USA > Massachusetts > Hampden County > Palmer > Town Annual Report of the Officers of the Town of Palmer, Massachusetts 1948 > Part 8
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(3) The office or studio of a physician or surgeon, dentist, artist, lawyer, architect, professional engineer or teacher of scholastic subjects, residing on the premises, or a beauty parlor wherein one of the residents is the sole operator. The space occupied by such office or studio shall not exceed twenty (20) per cent of the total floor area of the dwelling including basement. No display, sign or other advertising device shall be permitted except an interior-illuminated reflective or non-illuminated pro- fessional nameplate having an area of not more than one hundred forty-four (144) square inches. The studios or offices of dancing or music teachers, photographers, mas- seurs, veterinarians, riding schools and other similar business-like pursuits are prohibited.
(4) The renting of rooms and the furnishing of table board to not more than four resident persons in a dwelling occupied as a private residence. No display, sign or other advertising device, illuminated or otherwise, shall be visible from the street except a non-illuminated announcement sign having an area of not more than one hundred forty-four (144) square inches.
(5) Schools, clubs, lodges, social and community center buildings, serving the immediate vicinity, except. those the chief activity of which is a gainful service or ac- tivity usually conducted as a business, including in said excepted uses, dancing or bowling and like activities ; and provided that there is no display or advertising visible from the street, other than as permitted in Paragraph 3, above.
(6) Bus passenger stations or shelters, but not in- cluding repair service or garaging.
(7) Hospitals, sanitariums or charitable institu- tions, not for contagious diseases, nor for the care of epil-
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eptics or drug or liquor patients, nor for correctional pur- poses, nor for the care of the insane or feeble-minded.
(8) Telephone buildings not including garages and outside storage of supplies.
(9) Accessory uses customarily incident to any use permitted herein, provided that such use shall not be of- fensive nor dangerous to life by reason of fire; and pro- vided further, that such accessory use shall not include any activity conducted for gain. No advertising device, whether illuminated or otherwise, shall be permitted, ex- cept that a non-flashing incandesant, or non-illuminated announcement sign having an area of not more than one hundred forty-four (144) square inches may be dis- played. No private way or walk shall give access across or upon a lot in a Residence District to a business or in- dustry on an adjoining lot.
The keeping of poultry is restricted to a small flock for the use of the resident occupant only. The flock shall be confined in an enclosure not less than ten (10) feet from any lot line and not less than twenty-five (25) feet from any building used for human habitation. For the purpose of this by-law, a small flock shall mean and shall not exceed one unit of poultry to each five hundred (500) square feet of lot area but in no case more than fifteen (15) such units on any lot. The building and enclosure for the keeping of poultry permitted herein shall not exceed one twentieth (1/20) of the area of the lot on which it is located, and any building so used shall be limited to one story in height. The use of such enclosure or building for the keeping of poultry shall be accessory to a dwelling ex- isting on the same lot or on an abutting lot.
The keeping and raising of pigs, rabbits, livestock, pigeons, whether raised for the table or other purposes, or other like objectionable uses are prohibited.
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(10) Private garages, provided no business, service or industry is conducted therefrom or therein. Not more than one (1) motor vehicle for each five thousand (5000) square feet, or fraction thereof, of lot area, nor more than five motor vehicles in any case shall be kept on the prem- ises. Only one such vehicle may be a commercial vehicle and of not more than one and one-half (112) tons weight or capacity. Space for motor vehicles shall not be leased nor rented for commercial vehicles.
(11) Not more than one house trailer may be kept on the premises. The trailer shall not be used for living quarters while so located. Space shall not be leased for trailers.
(12) When the line, separating this Residence Dis- trict from the Agricultural District, runs through a prop- erty not being used for agricultural purposes, so that fu- ture use of the whole property for agriculture would be prohibited, permission for such complete use may be granted by the Board of Appeals after a public hearing.
(b) HEIGHTS. A residence building shall not ex- ceed two (2) stories and attic nor more than thirty-five (35) feet in height. Telephone exchanges, lodges, social and community center buildings shall not exceed thirty- five (35) feet in height. Chimneys, steeples, and flag or radio poles are exempt from the height provisions of this section.
