Town of Holderness, NH - General Requirements For The Subdivision Of Land

Land of such character that, in the opinion of the Board, cannot be safely used or maintained for building purposes because of danger to health or peril from fire, flood, erosive action, unstablized slope, or fill or other menace, shall not be platted for residential occupancy, nor for such other uses as may increase danger to health, life or property, or aggravate the flood hazard, until or unless appropriate measures can and have been taken by the subdivider to eliminate such hazards. No natural floodway shall be obstructed.

Adopted in 1987. The purpose of this district is to provide protection for the environmentally sensitive corridor along the Pemigewasset River and also protection for lives and property from flood waters and debris. The restrictions contained herein take precedence over permitted uses in the portion of the districts over which it lies. Lot size shall be a 2 acre minimum. The minimum lot frontage on the Pemigewasset River shall be 200 feet for the first dwelling unit, with 20 additional feet needed for each additional dwelling unit.

All subdivision proposals and proposals for other development governed by these Regulations having lands identified as Special Flood Hazard Areas in the “Flood Insurance Study for the Town of Holderness, N.H.”, together with the current Associated Flood Insurance Rate Maps and Flood Boundary and Floodway Maps of the Town of Holderness shall meet the Following.

All subdivision proposals and other proposed new development shall be reviewed to determine whether such proposals will be reasonably safe from flooding. Subdivision review shall assure that the following minimum standards are met:

Require new or replacement water supply systems and/or sanitary sewage systems to be designed to minimize or eliminate infiltration of flood waters into the systems and discharges from the systems into flood waters, and require on-site waste disposal systems to be located so as to avoid impairment of them or contamination from them during flooding.

The Board shall restrict subdivision of land which is found by the Board to be unsuitable for development by reason of high water table, slope in excess of 25%, bedrock or other impervious strata close to the surface or excessive slope.

The Board may permit, as to unsafe and unsuitable land, that it be platted as part of a lot in which there is sufficient safe and suitable land to satisfy the requirements of these regulations as to minimum lot size.

In order to protect the town against the danger to health, safety and prosperity occasioned by the lack of municipal water and sewer and to prevent the excessive expenditure of public funds for the supply of such services, minimum lot sizes within all subdivisions shall, in addition to meeting the requirements of the Zoning Ordinance for the district wherein the subdivision is proposed, also meet the lot size requirements specified in Table 1 “Minimum Lot Size by Soil Classification.” Where the minimum lot size in the Zoning Ordinance differs from those in Table 1, the most stringent shall apply.

Where cluster or multiple family type dwellings are utilized, the minimum lot size shall be determined by using the per lot requirements of the soils and slopes tables multiplied by the number of lots or family units planned. The adjacent and surrounding land not utilized for such structure or structures shall be left open land and must be so restricted and so recorded in the deed so as to prevent the land being utilized for building purposes of any nature at any future time. It is suggested that such open land become the property of and be cared for by the cluster of multiple family community or development owner or owners.

In subdivision where a community water supply or community wastewater system is to be provided, minimum lot sizes may be reduced by 33 1/3% of the minimum requirements as stated in Table 1, but no instance less then 43,560 square feet.

Tests and soil mapping for determining soil information for use in this section shall be performed by a qualified individual as designated in 4.26 using standards from “High Intensity Soil Maps for NH”, SSSNNE Special Publication No. 1 amended.

Soil data using the standards of high intensity soil maps for New Hampshire shall be provided as a part of the subdivision plan at the scale and dimensions required and signed by the qualified individual as designated in 4.26. Any cover letters or explanatory data provided by the qualified individual as designated in 4.26 shall also be submitted, including a tabulation of the square footage of each soil type found in each lot.

When one boundary of a lot is the shore of a lake of pond, or the shore or bed of any stream, the minimum frontage on the water shall not be less than 200 feet. Each lot shall have a frontage on a street of not less than 150 feet.

if automobile transportation is to be utilized, the parking area shall be provided on the basis of 200 square feet for each dwelling unit granted use of access. The parking area shall not be nearer than 100 feet from the high water line. Parking shall only occur in the designated parking area.

Where there is no municipal water supply or sewage disposal system, shape of lots shall be such that it is possible to meet state and local requirements that all parts of a septic system shall be not less than 125’ from on-site water supply, water supply of adjoining property or high water line of any lake, pond or stream bed, wetland or any body of water, natural or artificial.

No building shall be constructed or placed on any lot within 35 feet from the right-of-way of any street or within 35 feet from the lot side (exception 6.12B) or back lines. Provision for maintaining such building lines shall be established by covenants in deeds of the lot.

