A.
For the purpose of this chapter, certain words and terms are hereby
defined. Words used in the present tense shall include the future;
words in the singular number include the plural number, and words
in the plural number include the singular number; the word "lot" includes
the words "plot," "parcel," "property," and "tract;" the word "building"
includes the word "structure;" and the words "is," "are," "shall,"
and "will" are mandatory. The word "should" is discretionary and strongly
suggested, and the word "may" is discretionary and permissive. The
word "including" shall mean "including, but not limited to." Any words
not herein defined shall be constructed as defined in the statutory
and common laws of the State of New Mexico; if not defined therein,
then as defined in the International Building Code and subsequent
versions as adopted by Doña Ana County, New Mexico; and if
not defined therein, then defined in accordance with Webster's Unabridged
Dictionary, latest edition, or by terms defined by the American Planning
Association.
B.
A list of acronyms follows the Glossary.
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the
meanings indicated:
See "Association of Amercian State Highway and Transportation
Officials."
Cessation of use of a wireless support structure for wireless
telecommunications activity for at least the minimum period of time
specified under this article.
A speed-change lane for the purpose of enabling a vehicle
entering a roadway to increase its speed to a rate to safely merge
with through traffic.
A plant with succulent structure and stems, often with spines
and without woody growth, and taller than six inches; they are common
native plants in the Chihuahuan Desert.
A vehicular way located to the rear of lots providing access
to service areas, parking, and containing utility easements. Access
lanes may be gravel or paved lightly to driveway standards. The streetscape
consists of gravel or landscaped edges and is drained by percolation.
A permit for vehicular access off of a County-maintained
roadway of an abutting property.
A building which is on the same lot as a principal building
and the use of which is incidental to the use of the principal building.
A separate, complete unit with a separate entrance, kitchen,
sleeping area, and full bathroom facilities, which is detached from
the primary dwelling on the lot and shall not be used for the commercial
sheltering or rental for individuals or families.
Any equipment serving or being used in conjunction with a
wireless facility or wireless support structure. The term includes
utility or transmission equipment, power supplies, generators, batteries,
cables, equipment buildings, cabinets and storage sheds, shelters
or similar structures.
Any structure that does not meet the definition of "accessory
building," but is located on the same lot and is clearly incidental
and subordinate to a principal building or use.
A landscape element that functions to generate plant growth
by utilizing one or more of the following: existing hydrological functions;
water harvesting; storing and infiltrating stormwater; erosion control;
low water-use native plants; and tree shading. Active landscape features
are part of low impact development (LID) and green infrastructure
(GI).
Any human activity that is capable of generating or that
generates visible fugitive dust, including bulk material storage,
handling, and processing; earth moving; construction, renovation,
and demolition activities; and the movement of motorized vehicles
on any unpaved roadways and parking areas.
See "Amercians with Disabilities Act."
A pedestrian shed that has been modified to reflect boundaries
of property and existing conditions such as arroyos, thoroughfares,
and slopes to create the regulatory boundary of a community type.
Approval by the Zoning Administrator or after administrative
review and compliance with this chapter.
A variance granted by the Zoning Administrator.
See "average daily traffic."
A use consisting of one or more of the following:
An establishment that provides amusement or entertainment that
is distinguished or characterized by an emphasis on material depicting,
describing, or relating to specified sexual activities or specified
anatomical areas;
An establishment that features topless dancers, exotic dancers,
strippers, male or female impersonators, or similar entertainment;
A book or video store having a substantial or significant portion
of its trade in books, magazines, periodicals or other materials that
are distinguished or characterized by their emphasis on specified
sexual activities or specified anatomical areas; or
A theater used exclusively or primarily for presenting material
distinguished or characterized by specified sexual activities or specified
anatomical areas for observation by persons 18 years of age or older
on the premises.
Housing where the homeownership market applies to households
or individuals earning 60% or less than the area median income (AMI).
Affordable housing is defined in more detail in the adopted Doña
Ana County Affordable Housing Plan 2015 (Resolution No. 2015-64) and
the Affordable Housing Program (Ordinance No. 280-2015).
