Living in Dryden

Updated Zoning Draft use comparisons

Back in July, I put together a comparison chart for permitted uses in the existing and proposed zoning. This month, the Town split the previous Rural Residential to create an extra zone called Neighborhood Residential. The definitions for the two proposed zones now look like:

NR - Neighborhood Residential District

The purpose of the Neighborhood Residential (NR) District is to define residentially developed areas of the town where established neighborhoods situated in a rural landscape constitute the primary land use. Single family homes are the predominant form of development, and future development in any way is unlikely. Home Occupations make up the only commercial activity in this district. Agriculture is allowed, but is generally infeasible to any large extent.

RR - Rural Residential District

The purpose of the Rural Residential (RR) District is to define an area of the town where residential uses situated in a rural landscape constitute the primary land use. Public water and sewer, does not exist and is not planned for this area. Single- and two-family homes are the predominant form of development. Agriculture is also expected to be a substantial land use well into the future.

You can find a map of the new zones (5MB PDF) and updated portion of the proposed law (782KB PDF) at the Proposed Zoning Law Resources Page.

The general pattern of change is that Neighborhood Residential is slightly stricter than the old Rural Residential, while the new Rural Residential is slightly more permissive. This seems to me to reflect existing patterns of use much better than the previous model. (They also allow non-commercial workshop/garage across both zones, definitively ending what I'd called "the war on woodshops".)

As before, the old zoning districts don't correspond neatly with the new either. To figure out what's changing for a specific area, you need to visit the old map (image or PDF), and figure out what zone the parcel is in. Then you need to visit the new map (image or PDF) to see where it's going. Then you can figure out how allowed primary uses are changing there.

(I've also put together a table comparing the old RR with the new NR and RR zones.)

The updated chart is below.

Key:

NR

Neighborhood Residential

RR

Rural Residential

RA

Rural Agricultural

CV

Conservation

H

Hamlet

CC

Commercial

LIO

Light Industrial/Office (LIO-A adds Adult)

RB, R-B-1, R-C, R-D

Older zoning codes with residential base

M-A

Manufacturing zone (M-AA adds Adult)

X

Prohibited

SUP

Special Use Permit required

P

Permitted/Allowed

?

