with the requirements listed below.
The Planning Board may require that all submission items, including
plans, be submitted in electronic format compatible with the Town's
current hardware and software:
(1)
Any person wishing to submit a definitive plan of land to the Planning Board shall submit to the Planning Board a copy of Form B.[1] Every applicant, after submitting a definitive plan to the Planning Board for approval, shall send to the Town Clerk a written notice, which may be Form B, by registered mail, postage prepaid, or by delivery, stating that he has submitted such plan, describing the land to which the plan relates sufficiently for identification and stating the date in the notice when the final plan was filed with the Planning Board, along with the name and address of the owner of such land. The Town Clerk shall, if requested, give written receipt thereof
[1]
Editor's Note: Form B is included at the end of this chapter.
(2)
Form B (see appendix) shall be signed and submitted by the owner or owners of all of the land within the proposed plan to the Planning Board at a regularly scheduled meeting.
(3)
The application shall also state all easements and
restrictions to which the land within the plan is subject and all
easements and restrictions appurtenant to such land or over the land
of others. The application shall be accompanied by a plan on tracing
cloth or Mylar with black permanent ink, together with eight black-and-white
prints of the plan prepared by a land surveyor and engineer registered
in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
(4)
A filing fee as determined by the most recent fee
schedule. (See Appendix.)
(5)
An environmental and community impact analysis (if
required).
(6)
All drafts of proposed easements for utility, drainage
and right-of-way purposes.
(7)
A list of names and addresses of all abutters within
100 feet, certified by the Town Assessor that they appear as such
on the most recent tax list.
(8)
Drainage calculations certified by the engineer who
prepared them; groundwater levels and percolation rates within the
proposed detention or retention basins.
(9)
A list of all requested waivers from these regulations.
B.
The definitive plan shall not be deemed to have been
submitted to the Board until the above-referenced items, together
with the definitive plan and prints, have been delivered to the Board
at a regular or special meeting thereof, and all are fully completed
in accordance with these rules and regulations.
C.
Public hearing. Upon determination by the Board that
the application for approval of the definitive plan is complete, the
Board shall set a date for the public hearing and so notify the applicant.
Notice of the hearing shall be arranged by the Board, at the applicant's
expense, by advertisement in a newspaper of general circulation in
each of two successive weeks, the first publication being not less
than 14 days before the day of such hearing. Notice of the hearing
shall be given to all owners of real estate abutting upon the land
included in such plan or lying within 100 feet of any tract of land
of the applicant, any part of which is included in the proposed plan,
all as appearing on the most recent tax list, also to all mortgagees
of record, if any, of the land within the proposed plan. The Planning
Board shall arrange for the publication and transmission of the notices
of the hearing. Actual costs will be billed to the applicant. Final
endorsements will not be made until all hearing fees have been paid.
D.
Preparation of definitive plan. (Figures 1 through 8 are attached as part of these regulations.[2])
(1)
Surveying and drafting requirements.
(a)
The final or definitive plan shall be prepared
by a professional civil engineer registered in Massachusetts from
a field survey made by a competent land surveyor also registered in
Massachusetts. This plan shall be clearly and legibly drawn on tracing
cloth or Mylar. The size of the sheets shall be 24 inches by 36 inches
in overall dimension with a one-and-one-half-inch margin on the left-hand
side and one-half-inch margins on the other three sides. Both the
registered engineer and land surveyor shall affix their stamps adjacent
to the title block.
(b)
The plan shall be drawn on tracing cloth or
Mylar in black India ink, except that the names of the streets and
the proposed system of utilities may be drawn in pencil until the
plan has been reviewed and instructions are given to ink all details
prior to approval. After approval is given, the applicant is required
to furnish to the Planning Board a duplicate of the plan on a reproduction
master on transparentized waterproof cloth or on a polyester film
material.
(c)
Drafting layout and form shall conform to the plans entitled "Figures 1 through 8.[3]"
[3]
Editor's Note: Figures 1 through 8 are included at the end of this chapter.
(d)
The horizontal scale shall be 40 feet to an
inch, unless the Planning Board approves a more convenient scale.
The vertical scale shall be four feet to the inch.
(e)
All surveying shall conform to the Technical
Standards for Property Surveys of the American Congress on Surveying
and Mapping. The land surveyor shall affix his stamp to the definitive
plan with a statement that the survey conforms to these requirements.
(f)
All elevations shall be referred to mean sea
level. Bench marks used in survey work shall be clearly located on
the plan.
(2)
Contents of plan. The final or definitive plan shall
contain the following:
(a)
Title block. A title in the lower right-hand corner, stating the name of the plan, if any, the scale, the name of the applicant, the registered land surveyor and the registered engineer who prepared the plan and shall conform to Figures 1 through 8.[4]
[4]
Editor's Note: Figures 1 through 8 are included at the end of this chapter.
