ZONING BY-LAWS
Devens Regional Enterprise Zone

November 18, 1994

The Joint Boards of Selectmen:
    Town of Ayer
    Town of Harvard
    Town of Lancaster
    Town of Shirley
The Massachusetts Government Land Bank

IX. DENSITY AND DIMENSIONAL REQUIREMENTS

  1. General

    Exhibit B, attached hereto and made a part hereof, designates the density, minimum lot size, and height restrictions applicable to development in the various zoning districts established at Devens. The Regulations may establish density and dimensional requirements that supplement those contained in Exhibit B.

  2. Specific Requirements

    No lot on which development is proposed may be created that is so narrow or otherwise so irregularly shaped that it would be impracticable to construct on it a building that:

    1. could be used for purposes that are permissible in that zoning district; and

    2. could satisfy any applicable setback requirements for the zoning district.

  3. Height Limitations

    1. Building height limitations in the various zoning districts shall be as described on Exhibit B.

    2. The height of a building shall be the vertical distance measured from the mean elevation of the average finished grade around the perimeter of the building to the roof line for flat roofs and to the peak for gable roofs, not including appurtenant structures above roof lines.

    3. In the case of the following zoning districts, hereinafter referred to as the "viewshed zoning districts," the building height limits set forth in Exhibit B shall not be subject to modification by variance:

        a. Special Use I;

        b. ITB district located south of Patton Road and east of Jackson Road;

        c. Gateway I;

        d. that portion of the ITB district located north of Patton Road and east of Jackson Road and south and west of Pine Street; and

        e. ITB district located west of Jackson Road and south of Hospital Road.

    4. In zoning districts other than the viewshed zoning districts, an applicant may request a variance from the building height limitation for such district set forth in Exhibit B, provided such variance may not exceed the building height set forth in Exhibit B by more than twenty-five (25) percent.

    5. Except in the viewshed zoning districts, an applicant may propose a building that would exceed the height limit by a maximum of one and one half (1˝) feet per story (for each story of the building) if such additional height is required to provide for (a) minor architectural appurtenances or ornamentation; or (b) minor extensions of rooftop building system appurtenances.

    6. Except in the viewshed zoning districts, the following features shall be exempt from the district height limitations set forth in Exhibit B, provided the height of such features shall not exceed the building height by more than twenty-five (25) percent:

        a. residential chimneys, church spires, elevator penthouses, roof-mounted mechanical equipment, roof parapets, and similar structural appendages not intended as places of occupancy or storage;

        b. flagpoles, antennae, communication equipment, and similar devices as uses accessory to the primary use;

        c. solar collectors and similar equipment, fixtures, and devices.

    7. Structures other than buildings shall be subject to the same height limitations set forth above and in Exhibit B.

  4. Floor Area Ratio

    1. Development Permits for the development of buildings in a zoning district shall not be authorized if the floor area ratio exceeds the percentages allowed for such zoning district on Exhibit B. For purposes of calculating the maximum floor area ratio applicable to a lot, the square footage of parking garages shall not be included.

    2. The maximum number of square feet of building space to be developed and/or used at Devens under the Reuse Plan and By-Laws shall not exceed eight million five hundred thousand (8,500,000). It is recognized, however, that in order to exceed seven million seven hundred thousand (7,700,000) square feet of building space, as identified in the Draft Environmental Impact Report for Fort Devens, additional approvals under the Massachusetts Environmental Policy Act may be necessary.

  5. Residential Density

    1. The total number of residential units to be allowed within Devens shall not exceed two hundred and eighty-two (282) units, not including Senior Residential units within the Shirley Village Growth I Zoning District, which shall not exceed one hundred twenty (120) units.

    2. The Regulations may establish minimum square footage requirements of lot area required for the development of each of the following types of residential buildings:

        a. multi-family dwellings or apartment houses; and

        b. townhouses.

    3. The minimum lot size for one (1) and two (2) unit attached residential dwellings, which are to be constructed in place of existing housing units that are demolished, shall be fifteen thousand (15,000) square feet.

    4. The minimum lot sizes for the developed housing areas existing as of the effective date of the By-Laws, as listed below, shall be in accordance with the following schedule. New residential units developed as infill within such developed housing areas shall likewise conform to such minimum lot sizes:

        a. Auman Street: 4,000 s.f.

        b. Birch Circle: 4,000 s.f.

        c. Elm/Walnut: 10,000 s.f. (single), 2,500 s.f. (multi—family)

        d. Bates Street: 2,500 s.f. (multi—family)


  6. Frontage

    1. Minimum lot frontage in Devens for a lot which is improved by a building as of the effective date of the By-Laws shall be seventy-five (75) feet on a street.

    2. Minimum lot frontage in Devens for any other lot shall be one hundred (100) feet on a street.

  7. Setback

    Minimum setback requirements in Devens shall be as required by the Massachusetts State Building Code unless stricter standards are adopted in the Regulations.


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