§ 27-340. Definitions.

For the purpose of this article, certain terms and words are herewith defined as follows: 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 term "building" includes the term "structure." The term "shall" is mandatory and not directory. Definitions relating specifically to floodplain zoning, signs, and landscaping and screening are included elsewhere.

Accessory building means a detached building or an attached portion of the main building, the use of which is incidental and subordinate to that of the main building.

Accessory use, accessory structure means a use of land or structure which involves all of the following characteristics:

(1)

Subordinate to and serves a principal use or structure.

(2)

Subordinate in area, extent and purpose to the principal use or structure served.

(3)

Contributes to the comfort, convenience or necessity of occupants of the principal use or structure served.

(4)

Located on the same lot or lots, under the same ownership and in the same zoning district as the principal use or structure.

Adult book store or adult video store means an establishment having as a predominant part of its stock in trade or predominant portion of its revenues, books, magazines, photographs, pictures, periodicals, recordings or video tapes which are distinguished or characterized by their emphasis on matter depicting, describing or relating to specified sexual activities or specified anatomical areas and limited in sale of such sexual material to adults.

Adult nightclub or cabaret means any place serving food or drink, regardless of whether alcoholic beverages are served, which features topless dancers, go-go dancers, exotic dancers, strippers, male or female impersonators, similar entertainers, waitresses or waiters, or features material relating to specified sexual activities or specified anatomical areas.

Adult theater means a facility with a capacity of two or more persons used predominantly for presenting material distinguished or characterized by an emphasis on matters depicting, describing or relating to specified sexual activities or specified anatomical areas, for observation by patrons therein.

Agricultural use refers to the use of land where such land is devoted to the production of plants, animals or horticultural products, including, but not limited to, forages, grains and feed crops, dairy animals and dairy products, poultry and poultry products, beef cattle, sheep, swine and horses, bees and apiary products, trees and forest products, fruits, nuts and berries, vegetables, or nursery, floral, ornamental and greenhouse products. The term "agricultural use" shall not include use of land for recreational purposes, suburban residential acreage, rural home sites or farm homes sites and yard plots whose primary function is for residential or recreational purposes even though such properties may produce or maintain some of those plants or animals listed in the foregoing definition.

Alley means a public right-of-way no wider than 24 feet that affords only a secondary means of access to abutting property.

Alteration means any addition, removal, extension or change in the location of any exterior wall of a building.

Antenna means any structure or device used to receive or transmit electromagnetic waves.

Apartment house means any building or portion thereof that contains three or more dwelling units.

Building means a permanently erected structure having a roof supported by columns or walls.

Building, completely enclosed, means a building separated on all sides from the adjacent open spaces or from other buildings or structures by a permanent roof, and by exterior walls having only windows and normal entrance or exit doors, or by party walls.

Bulk means a composite characteristic of a given building as located upon a given lot, not definable as a single quantity, but involving all of the following characteristics:

(1)

Size and height of building.

(2)

Location of exterior walls at all levels in relation to lot lines, streets or to other buildings.

(3)

Gross floor area of the building in relation to lot area (floor area ratio).

(4)

All open spaces allocated to the building.

(5)

Amount of lot area provided per dwelling unit.

Campground means an area of land, including supporting sanitary and other facilities, for the overnight or temporary parking of recreational vehicles and other modes of camping while traveling by auto.

Children's day care and nursery centers means facilities where part-time lodging and meals are provided, excluding permanent or overnight lodging, for six or more children in return for compensation. For the purpose of this article, family day care homes under state regulations will not be included in this definition.

Court means an open, unoccupied space, other than a yard, bounded on three or more sides by exterior walls of a building or by exterior walls of a building and lot lines on which walls are allowable.

Curb level means the level of the established curb in front of the building measured at the center of such front. Where no curb has been established, the high point of the crown of the street in front of the building shall be used.