(b)
The names, widths and exterior lines of proposed
public ways, and the boundaries of other public areas with the plan.
(c)
The lines, boundaries, areas, lot numbers, and
street numbers of all lots, sites or divisions under which the plan
is to be divided. Street numbers shall be in accordance with the requirements
of the Office of the Board of Assessors.
(d)
Data to determine readily the location, bearing
and length of every street line, lot line and other boundary line
shown on the plan, whether straight or curved, sufficient to reproduce
the same on the ground. Bounds are to be set at every angle point
and point of curvature of the proposed street lines and indicated
on the plan. These are to be tied into existing bounds and street
lines and shown on the plan.
(e)
Profiles of proposed streets shall show the
rates of grade and the center-line elevations at fifty-foot intervals.
The profile shall show sufficient data to properly identify the vertical
curves used. Proposed gutter line grades shall be shown at twenty-five-foot
intervals around the curves at intersections and continuing 100 feet
therefrom. In addition, the existing ground profile at the proposed
center line must be shown.
(f)
Existing topography, with two-foot contour intervals and details showing all fences, walls, building waterways and other natural drainagecourses, large boulders or out-cropping of ledge, trees and buildings within the subdivision or other natural objects of like importance and all of the features abutting each entrance to the subdivision. Topography plans may be submitted as a separate plan and may be drawn in pencil on tracing paper, but must conform in size and scale to the definitive plan, and a reproduction master as outlined under Subsection D(1), Surveying and drafting requirements, shall be furnished to the Planning Board.
(g)
Proposed topography within the subdivision as
required by the Planning Board.
(h)
Size and location of existing and proposed water
mains and their appurtenances, if applicable.
(i)
Size and location of existing and proposed sewers
and their appurtenances; also, a profile showing rates of grade, if
applicable.
(j)
Size and location of existing and proposed subsurface
or water drains and their appurtenances; also, a profile showing rates
of grade.
(k)
Size and location of existing and proposed electric,
telephone and cable facilities.
(l)
The location and area of wetlands and the one-hundred-foot
buffer zone.
(m)
The zoning classification of the property, including
the delineation of all overlay districts, and the base flood elevations
for all lots or parcels within the floodplain.
(n)
There shall be a table prepared and displayed
in a convenient place on the plan showing the following:
[1]
Zoning district(s) in which the land is located.
[2]
The total area of the entire subdivision.
[3]
The number of building lots within the subdivision
and the total area of all such lots.
[4]
The total area of all ways within the subdivision.
[5]
The total number of linear feet, measured along
the center line, of all roadways and culs-de-sac proposed on the plan.
[6]
The total area of wetlands within the subdivision.
[7]
The total area of open space within the subdivision
(all land not included in ways or building lots).
[8]
The total number of bounds to be set.
[2]
Editor's Note: Figures 1 through 8 are included at the end of this chapter.
E.
Approval.
(1)
The Planning Board, after the hearing, shall vote
to approve, modify and approve or disapprove the plan within the time
prescribed by law, or such greater time as has been agreed upon, and
shall file forthwith a certificate of the vote with the Town Clerk
and mail a copy forthwith to the applicant. If the definitive plan
is prepared using a computer aided drafting program, an electronic
copy of the final definitive plan (on a medium and in a format as
directed by the Town Planner) shall be filed with the Planning Board
at the time of endorsement.
(2)
The approval of the definitive plan or the completion
of streets within any subdivision does not make the streets and ways
set out on the plan "accepted streets."
F.
Performance guaranty.
(1)
Required for approval. Before endorsement of its approval of a plan, the Planning Board shall require that the construction of ways and the installation of municipal services be secured by one, or in part by one and in part by another, of the methods described in the following Subsection F(1)(a), (b),(c) or (d), which method or combination of methods may be selected and from time to time varied by the applicant:
(a)
By a proper bond, sufficient in the opinion
of the Planning Board to secure performance of the construction of
ways and the installation of municipal services required for lots
in the subdivision shown on the plan, and the Planning Board may require
that the applicant specify the time within which such construction
shall be completed.
(b)
By a deposit of money or negotiable securities
sufficient, in the opinion of the Planning Board, to secure performance
of the construction of ways and the installation of municipal service
required for lots in the subdivision shown on the plan, and the Planning
Board may require that the applicant specify the time within which
such construction shall be completed.
