Zoning Primer
What is zoning?
Zoning is local law about land use. Zoning is how cities and
towns help to define the growth and development they want, and
eliminate or minimize problems of crowding and land use
conflicts. It tells property owners what they can, and cannot,
build on their land. Decades of court cases have shown, again and
again, that cities and towns have both a responsibility and a
constitutional right to protect the public welfare by placing
limits on the uses of private property.
Where does it come from?
Anyone -- a property owner, a group of residents, a City
Department -- can write up and propose a zoning law. To become
law, proposals to change zoning laws must be reviewed and adopted
by a 6- or 7-vote "super-majority" vote of the
Cambridge City Council. Zoning law on the books is what a
majority of our Councilors thinks the City wants and needs.
How is zoning law enforced?
Zoning is administered and enforced in two significant steps:
The Inspector, Planning Board, and Board of Zoning Appeals interpret the zoning text. How carefully they review plans, and how often they decide to grant Variances or Special Permits, are very important to the implementation of zoning. Bad interpretations, and too many exemptions, can defeat good zoning rules.
Why is zoning so complicated?
In Cambridge, the Zoning Ordinance (law) exists as a fat ring
binder of many pages of rules. The Ordinance is long and
complicated because it divides the City into more than 30
different Districts -- and each District has slightly different
rules. But there aren't that many different kinds of rules -- and
if one understands a few key rules, then one understands most of
zoning.
What are the important rules?
Zoning rules tend to fall into several broad groups:
Rules About Use and Activity:
Districts are classified as Residential, Business, Office and so on, and specify kinds of uses and activities that are desired or prohibited in the District. Residential districts exclude most commercial uses, but allow schools and churches; office districts tend to preclude retail stores; and so on. Limiting the conflict between residential and commercial activity is one of zoning's most important functions.Rules About Density:
Bulk and density rules place limits on how much of a use/activity (and how much construction) can be put on the land. The two most important density rules are:
- lot size per dwelling unit, which says one must have (for instance) 1200 square feet of lot for each house or apartment; and
- floor area ratio (FAR), which specifies the amount of building floor area one can have relative to the lot size. An FAR of 2.0 means one can put a 10,000 sq ft building on a 5,000 sq ft lot. This might be (for example) a 2-storey building covering the entire lot, or a 4-storey building covering half the lot.
Rules About Shape and Design:
These rules place limits on how the building is shaped and laid out on the lot. Important rules in this category include:
- height limits
- setback requirements: rules for pushing the building face back from front, side and rear lot lines
- open space requirements: rules requiring a certain portion of the lot to be left open, landscaped and usable for outdoor activity (not parking).
Shape and design rules are very significant when lots and parcels are small and oddly-shaped, as they are in Cambridge.
Rules About Vehicles:
These are chiefly parking and loading requirements -- the number of off-street car and truck spaces which must be provided according to the size of each use or activity.Yes, there are many other rules in the Ordinance, but the ones described above are usually the most important ones.
Why is zoning so important to our
neighborhoods?
At least two reasons:
What we can do about zoning?
The Cambridge Residents for Growth Management has proposed a
comprehensive citywide zoning petition that addresses many of the
problems with Cambridge's current zoning. We urge you to support
us. Help make our petition part of Cambridge's zoning laws.
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