Town of Sharon, MA Special Residential Uses

Conversion of a single residence which was in existence on the date this Zoning Bylaw became effective, March 13, 1933, into a residence for two families.

4213.

Conversion of a dwelling or building accessory thereto, or both, into a building or buildings containing in the aggregate as many dwelling units as could be obtained if the dwelling and building accessory thereto, if any, were to be razed, the lot subdivided into as many lots as the Zoning Bylaw permits and as many dwelling units as permitted by the Zoning Bylaw were then constructed; provided that the dwelling and the building accessory thereto, if any, were in existence on the date this Zoning Bylaw became effective (March 13, 1933) and that a permanent preservation restriction under MGL c. 184, §§ 31 through 33, is provided, assuring the future integrity of the building exterior and the grounds.

4220 Municipal building conversions.

In Single Residence, Rural and Suburban Districts, and Business District C, a special permit from the Select Board may authorize conversion to multifamily dwelling use of a building then or formerly in municipal use, provided that additions or extensions increase lot coverage by not more than 10% of lot area. Lot area plus contiguous land dedicated to public recreation or conservation use shall equal at least 2,000 square feet per dwelling unit; the provisions of this section shall prevail over the provisions and/or limitations of Subsection 2320, including without limitation Subsections 2321 and 2326.

4230 Business Districts B and C.

Apartments in excess of two dwelling units, including services related thereto, over nonresidential establishments may be authorized in Business Districts B and C by special permit from the Board of Appeals, provided that no dwelling unit shall be located below the second floor, in accordance with the following:

4231.

Number of bedrooms shall not exceed 16 per acre. For the purposes of this calculation, a studio apartment shall be considered a one-bedroom apartment.

4232.

Usable open space shall be provided on the same site to at least the following amounts per unit:

	Studio apartment	400 square feet
	One-bedroom apartment	600 square feet
	Two-bedroom apartments	800 square feet
	Three-bedroom apartment or more	1,200 square feet

4233.

Usable open space shall be on substantially level ground and open to the sky; maintained in grass or landscaped as recreational or park area, provided that no more than 25% of the required minimum usable open space is covered with impervious materials; not less than 20 feet in any dimension, exclusive of required setbacks; accessible to all residents on the site without crossing parking areas or driveways.

4234.

Notwithstanding the provisions of Subsection 3112, all parking required for residences shall be located on the same lot and shall be reserved for the residents.

4235.

On a lot which is used for residence as well as business, the landscaping requirements of Subsection 3117 shall apply to side and rear lot lines, except where driveways or parking areas are shared with an adjoining lot. A strip of lawn or natural vegetation at least 20 feet wide may be substituted in place of the screening otherwise required.

4236.

Site plan approval shall be required in all cases pursuant to Subsection 6320. In addition to the reviews provided in said Subsection 6320, the Board of Appeals shall also consider suitability and safety of ways for residents to their apartments, parking areas and usable open space; and the compatibility of the proposed nonresidential uses with residential uses with respect to safety from fire or other hazards and to protection from noise, litter or other nuisance.

4240 Business District A.

Site plan approval shall be required pursuant to Subsections 6320 and 6330. The Planning Board shall be the authority for site plan review and the Board of Appeals shall be the special permit granting authority for all developments in Business District A, unless otherwise noted in the Zoning Bylaw. In addition to the reviews provided in said sections, the Planning Board and Board of Appeals shall also consider suitability and safety of ways for residents to their apartments, parking areas and usable open space; and the compatibility of the proposed nonresidential uses with residential uses with respect to safety from fire or other hazards and to protection from noise, litter or other nuisance.

Multiple-residence buildings containing three or more dwelling units, and mixed-use buildings with or without residential uses which require a special permit under Subsection 2326, including services related thereto, shall be designed in accordance with the following:

(1)

There shall be a minimum lot area requirement of 2,200 square feet per dwelling unit.

(2)

There shall be no restriction on combining different categories of permitted uses within the same building other than those imposed by the State Building Code or other federal, state or local regulations other than the Zoning Bylaw.

(3)

Where it faces a street, a building shall have no more than 40% of its ground floor frontage devoted to residential uses, or enclosed parking.

(4)

Blank walls shall not occupy more than 40% of a ground floor street-facing frontage and shall not exceed 20 linear feet without being interrupted by a window or entry. Buildings shall provide a foundation or base that extends from the ground to the bottom of the lower window sills that is distinguished from the building face by a change in volume or material. A clear visual division shall be maintained between the ground level floor and upper floors, which may include changes in volume or materials or other architectural detailing such as a belt course or cornice. The top of any building shall contain a distinctive finish consisting of a cornice or other architectural termination.

