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Unless specifically defined below, words or phrases used in this ordinance shall be interpreted so as to give them the meanings they have in common usage and to give this ordinance its most reasonable application. Addition (to an existing building) means any walled and roofed expansion to the perimeter of a building in which the addition is connected by a common load-bearing wall other than a fire wall. Any walled and roofed addition which is connected by a fire wall or is separated by independent perimeter load-bearing walls is new construction. Appeal means a request for a review of the building official's interpretation of any provision of this ordinance or a request for a variance. Area of shallow flooding means a designated AO or VO Zone on a community's Flood Insurance Rate Map (FIRM) with base flood depths from one (1) to three (3) feet where a clearly defined channel does not exist, where the path of flooding is unpredictable and indeterminate and where velocity flow may be evident. Base flood means the flood having a one (1) per cent chance of being equaled or exceeded in any given year. Basement means that portion of a building having its floor subgrade (below ground level) on all sides. Breakaway wall means a wall that is not part of the structural support of the building and is intended, through its design and construction, to collapse under specific lateral loading forces without causing damage to the elevated portion of the building or the supporting foundation system. Building means any structure built for support, shelter or enclosure for any occupancy or storage. Development means any man-made change to improved or unimproved real estate, including, but not limited to, buildings or other structures, mining, dredging, filling, grading, paving, excavating, drilling operations or permanent storage of materials. Elevated building means a nonbasement building built to have the lowest floor elevated above the ground level by means of fill, solid foundation perimeter walls, pilings, columns (posts and piers), shear walls or breakaway walls. Existing construction means any structure for which the "start of construction" commenced before the effective date of the first floodplain management code, ordinance, or standard based upon specific technical base flood elevation data which establishes the area of special flood hazard. Flood or flooding means a general and temporary condition of partial or complete inundation of normally dry land areas from: (1) The overflow of inland or tidal waters; (2) The unusual and repair accumulation or runoff of surface waters from any source. Flood Hazard Boundary Map (FHBM) means an official map of a community, issued by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, where the boundaries of the areas of special flood hazard have been defined as Zone A. Flood Insurance Rate Map (FIRM) means an official map of a community on which the Federal Emergency Management Agency has delineated both the areas of special flood hazard and the risk premium zones applicable to the community. Flood insurance study is the official report provided by the Federal Emergency Management Agency. The report contains flood profiles as well as the flood boundary floodway map and the water surface elevation of the base flood. Floodway means the channel of a river or other watercourse and the adjacent land areas that must be reserved in order to discharge the base flood without cumulatively increasing the water surface elevation more than one (1) foot. Floor means the top surface of an enclosed area in a building (including basement) i.e., top of slab in concrete slab construction or top of wood flooring in wood frame construction. The term does not include the floor of a garage used solely for parking vehicles. Functionally dependent facility means a facility which cannot be used for its intended purpose unless it is located or carried out in close proximity to water, such as a docking or port facility necessary for the loading and unloading of cargo or passengers, shipbuilding, ship repair or seafood processing facilities. The term does not include long-term storage, manufacture, sales or service facilities. Highest adjacent grade means the highest natural elevation of the ground surface, prior to construction, next to the proposed walls of a building. Manufactured home means a building, transportable in one (1) or more sections, which is built on a permanent chassis and designed to be used with or without a permanent foundation when connected to the required utilities. The term also includes park trailers, travel trailers and similar transportable structures, placed on a site for one hundred eighty (180) consecutive days or longer and intended to be improved property. Mean sea level means the average height of the sea for all stages of the tide. It is used as a reference for establishing various elevations within the floodplain. For purposes of this ordinance, the term is synonymous with National Geodetic Vertical Datum (NGVD). National Geodetic Vertical Datum (NGVD), as corrected in 1929, is a vertical control used as a reference for establishing varying elevations within the floodplain. New construction means any structure for which the "start of construction" commenced after the effective date of the first floodplain management code, ordinance, or standard based upon specific technical base flood elevation data which establishes the area of special flood hazard. Start of construction, for other than new construction or substantial improvements under the Coastal Barrier Resources Act (Public Law 97-348), includes substantial improvement and means the date the building permit was issued, provided the actual start of construction, repair, reconstruction or improvement was within one hundred eighty (180) days of the permit date. The actual start means the first placement of permanent construction of a building (including a manufactured home) on a site, such as the pouring of slabs or footings, installation of piles, construction of columns or any work beyond the stage of excavation or the placement of a manufactured home on a foundation. Permanent construction does not include land preparation, such as clearing, grading and filling; nor does it include the installation of streets and/or walkways; nor does it include excavation for a basement, footings, piers or foundations or the erection of temporary forms; nor does it include the installation on the property of accessory buildings, such as garages or sheds not occupied as dwelling units or not part of the main building. Structure means a walled and roofed building that is principally above ground, a manufactured home, a gas or liquid storage tank or other man-made facilities or infrastructures. Substantial improvement means any combination of repairs, reconstruction, alteration or improvements to a building, taking place during each year of the life of a building, in which the cumulative cost equals or exceeds fifty (50) per cent of the market value of the building. The market value of the building should be (1) the appraised value of the building prior to the start of the initial repair or improvement or, (2) in the case of damage, the value of the building prior to the damage occurring. For the purposes of this definition, "substantial improvement" is considered to occur when the first alteration of any wall, ceiling, floor or other structural part of the building commences, whether or not that alteration affects the external dimension of the building. The term does not, however, include any project for improvement of a building required to comply with existing health, sanitary or safety code specifications which are solely necessary to assure safe living conditions. Variance is a grant of relief from the requirements of this ordinance, which permits construction in a manner otherwise prohibited by this ordinance where specific enforcement would result in unnecessary hardship. |
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(Ord. of 3-3-98) |