Lx>cal Initiatives 



c) review of conditions and requirements stipulated in completed permit recorded in the 

 land evidence office 



d) communication with the planning and zoning board to determine whether 

 subdivision and/or zoning approval has been granted and the conditions attached. 



e) inspection of stormwater and erosion and sedimentation control facilities and other 

 resource protection controls before groundbreaking begins 



f) coordination with applicable authorities to schedule timely inspection of ISDS and 



stormwater and erosion and sedimentation control facilities at key points during 

 construction and following completion of construction (see related chapters on these 

 issues). Referral of any violations to appropriate town and state enforcement 

 autiiorities. 



g) construction-related site inspection (preliminary; footing; backfill; framing; and 

 final) 



h) inspection to ensure compliance with any corrective measures required during 

 construction, and with applicable permit conditions 



i) issuance of occupancy permit 



♦♦♦Ensure that the staff resources dedicated to inspection and enforcement 



(including staff of the building inspector, or the combined staff of the building inspector 

 and the environmental officer) grow proportionally with the development activity 

 in the town. This is particularly true at the present time in Rhode Island, as development 

 pressure is increasingly forcing activity into marginal lands. The pressure on marginal land 

 is expected to increase dramatically within the next ten years. Dedicated permit fees, land 

 transfer assessments, fines collected as a result of enforcement actions, etc. could be used 

 to fund additional staff positions. 



SPECinC FINDINGS AND CONCERNS REGARDING EXERCISE OF LOCAL 



INITIATIVE 



(See also related chapters on source controls, particularly ISDS, and Appendix 3.1.) 



ZONING 



Findings and Concerns 



Under tiie Rhode Island State Zoning Enabling Act (RIGL 45-24) towns have authority 

 to establish land use provisions and to set use restrictions by district In addition to the 

 three general zoning types in place in most towns (including residential, commercial, and 

 industrial), certain Bay basin towns have enacted protective by-laws specifying conditions 

 for residential development and setting a permit and appeals process for other forms of 

 development. Lot size, shape and dimensions, allowable density of structures, frontage 

 requirements, parking and height stipulations and allowable use are all established via 

 zoning regulations. Municipal zoning and permit conditioning can prove extremely 

 important in control of non-point pollution. 



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