(5)

All ground floor facades facing public sidewalks, plazas, or other public open spaces, streets or rights-of-way shall have transparent features covering a minimum of at least 40% and a maximum 80% of the area between two feet and 10 feet above grade. Transparent features may include windows and transparent doors. "Transparent" means that an individual can see into the building from the outside. Transparent glass may be tinted, low-E, or include other similar treatment. For residential uses, this minimum transparency requirement is reduced to 20% of the area between two feet and 10 feet above grade to allow for increased privacy. Other treatments that enhance the pedestrian environment may be used.

On a lot which is used for residence as well as business uses, the landscaping requirements of Subsection 3117 shall apply to side and rear lot lines, except where driveways or parking areas are shared with an adjoining lot. A strip of lawn or natural vegetation at least 20 feet wide may be substituted in place of the screening otherwise required.

Notwithstanding the provisions of Subsection 3112, all off-street parking required for residences shall be located on the same lot, or adjacent lots, and shall be reserved for the residents and their guests.

Housing and affordability. Within Business District A, for those developments requiring a special permit for eight or more dwelling units, whether through new construction, substantial rehabilitation, residential conversion, or adaptive reuse, a minimum of 12 1/2% of dwelling units built shall be affordable housing. Developments shall not be segmented or phased in a manner to avoid compliance with these provisions.

(1)

For purposes of this section, the following definitions shall apply.

AFFORDABLE HOMEOWNERSHIP UNIT

An affordable housing unit required to be sold to an eligible household.

AFFORDABLE HOUSING

Housing that is affordable to and occupied by eligible households. The unit must be approvable to be added to the subsidized housing inventory (SHI) pursuant to MGL c. 40B. Units must be approved through the Local Action Unit (LAU) program of the Massachusetts Department of Housing and Community Development, if not filed as part of a 40B comprehensive permit filing.

AFFORDABLE HOUSING RESTRICTION

A deed restriction of affordable housing meeting statutory requirements in MGL c. 184, § 31, and the requirements of Subsection 4904e.

AFFORDABLE RENTAL UNIT

An affordable housing unit required to be rented to an eligible household.

ELIGIBLE HOUSEHOLD

An individual or household whose annual income is less than 80% of the area-wide median income as determined by the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), adjusted for household size, with income computed using HUD's rules for attribution of income to assets.

(2)

Marketing plan. Any applicant for a special permit for a development of eight or more dwelling units in Business District A must submit to the special permit granting authority a narrative document and marketing plan that establishes that the proposed development of housing is appropriate for diverse types of households, including households for individuals with disabilities and the elderly.

(3)

Number of affordable housing units. For purposes of calculating the number of units of affordable housing required within a development, any fractional unit greater than or equal to 0.5 shall be deemed to constitute a whole unit.

(4)

Requirements. Affordable housing shall comply with the following requirements:

(i)

For an affordable rental unit, the monthly rent payment, including utilities and parking, shall not exceed 30% of the maximum monthly income permissible for an eligible household, assuming a family size equal to the number of bedrooms in the unit plus one.

(ii)

For an affordable homeownership unit, the monthly housing payment, including mortgage principal and interest, private mortgage insurance, property taxes, condominium and/or homeowners' association fees, insurance, and parking, shall not exceed 30% of the maximum monthly income permissible for an eligible household, assuming a family size equal to the number of bedrooms in the unit plus one.

(iii)

Affordable housing required to be offered for rent or sale shall be rented or sold to and occupied only by eligible households.

(iv)

At least 10% of the affordable housing units shall be handicapped-accessible.

(5)

Design and construction.

(i)

Units of affordable housing shall be finished housing units. Units of affordable housing shall be dispersed throughout the development of which they are part and be comparable in initial construction, quality and exterior design to other housing units in the development. The total number of bedrooms in the affordable housing shall be at least proportionate to the total number of bedrooms in all the units in the development project of which the affordable housing is part. Though it is intended that affordable units be included on-site, the special permit granting authority may authorize affordable housing on an alternative site(s) in Town suitable for housing use, preferably in the same neighborhood as the on-site development. Affordable off-site units may be located in an existing structure, provided that their construction constitutes a net increase in the number of affordable dwelling units contained in the structure. The number of off-site units shall be, at minimum, equal to that number of units otherwise required to be provided on-site. Off-site units shall be compatible in all respects with the market-rate units built on-site, including quality and character, construction value, and site amenities (yards, parking, laundry facilities, etc.). Any units provided in an off-site development should also be compatible with the off-site neighborhood, in terms of design, to the degree practical.

(ii)

In all cases utilizing off-site units, a finding by the special permit granting authority that this alternative method of compliance is advantageous to the Town in creating or preserving affordable housing and does not result in undue geographic concentration of affordable housing is required. In making its finding, the special permit granting authority shall consider such factors as location, accessibility to schools and other services, whether off-site units would provide more appropriate family housing than on-site units would, availability of parking, proximity to public transportation, availability of open space, etc. The special permit granting authority shall consult with the Sharon Housing Partnership prior to making a determination about the location of units on an alternate site(s).

