ARTICLE 6.
6.1
OFF STREET PARKING
Off-Street Parking Regulations
For all zoning districts, off-street parking spaces shall be provided for every new structure,
the enlargement of an existing structure, and new or expanded uses, except as noted below,
in accordance with the TABLE OF OFF-STREET PARKING REGULATIONS and other
requirements contained herein.
For all zoning districts, except the Downtown Business (DB) District, in cases of a change in
use where the existing use (or in cases of vacancy, the next previous use) did not provide for
the number of off-street parking spaces required under this Bylaw, then the proposed use
shall only have to provide an additional number of off-street parking spaces equal to the
increase, if any, between the number required under this Bylaw for the existing use and the
number required for the proposed use.
For Downtown Business (DB) Districts only, no additional off-street parking is required for the
following:
a.
b.
c.
Continued use or reuse of existing buildings, as long as that use or reuse does not
increase the usable floor area within the building
The replacement of an amount of floor space equal to that in existence at the time of
enactment of this Bylaw.
The addition of a second floor to one-story buildings existing in the DB District at the
time of the enactment of this Bylaw, however, the addition of a third or more floor or
an expanded building footprint shall be subject to the parking requirements.
Table 1
Off-Street Parking Regulations
The number of off-street parking spaces required to serve added floor space in the Downtown Business (DB)
District is shown in parenthesis. Where no parenthesized number appears, the parking requirement for added
floor space in the DB District is the same as that which applies in all other zoning districts. Parking shall be
provided to serve the parking needs which are generated by a particular use or structure. When there is more
than one primary use of a structure, the parking requirements for each principal use must be met unless one use
is incidental to the principal use of the structure
Dwelling, one-, two- and three-family units and
townhouses
Dwelling, multi-family
Theater, stadium, auditorium, halls, undertaking
establishments, church or other similar place of public
assembly, with seating facilities
Clubs, restaurants, taverns, And other eating places
Two per unit (1.0 per unit)
Two per dwelling unit, except housing for the elderly,
in which case, it shall be one for each two dwelling
units (1.0 per unit)
One for each four seats of total seating capacity (one
for each six seats)
Two for each four seats of total seating capacity,
plus one per each 300 square feet of gross kitchen
area (one for each four seats of total seating
capacity, plus one per each 500 square feet of gross
kitchen area)
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Stores and shops for the conducting of retail businesses;
Commercial, retail and personal service establishments
Miscellaneous professional and business offices,
including banks, insurance and real estate
establishments
Wholesale establishment
One per each 200 square feet of gross floor area
(1.0 per 500 square feet)
One per each 400 square feet of gross floor area
(1.0 per 600 square feet)
Boarding house, lodging house, inn, hotel or motel
One space for each room
Home occupation
Manufacturing or industrial establishments
One space for each non-residential employee and
one additional space for the home occupation
One per each 600 square feet gross floor space
Community facility (City building, recreation, etc.)
One per each 400 square feet gross floor space
Libraries and museums
One per each 300 square feet gross floor space
Public utility
(1) One for each 300 square feet of gross floor area
devoted to office use (2) One for each 800 square
feet of gross floor area per other use
Hospital
Psychiatric mental health unit
Transitional Care unit
Ancillary and supporting pharmacy
Outpatient clinic
Rehabilitative service clinic
Ancillary and supporting health and fitness facility
Medical/dental psychiatric office building
Nursing Home
Childcare facility
Ancillary and supporting parking
Accessory dwelling units for resident employees
Ancillary and supporting trailers to be used for storage of
medical equipment and supplies
Ancillary and supporting storage of mobile medical
vehicles
Ancillary and supporting training/educational center for
public
Ancillary and supporting maintenance of vehicles and
equipment
Ancillary and supporting helipad
Ancillary and supporting storage
Any use permitted by this Bylaw not interpreted to be
covered by this schedule
Mixed use
2 spaces per bed*
2 spaces per bed
1 space per each 200 square feet of gross floor area
1 space per each 200 square feet of gross floor area
1 space per each 200 square feet of gross floor area
1 space per each 200 square feet of gross floor area
1 space for each 250 square feet of gross floor area
1 space for each 200 square feet of gross floor area
1 space per 2 beds
1 space per every 3 clients
None
2 spaces per unit
2 spaces for each trailer
One per each 1,000 square feet gross floor space
None
4 spaces per classroom plus 1 space per each 4
seats
None
None
None
Closest similar use as shall be determined by the
Building Inspector
Sum of various uses computed separately
* The following uses will be included under Hospital for the purposes of this section: emergency room, medical
research laboratory, medical diagnostics, outpatient facilities, ancillary and supporting modular office space,
ancillary and supporting swimming pool, medical/dental/psychiatric clinic and ancillary and supporting
newsstand or cafeteria (foods services).
