[Added 7-25-2020 ATM, Art. 9]
A. 
All developments within the Accord Pond Park Economic Development District shall require site plan review approval. The Planning Board shall administer the requirements and procedures outlined in this section. For the purposes of § 201-27, site plan review shall substantively follow the procedure outlined in § 201-3.4A through G except the Planning Board shall replace any reference to the Board of Appeals.
B. 
In addition to the requirements of § 201-27.1A, residential and certain nonresidential developments within the Accord Pond Park Economic Development District shall require special permit approval. The Planning Board, acting as the special permit granting authority (SPGA), may authorize a special permit for residential and certain nonresidential developments pursuant to the requirements and procedures outlined in this Section. For the purposes of § 201-27, special permit approval shall substantively follow the procedure outlined in §§ 201-3.3A through E, the except the Planning Board shall replace any reference to the Board of Appeals.
A. 
The Accord Pond Park Economic Development District is established and the boundaries of the Accord Pond Park Economic Development District are as described in § 201-6.1A(11) and § 201-6.2J and delineated as the "Accord Pond Park Economic Development District" on the Official Zoning Map of the Town of Norwell, as most recently revised, on file in the Office of Town Clerk, said map hereby made a part of the Norwell Zoning Bylaw.
B. 
The Accord Pond Park Economic Development District shall be comprised of three subdistricts:
(1) 
The Pond Street Subdistrict, as described in § 201-6.2J(1);
(2) 
The Accord Park Loop Subdistrict, as described in § 201-6.2J(2); and
(3) 
The Cordwainer Drive Subdistrict, as described in § 201-6.2J(3).
A. 
Table 1 reflects use regulations of the District. Desired and needed uses are allowed by right or by special permit, and the aesthetics and potential impact of development and redevelopment proposals are managed through the site plan review process of § 201-3.4 and supplemented by §§ 201-27.4 through 201-27.7. Uses not identified within this section are prohibited.
Table 1 - Use Regulations
Land Use Regulation
Pond Street Subdistrict
Accord Park Loop Subdistrict
Cordwainer Drive Subdistrict
By right
• Hotel (internal corridor access to rooms only)
• Office
• Restaurants
• Retail
• Indoor theater
• Cafeterias for employees, parking areas or garages for use of employees, customers, or visitors, and other normal accessory uses
• Educational, religious, agricultural, horticultural and floricultural uses exempt from zoning prohibition by MGL c. 40A, § 3
• Commercial
• Office
• Light industrial including assembly, research and development
• Medical, nursing and assisted living care facilities
• Adult education and workforce development training facilities
• Cafeterias for employees, parking areas or garages for use of employees, customers, or visitors, and other normal accessory uses
• Salesrooms for automobiles, bicycles, boats, farm implements and similar equipment, but not automobile junkyards
• Educational, religious, agricultural, horticultural and floricultural uses exempt from zoning prohibition by MGL c. 40A, § 3
• Commercial
• Office
• Light industrial including assembly, research and development
• Medical, nursing and assisted living care facilities
• Adult education and workforce development training facilities
• Cafeterias for employees, parking areas or garages for use of employees, customers, or visitors, and other normal accessory uses.
• Salesrooms for automobiles, bicycles, boats, farm implements and similar equipment, but not automobile junkyards
• Educational, religious, agricultural, horticultural and floricultural uses exempt from zoning prohibition by MGL c. 40A, § 3
Special permit
• Residential
• Medical marijuana treatment center or similar facility
• Medical marijuana treatment center or similar facility
• Transportation/logistics
• Retail
• Medical marijuana treatment center or similar facility
• Transportation/logistics
Prohibited
• Industrial
• Car sales
• Big box retail: 50,000 gross square feet or greater in size
• Drive-through retail
• Gasoline service stations, garages and repair shops
• Motel
• Heavy industrial
• Residential
• Motel
• Gasoline service stations, garages and repair shops
• Heavy industrial
• Residential
• Motel
• Retail
• Gasoline service stations, garages and repair shops
Table 2 reflects dimensional and parking regulations of the District. When a minimum and maximum range has been provided, the Planning Board shall use its discretion through the site plan review process to provide flexibility for proposals of varying sizes and shapes; as well as a determination of utilization of shared parking.
