By Robert Pulitano
Ever since the Zoning regulation changes from April 30, 2002 which ushered in the term “Grade Plane”, and defined how attic space was counted in floor area calculations, architects, builders and developers have been waiting for the “fix”. On August 1, 2017 the Planning and Zoning adopted some changes which do fix the largest concerns.
Prior to 2002, if you had an attic which had only a pull down stair, you did not have to count it in the floor area calculation. If the attic had a stair, the floor area was calculated to the underside of the attic collar ties if the space was finished. As older more modest homes were demolished and replaced with larger homes, enough residents complained about the bulk of the new homes to cause the Planning and Zoning Commission to act. On April 30, 2002 any new attic floor area was counted in the floor area calculations that had 7’ of height measured to the bottom of the angled roof rafters, and where 5’ of height existed in dormers.
Another change to the zoning laws implemented in April of 2002 was the introduction of the use of the term “Grade Plane”, or “Average Grade”. In 2002 it was determined by measuring the lowest grade elevation 10’ away from the exterior walls of the house. The perimeter of the house at a distance of 10’ out from the house would be broken into segments, and the lowest point within that segment would be averaged in with the lowest points of the other segments around the entire house. Window wells for egress windows or just for light were factored in as the lowest grade elevation in a segment.
One result of these Zoning Amendments of April 2002 resulted in architects designing homes with trusses which make the attics unusable space which did not count in the floor area calculations. The other result from the “Grade Plane” definition caused builders to have to raise the grade in a dramatically tiered fashion in order to bury the basement and not have it counted in the floor area calculation.
On August 1, 2017 a long awaited fix was adopted after numerous P&Z meetings. With respect to counting or not counting attic floor area the area must be calculated based on 7’ of height to the bottom of rafters, and where there is 5’ of height in dormers. Once it is determined in R-6 to RA-1 zones that the attic floor area does not equal more than 40% of the floor area of the floor below it, then none of the attic floor area will count in the floor area calculations for zoning purposes. In RA-2 & RA-4 zones the attic could be 50% of the floor below it. This eliminates the need for trusses. The homes in town will look the same as they always have, and homeowners will have better use of their space. This of course translates into higher property values.
The change which was made to the method of determining the “Grade Plane” requires the grade elevations to be measured only 6’ away from the exterior walls of the house instead of 10’. Also window wells now, do not count when determining the lowest grade in a segment as long as it does not protrude out from the foundation more than 3’ and can run along the foundation wall no more than 6’. The restricting part of the Grade Plane changes is the ratio of rise versus run of tiered retaining walls permitted to bury the basement in order to keep the average grade plane differential to the first floor either less than 3’ (implies none of the basement is counted), between 3’ and 5’, (implies 50% of the basement floor area is calculated minus 300 sf for each garage space, 100 sf for laundry and 100 sf for mechanical space). The old allowable method was to build a retaining wall 5’ high and the 5’ from the back of the wall to the face of the next, wall another 5’ high retaining wall could be built. The new rule makes it harder to bury basements. In R-6 and R-7 zones, the maximum height to raise the grade is 2’-6”, with the next wall allowed to be built 6’ away from the back of the first wall. This became palatable to developers and architects because although they may be forced to count 50% of the basements on hilly properties, houses could still be built close to the same size before this change because none of the attic will be included in total floor area under the new amended zoning regulations. The rise versus run ratio is different for all of the remaining zones.
Above is my understanding of the implications of these regulations. I can be reached at 203-561-8092 to answer any questions.
Robert Pulitano is a Licensed Realtor with Berkshire Hathaway, 136 E. Putnam Ave., Greenwich, CT 06830. He can be reached at cell: (203) 561-8092 or Email: rob@bhhsnewdev.com.
