Welcome to Canterbury, NH - Article 6: Cluster Subdivision

PURPOSE. The purpose of Cluster Residential Development is to encourage the preservation of common land for conservation, agriculture, open space, and recreational use; to preserve historical or archaeological resources; to protect existing and potential municipal water supplies; to protect the value of real property through the encouragement of good quality professional development; to promote more sensitive siting of structures and better overall site planning; to promote better utilization of land in harmony with its natural flexibility in design; to allow more efficient provision of municipal services; and to preserve the natural appearance of undeveloped road frontage.

The owner(s) of a tract of land may submit a cluster subdivision plan for Planning Board approval in accordance with Article 5.3 of this ordinance and the Subdivision Regulations and, if required by this ordinance, obtain a special exception from the Zoning Board of Adjustment. This site plan and subdivision plan must be reviewed and approved by the Planning Board.

A. The total number of dwelling units in the Cluster Residential Development shall not exceed the number of single family dwelling units that would be permitted if the entire tract were developed consistent with all other articles of this ordinance.

B. Dimensional Requirements: Where the requirements of this Article differ from or conflict with the requirements of Article 5.2, the requirements of this Article shall prevail. The following dimensional requirements shall be observed in all Cluster Residential Developments in all districts. The Planning Board may, in appropriate cases, impose further restriction upon the tract or parts thereof as a condition of granting of its approval.

1. In computing the minimum lot acreage requirements under this article, any portion of the lot not suitable for building due to high water table as evidenced by open water or wetland shall not be included. Open water or wetland that has been dredged, drained or filled shall not be included in computing the minimum lot sizes.

2. In computing minimum lot acreage requirements for proposed two family or multi-family uses, the minimum acreage for the lot shall be calculated as follows: (number of dwelling units per lot) x (minimum lot acreage requirement) x 75%.

C. Each building lot shall face on an interior road and not on an existing accepted town and/or state maintained road, nor shall said lots have any direct access to any such roads.

D. Wherever possible, structures shall be oriented with respect to scenic vistas, solar access, natural landscape features, topography and natural drainage areas.

E. All roads or vehicular rights-of-way and drainage within the Cluster Residential Development shall meet construction standards specified in the Subdivision Regulations. There shall not be more than one intersection of an interior road with an accepted and maintained town or state road unless approved by the Planning Board.

F. A minimum percentage of the total area of the tract to be subdivided shall be Common Open Space(s) permanently reserved for recreational and other outdoor activities of a non-commercial natural and for the preservation of historic sites, pasture, or agricultural land, large trees, woods, streams, marshes, wetlands, glens, rock outcrops, native plant life and wildlife cover. In no event

H. Such Common Open Space(s) shall be shown on the official subdivision plan with appropriate notations on the face thereof to assure continued use as common open space(s) stating that:

2. A part, or all, of the Common Open Space(s) may, at the option of the Town, be accepted in dedication and operated as a Town conservation or recreational area by the Town or the Conservation Commission.

1. Conservation, including conservation of wildlife and historic sites, and the preservation and protection of the existing natural characteristics of said Common Open Space(s), and

J. The Common Open Space(s) with the development, insofar as reasonably possible, shall be contiguous both within the development and with other existing and proposed Common Open Space(s) offsite.

K. The common area may not consist primarily of land difficult to utilize, such as wetlands or steep slopes (defined as greater than or equal to 25% slope). Such land may be included in the Common Open Space(s), but shall not consist of more than 20% of the total area.

L. A 200 foot buffer is required on the front boundary and a 50 foot buffer is required on all other exterior boundaries in any Cluster Residential Development. These buffer zones shall be maintained in their natural state unless otherwise ordered by the Planning Board. The "buffer land" may be included in the Common Open Space(s).

M. No multi-family dwelling shall contain more than six (6) dwelling units, and no such structure shall be located less than 100 feet from another such structure, or a two-family dwelling.

O. When an owner has frontage on a town road, and the land is contiguous to a proposed Cluster Residential Development, that road frontage shall be part of the cluster development. No lot shall be eligible for development under this section for five (5) years if any portion of the tract is subdivided subsequent to the effective date of this section, except for existing residences being separated from proposed cluster development. These conditions shall be met to ensure that the purposes of encouraging preservation of open space and reduction in occurrence of strip development are satisfied.

Q. Except as modified by this article, all other provisions of this ordinance, the Building Codes, Subdivision Regulations, and the Town's "Plan for Tomorrow" shall be adhered to in every instance where applicable.

R. The Planning Board may impose such additional regulations, restrictions, controls and requirements as are deemed appropriate or necessary to accomplish the purposes and objectives of this Cluster Residential Development Article.

S. Approval of Water and Septic Systems. The development may be served by common water and septic systems, the design and construction of which must be approved by the state and local authorities. All pertinent local regulations regarding the placement and construction of septic systems shall be applicable, including the requirements for the incorporation into the project design of alternative, backup leach field areas. Any on-site well may be located within the Common Open Space(s) and shall have a protective radius as required by the State of New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services Water Supply and Pollution Control Division or successor agency.

T. Limitation of Subdivision. No lot shown on a plan for which a permit is granted under this Article may be further subdivided so as to reduce the area of any lot for the purpose of creating an additional building lot(s) and a condition to that effect shall be shown on the recorded plan.

U. In order to effectuate the purposes of this article, any other article of this ordinance which is affected by this article is hereby amended in order to conform to this article.

A. PURPOSE. The purpose of commercial cluster development is to encourage the preservation of open space while allowing appropriately zoned industrial land to be flexibly developed so that individual lot size and frontage requirements might be varied to suit individual needs while complying with overall density and open space requirements.

B. GENERAL STANDARDS/PROCEDURE. Commercial cluster development under this section may be used only for permitted uses in the Industrial Zone upon approval of the subdivision and site plan by the Planning Board. The total number of lots in the commercial cluster development shall not exceed the number of lots that would be allowed if the entire tract were developed consistent with dimensional requirements otherwise applicable to the property. In acting upon an application for commercial cluster development, the Planning Board shall follow the procedural requirements under its Subdivision Regulations and Site Plan Review Regulations.

(1) The Planning Board may approve the proposed commercial cluster development if it finds that the Plan furthers the purposes of this section and the Canterbury Zoning Ordinance and Master Plan and if the plan otherwise serves the public interest.

(2) The Planning Board may approve a commercial cluster development which does not conform to the otherwise applicable minimum lot size and frontage requirements where the Board finds that the proposed development will increase open space, reduce public and/or private expenditures for construction and maintenance of infrastructure, and where such development would otherwise further objectives of proper land use planning. The minimum open space requirement for a commercial cluster development shall be 50%.

D. INDIVIDUAL LOT DESIGN. The design of individual lots within a commercial cluster development shall conform to the same minimum standards as set forth for residential cluster development under Section 6.1, except that individual lots may front on a Town or State maintained road, when approved by the Planning Board.