Decibel means a unit of measurement of the intensity (loudness) of sound. In this article, decibel levels shall be measured on the A scale and referred to as dB(A).

Detached means a building that does not have a wall, roof or other structural member in common with or in contact with another building.

Dismantled means that a number of useful parts, including but not limited to, tires, batteries, doors, hoods, or windows, have been removed from the automobile as to render the automobile unsafe to operate.

Dog kennel means any premises where four or more dogs are boarded, bred and/or offered for sale.

Drive means an improvement which affords a means of vehicular access to or through an area and which is owned and maintained by the owner of the property it serves.

Drive-in or drive-through establishment means a place of business being operated for the retail sale of food and other goods, services, or entertainment wherein patrons may be served or otherwise conduct their business while remaining in their automobiles. A restaurant that does not provide at least 15 seats within the enclosed interior of the building shall be considered a drive-in establishment.

Dwelling means a building or portion thereof intended for occupancy for residential purposes but not including hotels, motels, rooming houses, nursing homes, temporary shelters, tourist homes, or trailers.

Dwelling house, condominium, means a building containing dwelling units, which dwelling units are separated by a party wall and which dwelling units are designed and intended to be separately owned in fee under the condominium statutes of the state.

Dwelling, multiple-family, means a dwelling, or portion thereof, containing three or more dwelling units.

Dwelling, single-family, means a dwelling containing one dwelling unit.

Dwelling, two-family means a dwelling containing two dwelling units, a duplex.

Dwelling unit means one or more rooms constituting all or part of a dwelling and which are arranged, designed, used or intended for use exclusively as a single housekeeping unit for one family, and which includes cooking, living, sanitation and sleeping facilities.

Family means one or more persons who are related by blood or marriage, including any foster children, a group of not more than five persons living together by joint agreement on a nonprofit cost sharing basis, or a combination of persons related by blood or marriage along with no more than two unrelated adults to a maximum number of five persons living together and occupying a single housekeeping unit with single kitchen facilities. In addition, up to ten persons, including eight or fewer persons with a disability or handicap and not to exceed two staff residents residing in a dwelling shall be considered to be a family. Handicapped persons are defined in Title VIII of the Civil Rights Act of 1968, as amended by the Fair Housing Amendments Act of 1988.

Flea market means a market, indoors or out of doors, where new or used items are sold from individual sellers, where each seller operates independently from other sellers. Items sold include, but are not limited to, household items, antiques, rare items, decorations, used books and used magazines. The term "flea market" is interchangeable with and applicable to "swap meet," "indoor swap meet," or other similar terms regardless of whether these events are held inside a building. The primary characteristic is that these activities involve a series of sales sufficient in number, scope, and character to constitute a regular form of business and therefore subject to regulation.

Floor area means the total floor area designed for tenant or owner occupancy measured from the exterior surfaces of outside walls and including mezzanines, unfinished floors and basements, but excluding loading docks and service corridors or any common areas not leasable to individual tenants.

Floor area, habitable, means the area of all floor space on all levels measured from the exterior surface of outside walls, but excluding garages, porches and nonhabitable basements as determined by the International Building Code, as adopted and amended by the unified government.

Fowl shall mean those domestic birds commonly kept for the production of meat, eggs, or feathers. Fowl shall include, but not be limited to, chickens, ducks, turkeys, geese, swans, peafowl, guinea fowl, ostriches, and emus. Fowl shall not be permitted in any area of the city not zoned agricultural with the following exceptions:

(1)

Ducks.

(2)

Female chickens.

Garage, private, means a building or a portion of a building, not more than 1,000 square feet in area, in which only motor vehicles used by tenants of the building or buildings on the premises are stored or kept.

Gross vehicle weight rating or GVWR means the manufacturer's rating of the combined weight of the vehicle and the maximum load it is designed to carry. Where such information is not available, the following shall be used to make the determination:

(1)

Vehicles of no greater than 10,000 pounds GVWR: Pickup trucks and passenger vans, trucks considered one-ton rated capacity or less.