Unknown

? SUP

Unknown, but allowed by Special Use Permit

NEW (November 2010) DRAFT ZONING									EXISTING ZONING
USES	NR	RR	RA	CV	H	CC	LIO		R-B	R-B-1	R-C	R-D	M-A	Note on Old
AGRICULTURAL GROUP
Agricultural Use	P	P	P	P	P	P	P		P	P	P	P	P
Farmstand (NEW USE)	P	P	P	P	P	P	P		P	P	P	P	P
BUSINESS GROUP - All uses allowed are subject to Site Plan Review
Adult Use (see §1302)	X	X	X	X	X	X	SUP - Only in LIO-A		X	X	X	X	SUP - Only in M-AA
Agriculture-Related Enterprise	X	SUP	SUP	SUP	SUP	P	SUP		Farm stands 50' from road center				P
Artist Studio/ Craft Workshop	X	P	SUP	SUP	SUP	P	P		X	X	P	P	? SUP	'Studio'
Automotive Repair Garage (see §1310)	X	SUP	SUP	X	SUP	SUP	SUP		X	X	SUP	SUP	P
Automotive Sales	X	X	X	X	X	SUP	SUP		X	X	X	X	P
Automotive Salvage	X	X	SUP	SUP	X	SUP	SUP		X	X	SUP	X	X
Automotive Towing Service (see §1306)	X	X	SUP	X	SUP	SUP	SUP		X	?	?	?	? SUP	Undefined
Bed-and Breakfast establishment	X	P	SUP	SUP	SUP	SUP	X		X	X	SUP	SUP	? SUP	Tourist Homes, Hotel/Motel
Boarding House	X	X	SUP	X	SUP	X	X		X	X	SUP	SUP	? SUP
Campground	X	SUP	SUP	SUP	X	X	X		?	?	?	?	? SUP	Mentioned in sign ordinance
Car Wash	X	X	X	X	SUP	SUP	P		X	X	X	X	P
Commercial Riding Facility (see §1307)	X	P	SUP	SUP	X	SUP	X		?	?	?	?	? SUP	Undefined
Contractor's yard	X	SUP	SUP	X	X	SUP	SUP		X	X	SUP	SUP	P	Sort of like lumber/coal
Day care center	X	SUP	SUP	X	SUP	SUP	P		?	?	?	?	? SUP	Undefined
Drive-through facility (see §1309)	X	X	X	X	X	SUP	SUP		?	?	?	?	? SUP	Undefined
Gasoline station	X	X	X	X	SUP	SUP	SUP		X	SUP	SUP	SUP	P
General Office Building	X	X	X	X	SUP	P	P		X	X	P	P	P
Hotel / Motel	X	X	X	X	SUP	P	SUP		X	X	SUP	SUP	P
Industry, Light	X	X	X	X	SUP	P	P		X	X	X	SUP	P
Industry/Manufacturing (see §1303)	X	X	X	X	X	X	SUP		X	X	X	X	P/SUP	Definitions tricky
Inn	X	SUP	SUP	SUP	SUP	P	X		X	X	SUP	SUP	P	As motel?
Kennel (see §1308)	X	SUP	SUP	SUP	X	SUP	X		?	?	?	?	?	Undefined
Mining (see §1304)	X	X	SUP	X	X	X	SUP		X	X	SUP	SUP	? SUP
Nursery/Greenhouse	X	SUP	SUP	SUP	SUP	P	X		P	P	P	P	P
Professional office	X	SUP	X	X	SUP	P	P		X	X	P	P	P
Restaurant	X	SUP	X	X	SUP	P	SUP		X	X?	SUP	SUP	P
Retail business	X	X	X	X	SUP	P	P		X	SUP	SUP	SUP	P
Retail shopping centers / plazas	X	X	X	X	SUP	SUP	X		X	X	X	SUP	? SUP
Retreat or Conference Center	X	SUP	SUP	SUP	SUP	SUP	X		?	?	?	?	?	Undefined
Service business	X	X	X	X	SUP	P	P		X	SUP	SUP	SUP	P
Self-storage	X	X	X	X	X	SUP	SUP		?	?	?	?	?	Undefined
Theater	X	X	X	X	SUP	P	P		X	X	X	X	? SUP
Warehouse	X	X	X	X	X	X	P		X	X	X	SUP	P
NEW (November 2010) DRAFT ZONING									EXISTING ZONING
USES	NR	RR	RA	CV	H	CC	LIO		R-B	R-B-1	R-C	R-D	M-A	Note on Old
RESIDENTIAL GROUP
Bed-and-Breakfast home	X	SUP	SUP	SUP	SUP	SUP	X		X	X	SUP	SUP	?	"Tourist Homes?"
Congregate Care Facility	X	X	X	X	SUP	SUP	X		?	?	?	?	?	Undefined
Day care homes, Family	P	P	P	P	P	P	X		?	?	?	?	?	Undefined
Day care, Family Group	P	P	P	P	P	P	X		?	?	?	?	?	Undefined
Dwelling, accessory unit (see §1311)	P	P	P	P	P	P	X		?	?	?	?	?	Undefined
Dwelling, multi-family	X	SUP	X	X	SUP	SUP	X		X	X	P	P	X
Dwelling, single-family	P	P	P	P	P	P	X		P	P	P	P	X
Dwelling, two-family	X	P	P	P	P	P	X		P	P	P	P	X
Dwelling, upper-floor apartments	X	X	X	X	SUP	SUP	X		?	?	?	?	X	Undefined
Home Occupation: Level 1	P	P	P	P	P	P	X		P	SUP	P	P	X?	Definition varies
Home Occupation: Level 2	X	P on state/county roads, SUP on Town				P - State & County Roads	X		X	SUP	P	P	X	Two employee limit. (New zoning is 3.)
Manufactured Home	X	P	P	P	SUP	P	X		X	P	P	P	X
Manufactured Home Park (see Town Manufactured Home Park ordinance)	X	SUP	SUP	X	SUP	SUP	X		X	X	SUP	SUP	X	water/sewer required
Senior Housing	X	SUP	SUP	X	SUP	SUP	X		?	?	?	?	?	Undefined
Workshop/Garage - Non-Commercial	P	P	P	P	P	P	P		P	P	P	P	P
NEW (November 2010) DRAFT ZONING									EXISTING ZONING
USES	NR	RR	RA	CV	H	CC	LIO		R-B	R-B-1	R-C	R-D	M-A	Note on Old
COMMUNITY GROUP - All are subject to Site Plan Review
Cemetery	X	P	P	P	P	P	P		X	X	P	P	? SUP
Educational use	X	SUP	SUP	SUP	SUP	SUP	X		P	P	P	P	? SUP
Library	X	SUP	X	X	SUP	SUP	X		P	P	P	P	P	'Community building'?
Lodge or club	X	SUP	SUP	SUP	SUP	P	X		X	P	P	P	? SUP
Municipal use	X	P	P	P	P	P	P		X	X	P	P	? SUP
Public Safety	X	SUP	SUP	SUP	SUP	SUP	SUP		?	?	?	?	?	Undefined
Public Utility	X	SUP	SUP	SUP	SUP	SUP	SUP		SUP	SUP	SUP	SUP	P	Substations
Religious institution	X	SUP	SUP	SUP	SUP	SUP	SUP		P	P	P	P	?
NEW (November 2010) DRAFT ZONING									EXISTING ZONING
USES	NR	RR	RA	CV	H	CC	LIO		R-B	R-B-1	R-C	R-D	M-A	Note on Old
RECREATIONAL GROUP
Active Recreation	X	SUP	SUP	SUP	SUP	SUP	SUP		X	P	P	P	? SUP
Passive Recreation	P	P	P	P	P	P	P		P	P	P	P	? SUP	Unclear definition
Recreation Facility, Amusement	X	SUP	X	X	X	SUP	SUP		X	P	P	P	? SUP	Unclear definition
Recreational Facility, Athletic	X	SUP	SUP	SUP	SUP	SUP	SUP		X	P	P	P	? SUP	Using golf course example
Recreational Facility, Motorized	X	X	SUP	SUP	X	X	X		?	?	?	?	? SUP	Undefined

Warning: This is not a legal document. Do not use it to make decisions about what to do with your land! It is only meant for comparing the two laws, and may well be WRONG. If you find something wrong, please let me know in comments below.

Posted by simon at November 19, 2010 11:46 PM in planning and zoning
Note on photos