Southborough, MA Building Safety: Childcare Center Rules (2026)

Chapter 174 names a child care center in one district use list. Section 174-8.12(A) lists it among the permitted uses in the Downtown District, alongside bed and breakfast, co-work center, professional or business office and all uses permitted in the RA and RB residence districts. Subsection E closes the list: all uses not listed, legally nonconforming or otherwise allowable under the zoning regulations are prohibited.

A center in the Downtown District must also meet the district's development standards in subsection F: minimum lot area of 5,000 square feet, minimum frontage of 60 feet, a front setback of 10 feet, a rear setback of 35 feet, a side setback of 10 feet (25 feet if adjacent to a residential district), maximum building height of 35 feet and three stories, minimum landscaped green space of 20%, and a floor area ratio of 0.40 as of right. Subsection G adds that the principal entrance must be on the front facade, which faces the street.

Historic buildings offer a second path. Under § 174-13.8(B)(2), a child care facility and/or elder care facility in a commercial or municipal historic building is allowed only by special permit, with the Planning Board as the special permit granting authority, and is subject to site plan approval under § 174-10.

Child care facilities also act as buffers. Under § 174-9(I)(3)(a), an adult bookstore, adult video store, adult paraphernalia store or adult motion-picture theater cannot be located less than 1,000 feet from a child care facility. Under § 174-9(J)(2)(a)[3], a registered marijuana dispensary must sit not less than 1,000 linear feet from a property line of a day-care center, which § 174-9(J)(2)(c) defines as any establishment, whether public or private, that provides care for children and is licensed by the Massachusetts Department of Early Education and Care.