A person or persons legally empowered to act for another.
A person or party who can demonstrate a specific personal
or legal interest, as distinguished from a general interest, who has
been or is likely to be specifically and injuriously affected by a
final decision.
A facility used for the storing, sorting, cleaning, sacking,
or transshipment of agricultural products; does not include processing
functions. "Sorting and cleaning" means handling to the generally
recognizable minimum level of marketability.
A facility used for the cooking, freezing, dehydrating, refining,
bottling, canning or other treatment of agricultural products that
changes the naturally grown product for consumer use; may include
warehousing and packaging as secondary uses.
Any stormwater runoff from orchards, cultivated crops, pastures,
range lands, and other non-point source agricultural activities, but
not discharges from concentrated animal feeding operations as defined
in 40 CFR 122.23 or discharges from concentrated aquatic animal production
facilities as defined in 40 CFR 122.24.
Structures intended primarily or exclusively for support
of agricultural functions.
Any area of land that is used or intended for the use of
landing and taking off of aircraft; and appurtenant areas that are
used or intended for use by airport buildings or other airport facilities
or rights-of-way located thereon.
An access lane, generally of an urban character, that is
used primarily for vehicular service access to the back or side of
properties otherwise abutting on a street.
Design, construction, and engineering practices that use
natural features of the landscape with bio-engineered solutions (e.g.,
infiltration and water storage), to treat, manage, and control stormwater
on-site.
The 1990 federal civil rights law that prohibits discrimination
on the basis of disability. This law dictates specific levels of compliance
for both the public sector (Title II: State and Local Governments)
and the private sector (Title III: Public Accommodations).
Communications equipment that transmits, receives or transmits
and receives electromagnetic radio signals used in the provision of
all types of wireless communications services.
A part of a multifamily housing unit consisting of a room
or rooms intended, designed, or used as a residence by an individual
or a single family.
Formal process initiated by an aggrieved party to seek a
review of the following:
A property owner or any person or entity acting as an agent
for the property owner in an application for a development proposal,
permit, or approval.
The breeding, rearing, and harvesting of aquatic plants and
animals in all types of water environments including ponds, rivers,
lakes, in natural or man-made features. Aquaculture utilizes controlled
conditions to produce various species of fish, shellfish, plants and
other aquatic organisms. Aquaculture serves a variety of uses including
research and fish food production. Also known as "aquafarming."
A facility that is visually blended into the landscape or
existing vertical infrastructure, by means of design, placement, height,
size and/or treatment, so not readily apparent to a casual observer
as a wireless communications facility.
An area, generally measured as a radius, surrounding property in which property owners are advised of a land use action that requires public notification. See Article II for area of notice requirements.
A clearly defined natural channel formed by the passage of
water and subject to flash flooding during seasonal or irregular rainfall
events. Also a dry wash or draw through which water flows only occasionally.
One of the following:
Principal arterials that provide higher-speed travel and mobility
for long-distance trips. These roads function within the region or
community to carry large volumes of traffic to minor arterials and
collector routes. Access may be limited by medians.
Minor arterials serve a mobility function for longer-distance
trips but handle moderate volumes of traffic at moderate speeds. Minor
arterials provide connections to collector routes, which serve communities
and local areas. Access from some major traffic generators is allowed
to minor arterials.
A standards-setting body that publishes specifications, test
protocols and guidelines used in highway design and construction.
A place in which the public may consign livestock for sale
by auction open to public bidding.
The total volume of traffic passing a given point or segment
of a road facility, in both directions, during a twenty-four-hour
period. It is commonly obtained during a given time period, in whole
days greater than one day and less than one year, divided by the number
of days in that time period.
Lettering or graphics on valance or canopy of an awning.
A band of text or graphics across the width of a building.
The elevation shown on the Flood Insurance Rate Map for special
flood hazard areas that indicates the water surface elevation resulting
from a flood that has a one-percent chance of equaling or exceeding
that level in any given year.
A station at a specific site authorized to communicate with
mobile stations, generally consisting of radio transceivers, antennas,
coaxial cables, power supplies and other associated electronics.