(6)

Affordable housing restriction. Each unit of affordable housing shall be subject to an affordable housing restriction which is recorded with the appropriate Registry of Deeds or District Registry of the Land Court. Such affordable housing restriction shall contain the following:

(i)

Specification of the term of the affordable housing restriction, which shall be the maximum period allowed by law, or in perpetuity;

(ii)

The name and address of a monitoring agent with a designation of its power to monitor and enforce the affordable housing restriction;

(iii)

A description of the affordable homeownership unit, if any, by address and number of bedrooms; and a description of the overall quantity and number of bedrooms and number of bedroom types of affordable rental units in a project or portion of a project which are rental. Such restriction shall apply individually to the specifically identified affordable homeownership unit and shall apply to a percentage of rental units of a rental project or the rental portion of a project without specific unit identification;

(iv)

Reference to a housing marketing and resident selection plan, to which the affordable housing is subject, and which includes an affirmative fair housing marketing program, including public notice and a fair resident selection process. The plan shall contain a requirement that 70% of the affordable housing units shall be set aside for applicants that claim a local preference. Local preference applies to an applicant who has a principal residence or a place of employment in the Town of Sharon at the time of application. The plan shall also designate the household size appropriate for a unit with respect to bedroom size and provide that the preference for such unit shall be given to a household of the appropriate size;

(v)

A requirement that buyers or tenants will be selected at the initial sale or initial rental and upon all subsequent sales and rentals from a list of eligible households compiled in accordance with the housing marketing and selection plan;

(vi)

Reference to the formula pursuant to which rent of a rental unit or the maximum resale price of a homeownership unit will be set;

(vii)

A requirement that only an eligible household may reside in affordable housing and that notice of any lease or sublease of any unit of affordable housing shall be given to the monitoring agent;

(viii)

Provision for effective monitoring and enforcement of the terms and provisions of the affordable housing restriction by the monitoring agent;

(ix)

Provision that the restriction on an affordable homeownership unit shall run in favor of the monitoring agent and the Town, in a form approved by municipal counsel, and shall limit initial sale and all subsequent resales to and occupancy by an eligible household;

(x)

Provision that the restriction on affordable rental units in a rental project or rental portion of a project shall run with the rental project or rental portion of a project and shall run in favor of the monitoring agent and the Town, in a form approved by municipal counsel, and shall limit rental and occupancy to an eligible household;

(xi)

Provision that the owner(s) or manager(s) of affordable rental unit(s) shall file an annual report to the monitoring agent, in a form specified by that agent, certifying compliance with the affordability provisions of this bylaw and containing such other information as may be reasonably requested in order to ensure affordability;

(xii)

A requirement that residents in affordable housing provide such information as the monitoring agent may reasonably request in order to ensure affordability.

(7)

Monitoring agent. A monitoring agent, which may be the Sharon Housing Authority, or other qualified housing entity, shall be designated by the special permit granting authority. In a case where the monitoring agent cannot adequately carry out its administrative duties, upon certification of this fact by the special permit granting authority, such duties shall devolve to and thereafter be administered by a qualified housing entity designated by the special permit granting authority. In any event, such monitoring agent shall ensure the following, both prior to issuance of a building permit for a project in the Business District A, and on a continuing basis thereafter, as the case may be:

(i)

Prices of affordable homeownership units are properly computed; rental amounts of affordable rental units are properly computed;

(ii)

Income eligibility of households applying for affordable housing is properly and reliably determined;

(iii)

The housing marketing and resident selection plan conforms to all requirements and is properly administered;

(iv)

Sales and rentals are made to eligible households chosen in accordance with the housing marketing and resident selection plan, with appropriate unit size for each household being properly determined and proper preference being given; and

(v)

Affordable housing restrictions meeting the requirements of this section are recorded with the proper Registry of Deeds.

(8)

Housing marketing and selection plan. The housing marketing and selection plan shall make provision for payment by the applicant or project proponent of reasonable costs to the monitoring agent to develop, advertise, and maintain the list of eligible households and to monitor and enforce compliance with affordability requirements, as set forth in Subsection 4240e(6).

(9)

Phasing. The special permit granting authority, as a condition of any approval, may require a project to be phased in order to mitigate any extraordinary adverse impacts on nearby properties. For projects that are approved and developed in phases, the special permit granting authority shall assure the required number of affordable housing units in the project, as per Subsection 4240g. Such assurance may be provided through use of the security devices referenced in MGL c. 41, § 81U, or through the special permit granting authority's withholding of certificates of occupancy until proportionality has been achieved.

(10)

Computation. Prior to the granting of any approval of a project, the applicant must demonstrate, to the satisfaction of the monitoring agent, that the method by which such affordable rents or affordable purchase prices are computed shall be consistent with state or federal guidelines for affordability applicable to the Town.

(11)

No waiver. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary herein, the affordability provisions in this Subsection 4240e shall not be waived.