§ 6.7 GENERAL LOT REQUIREMENTS.

   6.7.1   Compliance with this ordinance required. No building or portion of a building shall be erected, used, moved, or altered except in conformity with this ordinance.

   6.7.2   Pre-existing lots. Lots established prior to October 1, 2008 shall only be required to meet the minimum setback provisions for the Base Zoning District in which they are located, and shall be exempt from the other minimum lot size or lot width requirements.

   6.7.3   Reduction prohibited. Except as required through the establishment of new public rights-of-way (such as roadway widening) or approved as a variance, no yard or lot existing on October 1, 2008 shall be reduced in size or area below the minimum requirements of the Base and Overlay Zoning District where it is located.

   6.7.4   Street access. All lots shall front upon, and have access to, a public or private street built in accordance with the town’s standards.

   6.7.5   Double frontage and flag lots prohibited. Double frontage lots including those served by alleys may be allowed in the Gateway Districts or PUD as approved by the Ordinance Administrator. In all other districts, double frontage lots shall be prohibited except where required due to extreme topographic circumstances or site conditions. Flag lots shall be prohibited except where required due to extreme topographic circumstances or site conditions.

   6.7.6   Yard determination on irregular lots. The location of required front, side, and rear yards on irregularly shaped lots shall be determined by the Ordinance Administrator. Such determination shall be based on the spirit and intent of this ordinance in order to achieve an appropriate spacing and location of buildings and structures on individual lots.

   6.7.7   Allowable yard encroachments for residential use. Building features and architectural elements may encroach into required yards or setbacks only in accordance with the following standards.

   (A)   Balconies, stoops, open porches, bay windows, steps, mechanical units, raised doorways, and similar architectural features are permitted to encroach into a setback a maximum of four feet.

   (B)   First floor encroachments shall not extend into the right-of-way.

   (C)   Side yard encroachments shall not be closer than five feet to a lot line.

   6.7.8   Height limitation exceptions. The height limitations of this ordinance shall not apply to spires, belfries, cupolas, and domes not intended for residential purposes, nor to monuments, water towers, observation towers, power transmission towers, chimneys, elevator shaft enclosures, flag poles, and similar structures, provided such structures meet the required provisions of the state’s Building Code. Height limitations shall apply to wireless communication towers as regulated herein.

   6.7.9   Orientation of structures in Residential Districts. Principal structures in residential zoning districts must be situated in such a manner that their primary entrance faces the primary street frontage on which they are located.

   6.7.10   Prevailing front setbacks. In the RT and RMX Zoning Districts the prevailing front setback of neighboring developed lots shall be utilized to determine the minimum front setback of undeveloped lots which are located on a block face where at least 50% of the lots have been developed with a single-family or two-family (duplex) dwelling that was constructed prior to the effective date of this ordinance. The minimum front setback shall be defined by establishing the average, or prevailing, front setback of the closest three residential structures on either side of the undeveloped lot. In no case shall structures located more than 500 feet from the property line of an undeveloped lot be used to establish a prevailing front setback.