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6.2
Application of Parking Requirements
a.
Permits for the erection of new structures, for the enlargement of existing structures,
or for the development of a land use shall require plans showing the specific location and
size of the off-street parking required under this Zoning Bylaw, and the means of access to
such space from Public Streets or Private Ways. In the event of an existing structure these
requirements shall apply only to the area added to the structure.
b. Buildings and land uses in existence on the effective date of this bylaw are not
subject to these parking requirements, but any parking facilities then serving or thereafter
established to service such buildings or uses may not be reduced below these standards.
c. When an individual building of less than 5,000 sq. ft. or a parcel of land is used
by two or more principal uses that fall into different classes of use, the parking facilities
required shall be the sum of the requirements for the separate uses.
d.
For buildings of over 5,000 sq. ft. accommodating several distinct principal uses
(such as those in a small shopping center) the total amount of required parking may be
reduced by 5% for each additional 5,000 sq. ft. of floor area. Thus a 5,000 sq. ft. retail
building would require 25 spaces (at one per 200 sq. ft.) but a mixed uses 10,000 sq. ft.
building would require only 45 spaces.
e. Total parking requirements for principal uses within 500 feet of one another may be
reduced to the extent that the applicants can demonstrate that the hours of activity are
complementary and that customers or employees of each use will continue to have access to
the total amount of available space. (For example a motion picture theater operating
primarily in the evening and on weekends could jointly use parking spaces with a bank
operating during the week and on Saturday mornings.)
6.3
Location and Layout of Parking Facilities
a.
Required off-street parking facilities shall be provided on the same lot as the
principal use they are required to serve.
b.
Parking required for two or more buildings or uses may be provided in combined
facilities where it is evident that such facilities will continue to be available for the several
buildings or uses.
c.
Each required car space shall not be less than ten (10) feet in width and twenty (20)
feet in length, exclusive of drives and maneuvering space, and the total area of any parking
facility for more than five (5) cars shall average at least three hundred and fifty (350) square
feet per car. No driveways or curb cuts shall exceed twenty-five (25) feet in width.
d.
An open-air parking space shall be at least ten (10) feet from any building, and shall be
at least eight (8) feet from any property line.
e. Garages shall conform to the prescribed minimum setback distances of the zoning area
in which the lot is located.
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f. Parking areas shall not be used for automobile sales, gasoline sales, dead storage,
repair work, dismantling or servicing of any kind, and lighting that is provided shall be
installed in a manner that will prevent direct light shining onto any street or adjacent
property.
g. In the Health Care Services District, notwithstanding any other provision of this bylaw,
required off-street parking facilities may be located on any lot within the District, provided
that, in the event that of any division or subdivision occurs within the District resulting in the
creation of new lots, each lot in the District shall either (i) accommodate the required parking
facilities associated with uses on that lot, or (ii) have the benefit of perpetual easement
rights to utilize such parking facilities on other lots within the District as may be required for
uses on the benefited lot. However the total number of required off-street parking spaces
will continue to be based upon calculation of applicable parking requirements for each use
existing from time to time on this lot and on each of the lots so benefited. In the Health Care
Services District, notwithstanding any other provision of this bylaw, off-street parking facilities
may be located in the required front yard, provided that parking spaces are located no
closer than 30 feet from the property line adjacent to Groton Road. In the Health Care
Services District, notwithstanding any other provision of this bylaw, each required car space
shall not be less than nine (90) feet in width and eighteen (18) feet in length, exclusive of
drives and maneuvering space.
6.4
Shared Parking.
Shared parking encourages mixed use development and greater efficiency in land use.
Shared parking opportunities exist where the same parking space can be utilized by two or
more different land uses due to differences in principal operating hours for the uses
involved. Shared parking facilities may be allowed with a Special Permit from the Zoning
Board and Site Plan Review by the Planning Board.
