§ 45-24-37. General provisions — Permitted uses. [Effective until January 1, 2026.]
(a) The zoning ordinance shall provide a listing of all land uses and/or performance standards
for uses that are permitted within the zoning use districts of the municipality. The
ordinance may provide for a procedure under which a proposed land use that is not
specifically listed may be presented by the property owner to the zoning board of
review or to a local official or agency charged with administration and enforcement
of the ordinance for an evaluation and determination of whether the proposed use is
of a similar type, character, and intensity as a listed permitted use. Upon such determination,
the proposed use may be considered to be a permitted use.
(b) Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, the following uses are permitted
uses within all residential zoning use districts of a municipality and all industrial
and commercial zoning use districts except where residential use is prohibited for
public health or safety reasons:
(1) Households;
(2) Community residences;
(3) Family daycare homes; and
(4) Remote work, defined as a work flexibility arrangement under which a W-2 employee
or full-time contractor routinely performs the duties and responsibilities of such
employee's position from an approved worksite other than the location from which the
employee would otherwise work.
(i) Remote work shall not include any activities that:
(A) Relate to the sale of unlawful goods and services;
(B) Generate on-street parking or a substantial increase in traffic through the residential
area;
(C) Occur outside of the residential dwelling;
(D) Occur in the yard; or
(E) Are visible from the street.
(c) Any time a building or other structure used for residential purposes, or a portion
of a building containing residential units, is rendered uninhabitable by virtue of
a casualty such as fire or flood, the owner of the property is allowed to park, temporarily,
mobile and manufactured home, or homes, as the need may be, elsewhere upon the land,
for use and occupancy of the former occupants for a period of up to twelve (12) months,
or until the building or structure is rehabilitated and otherwise made fit for occupancy.
The property owner, or a properly designated agent of the owner, is only allowed to
cause the mobile and manufactured home, or homes, to remain temporarily upon the land
by making timely application to the local building official for the purposes of obtaining
the necessary permits to repair or rebuild the structure.
(d) Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, appropriate access for people
with disabilities to residential structures is allowed as a reasonable accommodation
for any person(s) residing, or intending to reside, in the residential structure.
(e) Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, an accessory dwelling unit ("ADU�)
that meets the requirements of §§ 45-24-31 and 45-24-73(a) shall be a permitted use in all residential zoning districts. An ADU that meets the
requirements of §§ 45-24-31 and 45-24-73(a) shall be permitted through an administrative building permit process only.
(f) When used in this section the terms "people with disabilities� or "member, or members,
with disabilities� means a person(s) who has a physical or mental impairment that
substantially limits one or more major life activities, as defined in 42-87-1(5).
(g) Notwithstanding any other provisions of this chapter, plant agriculture is a permitted
use within all zoning districts of a municipality, including all industrial and commercial
zoning districts, except where prohibited for public health or safety reasons or the
protection of wildlife habitat.
(h) Adaptive reuse. Notwithstanding any other provisions of this chapter, adaptive reuse for the conversion
of any commercial building, including offices, schools, religious facilities, medical
buildings, mills, and malls into residential units or mixed-use developments which
include the development of at least fifty percent (50%) of the existing gross floor
area into residential units, shall be a permitted use and allowed by specific and
objective provisions of a zoning ordinance.
(1) Prohibitions. Adaptive reuse under this section shall not be allowed where:
(i) Residential use is prohibited by environmental land use restrictions recorded on the
property by the state of Rhode Island department of environmental management or the
United States Environmental Protection Agency;
(ii) In any industrial or manufacturing zoning use district, or a portion thereof, where
residential use is prohibited for public health and safety reasons which are based
on specific and detailed findings;
(iii) In any building previously used for industrial or manufacturing use(s), which has
not been vacant of an industrial use for less than one year prior to the submission
of the permit or application for adaptive reuse.
(2) Density.
Provided that all minimum building, rehabilitation, and fire code requirements are
met for all residential units, as applicable; and provided that, for projects with
more than four (4) residential units, not less than ten percent (10%) of low- or moderate-income
housing is provided, the local zoning ordinance shall not specify any maximum density
of residential units. If less than ten percent (10%) of low- or moderate-income housing
is provided, then the allowable maximum density shall be determined by the municipality.
(3) Dimensional requirements.
(i) Building envelope. Unless a local zoning ordinance allows otherwise, the development shall be limited
to the existing building envelope, except that the envelope is allowed to be expanded
to accommodate upgrades of non-occupiable space related to the building and fire codes
and utilities such as HVAC equipment, stairs, and elevators.
(ii) Parking. A local zoning ordinance shall not require a development under this section to provide
more than one off-street parking space for the first two (2) bedrooms of any dwelling
unit and shall not require more than one off-street parking space for any additional
bedroom beyond the second bedroom in any dwelling unit.
(iii) Existing setbacks. Notwithstanding any other provisions of this chapter, for adaptive reuse projects,
existing building setbacks shall remain and shall be considered legal nonconforming,
but no additional encroachments shall be permitted into any nonconforming setback,
unless otherwise allowed by local zoning ordinance or relief is granted by the applicable
authority.
(iv) Height. For adaptive reuse projects, notwithstanding any other provisions of this chapter,
the height of the existing structure, if it exceeds the maximum height of the zoning
district, may remain and shall be considered legal nonconforming, and any non-occupiable
rooftop construction such as HVAC equipment and stairs or elevator towers, but excluding
rooftop decks, shall be included within the height exemption.
(4) Water and sewer. The development shall have access to public water and sewer services or shall have
access to adequate private water, such as a well(s) and and/or on-site wastewater
treatment system(s) approved by the relevant state agency.
(i) Notwithstanding any other provisions of this chapter, all towns and cities shall allow
manufactured homes, as defined in § 45-24-31, that comply with § 23-27.3-109.1.3 as a type of single-family home on any lot zoned for single-family use. Such home
shall comply with all dimensional requirements of a single-family home in the district
or seek relief for the same under the provisions of this chapter.