This chapter shall be known, referred
to and cited as the "Subdivision Ordinance of Sussex County, Delaware."
A.
The Sussex County Council, by authority
of Chapters 68 and 69, Title 9, Delaware Code, hereby adopts the following
regulations governing the subdivision and development of lands located
within the jurisdiction of said county.
A.
This chapter is established to promote
and protect the health, safety, convenience, orderly growth and welfare
of the citizens of the county; to assist in the proper development,
conservation of property values and use of land in the county; to
encourage the preservation and conservation of farmland; and to assure
that future schools and other public buildings, community facilities,
residential developments and commercial and industrial areas will
be conveniently and properly located.
B.
The provisions and requirements of this
chapter shall not apply to subdivisions and land developments for
which plans have been recorded in the office of Recorder of Deeds
in and for Sussex County, Delaware; except, however, that changes
sufficient to constitute a subdivision, as defined in this chapter,
are subject to all applicable provisions in this chapter.
The following general rules of word
meaning and usage shall apply to this chapter.
A.
The singular number includes the plural
and the plural the singular, unless the context clearly indicates
the contrary.
B.
Words used in the present tense include
the past and future tenses, and the future the present.
C.
The word "shall" is always mandatory. The
word "may" is permissive.
D.
The word "public" means "open to common
use," whether or not public ownership is involved.
E.
Words and terms not defined herein shall
be interpreted in accord with their normal dictionary meaning and
customary usage.
For the purpose of this chapter,
certain terms and words are hereby defined:
A narrow public or private thoroughfare, not exceeding 16
feet in width, which provides a secondary means of vehicular access
to abutting properties and which is not intended for general circulation.
A line within a lot, so designated on a plat of a subdivision,
between which line and the street line of any abutting street no building
or structure may be erected.
The minimum distance that a building must be set back from
a street or lot line as required by a building setback line so designated
on a plat of a subdivision. The "building setback" may be greater
than but shall not be less than required in the Zoning Ordinance.[1]
An overall lot grading plan prepared by a licensed professional
who is permitted to prepare detailed sediment and stormwater plans,
specifying the elevation, surface gradients, lot types, swale locations,
driveway pipe sizes and other drainage information required for lot
grading, as further set forth in the Sussex Conservation District
Technical Drainage and Grading Requirements. A bulk grading plan shall
confirm that all conveyance features must be located in deeded open
space or the subject of a permanent easement, and that they satisfy
the following requirements:
[Added 3-28-2017 by Ord. No. 2489]
Conveyance swale design criteria:
A minimum longitudinal swale slope
of 1.0% if contiguous to a residential lot excluding roadside swales.
If the slope is greater than 0.5% but less than 1%, then no more than
300 feet of conveyance swale can be routed through an adjacent lot,
not to exceed three side-by-side lots, prior to entering a closed
drainage system. All other conveyance swale design criteria shall
apply.
Maximum side slopes of 3:1 or flatter.
Must contain the ten-year design
storm within the banks.
Conveyance must be nonerosive.
Must show spot elevations at grade
breaks in the proposed conveyance swales as applicable.
Must include flow direction arrows.
Pipe/inlet size, type, inverts, slope,
rim elevations must be labeled on the plan view.
Must include a summary table listing
conveyance swale drainage area, discharge (Q10), velocity and depth
of flow.
Closed drainage system design criteria:
Must include yard basins where required
within the drainage easement or open space to capture and convey lot
surface runoff via a closed system to a positive outfall location.
Must show spot elevations at grade
breaks in the proposed conveyance swales as applicable.
Must include flow direction arrows.
Pipe/inlet size, type, inverts, slope,
rim elevations must be labeled on the plan view.
Profiles for closed drainage systems
receiving residential lot drainage shall only be required within a
system with more than two pipes and/or structures that are not located
within a roadway.
Must include a summary table listing
conveyance swale drainage area, discharge (Q10), velocity and depth
of flow.
See "roadway."
