Under the authority of RSA 674:43 and authorization from the
1982 Town Meeting, as amended, the Planning Board repeals the previous
Chapter 123 and its exemption policy and hereby adopts this new chapter
on January 14, 1993. This chapter applies only to sites with nonresidential
and/or multifamily residential uses.
[Amended 2-24-2022]
The general purpose of this chapter is 1) to guide the character
of nonresidential and multifamily development, redevelopment, expansion,
and change of use in order to provide for the health, safety, convenience,
prosperity, and general welfare of the Town's inhabitants, businesses
and visitors, and 2) to recognize the will of the public as expressed
in the Town's Master Plan and utilize the Master Plan to review proposals
to design and develop property and structures in Conway. Throughout
these regulations, the Board seeks to balance the demand for growth,
development and change with the need to preserve and enhance those
qualities that make Conway a safe and desirable place to live, work
and visit. In keeping with this general purpose, the following are
specific objectives of this chapter:
A.
To balance the landowner's rights to use his/her land with the corresponding
rights of abutting landowners and the public at large to be protected
from undue hazards, disturbances, nuisances, pollution and diminution
of property values;
B.
To protect public safety by means such as requiring appropriate provision
and arrangement of roads, driveways, sidewalks, traffic aisles, parking,
loading areas and emergency vehicle accesses;
C.
To provide for fire safety and prevention;
D.
To protect and preserve significant natural and man-made features,
including but not limited to scenic views, stone walls, large trees,
and historic structures;
E.
To promote the harmonious and aesthetically pleasing development
of the Town, ensuring visual harmony of neighborhoods, providing adequate
provision of greenspace and open space, protecting the natural beauty
of the Town and enhancing the quality of life for residents;
F.
To maintain the vitality of the tourist economy while allowing economic
growth in all sectors of the economy;
G.
To protect environmental quality by means such as controlling erosion
and providing for sanitary sewage disposal; and
H.
To ensure the provision of adequate facilities and services as are
necessary to serve the proposed uses.
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the
meanings indicated:
Any person whose property is located in New Hampshire or
Maine and adjoins or is directly across the street or stream from
the land under consideration by the Planning Board. For the purpose
of receiving testimony only, and not for the purposes of notification,
the term "abutter" shall include any person who is able to demonstrate
that his/her land will be directly affected by the proposal under
consideration. For the purposes of receipt of notification, in the
case of an abutting property being under a condominium or other collective
form of ownership, the term "abutter' means the officers of the collective
or association, as defined in RSA 356-B:3, XXIII.
The owner of the property or an agent with the owner's written
authorization. All actions of the agent shall be binding upon the
owner.
Any acceptable form of financial security. The specific dollar
amount, the form, and any associated agreements or stipulations shall
be negotiated directly with the Board of Selectmen.
The construction or improvements or change of use on a tract
or tracts of land for nonresidential and/or multifamily use.
The area of land, excepting that covered by greenspace and
building(s), changed by human construction activities.
A permeable area of vegetated ground surface.
A use engaged in manufacture, predominantly from previously
prepared materials of finished products or parts, including processing,
fabrication, treatment, packaging, storage, sales and distribution
of such products.
Three or more residential units in one building.
Any plan sheet other than a site sketch.
A plan sheet to be recorded at the Carroll County Registry
of Deeds to indicate final approval.
Standards which dictate the content and presentation of plats
and/or plans.
Temporary outdoor sales of merchandise, including, but not
limited to, art, food and clothing, within the sidewalk area of a
retail use, on a temporary basis. "Temporary" shall mean seasonal,
weekends, fair weather; not permanent.
A scale drawing of a site.
Any Class I, II, III or IV road.
An event whose occurrence is limited to not more than 14
days per calendar year.
Sales of goods within a temporary structure with fabric or
nonrigid walls or roof of cloth. For the purpose of these regulations,
tent sales shall be considered temporary events.
The minimum number of parking spaces required by on-site
uses.