(c) SETBACKS. No part of any building or other structure shall be erected or altered so as to be nearer to the street line of any street on which it faces than the nearest building on either side thereof facing the same street and within the same block and district. When the setbacks required by this section exceed thirty (30) feet,
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such setback need not be greater than seventy (70) per cent of the distance required above.
Where the alignment of the building is not controlled by the preceding paragraph, no part of any building shall be placed within thirty (30) feet of any street line.
On a corner lot, except as otherwise herein provided, no part of any building shall be erected or altered so as to be less than twenty-five (25) feet from any street line.
When a dwelling, or its attached garage, to be erect- ed in a Residence B District is less than twenty-five (25) feet from a side lot adjoining a business or industrial dis- trict, the setback from the street line on which it faces need not exceed fifteen (15) feet.
Open porches which are twenty (20) feet or more from the street line may be permanently enclosed on one or more sides.
(d) SIDE YARDS. There shall be a side yard be- tween a principal building and any side lot line. It shall be (15) feet wide in its least dimension.
Detached garages or accessory buildings shall not be placed within five (5) feet of the side lot line, nor within thirty-five (35) feet of any street line.
The buildings enumerated in paragraph seven (7) of this section shall be located at least twenty-five (25) feet from each side lot line.
(e) REAR YARDS. There shall be a rear yard on every lot between the principal building and the rear lot line. It shall be twenty (20) feet deep in its least dimen- sion.
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Accessory buildings or structures, including private garages, shall not exceed seventeen (17) feet in height for a one-story building which shall be placed at least three (3) feet from the rear lot line. A one and one-half (11/2) story accessory building shall not exceed twenty- five (25) feet in height which shall be placed at least ten (10) feet from the rear lot line.
(f) LOT COVERAGE. No principal building shall be erected or altered so as to cover more than forty (40) per cent of the area of the lot on which it is located.
(g) LOT SIZE. No lot shall have a frontage of less than seventy (70) feet nor an area of less than eighty- four hundred (8400) feet.
SECTION 6. RESIDENCE C DISTRICTS.
(a) PERMITTED USES. In any Residence C Dis- trict, as indicated on the Building Zone Map, no building or other structure shall be erected, altered or used, and no land shall be used or occupied for any purpose except one or more of the following:
(1) Any use permitted in a Residence A or B Dis- tricts. (See Sections 4 and 5.)
(2) A semi-detached dwelling for two families, provided that both halves of said dwelling are erected at the same time, and provided that there shall not be more than one family in each half of such dwelling.
(3) A dwelling house of not more than four (4) families.
(4) An apartment house as defined.
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(5) Lodging houses, provided there is no display sign, or other advertising device visible from the street, whether illuminated or otherwise, other than a sign hav- ing an area of not more than one hundred forty-four (144) square inches. A public restaurant or dining room shall be permitted as an accessory use in any part of such a building, provided that the dining room and kitchen fa- cilities do not occupy more than sixty (60) per cent of the first floor area of such building.
(6) Colleges, public libraries; or museums, church- es or other places of worship, parish houses, and Sunday School buildings.
(7) Private garages, provided that no business, service or industry is conducted therefrom or therein. Not more than one (1) motor vehicle to each twenty-five hundred (2500) square feet of lot area except that three (3) vehicles may be kept in any case. Only one such vehi- cle may be a commercial vehicle of not more than one and one-half (11/2 ) tons weight or capacity. Space shall not be leased or rented for a commercial vehicle.
(8) Not more than one house trailer for each resi- dent family may be kept on the premises. The trailers shall not be used for living quarters while so located. Space shall not be leased for trailers.
(b) HEIGHTS. A dwelling or lodging house shall not exceed two (2) stories and attic or thirty-five (35) feet if of frame construction. Apartment houses may be four (4) stories or fifty-five (55) feet in height. Church- es, schools, colleges, libraries, town buildings, hospitals and such institutions shall not exceed sixty (60) feet in height. Chimneys, steeples and flag or radio poles are ex- empt from the height provisions.
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(c) SETBACK. No part of any building or other structure shall be erected or altered so as to be nearer to the street line of any street on which it faces than the nearest building on either side thereof facing on the same street and within the same block and district. When the setbacks required by this section exceed thirty-five (35) feet, such setbacks need not be greater than seventy (70) per cent of the distance required above.
Where the alignment of a building is not controlled by the preceding paragraph, no part of any building shall be placed within twenty (20) feet of the street line.