A street which is intended to collect traffic from the minor
streets within a neighborhood or a portion thereof and to distribute
such traffic to major thoroughfares.
The County Planning and Zoning Commission of Sussex County.
Sussex County, Delaware.
The attorney or attorneys appointed by the Sussex County
Council to serve as legal counsel to the County Council and the County
Planning and Zoning Commission.
The County Engineer of Sussex County, Delaware.
A public way intended for pedestrian use and excluding motor
vehicles which cuts across a block in order to furnish improved access
to adjacent streets or properties.
A minor street having but one end open for vehicular traffic
and the other end permanently terminated by a turnaround or backaround
for vehicles.
A plan depicting final grades for land development prepared
by a licensed professional who is permitted to prepare detailed sediment
and stormwater management plans, including house and lot perimeter
spot elevations and conveyance features to ensure positive drainage
under the minimum slope requirements. A detailed grading plan shall
satisfy the following requirements:
[Added 3-28-2017 by Ord. No. 2489]
It must demonstrate that lots can
be graded with a minimum slope of 5% the first 10 feet from the dwelling
or as required by building/residential codes and 1% beyond 10 feet
to the side and rear swales or a closed pipe.
It must show spot elevations delineating
grade breaks at all property and right-of-way lines, including finished
grades at all lot and house corners.
It must show first floor and slab
elevations.
Relief from the foregoing standards
may be granted by the Sussex County Engineer for environmental, topographic,
archeological or site constraints or low-impact development (i.e.,
rain gardens, bioswales, etc.).
The Planning and Zoning Director of Sussex County, Delaware.
A piece of land for which the owner grants a right of use
to someone else for one or more designated purposes, which purposes
are consistent with the general property rights of the owners. The
use may be in perpetuity or for a designated period of time and may
be subject to abandonment.
An individual technically qualified and legally qualified
in the State of Delaware to practice the profession of engineering
and who is registered to do so in the State of Delaware.
A feature, excluding laterals draining agricultural fields,
that carries only runoff in direct response to precipitation with
water flowing only during and shortly after large precipitation events.
An ephemeral stream may or may not have a well-defined channel, its
aquatic bed is always above the water table during a year of normal
rainfall, and runoff is its primary source of water. An ephemeral
stream typically lacks the biological, hydrological, and physical
characteristics commonly associated with the continuous or intermittent
conveyance of water.
[Added 5-17-2022 by Ord. No. 2852]
The map or plan or record of a subdivision and any accompanying
material, as described in these regulations.
A strip of land, not less than 20 feet in width, exclusive
of any residential lots, stormwater management areas or facilities,
open space (except that the land area within the buffer strip may
be included in the overall calculation of open space), recreational
amenities, wastewater treatment and/or disposal facilities, water
treatment facilities, streets, buildings or other surface improvements
and located along the entire outer perimeter of any portion of a major
subdivision of lands into four or more lots adjacent to land of other
ownership. A landscape plan for the buffer shall be designed and certified
to by a licensed landscape architect, licensed forester or forester
designated by the Society of American Foresters as a "certified forester."
The landscape plan shall be reviewed and commented on by the State
Forester and shall be subject to the final review and approval of
the Commission. The following conditions shall apply to the forested
buffer:
[Amended 7-29-2008 by Ord. No. 1984]
All trees that are to be planted
shall include a mix of 70% deciduous shade trees and 30% evergreen
trees, a majority of which shall be suitable trees of common local
species, which may include existing as well as planted trees. Every
one-hundred-foot length of buffer shall include a minimum total of
15 trees.
All deciduous trees that are planted
to establish the buffer plantings shall have a minimum caliper of
1.5 inches and a minimum height of six feet above ground when planted
in order to insure that the trees will be capable of obtaining a minimum
height of 10 feet above ground within five years of being planted.
All evergreen trees that are planted
to establish the buffer plantings shall have a minimum height of five
feet above ground when planted in order to insure that they are reasonably
capable of attaining a minimum height of 10 feet above ground within
five years of being planted.
