As used in this chapter, the following terms shall
have the meanings indicated:
ACCESSORY STRUCTURE
A small detached structure that is incidental and subordinate
to the principal structure.
ADJACENT GRADE
The natural elevation of the ground surface prior to construction
next to the proposed walls of a structure.
AREA OF SPECIAL FLOOD HAZARD
The land in the floodplain having a one-percent or greater chance of flooding in any given year, as specifically identified in the Flood Insurance Study cited in §
29-1 of this chapter.
BASE FLOOD
The flood having a one-percent chance of being equaled or
exceeded in any given year, commonly called the "100-year flood."
BASEMENT
Any area of the building having its floor subgrade (below
ground level) on all sides.
CERTIFICATE OF COMPLIANCE
A document signed by the Code Enforcement Officer stating
that a structure is in compliance with all of the provisions of this
chapter.
CODE ENFORCEMENT OFFICER
A person certified under Title 30-A M.R.S.A. § 4451
(including exceptions in Subsection 4451, Paragraph 1) and employed
by a municipality to enforce all applicable comprehensive planning
and land use laws and ordinances.
DEVELOPMENT
Any man-made change to improved or unimproved real estate,
including, but not limited to, buildings or other structures, mining,
dredging, filling, grading, paving, excavation, drilling operations
or storage of equipment or materials.
ELEVATED BUILDING
(1)
A non-basement building:
(a)
Built, in the case of a building in Zones A1-30
or A, to have the top of the elevated floor elevated above the ground
level by means of pilings, columns, post, piers, or stilts; and
(b)
Adequately anchored so as not to impair the
structural integrity of the building during a flood of up to one foot
above the magnitude of the base flood.
(2)
In the case of Zones A1-30 or A, "elevated building" also includes a building elevated by means of fill or solid foundation perimeter walls with hydraulic openings sufficient to facilitate the unimpeded movement of floodwaters, as required in §
29-6L.
ELEVATION CERTIFICATE
An official form (FEMA Form 81-31, 02/06, as amended) that:
(1)
Is used to verify compliance with the floodplain
management regulations of the National Flood Insurance Program; and
(2)
Is required for purchasing flood insurance.
FLOOD or FLOODING
(1)
A general and temporary condition of partial
or complete inundation of normally dry land areas from:
(a)
The overflow of inland or tidal waters.
(b)
The unusual and rapid accumulation or runoff
of surface waters from any source.
(2)
The collapse or subsidence of land along the shore of a lake or other body of water as a result of erosion or undermining caused by waves or currents of water exceeding anticipated cyclical levels or suddenly 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 flash flood or an abnormal tidal surge, or by some similarly unusual and unforeseeable event which results in flooding as defined in Subsection
(1)(a) of this definition.
FLOOD ELEVATION STUDY
An examination, evaluation and determination of flood hazards
and, if appropriate, corresponding water surface elevations.
FLOOD INSURANCE RATE MAP (FIRM)
An official map of a community, on which the Federal Insurance
Administrator has delineated both the special hazard areas and the
risk premium zones applicable to the community.
FLOODPLAIN MANAGEMENT
The operation of an overall program of corrective and preventive
measures for reducing flood damage, including, but not limited to,
emergency preparedness plans, flood control works, and floodplain
management regulations.
FLOODPLAIN MANAGEMENT REGULATIONS
Zoning ordinances, subdivision regulations, building codes,
health regulations, special purpose ordinances (such as a floodplain
ordinance, grading ordinance, and erosion control ordinance) and other
applications of police power. The term describes such state or local
regulations, in any combination thereof, which provide standards for
the purpose of flood damage prevention and reduction.
FLOODPROOFING
Any combination of structural and nonstructural additions,
changes, or adjustments to structures which reduce or eliminate flood
damage to real estate or improved real property, water and sanitary
facilities, structures and contents.
FREEBOARD
A factor of safety usually expressed in feet above a flood
level for purposes of floodplain management. Freeboard tends to compensate
for the many unknown factors, such as wave action, bridge openings,
and the hydrological effect of urbanization of the watershed, that
could contribute to flood heights greater than the height calculated
for a selected size flood and floodway conditions.
FUNCTIONALLY DEPENDENT USE
A use which cannot perform its intended purpose unless it
is located or carried out in close proximity to water. The term includes
only docking facilities, port facilities that are necessary for the
loading and unloading of cargo or passengers, and ship building and
ship repair facilities, but does not include long-term storage or
related manufacturing facilities.
HISTORIC STRUCTURE
Any structure that is:
(1)
Listed individually in the National Register
of Historic Places (a listing maintained by the Department of Interior)
or preliminarily determined by the Secretary of the Interior as meeting
the requirements for individual listing on the National Register;
(2)
Certified or preliminarily determined by the
Secretary of the Interior as contributing to the historical significance
of a registered historic district or a district preliminarily determined
by the Secretary of the Interior to qualify as a registered historic
district;
(3)
Individually listed on a state inventory of
historic places in states with historic preservation programs which
have been approved by the Secretary of the Interior; or
(4)
Individually listed on a local inventory of
historic places in communities with historic preservation programs
that have been certified either:
(a)
By an approved state program as determined by
the Secretary of the Interior; or
(b)
Directly by the Secretary of the Interior in
states without approved programs.
