A.Â
For the purpose of this chapter, words used in the present tense
shall include the future, words used in the singular shall include
the plural number, and the plural the singular.
B.Â
The word "shall" is mandatory and not discretionary.
C.Â
The word "may" is permissive.
D.Â
The word "lot" shall include the words "piece," "parcel" and "plat";
the word "building" includes all other structures of every kind regardless
of similarity to buildings; and the phrase "used for" shall include
the phrases "arranged for," "designed for," "intended for," "maintained
for" and "occupied for."
E.Â
All measured distances shall be to the nearest integral foot. If
a fraction is 1/2 foot or less, the next integral foot below shall
be taken.
F.Â
Any words not herein defined shall be as defined in other respective
state, county, and Town codes.
Certain words and terms in this chapter are to be interpreted
as defined herein.
All portions of chapter except § 275-26, AG-FP Agricultural Farmland Preservation District:
Constructed or located on the same zoning lot as the principal
building or use served, except as may be specifically provided elsewhere
in this chapter;
Clearly incidental to, subordinate in purpose to, and serves
the principal use; and
Either in the same ownership as the principal use or is clearly
operated and maintained solely for the comfort, convenience, necessity,
or benefit of the occupants, employees, customers, or visitors of
or to the principal use.
A business, activity, or enterprise, whether or not associated
with an agricultural use, which meets all of the following requirements:
Any advertising sign, billboard, statuary, or poster panel
which directs attention to a business, commodity, service, or entertainment
not exclusively related to the premises where such sign is located
or to which it is affixed, but does not include those advertising
signs, billboards, or poster panels which direct attention to the
business on the premises or to a brand name of a product or commodity
with which the business is specifically identified and which is sold
on the premises.
Any of the following activities conducted for the purpose
of producing an income or livelihood:
Crop or forage production.
Keeping livestock.
Beekeeping.
Nursery, sod, or Christmas tree production.
Floriculture.
Aquaculture.
Fur farming.
Forest management.
Enrolling land in a federal agricultural commodity payment program
or a federal or state agricultural land conservation payment program.
The science and practice of the cultivation of the soil.
A facility, whether or not located on a farm, that has at
least one of the following as a primary and not merely incidental
purpose:
Providing agricultural supplies, agricultural equipment, agricultural
inputs or agricultural services directly to farms, including farms
in the Agricultural Farmland Preservation District.
Storing, processing or handling raw agricultural commodities
obtained directly from farms, including farms in the Agricultural
Farmland Preservation District.
Slaughtering livestock, including livestock from farms in the
Agricultural Farmland Preservation District.
Marketing livestock to or from farms, including farms in the
Agricultural Farmland Preservation District.
Processing agricultural by-products or wastes received directly
from farms, including farms in the Agricultural Farmland Preservation
District.
Any area of land or water which is used or intended for use
for the landing and taking off of aircraft, and any appurtenant areas
which are used or intended for use for airport buildings or other
airport facilities or rights-of-way, including all necessary taxiways,
aircraft storage and tie-down areas, hangars, and other necessary
buildings and open spaces.
A public or private right-of-way primarily designed to serve
as secondary access to abutting properties.
A man-made body of water utilized for recreational or conservational
purposes.
Any premises on which more than one automotive vehicle, not
in running or operating condition, is stored in the open.
That portion of any structure located partly underground
and having more than 1/2 of its height below the finished lot grade.
Any place of lodging that provides eight or fewer rooms for
rent to no more than a total of 20 tourists or other transients for
more than 10 nights in a twelve-month period, is the owner's personal
residence, is occupied by the owner at the time of rental, and in
which the only meal served to guests is breakfast.[3]
An organized hive of bees.
A tract of land bounded by streets, or by a combination of
streets and public parks, cemeteries, railroad right-of-way, shorelines
of waterways or municipal boundary lines.
A building or premises, other than a hotel, containing lodging
rooms accommodating, for compensation, four or more persons not of
the keeper's family. Lodging may be provided with or without meals.
Any structure built, used, designed, or intended for the
support, shelter, protection, or enclosure of persons, animals, chattels,
or property of any kind, and which is permanently affixed to the land.
When a building is divided into separate parts by unpierced fire or
party walls extending continuously from the ground through all stories
to and above the roof, each part shall be deemed a separate building.[4]
One which is joined to another building at one or more sides
by a party wall or walls.[5]
One which is entirely surrounded by open space on the same
lot.
The vertical distance measured from the average elevation
of the finished lot grade at the front of the building to the highest
point of a ceiling in the case of a flat roof, to the deckline of
a mansard roof and to the average height between the eaves and the
ridge of a gable, hip, or gambrel roof.