(2)

Vehicles of no greater than 30,000 pounds GVWR: Commercial-type trucks of wide variety, but excluding dump trucks, semitrailer trucks, trucks with tandem axles, and other similar heavy-duty trucks.

Group dwelling means a residential dwelling occupied as a residence by persons who do not constitute a family.

Halfway house means a facility, such as a community corrections center, serving temporary residents who have been released or diverted from an institution. A nonfamily residential dwelling that houses persons protected by the Fair Housing Act, such as the mentally ill or the mentally retarded, is a group dwelling, not a halfway house, so long as it is clearly the domicile of the residents and the typical length of stay is long enough to differentiate it from a motel or hotel.

Heavy automotive/truck service, repair, and mechanics means major mechanical repair shops including any of the following:

(1)

Body work and painting.

(2)

Tire recapping.

(3)

Engine and transmission repair.

Height of building or structure means the vertical distance from the average elevation of the ground abutting a building or structure to the highest point of a building or structure. Height, when not regulated in feet, shall be regulated by stories and a story shall be equal to 12 feet for purposes of measuring structures other than buildings.

Home occupation means an activity for gain customarily carried on in a dwelling or structure accessory to a dwelling, clearly incidental and secondary to the use of the dwelling for residential purposes. In general, a home occupation is an accessory use so located and conducted that the average neighbor under normal circumstances would not be aware of its existence. Such activity may employ only members of the immediate family residing on the premises.

Inoperable means that an automobile or truck which cannot be driven away in a safe condition.

Inoperable vehicles means vehicles missing major body, chassis, or engine components or not fit for street travel.

Light automotive service and maintenance means any of the following:

(1)

Tire and battery sales and installation.

(2)

Brakes and other similar diagnostic and repair services.

(3)

Auto detail shops, tune-up shops, upholstery shops, radiator repair shops, lubrications service, sound system shops, or alignment and suspension services.

Livestock means horses, mules, cattle, sheep, and goats.

Lot means a parcel of land occupied or to be occupied by one main building, or unit group of buildings, and the accessory buildings or uses customarily incident thereto, including such open spaces as are required under this article, and having its principal frontage upon a public street. A lot may consist of one or more platted lots, or tracts as conveyed, or parts thereof.

Lot or site area means the land area within the tract or lot lines and excluding street right-of-way.

Lot, corner means a lot abutting upon two or more streets at their intersection. A corner lot may be deemed to front on either street frontage.

Lot, depth means the 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 line, front means the street line, which is the boundary between a lot and the street on which it fronts.

Lot line, rear means the boundary line that is opposite the most distant from the front street line, except that in the case of uncertainty, the building official shall determine the rear line.

Lot line, side 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.

Lot, through means an interior lot having frontage on two streets.

Lot width means the horizontal distance between side lines, measured at the front building line.

Mobile home means a structure, transportable in one or more sections, which has a body width of eight feet or more and a body length of 36 feet or more and which is built on a permanent chassis and designed to be used as a dwelling, with or without a permanent foundation, when connected to the required utilities, and includes the plumbing, heating, air conditioning and electrical systems contained therein and which was designed to comply with the Federal Manufactured Home Construction and Safety Standards in force at the time of manufacture. This term shall not include a recreational vehicle. A structure which otherwise falls within this definition shall be considered a mobile home even it if does not have the required dimensions so long as it is in place as of May 1, 1995, and has a model year of no later than 1969.

Mobile home park means a tract of land meeting the requirements of this article containing suitable drives, utilities and other supporting elements and devoted to the sole purpose of accommodating mobile homes on a permanent or semi-permanent basis.

Mobile home space means that area of land within a mobile home park set aside for use as a site for one mobile home, including the open spaces around the mobile home, as are required in this article.

