650-RICR-20-00-1. Red Book (version Amendment, 08/09/2009 to 09/05/2013)

Rhode Island Coastal Resources Management Program Adopted: July 13, 2009 Effective Date: Page 1 of 4 Section 300.3 Section 300.3 Residential, Commercial, Industrial, and Recreational Structures A. Definitions 1. Residential buildings include houses, and other structures as defined as a building inSection R-115 of the Council of American Building Officials (CABO) Building Code, and the pertinent sections thereto which are used primarily for human habitation which are built on a shoreline feature or its contiguous area. 2. Commercial and industrial structures and operations on a shoreline feature, its contiguous area, or within tidal waters include all buildings and alterations to such features related to the manufacturing and interchange of goods or commodities, or any other business activity. 3. Recreational structures include swim floats, beach pavilions that are constructed for recreational purposes on a shoreline feature, its contiguous area, or in tidal waters. 4. Associated residential structures including but not limited to decks, porches, walls, boardwalks, swimming pools, roads, driveways, and shall include other structures integral to or ancillary to a residential building including minor grading, filling or excavation typically 10 cubic yards or less. 5. Structural Lot Coverage is that part of a lot or parcel that is covered by roofed structures of at least 200 square feet in size. Structural Lot Coverage is calculated in square feet and is either equal to the total square footage occupied by one or more foundations, or, in the case of cantilevered structures, the total square footage occupied by the structure and calculated as if a foundation supportedthecantileveredportions of the structure. Structural foundations shall be broadly interpreted to include sona-tubes, pilings, concrete blocks, columns, or other types of foundation material which providestructural support to a structure which is covered by a roof. 6. Structural Perimeter Limit (SPL): a defined perimeter basedonin-water commercialand/or industrial structures and operations which defines and limits the area for said structures and operations to be located. B. Policies 1. It shall be the policy of the Council to undertake all appropriate actions to prevent, minimize or mitigate the risks of storm damage to property and coastal resources, endangerment of lives and the public burden ofpost-storm disaster assistance consistent with policies of the State of Rhode Island as containedin the Hazard Mitigation Plan element of the State Guide Plan when considering applications for the construction of residential, commercial, industrial and recreational structures, including utilities suchas gas, water and sewer lines, in high hazard areas. 2. It is the Council’s policy to require a public access plan, in accordance with Section 335, as part of any application for a commercial or industrialdevelopment or redevelopment project in or impactingcoastal resources. In accordance with Section 120, a variance from this policy may be granted if an applicant can demonstrate that no significant public access impacts will occur as result of the proposed project. 3. All commercial and industrial structures and operations located within tidal waters shall obtain a structural perimeter limit (SPL). Owners/operators of these facilities may apply to the Council for definition and establishment of this structural perimeter at any time. However, the Council shall establish a structural perimeter limit (SPL) when an application subject to this section is under review. Rhode Island Coastal Resources Management Program Adopted: July 13, 2009 Effective Date: Page 2 of 4 Section 300.3 C. Prerequisites 1. Applicants proposing new construction and/or alterations to existing structures shall obtain a letter from the local authorities certifying that proposed activities conform to the local zoning ordinance, or that if relief from an ordinance is required that it has been obtained and that the decisionauthorizingtheappropriate relief is final. This letter must be submitted to the CRMC with the application. 2. Applicants proposing new construction and/or alterations to existing structures shall demonstrate that all applicable requirements of the RISBC including those pertaining to construction withinfloodhazard zones will be met. This demonstration shall be made by submitting to the CRMC at the time of application a building official's form properly completed and signed by the local building official. 3. Applicants proposing to build, repair or alter an individual sewage disposal system (ISDS) shall obtain a permit from the Department of Environmental Management andshallsubmit totheCRMC copies of the approved application and the approved plans. The plan submitted must bear a DEM/ISDS approval stamp. 4. Persons proposing activities that may impact the function of an existingISDS andwhichbytherules and regulations of the Department of Environmental Management requires the issuance of a permit, shall obtain the necessary permits and submit copies of these permits to the CRMC at the time of application. 5. Applicants for industrial, commercial and recreational structures shall demonstrate that all state safety codes, fire codes, and environmental requirements have or will be met. 6. Applicants shall demonstrate that connections to public water supplies and sewer systems shall be authorized by the appropriate authorities when: a) such connections are proposed by the applicant; b) where on-site water withdrawal and/or sewage disposal willhavea significant adverseenvironmental or public health impact. 7. Applicants for commercial, industrial, and recreational structures shall demonstrate that adequate transportation and utility services to support the proposed operations and related activities are available. D. Prohibitions 1. Industrial operations and structures are prohibited in Type 1 and 2 waters or on shoreline features abutting these waters. 2. The mining and extraction of minerals, including sand and gravel, from tidalwaters andsalt ponds is prohibited. This prohibition does not apply to dredging for navigation purposes, channel maintenance, habitat restoration, or beach replenishment. 