Clear sight triangles of at least twenty-five feet (25’) measured along street lot lines from their point of junction shall be provided at all intersections and no building shall be permitted within such sight triangles (at least 25 feet from each street on corner lots).

The Board may permit the utilization of lots for residences with areas less than one acre per family, less than 200 foot water frontage and less than 150 foot frontage on a street, the deeds of which were recorded previous to December 21, 1970, with the Grafton County Register of Deeds, providing that said recorded lot was approved for on-site sewage system by the N.H. Water Supply and Pollution Control Commission and meets the state’s requirements for on-site water supply, where no municipal sewage disposal system and/or water supply exists and where adequate drainage can be held without diversion of water into adjoining properties.

Waiver of Certain Requirements Relative to Approval and Endorsement of Filing of Plats: Where the subdivision consists of the division of a lot, tract, parcel or area of land into not more than three lots, and where no other immediate division or development of either the original tract or the subdivision in question is contemplated, and when no new street, road or extension of a street or road or municipal utilities (if available) are required, the Board may, at its discretion, in lieu of a preliminary plan, revised preliminary plan and final plan, permit the filing of a plat with sketch to be presented as the only, as well as the final, plat for its approval and, providing that, in the opinion of the Board, the General Requirements in Section VI have been fulfilled and/or are not applicable and providing that the final plat also contains the information pertinent and applicable as stipulated in Section VII and Section IX.

The Planning Board shall be responsible for the recording of the approved and endorsed final plat in the Grafton County Registry of Deeds prior to disposition. Two copies endorsed in writing thereon shall be retained by the Board and two copies, likewise, with approval and endorsement, shall be given to the subdivider.

The application fee in such an instance of a single plat when no hearing is to be held, will be $10.00 per lot or if public hearing is required there will be a fee of $25.00 filing fee and $10.00 per lot. At the applicants expense.

Waiver of Road Construction and Road Width for Driveways Serving Not More than Two Lots: The following exceptions and provisions stated herein may be granted on application for certain subdivisions where a driveway is to serve no more that two lots, provided that, in the opinion of the Planning Board, the spirit of these Subdivision Regulations, public convenience, economy and welfare will not be adversely affected.

The driveway serving not more than two adjacent lots may be an easement of not less than 50 feet in width and the traveled way may be required to conform to these Subdivision Regulations as to roadway width and construction (except that the provisions of 6.12, 6.19B thru 6.19E and 7.2 thru 7.5 of these regulations may be waived). There shall be no release from any other regulations.

The deeds to the two lots served shall reflect the fact that a driveway is shared by means of easement and that road construction, repair, maintenance and plowing of snow shall be the responsibility of the lot owners.

If, in the opinion of the Board, and after consultation with the town road agent, it appears that the topography and/or soil conditions of the right-of-way are likely to cause or do cause water drainage onto neighboring properties, into any body of water or onto a public street, corrective measure shall be required and shall be completed before the subdivision is approved.

Adjoining Properties: The sale or exchange of parcels of land between owners of adjoining properties for the express purpose of adjusting boundaries, providing that no additional lots are created, and the original parcels are not reduced below the minimum size required by these regulations, are exempted from the requirements of Section VI and Section 7.2.

Lots shall be laid out in relation to the topography and graded sufficiently to provide adequate drainage, eliminating flood or stagnant water pools, without diversion of water onto other lots or onto property adjoining the subdivision. Lots, where feasible, shall be graded toward the street. No water shall be permitted to run across the street on the surface but shall be directed into catch basins and piped underground in a pipe or culvert of not less than 18 inches in diameter or of such size as may be deemed necessary by the Board. Provisions should be made to effectively accommodate any increased runoff caused by changed soil and surface conditions during and after development. Where feasible, natural vegetation should be retained and protected.

Where the topography is such as to make difficult the inclusion of any utilities, drainage or other special purposes for services to public area as laid out, the preliminary plan shall show the boundaries of proposed permanent easements over or under private property. Such easements shall be not less than 20 feet in width and shall have satisfactory access to existing or proposed public ways. Watercourses proposed for public control shall have a permanent easement of not less than 20 feet

Areas set aside for parks and playgrounds to be dedicated or to be reserved for the common use of all property owners by covenant in the deed, whether or not required by the Board, shall be of reasonable size and character for neighborhood playgrounds or other recreational use. For subdivisions involving more than 25 acres, whether done at one time or in a series, at least 5% of the area shall be reserved for recreational purposes.

Reserve strips of land, which in the opinion of the Board, show an intent on the part of the subdivider to control access to land dedicated to public use or access to backland not yet developed, shall not be permitted.

