For the purpose of this chapter, certain words
or phrases shall have meanings that either vary somewhat from their
customary dictionary meanings or are intended to be interpreted to
have a specific meaning. Words used in the present tense in this chapter
include the future. The word "person" includes a firm, association,
partnership, trust, company, or corporation as well as an individual.
The word "he" includes the word "she." The word "shall" is mandatory,
the word "should" is advisory, and the word "may" is permissive. Any
words not defined in this chapter shall be presumed to have their
customary dictionary definitions.
As used in this chapter, the following terms
shall have the meanings indicated:
A use or detached structure subordinate to the principal
use of a structure, land, or water and located on the same lot or
parcel serving a purpose customarily incidental to the principal use
or principal structure.
The remaining ground area after deleting all portions for
proposed and existing street rights-of-way within a development or
subdivision.
See "sexually oriented establishment."
A device designed to receive or send broadcasts either as
over-the-air signals from transmitters, including fixed television,
telecommunication, or radio signals, or microwave signals from earth-orbiting
communication satellites.
A dish-shaped antenna designed to receive television broadcasts
relayed by microwave signals from earth-orbiting communication satellites.
Any antenna designed to receive television, telecommunication,
or radio signals relayed from one ground location to another ground
location. Such antennas are typically mounted on a tower or support
on the rooftop of a structure or on freestanding towers.
A retail store where objects such as furniture, glassware,
coins, and other objects prized for their rarity, style, or historic
period are sold.
See "street, arterial."
A bunting or flexible sign characteristically supported at
two or more points and usually fastened to a building or otherwise
suspended down or along its face or across streets. The banner may
or may not include copy or other graphic symbols.
That portion of any structure which is below grade or which
is partly below and partly above grade but so located that the vertical
distance from the grade to the basement floor is greater than the
vertical distance from the grade to the basement ceiling.
See § 435-15C.
An area of land which may contain sufficient area and width,
landscape plantings, earth berms, fencing, walls, or other visual
and/or sound barriers intended to eliminate or minimize land use conflicts
between adjacent land uses.
Any structure having a roof supported by columns or walls
used or intended to be used for the shelter or enclosure of persons,
animals, equipment, machinery, or materials.
The vertical distance measured from the average established
street grade in the front or street yard of the lot or the finished
grade at the building line, whichever is higher, to the highest point
of the coping (cap) of a flat roof, to the highest point a mansard
roof, or to the average height between the eaves and the highest point
(ridge) of a gable, hip, or gambrel roof.
A building in which the principal use of the lot on which
it is located is conducted. Any building intended to be used for human
habitation shall constitute a principal building.
A lawful commercial endeavor to engage in the production,
purchase, sale, lease, or exchange of goods and/or the provision of
services.
Establishments that primarily provide goods and services
to other businesses, including but not limited to minor job printing,
duplicating, binding and mailing, office security, maintenance and
custodial services, and office equipment and machinery sales, rental,
and repairing, but not manufacturing of any products.
Establishments for places of business engaged in the sale,
rental, or repair of office equipment, supplies, and materials or
the provision of services used by office, professional, and service
establishments. Typical uses include office equipment and supply firms,
small business machine repair shops, convenience printing and copying
establishments, temporary labor services, and security services.
Any facility used for the washing of vehicles requiring the
installation of special equipment or machinery and plumbing affixed
to or separate from the structure.
Nonprofit associations or organizations consisting of a group
of people formally organized for a common interest, usually cultural,
fraternal, or entertainment, with regular meetings and formal written
membership requirements. Such public or private associations or organizations
(including charitable organizations) operate, not primarily for profit,
civic-oriented or publicly owned buildings or uses, including auditoriums,
theaters, art centers, libraries, music halls, convention or community
centers, assembly halls, and offices, including, without limitation,
parking and dining facilities and other related or accessory building,
facilities, and uses.
Shops where clothing is repaired, such as shoe, seamstress,
tailor, and clothes-pressing shops.
Retail stores where clothing is sold, such as department
stores, dry goods and shoe stores, and dress, hosiery, and millinery
shops.
See "street, collector."
A telecommunication facility comprised of a single telecommunication
tower or building supporting multiple antennas, dishes, or similar
devices owned or used by more than one public or private telecommunication
provider.
An establishment providing services for part of a day in
a group setting to adults who need an enriched health-supportive or
social experience and who may need assistance with activities of daily
living, supervision, or protection.
An establishment providing care and supervision for four
or more persons under the age of seven for less than 24 hours a day
and licensed by the State of Wisconsin pursuant to § 48.65,
Wis. Stats.
Licensed commercial wireless telecommunication services,
including cellular, personal communication services (PCS), specialized
mobilized radio (SMR), enhanced specialized mobilized radio (ESMR),
paging, and similar services that are marketed to the general public.
