§ 245-119.4. Tiny houses., Article XVI. Supplementary Zone Regulations, Chapter 245. Zoning, Code of Ordinances, Federalsburg

Definitions. For the purposes of this section, the following definitions shall apply:

TINY HOUSE: A principal residential dwelling that has a square footage of between 275 square feet and 640 square feet per floor.

The Federalsburg Planning Commission may approve a subdivision or site plan for the construction of tiny houses, provided that the applicant satisfies all of the provisions of this section.

Tiny houses are only permitted within the R-3 (Multiple-Family Residential) District, TCRO (Town Center Redevelopment Overlay) District, or a Planned Unit Development (PUD) District. For any tiny house approved as part of an overall development plan, the provisions of § 245-21.1 shall not apply and the residential dwellings shall not be required to meet the average size of existing homes on property adjacent to or within the approved tiny house neighborhood.

Each dwelling unit shall have a minimum living room area of not less than 120 square feet.

Required space in sleeping rooms. In every dwelling unit of two or more rooms, every room occupied for sleeping purposes by one occupant shall contain at least 70 square feet of floor space, and every room occupied for sleeping purposes by more than one occupant shall contain at least an additional 50 square feet of floor space for each occupant thereof.

Minimum ceiling height. Every habitable room, foyer, bathroom, hall or corridor shall have a ceiling height of at least seven feet. If any room has a sloping ceiling, the prescribed ceiling height for the room is required in only 1/2 the area thereof, but the total floor area shall be included for the purpose of determining the maximum permissible occupancy thereof.

Structure width. The tiny house must fit inside a construction envelope of 17 feet by 50 feet and be a minimum of 12 feet wide, with a maximum of 17 feet wide.

All homes must have a front or rear porch. Such porch is to be included in the construction envelope of the tiny house, but will not be included as living space or total square footage.

Porches shall be oriented towards common open space or the street and shall be designed to provide a sense of privacy between units.

Secondary entrances facing the parking and sidewalk are required to have a minimum of five-foot by five-foot porch.

Accessory buildings are permitted outside of the construction envelope, provided that they comply with all applicable provisions of the Zoning Ordinance, including any setback requirements, for accessory buildings.

The developer of any tiny house development plan shall be required to form a condominium or homeowners' association to maintain the common areas. The organizational documents shall be reviewed and approved by the Town Attorney. In the event that a condominium or homeowners' association is not in existence for any reason, the Town shall have the right to impose an assessment against the properties located within the community, for the maintenance of such common areas, which shall be collectible in the same manner as real estate taxes.

The development plans for a tiny house neighborhood shall include the following requirements:

(1)

Centralized common area. The common open space area shall include usable public space such as lawn, gardens, patios, plazas, or scenic viewing area. Common open space shall have suitable tables, chairs, and benches with all homes having access to the common open area space.

(2)

Four hundred square feet of common open space is required per unit.

(3)

The principal common open space must be located central to the project space. Additional common open space can only account for 25% of the total requirement, with trails and pathways connecting the total development. Passive trails are allowed and may count towards the common open space requirement.

(4)

Community buildings or clubhouses can be counted towards the common open space calculation.

(5)

Common open space shall be located outside of stormwater/retention ponds, wetlands, streams, lakes, and critical area buffers, and cannot be located on slopes greater than 10%.

Lot requirements.

(1)

Area. The minimum lot size shall be 2,500 square feet.

(2)

Width. The minimum width per lot shall be 25 feet.

(3)

Depth. The minimum depth per lot shall be 100 feet.

(4)

Construction envelope. The construction envelope for each lot shall not exceed 17 feet by 50 feet and is the space in which the tiny house may be placed.

Setbacks.

(1)

Front and rear yard setback. The front and rear setback shall be 25 feet from the front and rear property lines to the construction envelope.

(2)

Side yard setbacks. The side yard setback shall be four feet from the construction envelope to the property line.

(3)

A modified setback may be approved by the Planning Commission in connection with site plan or subdivision plan approval. However, no portion of a building or appurtenance shall be constructed as to project into any commonly owned open space. No structure or portion thereof shall be closer than five feet to any structure on an adjacent lot.

Maintenance of open space and utilities. Before site plan or subdivision approval is granted, the applicant shall submit covenants, deeds and homeowners' association bylaws and other documents guaranteeing maintenance and common fee ownership of public open space, community facilities, private roads and drives, and all other commonly owned and operated property. These documents shall be reviewed and accompanied by a certificate from an attorney that they comply with the requirements of this chapter prior to approval, and shall be subject to the approval of the Town Attorney. Such documents and conveyances shall be filed and be recorded, after approval by the Town Attorney, as a condition precedent to the filing of any final plat of the property or division thereof, except that the conveyance of land to a homeowners' association may be recorded simultaneously with the filing of the final plat.

All houses within a tiny house neighborhood must be constructed to conform to all applicable Federalsburg building codes in effect at the time of construction, and shall comply with all other applicable development regulations and ordinances, including stormwater management, floodplain requirements, and critical area provisions. In the event of a conflict between a provision of this section and any other applicable code or regulation, the more restrictive standard shall control.

Any manufactured home constructed on a lot shall comply with the provisions of § 245-119.1 of this chapter.