(c)
By a covenant, executed and duly recorded by
the owner of record, running with the land, whereby such ways and
services shall be provided to serve any lot before such lot may be
built upon or conveyed, other than by mortgaged deed; provided, however,
that a mortgagee who acquires title to the mortgaged premises by foreclosure
or otherwise and any succeeding owner of such premises or part thereof
may sell any such lot, subject to that portion of the covenant which
provides that no lot shall be built upon until such ways and services
have been provided to serve such lot; and provided, further, that
nothing herein shall be deemed to prohibit a conveyance by a single
deed, subject to such covenant, of either the entire parcel of land
shown on the subdivision plan or of all lots not previously released
by the Planning Board. A deed of any part of the subdivision in violation
hereof shall be voidable by the grantee prior to the release of the
covenant, but not later than three years from the date of such deed.
(d)
By delivery to the Planning Board of an agreement
executed after the recording of a first mortgage covering the premises
shown on the plan or a portion thereof given as security for advances
to be made to the applicant by the lender, which agreement shall be
executed by the applicant and the lender and shall provide for the
retention by the lender of funds sufficient, in the opinion of the
Planning Board and otherwise due the applicant, to secure the construction
of ways and the installation of municipal services. Said agreement
shall also provide for a schedule of disbursements which may be made
to the applicant upon completion of various stages of the work and
shall further provide that, in the event that the work is not completed
within the time set forth by the applicant, any funds remaining undisbursed
shall be available for completion.
(2)
Release of performance guaranty.
(a)
When the applicant has completed the required
improvements specified in these regulations, the applicant shall send,
by registered mail, to the Town Clerk and the Planning Board, a written
statement that the required improvements have been completed, such
statement to contain the address of the applicant. Such statement
shall be accompanied by two copies of a certificate by a designer,
engineer, or land surveyor, as the case is appropriate, that the work
has been completed to the extent described in the certificate and
conforms in all details with the approved subdivision plan and these
rules and regulations; or, if it does not so conform, such nonconformity
shall be accurately described in the certificate. No bond, deposit,
or covenant, or any portion or part thereof, shall be released by
the Planning Board until it has been established that the work required
has been completed in accordance with the approved plans and has been
inspected and found satisfactory according to the standards of the
Planning Board.
(b)
When the foregoing requirements have been satisfied,
the Board will release all or part of the interest of the Town in
such bond and return the bond or the deposit or execute and deliver
to the applicant a release, which shall be in form for recording in
the Registry of Deeds. Thereafter the conditions relating to such
lots and so released shall terminate. Fifteen percent of the total
cost of the road improvements, as determined by the Planning Board's
engineer, shall be retained to guarantee the integrity of the road
after being completed for one full year. If the Board determines that
the required improvements have not been satisfactorily completed,
it shall specify in a notice sent by registered mail to the applicant
and the Town Clerk, the details wherein improvements fail to comply;
but, upon failure by the Board to so notify the applicant within 45
days after receipt by the Town Clerk of the written statement from
the applicant, obligations under the bond shall cease, any deposit
shall be returned, and any such covenant shall become void, to the
extent that it or they apply to the portion of the subdivision or
lots for which a release was requested.
(c)
The applicant shall retain title to the fee
of each street, path or easement in, or appurtenant to, the subdivision
until conveyed to the Town. Prior to final release of security, the
applicant shall submit all necessary documentation for street acceptance,
including a metes and bounds description of the road and all easements,
an as-built plan, and a draft of the proposed deed and any easements.
G.
Expenditure of bonds. If deemed necessary by the Planning
Board, the proceeds of any such bond or deposit shall be made available
to the Town for expenditure to meet the cost and expenses of the municipality
in completing the work as specified in the approved plan. If such
proceeds do not exceed $100,000, the expenditure may be made without
specific appropriation under MGL, c. 44, § 53; provided that
such expenditure is approved by the Select Board.
[Amended 11-16-2021 STM by Art. 4]
H.
As-built plans. An as-built plan and profile together
with three copies thereof, shall be submitted to the Planning Board
after completion of construction, or at such times or stages as required
by the Planning Board. Such plan shall show drainage lines and structures,
water mains, if any, underground gas, electric, telephone, and cable
lines, and other appurtenances as actually installed with sufficient
ties for proper identification. Street numbers shall be shown near
the lots numbers, and circled. On the as-built plan the following
must also be shown:
(1)
A diagram in ink shall show in plan view the complete
drainage system, and municipal water and sewerage system, if any,
as constructed in the subdivision. This plan shall show the stationing
of all structures, such as manholes, catch basins, wye's etc. The
invert elevations of all pipes at their outlets, as well as the pipe
sizes and the type of pipe are to be given.
(2)
On the plan view of the street, and the true line
relative position of all drainage structures, the mainline drain and
its appurtenances shall be shown.
(3)
On the profile view of the street and true relative
position of the mainline drain, its structures and appurtenances in
profile shall be shown. The invert elevation and percentage of grade
of the pipe shall be shown.
(4)
On the respective portions of the street and profile
plan, the applicant should show any additional information which would
more clearly explain or indicate his drainage and other utilities
systems.