A place where five or more adults who are not related to
the operator or administrator of the facility reside in which care,
treatment, or services above the level of room and board are provided,
but not including more than three hours of nursing care per week per
resident or above intermediate-level nursing care. A community-based
residential facility is subject to state-level licensing and operational
limitations as set forth in Ch. 50, Wis. Stats. A CBRF does not include
any of the following: a convent, facilities for victims of domestic
abuse, a shelter, or other facilities excluded in § 50.01(1g),
Wis. Stats.
The following facilities licensed and operated or permitted
under the authority of the Wisconsin Statutes: child welfare agencies
under § 48.60, Wis. Stats., group foster homes for children
under § 48.02(7), Wis. Stats., and community-based residential
facilities under § 50.01, Wis. Stats., but does not include
adult family homes, day-care centers, nursing homes, general hospitals,
special hospitals, prisons, or jails. The establishment of community
living arrangements is governed by §§ 46.03(22), 48.625,
59.69(15), and 62.23(7)(i), Wis. Stats.
See "use, conditional."
A building or group of buildings in which units are owned
individually and the structure, common areas, and facilities are owned
by all owners on a proportional, undivided basis. It is a legal form
of ownership of real estate and not a specific building type or style.
Establishments engaged in the distribution, handling, and
installation of construction materials. For the purpose of this chapter,
"construction services" does not include retail sales of construction
materials to the general public, such as hardware or lumber stores.
A practice or combination of practices to control erosion
and attendant pollution.
A written description of the number, locations, sizes, and
other pertinent information of control measures designed to meet the
requirements of the construction site erosion control provisions of
this chapter submitted by the applicant for review and approval by
the Village.
The highest point or covering course of a wall often with
a sloping top to carry off water and commonly cut with a drip.
See "commercial adult care center."
See commercial child care center."
Any man-made change to improved or unimproved real estate,
including but not limited to the construction of or addition or substantial
improvements to buildings, structures or accessory structures; the
placement of buildings or structures; ditching, lagooning, dredging,
filling, grading, paving, excavation or drilling operations; and the
deposition or extraction of earthen materials.
A part or parts of the Village for which the regulations
of this chapter governing the use and location of land and buildings
are uniform (such as the residential, business, and industrial district
classifications).
A zoning designation that modifies the underlying basic use
zoning district requirements in a specific manner.
A building designed or used exclusively as a residence or
sleeping place, but does not include boardinghouses or lodging houses,
motels, hotels, tents, cabins, or motor homes.
A two-level dwelling with one level above grade and the other
level partially below grade. The lower level may or may not have exterior
access. For the purpose of measuring living areas, the Building Inspector
will determine functional areas, as set forth in the definition of
"living area," and the first floor area, which usually is the first
level that is entirely above grade.
A dwelling unit consisting of one principal room with no
separate sleeping rooms.
A residential building designed for or occupied by three
or more families, with the number of families in residence not to
exceed the number of dwelling units provided.
A building designed for or occupied exclusively by one family
and surrounded by open space or yards and which is not attached to
any other dwelling by any means.
A three-level dwelling with two levels above grade and a
third level partially below grade. The lowest level may or may not
have exterior access. For the purpose of measuring living areas, the
Building Inspector will determine functional areas, as set forth in
the definition of "living area," and the first floor area, which usually
is the first level that is entirely above grade.
A building containing two separate dwelling (or living) units,
designed for occupancy by not more than two families. A two-family
dwelling may also be known as a "duplex."
One or more rooms designed, occupied, or intended to be occupied
as separate living quarters, with cooking, sleeping, and sanitary
facilities provided within the dwelling unit for exclusive use of
a single family maintaining a household.
The projecting lower edge of a roof overhanging the wall
of the building.
In the case of an election for office, the period beginning
on the first day for circulation of nomination papers by candidates,
or the first day on which candidates would circulate nomination papers
if papers were required, and ending on the day of the election. In
the case of a referendum, the period beginning on the day on which
the question to be voted upon is submitted to the electorate and ending
on the day on which the referendum is held.
The detachment and movement of soil, sediment, or rock fragments
by water, wind, ice, or gravity.
Services provided by public and private utilities necessary
for the exercise of the principal use or service of the principal
structure. These services include underground, surface, or overhead
electrical, gas, water, sanitary sewerage, stormwater drainage, and
communication systems and accessories thereto, such as poles, wires,
mains, drains, vaults, culverts, laterals, sewers, pipes, catch basins,
underground water storage tanks, conduits, cables, traffic signals,
pumps, and hydrants, but not including buildings.
An event venue is a location which is rented to third parties
for events (including weddings, fundraisers, meetings, conferences,
and family celebrations) at which food and beverage may be served
either by the operator or a professional catering service and live
or recorded entertainment may be provided, and for which any structures
are permanent in nature and not tents or other temporary structures.
[Added 4-2-2018 by Ord. No. 4-2018-1]
A dwelling licensed as a day-care center by the State of
Wisconsin pursuant to § 48.65, Wis. Stats., where care is
provided for not more than eight children.
A structure of rails, planks, stakes, strung wire, or similar
material erected as an enclosure, barrier, or boundary. Open fences
are those with more than 50% of their surface area open for free passage
of light and air. Examples of such fences include, but are not limited
to, rail, picket, and wrought iron fences.