A residence built expressly for, or converted to, the rental
of one to six rooms to paying guests and providing breakfast to paying
guests on a daily or weekly basis. The residential appearance of the
structure is maintained, and the owner resides on the lot. This definition
does not include a hotel, motel or boardinghouse.
Solid rock underlying unconsolidated surface materials or
appearing at the surface where these are absent.
A bank or mound of earth, used especially as a water barrier.
Schedule of activities, prohibitions of practices, maintenance
procedures, and other management practices to prevent or reduce the
discharge of pollutants to the MS4 and waters of the U.S. BMPs also
include treatment requirements, operating procedures, and practices
to control fugitive dust, site runoff, spillage or leaks, sludge or
waste disposal, drainage from raw material storage, and other site
development work that optimizes resources.
See "base flood elevation."
A separate path or a portion of a roadway that has been designated
by striping, signing, and pavement markings for the preferential or
exclusive use of bicycles (AASHTO).
A large flat surface or board mounted on a prominent structure,
typically located in high-traffic areas and used for advertising or
other communication to be read from a moving vehicle.
[Amended 12-8-2020 by Ord. No. 317-2020]
The use of vegetation and soils to clean, slow, and infiltrate
and/or store stormwater runoff.
Vegetated, shallow, landscaped depressions designed to capture,
treat, and infiltrate stormwater run-off as it moves downstream.
A small, pedestrian-oriented sign that projects perpendicularly
from a structure such as a bracket and which is hung from the fascia
above ground-floor doors and windows.
The aggregate of private lots, passage, rear alleys and rear
lanes, bounded by thoroughfares.
The side of a block, extending between its lateral lot lines.
See "best management practice (BMP)."
The governing body of Doña Ana County, New Mexico.
A residential dwelling unit with two or more rooms that are
rented or intended to be rented independently.
See "Board of County Commissioners."
Excavating material from borrow pits or areas selected by
the contractor, when sufficient quantities of suitable material are
not available from other excavations, and disposing of all excavated
borrow material as specified and in conformity with the lines, grades,
and dimensions shown on the drawings, or as directed by the Engineer.
The widening of roadway cuts and ditches will be considered as general
excavation, and not as borrow.
A divided thoroughfare designed for high vehicular capacity
and moderate speed, traversing a built-up area.
An area of land inside a property serving as a screen, using
walls, fencing, berms, or a combination of the above with vegetation.
Buffering visually separates new development from an adjacent property
or roadway, and mitigates negative impacts; it can be a part of LID
and GI practices such as water harvesting.
[Amended 11-14-2017 by Ord. No. 294-2017]
Any structure that is enclosed by means of walls and a roof,
generally intended for use as a working, storage or dwelling place.
The form of a building, based on its massing, private frontage,
and height.
The height of a building counted in stories for development
intensities or measured in feet for use zones.
An approval that allows an applicant to proceed with a construction
or remodeling project. A building permit shall not be issued unless
the construction plans comply with applicable standards for land use,
zoning, construction and minimum building and fire code requirements.
[Added 12-8-2020 by Ord. No. 317-2020]
Any solid material capable of releasing fugitive dust when
stored or handled (i.e., sand, gravel, soil, rock aggregate and any
other inorganic or organic matter).
Diameter of a tree trunk measured six inches to 12 inches
from the ground.
A man-made ditch or channel that carries water for purposes
other than domestic consumption.
All parts of the plant genus Cannabis containing a delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol
concentration of more than three-tenths percent on a dry weight basis,
whether growing or not; the seeds of the plant; the resin extracted
from any part of the plant; and every compound, manufacture, salt,
derivative, mixture or preparation of the plant, its seeds or its
resin; and does not include:
[Added 12-14-2021 by Ord.
No. 324-2021]
The mature stalks of the plant; fiber produced from the stalks;
oil or cake made from the seeds of the plant; any other compound,
manufacture, salt, derivative, mixture or preparation of the mature
stalks, fiber, oil or cake; or the sterilized seed of the plant that
is incapable of germination; or
The weight of any other ingredient combined with cannabis products
to prepare topical or oral administrations, food, drink or another
product.