Mobile market means the selling of food products, including, but not limited to: fresh produce and dry goods out of a bus, truck, trailer, or other mobile unit. At least 50 percent of the foods for sale will be WIC-approved food types. Mobile market vehicles must fall between grades 2—7 on the Federal Highway Administration trailer size guideline and must not be longer than 45 feet.

Nonvehicular open space means uncovered areas such as lawns, planting space, walks, terraces, sitting areas and balconies, one-half of covered nonvehicular open space, and clubhouses and indoor recreational areas. No paved areas for vehicular traffic or parking may be included as nonvehicular open spaces.

Overlay district means a zoning district that acts in conjunction with the underlying zoning district or districts.

Parking lot, commercial means a paved area or structure intended or used for the off-street parking of operable motor vehicles on a temporary basis, other than accessory to a principal use.

Performance standards means criteria to control noise, odor, smoke, toxic or noxious matter, vibration, fire and explosive hazards or glare, heat or other effects generated by or inherent in uses of land or buildings.

Planned zoning district means the zoning of a lot or tract to permit that development as is specifically depicted on plans approved in the process of zoning that lot or tract.

Private club means an organization licensed hereunder to which the club members shall be permitted to resort for the purpose of consuming alcoholic liquor.

Recreational vehicle is a vehicle that is:

(1)

Built on a single chassis.

(2)

Four hundred square feet or less when measured at the exterior.

(3)

Self-propelled or permanently towable by a light duty truck.

(4)

Designed not as a dwelling, but as temporary living quarters for recreational camping, travel, or seasonal use.

Residentially zoned area means an area zoned A-G, R, R-1, R-1(B), R-2, R-2(B), R-3, R-4, R-5, R-6, R-M, or these districts' planned equivalents.

Ruined means that an automobile which is substantially damaged to the extent that it is valueless or useless as an operable automobile or truck or parts thereof are only useful as materials for reprocessing, melting, remanufacturing, or disposal for salvage or scrap material.

Seating area means open space within any enclosed structure used for purposes of seating numbers of people for any purpose, including all aisles necessary for circulation.

Self-contained recreational vehicle is a recreational vehicle that includes all of the following:

(1)

Heating and/or air conditioning.

(2)

A sink and shower.

(3)

Self-contained toilet.

(4)

Cooking facilities.

(5)

Refrigerator.

Site area means the land area within the tract or lot lines and excluding street right-of-way.

Specified anatomical area means any of the following:

(1)

Any less than completely or opaquely covered:

a.

Human genitals, pubic region.

b.

Buttocks.

c.

Portion of the areola of the female breast.

(2)

Human male genitals in a discernibly turgid state, even if completely and opaquely covered.

Specified sexual activities means any of the following:

(1)

Human genitals in a state of sexual stimulation or arousal.

(2)

Acts of human masturbation, sexual intercourse or sodomy.

(3)

Fondling or other erotic touching of human genitals, pubic region, buttock or female breast.

Stable, riding means a structure and premises in which horses, ponies or mules, used exclusively for pleasure riding or driving, are housed, boarded, or kept for remuneration, hire or sale.

Storm protection areas means any new residential use, for multifamily residential development or single-family residential development for which a preliminary plan/plat application is approved by the planning commission, shall contain an area of storm protection. Such area may be a room or space, such as a basement, a structure complying with Federal Emergency Management Agency Publication 320 ("Taking Shelter From the Storm") or Publication 361 ("Design and Construction Guidance for Community Shelters"), or subsequent updates thereto shall comply with this requirement. For residential uses designed specifically for occupancy by those age 55 and over, the basement, safe room, or community shelter must be within the structure where the particular dwelling unit is located or within 15 feet of the structure in question and accessed under roof.

Story means that part of a building included between the surface of one floor and the surface of the floor above, or if there is no floor above, that part of the building which is between the surface of a floor and the ceiling next above. 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 a half-story when between 50 and 75 percent of the area of its exterior walls contain windows or doors permitting the entrance of daylight and outside air.