A fence intended to guard property against unauthorized entry
and to protect stored goods and products from theft and other unauthorized
handling. Security fences are often made of wrought iron or woven
wire.
A structure of rails, planks, stakes, strung wire, or similar
material erected as an enclosure, barrier, or boundary. Solid fences
are those with 50% or less of their surface area open for free passage
of light and air. Examples of such fences include, but are not limited
to, stockade, board-on-board, board-and-batten, basket weave, and
louvered fences.
See "floor area, first."
A luminaire light distribution where no light is emitted
above the horizontal and where the intensity at 80° from nadir
is not greater than 100 candelas per 1,000 lamp lumens.
A lighting fixture constructed in such a manner that all
light emitted by the fixture, either directly from the lamp or a diffusing
element or indirectly by reflection or refraction from any part of
the luminaire, is projected below the horizontal as determined by
photometric test or certified by the manufacturer. Any structural
part of the light fixture providing this shielding must be permanently
affixed.
All outdoor illuminating devices other than seasonal decorations
using typical unshielded low-wattage incandescent lamps and temporary
lighting such as that used for civic events or construction projects.
An outdoor illuminating device, outdoor lighting or reflective
surface, lamp or similar device, permanently installed or portable,
used for illumination or advertisement. Such devices shall include,
but are not limited to, lights used for:
A general and temporary condition of partial or complete
inundation of normally dry land areas caused by the overflow or rise
of inland waters; the rapid accumulation or runoff of surface waters
from any source; or the sudden increase caused by an unusually high
water level in a natural body of water, accompanied by a severe storm
or by an unanticipated force of nature, such as a seiche, or by some
similarly unusual event.
The land which has been or may be hereafter covered by floodwater
during the regional flood. The floodplain includes the floodway and
the flood-fringe and may include other designated floodplain areas
for regulatory purposes. For the purpose of this chapter, the floodplain
is all lands contained in the regional flood or one-hundred-year recurrence
interval flood, which has a one-percent chance or probability of occurring
in a given year.
The portion of the floodplain outside the floodway that is
subject to inundation by the one-hundred-year recurrence interval
flood.
The channel of a river or stream and those portions of the
floodplain adjoining the channel required to carry the regional flood
discharge.
The sum of the gross horizontal area of all floors of a building
measured from the exterior faces of the exterior walls or, in the
case of a common wall separating two dwellings or units, from the
center line of such a common wall. For the purpose of this chapter,
"floor area" shall not include basements, porches, decks, garages,
and unfinished attics.
For the purpose of identifying the first floor level in a
multistory dwelling, the Building Inspector shall determine the first
floor area, which usually is the first level that is entirely above
grade.
Residential. The sum of the gross horizontal areas of all floors
measured in square feet, not including the basement floor, measured
from the exterior faces of the exterior walls or from the center line
of common walls separating two units. The floor area of a building
includes elevator shafts and stairwells at each floor, floor space
used for mechanical equipment (except equipment, open or closed, located
on a roof or in a basement), penthouses, attic space having headroom
of seven feet 10 inches or more, interior balconies and mezzanines,
enclosed permanently heated porches, and floor area devoted to accessory
uses.
Business, governmental, institutional, and manufacturing buildings.
For the purpose of calculating off-street parking and loading space
requirements, the sum of the gross horizontal area of a floor or floors
of the building, or portion thereof, devoted to a use shall be used
to determine required off-street parking or loading spaces. This floor
area shall include accessory storage areas located within selling
or working space, such as counters, racks, or closets, and any basement
floor area devoted to retailing activities, to the production or processing
of goods, or to business or professional offices. However, floor area,
for the purposes of determining off-street parking spaces, shall not
include floor area devoted primarily to storage purposes except as
otherwise noted herein.
The floor area of a building devoted to customer service,
sales area, or actual operational area and which specifically shall
not include storage, warehouse, utility, hallway, or other accessory
uses.
A ratio used to indicate the total floor area of buildings
allowed on a given lot which is expressed as a percentage ratio to
the total area of the lot. (For example, an FAR of 100% allows a floor
area equal to the entire total area of the lot, and an FAR of 50%
allows a floor area that is half of the total area of the lot. An
FAR of 50% could be applied to a one-story building occupying 50%
of the lot or a two-story building occupying 25% of the lot.)
The illumination on a surface one square foot in area on which
there is a uniformly distributed flux of one lumen.
A unit of illuminance where one footcandle equals one lumen
per square foot. It is the luminous flux per unit area in the imperial
system. One footcandle equals approximately 0.1 (0.093) lux.
The primary domicile of a foster parent, licensed by the
State of Wisconsin pursuant to § 48.62, Wis. Stats., which
is for four or fewer foster children or, if necessary to enable a
sibling group to remain together, for no more than six children or,
if the state promulgates rules permitting a different number of children,
for the number of children permitted under those rules.
See "yard, street."
A structure primarily intended for and used for the enclosed
storage or shelter of the private motor vehicles of the owner(s) or
families resident upon the premises.
