Southborough, MA Zoning Overlays & Bonuses: Downtown Design Guide (2026)

Section 174-10.2, added 11-1-2021 by Special Town Meeting Article 10, makes major site plan approval in the Downtown District a special permit from the Planning Board for any use requiring a special permit. In those cases the procedural requirements and decision criteria of § 174-9, § 174-10 and § 174-10.1(A) through (C) apply. The Planning Board is authorized to promulgate design guidelines and apply them to major site plan applications regardless of whether a special permit is required. The bylaw authorizes those guidelines but does not itself print them.

The design criteria the bylaw does print come through § 174-10.1. Subsection A requires floor plans and architectural elevations of all proposed buildings. Subsection B lists six guidelines: preserve scenic views visible from public ways; keep major building dimensions approximately parallel or perpendicular to a nearby street within 100 feet; match the appearance of primary wall and roof materials to materials commonly found on existing buildings within the Town; produce domestic scale through breaks in wall and roof planes, except for buildings adjacent to Route 9; do not make the building in effect a sign through bold patterns or unconventional form; and keep some consistency with abutting buildings, such as eave height, wall materials or window proportions. Under subsection C a design can be approved despite noncompliance if it is appropriate to its context, has minimal consequence for Town appearance because of low public visibility, or no better compliance would be reasonably possible.

Section 174-8.12 adds Downtown form standards: a maximum front setback of 20 feet unless waived by the Planning Board; minimum landscaped green space of 20%, with at least 50% contiguous between the front building line and front lot line; minimum facade buildout of 60% for 50 to 80 feet of frontage, 70% over 80 to 100 feet and 75% over 100 feet; a principal entrance on the front facade; no more than 35 feet between street-level entrances; and street-level commercial spaces no deeper than 60 feet, with waivers by the Planning Board.

Under § 174-10(F) the Planning Board acts on a complete major site plan application within 60 days of receipt, and failure to act is approval.