This chapter is known and may be cited as "The
Zoning Law of the Town of Gardiner."
This Zoning Law enables Gardiner to protect
the diverse character of the Town while also giving landowners a range
of options and choices for the use, development, and conservation
of their land. It is designed to strike a balance between achieving
the community's goals as expressed in the Town's Comprehensive Plan
and protecting the property interests of landowners, providing a development
approval process that is predictable, efficient and fair.
A.
Overview. This section provides a brief overview of
what is in the Zoning Law.
(1)
This chapter divides the Town into land use and overlay
districts and establishes rules for the use of land in each district.
The text is accompanied by a Zoning Map which shows where the various
districts are located.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: The Zoning Map is included at the end of this chapter.
(4)
Article IV (§§ 220-13 through 220-18.1) covers "overlay" districts, "floating" districts, and the Shawangunk Ridge Protection District (SP). Overlay districts are special districts designed primarily to protect special resources from inappropriate development and to maintain the Town's character and natural resources. Floating districts allow uses not allowed in the underlying district, including resort development, mobile home parks, and soil mining. The provisions of the overlay districts apply in addition to those of the "underlying" land use district. The provisions of the floating districts replace those in the underlying land use district. The provisions of the SP District in § 220-16 are the land use district regulations for that zone.
(5)
Article V contains options for flexibility in development patterns, particularly the use of "open space developments," which preserve open space by concentrating development on a portion of a parcel.
(6)
Article VI contains rules for allowing the continuation of buildings and uses that were legal under previous regulations but do not conform to this Zoning Law. This is sometimes referred to as "grandfathering."
(7)
Supplementary regulations in Article VII contain additional requirements for specific types of uses and structures (such as home occupations, signs, and parking), as well as performance standards for all development.
(8)
Articles VIII and IX explain the procedures for obtaining various types of permits from the Town, including land use permits from the Building Inspector, special permits and site plan approval from the Planning Board, and variances from the Zoning Board of Appeals. Article X contains the procedures for amending this Zoning Law to change the map or the text.
B.
How to use this Zoning Law. Landowners and others
who use this Zoning Law are encouraged to meet with the Building Inspector
to discuss how this Zoning Law applies to their property. For any
large-scale development (a large business or a development of several
homes), it is also a good idea to consult the Town's Comprehensive
Plan to understand how to make a proposed development fit within the
Town's vision of its future. The usual sequence of steps in using
this Zoning Law is as follows:
(1)
Check the Zoning Map to determine what land use district(s)
your land is in.
(2)
Check the Overlay District Map(s) to see which of the overlay districts apply to your land. Review the provisions of applicable overlay districts in Article IV to see how they may affect what you can do with your land.
(3)
Consult the Use Table and text in § 220-10, along with any relevant definitions, to determine whether your proposed use is allowed in that district and what permits may be needed to approve it. Also check the specific sections that deal with the district your land is located in as well as any supplementary regulations in Article VII that may apply to your proposed use. (These are referenced in the Use Table.)
(4)
Consult the dimensional table in § 220-11 to see which setbacks and other dimensional standards apply.
(5)
If your land is in the SP District, a special set of regulations applies, which are contained in § 220-16.
(7)
Consult Article VII to determine whether any of the special supplementary regulations in that section apply to your proposed land use. Some of these regulations relate to land characteristics (e.g., steep slopes and wetlands) and some relate to features of the proposed use (e.g., parking, home occupations, and signs).
(10)
If your proposed use or structure is not permitted, you may want to petition for either a variance from the Zoning Board of Appeals (as provided in § 220-59) or a zoning amendment from the Town Board (as provided in § 220-69). If the use would potentially qualify under the Resort Development, Soil Mining, or Mobile Home Floating Districts, you may be able to apply for a zoning amendment to change the zoning designation of your property. These options should be discussed with the Building Inspector before they are pursued. Any zoning amendment is entirely at the discretion of the Town Board and must be consistent with the Comprehensive Plan.
(11)
Where a section number is shown as "reserved,"
it means that space is being saved in the document for insertion of
a new section at some future time, but no regulations have been established
within that section.
This chapter regulates the location, design,
construction, alteration, occupancy, and use of structures and the
use of land in the Town of Gardiner, dividing the Town into land use
districts. This chapter is enacted pursuant to the authority and power
granted by the Municipal Home Rule Law of the State of New York, Article
2, § 10 et seq., and Chapter 62, Article 16, of the Consolidated
Laws, in conformance with the updated Town of Gardiner Comprehensive
Plan, adopted by the Town Board in December 2004 (as it may be modified
from time to time), to advance the goals of the Town of Gardiner Comprehensive
Plan. This chapter is adopted to protect and promote public health,
safety, comfort, convenience, economy, natural, agricultural, and
cultural resources, aesthetics, and the general welfare, and for the
following additional specific purposes:
A.
