Frequently Asked Questions

File a zoning permit application (ZPA) with the Building Department describing your project to determine if you just need a building permit or if you need a public review/public hearing for wetlands, zoning relief, architectural review, etc. NOTE: Not all projects require a public hearing.

The permit path to project completion varies depending on the zoning district where your property is located, whether or not there are wetlands, and how big your project is.

Other permits may be required from the Department of Public Works. Please visit their page.

Adding a second unit is allowed in all residential districts. Applicants must meet all the requirements of 350-6.11 (https://ecode360.com/37390035). Depending on the size and location, some second units may need Planning Board review.

The City of Northampton zoning ordinance (Chapter 350 of the Code of Ordinances, https://ecode360.com/13265306) does not use the term "ADU" and treats adding a unit to a single family home as a 2nd unit, detached or attached. Second homes/units can be bigger than first homes provided you have sufficient lot area and meet other requirements. Detached homes need to be at least ten feet away from each other. The minimum setback requirements for residential uses apply equally to all units on the property, so converting an existing garage that does not meet the minimum setback for a house is not allowed.

The zoning district of your property determines dimensional and use requirements. For most districts, the district-specific ordinances are at the top of the zoning ordinance main page (https://ecode360.com/13265306) as Attachments. Central Business ("Downtown") and Florence Village districts have their own sections under 350-21 and 350-22. To look up your zoning district yourself, please go here, https://northamptonma.gov/929/AssessorZoning-Maps. You would first find your Parcel ID listed on your tax bill and use it to find the specific PDF map. The "Make Maps" link on the page has instructions on how to download the City's map layers onto your Google Earth.

You must apply for the appropriate permit in the Office of Planning & Sustainability by following these instructions.

Application deadline is generally 30 days prior to the public hearing. Staff will not schedule a public hearing, however, until an application is complete with all the needed information so the application can potentially be acted on the same night. The Planning Board, Zoning Board of Appeals, and the Conservation Commission generally meet second and fourth Thursdays. The Central Business Architecture Committee meets the first Tuesdays, and other boards as needed.

It is strongly urged that all applicants check with appropriate city staff before filing an application to ensure that all information and materials required to address the project are submitted with the application.

Applications and supporting materials for pending projects that require a public hearing are available at OpenGov permit search or Planning & Sustainability, City Hall, 210 Main St., Second Floor, Northampton (8:45 AM to 4:15 PM). Links to legacy permit files and other planning files are at the Public File Cabinet and Maps page. Planning staff is available to answer questions.

Public Hearing notices are available at the Daily Hampshire Gazette (search for Northampton) and public agendas are posted on the City's Agenda Center. For some projects, abutters will get mailed a notice about two weeks prior to the hearing, and a notice will be posted on the property. Notices are not mailed for continued public hearings, but they are posted at the agenda center.

Not all projects require a public hearing. Those projects may be reviewed at the Building Department website.

You can ask questions about a project to city staff via phone, voicemail, or email. Comments about a project should be made in writing via email or letters ahead of the hearing for the project or made verbally during the hearing.

Public hearings open at or after the time advertised, never early. The chair will open the hearing and the applicant will present their plans and the board will then ask its questions. After that, members of the public are invited to ask questions and offer any comments. Written comments, including the name and address of the person making the comment, may be submitted to the board up until the time the public hearing is closed. Most public hearings are closed and decisions are issued on the same night, although some complicated projects or incomplete filings may be continued to a specified date and time.

The Planning Board, Zoning Board of Appeals, Historical Commission, Conservation Commission, and Central Business Architecture Committee hear permit applications at advertised public hearings. Depending on the relevant statute, the city or the applicant may publish legal notices and notify abutters. Anyone is welcome at the public hearings and invited to participate.

Boards are made up of unpaid community volunteers, dedicating their time to serve our community. Planning & Sustainability staff assists applicants, community members, and boards to ensure a legal, fair, and transparent process following regulations and broader Sustainable Northampton Comprehensive Plan goals and objectives.

Neither the Mayor nor City Councilors review or approve permits.

The Board determines when there is enough information to close the public hearing. The Board must make a decision based upon regulations and adopted plans and consideration of public comments. There are often many ways to address the standards. The Board must evaluate what the applicant has presented and whether that application meets the standards as presented or with conditions. The Board cannot redesign a project based on ideas generated during public hearings.

Approval Standards: Public comments are very important and often persuasive, especially when they align with the regulatory standards. Testimony does not replace, however, the board's reliance on other information, statutes, city plans and regulations, and case law. (See Unrepresented Democracy in Local Zoning and Planning Boards). The City writes its own zoning and other ordinances, typically based on the City’s Sustainable Northampton Comprehensive Plan (updated 2021), which includes climate resilience and regeneration, bike and pedestrian, and open space elements. Projects such as affordable and attainable housing and encouraging land use patterns that support commercial centers and reduce greenhouse gas emissions often come from community-wide goals even when immediate abutters might have a different vision. 

After the public hearing is closed, no new testimony or information can be accepted. The permit granting board deliberates and makes their decision. Planning & Sustainability staff then issues the necessary decision. Notice of the decisions varies based on statutory requirements, with notice of Zoning Board of Appeals and Planning Board decisions mailed to abutters. Abutters have the right to appeal, within strict appeal periods and procedures established by law for each permit process.  Appeal periods are noted on decisions.

Applicants must pick up certified copies of the decision from the City Clerk at the end of the appeal period and record the decision at the Register of Deeds before seeking a building permit.