2025 -- S 0715
========
LC002039
========
S T A T E O F R H O D E I S L A N D
IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY
JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2025
____________
A N A C T
RELATING TO TOWNS AN D CITIES -- ZONING ORDINANCES
Introduced By: Senators Mack, Bissaillon, Kallman, Quezada, and Bell
Date Introduced: March 07, 2025
Referred To: Senate Housing & Municipal Government
It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:
SECTION 1. Section 45-24-33 of the General Laws in Chapter 45-24 entitled "Zoning 1
Ordinances" is hereby amended to read as follows: 2
45-24-33. Standard provisions. 3
(a) A zoning ordinance shall address each of the purposes stated in § 45-24-30 and shall 4
address, through reasonable objective standards and criteria, the following general provisions 5
which are numbered for reference purposes only except as prohibited by § 45-24-30(b), § 45-24-6
30(c), or § 45-24-30(d): 7
(1) Permitting, prohibiting, limiting, and restricting the development of land and structures 8
in zoning districts, and regulating those land and structures according to their type and the nature 9
and extent of their use; 10
(2) Regulating the nature and extent of the use of land for residential, commercial, 11
industrial, institutional, recreational, agricultural, open space, or other use or combination of uses, 12
as the need for land for those purposes is determined by the city or town’s comprehensive plan; 13
(3) Permitting, prohibiting, limiting, and restricting buildings, structures, land uses, and 14
other development by performance standards, or other requirements, related to air and water and 15
groundwater quality, noise and glare, energy consumption, soil erosion and sedimentation, and/or 16
the availability and capacity of existing and planned public or private services; 17
(4) Regulating within each district and designating requirements for: 18
(i) The height, number of stories, and size of buildings; 19
LC002039 - Page 2 of 6
(ii) The dimensions, size, lot coverage, layout of lots or development areas and floor area 1
ratios provided that zoning ordinances must exclude any portion of a basement as defined in § 45-2
24.3-5 from the calculation of floor area ratio; 3
(iii) The density and intensity of use; 4
(iv) Access to air and light, views, and solar access; 5
(v) Open space, yards, courts, and buffers; 6
(vi) Parking areas, road design, and, where appropriate, pedestrian, bicycle, and other 7
circulator systems; 8
(vii) Landscaping, fencing, and lighting; 9
(viii) Appropriate drainage requirements and methods to manage stormwater runoff; 10
(ix) Public access to waterbodies, rivers, and streams; and 11
(x) Other requirements in connection with any use of land or structure; 12
(5) Permitting, prohibiting, limiting, and restricting development in flood plains or flood 13
hazard areas and designated significant natural areas; 14
(6) Promoting the conservation of energy and promoting energy-efficient patterns of 15
development; 16
(7) Providing for the protection of existing and planned public drinking water supplies, 17
their tributaries and watersheds, and the protection of Narragansett Bay, its tributaries and 18
watershed; 19
(8) Providing for adequate, safe, and efficient transportation systems; and avoiding 20
congestion by relating types and levels of development to the capacity of the circulation system, 21
and maintaining a safe level of service of the system; 22
(9) Providing for the preservation and enhancement of the recreational resources of the city 23
or town; 24
(10) Promoting an economic climate that increases quality job opportunities and the overall 25
economic well-being of the city or town and the state; 26
(11) Providing for pedestrian access to and between public and private facilities, including, 27
but not limited to, schools, employment centers, shopping areas, recreation areas, and residences; 28
(12) Providing standards for, and requiring the provision of, adequate and properly 29
designed physical improvements, including plantings, and the proper maintenance of property; 30
(13) Permitting, prohibiting, limiting, and restricting land use in areas where development 31
is deemed to create a hazard to the public health or safety; 32
(14) Permitting, prohibiting, limiting, and restricting extractive industries and earth 33
removal and requiring restoration of land after these activities; 34
LC002039 - Page 3 of 6
(15) Regulating sanitary landfill, except as otherwise provided by state statute; 1
(16) Permitting, prohibiting, limiting, and restricting signs and billboards and other outdoor 2
advertising devices; 3
(17) Designating airport hazard areas under the provisions of chapter 3 of title 1, and 4
enforcement of airport hazard area zoning regulations under the provisions established in that 5
chapter; 6
(18) Designating areas of historic, cultural, and/or archaeological value and regulating 7
development in those areas under the provisions of chapter 24.1 of this title; 8
(19) Providing standards and requirements for the regulation, review, and approval of any 9
proposed development in connection with those uses of land, buildings, or structures specifically 10
designated as subject to development plan review in a zoning ordinance; 11
(20) Designating special protection areas for water supply and limiting or prohibiting 12
development in these areas, except as otherwise provided by state statute; 13
(21) Specifying requirements for safe road access to developments from existing streets, 14
including limiting the number, design, and location of curb cuts, and provisions for internal 15
circulation systems for new developments, and provisions for pedestrian and bicycle ways; 16
(22) Reducing unnecessary delay in approving or disapproving development applications 17
through provisions for preapplication conferences and other means; 18
(23) Providing for the application of the Rhode Island Fair Housing Practices Act, chapter 19
37 of title 34, the United States Fair Housing Amendments Act of 1988 (FHAA); the Rhode Island 20
Civil Rights of People with Disabilities Act, chapter 87 of title 42; and the Americans with 21
Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA), 42 U.S.C. § 12101 et seq.; and 22
