Zoning Overview

Zoning is a land use law that helps define what the residents want Yarmouth to look like by identifying where specific uses are allowed throughout Town and regulating how development is laid out on a parcel.  These parameters are outlined in the Zoning Bylaw and Zoning Map.

Overlay Districts:  In addition to the general underlying zoning districts defining residential, business and industrial areas in Town, Yarmouth has a number of unique incentive based overlay districts that were established to promote redevelopment and reuse of our business properties and enhance our overall community through site and architectural design standards.  Some of these optional overlay districts overlap, allowing for multiple development paths for some business parcels, especially those along Route 28, our main commercial corridor.

  • HMOD1:  The Hotel/Motel Overlay District 1 encompasses applicable Motel properties along Route 28 and allows for high density multi-family mixed use developments by-right to encourage redevelopment of some of our aging motel stock.
    HMOD1 Bylaw Excerpt
  • HMOD2: The Hotel/Motel Overlay District 2 encompasses Motel properties along Nantucket Sound off South Shore Drive and provides a mechanism for motel owners to renovate, reconstruct and/or replace their properties by-right to improve our waterfront lodging offerings.
    HMOD2 Bylaw Excerpt
    HMOD2 Map
  • VCOD: The four villages along Route 28 extend from Winslow Gray Road to Lyman Lane. The Villages provide incentives for economic development to promote year round tourism and employment by allowing for high density mixed used developments by-right and through increased building heights and reduced dimensional standards, while requiring design standards that reinforce Yarmouth’s community character.
    VCOD Bylaw Excerpt
    VCOD Map
    VCOD Webpage
  • ROAD: The ROAD Bylaw offers a significant amount of zoning flexibility for projects in our Business districts south of Route 6. Developing under this overlay district allows for relief from the zoning bylaw through a Special Permit for projects which may have required a Variance in the underlying zoning.
    ROAD Bylaw Excerpt
    ROAD Webpage

Growth Incentive Zone:  To further ease regulatory requirements, the Town of Yarmouth has worked with the Cape Cod Commission (CCC) to implement a Growth Incentive Zone (GIZ) which modifies the Development of Regional Impact (DRI) thresholds on 35 motel properties along Route 28.  The GIZ facilitates the redevelopment of motel properties by allowing development that might otherwise have triggered a review by the CCC.   The current Growth Incentive Zone designation expires in October 2021.
Growth Incentive Zone Webpage

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