6.4.1
Shared Parking for Private Parking Facilities
The following are requirements for approval of a shared parking facility:
a.
Shared parking is only permitted in the GB, DB, LI, and HI
zoning districts.
b.
The uses and common parking facility must either be owned by the
same developer/owner and located in close proximity to one another or
written agreements must be provided if there are multiple owners and/or
successors.
c.
Parking spaces to be shared shall not be reserved for certain
individuals or groups on a 24 hour basis.
d.
Any subsequent change in land uses within the mixed use
development shall require proof that sufficient parking will be available.
e.
No restrictions should be placed on the use of the parking spaces.
Each space should be usable by any motorist with the exception of
handicap spaces.
f.
An interior traffic flow plan shall be provided. Signage for circulation
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may be necessary.
g.
Demonstrate parking area security.
h.
Demonstrate how shared parking enforcement will be undertaken.
To determine whether shared parking is appropriate, the Zoning Board shall follow
the following method to calculate the amount of parking required for a specific mix of
uses.
a.
Conduct an initial project review as knowledge of the site and
proposed land uses becomes more important when designing shared
parking requirements than traditional analysis of parking demand.
Relationships between land uses would be a crucial determinant.
b.
Conduct an analysis of parking requirements for five different time
periods. This analysis should be conducted for individual land uses.
This would provide an estimate of parking accumulations for each
land use during a typical weekday or weekend. The results should be
presented as a percentage of peak parking requirements (e.g.: see
Table of Shared Parking Calculation).
c.
Determine the minimum amount of parking required for each
proposed or existing land use as though it were a separate use.
d.
Multiply each amount by the corresponding percentage for each of
the five time periods.
e.
Calculate the column total for each time period.
f.
The column total with the highest value is the parking space
requirement.
Table 2
Shared Parking Calculation
WEEKDAY
Daytime
9am – 4 pm
Office/Industrial
Retail
Hotel
Restaurant
Entertainment/Recreation
6.4.2
100%
60%
75%
50%
40%
WEEKEND
Evening
Daytime
6pm 9 am-4 pm
Midnight
10%
10%
90%
100%
100%
75%
100%
100%
100%
80%
NIGHT
Evening
Evening
6pm – Midnight Midnight – 6 am
5%
70%
100%
100%
100%
5%
5%
75%
10%
10%
Shared Parking for Municipal Parking Facilities
a.
A municipal parking facility should be reasonably close to the land use to
ensure that shared parking will occur. The major entrance of the land use should be
within 500 feet of the parking facility.
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b.
Municipal parking facilities may be used as the sole shared parking
facility serving nearby land uses. The calculations for parking requirements follow
that of private mixed use facilities, Table 2, Shared Parking Calculation. However,
certain land uses may share parking with the public parking facilities during periods
when excess public parking is normally available. A reduction in the parking
requirements is permitted for these land uses as shown in Table 3, Percentage of
Parking Reduction for Municipal Shared Parking Facilities.
c.
Other factors that may be considered when exploring flexible parking
standards are reductions in off street parking requirements for historic districts,
collecting fees in lieu of parking for certain business districts, allowing off street
parking when on site parking is not feasible, and using parking reductions to
encourage ride-sharing programs.
TABLE 3
Percentage of Parking Reduction
for Municipal Shared Parking Facilities
Retail
Hotel
Restaurant
Entertainment/Recreation
Multifamily
6.5
% Parking Reduction
40%
25%
50%
60%
40%
Parking Standards
Proposed projects or uses must comply with Parking and Off-street Loading regulations in
Article 6 and the following standards:
a.
No parking shall be permitted within the required front yard setback of a structure. If
the physical configuration of the lot creates a hardship for the property owner to meet this
requirement, the Planning Board may allow parking in the front, with adequate screening, as
noted in Article 9, Special Provisions, Section 9.3 Screening and Buffers on page 112.
b.
To the extent feasible, parking areas shall be shared with adjacent businesses.
c.
For developments which make a long-term commitment to actively promote
employee and public use of transit, ridesharing, and other means to reduce single occupant
vehicle (SOV) trips, minimum parking standards may be reduced by a percentage, up to a
maximum of twenty percent (20%) to be determined by the Planning Board based upon the
adequacy of trip reduction plans submitted in accordance with Article 9 Special Provisions,
Section 9.4 Commercial Development Standards, on page 114 subsection b.
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