Code of Massachusetts Regulations
974 CMR - DEVENS ENTERPRISE COMMISSION
Title 974 CMR 5.00 - Residential
Section 5.03 - General Housing

Universal Citation: 974 MA Code of Regs 974.5

Current through Register 1531, September 27, 2024

(1) Exterior Storage.

(a) Junk, which is any worn out, castoff, or discarded articles or material that is ready for destruction or has been collected or stored for salvage or conversion to some use shall not be stored on residential lots.

(b) No junk shall be stored in any front yard, whether screened or not.

(2) Vehicles.

(a) No person shall park, store, leave or permit the parking, storing, or leaving of any motor vehicle of any kind which is in an abandoned, wrecked, dismantled, inoperative, rusted, junked or partially dismantled condition in open view upon any private property.

(b) Recreational vehicles, camping trailers, and other large noncommercial vehicles shall be parked within a structure or in a lot's rear yard screened from any public way.

(c) Unregistered Vehicles. A vehicle that does not bear a current license plate is deemed to be unregistered. Only one unregistered vehicle may be maintained on any residential lot and may be stored only in the rear yard screened from the public way or within a completely enclosed building.

(d) Vehicle Maintenance. No disassembled vehicle shall be maintained outside a structure on any residential lot.

(3) Yard Sales. A yard sale is "the sale or offering for sale to the general public of over five items of personal property on any portion of a lot in a residential zoning district, whether within or outside any building." No more than one yard sale per month per household may be conducted. No off-premise signs may be erected for any yard sale.

(4) Kennels are defined in M.G.L. c. 140 § 136A as "one pack or collection of dogs on a single premises, whether maintained for breeding, boarding, sale, training, hunting or other purposes and including any shop where dogs are on sale, and also including every pack or collection of more than three dogs three months old or over owned or kept by a person on a single premises irrespective of the purpose for which they are maintained". Kennels shall not be established or maintained in any residential zoning district within Devens, however a "Shelter'', a public animal control facility, or any other facility which is operated by MassDevelopment for the purpose of protecting animals from cruelty, neglect, or abuse is exempt from 974 CMR 5.00.

(5) Horses and 'live stock or fowls' (animals or fowls kept or propagated by the owner for food or as a means of livelihood; also deer, elk, cottontail rabbits and northern hares, pheasants, quail, partridge and other birds and quadrupeds determined by the department of fisheries, wildlife and environmental law enforcement to be wild and kept by, or under a permit from, said department in proper houses or suitable enclosed yards) may not be maintained on any residential lot less than two acres in size.

(6) Hot Tubs/Swimming Pools. Private outdoor hot tubs and swimming pools are regulated by International Code Council's International Residential Code (2009) Chapter 42 and Appendix G: Swimming Pools, Spas and Hot Tubs and require a barrier or a fence, wall, a building wall or combination thereof which completely surrounds the swimming pool and/or hot tub and obstructs access to the pool and/or hot tub. If a portion of the barrier is visible from a public way, it shall be visually impermeable. Outdoor pools exceeding 18 inches in depth shall be protected by an enclosure to comply with the following:

(a) at least four feet in height from grade to top of fencing;

(b) vertical openings not to exceed four inches;

(c) chain link openings not to exceed two inches;

(d) railings and posts to be on the interior of fencing and must be capable of withstanding a 150 pound load.

Disclaimer: These regulations may not be the most recent version. Massachusetts may have more current or accurate information. We make no warranties or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the information contained on this site or the information linked to on the state site. Please check official sources.
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