To conserve the natural resources and rural character
of the Town by encouraging development in appropriate locations and
by limiting building in areas where it would adversely affect the
Town's predominantly rural pattern and scale of settlement;
B.
To minimize negative environmental impacts of development,
especially in visually and environmentally sensitive areas such as
the Shawangunk Ridge, along the Wallkill River, Shawangunk Kill, Palmaghatt
Kill, Mara Kill, and their tributaries, in aquifer and aquifer recharge
areas, and on steep slopes, erodible soils, wetlands and their buffers,
floodplains, active farmlands, and other designated open space resources
identified in the Comprehensive Plan;
C.
To encourage a range of business activities in appropriate
locations which are compatible with the Town's rural character and
scale, concentrating retail businesses in and near hamlets, allowing
large-scale business and industry in well-buffered locations with
good transportation access;
D.
In recognition of the economic value of Gardiner's
natural beauty and environmental amenities, to protect the integrity
of scenic views, ridgelines, steep slopes, agricultural land, existing
and potential recreation areas, waterways, ground- and surface water
supplies, ecological systems, wetlands, wildlife habitat, and natural
vegetation, and to maintain environmentally significant open space
in its predominantly undeveloped state, in order to maintain property
values and preserve the open and rural character of the Town;
E.
To preserve and protect lands and buildings that are
historically significant and to enhance the aesthetic and architectural
quality of the entire community;
F.
To encourage the continuation of agriculture and the
preservation of open space, and to avoid regulating agricultural uses
in a manner that unreasonably restricts or regulates farm structures
or farming practices, while encouraging other economic activities
that require large areas of contiguous open space, such as forestry,
tree farming, and recreation, as well as the support services and
industries that add value to all of these uses, such as wood products,
food processing, resort, and tourist facilities;
G.
To regulate building density in order to concentrate
population in appropriate locations where municipal infrastructure
is available, and to ensure access to light and air, conserve open
space, facilitate the prevention and fighting of fires, minimize the
cost of municipal services, and accomplish the other purposes enumerated
in § 263 of the Town Law of New York State;
H.
To integrate harmoniously different types of housing
and varied land uses in hamlet centers to encourage pedestrian activity
and reduce automobile traffic;
I.
To provide a range of housing opportunities for all
segments of the local population with due consideration for regional
housing needs;
J.
To protect residences from nonagricultural nuisances,
odors, noise, pollution, and unsightly, obtrusive, and offensive land
uses and activities;
K.
To improve transportation facilities in areas designated
for intensive settlement and to maintain a network of smaller country
roads in areas designated for low-density development and the protection
of open space, agriculture, steep slopes, and rural character;
L.
To reduce traffic congestion on major roads by establishing
a pattern of settlement and circulation that reduces the need for
driving, provides alternative routes between destinations, and encourages
walking, bicycling, and the use of public transportation;
M.
To encourage the conservation of energy and the appropriate
use of solar and other renewable energy resources;
N.
To preserve the natural beauty of the Town as provided
in the Comprehensive Plan, especially the unique ecological and scenic
resources of the Shawangunk Ridge and escarpment, and to guide development
consistent with maintaining the Town's natural, scenic, and ecological
resources.
O.
To provide a flexible system of land use regulation
that enables the Town's economy and population to grow, while preserving
the most important natural, historic, scenic, architectural, and cultural
features; and
P.
To base such flexible land use regulations on the
unique characteristics of the landscape, the needs of the people of
the Town of Gardiner, the property rights of landowners to make economically
beneficial use of their land, and the impact of proposed land uses
on the natural and human environment, and to avoid patterns of development
that adversely affect the scenic, historic, rural, and natural character
of the Town.
The Town of Gardiner encourages development
that is compatible with the existing character of the Town. To that
end, the Town Board hereby adopts as advisory guidelines the illustrated
design guidelines published by the New York Planning Federation in
1994, entitled "Hamlet Design Guidelines, Building Form Guidelines,
and Rural Development Guidelines" (hereinafter "the Guidelines").
In their interpretation and application, the
provisions of this chapter shall be held to be the minimum requirements
for the promotion of the public health, safety, convenience, comfort
and general welfare. It is not intended by this chapter to interfere
with or abrogate or annul any easement, covenant, or other agreement
between parties; provided, however, that when this chapter imposes
a greater restriction on the use of structures or land or on the heights
of structures, or requires larger open spaces, or imposes any higher
standards than are imposed or required by any other statute, law,
ordinance, rule, regulation or by any easement, covenant, or agreement,
the provisions of this chapter shall control. Where the requirements
of this chapter differ from the requirements of another statute, law,
ordinance, rule, or regulation, the more restrictive shall govern,
unless this chapter specifically states otherwise.