Any building or portion thereof used for equipping, servicing,
repairing, leasing, or public parking of motor vehicles.
An occasional sale by individuals of accumulated items of
personal property most commonly within a household and no longer having
utility thereto. Includes all general sales, open to the public, conducted
from or on a residential premises in any residential zone, as defined
by this chapter.
[Added 3-1-2010]
Retail stores where items such as art, antiques, jewelry,
books, and notions are sold.
The sensation produced by a bright source within the visual
field that is sufficiently brighter than the level to which the eyes
are adapted to cause annoyance, discomfort, or loss in visual performance
and visibility.
Any facility operated by a person required to be licensed
by the State of Wisconsin pursuant to § 48.625, Wis. Stats.,
for the care and maintenance of five to eight foster children.
An occupation conducted for financial gain within a private
dwelling unit where such occupation is clearly incidental and subordinate
to the principal residential use of the premises and does not significantly
change the essential residential character or appearance of such building.
For the purpose of this chapter, bed-and-breakfast establishments
are not considered home occupations.
A facility, other than a bed-and-breakfast establishment,
offering transient lodging accommodations to the general public and
which may provide additional services such as restaurants, meeting
rooms, and recreational facilities.
A dwelling unit or units designed and constructed to be occupied
by elderly persons. An elderly person is a person who is 55 years
of age or older on the date such person intends to occupy the premises
or a family the head of which, or his spouse, is an elderly person
as defined herein.
Illumination resulting from light emitted directly from a
lamp or luminaire, not light diffused through translucent signs or
reflected from other surfaces such as the ground or building faces.
Basic care that is required by a person who has a long-term
illness or disability that has reached a relatively stable plateau.
An area consisting of buildings, structures, or premises
where junk waste and discarded or salvage materials are bought, sold,
exchanged, stored, baled, packed, disassembled, or handled, including
automobile wrecking yards and house wrecking and structural steel
materials and equipment yards, but not including the purchase or storage
of used furniture and household equipment or used cars in operable
condition.
A specific form of lamp designed to direct its output in
a specific direction (a beam) but with a diffusing glass envelope.
Such lamps are so designated by the manufacturer and are typically
used in residential outdoor area lighting.
A specific form of lamp designed to direct its output in
a specific direction (a beam) and with a clear or nearly clear glass
envelope. Such lamps are so designated by the manufacturer and are
typically used in residential outdoor area lighting.
The construction of buildings, streets, parking lots, paved
storage areas, and similar facilities.
Any man-made change of the land surface, including removing
vegetative cover, excavating, filling and grading, but not including
agricultural activities such as planting, growing, cultivating and
harvesting of crops, growing and tending of gardens, harvesting of
trees, and landscape modifications.
Any person holding title to or having an interest in land.
Any person operating, leasing, renting, or having made other
arrangements with the landowner by which the landowner authorizes
use of his or her land.
Any outdoor lighting used for more than one purpose, such
as security and decoration.
Lighting which does not conform to the provisions of this
chapter and which will not be used for more than one thirty-day period
within a calendar year. Temporary lighting is intended for uses which
by their nature are of limited duration, for example holiday decorations,
civic events, or construction projects.
Any adverse effect of human-made light.
Light falling where it is not wanted or needed, typically
across property boundaries.
The total area bounded by the exterior walls of a building
at the floor level, but not including basement, unfinished attics,
utility rooms, garages, porches, and breezeways.
A completely off-street space or berth on the same lot for
the loading or unloading of freight carriers, having adequate ingress
to and egress from a public street.
See "street, minor."
A parcel of land having frontage on a public street, occupied
or intended to be occupied by a principal structure or use and sufficient
in size to meet the lot width, lot frontage, lot area, and other dimensional
requirements of this chapter. No lands dedicated to the public or
reserved for roadway purposes shall be included in the computation
of lot size.
A lot abutting two or more streets at their intersection,
provided that the corner of such intersection shall have an angle
of 135° or less, measured on the lot side (see Illustration No.
2).[1]
A parcel of land with frontage on more than one street or
with frontage on a street and a navigable body of water (see Illustration
No. 2).
A lot generally not fronting on or abutting a public street
and where access to the public street is by a narrow, private right-of-way
(see Illustration No. 2). Flag lots are not generally considered to
conform to sound development principles.
A lot with frontage on one street which is bounded by adjacent
lots along each side and a lot behind fronting on a different street
(see Illustration No. 2).
A through lot that is similar to a double frontage lot but
is not accessible from one of the parallel or nonintersecting streets
upon which it fronts.
A parcel of land held in separate ownership having frontage
on a public street, occupied or intended to be occupied by a principal
building or structure together with accessory buildings and uses,
having insufficient size to meet the lot width, lot area, yard, off-street
parking area, or other dimensional requirements of this chapter.
The width of a parcel of land measured at the front yard
setback line, usually an existing or proposed street right-of-way
line.
A unit of luminous flux used to measure the amount of light
emitted by lamps.