The landscape plan may include suitable existing deciduous and evergreen trees of common local species, provided they will achieve the overall goal of the plan as described in Subsection E hereof and provided that said existing trees survive the site work construction activity and any changes in the water table and exposure which may result from the construction activity occurring prior to the date the buffer plantings are required to be installed as provided in Subsection F hereof.
The goal of the landscape plan for
the forested buffer area shall be to include trees of the type indicated
herein that will be planted in a staggered natural manner, as opposed
to being planted in row fashion, which will filter views from and
into the subdivision in such a manner that the areas on the agricultural
side of the buffer area appear more green and less visible and the
structures or uses on the subdivision side appear less obvious and
less dense than if no landscaping had been required. The procedures
and details for planting new trees shall be specified by the landscape
architect on the plan submitted to and approved by the Commission
and shall include the requirement that the buffer area shall have
a final grade that contains a minimum of four inches of topsoil and
a suitable grass mix planted as sacrificial cover between the buffer
trees for soil stabilization until the newly planted trees become
larger. The plan may substitute woodchips for planted grass between
the buffer trees in respect to both newly planted and existing trees,
as determined by the landscape architect.
The forested and/or landscape buffer
shall be installed within 18 months from the date site work is authorized
to commence, as documented by a notice to proceed letter from the
Commission. For subdivisions that are approved to be constructed in
phases, the buffer for each phase must be completed before County
approvals or permits will be granted to construct the next phase.
The land developer shall be held
responsible for the health and survival of the trees, including regular
necessary watering for a minimum of two years or until such later
date as the maintenance responsibilities are transferred to a homeowners'
association; provided, however, that the developer shall replace any
trees that die during the minimum two-year developer maintenance prior
to transferring maintenance responsibilities to a homeowners' association.
The perpetual maintenance of the buffer plantings by a homeowners' association shall be assured through the restrictive covenants and/or homeowners' association documents. The perpetual maintenance plan shall include the requirement that any trees that die must be replanted with trees of the same type and species and in accordance with the original landscape plan approved by the County. The perpetual maintenance plan shall also include a requirement that the forested buffer area be planted and maintained according to best management practices in the forestry industry. The responsibility for the perpetual maintenance of the buffer strip and its plantings shall be assured through restrictive covenants which are obligatory upon the purchasers through assessments by the homeowners' association. The applicant and/or land developer must provide the Commission with satisfactory proof that the covenants include a perpetual maintenance plan which shall be binding upon the applicant and/or developer during the minimum two-year period described in Subsection G above and thereafter by the homeowners' association. The Commission and its attorney shall review and approve the perpetual maintenance plan prior to the restrictive covenants being recorded and prior to granting final site plan approval.
The twenty-foot forested and/or landscape buffer strip is not required to be installed in those portions of the subdivision perimeter which represent the width of a right-of-way connector road or street that DelDOT or the Commission required the applicant to install pursuant to § 99-17D and the width of a stormwater outfall shown on the final site plan to drain surface or stormwater outside the perimeter of the subdivision.
The landscape plan shall avoid placing
planted trees or allowing existing trees to remain in the areas adjacent
to entrances into and exits from the development in such a manner
as to restrict the view of motorists entering or exiting from the
development or restricting site lines for motorists in such a manner
as to create a potential safety hazard.
Notwithstanding any other provisions
of this chapter, the Planning and Zoning Commission shall be authorized,
as part of the site plan review process, to grant final approval of
a plan for the roadway frontage of a major subdivision which may include
landscape and design features, such as fences, walls, berms, landscape
plantings of shrubs, ornamental grasses and/or trees, multimodal paths
required by DelDOT, open areas, or a combination of such features
which is designed and certified to by a licensed landscape architect,
licensed forester or forester designated by the Society of American
Foresters as a "certified forester" and reviewed and commented upon
by the State Forester, for the purpose of making the subdivision more
attractive, more in keeping with the surrounding area and less visible
from the roadway, provided said plan will not cause the landscape
features contained in the plan to be placed in an area adjacent to
the entrance in such a manner as to restrict the view of motorists
entering or exiting from the subdivision or restricting the sight
lines of motorists in such a manner as to create a potential safety
or traffic hazard.
