[Added by the 1989 Town Meeting; amended by the 2017 Town
Meeting]
A. Accessory apartments are allowed in all districts that permit single-family
dwellings.
B. To increase housing alternatives while maintaining neighborhood aesthetics
and quality, one accessory apartment within a detached single-family
dwelling shall be permitted, provided the following conditions are
met:
(1)
Maximum of one accessory apartment per single-family dwelling.
(2)
The property owner must occupy one of the two units.
(3)
The exterior appearance and entrances of the dwelling shall
be consistent with a single-family residence.
(4)
Only two bedrooms are permitted in the accessory apartment,
and the apartment may not exceed 950 square feet of floor space.
[Amended by the 2020 and 2021 Town Meetings]
(5)
Adequate provisions for water supply and sewage disposal for
the accessory unit shall be made in accordance with RSA 485-A:38.
(6)
Off-street parking shall be provided for at least four vehicles.
Garage and "piggy-back" parking is encouraged.
(7)
The structure and lot shall not be converted to a condominium
or any other form of legal ownership distinct from the ownership of
the existing single-family dwelling. Accessory apartment use shall
be recorded by deed addendum.
(8)
An accessory apartment shall not be permitted in addition to
an in-law apartment or a family day-care center.
(9)
Variances from this section shall be contrary to the spirit
and intent of this chapter.
(10)
Detached accessory apartments are not allowed.
(11)
An interior door shall be provided between the principal dwelling
unit and the accessory dwelling unit.
No wall, fence or other structure* and no tree, shrub or other
growth on the property shall so obstruct the view as to cause danger
to traffic in the street. (*Note: Includes recreational vehicles in
the Residential and Rural Districts.)
[Amended by the 2010 and 2015 Town Meetings]
No structure shall be constructed within 40 feet from the high-water
mark of any lake, stream, or surface water system, except that no
structure shall be constructed within 50 feet from the high-water
mark for the protected shorelands defined by the New Hampshire Department
of Environmental Services in accordance with RSA 483-B. The high-water
mark shall not be moved or disturbed without Planning Board approval.
No septic tank or leach field may be constructed closer than 75 feet
to any surface water body, as defined by NHDES. The minimum distance
between a septic tank and surface water may be reduced to 50 feet
if NHDES regulations are met.
[Added by the 1983 Town Meeting]
A. In the interest of public safety, all homes, buildings and other
structures shall clearly display, at a location that provides for
unobstructed viewing from the street, the identifying building name
and/or street address as recorded in the Town Assessor's office.
B. The size, type and location of the identifying building name and/or street address must be approved by the Salem Fire Chief or his designee and must conform to §
490-702, Signs, of this chapter.
C. Effective April 1, 1983, any home, building or other structure which
requires a permit from the Building Department shall be required to
comply with the building identification requirements of this section.
Any property which is transferred after April 1, 1983, shall be required
to comply with the building identification requirements of this section
within 60 days of the date of the transfer.
[Amended by the 1988 Town Meeting]
No lot in the Residential, Garden Apartment, Rural, Recreational,
or Manufactured Housing Park Districts may be used for the outside
storage of more than one unregistered and/or uninspected motor vehicle.
No more than one unregistered boat shall be permitted on a lot.
[Added by the 1983 Town Meeting]
The parking, but not occupation, of one recreational vehicle
shall be permitted in the Residential, Rural, and Recreational Districts,
subject to the following requirements:
A. Parking is permitted inside any enclosed structure, which structure
otherwise conforms to the zoning requirements of the particular district
where located.
B. Parking is permitted in the rear yard or side yard, provided that
the recreational vehicle is located such that it conforms to the lot
line setbacks of the particular district where located.
C. Parking is permitted outside on a driveway, provided that:
(1)
Space is not available in the rear yard or side yard or there
is no reasonable access to either the rear yard or side yard.
(2)
No part of the recreational vehicle may be any closer than five
feet to the street line.
(3)
The recreational vehicle shall be parked perpendicular to the
street line.
D. Parking is permitted for storage purposes, and any recreational vehicle
shall not be:
(1)
Used for dwelling purposes.
(2)
Used for storage of goods, material or equipment other than
those items considered to be part of the recreational vehicle or essential
for its immediate use.
E. The recreational vehicle shall be owned by the resident on whose
property it is parked for storage.
In instances where a dwelling located in the Residential, Rural,
or Recreational District has been damaged by fire or other catastrophe
and is being rebuilt or repaired, it shall be permissible to occupy
one house trailer or motor home on that lot for a period not exceeding
90 days while the dwelling remains unoccupied, and up to an additional
90 days if the Building Inspector deems it advisable.