On a corner lot, except as otherwise herein provided, no part of any building shall be erected or altered so as to be less than twenty (20) feet from any street line.
Existing open porches which are fifteen (15) feet or more from the street line may be permanently enclosed on one or more sides.
(d) SIDE YARDS. There shall be a side yard be- tween a building and each side lot line. For a building four (4) stories in height it shall be not less than twenty- five (25) feet in width, for a building three (3) stories in height, it shall be not less than twenty (20) feet wide in its least dimension ; for one or two story buildings with or without an attic the side yard shall be not less than fif- teen (15) feet wide in its least dimension.
A hospital shall be located at least twenty-five (25) feet from any lot line.
Any garage or accessory building, attached or de- tached, shall not be placed within five (5) feet of any side lot line, nor within twenty-five (25) feet of any street line.
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(e) REAR YARDS. There shall be a rear yard on every lot between the principal building and the rear lot line. It shall be twenty (20) feet deep in its least dimen- sion.
Accessory buildings or structures, including private garages, shall not exceed seventeen (17) feet in height for a one-story building which shall be placed at least three (3) feet from the rear lot line. A two-story acces- sory building shall not exceed twenty-five (25) feet in height and shall be placed at least ten (10) feet from the rear lot line.
(f) LOT COVERAGE. No principal building shall be erected or altered so as to cover more than forty (40) per cent of the area of the lot on which it is located.
SECTION 7. AGRICULTURAL DISTRICTS
(a) PERMITTED USES. In any Agricultural Dis- trict, as indicated on the Building Zone Map, no building or other structure shall be erected, altered or used and no land shall be used or occupied for a purpose except one or more of the following :
(1) Any use permitted in a Residence A or B Dis- trict.
(2) Farms, dairies, nurseries, truck gardens, greenhouses, and natural ice harvesting activities, and buildings or structures accessory thereto.
(3) Buildings or shelters for the sale of farm prod- ucts, provided that a major portion of the products are raised on the premises, and no advertising of products other than those raised on the premises shall be displayed.
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(4) Forests, wood lots, portable wood working mills and machinery.
(5) Airports and landing strips and buildings or structures necessary thereto.
(6) Not more than one house trailer may be kept on the premises. It may be occupied by the resident owner and his immediate family only. Space shall not be leased for trailers.
(b) HEIGHTS. A residence building shall conform to the height provisions of Residence B Districts. (See Section 5.) For other buildings allowed in this Section 6, the height limitation shall be sixty (60) feet.
(c) SETBACKS. No building except a roadside stand shall be erected or placed within thirty-five (35) feet of a street line, and no building of accessory use or farm or poultry farm building other than a dwelling, gar- age, or roadside stand shall be built within one hundred (100) feet of a street line. Buildings and shelters for the sale of farm products shall be at least twenty (20) feet from the street line.
(d) SIDE YARDS. There shall be a side yard be- tween any building and any side lot line. For a residence building or garage of up to three (3) cars capacity, it shall comply with the side yard requirements of the near- est residence district, measured in a direct or air line. For any other building, it must be one hundred (100) feet in width.
(e) REAR YARDS. For a residence building or a garage of up to three (3) cars capacity the rear yard shall comply with the rear yard requirements of the nearest residence district, measured in a direct or air line. For
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any other building, it must be one hundred (100) feet in depth.
(f) LOT COVERAGE. There shall be no lot cov- erage regulations in this district.
SECTION 8. BUSINESS A DISTRICTS.
(a) PERMITTED USES. In any Business A Dis- trict, as indicated on the Building Zone Map, no building or other structure shall be erected, altered or used and no land shall be used or occupied for any purpose except one or more of the following:
(1) Any use permitted in a Residence or Agricul- tural District. (See Sections 4, 5, 6 and 7.)
(2) The major use of a building or structure in a Business A District shall be to store and display goods for sale at retail on the premises, or to furnish a service intended for resident of the immediate vicinity. Banks, hotels, dining establishments, halls and office buildings shall be considered as complying with the above men- tioned requirements.
No building, structure or land shall be used in whole or in any part for any fabricating, manufacturing, con- verting, altering, finishing or assembling, except as may be reasonably necessary, in the uses to which such build- ings, structures or land are permitted as above specified.