A lot grading plan prepared by a licensed professional who
is permitted to prepare detailed sediment and stormwater management
plans conforming to the approved detailed grading plan submitted simultaneously
with a building permit for construction on a lot. An individual lot
grading plan shall satisfy the following requirements:
[Added 3-28-2017 by Ord. No. 2489]
It must show compliance with a minimum
slope of 5% the first 10 feet from the dwelling or as required by
building/residential codes and 1% beyond 10 feet to the side and rear
swales or a closed pipe.
It must show spot elevations delineating
grade breaks at all property and right-of-way lines, including finished
grades at all lot and house corners.
It must show first floor and slab
elevations.
Relief from the foregoing standards
may be granted by the Sussex County Engineer for environmental, topographic,
archeological or site constraints or low-impact development (i.e.,
rain gardens, bioswales, etc.).
A well-defined channel, excluding laterals draining agricultural
fields, that contains flowing water for only part of the year, typically
during winter and spring when the aquatic bed is below the water table,
connecting otherwise isolated nontidal wetlands to downstream tidal/perennial
waters/streams. The flow may be heavily supplemented by runoff. An
intermittent stream often lacks the biological and hydrological characteristics
commonly associated with the continuous conveyance of water.
[Added 5-17-2022 by Ord. No. 2852]
See "minor street."
A fractional portion of a subdivision, measured, surveyed
and platted and set apart for separate use and occupancy from contiguous
parcels of land, and having its principal frontage upon a street.
The total horizontal area within the lot lines of the lot.
The average horizontal distance between the front and rear
lot lines.
A certification prepared by a licensed professional who is
permitted to prepare detailed sediment and stormwater management plans
that a lot, as graded, is in general conformity with the individual
lot grading plan. A lot grading certificate shall include the following
information:
[Added 3-28-2017 by Ord. No. 2489]
North arrow.
Tax Map and parcel number(s).
Subdivision name and lot number.
Property lines, lot dimensions, drainage
easements and adjacent rights-of-way.
The location of the following items:
Elevations at four corners of the
structure and at the location of the spot elevations indicated on
the detailed grading plan as applicable.
Inverts of drainage structures receiving
runoff from the lot.
Top and bottom of curb and gutter
(if applicable).
Driveway culvert pipe material, size
and inverts, where applicable.
Immediately adjacent upstream and
downstream driveway culverts, including inverts and pipe sizes (if
applicable).
Swale inverts along property frontage.
Finished floor and slab elevations.
A description of any discrepancies
or variations from the approved plans (including site plans, detailed
grading plan, construction plans or calculations and specifications)
and any approved revisions as a result thereof.
The boundary line of the lot.
A lot having frontage on two approximately parallel streets.
The shortest horizontal distance between the side lot lines measured at the required building setback line. If the angle between the front and side lines is less than 90°, the lot width shall be measured from side to side at right angles to the length of the setback line. (See definition of "lot width" in § 115-4B of Chapter 115, Zoning, for example.)
Those roadways in the unincorporated areas of Sussex County
or subject to the zoning regulation of Sussex County, Delaware, which
because of the traffic patterns of Sussex County operate at capacity
and which are designated as follows:
[Added 6-11-1991 by Ord. No. 768]
Delaware Route 1 from the Kent County
line to the Worcester County, Maryland, line.
U.S. Route 113 from the Kent County
line to the Worcester County, Maryland, line.
U.S. Route 13 from the Kent County
line to the Wicomico County, Maryland, line.
Delaware Route 404 from the Caroline
County, Maryland, line to its intersection with Delaware Route 18.
Delaware Route 18 from its intersection
with Delaware Route 404 to its intersection with U.S. Route 113.