The complete lighting assembly, less the support assembly.
For purposes of determining total light output from a luminaire, lighting
assemblies which include multiple unshielded or partially shielded
lamps on a single pole or standard shall be considered as a single
unit.
A unit of illuminance of one lumen per square meter. It is
the luminous flux per unit area in the metric system. One lux equals
approximately 10 (10.8) footcandles.
Shops where lathes, presses, grinders, shapers, and other
woodworking and metal-working machines are used, such as blacksmith,
tinsmith, welding, and sheet metal shops; plumbing, heating and electrical
repair shops; and overhaul shops.
When used in describing an industrial operation, the making
or processing of a product with machinery.
A permanently mounted sign displaying the foods, products,
or services for a drive-through or walk-up facility.
See "street, minor."
A transportable structure built on a chassis and designed
to be used as a dwelling, with or without a permanent foundation,
when connected to required utilities. For the purpose of this chapter,
a recreational vehicle, a travel trailer, or a modular home, a living
unit which is transported in two or more modules to construct a permanent
residential home on a permanent foundation, is not considered a mobile/manufactured
home.
A building containing lodging rooms having adjoining individual
bathrooms and where each lodging has a doorway opening directly to
the outdoors and more than 50% of the lodging rooms are for rent to
transient tourists for a continuous period of less than 30 days.
Lake Superior, Lake Michigan, all natural inland lakes within
Wisconsin, and all streams, ponds, sloughs, flowages, and other waters
within the territorial limits of this state, including the Wisconsin
portion of boundary waters, which are navigable under the laws of
this state. The Wisconsin Supreme Court has declared navigable bodies
of water that have a bed differentiated from adjacent uplands and
with levels of flow sufficient to support navigation by a recreational
craft of the shallowest draft on an annually recurring basis. [Muench
v. Public Service Commission, 261 Wis. 492 (1952), and DeGayner and
Co., Inc., v. Department of Natural Resources, 70 Wis. 2d 936 (1975).]
For example, a stream which is navigable by a skiff or canoe during
normal spring high water is navigable, in fact, under the laws of
this state though it may be dry during other seasons.
Under § 281.31(2m), Wis. Stats., and
§ NR 115.03(5), Wis. Adm. Code, shoreland regulations do
not apply to lands adjacent to farm drainage ditches if:
For the purpose of this chapter, rivers and
streams will be presumed to be navigable if they are designated as
either perennial or intermittent waterways on the United States Geological
Survey quadrangle maps until such time that the Wisconsin Department
of Natural Resources has made a determination that the waterway is
not, in fact, navigable.
A lot, the area, dimensions, or location of which was lawful
prior to the adoption or amendment of this chapter but which fails
by reason of such adoption or amendment to conform to the present
requirements of this chapter. Vacant nonconforming lots may also be
referred to as "substandard lots."
A building or structure lawfully existing at the time of
the adoption or amendment of this chapter which houses a use that
is permitted in the district but does not comply with all the applicable
area, width, height, yard and/or parking requirements of the district
in which it is located.
Any use of land, or land and buildings in combination, lawfully
existing at the time of the adoption or amendment of this chapter
which does not comply with the use regulations for the district in
which it is located.
The showing of the human male or female genitals, pubic area,
vulva, anus, anal cleft, or cleavage with less than a fully opaque
covering, the showing of the female breast with less than a fully
opaque covering of any part of the nipple, or the showing of covered
male genitals in a discernible turgid state.
An extended or intermediate care facility licensed or approved
to provide full-time convalescent or chronic care to individuals who,
by reason of advanced age, chronic illness, or infirmity, are unable
to care for themselves.
See "yard, side" and "yard, rear."
For the purpose of the sign provisions of this chapter, "opaque"
means that a material does not transmit light from an internal illumination
source. Applied to sign backgrounds, "opaque" means that the area
surrounding any letters or symbols on the sign either is not lighted
from within or allows no light from an internal source to shine through
it.
The area of a property containing turf/lawn, ornamental grasses,
decorative mulch, flowers, shrubs and/or trees, including native vegetation.
The open/green space does not include the area of a property occupied
by buildings, accessory buildings, structures, parking areas, streets,
driveways, sidewalks, paved paths and trails, pervious/permeable pavements,
patios, decks, or other impervious surfaces.
The point on the bank or shore of a body of water up to which
the presence and action of surface water are so continuous as to leave
a distinctive mark, such as by erosion, destruction or prevention
of terrestrial vegetation, predominance of aquatic vegetation, or
other easily recognized characteristics.
The maximum total amount of light, measured in lumens, from
all outdoor light fixtures. For lamp types that vary in their output
as they age (such as high-pressure sodium, fluorescent, and metal
halide), the initial output, as defined by the manufacturer, is the
value to be considered. For determining compliance with the total
outdoor light output requirements of this chapter, the light emitted
from outdoor light fixtures is to be included in the total output
as follows:
Outdoor light fixtures installed on poles (such
as parking lot luminaires) and shielded from above by the structure
itself, as defined below, are to be included in the total outdoor
light output by simply adding the initial lumen outputs of the lamps
used.