Unless public sewage and water facilities are provided, it shall be the responsibility of the subdivider to provide adequate information to prove that the area of each lot is adequate to permit the installation and operation of both on-site water and sewage systems. Each water system shall be at least 125 feet (see RSA 147:2) from any portion of a septic system on its own or adjoining lots. Construction of such water system shall be in accordance with U.S. Dept. of Health, Education & Welfare Service Publication titled: “Manual of Individual Water Supply System, P.H. Service Pub. #24” is advocated, a copy of which is on file with the Board.

In areas not currently served by public sewer systems, it shall be the responsibility of the subdivider to provide adequate information to prove that the area of each lot is adequate to permit the installation and operation of an individual sewage disposal system, septic tank and drainage fields. Such information shall consist of a report showing the results of a series of percolation test, taken one to the acre or lot in the subdivision at the Board’s discretion. Each sewage disposal system shall be constructed to conform with specifications set forth in the N.H. Water Supply & Pollution Control Commission publication “The Septic Tank System of Sewage Disposal”, three copies of which are on file with the Secretary and Chairman of the Board. A written report from the WSPCC, stating that their approval for the installation and operation of individual sewage disposal system on the lot in question will serve to satisfy the Board’s requirement, unless otherwise stated in these regulations (see also RSA 149-E)

Community Water Supply and Sewage Disposal Systems: The design of any community water supply or sewage system, to be provided by the subdivider, shall be approved by the appropriate officials of the State of N.H. before the Board will approve the subdivision. It shall be the responsibility of the subdivider to furnish proof in writing to the Board that such requirements have been fulfilled.

Operation and Maintenance of Facilities: The Board will approve no subdivision with a community water supply or sewage disposal system, subject to control by the State of New Hampshire, until provision satisfactory to the State is made for the continued operation and maintenance of such systems. The Board encourages and may require the subdivider to establish a community association to provided continued maintenance of such community utilities, streets, parks, playground and beaches as may not be dedicated to public use and accepted by the town and, if required by the Board, it shall be clearly stated in the deeds that such community or precinct installation, maintenance, etc. is in effect.

Arrangement: Streets shall be logically related to the topography so as to provide suitable lots, reasonable grades and safe intersections in appropriate relationship to the proposed use of the land. The arrangement of streets in the subdivision shall provide for the continuation of the principal streets in the adjoining subdivisions or for their proper projection when adjoining property is not subdivided.

Width: Streets shall be of a width at least as great as that of such existing or continuing streets, except that no street or highway right-of-way shall be less than 50 feet, and may be more, whether the street be new or existing, if warranted, in the opinion of the Board. Example: a street likely to become a main highway in the near future, or in order to conform with official maps or other pertinent state or local laws as may be adopted.

Intersections: Streets should be laid out to intersect as nearly as possible at right angles and no angle of intersection of less than 60 degrees shall be permitted. Streets entering opposite sides of another street shall be laid out either directly opposite one another, or with a minimum offset of 125 feet between their center lines. Intersecting property lines at street intersections shall be joined by a curve of at least 25 feet radius.

In subdivisions where an existing or proposed road is to serve not more than eight (8) lots and where the road is to remain as a private way, the Board may waive surface treatment as specified in Section 7.2C7 and may allow a minimum roadway width of 18 feet. However, where slopes exceed 7% full compliance with road construction, requirements will be necessary for that portion of the road.

Grades: of all streets shall conform in general to the terrain and shall have a maximum grade of 10% except that the maximum grade within 50 feet of intersections and cul-de-sacs shall be 3%. Where unusual topographical conditions exist the Board may permit a short length of grade up to 12%.

Horizontal Curves: shall have a center line radius of not less than150 feet, except turnarounds on dead-end streets. For changes in grade exceeding one percent, a vertical curve shall be provided, insuring a minimum sight of one hundred and fifty feet.

Dead-End Streets: Dead-end streets shall be provided with a turnaround roadway having a minimum radius of 60’ from the center to the inside edge of the 50’ right-of-way. The final plat shall state that no structure may be built within the turnaround area unless the area is sufficient to meet the requirements of being a lot.

Street Names: Streets which join or are in alignment with streets of abutting or neighboring properties shall bear the same name. Names of new streets shall not duplicate nor bear phonetic resemblance to the names of existing streets within the town. Where practical names shall have an historical or topographic connection. All streets shall have permanent name signs installed. These signs must be compatible with existing town street signs.

Access to Water: All subdivision with frontage on bodies of water shall provide access or a permanent easement of not less than 20 feet of suitable intervals for fire fighting equipment, to said bodies of water.