An area where cannabis products may be served and consumed.
[Added 12-14-2021 by Ord.
No. 324-2021]
A licensed person that transports cannabis products to qualified
patients, primary caregivers or reciprocal participants or directly
to consumers.
[Added 12-14-2021 by Ord.
No. 324-2021]
Any activity involving the planting, growing, harvesting,
drying, curing, grading or trimming of cannabis.
[Added 12-14-2021 by Ord.
No. 324-2021]
A cannabis testing laboratory, cannabis manufacturer, cannabis
producer, cannabis retailer, cannabis research laboratory, or cannabis
microbusiness.
[Added 12-14-2021 by Ord.
No. 324-2021]
[Added 12-14-2021 by Ord. No. 324-2021]
A product obtained by separating resins, tetrahydrocannabinols
or other substances from cannabis by extraction methods approved by
the division; and
Does not include the weight of any other ingredient combined
with cannabis extract to prepare topical or oral administrations,
food, drink or another product.
A licensed person that: (1) cultivates cannabis plants; (2)
has unprocessed cannabis products tested by a cannabis testing laboratory;
(3) transports unprocessed cannabis products only to other cannabis
establishments; (4) sells cannabis products wholesale; (5) manufactures
cannabis products; (6) packages cannabis products; (7) has cannabis
products tested by a cannabis testing laboratory; (8) purchases, acquires,
sells or transports wholesale cannabis products to other cannabis
establishments; or (9) a cannabis industry facility may include a
small-scale accessory retail area.
[Added 12-14-2021 by Ord.
No. 324-2021]
To compound, blend, extract, infuse, package or otherwise
prepare a cannabis product.
[Added 12-14-2021 by Ord.
No. 324-2021]
A licensed person that: (1) manufactures cannabis products;
(2) packages cannabis products; (3) has cannabis products tested by
a cannabis testing laboratory; or (4) purchases, acquires, sells or
transports wholesale cannabis products to other cannabis establishments.
[Added 12-14-2021 by Ord.
No. 324-2021]
A licensed person that is authorized to conduct one or more
of the following: (1) production of cannabis at a single licensed
premises; provided that the person shall not possess more than 200
total mature cannabis plants at any one time; (2) manufacture of cannabis
products at a single licensed premises; (3) sales and transportation
of only cannabis products produced or manufactured by that person;
(4) operation of only one retail establishment; and (5) couriering
of cannabis products to qualified patients, primary caregivers, reciprocal
participants or directly to consumers.
[Added 12-14-2021 by Ord.
No. 324-2021]
A cannabis producer at a single licensed premises that cultivates
and possesses no more than 200 total mature cannabis plants at any
one time.
[Added 12-14-2021 by Ord.
No. 324-2021]
A licensed person that: (1) cultivates cannabis plants; (2)
has unprocessed cannabis products tested by a cannabis testing laboratory;
(3) transports unprocessed cannabis products only to other cannabis
establishments; or (4) sells cannabis products wholesale.
[Added 12-14-2021 by Ord.
No. 324-2021]
A licensed facility that produces or possesses cannabis products
and all parts of the plant genus Cannabis for the purpose of studying
cannabis cultivation, characteristics or uses.
[Added 12-14-2021 by Ord.
No. 324-2021]
A licensed person that sells cannabis products to qualified
patients, primary caregivers, reciprocal participants or directly
to consumers.
[Added 12-14-2021 by Ord.
No. 324-2021]
A licensed person that samples, collects and tests cannabis
products and transports cannabis products for the purpose of testing.
[Added 12-14-2021 by Ord.
No. 324-2021]
A portable self-contained wireless facility that can be moved
to a location and set up to provide wireless services on a temporary
or emergency basis. A COW is normally vehicle-mounted and contains
a telescoping boom as the antenna support structure.
The area designated to collect stormwater runoff.
See "Community Development Department."
A burial place or grounds.
See "Code of Federal Regulations."
See "NPDES General Permit for Discharges from Construction
Activities."
A natural or artificial watercourse, including arroyos, streams,
swales, ditches and diversions, with a definite bed and banks that
conveys flowing water continuously or periodically.