Outdoor light fixtures installed under canopies,
buildings (including parking garage decks), overhangs, or roof eaves,
where all parts of the lamp or luminaire are located at least five
feet but less than 10 feet from the nearest edge of the canopy or
overhang, are to be included in the total outdoor light output as
though they produced only 0.25 of the lamp's rated initial lumen output.
Outdoor light fixtures installed under canopies,
buildings (including parking garage decks), overhangs, or roof eaves,
where all parts of the lamp or luminaire are located at least 10 feet
but less than 30 feet from the nearest edge of the canopy or overhang,
are to be included in the total outdoor light output as though they
produced only 0.10 of the lamp's rated initial lumen output.
Outdoor light fixtures installed under canopies,
buildings (including parking garage decks), overhangs, or roof eaves,
where all parts of the lamp or luminaire are located 30 or more feet
from the nearest edge of the canopy or overhang, are not to be included
in the total outdoor light output. Such lamps must, however, conform
to the lamp source and shielding requirements of this chapter.
See "district, overlay."
A structure or premises containing parking spaces open to
the public. Such spaces may be for rent, charge a fee, or be free
of charge.
Includes all abutting property owners, all property owners
within 300 feet, and all property owners of opposite frontages.
Any lightweight plastic, fabric, or other material, with
or without any representation or writing thereon, suspended from a
rope, wire, or string, usually in series, designed to move in the
wind.
A container designed or used for the storage of personal
property which is typically rented to owners or occupants of property
for their temporary use and which is delivered and removed by truck.
See "use, principal."
When used in describing an industrial operation, the series
of continuous actions that changes one or more raw materials into
a finished product. The process may be chemical, as in the processing
of photographic materials; it may be special method, such as processing
butter or cheese; or it may be a mechanical process such as packaging
a base product.
Residences of doctors of medicine, dentists, clergymen, architects,
landscape architects, professional engineers, registered land surveyors,
lawyers, real estate agents, insurance brokers, artists, teachers,
authors, musicians, or other recognized professions where the office
is clearly incidental to the residential use of the premises, does
not significantly change the essential residential character or appearance
of the residential dwelling, does not exceed 25% of only one floor
of the residence, and only one nonresident person is employed. A professional
home office does not include a massage parlor, tattoo parlor, beauty
shop, nail or manicuring salon, taxidermy services, or body-piercing
parlor.
The office of a member of a recognized profession maintained
for the conduct of that profession, such as offices or services of
doctors of medicine, dentists, ministers, architects, landscape architects,
professional engineers, lawyers, authors, artists, musicians, insurance
agents, financial planners, or other similar recognized professions.
Persons, corporations, or governments supplying gas, electric,
transportation, water, sewer, or land line telephone service to the
general public. For the purpose of this chapter, commercial wireless
telecommunication service facilities shall not be considered public
utility uses and are defined separately.
See "yard, rear."
A flood determined to be representative of large floods known
to have generally occurred in Wisconsin and which may be expected
to occur on a particular stream because of like physical characteristics.
The flood frequency of the regional flood is once in every 100 years;
this means that in any given year there is a one-percent chance that
the regional flood may occur or be exceeded. During a typical thirty-year
mortgage period, the regional flood has a twenty-six-percent chance
of occurrence.
Establishments engaged in selling goods or merchandise to
the general public for personal or household consumption and rendering
services incidental to the sale of such goods.
Establishments providing services or entertainment, as opposed
to products, to the general public for personal or household use,
including eating and drinking places, finance, real estate, insurance,
personal services, amusement and recreation services, and health,
educational, and social services and galleries.
See "retail sales establishments" and "retail service establishments."
A temporary building or structure used or intended to be
used solely for the sale of seasonal goods or services, such as fresh
produce or Christmas trees.
The rainfall, snowmelt, or irrigation water flowing over
the ground surface.
See "antenna, satellite dish."
See "yard, street," "yard, side" and "yard, rear."
Acts or simulated acts of masturbation, homosexuality, sexual
intercourse, or physical contact with a person's clothed or unclothed
genitals, pubic area, buttocks, or, if such person is a female, breasts.
An establishment in which:
A significant portion of the business is to
display, sell, have in its possession for sale, offer for view, publish,
disseminate, give, lease, or otherwise deal in any written or printed
matter, pictures, films, sound recordings, machines, mechanical devices,
models, facsimiles, or other material and paraphernalia depicting
sexual conduct or nudity and which excludes minors by reason of age;
A significant portion of the business is to
display for viewing any film or pictures depicting sexual conduct
or nudity and which excludes minors by reason of age; and/or
Any person appears or performs in a manner depicting
sexual conduct or involving nudity and from which minors are excluded
by reason of age.
Those lands lying within the following distances from the
ordinary high-water mark of navigable waters: 1,000 feet from a lake,
pond, or flowage and 300 feet from a river or stream, or to the landward
side of the floodplain, whichever distance is greater. Shorelands
shall not include lands adjacent to farm drainage ditches where:
See "yard, side."
