CHAPTER 3 – EXISTING LAND USE AND ZONING

Introduction

The essential nature of a plan of conservation and development involves defining a vision of the future character of a community in terms of both its natural features and its built environment. The type, location and intensity of land uses – and their existing and future patterns on the landscape – significantly affect that character. Zoning, the process by which those land uses are regulated, is the major regulatory tool with which a municipality can influence future development patterns and practices. This chapter summarizes the existing pattern of land use in Bristol and presents an overview of the city's current zoning regulations.

• Central Connecticut Regional Planning Agency
• 1987 and 1997-98 field surveys
• City of Bristol Zoning Regulations, effective December 21, 1990
• City of Bristol Zoning Map, effective December 21, 1990

The total area of the City of Bristol is approximately 26.5 square miles, nearly 17,000 acres. Bristol's population density is 2,310 persons per square mile, second only to the City of New Britain (with a density of 5,365 persons per square mile) in the Central Connecticut region.

The pattern of land use in Bristol (as of 1998) is illustrated on the Existing Land Use Map (Figure 3-1), which assigns one of 18 general land use categories to every property in the city. The map indicates that the area in and around downtown Bristol contains the city's densest mix of land uses, smallest lots and greatest variety of single- and multi-family residences, businesses and institutional uses. To a lesser extent, both Forestville and the West End contain a similar array of uses, typical of older, urban neighborhoods.

Outside of these areas, single-family residences dominate the landscape of Bristol's neighborhoods, on lots generally varying in size from 5,000 square feet to 25,000 square feet. Public and private institutions such as schools and churches are often found in these neighborhoods as well. Multi-family residences – primarily in the form of apartments and condominiums – are concentrated in the southeast section of the city (near the intersection of Emmett Street and Redstone Hill Road), at the eastern end of Route 6 (in the vicinity of Stafford Avenue), and in the northwest section of the city (near the intersection of Clark Avenue and Matthews Street).

Many of the city's neighborhoods are served by one or more small commercial areas, while the eastern half of Route 6 (Farmington Avenue) contains the city's most extensive commercial development. Significant commercial areas have also developed around the Broad Street-Emmett Street-Frederick Street intersection and along portions of Pine Street (including at its intersection with Middle Street and Mountain Road).

Many of Bristol's present-day industrial land uses occupy much of the Middle Street corridor between Lake Avenue and lower Birch Street (south of Redstone Hill Road). Another modern industrial area has developed along Clark Avenue in the vicinity of Minor Street and James P. Casey Road (near the former New Departure manufacturing plant – now called the Bristol Business Center – on Chippens Hill). Many of the city's older industrial areas are located along East Main Street (e.g., the former Sessions Clock Company complex), Broad Street (e.g., the former Bristol Brass complex) and Riverside Avenue (e.g., the former J.H. Sessions and Son plant), as well as in and around downtown Bristol (e.g., buildings from the old New Departure complex).

The amount of land in Bristol devoted to each of the 18 designated land use categories (as of 1998) is shown in Figure 3-2. Although the acreage figures contained in the table are only estimates, they are nevertheless indicative of the relative extent to which land in the city is utilized for various purposes. For example, nearly one-third of the land in Bristol is devoted to single-family residences, while streets, overhead transmission lines and railroad rights-of-way (collectively categorized as "Utility, Transmission, Transportation") occupy almost seven percent of the land.

Perhaps most surprising is the amount of vacant land that remains in Bristol. In 1987, an estimated 5,000 acres of land were classified as vacant. In 1998, that figure was estimated at just over 4,500 acres, nearly 27 percent of the total land area of the city. Much of this decrease can be attributed to the construction of single-family residences (most significantly in the southwest section of the city) and, to a lesser extent, to new industrial and commercial development. The majority of Bristol's remaining vacant land is located in the south-central and southwest sections of the city.

The city's Zoning Regulations – last adopted by the Zoning Commission in December of 1990 and amended several times since – establish a total of 15 zoning districts within Bristol: seven residential zones (two of which are so-called "overlay" zones), four business zones (one of which is an overlay zone), and four industrial zones. The city's Zoning Map establishes the location, extent and boundaries of these districts.

The Zoning Regulations provide for four single-family residential zones: R-10, R-15, R-25 and R-40. The primary difference among these districts is their different lot area and dimensional requirements; for example, lots in the R-10 zone must have a minimum lot area of 10,000 square feet, while lots in the R-40 zone must have a minimum lot area of 40,000 square feet. In addition to single-family residences, these zones are intended to accommodate certain types of non-residential uses considered to be compatible with residential neighborhoods (e.g., churches and schools).

A review of the city's Zoning Map (as of 1998) indicates that the neighborhoods radiating out from the center of Bristol are primarily zoned R-15, reflective of the pattern of relatively small residential lots that were previously developed around the downtown. The R-15 zone is also the predominant zoning district in the eastern half of the city, although significant areas of R-10-zoned land can be found there as well. Other R-10-zoned areas are scattered throughout the city. The northwest, southwest and south-central sections of Bristol – where most of the city's remaining vacant land is located – are largely zoned R-25. The R-40 zoning district has been used almost exclusively to designate watershed lands, municipal parks, and significant public and private open spaces.

