Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutMemo Commercial Vehicle and Home Occupation Bylaws 367 Main Street, Hyannis, MA 02601 (p) 508-862-4678 MEMORANDUM Date: May 13, 2026 To: Town Council Zoning and Regulatory Subcommittee From: Planning & Development Staff Re: Commercial Vehicle and Home Occupation Ordinances in Massachusetts The following are examples of home occupation bylaws from across Eastern Massachusetts: Town of Plymouth HOME OCCUPATION – A small-scale non-residential Use customarily conducted as an Accessory Use within a Dwelling Unit, including but not limited Accessory Bed and Breakfast accommodation; Family Day Care; office of an accountant, lawyer or tax preparer; provision of personal service such as beauty treatments or personal training; or the office of a trade where service is partially or principally performed at another site, such as on-call plumber; provided that: 1. The non-residential Use is incidental and subordinate to its use for residential purposes by its occupants, and not more than 25% of the floor area of the Dwelling Unit used in the conduct of the Home Occupation; 2. There is no change in the exterior appearance of the Building or premises or other visible evidence of the commercial activity, other than one nonilluminated Sign, not exceeding one square foot in area, and mounted flat against the wall of the principal Building; 3. There is no more than one employee on premises, other than a resident of the premises; 4. No traffic is generated in greater volume than normal for a residential neighborhood and any parking generated by the Home Occupation is located off the Street and not located within a required Front Yard; and 5. There is no exterior storage of materials or equipment on the premises. Town of Harwich Home occupations shall be subject to the following regulations: A. No person other than members of the family residing on the premises, nor more than one apprentice, shall be regularly engaged in such occupation. B. The use of the dwelling unit for the home occupation shall be clearly secondary and subordinate to its use for residential purposes by its occupants, and not more than 25% of the floor area of the dwelling unit shall be used in the conduct of the home occupation. C. No traffic shall be generated by such home occupation in greater volumes than would normally be expected in a residential neighborhood, and any need for parking generated by the conduct of such home occupation shall be met off the street and other than in a required front yard. Town of Barnstable Department of Planning & Development https://www.townofbarnstable.us/Departments/planninganddevelopment/ 367 Main Street, Hyannis, MA 02601 (p) 508-862-4678 D. No equipment or process shall be used in such home occupation which creates noise, vibration, glare, fumes, odors, or electrical interference detectable to the normal senses off the lot if the occupation is conducted in a single -family residence or outside the dwelling unit if conducted in other than a single-family residence. In the case of electrical interference, no equipment or process shall be used which creates visual or audible interference in any radio or television receivers off the premises or causes fluctuations in line voltage off the premises. E. Any sign erected to advertise a home occupation as defined in this bylaw shall conform to the requirements set forth in Article VII (Sign Regulations) of this bylaw. F. Not more than two commercial vehicles may be used in connection with said home occupation, one of which may not exceed a three-fourths-ton rating and the second of which may not exceed a one-ton rating. Any one-ton vehicle used in connection with said home occupation must be parked and stored indoors in a residential-type garage, and in no event may more than one commercial vehicle be parked or stored in the open at said premises. G. There shall be no disposal of toxic or hazardous materials as defined in this bylaw in connection with the home occupation. Town of Sandwich 4110. Home Occupations. Home occupations are permitted if no more than thirty (30) percent of the floor area of the residence is used for the occupation, not more than one person not a member of the household is employed on the premises in the occupation, there is no exterior display or storage or other variation from the residential character of the premises, traffic generated does not exceed that normally expected in a residential neighborhood, and all parking required to service the occupation is provided off-street, other than within a required front yard. 4111. Home Occupations – Physician’s Office. In addition to uses allowed under Section 4110, a physician's office is permitted as a home occupation and may employ not more than three persons not members of the household on the premises in the occupation on lots containing not less than 40,000 square feet. All parking shall be contained on the lot and be screened using natural plantings so as to be non-offensive to abutting lots. For the purpose of this section, physician is defined as a Medical Doctor licensed by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts with a practice limited to family, geriatric, pediatric or internal medicine (Added ATM 93). Town of Nantucket HOME OCCUPATION An occupation, trade, profession, or business activity conducted as an accessory use wholly or partly within a dwelling unit or in one or more accessory structures. (1) Home occupations shall be subject to the following requirements: (a) The home occupation shall be conducted by occupants of a dwelling upon the lot, and not more than one additional worker who is not an occupant of a dwelling upon the lot. 367 Main Street, Hyannis, MA 02601 (p) 508-862-4678 (b) There shall be no exterior storage of material or equipment, unless effectively screened by a wall, fence or densely planted vegetative buffer. (c) The gross floor area used in connection with the home occupation shall not exceed 800 square feet, not more than 200 square feet of which shall be used for retail sales. (d) The home occupation, as projected, shall not generate an average daily traffic generation during the months of June through September that exceeds 14 vehicle trips per day. (e) A use permit shall be obtained from the Building Commissioner for the home occupation. (f) There shall be no retail sales except of commodities prepared, crafted or otherwise produced upon the lot. (2) Special permit relief. A special permit may be granted by the special permit granting authority for a home occupation (including multiple home occupations upon the same lot, collectively) which employs more than one nonresident of the lot, or which conduct s retail sales in a gross floor area exceeding 200 square feet, provided that all of the other requirements are met and the criteria for the granting of a special permit under § 139- 30 are met, and a home occupation for which a special permit is granted hereunder shall be subject to the provisions for minor site plan review under § 139-23.