(24) Regulating drive-through windows of varied intensity of use when associated with 23
land-use activities and providing standards and requirements for the regulation, review, and 24
approval of the drive-through windows, including, but not limited to: 25
(i) Identifying within which zoning districts drive-through windows may be permitted, 26
prohibited, or permitted by special-use permit; 27
(ii) Specifying requirements for adequate traffic circulation; and 28
(iii) Providing for adequate pedestrian safety and access, including issues concerning safety 29
and access for those with disabilities. 30
(b) A On or before July 31, 2026, a zoning ordinance may shall include special provisions 31
for any or all of the following: 32
(1) Authorizing development incentives, including, but not limited to, additional permitted 33
uses, increased development and density, or additional design or dimensional flexibility in 34
LC002039 - Page 4 of 6
exchange for: 1
(i) Increased open space; 2
(ii) Increased housing choices; 3
(iii) Traffic and pedestrian improvements; 4
(iv) Public and/or private facilities; and/or 5
(v) Other amenities as desired by the city or town and consistent with its comprehensive 6
plan. The provisions in the ordinance shall include maximum allowable densities of population 7
and/or intensities of use and shall indicate the type of improvements, amenities, and/or conditions. 8
Conditions may be made for donation in lieu of direct provisions for improvements or amenities; 9
(2) Establishing a system for transfer of development rights within or between zoning 10
districts designated in the zoning ordinance; and 11
(3) Regulating the development adjacent to designated scenic highways, scenic waterways, 12
major thoroughfares, public greenspaces, or other areas of special public investment or valuable 13
natural resources. 14
(c) Slope of land shall not be excluded from the calculation of the buildable lot area or the 15
minimum lot size, or in the calculation of the number of buildable lots or units. 16
(d) Nothing in this section shall be construed to restrict a municipality’s right, within state 17
and local regulations, to establish its own minimum lot size per zoning district in its town or city; 18
provided that, in order to conserve the state’s farmlands and forests, as well as to make efficient 19
use of existing public infrastructure investments, no minimum lot size requirement for a residential 20
use shall exceed the following parameters: 21
(1) Two thousand five hundred (2,500) square feet, for a lot that is served by public water 22
and sewer and any portion of the lot is located within a quarter (1/4) mile of a public transit stop or 23
station; 24
(2) Five thousand (5,000) square feet, for a lot that is served by public water and sewer; 25
and 26
(3) One acre, for any other lot; provided that, all parcels remain subject to state law and 27
regulation concerning drinking water wells, individual sewage disposal systems, and the protection 28
of freshwater wetlands. 29
(4) Each city or town shall amend its zoning ordinance and comprehensive plan to conform 30
to this subsection. 31
SECTION 2. Section 45-23-44 of the General Laws in Chapter 45-23 entitled "Subdivision 32
of Land" is hereby amended to read as follows: 33
45-23-44. General provisions — Physical design requirements. 34
LC002039 - Page 5 of 6
(a) All local regulations shall specify, through reasonable, objective standards and criteria, 1
all physical design requirements for subdivisions and land-development projects that are to be 2
reviewed and approved pursuant to the regulations. Regulations shall specify all requirements and 3
policies for subdivisions and land-development projects that are not contained in the municipality’s 4
zoning ordinance. 5
(b) Nothing in this section shall be construed to restrict a municipality’s right, within state 6
and local regulations, to establish its own minimum lot size per zoning district in its town or city, 7
subject to the limitation set forth in § 45-24-33(d). 8
(c) The slope of land shall not be excluded from the calculation of the buildable lot area or 9
the minimum lot size, or in the calculation of the number of buildable lots or units. 10
(d) Wetland buffers, as defined in § 2-1-20, shall be included in the calculation of a 11
minimum lot area and in the total number of square feet or acres of a tract or parcel of land before 12
calculating the maximum potential number of units or lots for development; provided, however, 13
that this shall not apply to lots directly abutting surface reservoirs with direct withdrawals used for 14
public drinking water. Nothing herein changes the definition and applicability of a “buildable lot” 15
as set forth under § 45-23-60(a)(4); and nothing herein permits the disturbance of wetlands or 16
wetland buffers or otherwise alters the provisions of the freshwater wetlands act, § 2-1-18 et seq. 17
(e) The requirements and policies may include, but are not limited to: requirements and 18
policies for rights-of-way, open space, landscaping, connections of proposed streets and drainage 19
systems with those of the surrounding neighborhood; public access through property to adjacent 20
public property; and the relationship of proposed developments to natural and man-made features 21
of the surrounding neighborhood. 22
(f) The regulations shall specify all necessary findings, formulas for calculations, and 23
procedures for meeting the requirements and policies. These requirements and policies apply to all 24
subdivisions and land development projects reviewed and/or administered under the local 25
regulations. 26
SECTION 3. This act shall take effect upon passage. 27
========
LC002039
========
LC002039 - Page 6 of 6
EXPLANATION
BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL
OF
A N A C T
RELATING TO TOWNS AN D CITIES -- ZONING ORDINANCES
***
This act would limit municipal minimum lot sizes for residential use to 2,500 sq ft near 1
transit, 5,000 sq. ft with water/sewer, and 1 acre otherwise, while protecting farmlands, forests, and 2
wetlands, and requiring zoning updates to comply. 3
This act would take effect upon passage. 4
========
LC002039
========