The image and perception of a property, neighborhood or community
defined by its built environment, such as natural features, density,
land uses, pattern of development and similar features.
A method of dust control implemented by any person to mitigate
PM10 emissions by applying asphaltic emulsions, acrylics, adhesives,
or any other approved materials that are not prohibited for use by
the New Mexico Environment Department, the U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency, or any other law, rule, or regulation.
Offset curb extension on residential, commercial, and low-volume
streets resulting in slower traffic speeds with possible environmental
functions.
An arid North American ecoregion, the Chihuahuan Desert is
shrubland and desert grassland, often high elevation and in the watersheds
of mountains, with a drier cool season and a wetter late summer monsoon.
The Chihuahuan Desert lies mostly in Mexico, with portions extending
into the southwest United States, and it includes all of Doña
Ana County.
An indoor or outdoor area dedicated for community use.
The Federal Water Pollution Control Act originally enacted
in 1948, amended numerous times, including substantial amendments
called the Federal Water Pollution Control Act Amendments of 1972
and the Water Quality Act of 1987, and other subsequent amendments
collectively known as the Clean Water Act (CWA). The CWA establishes
the basic structure for regulating discharges of pollutants into the
waters of the U.S. and regulating quality standards for surface waters.
See 33 U.S.C. § 1251 et seq.
(E.g., site visibility triangle.) Specified areas along intersection
approach legs and across their included corners that are to be clear
of obstructions which might block a driver's view of potentially conflicting
vehicles, as defined by AASHTO's Geometric Designs of Highways and
Streets (AASHTO Green Book, 2004, or most current edition).
An establishment where patients are not lodged overnight
but are admitted for outpatient services.
The placement or installation of wireless facilities on existing
structures, including electrical transmission towers, water towers,
buildings and other structures capable of structurally supporting
the attachment of wireless facilities in compliance with applicable
codes.
The codification of the general and permanent rules published
in the Federal Register by the executive departments and agencies
of the federal government. All references to "CFR" are to specific
parts, sections, tables, or appendices of the Code of Federal Regulations,
as amended.
A roadway that serves as a connection between two or more
minor thoroughfares and a major thoroughfare. A collector serves large
subdivisions and should be designed so that no residential properties
face onto it.
The initial disturbance of soils associated with clearing,
grading, or excavating activities or other construction-related activities
(e.g., stockpiling of fill material).
Any land use or activity conducted for financial gain through
the sale of goods and services, including industrial uses.
The permanent or temporary display of goods and signage for
rentals, sales, or contract sales of goods or services outside of
a building.
Any tract on which the principal use is the raising of, or
the concentrated feeding of, livestock, fowl, or any other edible
animals, the sale of such animals or the sale of products derived
from such animals; does not include dairies.
An area of focused community activity that may include, without
limitation, one or more of the following: a civic space, a commercial
center, or a transit station, and may act as the social center of
a neighborhood.
A plan or scheme of operation, undertaken by a single individual
or subdivider or a group of individuals or subdividers acting in concert,
to offer for sale or lease parcels of land where the land is either
contiguous or part of the same area of land or is known, designated
or advertised as a common unit or by a common name
[Added 12-8-2020 by Ord. No. 317-2020]
An area within the County that may consist of a variety of
neighborhoods and/or land uses that is self-identified by residents
of the area.
A place where people from a particular community, neighborhood
or subdivision meet for social, educational, or recreational activities
used strictly for those residents and their families.
A place where people meet for social, educational, or recreational
activities, whose participation or attendance is not limited by residence
or membership.
A place, structure, area or building used as a place of meeting,
for recreation, or social activity, and generally open to the public.
[Added 12-8-2020 by Ord. No. 317-2020]
A department of Doña Ana County government that includes
staff with responsibilities for administering this chapter.
See "Zoning Administrator."
A piece of land cultivated by a group of people, utilizing
either individual or shared plots on private or public land; excludes
the cultivation of cannabis.