[Amended 9-14-2017; 3-14-2019; 4-11-2019; 5-23-2024]
The following criteria specifies the level of review necessary
for a proposal to develop a nonresidential or multifamily site:
A.
Site plan review not applicable. The determination of "not applicable"
by the designee of the Board shall mean that no site plan review approval
is necessary, although other types of approvals or permits may be
necessary per other municipal codes and an application shall be kept
on file. The site plan review regulations shall be deemed not applicable
for the following:
(1)
Temporary events which require no permanent alterations to the site
and which function safely within the approved configuration of the
site as determined by the designee of the Board.
(2)
Special events approved by the Board of Selectmen.
(4)
Small undertakings where it is demonstrated that:
(a)
All proposed changes to the structure and/or site conform to
all other applicable codes and reasonably conform to the site design
standards of this chapter;
(b)
Proposed changes do not increase the intensity of use on the
site beyond the service capacity of existing on-site infrastructure
(including but not limited to parking, traffic generation and septic
loading);
(c)
Any net reduction in greenspace on the lot is less than or equal
to 2,000 square feet;
(d)
Any increase in structure floor space is less than or equal
to 1,000 square feet; and
(e)
In order to ensure that cumulative impacts can be evaluated by the Planning Board in a public forum, this Subsection A(4) shall not be applied if its application, combined with prior applications since the latest review by the Planning Board, would result in a cumulative decrease of greenspace greater than 4,000 square feet or in a cumulative increase in structure floor space greater than 2,000 square feet.
(5)
Where the Planning Board finds that the change of use and/or physical
changes to the site are insignificant relative to the existing development.
B.
Minor site review required. Minor site review shall be required for
proposed commercial and multifamily developments which meets the following
criteria:
(1)
The establishment of a three- to five-unit multifamily development,
or the redevelopment of a current multifamily development with an
increase of no more than five units;
(2)
A reduction of greenspace greater than 2,000 but less than 10,000
square feet;
(3)
An increase in commercial structural floor area of greater than 1,000
but less than 5,000 square feet or no greater than a 35% increase
in commercial square footage, whichever is less;
(4)
Lot-line adjustments or lot mergers;
(5)
Changes of use which may require a waiver from site plan regulations
or a Zoning Board of Adjustment decision but are determined not to
increase site intensity beyond current capacity.
(6)
Minor site review applications will be reviewed by the Technical
Review Committee (TRC) at a public hearing and must address the following:
(a)
Submit a completed application to the Planning Department in
accordance with the checklist attached to the application form to
include a detailed narrative of all existing and proposed site features.
(b)
A plan indicating the following:
[1]
Any public way and significant natural or constructed feature
within 250 feet.
[2]
A scaled plan which represents existing site details and proposed
changes; including but not limited to, structures, setbacks, overlay
districts, parking and loading areas, signage, lighting, landscaping,
architectural changes, utilities, and amount of area disturbed. Plans
are not required to be prepared by a professional engineer or licensed
surveyor unless deemed necessary by Town staff or the TRC.
[3]
Wetlands, watercourses and water bodies, significant natural
or topographic features, or other significant environmental site aspects
may require delineation by a licensed professional If determined necessary
by Town staff or the TRC.
[4]
A lot line adjustment shall require plans prepared by a licensed
land surveyor.
(c)
A minor site review application must adequately represent the proposal, adhere to Chapter 190, Zoning Regulations and comply with Chapter 110 Site Plan Review, Article III Design Standards. All applicable subdivision regulations shall apply for lot-line adjustment applications. Depending on the scale or impact of the development, Town staff or the TRC may require additional reviews, more detailed plans, site visits, or other information to ensure the application is in compliance with all applicable regulations. The TRC may determine that minor site review is not acceptable to address all possible concerns and full site plan review is required.
C.
Full site plan review. Unless a proposal is deemed not applicable pursuant to Subsection A, or qualifies for minor site review under Subsection B, a site plan review by the Planning Board shall be required for all commercial development or the creation of multifamily housing. Site plan review is also required for the establishment of a commercial use.
