§ 25-1. Definitions.
For the purpose of this chapter, the following words and terms as used herein are defined to mean the following:
Words used in the present tense include the future; words in the singular number include the plural; and words in the plural number include the singular; the word "building" includes the word "structure." The word "shall" or the word "must" is mandatory and not directory; the word "lot" includes the word "plot." The term "used for" includes the meaning "designed for" or "intended for."
Accessory building or use means a subordinate building, or a portion of the main building having a use customarily incident to and located on the lot occupied by the main building; or a use customarily incident to the main use of the property.
Alley means a public way which affords only a secondary means of access to abutting property.
Apartment means a room or a suite of rooms within an apartment house arranged, intended, or designed for a place of residence of a single family or group of individuals living together as a single housekeeping unit.
Apartment hotel means an apartment house which furnishes for the use of its tenants services ordinarily furnished by hotels, but the privileges of which are not primarily available to the public.
Apartment house means a building arranged, intended, or designed for more than two (2) families.
Basement means a story below the first story as hereafter defined.
Billboard means a sign supported by uprights or braces in or upon the ground surface.
Block means a piece or parcel of land entirely surrounded by public highways or streets, other than alleys. In cases where the platting is incomplete or disconnected, the building inspector shall determine the outline of the block.
Board means the board of adjustment.
Cross reference— Board of adjustment, § 17-36 et seq.
Boardinghouse or lodginghouse means a building other than a hotel, occupied as a single housekeeping unit, where lodging or meals are provided for five (5) or more persons for compensation, pursuant to previous arrangements, but not for the public or transients.
Commission means the planning, zoning and historic preservation commission.
Cross reference— Planning, zoning and historic preservation commission, § 17-16 et seq.
Community center means a place, structure, area, or other facility for social, educational and recreational activities of a neighborhood, community, or subdivision, provided any such use is not operated for commercial gain.
Condominium means a building, group of buildings or property in which units are owned individually and the common elements are owned by all the owners or a proportional, undivided basis.
Curb level means the main level of the curb in front of the lot, or in case of a corner lot, along the abutting street where the main curb level is the highest.
Day care center means a private home or other facility where care is given to more than ten (10) children by persons not residing in the home.
Day care home means a private home where care is given to ten (10) children or less, unrelated to the day care provider, in a family like group, by the person residing in the home, as a home occupation.
Day care school means a private home or other facility where care and schooling is given to any number of children by persons not residing in the home or facility.
Dwelling means a building or portion thereof, designed exclusively for residential occupancy, including one-family, two-family and multiple dwellings, boarding and lodging houses, apartment houses and apartment hotels, but not hotels.
Dwelling, one-family means a detached building arranged, intended, or designed for occupancy by one (1) family.
Dwelling, multiple means a building or portion thereof, arranged, intended, or designed for occupancy by three (3) or more families including apartment houses, row houses, tenements and apartment hotels.
Dwelling, two-family means a building arranged, intended, or designed for occupancy by two (2) families.
Family means one (1) of the following:
(1)
An individual, married couple or domestic partnership and the children thereof and no more than two (2) other persons related directly to the individual, married couple or domestic partners by blood or marriage; or
(2)
A group of up to four (4) unrelated individuals living together by joint agreement and occupying a single housekeeping unit with single kitchen facilities on a nonprofit, cost-sharing basis; or
(3)
Any home in which eight (8) or fewer unrelated mentally or physically handicapped persons reside, and may include two (2) additional persons acting as houseparents or guardians who need not be related to each other or any mentally or physically handicapped persons residing in the home; or
(4)
Any private residence licensed by the division of family services or department of mental health to provide foster care to one or more, but less than seven (7), children who are unrelated to either foster parent by blood, marriage or adoption.
Filling station, automotive means a use primarily engaged in the retail sale of gasoline or other motor fuels primarily to automobiles and passenger vehicles, along with accessory activities such as the sale of lubricants, accessories, or supplies, the lubrication of motor vehicles, and the minor adjustment or repair of passenger motor vehicles. The use of the business for any storage or parking of a vehicle or any other activity that is commonly associated with truck stops is prohibited and reserved for service station, truck stops only.