[Amended 12-14-2021 by Ord. No. 324-2021]
A facility governed by the 2021 New Mexico Community Solar
Act, as amended, that generates, and may store, electricity by means
of a solar photovoltaic device; subscribers to the facility receive
a bill credit for the electricity generated in proportion to the subscriber's
share of the facility's kilowatt-hour output.
[Added 6-13-2023 by Ord. No. 335-2023]
A regulatory category that defines the physical form, density,
character, and extent of a new development or community. These include
small village, village, town, general neighborhood, and urban center.
A parcel of land used for shopping or services generally
serving an area of several neighborhoods in a given community.
The process in which a stress applied to a material/soil
causes densification as air is displaced from the pores between the
soil grains.
Any wireless facility that is integrated as an architectural
feature of an existing structure or any new wireless support structure
designed to camouflage or conceal the presence of antennas or towers
so that the purpose of the facility or wireless support structure
is not readily apparent to a casual observer.
A scaled drawing that provides a general concept of what
is proposed to be developed on a site.
A single unit in a multiunit dwelling or structure that is
separately owned and which may be combined with an undivided interest
in the common areas and facilities of the property.
The act of breaking ground or erecting a building or structure
as defined elsewhere in this section.
Any activity that:
The maps or drawings accompanying an application for a building
permit or subdivision plat that show the specific location and design
of improvements to be installed on a property or subdivision in accordance
with the requirements of this chapter.
[Amended 12-8-2020 by Ord. No. 317-2020]
Containing a harmful quantity of pollutant.
At least one boundary line of one lot touching a boundary
line or lines of another lot.
An array of conditions ranging from the rural to the urban
and used in this chapter, by arranging development intensities or
zones within that range. These development intensities and zones describe
the physical form and character of a place, according to the intensity
of its land use and urbanism.
A street or roadway identified as a principle link or gateway
and adjacent land uses within the County.
The County of Doña Ana, New Mexico, or Doña
Ana County staff and/or administration.
The elected Clerk of the County of Doña Ana, New Mexico,
or the Clerk's authorized representative.
An uncovered area partly or wholly enclosed by buildings
or walls and used primarily for supplying access, light, and air to
abutting buildings.
See "carrier on wheels or cell on wheels."
A circular area centered on the trunk of an existing tree
that has a radius of 12 inches to every inch of diameter at breast
height (DBH) of the tree.
The cross slope or difference in elevation between the high
and low point of a cross section of a street normally measured from
center line to edge of pavement or gutter line.
See "critical root zone."
A thoroughfare (other than an alley) that terminates in a
vehicular turnaround.
A keyed section void in the curb to allow the passage of
stormwater flow from impervious surfaces (e.g., streets) to pervious
surfaces (e.g., rain gardens).
A curved segment of curb used at each end of an opening in
the roadway.
See "excavation."
See "Clean Water Act."
An area of land on which cows are kept for the purpose of
producing dairy products in commercial quantities, as well as the
related buildings, equipment and processes.
A commercial use for the daytime care of people who cannot
be left to their own devices, such as children or the elderly.
A speed-change lane for the purpose of enabling a vehicle
to slow to a safe turning speed when exiting a roadway.
A public right-of-way that is dedicated and accepted by the
BOCC for public use and is recorded as such in the Office of the County
Clerk.
This definition applies only to water quality, liquid and
solid waste disposal guidelines. To reduce the physical, chemical,
or biological qualities of a body of water. It includes the release
of material which could result in the exceeding of standards established
in the Water Quality Standards for Interstate and Intrastate Streams,
by the Water Quality Control Commission Regulations, and by the Drinking
Water Regulations.
The number of families, persons, or housing units per unit
of land.
Standards set for specific improvement requirements.
The liquid waste flow rate for which a liquid waste system
must be designed in order to assure acceptable system performance.
It is generally governed by regulations, standards, codes, and accepted
references.
The velocity at which a thoroughfare tends to be driven without
the constraints of signage or enforcement. There are four ranges of
speed: very low (below 20 mph), low (20 to 25 mph), moderate (25 to
35 mph) and high (above 35 mph).
A water-storage facility that gradually releases water by
means of an outlet with the goals of controlling peak discharge.