[9] Town of Wareham 510 HOME OCCUPATIONS 511 CONDUCT BY OWNER OR TENANT The person conducting the home occupation must be the owner of the dwelling in which the home occupation is to be located, or if the applicant is a tenant, written approval of the owner must be provided. 512 EXTENT OF USE Home occupation activities shall not occupy more than twenty -five percent (25%) of the floor area or 400 square feet; whichever is less, of the dwelling units used. 513 EXTERNAL APPEARANCE There shall be no external evidence of any business other than permitted signs. 514 PERMITTED SIGNAGE Signage for Home Occupations shall not exceed four (4) square feet in total. 520 TEMPORARY HABITATION The Board of Appeals may, by Special Permit authorize the temporary use of any structure, shelter, tent or vehicle for the purpose of human habitation in any district provided that such use is not injurious, noxious, or offensive and further provided that any such permit be granted only for non-paying guests of any property owner for a period not to exceed thirty consecutive days in any year and that only one such permit be granted to any land owner in any year. 367 Main Street, Hyannis, MA 02601 (p) 508-862-4678 530 UNGARAGED MOTOR VEHICLES No person or property owner shall have or allow more than one unregistered motor vehicle, or parts thereof, ungaraged on any premises at any time unless so authorized in writing by the Board of Selectmen; and in no event shall any such vehicle, or parts thereof, be stored or located in the front yard of such premises. Any premises licensed under the provisions of General Laws, Chapter 140, Section 57 through 69, and any amendments thereto, shall be excepted from this subsection. Town of Yarmouth 416.1 Goals & Objectives: To establish and regulate Home Occupations to allow residents to conduct small business activities from their homes, while protecting and maintaining the residential character of established neighborhoods, buildings and adjacent properties. The objective is to provide an incubator from which small businesses might grow and expand into Yarmouth's designated business districts. 416.2 General Provisions - Home Occupations: Home Occupations shall adhere to the following parameters: 1. Home Occupations shall be clearly incidental and secondary to the primary residential use and carried on by a permanent resident of the dwelling unit. 2. Home Occupations shall be conducted wholly within the dwelling or wholly within a building accessory thereto. Outdoor activities or storage associated with, or related to, Home Occupations shall be prohibited. 3. A combined maximum of 250 square feet of a dwelling unit or accessory structure shall be dedicated to a Home Occupation use. 4. Home Occupations shall have no exterior displays, signage or attractions that advertise, market or otherwise identify the business. 5. Home Occupations shall have no non-resident employees. 6. Home Occupations shall not permit clients or customers on the premises, not have on- site retail, not result in increases to traffic or parking, and not permit deliveries or shipping other than through the US Postal Service, FedEx, UPS or similar services. 7. Home Occupations shall have no equipment, process or activity that creates noise, dust, smoke, vibration, glare, fumes, odors, electrical or magnetic interference, or fire hazards. Home Occupations shall not involve the storage of hazardous, flammable or e xplosive substances except those commonly found or reasonably expected to be found in a residential dwelling unit. The provisions of Section 406 of this Bylaw apply to all Home Occupations in the Aquifer Protection Overlay District (APD). 8. Home Occupations shall result in no exterior modifications of buildings, structures or premises, or otherwise provide visible evidence that a home occupation is being conducted on the property; and shall be identifiable only as a residential dwelling. 9. Type of Home Occupations: a. Examples of Home Occupations include the following: 367 Main Street, Hyannis, MA 02601 (p) 508-862-4678 i. Office-type work such as writing, editing, drafting, tax preparation, computer programming and computer data entry; ii. Internet or phone sales; iii. Custom sewing, quilting, knitting, and general crafts; iv. Creation of art such as paintings, ceramics, jewelry, and wood carving with hand tools; v. Home cooking, baking and preserving for products for sale only at regional farmer's markets, or to local businesses, excluding Marijuana Infused Products (MIPs). b. Home Occupations shall not include occupations requiring machinery such as mechanical repairs; woodworking; or metalwork. c. Home Occupations shall not include occupations requiring the use or storage of toxic, dangerous or hazardous substances. d. Any determination as to applicability of a use to the definition of Home Occupation shall be made by the Building Commissioner. 10. Residents must obtain a Business Certificate from the Town of Yarmouth and all other local permits, licenses or waivers prior to commencing a Home Occupation. Business Certificates shall be renewed every four (4) years. 416.3 Violations: Any deviation from the General Provisions for Home Occupation constitutes a violation of this bylaw. Violators shall be given written notification by the Building Commissioner of any violations prior to the issuance of any fines or citations.