Uses involved primarily in the sale of diesel fuel, gasoline or other fuels to tractor trucks and uses that feature parking, storage or servicing of tractor trucks or semi-trailers shall be classified as "service station, truck stop."
Garage, community means a building or portion thereof, other than a public, private, or storage garage providing for motor vehicles with facilities for washing, but no other services, such garage to be in lieu of private garages within a block or portion of block.
Garage, private means an accessory building for storage only of motor vehicles.
Garage, public means a building or portion thereof, designed or used for storage, sale, hiring, care or repair of motor vehicles, which is operated for commercial purposes.
Garage, storage means a building or portion thereof, except those defined as a private, a public or a community garage providing storage for motor vehicles, with facilities for washing but no other services.
Garden apartment building means an apartment building located on a lot either singly or together with other similar apartment buildings, having at least two (2) sides or ends of each dwelling unit exposed to outside light and air.
Ground sign means a sign supported by uprights or braces in or upon the ground surface.
Height of buildings means the vertical distance measured from the highest of the following three (3) levels:
(1)
From the street curb level;
(2)
From the established or main street grade in case the curb has not been constructed;
(3)
From the average finished ground level adjoining the building if it sets back from the street line; to the level of the highest point of the roof beams of flat roofs or roofs inclining not more than one (1) inch to the foot, and to the main height level of the top of the main plate and highest ridge for other roofs.
Height of yard or court means the vertical distance from the lowest level of such yard or court to the highest point of any boundary wall.
Hotel means a building occupied or used as a more or less temporary abiding place of individuals or groups of individuals who are lodged, with or without meals, and in which there are more than twelve (12) sleeping rooms, and no provision for cooking in individual rooms.
Job site construction trailer means a transportable factory built structure which is no more than ten (10) feet in width and no more than forty (40) feet in length, and which has it's own running gear, is designed to be used without a permanent foundation, and temporarily located on a construction site for the exclusive purpose of providing necessary space for one (1) or more licensed contractors engaged in construction activities of said site.
Kennel means any premises wherein any person engages in the business of boarding, breeding, buying, letting for hire, training for a fee, or selling dogs or cats, or any operation in which more than five (5) dogs or more than five (5) cats over the age of four (4) months are harbored at any residential unit.
Lot means a parcel of land occupied or to be occupied by one (1) building, or unit group of buildings, and the accessory buildings or uses customarily incident thereto, including such open spaces as are required under this chapter, and having its principal frontage upon a public street or place.
Lot, corner means a lot abutting upon two (2) or more streets at their intersection. A corner lot shall be deemed to front on that street on which it has its least dimension, unless otherwise specified by the building inspector.
Lot depth means the main horizontal distance from the front street line to the rear line.
Lot, interior means a lot whose side lines do not abut upon any street.
Lot lines means the lines bounding a lot as defined herein.
Lot, through means an interior lot having frontages on two (2) streets.
Lot width means the main horizontal distance between side lines measured at right angles to the depth.
Manufactured home means a factory built structure or structures which, in the traveling mode, is eight (8) body feet or more in width or forty (40) body feet or more in length, or, when erected on site, contains three hundred twenty (320) or more square feet, equipped with the necessary service connections and made so as to be readily movable as a unit or units on its or their own running gear and designed to be used as a dwelling unit or units with or without a permanent foundation. The phrase "without a permanent foundation" indicates that the support system is constructed with the intent that the manufactured home placed thereon may be moved from time to time at the convenience of the owner.
Mobile home means a transportable, factory built home, designed to be used as a yearround residential dwelling and built prior to the enactment of the Federal Manufactured Housing Construction and Safety Standards Act of 1974, which became effective June 16, 1976.
Modular unit means a transportable building unit designed to be used by itself or to be incorporated with similar units at a point-of-use into a modular structure to be used for residential, commercial, educational, or industrial purposes. This definition shall not apply to structures under six hundred fifty (650) square feet used temporarily and exclusively for construction site purposes.
Motel or motor hotel means a tract of land upon which two (2) or more tourist sleeping units and the required parking areas are located.
Nonconforming use, building or yard means a use, building or yard existing legally at the time of the passage of this chapter which does not, by reason of design, uses, or dimensions, conform to the regulations of the district in which it is situated.
Place means an open, occupied space other than a street or alley permanently established or dedicated as the principal means of access to property abutting thereon.
