Current through September 18, 2024
A. The Council herein establishes an Urban
Coastal Greenway (or "UCG") policy specifically for projects to be located
exclusively within the Metro Bay SAMP boundary, and within the RICRMC
jurisdiction of 200 feet inland from the coastal feature.
B. The establishment of an Urban Coastal
Greenway is based upon the RICRMC's legislative mandate to preserve, protect,
develop, and where possible, restore Rhode Island's coastal
resources.
C. The Urban Coastal
Greenway policy allows flexibility for urban sites that is different from the
requirements of the RICRMP by four main tenets:
1. The Urban Coastal Greenway policy allows
the implementation of a sustainable landscape using plantings that are designed
and managed for an urban environment.
2. The UCG policy strongly encourages a
public access component that integrates the need for urban shoreline access
with the spatial constraints of urban lots.
3. The UCG policy allows for compact
greenways provided the applicant meets the compensation requirements in §
5.13 of this Part.
Compensation options will be available at such time as the Rhode Island General
Assembly establishes a compensation statute; reductions in regulatory
requirements provided by the compensation provision are not available until the
trust is set up.
4. The UCG policy
encourages low impact development (LID) stormwater management techniques that
improve water quality and enhance the developer's ability to maximally utilize
an urban lot.
D. It is
the intent of this policy to establish a program that protects these
ecological, economic, recreational, historic, cultural, and aesthetic values to
the greatest extent practicable. The "Urban Coastal Greenway" program consists
of a management area designed to accommodate development on the urban
coastlines of the Metro Bay Region (see Figure 2 of §
5.4(K) of
this Part), while still meeting the mandates of the Coastal Zone Management
Act. The purposes of the Urban Coastal Greenway Policy are:
1. to preserve, protect, restore, and enhance
the overall quality of Narragansett Bay's urban coastal waters;
2. to capture nutrients, sediment and other
waterborne pollutants from surface runoff;
3. to minimize flood impacts and shoreline
erosion;
4. to protect, preserve,
enhance, and restore coastal fish and wildlife habitat;
5. to preserve and enhance the experiences
available along the urban coast;
6.
to achieve responsible shoreline development that will allow a mixture of land
uses (residential, recreational, commercial, and industrial) that orient to
northern Narragansett Bay, including the Seekonk and Providence
Rivers;
7. to preserve, enhance, or
create an aesthetically pleasing view from the water, as well as from opposing
shorelines;
8. to maintain the
accessibility and natural habitat of the Metro Bay regional shoreline, as well
as access to established pedestrian and bicycle trails; and
9. to provide safe public access to and along
the shoreline.
E. While
each of the purposes mentioned above will be considered in the establishment of
Urban Coastal Greenways, the preeminent goals of this UCG policy are to prevent
further degradation of coastal waters by treating stormwater (through
vegetative means where possible), to protect and/or restore coastal habitats,
and to ensure public access to the urban shoreline while preserving an
aesthetically appealing view from both the water and the shore. In addition,
the UCG policy offers a mechanism to encourage thoughtful economic development
of the Metro Bay Region shoreline in a way that contributes to the CRMC's goals
of enhancing the natural, recreational, and industrial history of the
region.
F. The goals of the Urban
Coastal Greenway Policy will be met through the application of the regulations
herein. Please refer to §5.5.1 of this Part for the available coastal
buffer options. §§
5.6 through
5.9 of this Part define the
requirements of the Urban Coastal Greenway policy for each particular zone.
§
5.12 of
this Part describes the policies and standards for Urban Coastal Greenways on
RIDEM-designated brownfield sites, while §
5.13 of this Part describes
the compensation options available in exchange for a reduction in UCG width.
Compensation options will be available at such time as the Rhode Island General
Assembly establishes a compensation statute; reductions in regulatory
requirements provided by the compensation provision are not available until the
trust is set up. These regulations, when applicable and as determined by
RICRMC, will supersede applicable sections of Table 2 of §
1.4 of this Subchapter and
§§1.1.5, 1.1.8, 1.1.10, 1.3.1(B), 1.3.1(G), 1.3.3, and 1.3.4 of this
Subchapter. All other RICRMP requirements shall remain in full force and
effect.
G. High priority
conservation and restoration areas (formerly §130.2)
1. High Priority Conservation Areas (HPCAs)
and High Priority Restoration Areas (HPRAs) have been designated within the
Metro Bay SAMP boundary as described in §5.20 of this Part, and
graphically depicted in §5.21 of this Part. HPCAs are those sites with
habitat quality rankings of C4 (highest quality habitat) to C1. Likewise, HPRAs
are sites suitable for restoration, with habitat quality rankings of R3
(highest priority restoration) to R1. High priority habitat areas shall be
preserved and enhanced to the greatest extent possible, and shall also be
afforded a higher level of protection. Fragmentation of the Urban Coastal
Greenway corridor (specifically the alongshore component) shall be avoided
wherever possible and the development of contiguous habitats will be required
wherever possible.
H.
Coastal and freshwater wetlands (formerly §130.3)
1. All coastal wetlands, including salt
marshes that are located within the Metro Bay Region, will be subject to the
policies and standards in §1.2.2(D) of this Subchapter. In those cases
where impacts to coastal wetlands are unavoidable and approved by the Council,
coastal wetland mitigation shall be conducted in accordance with §1.3.1(L)
of this Subchapter. Projects involving impacts or potential impacts to
freshwater wetlands within the Metro Bay Region shall be subject to the
Council's "Rules and Regulations Governing the Protection and Management of
Freshwater Wetlands in the Vicinity of the Coast". The Council's policy is to
avoid, minimize, and mitigate for any potential adverse impact to coastal or
freshwater wetlands.
I.
Building shading (formerly §130.4)
1.
The design of new structures and buildings should minimize shading of the
shoreline and the Urban Coastal Greenway, such that the shoreline and UCG are
not overwhelmed by tall and dense structures built to the setback line that
rise vertically without relief from that line. Accordingly, structures should
be designed to minimize the shadow cast upon the UCG and the adjacent
shoreline. The RICRMC may negotiate and enter into agreements with the Metro
Bay Region municipalities to allow for increased density on a development in
exchange for appropriate building massing on the site.
J. Visual elements (formerly §130.5)
1. The scenic and visual qualities of the
Metro Bay Region coastal area shall be considered and protected as a resource
of public priority. Development should be sited and designed to protect views
to and along coastal areas, minimize the alteration of natural land forms, be
visually compatible with the character of surrounding areas, and, where
feasible, restore and enhance visual quality in visually degraded areas in
accordance with §1.3.5 of this Subchapter. Detailed landscape plans and
artist renderings are helpful to aid the CRMC in project review.