U.S. Route 9 from its intersection
with U.S. Route 13 to its intersection with Delaware Route 1.
U.S. Route 9 from its intersection
with Delaware Route 1 to the southwesterly town limit of the Town
of Lewes.
Any subdivision of land creating six or more new lots.
[Amended 3-25-1997 by Ord. No. 1130; 5-17-2022 by Ord. No. 2852]
A street other than a major thoroughfare or collector street
and intended primarily for providing access to abutting properties.
Any subdivision creating five or fewer lots and not adversely
affecting the development of the remainder of the parcel or adjoining
property and not in conflict with any provisions or portion of the
County Comprehensive Plan, Official Map, Zoning Ordinance, or this
chapter. Only one such subdivision shall be approved per year per
parcel. The maximum number of lots created in the minor subdivision
process shall not exceed four plus one for each 10 acres of original
parcel size.
[Amended 3-25-1997 by Ord. No. 1130; 5-17-2022 by Ord. No. 2852]
Those wetlands, not classified by this chapter as tidal wetlands,
which lie contiguous or abutting to tidal waters, tidal wetlands,
perennial streams or those intermittent streams providing a surface
water connection between adjacent wetlands and ultimately downstream
navigable waters. Nontidal wetlands also include those wetlands only
separated from otherwise contiguous or abutting wetlands by constructed
dikes, barriers, culverts, natural river berms and beach dunes
[Added 5-17-2022 by Ord. No. 2852]
The highest level of flooding that, on the average, is likely
to occur once every 100 years (i.e., that has a one-percent chance
of occurring each year). It does not imply, however, that no greater
flood is likely to occur or that such a flood will not happen more
often than once every 100 years.
[Added 6-6-1995 by Ord. No. 1031]
In the approximate areas of the coastal floodplain, the Director shall obtain, review and reasonably utilize any base flood elevation and floodway data available from a federal, state or other source until such other data has been provided by the Federal Insurance Administrator in order to determine the required elevation for conformance to requirements of Chapter 115, Article XXV, § 115-189, of the Code of Sussex County.
In addition, for all subdivision
proposals and other proposed developments greater than 50 lots or
five acres, whichever is the lesser, the developer shall include within
such proposals base flood elevation data utilizing hydrologic and
hydraulic engineering techniques undertaken only by professional engineers
or others of demonstrated qualifications.
Those land areas within all major residential subdivisions,
residential planned communities or developments which have a purpose
to provide active and/or passive recreational opportunities, maintain
land in a predominantly undeveloped or natural state, including lands
used for agricultural purposes, promote conservation, protect wildlife
or serve as a buffer between residential and nonresidential areas
and/or commercial and noncommercial areas.
[Added 12-16-2008 by Ord. No. 2022[2]]
The following uses are permitted
and the land area devoted to said uses will be included in the calculation
of open space:
Recreational facilities, including
swimming pools, game courts, play areas, walking paths, bike paths
and multimodal paths that are not located on state road rights-of-way,
provided that impervious cover does not exceed 15% of calculated open
space area.
Ponds which have a demonstrated recreational
value.
Buffers and forested areas.
Areas protected by perpetual conservation
easements.
Areas providing scenic vistas, areas
providing wildlife corridors.
Sidewalks not located within street
rights-of-way.
Areas designated as "safe zones" under the Source Water Protection Ordinance contained in Chapter 89.
Spray irrigation areas, not including
areas occupied by rapid infiltration basins.
Tidal and nontidal wetlands.
Stormwater management facility areas.
The following uses are not permitted
and the land area devoted to said uses will not be included in the
calculation of open space:
Land area included within designated
lot lines.
Building footprints.
Predominantly impervious surfaces,
such as street rights-of-way, sidewalks within street rights-of-way,
parking and/or loading areas.
Utility facilities, including but
not limited to, any building, plant, equipment for treatment or pumping,
lagoons and rapid infiltration basins, for sewer, water, gas, and/or
electric utilities.