Table 2-Dimensional and Parking Regulations
Regulation
Pond Street Subdistrict
Accord Park Loop Subdistrict
Cordwainer Drive Subdistrict
Height, maximum
• 5 stories, and 70 feet
• 5 stories, and 70 feet
• 3 stories, and 40 feet
Lot coverage, maximum includes building and impervious surface parking
• 80% with green roof(s) plus other low-impact development (LID) requirements; otherwise 60%
• Impervious surfaces and rooftops to be interrupted when possible with low-impact development (LID) features to protect the aquifer recharge
• 80% with green roof(s) plus other low-impact development (LID) requirements; otherwise 60%
• Impervious surfaces and rooftops to be interrupted when possible with low-impact development (LID) features to protect the aquifer recharge
• 60% with green roof(s) plus other low-impact development (LID) requirements; otherwise 40%
• Impervious surfaces and rooftops to be interrupted when possible with low-impact development (LID) features to protect the aquifer recharge
Open space, minimum
•20% pooled into a contiguous area via site plan review process to be adjacent to entrances and/or between buildings to create usable amenitized spaces
• Designed with low-impact development (LID) features to protect the aquifer recharge
• 20% pooled into a contiguous area via site plan review process to be adjacent to entrances and/or between buildings to create usable amenitized spaces
• Designed with low-impact development (LID) features to protect the aquifer recharge
• 40% pooled into a contiguous area via site plan review process to be adjacent to entrances and/or between buildings to create usable amenitized spaces
• Designed with low-impact development (LID) features to protect the aquifer recharge
Parking ratio
• 2 to 6.7 spaces per 1,000 gross square feet of commercial/office/retail/restaurants/hotel
• Determined through the site plan review process and in consideration of the shared parking strategies provisions of § 201-27.5
• 2 to 6.7 spaces per 1,000 gross square feet of commercial/office
• Determined through the site plan review process and in consideration of the shared parking strategies provisions of § 201-27.5
• 2 to 6.7 spaces per 1,000 gross square feet of commercial/office/industrial
• Determined through the site plan review process and in consideration of the shared parking strategies provisions of § 201-27.5
Setback, front yard
• 20 feet to 75 feet determined through the site plan review process
• 20 feet to 75 feet determined through the site plan review process
• 20 feet to 75 feet determined through the site plan review process
Setback, side
• 10 feet to 20 feet determined through site plan review process
• Unless 2 or more parcels of record are being consolidated for the purposes of a comprehensive development proposal in which instance the side setbacks do not apply to the adjoining side lot lines of the parcels in question
• 10 feet to 20 feet determined through site plan review process
• Unless 2 or more parcels of record are being consolidated for the purposes of a comprehensive development proposal in which instance the side setbacks do not apply to the adjoining side lot lines of the parcels in question
• 10 feet to 20 feet determined through site plan review process
• Unless 2 or more parcels of record are being consolidated for the purposes of a comprehensive development proposal in which instance the side setbacks do not apply to the adjoining side lot lines of the parcels in question
Setback, rear
• 20 feet to 60 feet determined through site plan review process
• 20 feet to 60 feet determined through site plan review process
• 50 feet to 70 feet determined through site plan review process
Vegetated side/rear buffer abutting residential
• 3- to 6-foot-wide vegetated buffer for screening and buffering
• 3- to 6-foot-wide vegetated buffer for screening and buffering
• 6- to 10-foot-wide vegetated buffer for screening and buffering
Shared use of required parking: Notwithstanding anything to the contrary herein, the use of shared parking to fulfill parking demands that occur at different times of day is strongly encouraged. The minimum parking requirements outlined in § 201-27.4A may be reduced during the site plan review process upon demonstration that shared spaces will meet parking demands by using acceptable methodologies (e.g., the Urban Land Institute Shared Parking Report. ITE Shared Parking Guidelines, AASHTO A Policy on Geometric Design of Highways and Streets, or other approved studies). In considering waivers for shared parking strategies, the Planning Board shall make an express finding that shared parking strategies will meet parking demands and the waiver is a benefit to the proposal.
Development proposals shall be required to incorporate two or more of the following low-impact development (LID) features as part of the site plan review process. These LID requirements are in addition to meeting Town and state environmental protection requirements related to stormwater runoff retention, and aquifer protection and recharge. LID features treat and manage stormwater at the site level instead of solely discharging off-site. Parking Lot Design is required for all development proposals. Proposals that incorporate three or more LID requirements may qualify for further reductions in regulatory requirements.
A. 
Parking lot design: (a) create multiple smaller parking lots separated by natural vegetation, landscaped islands, vegetated swales, and bioretention areas; and/or (b) create hybrid parking lots with conventional paving for driveways and aisles, and permeable paving for stalls (permeable paving may also be appropriate for overflow parking areas, which are generally used only a few weeks out of the year); and/or (c) a bike rack and transit stop help to reduce the number of auto trips to the site.
B. 
Cisterns and rain barrels: Store rooftop runoff for reuse for landscaping and other non-potable uses. It involves directing each downspout to a to fifty- to 100-gallon rain barrel. A hose is attached to a faucet at the bottom of the barrel and water is distributed by gravity pressure.
C. 
Permeable pavers: Permeable pavers when possible for walkways, patios, plazas, driveways, parking stalls, and overflow parking areas. Materials can include porous asphalt, pervious concrete, paving stones, and manufactured "grass pavers" made of concrete or plastic. Permeable paving is appropriate for pedestrian-only areas and for low- to medium-volume, low-speed areas.
D. 
Green roofs: A low-maintenance vegetated roof system that stores rainwater in a lightweight engineered soil medium, where the water is taken up by plants and transpired into the air.