[Added by the 1994 Town Meeting; amended by the 2005 and
2022 Town Meetings]
A. Notwithstanding any other provision contained herein, for any single-family
or duplex dwelling originally constructed by a lawfully issued building
permit, the Chief Building Official, Planning Director, and Building
Inspector may together issue an administrative waiver of any setback
violations, provided that the waiver may not be issued for any encroachment
exceeding 10% of the required setback distance.
(1)
In determining whether to issue such a waiver, the Chief Building
Official shall consider the following factors:
(a) The potential causes for the original noncompliance.
(b) The effect on public health, safety and welfare created by the encroachment.
(c) The effect of nonenforcement of the required provisions on surrounding
complying properties.
(2)
No approval may be given for setback encroachments on both of
the opposite sides of any structure.
B. If the Chief Building Official, Planning Director, and Building Inspector
together should deny such waiver request, the property owner may file
an administrative appeal of such a decision with the Zoning Board
of Adjustment or may alternatively seek a variance from the terms
of the underlying setback requirement.
[Added by the 1992 Town Meeting]
A. A person
shall be permitted to expand otherwise permitted uses on premises
subject to site plan jurisdiction of the Planning Board, notwithstanding
the fact that said premises may not conform to lot coverage or setback
requirements otherwise applicable to new uses, provided such expansion
does not further diminish the lot coverage or increase the area or
volume of the structure or uses which encroach into required setback
areas.
B. Alteration or expansion of nonconforming structures. Alteration or
expansion of a structure which is nonconforming solely because of
dimensional requirements is permitted without Zoning Board of Adjustment
approval, provided that:
[Added by the 2016 Town Meeting]
(1)
The present use, a changed use, or an additional use is permitted
in the district; and
(2)
The alteration or expansion will not further violate setback
dimensional requirements. Any new encroachment cannot come closer
to a property line than the encroachment into the normal setback area
made by the existing structure.
[Added by the 1992 Town Meeting]
Regular or sustained operation of equipment or unattended operation
of vehicles which causes noise exceeding 45 dBA between the hours
of 10:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. or 55 dBA between 7:00 a.m. and 10:00
p.m. at any dwelling (house, apartment or other permanent residence)
in any district wherein such dwelling is a permitted use shall not
be permitted in any district. Site development and construction, agriculture,
forestry, maintenance of real property, and government operations
are exempt from this requirement.
[Added by the 1997 Town Meeting]
Residential exterior lighting shall be installed or arranged
in a manner which prevents direct light or glare, vertical or angled,
from shining onto any public street or adjacent property so as to
constitute a nuisance. Direct or indirect lighting shall not cause
illumination in excess of 1.0 footcandle when measured at any point
vertically above the boundary of any residential property or right-of-way
of any public way.
Motor vehicle fuel may not be stored or dispensed in any district,
except as follows:
A. Motor vehicle fuel may be stored and dispensed in Commercial-Industrial
Subdistricts A, B, and C and in the Industrial District, at:
(1)
Motor vehicle service or filling stations which serve the general
public, except that no new motor vehicle filling stations may be constructed
or installed or located within 1,320 feet of the Surface Source Water
Protection Area as delineated by the New Hampshire Department of Environmental
Services on a plan titled "Public Water Supply and Drinking Water
Protection Areas of the Town of Salem."
[Amended by the 2003 Town Meeting]
(2)
Commercial enterprises, for vehicles owned or operated by that enterprise for business purposes. The provisions regarding filling stations contained in §
490-501B(3)(b) shall not apply to such fuel dispensing facilities operated by such commercial enterprises.
B. The Board of Adjustment may grant special exceptions to permit storage
and dispensing of motor vehicle fuel in any district, for the exclusive
purpose of fueling motor vehicles (and equipment) operated on the
same lot for agricultural purposes, provided that the Board of Adjustment
finds that such storage and dispensing will not adversely affect the
public health, safety or welfare.
[Added by the 2008 Town Meeting]
Pursuant to RSA 674:21, I(b), to ensure that the rate of growth
of new dwelling units does not unreasonably interfere with the Town's
capacity for planned, orderly, and sensible expansion of its services
to accommodate such growth, the construction of new nonsenior multifamily
housing units shall be phased so that no more than 50 units shall
be built in any one project per year.