Any reference in this chapter to
"open space" shall be subject to and governed by this definition.
The boundary of perennial nontidal rivers or streams, intermittent
streams or ephemeral streams shall be defined by the ordinary high-water
mark. "Ordinary high-water mark" means the line on a shore or bank
established by the fluctuations of water and indicated by physical
characteristics, such as a clear, natural line impressed on the bank,
shelving, changes in the character of soil, destruction of terrestrial
vegetation, the presence of litter and debris, or other similar physical
characteristics indicating the frequent presence of flowing water.
[Added 5-17-2022 by Ord. No. 2852]
A well-defined channel that contains flowing water year round
during a year of normal rainfall with the aquatic bed located below
the water table for most of the year and which is not subject to tidal
influence. Groundwater is the primary source of water for a perennial
stream, but it also carries runoff. A perennial stream exhibits the
typical biological, hydrological, and physical characteristics commonly
associated with the continuous conveyance of water.
[Added 5-17-2022 by Ord. No. 2852]
The preliminary drawing or drawings described in these regulations,
indicating the proposed manner or layout of the subdivision to be
submitted to the Planning and Zoning Commission for approval.
Any owner of a parcel of real estate identified on the assessment
rolls of the Sussex County Assessment Office.
[Added 6-26-2012 by Ord. No. 2269]
The Recorder of Deeds of Sussex County, Delaware.
The whole body of regulations, text, charts, diagrams, notations
and references contained or referred to in this chapter and the Comprehensive
Zoning Ordinance.[3]
A managed area between residential land uses and resources
that is not subdividable once established, with the exception of a
subdivision boundary resulting from an approved phase. Resource buffers
function to:
[Added 5-17-2022 by Ord. No. 2852]
Protect the resources and their associated
functions.
Improve/protect water quality via
sediment filtration, reduce impact of nutrient loading on resources,
moderate water temperature, and enhance infiltration and stabilization
of channel banks.
Provide wildlife habitat via nesting,
breeding, and feeding opportunities; provide sanctuary/refuge during
high-water events; protect critical water's edge habitat; and protect
rare, threatened, and endangered species associated with each resource
and its upland edge.
Enhance and/or maintain the floodplain
storage functionality via reduction of flood conveyance velocities
as well as dissipation of stormwater discharge energy.
Those wetlands and waters to be provided with a resource
buffer due to their importance to Sussex County. These resources include
tidal waters, tidal wetlands, nontidal wetlands, perennial streams,
and those intermittent streams providing a surface water connection
between wetlands.
[Added 5-17-2022 by Ord. No. 2852]
The portion of a street or highway available for and intended
for use by motor vehicle traffic.
A minor street which is parallel to and adjacent to a major
thoroughfare and which provides access to abutting properties and
restricts access to the major thoroughfare.
A public or private thoroughfare which affords the principal
means of access to abutting properties, whether designated as "freeway,"
"expressway," "highway," "road," "avenue," "boulevard," "lane," "place,"
"circle" or however otherwise designated.
[Amended 2-5-2019 by Ord. No. 2629]
A dividing line separating a lot, tract or parcel of land
and a contiguous street and also referred to as a "right-of-way line."
Any individual, firm, partnership, association, corporation,
estate, trust or any other group or combination, acting as a unit,
dividing or proposing to divide land so as to constitute a subdivision,
as defined herein, and including any agent of the subdivider.
Any real property, improved or unimproved, or a portion thereof
shown on the latest adopted county tax roll as a unit or as contiguous
units, which is divided for the purpose of sale or lease or building
development, whether immediate or future, by any subdivider into two
or more lots.
An individual technically and legally qualified to practice
the profession of surveying and who is registered to do so in the
State of Delaware.
A drainage channel or conveyance and the corresponding right-of-way
established and/or formed in accordance with Title 7, Chapter 41,
of the Delaware Code, and approved by a ditch order entered by the
Superior Court of the State of Delaware and County of Sussex.