A line located a stated distance from and parallel with a
lot line or street right-of-way, including the nearest point to which
a lot line or center line of a right-of-way that a building may be
erected.[6]
Any building not designed to be permanently located in the
place where it is, or where it is intended to be placed or affixed.
Manufactured homes used as residences shall not be classified as temporary
buildings. They are further defined in "manufactured home."
A tract or parcel of land on which space is provided for
camping. Includes day and overnight camping.
A roof-like structure projecting from a wall and supported
in whole or in part by vertical supports from the ground and erected
primarily to provide shelter from the weather.
The maximum number of persons that can avail themselves of
the services (or goods) of such establishment at any one time, with
reasonable safety and comfort, as determined by the Building Code[7] or as may be determined by the Zoning Administrator.
An organization of specializing physicians or dentists, or
both, who have their offices in a common building. A clinic shall
not include inpatient care.
An association of persons for some common purpose, but not
including groups organized primarily to render a service, which is
customarily carried on as a business. All organizations shall be recognized
clubs or fraternities.
An agriculture enterprise where livestock is purchased and
raised and then sold to a buyer, feedlot, or slaughterhouse.
For purposes of § 275-26, AG-FP Agricultural Farmland Preservation District, means ownership by the same person or persons. "Common ownership" includes land owned by the same individual, married couple, joint tenants, tenants in common, corporation, limited liability company (LLC), partnership, estate or trust. Solely for purposes of this definition, a parcel owned by one member of a married couple is deemed to be owned by the married couple.[8]
A place where three or more unrelated adults reside, in which
care, treatment, or services above the level of room and board, but
not including nursing care, are provided to persons residing in the
facility as a primary function of the facility and licensed by the
Department of Health Services under § 50.01, Wis. Stats.
Adjacent to or sharing a common boundary. Contiguous land
includes land that is separated only by a river, stream, section line,
public road, private road, railroad, pipeline, transmission line,
or transportation or transmission right-of-way. Parcels are not contiguous
if they meet only at a single point.[9]
A licensed establishment for the care and supervision of
nine or more children under seven years old for more than four and
less than 24 hours a day for more than 10 days a month.
A licensed establishment for the care and supervision of
one to eight children under seven years old for more than four and
less than 24 hours a day for more than 10 days a month.
An establishment with street access, which provides no interior
seating or service; or an establishment which allows for interior
seating or service, but the majority of its business is conducted
in the following manner:
A building, or portion thereof, excluding a manufactured
home, hotel, motel, boardinghouses, and trailers, designed or used
exclusively for residential occupancy.
A building, or portion thereof, containing three or more
dwelling units.[10]
A building designed for and occupied exclusively by one family.[11]
A building designed for and occupied exclusively by two families.[12]
One or more rooms which are arranged, designed or used as
living quarters for one family only. Individual bathrooms and complete
kitchen facilities, permanently installed, shall always be included
for each dwelling unit.
A vegetated, elongated earthen mound used as a landscape
barrier.[13]
A place of business carrying out operations, the ownership
and management of which are separate and distinct from those of any
other place of business located on the same zoning lot.
One or more persons living together in a single dwelling unit
as a traditional family or the functional equivalent of a traditional
family. It shall be a rebuttable presumption that four or more persons
living together in a single dwelling unit who are not related by blood,
adoption or marriage do not constitute the functional equivalent of
a traditional family. In determining the functional equivalent of
a traditional family, the following criteria shall be present:
The group shares the entire dwelling unit.
The group lives and cooks together as a single housekeeping
unit.
The group shares expenses for food, rent, utilities or other
household expenses.
The group is permanent and stable and not transient or temporary
in nature.
Any other factor reasonably related to whether the group is
the functional equivalent of a family.
This definition is not intended to prohibit group homes or community
living arrangements that are determined to be protected by the Federal
Fair Housing Law, provided that such facilities are licensed and permitted
under the authority of the State Department of Health Services or
the State Department of Children and Families or other state department
or agency.
All land under common ownership that is primarily devoted
to agricultural use if any of the following apply:[15]
A body of water utilized for the farm operation.
Any of the following structures that is located on a farm:[16]
A barrier made of wood, iron, stone, or other inorganic material.
(For determining off-street parking and loading requirements.)