3. Solid waste disposal and minerals extraction is prohibited on shoreline features andtheir contiguous areas. 4. The use of fill for structural support of buildings in flood hazard V zones is prohibited. 5. (a) New decks and structures, and expanded structures associated withresidentialproperties,or non- Rhode Island Coastal Resources Management Program Adopted: July 13, 2009 Effective Date: Page 3 of 4 Section 300.3 water dependent commercial uses, are prohibited in or over tidal waters. (b) Decks associated with commercial properties are prohibited in or over type 1 waters. Decks associated with commercial properties are prohibited in or over Type 2 waters unless such use is reserved in connection with a water dependent use. Decks associatedwithcommercialproperties are prohibited in or over Type 3, 4, 5, and 6 waters unless (i) the deck is to accommodate a designated priority use for that water area; (ii) the applicant has examined all reasonable alternatives and the council has determined that the selected alternative is the most reasonable; and (iii) the deck is the minimum necessary to support the priority use. 6. See Section 110 (specifically Table 1A) for a listing of additional prohibitions. E. Standards 1. General: (a) See standards given in "Filling, Removing, or Grading of Shoreline Features" (Section 300.2), as applicable. (b) See standards given in "Sewage Treatment and Disposal" (Section 300.6), as applicable. (c) Commercial and Industrial docks, wharves and piers shall be designed and certified by a registered professional engineer. (d) All commercial and industrial structures and operations in tidal waters shall have a defined structural perimeter for in-water facilities, which shall describe and limit that area in which repair or alteration activities may take place. Structural perimeters shall be defined on the basis of in- water facilities in place as of September 30, 1971, or subsequently assented structures. All new or modified structural perimeter limit lines shall be a maximum of ten (10) feet outside of the structures. The structural perimeter limit (SPL) shall be designated on all plans with the corners designated by their State Plane Coordinates. However, in all cases the SPL shall be setback at least fifty (50) feet from approved mooring fields. In addition the SPL shall be setback at least three times the authorized project depth from federal navigation projects (e.g. navigation channels and anchorage areas). (e) It is permissible to have vessels berthed at a facility outside of the structural perimeter limit if, in the opinion of the Executive Director, there are no conflicts with other users, impacts to resources, or conflicts with the DEM Shellfish Program. All vessels shall be berthed parallel to piers and docks if outside of the structural perimeter limit. 2. Residential, commercial, industrial, and recreational buildings: (a) Excavation and grading shall be restricted to those activities and areas necessary for the construction of the building and/or appurtenant structures (see Section 300.2). (b) Applicants shall be required to reduce the inflow of pollutants carried by surface runoff in accordance with the policies and standards contained in Section 300.6 and as detailed in the most recent version of the Rhode Island Stormwater Design and Installation Standards Manual. Rhode Island Coastal Resources Management Program Adopted: July 13, 2009 Effective Date: Page 4 of 4 Section 300.3 F. Flood Zone Construction In many instances lands under the jurisdiction of the CRMC are by virtue of their topographic position subject to flooding. The Federal Emergency Management Agency has evaluated the risk of flooding andhas established 100 year return frequency elevations of the flood waters (i.e.,theBaseFloodElevation,(BFE) for all of the State’s coastal communities. The approximate limits of the flood zones and the associated Base Flood Elevations are shown on the FEMA Flood Insurance Rate Maps, whicharecommonlyavailableat each communities building official's office. In recognition that structures located within Flood Hazard Zones must be designed to meet more severe conditions than those not, the Rhode Island State Building Code, (RISBC) contains specificrequirements for flood zone construction (Reference RISBC-8). The CRMC requires all applicants proposing construction within flood hazardzones todemonstratethat all applicable portions of the RISBC and more specifically RISBC-8 are to be met. This demonstration shall be made by submitting to the CRMC at the time of application a building official’s form properly completed and signed by the local building official. G. Guidelines for Construction in Flood Hazard Zones In addition to the requirements of the RISBC, the CRMC suggests that applicants incorporate the following items into their proposed designs: 1. For construction in wave velocity (V) zones as defined by Federal Flood Insurance Rate Maps: (a) If timber pilings are used, they should meet the American Society for TestingandMaterials (ASTM) standards for Class B piles and shall have a minimum tip diameter of 8 inches. Wooden pilings should be treated with a wood preservative. Bracing between piles is recommended. (b) Pilings in ocean fronting areas should penetrate no less than 10 feet below mean sea level. (c) Floor joists should be secured with hurricane clips where each joist encounters a floor beam. These metal fasteners or straps should be nailed on the joist as well as on the beam. (d) To secure the exterior wall to the floor joists, galvanized metal strap connections should be used connecting the exterior wall studs to the joists. (e) Roof trusses or rafters should be connected to the exterior wall with galvanized metal straps. 2. For construction in coastal stillwater (A) Flood Zones. (a) Items a, b, c, d, e as listed for V zone construction should, if applicable, be employed. (b) Parallel concrete walls or pilings rather than fill should be used to elevate habitable residential structures when six (6) feet or more clearance exists between the existing grade and the flood plain elevation. In areas subject to minimal wave action in a 100-year storm event,discontinuous reinforced-concrete foundation walls which allow sufficient free flow of flood waters may be substitutedfor parallelconcrete walls or pilings.