The following regulations governing the subdivision of land are hereby adopted by the Cumberland Planning Board in accordance with title 45, chapter 23 of the General Laws of Rhode Island, entitled The Land Development and Subdivision Review Enabling Act of 1992 and in accordance with Article 16 of the Home Rule Charter of The Town of Cumberland, Rhode Island and declared effective as of October 17, 1995. All regulations and amendments or parts of regulations and amendments which are inconsistent herewith are hereby repealed and withdrawn.
Findings:
The Cumberland Planning Board finds that:
(1) The previous subdivision regulations enacted in accordance with sections 45-23-1 through 45-23-24 of the General Laws of the State of Rhode Island & Providence Plantations, have been enacted in a series of separate actions over many years and do not provide for all the elements present necessary for proper municipal review and approval of land development and subdivision projects;
(2) The character of land development and subdivision, and the related public and private services, have changed substantially in recent years;
(3) The responsibilities of local governments in regulating land development and subdivisions have changed, increased in complexity, and expanded to include additional areas of concern;
(4) State and federal laws increasingly require the interaction of local land development regulatory authorities with those of the federal and state agencies and adjacent municipalities;
(5) Not all instances of land development or subdivision are sufficiently reviewed prior to recording or construction, resulting in unwarranted environmental impacts, financial impacts on private individuals and communities, and inappropriate design.
(6) At present the individual cities and towns throughout the state each establish their own procedures for review, approval, recording, and enforcement of land development and subdivision projects.
(7) It is necessary to provide for review and approval of land development projects within the subdivision review and approval procedures, as specified in the Zoning Enabling Act of 1991 (45-24-27 et seq.); and
(8) It is necessary to require that the regulations and standards for all land development projects and subdivisions be sufficiently definite to provide clear directions for the development design and construction and to satisfy the requirements for due process for all applicants for development approval.
Therefore, it is the intent of the Town of Cumberland, acting by and through the Cumberland Planning Board:
(1) That the land development and subdivision enabling authority in RIGL 45-23-30 provide the community with the ability to adequately address the present and future needs of the community;
(2) That the land development and subdivision enabling authority contained in RIGL 45-23 requires the creation of land development and subdivision regulations in accordance with the Cumberland Comprehensive Community Plan 1991-2010 and the (Cumberland Zoning Ordinance and to ensure the consistency of all development regulations of the town;
(3) That certain local procedures for review and approval of land development and subdivisions shall be consistency with other communities bordering the town;
(4) That the local procedures for integrating the approvals of state regulatory agencies into the local review and approval process for land development and subdivisions shall be consistent and uniformly enforced.
(5) That all proposed land developments and subdivisions will be reviewed following a standards process prior to recording in the land evidence records as required by law.
General Purpose of Land Development and Subdivision Review Rules and Regulations.
These land development and subdivision review reputations have been developed and will be maintained in accordance with Rhode Island General Laws 45-23 Community Plan 1991-2010 (which and the Cumberland Comprehensive complies with Rhode Island General Laws Chapter 45.22.2) and the Cumberland Zoning Ordinance (which complies with Rhode Island General Laws 45-24-27 et seq.)
These regulations are intended to address the following purposes:
(1) Provide for the orderly, thorough and expeditious review and approval of land development and subdivisions;
(2) Promote high quality and appropriate design and construction of land development and subdivisions;
(3) Promote the protection of the existing natural and built environment and the mitigation of all significant negative impacts of any proposed development on the existing environment;
(4) Promote design of land development and subdivisions which are well integrated with the surrounding neighborhoods with regard to natural and built features, and which concentrate development in areas which can best support intensive use by reason of natural characteristics and existing infrastructure;
(5) Encourage local design and improvement standards to reflect the intent of the Cumberland Comprehensive Community Plan 1991-2010 with regard to the physical character of the various neighborhoods and districts of the town;
(6) Promote thorough technical review of all proposed land development and subdivisions by appropriate local officials;
(7) Encourage local requirements for dedication of public land, impact mitigation and payment-in-lieu thereof, to be based on clear documentation of needs and to be fairly applied and administered; and
(8) Encourage the establishment and consistent application of procedures for record-keeping on all matters of land development and subdivision review, approval and construction.