[Added 5-17-2022 by Ord. No. 2852]
A Committee comprising the staff of the Commission, County
Engineer and representatives of the following, which shall be designated
from time to time by the Commission: the State Division of Highways,
State Division of Environmental Control, State Fire Marshal's Office
and such other professional and technical representatives as may be
deemed necessary by the Commission. The exact membership of the Committee
shall be determined by vote of the Commission, as will the number
necessary to constitute a quorum, the times and places for meetings
and such other measures necessary to create a Committee which shall
effectively function as an advisory body to the Commission with regard
to design requirements, improvement specifications and other applicable
standards relating to the design and construction of subdivisions.
Those waters occurring below the mean high-water line of
any tidal water body, tidal stream, or tidal marsh, which is defined
as the average height of all the high-tide water recorded over a nineteen-year
period as defined by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
[Added 5-17-2022 by Ord. No. 2852]
Areas under the jurisdiction of Title 7, Chapter 66, of the
Delaware Code, as regulated and mapped by the Department of Natural
resources and Environmental Control.
[Added 5-17-2022 by Ord. No. 2852]
Activities that are approved through federal and state permit
programs that meet the definition of water-dependent activities included
in those programs. Water-dependent uses are uses that can only be
conducted on, in, over, or adjacent to the water; each involves, as
an integral part of the use, direct access to and use of the water.
Examples include marinas, boat ramps/launches, docks, piers, water
intakes, aquatic habitat restoration, and similar uses.
[Added 5-17-2022 by Ord. No. 2852]
Those considered ancillary to and supporting permitted water-dependent
activities completed on adjacent uplands. Examples include utility
connections, limited points of access, loading/unloading areas, and
similar uses.
[Added 5-17-2022 by Ord. No. 2852]
Any body of water, including any creek, canal, river, lake
or bay, or any other body of water, natural or artificial.
Areas that are inundated or saturated by surface water or
groundwater at a frequency and duration sufficient to support, and
that under normal circumstances do support, a prevalence of vegetation
typically adapted for life in saturated soil conditions. Agricultural
land consisting of prior converted croplands, as defined by the National
Food Security Act Manual (August 1988), are not wetlands. The procedure
for delineating the boundary of all wetlands, except for tidal wetlands
as defined by this chapter, shall be the methodology provided in the
Corps of Engineers Wetland Delineation Manual (January 1987) and the
Regional Supplement to the Corps of Engineers Wetland Delineation
Manual: Atlantic and Gulf Coastal Plain Region (November 2010).
[Added 5-17-2022 by Ord. No. 2852]
The Comprehensive Zoning Ordinance of Sussex County, Delaware.[4]
A.
Any person, partnership or corporation
intending to subdivide and develop land, as defined herein, shall
prepare a plan of said proposed subdivision or land development in
accordance with this chapter. Said plan shall be prepared and submitted
to the Commission for review and approval and shall be recorded in
the office of the Recorder of Deeds.
B.
In Agricultural Districts, as designated
on the Official Zoning Map of Sussex County, any division of a parcel
of land into lesser parcels of five acres or more and being a minimum
width of at least 200 feet shall be permitted, provided that it does
not involve a proposed new street or an extension to an existing street.
C.
The Recorder of Deeds shall not receive,
file or record a plat or any copy thereof of any new lot unless the
plat has been approved by the Commission.
D.
No building permit shall be issued for
construction on lands where a subdivision or land development plan
is required to be approved until the record plan is approved and recorded
in the office of the Recorder of Deeds as hereinafter provided.
E.
No grading, excavating, construction or
erection under the jurisdiction of Sussex County may begin within
any subdivision or development except in accordance with this chapter
and after the issuance of a notice to proceed by the County Engineer
or his or her designee.
[Amended 3-28-2017 by Ord. No. 2489]
F.
When land being subdivided is subject to
these regulations and regulations of other public agencies, the more
restrictive provisions shall be observed.