E. 
Bioretention cell or rain garden: Shallow depressions that use soil, plants, and microbes to treat stormwater before it is infiltrated or discharged.
F. 
Pretreatment grass filter strips: Low-angle vegetated slopes designed to treat sheet flow runoff from adjacent impervious areas by slowing runoff velocities, filtering out sediment and other pollutants, and providing some infiltration into underlying soils.
G. 
Vegetated swales: Open, shallow channels that slow and filter runoff, and promote infiltration into the ground.
A. 
Sites and blocks.
(1) 
Building placement: Buildings shall be placed on the site to define the edges of streets and public spaces with primary facades oriented to the street or public space, minimally setback and occupying a majority of the lot frontage. Buildings shall be placed to conceal parking at the interior or rear of building lots.
(2) 
Building setbacks: Building setbacks shall be in accordance with § 201-27.4A. The building setback from the front lot line shall be minimized to strengthen continuity of the street form. Building setbacks shall also include setting aside sufficient right-of-way for multimodal integrated sidewalk/bike-lanes.
(3) 
Building orientation: Buildings shall be oriented with the primary facade(s) facing the street frontage(s) of the site. Buildings should be oriented parallel to the front lot line unless other compelling reasons or design considerations are provided. Primary building entrances shall be easily identified and be oriented to the street.
(4) 
Street corners: Projects located at a corner site shall be oriented and configured to define both street edges and the corner of the site. The corner may be defined positively by placing the building with built edges to the corner or defined negatively by framing an open space at the corner with built edges setback from the corner around a landscape plaza or open space.
(5) 
Design treatment of edges: Landscaping shall be used to define street edges and buffer and screen edges that may have a negative visual impact, such as parking or loading areas. Access driveways and curb cuts using side yards may be combined between adjoining properties to access parking for multiple buildings at the interior of the block.
B. 
(Reserved)
C. 
Building massing and form.
(1) 
Modulation of building mass, scale, and bulk: Building design elements, details, and massing shall create a unified building form and exhibit an overall architectural concept.
(2) 
Roofs: Mechanical equipment located on roofs, sites, or other locations shall be screened from view.
D. 
Publicly accessible open spaces.
(1) 
Usable amenitized open space: Open space shall be included as a part of the site plan review process and when possible, shall be pooled together to be adjacent to primary building entrances or between buildings.
E. 
Landscape design.
(1) 
Plantings: Plantings shall be governed by § 201-27.6 and Ch. 302, Attachment 3, Detail B.
(2) 
Buffers and screens: Landscape buffers shall screen parking, loading, and service areas. Where appropriate, screening may additionally include architectural walls, fences, or other visual barriers.
F. 
Parking design.
(1) 
Placement: Parking, where feasible, shall be located at the interior of lots, behind buildings, or at the rear of sites, away from site edges, public spaces, and streets.
(2) 
Orientation: Parking lots shall be designed to create separation between parking areas and the edges of streets and sidewalks. Parking areas shall be buffered with landscaping, and screened behind buildings or other site components (fences, gates, walls or hedges) whenever feasible.
(3) 
Landscape: Landscape medians, islands, and planting strips shall be designed and incorporated in accordance with § 201-27.6.
(4) 
Curb cuts: All curb cuts shall be designed so that driveways slope up from the street to the level of the sidewalk.
(5) 
Parking details: Where appropriate, curbs shall be used to protect planting areas, and to define sidewalks, walkways, and parking area edges.
(6) 
Parking areas: Where possible, parking areas shall connect in a manner that allows the unobstructed flow of pedestrians between uses and parking areas. Adjacent parking areas on abutting properties shall connect for improved circulation where possible.
G. 
Streetscape and sidewalks.
(1) 
Sidewalk configuration: Sidewalks shall accommodate street trees, landscaping, and outdoor furnishing and amenities. Sidewalks shall be continuous and uninterrupted at driveways and curb cuts to reinforce priority for pedestrians.
(2) 
Pedestrian use: Corner and curb radii shall be designed to decrease pedestrian crossing distances and to slow traffic speeds at all intersections. Crosswalks with accessible curb ramps shall be provided at every intersection.
(3) 
Landscape: Street trees shall be provided along lot frontage(s). Street trees at sidewalks and parking shall define the street and site edges.
(4) 
Street furniture: Street furniture shall be integrated with street and sidewalk circulation to ensure adequate clearances, access, and convenience.
H. 
Lighting.
(1) 
Light placement: Placement of light fixtures shall be designed to provide adequate ambient light levels for safety and configured to highlight pedestrian paths and building entrances.
(2) 
Site lighting: Site lighting shall be human-scale and dark skies compliant.
(3) 
Building lighting: Building lighting shall be dark skies compliant.
(4) 
Signage lighting: Illumination of signage shall be in accordance with Norwell Town Code § 201-14 (Signs).
I. 
Signs.
(1) 
Signage: All signage shall be in accordance with Norwell Town Code § 201-14 (Signs).