LOCALLY ESTABLISHED DATUM
For purposes of this chapter, an elevation established for
a specific site to which all other elevations at the site are referenced.
This elevation is generally not referenced to the National Geodetic
Vertical Datum (NGVD) or any other established datum and is used in
areas where mean sea level data is too far from a specific site to
be practically used.
LOWEST FLOOR
The lowest floor of the lowest enclosed area (including basement). An unfinished or flood-resistant enclosure, usable solely for parking of vehicles, building access or storage in an area other than a basement area is not considered a building's lowest floor, provided that such enclosure is not built so as to render the structure in violation of the applicable nonelevation design requirements described in §
29-6L of this chapter.
MANUFACTURED HOME
A structure, transportable in one or more sections, which
is built on a permanent chassis and is designed for use with or without
a permanent foundation when connected to the required utilities. For
floodplain management purposes the term "manufactured home" also includes
park trailers, travel trailers, and other similar vehicles placed
on a site for greater than 180 consecutive days.
MEAN SEA LEVEL
For purposes of the National Flood Insurance Program, the
National Geodetic Vertical Datum (NGVD) of 1929, or other datum, to
which base flood elevations shown on a community's Flood Insurance
Rate Map are referenced.
MINOR DEVELOPMENT
All development that is not new construction or a substantial improvement, such as repairs, maintenance, renovations, or additions, whose value is less than 50% of the market value of the structure. It also includes, but is not limited to, accessory structures as provided for in §
29-6J, mining, dredging, filling, grading, paving, excavation, drilling operations, storage of equipment or materials, deposition or extraction of materials, public or private sewage disposal systems or water supply facilities that do not involve structures, and nonstructural projects, such as bridges, dams, towers, fencing, pipelines, wharves, and piers.
NATIONAL GEODETIC VERTICAL DATUM (NGVD)
The national vertical datum, whose standard was established
in 1929, which is used by the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP).
NGVD was based upon mean sea level in 1929 and also has been called
"1929 Mean Sea Level (MSL)."
NEW CONSTRUCTION
Structures for which the start of construction commenced
on or after the effective date of the initial floodplain management
regulations adopted by a community and includes any subsequent improvements
to such structures.
RECREATIONAL VEHICLE
A vehicle which is:
(1)
Built on a single chassis;
(2)
Four hundred square feet or less when measured
at the largest horizontal projection, not including slideouts;
(3)
Designed to be self-propelled or permanently
towable by a motor vehicle; and
(4)
Designed primarily not for use as a permanent
dwelling but as temporary living quarters for recreational, camping,
travel, or seasonal use.
REGULATORY FLOODWAY
(1)
The channel of a river or other watercourse
and the adjacent land areas that must be reserved in order to discharge
the base flood without cumulatively increasing the water surface elevation
more than one foot; and
(2)
When not designated on the community's Flood
Insurance Rate Map or Flood Boundary and Floodway Map, it is considered
to be the channel of a river or other watercourse and the adjacent
land areas to a distance of 1/2 the width of the floodplain, as measured
from the normal high water mark to the upland limit of the floodplain.
RIVERINE
Relating to, formed by, or resembling a river (including
tributaries), stream, brook, etc.
START OF CONSTRUCTION
The date the building permit was issued, provided that the
actual start of construction, repair, reconstruction, rehabilitation,
addition, placement, substantial improvement or other improvement
was within 180 days of the permit date. The actual start means either
the first placement of permanent construction of a structure on a
site, such as the pouring of slab or footings, the installation of
piles, the construction of columns, or any work beyond the stage of
excavation; or the placement of a manufactured home on a foundation.
Permanent construction does not include land preparation, such as
clearing, grading and filling; nor does it include the installation
of streets and/or walkways; nor does it include excavation for basement,
footings, piers, or foundations or the erection of temporary forms;
nor does it include the installation on the property of accessory
buildings, such as garages or sheds not occupied as dwelling units
or not part of the main structure. For a substantial improvement,
the actual start of construction means the first alteration of any
wall, ceiling, floor, or other structural part of a building, or modification
of any construction element, whether or not that alteration affects
the external dimensions of the building.
STRUCTURE
For floodplain management purposes, a walled and roofed building.
A gas or liquid storage tank that is principally above ground is also
a structure.
SUBSTANTIAL DAMAGE
Damage of any origin sustained by a structure whereby the
cost of restoring the structure to its before-damage condition would
equal or exceed 50% of the market value of the structure before the
damage occurred.
SUBSTANTIAL IMPROVEMENT
Any reconstruction, rehabilitation, addition, or other improvement
of a structure, the cost of which equals or exceeds 50% of the market
value of the structure before the start of construction of the improvement.
This term includes structures which have incurred substantial damage,
regardless of the actual repair work performed. The term does not,
however, include either:
(1)
Any project for improvement of a structure to
correct existing violations of state or local health, sanitary, or
safety code specifications which have been identified by the local
Code Enforcement Official and which are the minimum necessary to assure
safe living conditions; or
(2)
Any alteration of an historic structure, provided
that the alteration will not preclude the structure's continued designation
as an historic structure, and a variance is obtained from the community's
Board of Appeals.
VARIANCE
A grant of relief by a community from the terms of a floodplain
management regulation.
VIOLATION
The failure of a structure or development to comply with
a community's floodplain management regulations.