G.
Agricultural use protections. Normal agricultural
uses and activities conducted in a lawful manner are preferred. In
order to establish and maintain a preference and priority for such
normal agricultural uses and activities and avert and negate complaints
arising from normal noise, dust, manure and other odors, the use of
agricultural chemicals and nighttime farm operations, land uses adjacent
to land used primarily for agricultural purposes shall be subject
to the following restrictions:
[Added 11-10-1992 by Ord. No. 862[1]]
(1)
For any new subdivision development located
in whole or in part within 300 feet of the boundary of land used primarily
for agricultural purposes, the owner of the development shall provide
in the deed restrictions and any leases or agreements of sale for
any residential lot or dwelling unit the following notice: "This property
is located in the vicinity of land used primarily for agricultural
purposes on which normal agricultural uses and activities have been
afforded the highest priority use status. It can be anticipated that
such agricultural uses and activities may now or in the future involve
noise, dust, manure and other odors, the use of agricultural chemicals
and nighttime farm operations. The use and enjoyment of this property
is expressly conditioned on acceptance of any annoyance or inconvenience
which may result from such normal agricultural uses and activities."
(2)
For any new subdivision development located
in whole or in part within 50 feet of the boundary of land used primarily
for agricultural purposes, no improvement requiring an occupancy approval
for a residential type use shall be constructed within 50 feet of
the boundary of land used primarily for agricultural purposes.
[1]
Editor's Note: Section 2 of this ordinance
provided that it "shall take effect... as to all applications for
the subdivision of land filed with the Planning and Zoning Commission
on or after November 10, 1992."
H.
When land being subdivided contains wetlands,
either state or federal, or a resource with resource buffers, the
recorded restrictive covenants or declaration for the subdivision
and the deeds to the lots to be conveyed shall include a disclosure
statement that reads "This site contains regulated wetlands or a resource
with resource buffers governed by the Sussex County Zoning and Subdivision
Codes. Activities within these wetlands may require a permit from
the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and/or the State of Delaware. Disturbance
of a resource or resource buffer may be a violation of the Sussex
County Zoning and Subdivision Codes, for which penalties and other
remedies may be imposed by Sussex County.
[Added 12-6-1994 by Ord. No. 996; amended 5-17-2022 by Ord. No. 2852]
I.
If any subdivision or other developments
are proposed within the flood-prone districts, a zoning permit shall
be issued only after the following items are submitted and approved:
[Added 6-6-1995 by Ord. No. 1031]
(1)
A plan which accurately locates the construction
proposal with respect to the flood-prone area boundaries, stream channel
and existing flood-prone developments. Included shall be all plans
for proposed subdivision and/or land development to assure that:
(a)
All such proposals are consistent with
the need to minimize flood damage.
(b)
All public and private utilities, such
as sewer, water, on-site waste disposal, gas and electrical systems,
are located and constructed to minimize or eliminate flood damage
and designed to minimize or eliminate infiltration of floodwaters
into the systems and discharges from the systems into floodwaters.
(c)
Adequate drainage is provided so as to
reduce exposure to flood hazards.
(2)
Such a plan shall also include existing
and proposed contours and elevations of the ground, storage elevations,
structure, size, locations and elevations of streets, water supply,
sanitary facilities, soil types and floodproofing measures.
(3)
A document certified by a registered professional engineer or architect that adequate precautions against flood damage have been taken with respect to the design of any building or structure and that the plans for the development of the site adhere to the requirements and provisions of Chapter 115, Article XXV, § 115-189, of the Code of Sussex County.
J.
A forested and/or landscape buffer, as defined in § 99-5, Subsections A through J, must be depicted on the preliminary and final plot plans for each major subdivision of lands and must be established in accordance with all the requirements of the definition of "forested and/or landscaped buffer strip," Subsections A through J in § 99-5.
[Added 7-29-2008 by Ord. No. 1984; amended 5-17-2022 by Ord. No. 2852]