Any medium, including its structure, words, letters, figures,
numerals, phrases, sentences, emblems, devices, designs, trade names,
or trademarks, by which anything is made known and which is used for
identification purposes or to advertise or promote an individual,
firm, association, corporation, profession, business, commodity, or
product.
A sign, or part thereof, which no longer correctly advertises
a bona fide business, service, or product available on the premises
for a period of 30 days or more. A structurally unsound sign, or part
thereof, which has been left unrepaired for a period of 30 days or
more after notification by the Building Inspector that such sign is
in need of repair is also considered an abandoned sign.
The area of the largest single face of the sign within a
perimeter which forms the outside shape, including any frame that
forms an integral part of the display, but excluding the necessary
supports or uprights on which the sign may be placed. If the sign
is an irregular shape or consists of more than one section or module,
their area shall be totaled. Any irregular-shaped sign area shall
be computed by using the actual sign face surface. In the case of
individual letters, the area of copy will be squared off and used.
A sign that is mounted or painted on or attached to an awning,
canopy, or marquee (see Illustration No. 3).[2] Such signs may be internally illuminated by fluorescent
or other light sources in fixtures approved under national and local
electrical codes.
The message, announcement, words, letters, numbers, pictures,
art, advertisement, and any other information or decoration on the
face of a sign.
A changeable message sign whose message is electrically activated.
A sign illuminated by light sources from the outside.
The area or display surface used for the message.
A sign that is mounted or painted on, or attached to, the
flat horizontal surface or piece (such as a band or board, sometimes
called a "signboard" or "nameplate") of a building typically located
directly above the front door and may extend over adjacent windows.
Any sign which contains an intermittent or flashing light
source or which includes the illusion of an intermittent light source,
not including electronic message signs or time and temperature signs
for the purpose of this chapter.
Any sign which is supported by structures or supports in
or upon the ground and independent from any building.
See "sign, monument."
The vertical distance measured from the grade at the base
of the sign structure to the highest point of such sign or sign structure.
In the case where a sign is to be located in a raised plant bed (planter)
or on a berm, the grade shall be determined by the average of the
grades measured at the base of the planter or the toes of the slope
at the front and back of the berm.
Any sign which has characters, letters, figures, designs,
or outlines illuminated by electric lights or luminous tubes.
A sign illuminated by light sources enclosed entirely within
the sign cabinet and not directly visible from outside the sign.
The replacing or repairing of a part or portion of a sign
made unusable by ordinary wear, tear, or damage beyond the control
of the owner, or the reprinting of existing copy without changing
the wording, composition, or color of said copy.
See "menu board."
A low sign independent from any building that is in contact
with or in close proximity to the ground and usually supported by
ornate posts or pillars on the sides and/or an ornate structural base
of not less than 75% of the width of the sign face. (Example: A sign
with a face eight feet wide would require a structural base of six
feet or more in width.) Also see Illustration No. 3.
A sign including luminous gas-filled tubes formed into text,
symbols, or decorative elements and directly visible from outside
the sign cabinet.
A sign which is not appurtenant to the use of the property
where the sign is located or to a product sold or a service offered
upon the property where the sign is located and which does not identify
the place of business where the sign is located.
Any sign which is intended to be, and is so constructed as
to be, of lasting and enduring condition, remaining unchanged in character,
condition (beyond normal wear), and position, and in a permanent manner
affixed to the ground or a wall or a building.
A sign that is mounted on a freestanding pole(s) or other
support(s) so that the bottom edge of the sign face is eight feet
or more above the ground (see Illustration No. 3).
A sign that is not permanent, affixed to a building, structure,
or to the ground. Such signs include sandwich board signs and signs
mounted on wheels to be transportable (see Illustration No. 3).
A sign that is wholly or partly dependent upon a building
for support and which projects more than 12 inches from such building
(see Illustration No. 3).
Any temporary sign placed on a property which is for sale,
rent, or lease.
A sign that is mounted on the roof of a building and which
projects above the point of a building with a flat roof and the eave
line of a building with a gambrel, mansard, gable, or hip roof (see
Illustration No. 3).
Any sign constructed of cloth, canvas, wood, light fabric,
cardboard, wallboard, plastic, or other similar materials, with or
without frames, and not permanently attached to the ground, wall,
or building, intended to be displayed for a short period of time.
An electrically controlled sign alternately displaying time
and temperature for public service information. This sign information
may be incorporated into a business identification sign.
A sign fastened to or painted on the wall of a building or
structure in such a manner that the wall becomes the supporting structure
for, or forms the background surface of, the sign and which does not
project more than 12 inches from such building or structure (see Illustration
No. 3). This definition includes signs composed of individual letters
or symbols.
A sign that is applied or attached to the exterior or interior
of a window, which is usually intended to be seen from the exterior
of the building (see Illustration No. 3). Signs displayed on glass
panels which are integral to doors visible from the exterior of the
building shall be considered to be window signs for the purposes of
this chapter.