The sum of the gross horizontal areas of the several floors of the
building, or portion thereof, devoted to such use, including 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
measurement for off-street parking spaces, shall not include floor
area devoted primarily to storage purposes (except as otherwise noted
herein); floor area devoted to off-street parking or loading facilities,
including aisles, ramps, and maneuvering space; or basement floor
area other than area devoted to retailing activities, to the production
or processing of goods, or to business or professional offices.
The length of all the property fronting on a street between
two side lot property lines as measured along the setback line, or
measured at the building setback line if the proposed lot is located
on the outer radius of a curved street or a turnaround.
The length of all the property of such zoning lot fronting
on a street, measured in one continuous length.
An agricultural operation where the major income is derived
from the selling or sale of fur-bearing animals and/or pelts.
An accessory to the main building which provides for the
storage of motor vehicles and in which no occupation, business or
service for profit is carried on.
Any building or premises, other than a private garage, where
motor-driven vehicles are equipped, repaired, serviced, hired, sold,
or stored.
The average level of the finished surface of the ground adjacent
to the exterior walls of the building or structure.
Gross receipts from agricultural uses, less the cost or other
basis of livestock or other agricultural items purchased for resale
which are sold or otherwise disposed of during the taxable year. "Gross
farm revenue" includes receipts accruing to a renter, but does not
include rent paid to the landowner.
The sum of the gross horizontal areas of the several floors
of a building or buildings measured from the exterior faces of exterior
walls or from the center line of party walls separating two buildings.
Community living arrangements for the care and maintenance
of five to eight children under 18 years of age, which are licensed
child welfare agencies, as set forth in § 48.60, Wis. Stats.
A driveway or parking lot surfaced with concrete, bituminous
paving or crushed stone.
Institutions or organizations which provide specialized in-patient
or outpatient medical and dental care.
A dense row of shrubs, etc., forming a boundary, fence, or
barrier.
Any occupation or profession carried on by a member of the
immediate family residing on the premises, in connection with which
there is used no sign or display that will indicate from the exterior
that the building is being utilized in whole or in part for any purpose
other than that of a dwelling, there is no commodity sold upon the
premises, no person is employed other than a member of the immediate
family residing on the premises, and no mechanical or electrical equipment
is used, except such as is permissible for purely domestic or household
purposes. A professional person may use his residence for infrequent
consultation, emergency treatment, or performance of religious rites
but not the general practice of his profession.
A building in which lodging, with or without meals, is offered
to transient guests for compensation and in which there are more than
five sleeping rooms with or without cooking facilities in any individual
room or apartment.
A special or exclusive type of planned industrial area designed
and equipped to accommodate a community of industries, providing them
with all necessary facilities and services in attractive surroundings
among compatible neighbors. Industrial parks may be promoted or sponsored
by private developers, community organizations, or government organizations.
An area where waste or scrap materials are bought, sold,
exchanged, stored, baled, packed, disassembled, or handled, including
but not limited to scrap iron and other metals, paper, rags, rubber
tires, and bottles. A junk or salvage yard includes an auto wrecking
yard but does not include uses established entirely within enclosed
buildings.
Any establishment where dogs are kept.[17]
Materials used to make a plot of ground more attractive and/or
stable. These materials may include, but are not limited to, trees,
grasses, ground cover, vines, flowers, earthen berms, earth stabilization
materials, rocks and stones, and wood chips.
Bovine animals, equine animals, goats, poultry, sheep, swine,
farm-raised deer, farm-raised game birds, camelids, ratites and farm-raised
fish.
A parcel of land having a width and depth sufficient to provide
the space necessary for one principal building and its accessory building,
together with the open spaces required by this chapter, and abutting
on a public street.
The area of a horizontal plane bounded by the front, side,
and rear lot lines, but not including any area occupied by the waters
of a duly recorded lake or river and/or public right-of-way.
A lot located at the intersection of two streets, the interior
angle of such intersection not exceeding 135°.
The mean horizontal distance between the front lot line and
the rear lot line of a lot measured within the lot boundaries.
The average of the finished lot elevation upon completion
of construction and landscaping between the street right-of-way line
and a perpendicular point on the front yard setback line.
A lot other than a corner or reversed corner lot.
That boundary of a lot which is along an existing or dedicated
public street or, where no public street exists, along a public way.
That boundary of a lot which is most distant from and is,
or is most nearly, parallel to the front lot line.
Any boundary of a lot which is not a front lot line or a
rear lot line.
A lot which is part of a subdivision, the plat of which has
been recorded in the Office of the Register of Deeds of Brown County,
or a parcel of land, the deed to which was recorded in the Office
of said Register of Deeds prior to the adoption of this chapter, and
certified survey maps approved and recorded in the Office of the Register
of Deeds of Brown County.
