Housing Overlay District LEGAL NOTICE Notice of Public Hearing Zoning Bylaw and Map Amendments Downtown Housing Overlay District Town of Orleans Planning Board – Hybrid Meeting September 30, 2025 at 4:00pm Nauset Room at Orleans Town Hall, 19 School Road, Orleans, MA Or join the webinar at: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85806277173 or Telephone: +1 646 558 8656 Webinar ID: 858 0627 7173 The Planning Board of the Town of Orleans will hold a public hearing on the following:   AMENDING THE ZONING MAP AND THE ZONING BYLAW OF THE TOWN OF ORLEANS, GENERAL LEGISLATION, CHAPTER 164 ZONING TO ESTABLISH A NEW ZONING OVERLAY DISTRICT, THE DOWNTOWN HOUSING OVERLAY DISTRICT, TO PROMOTE AFFORDABLE AND ATTAINABLE HOUSING PRODUCTION AND MIXED-USE DEVELOPMENT IN THE DOWNTOWN ORLEANS AREA.   This bylaw amendment would establish the Downtown Housing Overlay District (DHOD) as a new Section 164-19.3 of the Town of Orleans Zoning Bylaws. The Town of Orleans Zoning Map is amended by adding the Downtown Housing Overlay District the sewered commercial area of Orleans between Exit 89 and the Orleans/Eastham Rotary along Route 6A (Cranberry Highway) and Route 28, superimposed at eligible locations in the Limited Business LB, General Business GB, and Village Center VC Districts.   The Downtown Housing Overlay District includes two subdistricts: the Village-Scale Corridor Subdistrict and the Commercial Center Subdistrict. The purposes of this overlay district include: encouraging the production of affordable and attainable housing options for year-round residents; encouraging mixed-use and multi-family investment will reinforce the village’s character and pedestrian orientation; strengthening the foundation of Downtown Orleans as a livable, walkable neighborhood and to mitigate traffic congestion by promoting housing proximate to compatible commercial uses, bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure, and public transportation; and supporting existing and future Orleans businesses by increasing the year-round customer base.   The Village-Scale Corridor Subdistrict allows mixed-use and multi-family development as of right subject to Site Plan Review and Architectural Review, and subject to new standards for maximum building footprint which limits a primary building to 4,000 square feet and secondary buildings to 2,000 square feet; as well as new standards for building height, ground story height, roof form, façade articulation, ground story fenestration, yard dimensions, façade buildout, minimum separation between buildings, minimum open space, and parking setbacks. The subdistrict includes an Active Ground Floor Use requirement which requires at least 60% or 35 feet of façade (whichever is greater) to be occupied by an active use to a depth of 20 feet for designated areas. To further Town goals and meet the need for affordable housing, any multi-family housing development with 10 or more units shall include one Affordable Housing Unit (permanently affordable for households earning 80% of the Area Median Income for Barnstable County) for each 10 units of housing.   The Commercial Center Subdistrict allows mixed-use and multi-family development as of right subject to Site Plan Review and Architectural Review, and subject to new standards for maximum building footprint (8,000 square feet); as well as new standards for building height, roof form, façade articulation, yard dimensions, façade buildout, minimum separation between buildings, minimum open space, and parking setbacks.   The Commercial Center Subdistrict includes an inclusionary affordable and attainable year-round housing requirement for projects of 10 units or more of at least 10% of units permanently deed-restricted affordable to households earning up to 80% of the Area Median Income for Barnstable County and 15% of units deed restricted attainable to households earning up to 200% of the Area Median Income for Barnstable County. A tiered density bonus for affordable and attainable housing development is provided as follows:   Tier 1: 10% at 80% AMI and 40% up to 200% AMI allows a maximum building footprint of 10,000 square feet and maximum building height in stories of 3.5.   Tier 2: 10% at 80% AMI and 65% up to 200% AMI allows a maximum building footprint of 12,000 square feet and maximum building height in stories of 3.5.   Tier 3: 10% at 80% AMI and 90% up to 200% AMI allows a maximum building footprint of 15,000 square feet and maximum building height in stories of 3.5.   The DHOD establishes new Lot Standards to regulate building placement, number of buildings, building separation, and open space. New Building Standards are established to regulate building height, story height, number of stories, pitched roof half-story, dormers, building components, façade articulation, fenestration, building entry, frontage types, roof features, and mechanical equipment. New Site Standards are established to regulate parking (one space per 500 square feet for non-residential uses), parking placement, parking access, curb cuts and driveways, surface parking lot design, bicycle parking, loading, service areas, and landscape and stormwater management. A new definition of building height applicable to this overlay district is established.   Section 164-5. Districts Enumerated is amended by adding ‘Downtown Housing Overlay District: Village-Scale Corridor Subzone, Commercial Center Subzone’ under the heading Overlay Districts.   Section 164-4 Definitions is amended by adding new definitions for Active Ground Floor Use, Attainable Housing Unit, Beneficial Open Space, Mixed-Use Development, Multi-Family Housing, Qualified Attainable Housing Unit Purchaser or Tenant, and Screening.   References to bylaw sections noted herein shall be amended in accordance with technical updates Chapter 164 if approved.   The Planning Board will review this amendment and the requisite voting threshold in accordance with MGL Chapter 40A Section 5 as a bylaw that allows or facilitates the development new housing.   The Town of Orleans Zoning Map entitled “Zoning Map of Orleans, Massachusetts” is amended as shown on the map entitled “Downtown Housing Overlay District” to include the areas identified and as shown on the map and labeled “Downtown Housing Overlay District”, “Village-Scale Corridor Subdistrict” and “Commercial Center Subdistrict”, prepared by the Town of Orleans Planning Department dated September 11, 2025 and on file with the Town Clerk and accessible as noted below.   For the full text of the proposed zoning overlay districts and the zoning map, please visit https://www.town.orleans.ma.us/297/Planning-and-Community-Development, or a copy of the proposed bylaw amendments and zoning map are available in the Town Clerk’s Office or Planning Department at Orleans Town Hall, 19 School Road, Orleans MA during regular business hours (8:30am to 4:30pm Monday - Friday). AD#11649541 Cape Codder 09/12,09/19/2025