The brightening of the night sky that results from the scattering
of artificial visible radiation from the constituents of the atmosphere.
See "lamp, spot."[3]
A public right-of-way not less than 50 feet wide providing
primary access to abutting properties.
A public street or highway used or intended to be used primarily
for fast or heavy through traffic, whose function is to convey traffic
between activity centers and municipalities. For the purpose of this
chapter, arterial streets include designated county and state trunk
highways and other streets designated as arterial streets and highways
in the regional transportation system plan.
A public street that collects and conveys traffic between
minor streets and arterial streets.
A public street used, or intended to be used, primarily for
access to abutting properties. Minor streets are sometimes referred
to as "local streets," "land access streets," or "minor land access
streets."
See "yard, street."
Any change in the supporting members of a structure, such
as foundations, bearing walls, columns, beams, or girders.
Any erection or construction, such as buildings, prefabricated
or prebuilt buildings, tanks, towers, masts, poles, booms, signs,
and fences. Also, any man-made object with form, shape and utility
either permanently or temporarily attached to or placed upon the ground,
riverbed, streambed, or lake bed, such as campers and trailers that
are not constructed on site.
See "building, principal."
A studying, teaching, or working place for photography, advertising,
graphic art, painting, music, dancing, and other related activities
or uses. Business and professional studios are similar uses providing
such services or teaching for monetary gain.
An establishment used primarily for the serving of liquor
by the drink to the general public and where food or packaged liquors
may be served or sold, but only as an accessory use. A tavern may
also be called a "bar."
See "antenna, terrestrial."
Any ground- or roof-mounted pole, spire, structure, or combination
thereof taller than 15 feet, including supporting lines, cables, wires,
braces and masts, intended primarily for the purpose of mounting an
antenna, meteorological device, or similar apparatus above grade.
A communication tower consisting of a single pole and constructed
without guy wires and ground anchors.
Permitting light to pass through but diffusing it so that
persons, objects, etc., on the opposite side are not clearly visible.
The circumstance where special conditions, which were not
self-created, affect a particular property and make strict conformity
with restrictions governing dimensional standards (such as lot area,
lot width, setbacks, yard requirements, or building height) unnecessarily
burdensome or unreasonable in light of the purposes of this chapter.
The purpose or activity for which the land or building thereon
is designed, arranged, or intended or for which it is occupied or
maintained.
See "accessory use or structure."[4]
The main use of land or building as distinguished from a
subordinate or accessory use.
Uses of a special nature as to make impractical their predetermination
as a principal use in a district.
Public and private facilities, such as water wells, water
and sewage pumping stations, water storage tanks, power and communication
transmission lines, electrical power substations, static transformer
stations, telephone and telegraph exchanges, microwave radio relays,
and gas regulation stations, but not including sewage disposal plants,
municipal incinerators, warehouses, shops, and storage yards.
An authorization granted by the Zoning Board of Appeals to
construct, alter, or use a building or structure in a manner that
deviates from the dimensional standards of this chapter. A variance
may not permit the use of a property that is otherwise prohibited
by this chapter.
A triangular-shaped portion of land established at street
intersections in which nothing is erected, placed, planted, or allowed
to grow in such a manner as to severely limit or substantially obstruct
the sight distance of motorists entering or leaving the intersection.
An area where water is at, near, or above the land surface
long enough to be capable of supporting aquatic or hydrophytic vegetation
and which has soils indicative of wet conditions.
Sales of goods primarily to customers engaged in the business
of reselling the goods.
A book published by the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources,
Bureau of Water Resources Management, Nonpoint Source and Land Management
Section, originally published in April 1989 and periodically updated.
For the purposes of this chapter, the latest edition shall apply.
An open space on the same lot with a principal structure,
unoccupied and unobstructed from the ground upward except for vegetation
and accessory structures. The street and rear yards extend the full
width of the lot.
See "buffer yard."
See "yard, street."
A yard extending across the full width of the lot, the depth
of which shall be the minimum horizontal distance between the rear
lot line and a line parallel thereto through the nearest point of
the principal structure (see Illustration No. 4).[5] This yard shall be opposite the face of the dwelling containing
the front door or main entryway.
A yard extending from the street yard to the rear yard of
the lot, the width of which shall be the minimum horizontal distance
between the side lot line and a line parallel thereto through the
nearest point of the principal structure (see Illustration No. 4).
Lots generally have two side yards; however, a corner lot has only
one side yard. The side yard setback area does not extend beyond the
front building face into the street yard or beyond the rear building
face into the rear yard.
A yard extending across the full width of the lot, the depth
of which shall be the minimum horizontal distance between the existing
or proposed street or highway line and a line parallel thereto through
the nearest point of the principal structure (see Illustration No.
4). Where the street line is an arc, the street yard shall be measured
from the arc. Corner lots have two such yards and one side yard and
one rear yard. Corner double frontage lots have three such yards,
one on each side of the structure facing a street, while the remaining
yard is a side yard. Interior double frontage lots have two such yards
and two side yards.
