Southampton Village Board Proposes Height Restrictions For Homes Based On Lot Size

Southampton Village officials are weighing the use of lot dimensions to limit the size of new homes in an effort to curb the number of excessively large houses being built in the village.

With a moratorium in place that bans construction of houses taller than 35 feet set to expire in August, officials are currently evaluating the village code. They had originally planned to alter the pyramid and sky plane laws, which use angles to control the height of a house based on the boundaries at the front and sides of a property. Although more changes are slated to come, this is the village’s first step in altering height restrictions for homes since the moratorium went into effect.

“It would make the maximum height regulation more restrictive than what we have now,” Village Attorney Richard DePetris said.

As presented at a Village Board meeting on Thursday night, June 11, the changes would impose new height restrictions: for lots of less than 20,000 square feet, or a half acre, structures could not be more than 30 feet tall; for lots between 20,000 (half acre) and 40,000 square feet (1 acre), houses could not be taller than 33 feet; and for lots 40,000 square feet (1 acre) or greater, the maximum height for a house would be 35 feet.

For flat-roofed houses, the maximum height would be 7 feet less than the limit for regular-roofed homes, based on lot size.

The amendments would apply to the R-120, R-80, R-60, R-40, R-20, R-12.5, R-7.5 and MF-20 residential zoning districts.

Members of the public will be able to comment on the proposed changes at the Village Board meeting on Thursday, July 9, at 6 p.m.

That same night, the public also will be able to comment on a proposed law addressing off-street parking regulations for single-family homes.

The new law aims to tackle the issue of larger homes being built in smaller neighborhoods that don’t have adequate parking. Officials said the owners of many larger houses sacrifice parking space in favor of adding more rooms that can be rented. When the renters arrive, they have no choice but to park in the street, clogging up the roads.

The law would change what kinds of rooms are acceptable as bedrooms—studies, offices, play rooms and media rooms would be permitted, while garages, open basements, living rooms, dining rooms and family rooms would not—as well as requiring a minimum off-street parking area for each home.

If the amendments are approved, houses in the village will be required to have parking spaces on their lots that have a minimum width of 10 feet and a minimum length of 18 feet, and they will have to be set back at least 5 feet from all property lines in front and side yards and at least 10 feet from all property lines in backyards.

At last week’s Village Board meeting, Mayor Mark Epley commended the Southampton Association for suggestions that were ultimately incorporated into the new proposed laws.

Some builders who often work in the village, however, were less satisfied with the changes, or the idea that residents are influencing what goes into new laws.

Michael White of Georgica Builders, who lives on Pulaski Street, said that while officials are under pressure from some residents, others in the community see Southampton’s growth as a good thing. “I think the board should really think about who’s dictating what,” he said. “I’ve lived here for quite a while, and this village has never looked better.”

Frank Devito, of Devito & Company, a construction business, addressed the off-street parking code changes specifically, stating that the stacking of cars occurs only a few weeks out of the year. “Nine times out of 10, it’s seven weekends out of 52,” he said.

“I can’t see what is wrong with even the historic district,” he added about the law pertaining to height restrictions on new homes, which was prompted by complaints about the height of buildings in that area in particular. “You’re taking art out of architecture.”

Mr. Epley, however, told the two builders that the village code needs to be updated. “It’s not about the Southampton Association dictating these things. It’s our responsibility to try to balance out the impacted neighborhoods. We haven’t looked at the zoning code for 10 years,” he said. “These are decisions that we are making. They’re minor tweaks here and there.”