Rear line means the boundary line which is opposite and most distant from the front street line; except that in the case of uncertainty the building inspector shall determine the rear line.
Restaurant means a building wherein food is prepared and served in ready to eat form to the public for human consumption. The term restaurant shall include cafe, cafeteria, grill, pizza or chili parlor, diner, snack shop, hamburger shop and steak house.
Retirement home means a facility designed to meet the needs of, and exclusively for, the residence of senior citizens and which may include convalescent care facilities.
Service station, truck stop means a use primarily engaged in the sale of diesel fuel, gasoline or other fuels to tractor trucks, along with accessory activities such as the sale of lubricants, accessories or supplies, or the servicing of tractor trucks or semi-trailers. A truck stop service station may include, as an accessory use, the parking and storage of tractor trucks and semi-trailers.
Shelter means a building or other structure where lodging, or lodging and meals, are provided, at no cost or at a charge that is less than the full cost of providing same, whether or not additional services are provided at that location. Such additional services may include, but are not limited to, counseling and drug or alcohol rehabilitation.
Side line means any lot boundary line not a front or rear line thereof. A side line may be a party lot line, a line bordering on an alley or place or a side street line.
Sign means any words, numerals, figures, devices, designs, or trademarks by which information is made known such as are used to identify or call attention to a building, structure or object, or designate or mention an individual, profession, firm, business or commodity.
Stable, private means an accessory building for the keeping of horses or mules owned by occupants of the premises, and not kept for remuneration, hire or sale.
Stable, public means a stable other than a private or riding stable as defined herein.
Stable, riding means a structure in which horses or mules used exclusively for pleasure riding or driving are housed, boarded, or kept for hire; including riding track.
Story means that part of a building included between the surface of one (1) floor and the surface of the floor next above, or if there be no floor above, that part of the building which is above the surface of the highest floor thereof. A top story attic is a half story when the main line of the eaves is not above the middle of the interior height of such story. The first story is the highest story having its interior floor surface not more than four (4) feet above the curb level, established or main street grade, or average ground level, as mentioned in "height of buildings," of this section.
Street means a public thoroughfare which affords principal means of access to property abutting thereon.
Street line means the dividing line between the street and the abutting property.
Structural alterations means any change in the supporting members of a building, such as bearing walls, columns, beams or girders.
Structure means anything constructed or erected, which requires location on the ground, or attached to something having a location on the ground; including, but not limited to, advertising signs, billboards, and poster panels, but exclusive of customary fences or boundary or retaining walls.
Townhouse means a dwelling unit located in a group of three (3) or more attached to townhouse dwelling units with no other dwelling unit located above or below another and with each dwelling unit having at least one (1) interior common wall and a private exterior entrance.
Trailer courts or mobile home parks means a tract of land improved with adequate utilities and roadways, properly subdivided into lots, and intended or used for the parking of one (1) or more house trailers or mobile homes.
Yard means an open space at grade between a building and the adjoining lot lines, unoccupied and unobstructed by any portion of a structure from the ground upward, except as otherwise provided. In measuring a yard for the purpose of determining the width of a side yard or the depth of a rear yard, the least horizontal distance between the lot line and the main building shall be used. Where lots abut a street that is designated a thoroughfare or major street on the major street plan of the comprehensive plan, all yards abutting said major street shall be measured from a line one-half the proposed right-of-way width from the centerline, or from the lot line, whichever provides the greater setback. On other lots, all yards abutting a street shall be measured from a line twenty-five (25) feet from the center line, or from the lot line, whichever provides the greater setback.
Yard, front means a yard across the full width of the lot extending from the front line of the main building to the front street line of the lot.
Yard, rear means a yard between the rear lot lines and the rear line of the main building and the side lot lines.
Yard, side means a yard between the main building and the adjacent side line of the lot, and extending entirely from the front yard to the rear yard thereof.
(Code 1978, § 400.010; Ord. No. 6739, § 1, 7-25-95; Ord. No. 6772, § 1, 9-26-95; Ord. No. 97-5, § I, 2-11-97; Ord. No. 99-71, § I, 9-16-99; Ord. No. 10-29, § I, 7-27-10; Ord. No. 14-54, § I, 11-12-2014)