Any human-caused change to improved or unimproved property.
Any person creating, or having created, a subdivision individually
or as part of a common promotional plan, or a person improving a property,
or any person engaged in the sale or lease of subdivided land which
is being sold or leased by the owner in the ordinary course of business;
however, the term "developer" does not include any duly licensed real
estate broker or salesperson not acting on personal account.
For the purpose of determining the applicability of the zoning
provisions contained within this chapter, "development" means the
construction or property improvement, either of which results in a
change of land use or character of the property, or the subdivision
of land, including, but not limited to, buildings or other structures,
mining, dredging, filling, grading, paving, excavation or drilling
operations or storage of equipment or materials.
[Amended 12-8-2020 by Ord. No. 317-2020]
A contract between a local jurisdiction and a person who
has ownership or control of property within the jurisdiction. The
purpose of the agreement is to specify the standards and conditions
that will govern development of the property. The development agreement
provides assurance to the developer that he/she may proceed to develop
the project subject to the rules and regulations in effect at the
time of approval — the development will not be subject to subsequent
changes in regulations. Development agreements should also benefit
the local jurisdiction. The County may include conditions (mitigation
measures) that must be met to assure that a project at a specific
location does not have unacceptable impacts on neighboring properties
or community infrastructure. The agreement may clarify how the project
will be phased, the required timing of public improvements, the developer's
contribution toward funding system-wide community improvements, and
other conditions. The agreement can also facilitate enforcement of
requirements, since it is a contract that details the obligations
of the developer and local jurisdiction.
The degree to which land is used for community types; refers
to levels of concentration or activities in use in a gradient of light,
medium, and high intensity.
A permit is required to construct or for property improvement,
either of which results in a change of land use or character of the
property. Individuals must obtain a permit from the Floodplain Administrator.
A committee consisting of the Directors of Utilities, the
Flood Commission, Community Development, the County Fire Chief, and
the County Engineer. The purpose of the DRC is to review development
proposals, deviation of development standards, and provide a recommendation
to the appropriate decision-making body.
Any addition or introduction of any pollutant, stormwater,
or any other substance whatsoever into the municipal separate storm
sewer system, channels, watercourses, water, or waters of the U.S.
Any person who causes, allows, permits, or is otherwise responsible
for a discharge, including, without limitation, any operator of a
construction site.
A statement required to be given to persons acquiring an
interest in subdivided land; this statement must comply with the requirements
of NMSA 1978, § 47-6-17 and Appendices I and J.[1]
A glazed enclosure for the display of directories or printed
materials.
Any land surface area in which the soil will be altered by
grading, leveling, scraping, cut-and-fill activities, excavation,
brush and timber clearing, grubbing, and unpaved soils on which vehicle
operations and/or movement will occur or has occurred.
A channel made on or in the ground for draining or irrigating
land.
Human excrement, gray water (from home clothes washing, bathing,
showers, dish washing, and food preparation), other wastewater from
household drains, and waterborne waste normally discharged from the
sanitary conveniences free from industrial waste, such as commercial
enterprises.
The natural or artificial removal of surface and sub-surface
water from an area.
An area enclosed by a topographic divide which contributes
to the runoff at a particular location.
Any depression into which stormwater flows along a defined
course.
An agreement signed by a property owner defining the property
owner's responsibilities for maintaining all elements of the drainage
system.
A plan indicating the existing storm drainage conditions
of a proposed development and how the increased run-off generated
by the proposed development will be handled.
See "Development Review Committee."
A thoroughfare along the boundary between a built-up and
a natural condition, usually along a waterfront, park, or promontory.
One side has the character of a thoroughfare, with sidewalk and building,
while the other has the qualities of a road or parkway, with naturalistic
planting and rural details.
A point of vehicular access between a right-of-way or easement
and an abutting property.
When measured at the lot line, the length parallel to the
traveled way. When measured in the private frontage, the narrowest
dimension across a driveway measured perpendicular to the direction
of travel.
Utilities including electric, gas, telephone, fiber optics,
and cable.
A residential building with two attached dwelling units each
of which has direct access to the outside.