Two residential overlay zones each serve a different purpose. The Open Space Development (OSD) zone was created to accommodate alternative forms of residential development – such as clustering – that also preserve significant tracts of open space and conserve and protect the city's natural features. As of 1998, two properties had been so designated: one, on the west side of Warner Street south of Maple Avenue; the other, on the west side of Lake Avenue, near its intersection with Middle Street. The Mixed Residential (RM) zone was created to allow additional two- and three-family dwellings on small lots in those city neighborhoods where such dwellings are already concentrated. As of 1998, the RM zone had been established throughout a significant portion of the West End neighborhood, in parts of Federal Hill and the residential neighborhoods immediately to the north and south of downtown Bristol, and in a portion of the residential neighborhood west of the center of Forestville.

Finally, the Zoning Regulations provide for one multi-family residential zone (designated as "A" on the city's Zoning Map). The A zone is intended to accommodate low- and medium-density multi-family development in Bristol at a maximum density of twelve dwelling units per acre and has been used primarily to designate the larger apartment, condominium and public housing complexes located throughout the city.

The Zoning Regulations establish four business zones, including one overlay zone. As its name implies, the Neighborhood Business (BN) zone is the most narrowly defined geographically, intended to accommodate small, neighborhood-oriented stores and services. A limited number of properties in the city are so zoned, located primarily along Stafford Avenue, Terryville Avenue, Park Street, Pine Street and Lake Avenue.

Bristol's most extensive business zone is the General Business (BG) zone, which is intended to accommodate larger commercial establishments that serve the retail and service needs of the entire city. Properties in the BG zone include the city's major shopping centers, significant portions of the Route 6 corridor east of the downtown, and the centers of Forestville and the West End neighborhood. Other BG-zoned properties are located at several major intersections (e.g., Broad Street-Emmett Street-Frederick Street, Middle Street-Pine Street-Mountain Road) and along portions of East Main Street, Riverside Avenue and Middle Street.

The Downtown Business (BD) zone covers Bristol's central business district. The BD zone is intended to concentrate the city's major retail, governmental, institutional, office and cultural activities within a compact area, as well as to accommodate high-density residential development in support of such activities.

Finally, the Downtown/Neighborhood Transition (BT) zone is an overlay zone that was designed to provide a functional transition between the intensive, mixed-use development of downtown Bristol and the adjacent, predominantly residential neighborhoods. Among other uses, the BT zone permits certain types of commercial activities not otherwise allowed in single-family residential zones, such as specialty retail establishments, personal service establishments and professional offices. As of 1998, the BT zone had been established west of the downtown along much of the West Street corridor between Route 6 and South Street, and east of the downtown along and adjacent to the upper end of Main Street.

The Zoning Regulations establish one General Industrial (I) zone and three Industrial Park (IP-1, IP-3 and IP-25) zones. The former is intended to accommodate the city's older industrial uses, as well as an array of "heavy" commercial activities such as contractor's yards, trucking terminals and automotive-related facilities. The latter are intended to accommodate more modern industrial uses, including manufacturing, warehousing and distribution, and research and development.

Much of the land in the I zone is located along and adjacent to the Route 72 corridor (East Main Street, Broad Street, Riverside Avenue and Terryville Road), as well as in the triangular area formed by Middle Street, Cross Street and Lake Avenue. Other I-zoned areas can be found on Wooster Court, Terryville Avenue (most significantly, the former New Departure forge) and Mines Road.

The IP zones are located primarily in two areas of Bristol: in the southeast section of the city along significant portions of Middle Street, Cross Street, Emmett Street and Birch Street, and in the northwest section of the city in the vicinity of James P. Casey Road, Clark Avenue and Minor Street.

Figure 3-1. Existing Land Uses

• Single-Family Residential – one dwelling unit per lot
• Two- to Five-Family Residential – between two and five dwelling units per lot
• Multi-Family Residential – an apartment building or condominium with six or more dwelling units
• Retail, Restaurant – includes stores selling merchandise to the public, shopping centers, hotels, and restaurants
• Office, Bank, Professional Service – includes doctors' offices, banks, insurance firms, real estate agencies, and general business offices
• General Commercial – includes gas stations, automotive repair facilities, automotive sales and service facilities, and sand and gravel operations
• Industrial – includes manufacturing plants, research & development facilities
• Broadcasting and Telecommunications
• Utility, Transmission, Transportation – includes power lines, railroad rights-of-way, and streets
• Public Institution – includes public schools and municipal facilities
• Private Institution – includes churches and private schools
• Agriculture – includes all active farmland
• Public Park/Open Space – includes publicly owned parks, recreational facilities, and open spaces
• Private Recreation/Conservation Lands – includes privately owned parks, recreational facilities, and open spaces
• Cemetery
• Water Supply Watershed indicates land owned and operated by the City of Bristol Water Department.
• Water Bodies – includes all lakes and ponds
• Vacant Land