In March, 2000, students in ES192 at Brown University contacted officials (town planners or town council members) of the towns in the Wood Pawcatuck watershed and asked what growth caps/limits the town had in place or was contemplating. Here are their reports.
Anna Brown and Rachael Weiss
Information provided by Nancy Heff- Town Planner (401) 364-1225 – March 2000
This past February 2000 Charlestown adopted a new growth management plan focusing on education as the regulatory device. The plan limits the number of residential building permits issued until it has been proven that a sufficient school system is intact. The town specifically calculates the seating capacity of regional schools (elementary, middle, and high school level) as a percentage and then projects that to a future availability percentage based on housing. Commercial zoning represents 3% of Charlestown’s land scheme and is currently unlimited because residential build-out drives this type of growth. Limiting building permits for residential zoning will indirectly limit commercial sprawl. This plan moves away from the previous developmental strategy in place since May 1998, which was created in accord to the 1992 Comprehensive plan. Under the old system, Charleston used zoning regulation based on environmental concerns such as wetland preservation and water resources. As with any ordinance limiting growth, the state expects a certain amount of discord. However, the growth limits are not that stringent and are now associated directly with the educational system, an issue few would disagree with.
Amy Paretti and Evan Goldsmith
(this information is from Scott Millar, DEM and
Exeter Comprehensive plan contact: 222-3434-1-4419)
The
town of Exeter does not presently have any growth cap ordinance in place. However, as it is a concept that several RI towns have
recently been adopting, the Exeter planning council has put in a recommendation
to the town to consider putting in a growth cap.
A major development strategy that Exeter does use is impact fees.
These fees go to the protection of open spaces and recreational areas.
Exeter is in the process of developing a system of impact fees to help
fund schools.
Alissa Barron and Nathan James
Information from review of the Comprehensive Plan and from a telephone interview with Vincent Murray - March 2000.
South Kingstown utilizes a growth cap "in periods of rapid growth," which limits the number of single family permits issued to 40 permits max per quarter, or 160 annually. This limit is based on historical trend analysis. The zoning ordinance details the mechanics of this process in Article 11.02 of the Zoning Code, the "Development Pacing and Phasing Ordinance."
All new development in South Kingstown must also pay impact fees, or "fair share development fees", which change annually based on a yearly analysis. These fees go toward reducing the impact that new development, especially new residential development, has on 1) school facilities and 2) open space/recreation. The fees can be waved for certain types of housing, such as those which are prioritized in the phasing ordinance, as an attempt to try to make growth more balanced and equitable. The exceptions are for affordable housing (low or moderate income). There is some concern regarding new developments who might get doubly "punished" by the fees and by de-prioritization.
Miriam Pfisterer and Will Hodges
Information from Joe Lombardo, Westerly Town Planner – March 2000:
Currently, Westerly has no growth caps in place. However, the Town Council has hired a consulting firm with the purpose of generating a "Growth Managment Study". A component of this study will be to determine the possibility of implementing two different growth control methods:
1. Building permit caps.
2. Impact fees.
It also should be noted that Westerly is due to review it's Comprehensive Town Plan. According to the State Planning Office's stipulations, town plans must be reviewed five years after approval has been granted. As Westerly's plan received its certification in early 1995, the completion of a revised plan is expected, unless the town applies for an extension.