No freshwater wetland, as defined in Chapter 213 of the Public Laws of 1971 relating to freshwater wetlands,[1] shall be excavated, drained or filled, nor shall any extraneous materials be placed into these wetlands or water flow diverted onto or out of, or of any other change be made to the natural condition of any freshwater wetland without the prior approval of the Director of the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management Division of Freshwater Wetlands in accordance with the provisions of said chapter.
[1]
See R.I.G.L. § 2-1-18 et seq.
Every building hereafter erected or moved shall be on a lot abutting an improved public street. All structures shall be so located on lots so as to provide safe and convenient access for servicing, public safety, and required off-street parking. On any corner lot, no driveway or accessway shall be constructed within 75 feet of the intersection of two street lines.
A. 
On a corner lot, nothing shall be erected, placed, planted, or allowed to grow in such a manner as to materially impede vision between a height of 2 1/2 feet and 10 feet above the center-line grades of the intersecting streets in the triangle formed by the street lines of such corner lots and a line joining points along said street lines;
(1) 
40 feet from the point of intersection in residential districts.
(2) 
25 feet from the point of intersection in all other districts.
B. 
Poles not exceeding six inches in diameter are exempted from this section.
Notwithstanding other provisions of this chapter, fences, walls, and hedges in residential districts may be permitted in any required yard, or along the edge of any yard, provided that all opaque fences, walls, or hedges over 2 1/2 feet that screen open areas which may provide access to the street shall be set back a minimum of 25 feet from the front lot line.
Any activity customarily carried out for gain by a resident, conducted as an accessory use in the resident's dwelling unit, provided that:
A. 
No person other than members of the family residing on the premises shall be engaged in such occupation.
B. 
The use of the dwelling unit for the home occupation shall be clearly incidental and subordinate to its use for residential purposes by its occupants, and not more than 150 square feet of the dwelling unit shall be used in the conduct of the home occupation.
C. 
There shall be no change in the outside appearance of the building or premises or other visible evidence of the conduct of such home occupation other than one sign, not exceeding three square feet in area, nonilluminated, and mounted flat against the wall of the principal building.
D. 
No home occupation shall be conducted in any accessory building except as a special use permit.
E. 
There shall be no sales in connection with such home occupation.
F. 
No traffic shall be generated by such home occupation in greater volumes than would normally be expected in a residential neighborhood, and any need for parking generated by the conduct of such home occupation shall be met off the street and other than in a required front yard.
G. 
No equipment or process shall be used in such home occupation which creates noise, vibration, glare, fumes, odors, or electrical interference detectable to the senses off of the lot if the occupation is conducted in a single-family residence, or outside the dwelling unit if conducted in other than a single-family residence. In the case of electrical interference, no equipment or process shall be used which creates visual or audible interference in any radio or television receivers off the premises or causes fluctuations in line voltage off the premises.
H. 
Does not include barber, beautician or hairdresser.
A. 
A permitted accessory building and/or structures may cover up to 25% of a side or rear yard but may not be placed within 10 feet of a lot line. No accessory buildings or structures shall be located nearer than 10 feet to a principal building unless such accessory buildings or structures are attached to the principal building. No accessory building or structure shall be placed in the front yard of any property.
B. 
A carport attached to the main building may be erected over a driveway in a side yard provided such structure is not over 24 feet in length and shall be no closer than 10 feet from side lot line and is entirely open on three sides, except for necessary supporting columns and customary architectural features.
C. 
An unenclosed porch may extend up to 10 feet into a side or rear yard but shall not extend to within 10 feet of a lot line.
D. 
Only one animal shelter per dwelling unit shall be allowed within 40 feet of a property line, all additional animal shelters, excluding bird shelters, shall be a minimum of 40 feet from a property line.
E. 
Any in-ground or aboveground swimming pool with a water depth of 24 inches or more shall be enclosed by a fence that is at least four feet (48 inches) high. This fence must also have a self-closing, self-latching gate that can be locked.
A. 
Dumpsters. Any person placing a dumpster on private property shall first obtain a permit from the Building/Zoning Official. Said permit will allow a dumpster for temporary use for not more than 30 days or the time period for which there is an active building permit open on the property. Such dumpster(s) is subject to the following limitations:
(1) 
The dumpster(s) shall be set back a minimum of 20 feet from the public right-of-way and a minimum of 10 feet from the side and rear property lines.
(2) 
The dumpster(s) must be placed on a hard concrete or asphalt surface if possible.
(3) 
No dumpster located in any residentially zoned district shall be serviced between the hours of 6:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. No dumpsters shall be emptied or moved on Sundays.
(4) 
The location of the dumpster(s) shall not affect the health, safety, and/or welfare of the public, including, but not limited to, the build-up of offensive odors or odor-generating waste, blocking access to a fire hydrant, abutting driveways or obstructing the view of street intersections.
(5) 
No excess trash or debris shall be left or stored on the ground at any property.
B. 
Shipping containers. Shipping containers may be placed on any lot for a period of not more than eight days for the purpose of loading or unloading household items during a moving process and are restricted to a single container. These containers shall not be used for long-term storage.
C. 
Truck bodies/trailers. No truck bodies or trailers of any kind shall be kept or stored at any residential property at any time.
D. 
Exemption. Land classified by the Town of North Smithfield Tax Assessor as farmland or forested under the State of Rhode Island Farm, Forest and Open Space Act[1] shall be exempt from these provisions.
[1]
Editor's Note: See R.I.G.L. § 44-27-1 et seq.
Yard regulations in Part 3 may be modified as follows:
A. 
Ordinary projections of windowsills, cornices and other ornamental features may extend up to two feet into a required minimum yard.
B. 
Front yard requirements on a lot situated between two lots, each of which has a main building (within 25 feet of its side lot line) which projects beyond the established front yard line and was so maintained when this chapter became effective, may be the average of the front yards of said existing buildings, provided, however, the front yard of such lot shall not be less than 15 feet.
C. 
For the purpose of side yard regulations, residential dwellings with common party walls shall be considered as one building occupying one lot. Such dwellings shall include but not be restricted to apartments, townhouses, row dwellings, two-family dwellings, and double dwellings.
Height regulations in Part 3 may be modified as follows:
A. 
Accessory structures permitted above height requirements include roof structures for housing of elevators, stairways, tanks, ventilating fans or similar equipment required to operate and maintain the building, fire or parapet walls, skylights, towers, steeples, flagpoles, chimneys, smokestacks, wireless masts and water tanks, provided that no roof structure or any space above the height limit shall be allowed for the purpose of providing additional floor space.
B. 
Structures permitted above the maximum height requirements shall be set back from any lot line one additional foot by which it exceeds the maximum height limit for the district.
In a residential district, street frontage for lots fronting entirely on a cul-de-sac may be reduced 20% below the frontage requirement of § 340-3.5; provided, however, that lot frontage shall not be reduced below a minimum of 100 feet in the REA-120, RA-65 and RS-40 Zoning Districts and not less than 85 feet in the RU-2 Zone.