§ 17.04.040. Definitions.

For the purpose of this title, certain terms, words, or phrases used herein shall be interpreted as follows:

The word "person" includes a firm, association, organization, partnership, trust, company, or corporation as well as individual.

The present tense includes the future tense, the singular number includes the plural, and the plural number includes the singular.

The words "shall" and "must" are mandatory, the word "may" is permissive.

"Accessory" means subordinate and incidental to a principal use or structure on the same lot.

"Accessory building" means a building that is subordinate and incidental to the principal building on the lot. An accessory building is typically a storage shed, workshop, or garage but is not used as a dwelling unit. The floor area of any accessory building shall not be greater than the floor area of the principal building on the lot.

"Apartment" means one (1) or more structures containing two (2) or more dwelling units each, located on one (1) lot.

"Blight" means a condition of property or the uses of property within the municipal limits of the city that are detrimental to the physical, social, and/or economic well-being of the community.

"Block" means any territory smaller than five (5) acres in size.

"Boarding or rooming house" means a dwelling unit containing up to and including five (5) guestrooms where lodging is provided, with or without meals, for compensation.

"Buffer landscaping" means areas of landscaping that serves as or is a part of a buffer zone.

"Buffer wall" means a stone, concrete, or masonry wall that is located on or near the property line between nonresidential zoned and residential property, is a part of a buffer zone and is intended to provide a buffer from an adjacent property.

"Buffer zone" means a strip of property located between two (2) land uses, where property lines abut, and intended to provide a buffer from an adjacent property.

"Earth Berm" means an earthen mound, natural or manmade, that serves as a sound attenuation or a visual obstruction between two (2) opposing land uses.

"Clinic" means a place where medical or dental care is furnished to persons on an out-patient basis by two (2) or more doctors or dentists.

"Conditional use" means one (1) of those uses enumerated as conditional uses in a given zone district. Such uses require individual approval and permit granted by the planning and zoning commission.

"Condominium" means one (1) or more structure containing two (2) or more dwelling units each that are sold to and held under individual ownership by the occupants, and which may or may not include ownership of the land upon which the dwelling units are situated. This includes townhouses, patio houses, and other similar forms of individual ownership.

"Contiguous" means touching or separated only by an alley or street.

"District" means an area in which there is a specific land use designation.

"Drive-in restaurant" means an establishment where food or beverages are sold and may be consumed on the premises outside the structure primarily in automobiles.

"Dwelling unit" means one (1) or more connected rooms and a single kitchen designed for and occupied by no more than one (1) family for living and sleeping purposes.

"Family" means one (1) or more persons occupying a single dwelling unit, provided that unless all members are related by blood, marriage or legal adoption, no such family shall contain more than three (3) unrelated persons.

"Floor area" means the total gross area of all floors of a building.

"Floor area ratio" means the relationship of the floor area to the lot area computed by dividing the floor area by the lot area.

"Grade" means the average of the finished ground level at the center of all walls of a building.

Height, building. "Building height" means the vertical distance from the finished lot grade to the highest point of the coping of a flat roof; the deck line of a mansard roof; or the average height between the plate and ridge of a gable, hip, or gambrel roof. Exceptions to the height requirements in this title include: silos, chimneys, cooling towers, water towers or tanks, flagpoles, antennas, spires, belfries, and other accessory objects usually required to be placed above the roof level and not intended for human occupancy.

"Home occupation" means an occupation conducted in a dwelling unit, provided that:

1.

No person other than members of the family residing on the premises shall be engaged in such occupation.

2.

The use of the dwelling unit for the home occupation shall be clearly incidental and subordinate to its use for residential purposes by its occupants, and not more than twenty-five (25) percent of the floor area of the dwelling unit for the home occupation shall be used in the conduct of the home occupation, nor more than six hundred (600) square feet of an accessory building.

3.

There shall be no change in the outside appearance of the building or premises, or other visible evidence of the conduct of the home occupation.

4.

There shall be no sales in connection with such home occupation that would disrupt the residential nature of the district.

5.

No traffic shall be generated by such home occupation in greater volumes than would normally be expected in a residential neighborhood.

6.

No equipment or process shall be used in such home occupation which creates noise, vibration, glare, fumes, odors, or electrical interference detectable to the normal senses off the lot if the occupation is conducted in a single-family residence, or outside the dwelling unit if conducted in other than a single-family residence. In the case of electrical interference, no equipment or process shall be used which creates visual or audible interference in any radio or television receivers off the premises, or causes fluctuations in line voltage off the premises.

"Lot" means any parcel of land platted and placed on record in accordance with laws and ordinances; a parcel described by metes and bounds and having frontage on a public right-of-way.

Lot, area. "Lot area" means the aggregate lot area measured to property lines.

Lot, corner. "Corner lot" means any lot located at the intersection of, and having frontage on, two (2) or more streets.

"Lot depth" means the average distance between the front and rear lot lines measured in the mean direction of the side lot lines.