(3) Public garages for storage or repair of not more than fifteen (15) cars. Body and fender work and the storage of cars, bodies and parts out of doors is pro- hibited.
(4) A gasoline filling station, provided that not more than twelve thousand (12,000) gallons of gasoline
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shall be stored on the premises. An enclosed lubritorium for not more than three (3) motor vehicles shall be per- mitted. Repairing of motor vehicles out of doors is pro- hibited, and only permitted on an emergency basis in- doors.
(5) Open air parking.
(6) A trailer camp shall be permitted with no re- strictions as to the number of trailers parked thereon; provided that each such trailer shall be placed on a sepa- rate lot clearly marked by stakes or bounds, and each such trailer lot shall not be less than thirty-five (35) feet wide nor less than fifty (50) feet deep, nor less than sev- enteen hundred fifty (1750) square feet in area ; and pro- vided that each such lot shall face a public or private street or way, or an unobstructed driveway twenty (20) feet wide which gives access to a public or private street or way.
(b) HEIGHTS. A business building shall not ex- ceed three (3) stories or forty (40) feet in height. These provisions shall not apply to chimneys, flag or radio poles, water tanks or hose towers, nor to required bulk- heads or elevator penthouses. A residence building shall comply with the height requirements for Residence B Districts.
(c) SETBACKS, SIDE YARDS AND REAR YARDS. Setbacks, side yards and rear yards shall not be required for a business building, but facilities shall be provided for loading and unloading all materials, equip- ment and merchandise on the premises and entirely off the traveled way. For a building devoted in whole or in part to residence purposes, the requirements for setbacks, side yards and rear yards prescribed for Residence B Dis- tricts shall apply.
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A trailer shall set back at least ten (10) feet from any street line or driveway serving such trailer. Trailers shall be placed at least five (5) feet from any side lot line and at least six (6) feet from any rear lot line.
(d) LOT COVERAGE. No business building shall be erected or altered so as to cover more than seventy-five (75) per cent of the area of the lot on which it is located. A building devoted in whole or in part to residence pur- poses shall comply with the requirements of lot coverage in Residence B Districts.
SECTION 9. BUSINESS B DISTRICTS
(a) PERMITTED USES. In any Business B Dis- trict, as indicated on the Building Zone Map, no building or other structure shall be erected, altered or used and no land shall be used or occupied for any purpose except one or more of the following :
(1) Any use permitted in a Residence, Agricultur- al or Business A District. (See Sections 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8.)
(2) Public garages with no restrictions as to the number of cars stored.
(3) Amusement parks, bowling alleys and roller skating rinks.
(4) Wholesale sale and warehousing.
(5) Converting, fabricating, manufacturing, al- tering, finishing or. assembling, provided that not more than one person shall be employed for each seventy (70) square feet of floor area and in no case shall a total of more than ten thousand (10,000) square feet of the premises be devoted to such use.
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(b) HEIGHTS. A business building shall not be erected or altered to a height in excess of three (3) stories nor more than forty (40) feet. These provisions shall not apply to chimneys, flag or radio poles, water
tanks or hose towers, nor to required bulkheads or eleva- tor penthouses. A residence building shall comply with the height provisions for Residence B Districts.
(c) SETBACKS, SIDE YARDS AND REAR YARDS. No setbacks, side yards or rear yards are re- quired for a business building, but facilities shall be pro- vided for loading and unloading all materials, equipment and merchandise on the premises and entirely off the traveled way. For a building devoted in whole or in part to residence purposes, the requirement for setbacks, side yards and rear yards in Residence B Districts shall ap- ply.
(d) LOT COVERAGE. No business building shall be erected or altered so as to cover more than ninety (90) per cent of the area of the lot on which it is located. A building devoted in whole or in part to residence pur- poses shall comply with the requirements of lot coverage in Residence B Districts.
SECTION 10. INDUSTRIAL DISTRICTS.
(a) PERMITTED USES. In any Industrial Dis- trict, as indicated on the Building Zone Map, no building or other structure shall be erected, altered or used and no land shall be used or occupied for any purpose except one of the following :
(1) For residence purposes, provided that the land so located in an Industrial District is part of a sub-divi-
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sion plan duly recorded PRIOR to the enactment of this by-law.
(2) Any business or agricultural use permitted in an Agricultural, Business A or Business B District.