A corner lot, the street side lot line of which is substantially
a continuation of the front lot line of the first lot to its rear.
A lot having a pair of opposite lot lines along two more
or less parallel public streets and which is not a corner lot. On
a through lot, both street lines shall be deemed front lot lines.
The horizontal distance between the side lot lines of a lot,
measured at the narrowest width within the first 30 feet of lot depth
immediately in back of the front yard setback line.
A structure, transportable in one or more sections, which
is built on a permanent chassis and designed to be used for long-term
residential use when connected to required utilities.
A contiguous parcel of land containing two or more manufactured
homes.
Establishment consisting of a group of attached or detached
living or sleeping accommodations with bathroom and closet space,
located on a single zoning lot and designed for use by transient guests,
and where there is no permanent occupancy of any unit, except by the
owner, his agent or his employees.
A self-propelled device used or intended to be used for the
transportation of freight or passengers upon a street or highway.
A building lawfully erected at the time of the enactment
of this chapter which does not conform to the height, setback, yard,
parking or other bulk requirements of this chapter or any amendment
thereto governing the zoning district in which such building is located.[18]
Any use of land, buildings, or structures, lawful at the
time of the enactment of this chapter, which does not comply with
all of the regulations of this chapter or of any amendment hereto
governing use for the zoning district in which such use is located.
A parcel on which no buildings, other than hunting blinds
or small sheds, have been constructed or approved for construction.
Graded and surfaced area of not less than 200 square feet
in area either enclosed or open for the parking of a motor vehicle,
having adequate ingress and egress to a public street or alley, exclusive
of passageways, driveways, or other means of circulation or access.
A wall constructed between two attached units or rooms, which
may or may not be separately owned.
An individual, corporation, partnership, limited liability
company (LLC), trust, estate or other legal entity.
A tract of land which contains or will contain two or more
principal buildings, developed under single ownership or control,
the development of which is unique and intended to permit diversification
and variation in the relationship of uses and structures and open
space for developments conceived and implemented as comprehensive
and unified projects.
Land division created by the recording of a subdivision plat
or certified survey map as per the requirements of the Brown County
Subdivision and Platting Regulations.
A body of standing water (less than two acres), smaller than
a lake, often artificially formed.
All of the following:
An area with a class I or class II land capability classification
as identified by the Natural Resources Conservation Service of the
United States Department of Agriculture.
Land, other than land described in Subsection A, which is identified as prime farmland in the county's certified farmland preservation plan.
The office of a member of recognized profession, including
the offices of ministers, architects, professional engineers, lawyers,
and such other similar professional occupations, including the office
of a charitable organization and including also an insurance or financial
institution which conducts its activities principally by mail.
The office of a member of a recognized health care professional
licensed by Ch. 441 or Chs. 446 to 449, Wis. Stats.
Land that is any of the following:
Located in a Agricultural Farmland Preservation District certified
under Ch. 91, Wis. Stats.
Covered by a farmland preservation agreement under Ch. 91, Wis.
Stats.
Covered by an agricultural conservation easement under § 93.73,
Wis. Stats.
Otherwise legally protected from nonagricultural development.
A vehicle primarily used for leisure activities, including
but not limited to trailers, boats with or without trailers, all-terrain
vehicles and snowmobiles. For the purpose of this chapter, "recreational
vehicle" does not include four-wheel-drive cars or trucks and motorcycles.
Sale of commodities and services directly to customers when
such commodities and services are used or consumed by the customer
and not purchased primarily for purpose of resale.
A strip of land occupied or intended to be occupied for a special
use. Rights-of-way intended for streets, crosswalks, water mains,
sanitary sewers, storm drains or any other use involving maintenance
by a public agency shall be dedicated to public use by the maker of
the plat on which such right-of-way is established.
The usage of the term "right-of-way" for land platting purposes
shall mean that every right-of-way hereafter established and shown
on a final plat is to be separate and distinct from the lot or parcels
adjoining such right-of-way and not included within the dimension
or areas of such lots or parcels.
A structure not permanently fixed to the ground that is readily
removable in its entirety, covered or uncovered and not wholly enclosed,
and used solely for the sale of farm products produced on the premises.
Such roadside stand shall be not more than 300 square feet in ground
area and limited to 10 feet maximum height.
A device incorporating a reflective surface that is solid,
open mesh, or bar configured and is in the shape of a shallow dish,
cone, horn, or cornucopia. Such device shall be used to transmit and/or
receive radio or electromagnetic waves between terrestrially and/or
orbitally based uses. This definition is meant to include but not
be limited to what are commonly referred to as satellite earth stations,
TVROs, and satellite or microwave antennas.
