As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the
meanings indicated:
A subordinate structure detached from but located on the
same lot with the principal structure, the use of which is incidental
to that of the principal structure.
[Added 11-10-2021]
The flood having a one-percent chance of being equaled or
exceeded in any given year; also referred to as the "one-hundred-year
flood."
The Federal Emergency Management Agency designated one-percent-chance
water surface elevation. The water surface elevation of the base flood
in relation to the datum specified on the community's Flood Insurance
Rate Map.
Any area of the building having its floor subgrade (below
ground level) on all sides.
A wall that is not part of the structural support of the
building and is intended, through its design and construction, to
collapse under specific lateral loading forces without causing damage
to the elevated portion of the building or supporting foundation system.
Flood hazard areas that have been delineated as subject to
wave heights between 1.5 and three feet.
An area of special flood hazard extending from offshore to
the inland limit of a primary frontal dune along an open coast and
any other area subject to high-velocity wave action from storms or
seismic sources.
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 or drilling operations
or storage of equipment or materials.
The advance or infringement of uses, plant growth, fill,
excavation, buildings, permanent structures or development into a
floodplain, which may impede or alter the flow capacity of a floodplain.
An official map of a community, on which the Federal Emergency
Management Agency has delineated both the special hazard areas and
the risk premium zones applicable to the community. A FIRM that is
available digitally is called a "Digital Flood Insurance Rate Map
(DFIRM)."
A report by FEMA that examines, evaluates and determines
flood hazards and, if appropriate, corresponding water surface elevations,
or an examination, evaluation and determination of mudflow and/or
flood-related erosion hazards.
A general or temporary condition of partial or complete inundation
of normally dry land areas from:
The overflow of inland or tidal waters;
The unusual and rapid accumulation or runoff of surface waters
from any source;
Mudflows which are proximately caused by flooding as defined in Subsection B of this definition and are akin to a river of liquid and flowing mud on the surfaces of normally dry land areas, as when earth is carried by a current of water and deposited along the path of the current; or
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.
Any land area susceptible to being inundated by water from
any source.
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 their contents.
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.
A factor of safety usually expressed in feet above a flood
level for purposes of floodplain management.
The highest natural elevation of the ground surface prior
to construction next to the proposed walls of a structure.
Any structure that is:
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;
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
to qualify as a registered historic district;
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
Individually listed on a local inventory of historic places
in communities with historic preservation programs that have been
certified either:
The lowest natural elevation of the ground surface next to
the walls of a structure.
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 of Federal Code
44 CFR 60.3.
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.
A parcel (or contiguous parcels) of land divided into two
or more manufactured home lots for rent or sale.
For the purposes of determining insurance rates, structures
for which the start of construction commenced on or after July 4,
1989, and includes any subsequent improvements to such structures.
For floodplain management purposes, "new construction" means structures
for which the start of construction commenced on or after the effective
date of a floodplain management regulation adopted by a community
and includes any subsequent improvements to such structures.
A continuous or nearly continuous mound or ridge of sand
with relatively steep seaward and landward slopes immediately landward
and adjacent the beach and overtopping from high tides and waves during
major coastal storms. The inland limit of the primary frontal dune
occurs at the point where there is distinct change from a relatively
steep slope to a relatively mild slope.
A vehicle which is:
Built on a single chassis;
Four hundred square feet or less when measured at the largest
horizontal projection;
Designed to be self-propelled or permanently towable by a light-duty
truck; and
Designed primarily not for use as a permanent dwelling but as
temporary living quarters for recreational camping, travel, or seasonal
use.
A building covered by a contract for flood insurance that
has incurred flood-related damages on two occasions, in which the
cost of the repair, on the average, equaled or exceeded 25% of the
market value of the structure at the time of each such flood event;
and at the time of the second incidence of flood-related damage, the
contract for flood insurance contains increased cost of compliance
coverage.
A structure that is covered under a contract for flood insurance
made available under the NFIP and has incurred flood-related damage
for which:
Four or more separate claims payments have been made under flood
insurance coverage, with the amount of each such claim exceeding $5,000
and with the cumulative amount of such claims payments exceeding $20,000;
or
At least two separate claims payments have been made under such
coverage, with the cumulative amount of such claims exceeding the
market value of the insured structure.
For other than new construction and substantial improvement,
under the Coastal Barriers Resource Act (P.L. 97-348), means the date
the building permit was issued, provided 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 a 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 the construction means
the first alteration of any wall, ceiling, floor, or other structural
part of a building, whether or not that alteration affects the external
dimensions of the building.
For floodplain management purposes, a walled and roofed building,
gas or liquid storage tank that is principally above the ground, as
well as a manufactured home.
Damage of any origin sustained by a structure whereby the
cost of restoring the structure to its before-damaged condition would
equal or exceed 50% of the market value of the structure before the
damage occurred.
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:
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
Any alteration of an historic structure, provided that the alteration
will not preclude the structure's continued designation as an historic
structure. Historic structures undergoing repair or rehabilitation
that would constitute a substantial improvement as defined above must
comply with all ordinance requirements that do not preclude the structure's
continued designation as a historic structure. Documentation that
a specific ordinance requirement will cause removal of the structure
from the National Register of Historic Places or the State Inventory
of Historic Places must be obtained from the Secretary of the Interior
or the State Historic Preservation Officer. Any exemption from ordinance
requirements will be the minimum necessary to preserve the historic
character and design of the structure.
The failure of a structure or other development to be fully
compliant with the community's floodplain management regulations.
A structure or other development without the elevation certificate,
other certifications, or other evidence of compliance required in
this chapter is presumed to be in violation until such time as that
documentation is provided.
A lake, river, creek, bay, stream, wash, channel or other
topographic feature on or over which waters flow at least periodically.
"Watercourse" includes specifically designated areas in which substantial
flood damage may occur.
A development of land that cannot exist outside of the Resource
Protection Area and must be located on the shoreline by reason of
the intrinsic nature of its operation. These facilities include but
are not limited to ports; the intake and outfall structures of power
plants, water treatment plants, sewage treatment plants and storm
sewers; marinas and other boat docking structures; beaches and other
public water-oriented recreation areas; and fisheries or other marine
resources facilities.
[Added 11-10-2021]
