Proposed Zoning By-law Changes

Below are current zoning bylaw amendments currently being developed for consideration by the Planning Board and ultimately Town Meeting.

An overview of the amendments is provided along with links at the bottom to drafted language (as available) and maps (as applicable).

Schedule

DATEMEETING TITLEINTENTION
Wednesday, March 27, 2024Zoning Bylaw Amendment Information Session
  • Learn about the various amendments
  • Public comment and feedback
April 2024Submission of Draft MBTA 3A Zoning to MA Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities
  • Required step in MBTA 3A zoning for compliance review related to Section 3A
Monday, April 8, 2024Planning Board April Meeting
  • Board discussion on articles
  • Board vote to endorse
Monday, April 29, 2024Zoning Bylaw Amendment Public Hearing
  • Legal requirement
  • Must be held prior to Town Meeting vote
  • Public comment and feedback
Monday, May 20, 20242024 Annual Town Meeting
  • Town Meeting vote on the amendments
May/June 2024Submission of Approved Zoning Amendment Articles to MA Attorney General
  • Required step to verify process and procedure of zoning amendments
  • Upon approval, zoning amendments are then applied to the Town's Zoning By-laws

Proposed Amendments

MBTA 3A Zoning

The Planning Board and Office of Community Development have been diligently working on the bringing Swampscott into compliance with regards to Section 3A of the Commonwealth's Zoning Act. Section 3A requires all MBTA Communities to have at least one zoning district of reasonable size that allows multifamily housing development without a discretionary permitting process.

The drafted amendment and zoning overlay map is provided below.

ADUs

At the 2023 Annual Town Meeting, the zoning amendment to modernize the "accessory apartment" bylaw and allow for greater ease of creating "accessory dwelling units" was approved. That amendment had a clerical error when a list of items in the previous bylaw was shown missed an item that needed to be removed. That item should have been noted to be removed as it doesn't relate now to the approved process. This article is to correct that error and remove that single item.

The drafted amendment is provided below.

Proximity Limitation for Liquor Establishments

Section 4.4.1.0. of the zoning bylaws restricts specific uses (service stations, large garage storage, gasoline filling stations, and liquor establishments) from being located within 200 feet of a park, school, church, or library. This section has been in conflict with existing businesses that serve/sell liquor and has made it problematic for siting and bringing in new establishments - resulting in the many special permit requests for this issue being brought to the Zoning Board of Appeals.

The amendment seeks to remove liquor establishments from the restriction, but maintaining the restriction for the other specific uses as they relate to health and environmental concerns.

The drafted amendment is provided below.

Nonconforming Single and Two-Family Structures

This proposed amendment will bring our local bylaw into compliance with G.L. Chapter 40A, §6, which is the State statute that establishes protections for nonconforming single and two-family structures. The current version of our local bylaw supersedes said protections offered by the State, therefore allowing any decision or finding made by the Zoning Board of Appeals, in accordance with our current bylaw, to be overturned on appeal. The proposed amendment further offers the Building Commissioner the discretion to determine whether any dimensionally-conforming additions to nonconforming structures and/or on nonconforming lots may be permitted, as of right.

Nonconforming lots are properties that do not meet the zoning district requirements (such as with regards to street frontage or square footage of the lot). Nonconforming structures are those that do not meet the dimensional requirements of the zoning district (such as setbacks from a property line).

The drafted amendment is provided below.