Lot, double-frontage. "Double-frontage lot" means any lot with frontage on two (2) parallel or approximately parallel streets.

"Lot width" means the average distance between the side lot lines measured parallel to the front lot line.

Lot line, front. "Front lot line" means the boundary of a lot bordering on a street. For the purpose of determining setback requirements on corner lot and double frontage lots, all sides bordering on a street shall be considered the front.

Lot line, rear. "Rear lot line" means the lot boundary line which is opposite and most distant from and not coterminous with the front lot line.

Lot line, side. "Side lot line" means any boundary line not a front line or a rear lot line.

"Mobilehome" means a transportable structure, exceeding either eight (8) body feet in width or thirty-two (32) body feet in length, built on a chassis and designed to be used as a moveable dwelling with or without a permanent foundation when connected to required utilities. Any mobilehome not constructed in accordance with the National Manufactured Housing Construction and Safety Standards Act of 1974 shall be prohibited from installation or placement within the city of Belen.

"Mobilehome park" means a parcel of land on which space is leased for terms of twelve (12) months or less, or rented for occupancy for thirty (30) days or more by mobilehomes, and which contains permanent facilities for the use of mobilehome occupants.

"Modular unit" means a factory-fabricated transportable building designed to be used by itself or to be incorporated with similar units at a building site into a modular structure. The term is intended to apply to major assemblies which must conform to the local building code, and does not include prefabricated panels, trusses, plumbing trees, and other prefabricated sub-elements which are to be incorporated in a structure at the building site.

"Nonconforming uses, lots, structures" means any building, structure, or portion thereof, or use of any building or land which does not conform to the regulations of this title and which lawfully existed on the effective date of those regulations with which it does not conform.

"Overlay zone" means a zone district placed over other zones such that special zoning requirements are imposed in addition to those of the underlying zone. Development within the overlay zone must conform to the requirements of both zones or the more restrictive of the two (2) zones.

"Permanent zone" means a zone district which is established by ordinance.

"Premises" means any lot or combination of contiguous lots held in single ownership together with all development thereon.

"Recreational vehicle," "travel trailer" means a vehicular, portable structure built on a chassis, designed to be used as a temporary dwelling for travel and recreational purposes, and not permanently connected to utilities.

"Setback" means the required distance between every building or structure and any lot line on the lot on which it is located. Setbacks shall consist of an open space, unoccupied and unobstructed by any part of a building or structure, except as otherwise provided in this title. Structures exempt from setback regulations include walls, fences, signs, satellite dish antennas, and public utility poles and lines.

Setback, front. "Front setback" means an open area extending across the full width of a lot, the depth of which is the shortest distance between the front lot line and a building or structure located on said lot.

Setback, rear. "Rear setback" means an open area extending across the full width of a lot, the depth of which is the shortest distance between the rear lot line and a building or structure located on said lot.

Setback, side. "Side setback" means an open area not included in any front or rear setbacks of a lot and measured in width by the shortest distance between a side lot line and a building or structure located on said lot.

"Spot zoning" means assigning a lot, a parcel, or several lots or parcels a zoning classification inconsistent with that of the zone district in which it is located, with the effect of conferring special benefits or privileges upon particular property owners, or bringing about a detriment to the general welfare of the surrounding neighborhood.

"Structure" means anything constructed or erected with a fixed location on the ground, or attached to something having a fixed location on the ground. Among other things, structures include buildings, mobilehomes, walls, fences, billboards, and poster panels, but exclude sidewalks, driveways and uncovered patios.

"Temporary zone" means a zone assigned to all territories annexed to the city of Belen which shall be effective from the date the annexation is effective until the date the city of Belen establishes a permanent zone by ordinance.

"Travel trailer court or campground" means any lot, tract or parcel of land licensed and used or offered for use in whole or in part, for the parking of occupied travel trailers, pick-up campers, converted buses, recreational vehicles, tent trailers, tents or similar devices used for temporary portable housing and used solely for living and/or sleeping purposes.

"Use" means the purpose for which land or a building is arranged, designed or intended, or for which land or a building is or may be occupied.

"Variance" means a relaxation of the terms of this title where such variance will not be contrary to the public interest and where, owing to conditions peculiar to the property and not the result of actions of the applicant, a literal enforcement of this title would result in unnecessary and undue hardship. As used in this title, a variance may be authorized only for area, height, dimension, distance, setback, off-street parking, and off-street loading requirements.

"Zero lot line development" means a development approach in which a building is sited on one (1) or both of the side lot lines with an appropriate exemption from side setback requirements. The intent is to allow more flexibility in site design, and to increase the overall density of a small lot subdivision without sacrificing open space. Zero (0) lot line developments may include single-family detached dwelling units with one (1) wall of the building on a side property line, and multiple dwelling units with common walls placed along side property lines.

(Ord. No. 2015-14, 11-16-2015)