Street means a right-of-way that affords principal means of vehicular access to property abutting thereon.

Street line means the dividing line between the street right-of-way and the abutting property.

Street, private means a street which provides principal access to abutting property, but which is not maintained by the unified government. A private street may exist within dedicated public right-of-way.

Structural alteration means any change other than incidental repairs in the supporting members of a building, such as bearing walls, columns, beams or girders.

Structure means anything constructed or erected, the use of which requires permanent location on the ground or attachment to a permanent location on the ground, including, but not limited to, signs, and excepting customary utility poles, retaining walls and boundary fences.

Tavern means an establishment which sells cereal malt and/or alcoholic beverages for consumption on the premises; provided, however, this definition shall not include establishments whose sales of food for consumption on the premises exceed the sales of cereal malt and alcoholic beverages served.

Telecommunications tower means a tower constructed as a freestanding structure or in association with a building, other permanent structures or equipment, containing one or more antennas intended for transmitting or receiving television, radio, digital, microwave, cellular, telephone or similar forms of electromagnetic radiation.

Trailer means a vehicle, other than a mobile home, equipped with wheels and normally towed over the road behind a motor vehicle.

Trailer advertising means a trailer that carries or has attached thereto a sign, billboard or other media for advertising as the prime purpose and use of the trailer.

Trailer hauling means a trailer, as defined in this section, and designed and normally used for over-the-road transportation of belongings, equipment, merchandise, livestock and other objects, but not equipped for human habitation.

Used car/truck lot means the use of a parcel of land, either with or without structures, for the purpose of offering for sale, rent, or lease, automobiles, light duty trucks or heavy duty trucks.

Variance means a variation from a specific requirement in this article, as applied to a specific piece of property, as distinct from rezoning.

Wrecked means those automobiles or trucks that have more than 25 percent of the vehicle in damaged condition externally as to render it unsafe to operate.

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, the depth of a front yard or the depth of a rear yard, the least horizontal distance between the lot line and the building shall be used. Where lots abut a street that is designated a major street on the major street plan, all yards abutting the 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 25 feet from the centerline, or from the lot line, whichever provides the greater setback. On multibuilding projects where access is derived from private drives, the orientation of individual buildings shall be used to determine the type of yard along the project boundary.

Yard, front, means a yard across the full width of the lot extending from the front line of the main building to the front line of the lot.

Yard, rear, means a yard across the full width of the lot extending from the rear lot line to the rear line of the main building.

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.

(Code 1988, § 27-1001; Ord. No. 64690, § 1(27-79), 8-30-1984; Ord. No. 65079, § 10, 11-6-1986; Ord. No. 65135, § 2, 4-2-1987; Ord. No. 65417, § 6, 4-6-1989; Ord. No. 65552, § 1, 8-9-1990; Ord. No. 65602, § 2, 2-7-1991; Ord. No. 65658, § 9, 9-5-1991; Ord. No. 65814, § 2, 7-8-1993; Ord. No. 66012, §§ 2, 3, 5-4-1995; Ord. No. 66177, § 1, 12-5-1996; Ord. No. O-41-05, § 1, 5-26-2005; Ord. No. O-71-06, § 1, 7-27-2006; Ord. No. O-40-15 , § 1, 7-30-2015; Ord. No. O-42-15 , § 1, 7-30-2015; Ord. No. O-61-15 , § 1, Oct. 1, 2015; Ord. No. O-66-15 , § 1, 12-10-2015; Ord. No. O-67-15 , § 1, 12-10-2015; Ord. No. O-13-16 , § 1, 3-31-2016; Ord. No. O-14-16 , § 1, 3-31-2016; Ord. No. O-63-16 , § 2, 10-27-2016; Ord. No. O-35-18 , § 1, 9-27-2018)

Cross reference

Definitions generally, § 1-2.