The following additional restrictions shall govern motel uses
in the Commercial-Industrial Subdistrict B and the Industrial District:
A. The minimum lot and land area shall be three acres.
B. The minimum lot frontage shall be 300 feet, and the minimum lot depth
200 feet.
C. No building or structure shall be closer than 50 feet to any lot
line.
D. A space of not less than 20 feet wide, grassed or shrubbed and prohibited
for parking, shall be maintained along each lot line, except at driveways.
E. The maximum percentage of land area of each lot which may be occupied
by buildings shall be 25%.
F. Each motel shall consist of not more than 20 units per acre of land
area.
G. Each motel unit shall have one paved parking space adjoining its
entrance.
[Added by the 1988 Town Meeting]
The following restrictions apply to child-care centers in Commercial-Industrial
Subdistrict B:
A. Planning Board site plan approval is required.
B. Stockade fence and/or evergreen vegetation shall buffer all neighbors
from children play areas as determined by the Planning Board.
C. Where municipal sewer is not provided, the septic system shall meet
State Water Supply and Pollution Control Division (WSPCD) requirements
for the permitted use.
D. An off-street area shall be provided for the loading and unloading
of five vehicles.
E. The number of students attending the center is limited to 35.
F. All relevant state laws shall be complied with.
G. All other restrictions for the district shall be complied with.
[Added by the 2021 Town Meeting]
At least 10% of the total dwelling units in all new multifamily
housing projects which exceed the density allowed in the underlying
zoning district shall be dedicated as affordable to moderate-income
households, defined as being available at a cost of no more than 30%
of gross household income of households at or below 60% of the Lawrence,
MA PMSA - NH Portion median income as reported by the U.S. Department
of Housing and Urban Development.
[Added by the 1992 Town Meeting; amended by the 2007 Town
Meeting]
A. Purpose and intent. It is the purpose of this section to establish
reasonable and uniform regulations to prevent the concentration of
sexually oriented businesses within the Town of Salem, and it is the
intent to promote the health, safety and general welfare of the citizens
of the Town of Salem through regulation of the location of adult retail
establishments, and it is the intent of this section that the regulations
be utilized to prevent problems of blight and deterioration which
accompany and are brought about by the concentration of sexually oriented
businesses, and it is the intent of this section to address secondary
effects of increased crime, urban blight, public lewdness, and spread
of sexually transmitted diseases, and it is the intent of this section
that the regulations be utilized to preserve quality of life and preserve
property values and the character of the surrounding neighborhoods,
and the provisions of this amendment have neither the purpose nor
the effect of imposing limitation or restriction on the content of
any communicative materials, including sexually oriented materials,
and it is not the intent nor effect of this section to restrict or
deny access by adults to sexually oriented materials protected by
the First Amendment, or to deny access by the distributors and exhibitors
of sexually oriented entertainment to their intended market, and neither
is it the intent nor effect of this section to condone or legitimize
the distribution of obscene material.
C. Allowed locations and location restrictions of sexually oriented
businesses.
(1)
Sexually oriented businesses, as defined, shall be permitted
only in Commercial-Industrial Subdistricts B and C, provided that
all other regulations, requirements, and restrictions for the district
in which the sexually oriented business is to be located are met,
and no sexually oriented business shall be permitted:
(a)
Within 1,000 feet of another existing sexually oriented business
or one for which a building permit has been applied for, on the date
of the passage of this amendment;
(b)
Within 750 feet of any Residential, Rural, Garden Apartment,
Manufactured Housing or Recreational District;
(c)
Within 750 feet of any church, place of worship, parish house,
convent, public, parochial, or private school, kindergarten, state-approved
day-care center or public sports/recreation parks;
(d)
Within 750 feet of the Town boundaries; and
(e)
Within a building, premises, structure or other facility that contains a sexually oriented business as defined in §
490-107.
(2)
Measure of distance. The distance between any two sexually oriented
businesses shall be measured in a straight line, without regard to
intervening structures, from the closest exterior structural wall
or temporary or permanent physical divider between each business.
D. Additional reasonable regulations. The Planning Board is empowered
hereunder to review and approve permit applications for sexually oriented
businesses and impose reasonable restrictions for buffering, outdoor
lighting, parking, adequate ingress and egress from the site off of
and onto public roads, and pedestrian movement and to provide for
appropriate landscaping and building aesthetics in the Site Plan Review
Regulations of the Town of Salem, New Hampshire, and to avoid site
development layout which may result in negative environmental impacts.
[Added by the 2020 Town Meeting]
To allow sports betting as a permitted use.