(3) Any industrial purpose, except those contained in the following list which may be allowed only after a public hearing before the Board of Appeals :
Acetylene gas, cyanide compound or oxygen manu- facture.
Asphalt manufacture or refining.
Chlorine or Bleaching Powder manufacture.
Creosote manufacture.
Distillation of coal or wood.
Drop Forge shops.
Explosives, fireworks or ammunition manufacture. Fertilizer manufacture.
Fumigation plants.
Glue or size manufacture from fish or animal offal.
Gypsum, cement, plaster or plaster of paris manu- facture.
Incineration or reduction of or dumping of offal, gar- bage or refuse on a commercial basis (except where con- trolled by the town.)
Junk yard, junk storage, scrapping of autos and parts and the salvage thereof.
Linoleum manufacture.
Match manufacture.
Paint and Lacquer manufacture.
Petroleum refining and the bulk storage of petrol- eum products.
Pyroxylin plastic manufacture.
Rubber, natural or synthetic, or gutta-percha manu- factured from crude or scrap material.
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Sewage Disposal plan (Except where controlled by town.)
Soap, tallow, grease or lard manufacture.
Slaughterhouse.
Sulphurous, sulphuric, nitric or hydrochloric acid manufacture.
Tannery.
Tar or asphalt roofing manufacture.
Tar products manufacture.
Tire recapping or retreading.
All other enterprises or uses commonly regarded as hazardous or offensive.
(b) HEIGHTS. Business or industrial buildings shall not exceed four (4) stories nor sixty (60) feet in height except with approval of the Board of Appeals af- ter public hearing. These provisions shall not apply to chimneys, smokestacks, aeriators, flag or radio poles, elevator penthouses, gas holders, water tanks, grain ele- vators, required bulkheads, or other equipment appur- tenant to industrial buildings. Buildings devoted in whole or in part to residence purposes shall comply with the height provisions of Residence B Districts.
(c) SETBACKS, SIDE YARDS AND REAR YARDS. No setbacks, side yards or rear yards shall be required for a business or industrial building, but facili- ties shall be provided for loading and unloading all ma- terials, equipment and merchandise on the premises and entirely off the traveled way. A building devoted in whole or in part to residence purposes shall comply with the set- back, side yard and rear yard provisions in Residence B Districts.
(d) LOT COVERAGE. No 'business or industrial building shall be erected or altered so as to cover more
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than seventy-five (75) per cent of the area of the lot on which it is located. Buildings devoted in whole or in part to residence purposes shall comply with the lot coverage provisions of Residence B Districts.
SECTION 11. ENFORCEMENT.
The Enforcing Authority shall enforce the provis- ions of this by-law and this by-law as it may be amended. He shall refuse to grant a permit for the construction, ad- dition, alteration or change or use of any building, struc- ture or premises if such proposed construction, addition, alteration or use would be in violation of any of the pro- visions of this by-law, as amended. State and town offi- cers shall refuse any permit or license for a new use of a building, structure or land, which use would be in viola- tion of this by-law or amendment thereof.
SECTION 12. FILING PLAT PLAN.
Unless otherwise ordered by the Enforcing Authori- ty, all applications for building permits under the pro- visions of one present or future Building Code of the Town of Palmer shall be accompanied by plans in dupli- cate. Such plans shall be drawn to scale, shall show the actual dimensions, radii, and angles of the lot to be built on, the exact size and location on the lot of the main build- ing and accessory buildings to be erected and such other information as may be necessary to determine and pro- vide for the enforcement of this by-law, as amended. One copy of the plans filed by the applicant shall be returned to him when approved by the Enforcing Authority.
SECTION 13. VALIDITY OF EXISTING BUILDING PERMITS.
Any building permit issued prior to a notice of a hearing on the question of the enactment of this by-law
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shall be valid, provided, that the construction work there- under is commenced within six (6) months after its issu- ance.
SECTION 14. CEITIFICATE OF OCCUPAN- CY.
(a) Hereafter no land shall be occupied or used, and no building or structure erected or altered, shall be occupied or used, in whole or in part, for any purpose un- til a certificate of occupancy is issued by the Enforcing Authority stating that the building, structure or use com- plies with the provisions of this by-law.
No such certificate shall be issued unless the build- ing or structure and its uses as well as the uses of all the premises are in conformity with the provisions of this by-law.
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