The minimum horizontal area between the front, side and/or
rear line of the building or use, including porches, and the lot lines
or street right-of-way lines.
The minimum horizontal distance between the side line of
the building or use that runs perpendicular to a fronting street and
the side right-of-way line perpendicular to the fronting street.
The minimum horizontal distance between the front line of
the building or use and the street right-of-way line.
Lines established adjacent to lot lines or street right-of-way
lines for the purpose of defining limits within which any or certain
buildings, structures, or uses may not be constructed, maintained
or carried on, except as shown herein.
The minimum horizontal distance between the back line of
the building or use and the rear lot line.
The minimum horizontal distance between the side line of
the building or use and the side lot lines, unless the side line of
the building or use is parallel to a street, whereas it shall be a
corner side yard setback.
A name, identification, description, display, or illustration
which is affixed to, or represented directly or indirectly upon, a
building, structure, or piece of land and which directs attention
to an object, product, place, activity, person, institution, organization,
or business. However, "sign" shall not include any display of official
court or public office notices, nor shall it include the flag, emblem,
or insignia of a nation, political unit, school, or religious group.
"Sign" shall not include a sign located completely within an enclosed
building, unless the content shall so indicate.
A sign which directs attention to a business, commodity,
service or entertainment not exclusively related to the premises where
such sign is located or to which it is affixed.
A sign which directs attention to a business or profession
conducted, or to a commodity, service or entertainment sold or offered,
upon the premises where such sign is located or to which it is affixed.
An agricultural operation, usually nondairy in nature, where
livestock is raised to the required age or weight for slaughterhouse
purposes or for sale to commercial feedlots.
That part of a building between any floor and the floor next
above, and if there be no floor above, then the ceiling above. A basement
is a story if its ceiling is five feet or more above the level from
which the height of the building is measured, or if it is used for
business purposes, or if it contains any dwelling units other than
one dwelling unit for the caretaker of the premises.
A public or private right-of-way which affords a primary
means of vehicular access to abutting property, whether designated
as a street, avenue, highway, road, boulevard, lane, throughway, or
however otherwise designated, but does not include driveways to buildings.
Any change, other than incidental repairs, which would prolong
the life of the supporting members of a building, such as the addition,
removal, or alteration of bearing walls, columns, beams, girders,
or foundations.
Anything constructed or erected, the use of which requires
a permanent location on the ground or attached to something having
permanent location on the ground.
The Town of Pittsfield.
The governing body of the Town of Pittsfield.
The Administrator appointed by the Town Board to administer
and enforce the provisions of this chapter.
A use, either public or private, which, because of its unique
characteristics, cannot be properly classified as a permitted use
in a particular district or districts. After due consideration in
each case of the impact of such use upon neighboring land, and of
the public need for the particular use of the particular location,
such conditional use may not be granted, subject to the terms of this
chapter.
A use which may be lawfully established in a particular district
or districts, provided it conforms with all requirements, regulations,
and standards of such district.
The main use of land or buildings as distinguished from a
subordinate or accessory use. A principal use may be permitted, conditional
or nonconforming.
A departure from the terms of this chapter as applied to
a specific building, structure, or parcel of land which the Zoning
Board of Appeals may permit when the Board finds that a literal enforcement
of the provisions of this chapter will result in practical difficulty
or unnecessary hardship, owing to circumstances unique to the individual
property on which the variance is sought, or a literal application
of such regulation will effect a limitation on the use of the property
which does not generally apply to other properties in the same district,
and for which there is no compensating gain to the public health,
safety and welfare. In no case shall a variance be granted to permit
any use not permitted in a particular zone.
An open space on the same lot with a building or structure,
unoccupied and unobstructed from the ground upward, except for vegetation.
A yard extends along a lot line, and to a depth or width specified
in the yard requirements for the zone the lot is located in.
A side yard which adjoins a public street.
A yard extending along the full length of the front lot line
between the side lot lines.
A side yard which is located immediately adjacent to another
zoning lot or to an alley separating such side yard from another zoning
lot.
A yard extending along the full length of the rear lot line
between the side lot lines.
Divisions of the Town, each area being accurately defined
to boundaries and locations on the Official Zoning Map and in this
chapter, for which the regulations and requirements governing use,
lot, and bulk of building and premises are uniform.
An area within a single tract of land under single ownership
having a specific zoning district. A zoning lot may, therefore, not
coincide with the lot of record and may be located on a parcel of
land with two or more zoning districts.