Any activity, process, or project capable of generating fugitive
dust, including activities associated with creating a disturbed area.
Any water, hygroscopic material, or nontoxic chemical stabilizer
used as a treatment to reduce visible fugitive dust emissions. Dust
suppressant uses, concentrations, and application frequencies shall
be as recommended by the manufacturer and shall not violate this chapter.
Any structure or portion thereof that contains living facilities,
including provisions for sleeping, eating, cooking and sanitation.
The excavation, grading, filling or any other alteration
of the contour, topography or natural cover of land.
A nonpossessory interest held by one person, party, or entity
in land of another, whereby that person is accorded partial use of
such land for a specific purpose. An easement restricts, but does
not abridge, the right of the fee owner to the use and enjoyment of
this land. A road easement shall be considered a private road and
shall not be maintained by the County.
An area of interdependent geography, climate, plants, and
wildlife, which is unique from other ecoregions, including those adjacent.
See "erosion control plan."
That point of maximum curvature at the upper edge of a definite
bank or, if no definite bank exists, the highest point where signs
of seasonal high water flow exist.
An electrical transmission structure used to support high
voltage overhead power lines. The term shall not include any utility
pole.
An exterior wall of a building not along a frontage line.
See "facade."
A certificate issued by the County Floodplain Administrator
in order to obtain the elevation of the lowest floor (including basement)
of all new and substantially improved buildings. It is to be used
to provide elevation information necessary to ensure compliance with
community floodplain management ordinances, to determine the proper
insurance premium rate, and to support a request for a letter of map
amendment or revision (LOMA or LOMR-F). See also Chapter 207, Flood
Damage Prevention.
A request for modification of an existing wireless tower
or base station that involves co-location of new transmission equipment
or replacement of transmission equipment but does not include a substantial
modification.
An earthen or artificial mound raised above immediately adjacent
land.
Police, fire or ambulance services, in addition to other
services which stem from circumstances which pose a threat to life
or property and require immediate attention.
To extend across and into the limits of rights-of-way, parkways,
surrounding properties, or above a height limit. When not specifically
permitted by this chapter, encroachment is synonymous with infringement,
invading, trespassing or intruding.
A person who is engaged in the practice of engineering and
is qualified to so practice as attested by a legal registration as
a professional engineer in the State of New Mexico. When used in connection
with the requirements of this chapter, an engineer has a legal registration
permitting him or her to fulfill the requirements.
Integrated system of water, plants, animals, microorganisms,
and the environment.
The Engineering Services Department for the County of Doña
Ana, New Mexico.
A geographic area providing key ecological functions, which
may also contain natural, scenic and/or cultural features of such
significance, that warrants their conservation in a comprehensive
manner.
See "U.S. Environmental Protection Agency."
A briefly occurring flow of water that occurs following rainfall
in close proximity.
An area surrounding or near the base of a wireless support
structure within which are located wireless facilities.
The dislodging and transport of soil particles, or mass movement
of soil (mass wasting) by water, wind, gravity or other mechanical
means.
Treatment measures for the prevention of damages due to soil
movement from wind, water, gravity, or mechanical means.
A written description of all best management practices to
be implemented at a work site and/or in transit to and from a work
site for any earth moving, construction, or potential dust-generating
operation. Such written description may be incorporated into construction
plans, or a separate document submitted with said plans.
The removal of earth material by artificial means; also referred
to as a "cut." May be further defined by referenced construction specifications.
A wireless support structure, erected prior to the application
for an eligible facilities request, co-location or substantial modification
under this chapter, which is capable of supporting the attachment
of wireless facilities. The term includes, electrical transmission
towers, buildings, and water towers. The term shall not include any
utility pole.
A plant species not considered native, which may or may not
be adapted to the built and desert environments. Such a plant may
be included in, or fulfill, required landscaping, if not invasive
and negative characteristics are unlikely. Refer to Appendix X, Plant
List, Recommended, and Appendix Y, Plants, Prohibited or Not Recommended.[2]
Expansion of existing use shall be construed as an expansion
of building square footage, a zone change that allows a higher use
of the property, expansion of parking area or expansion of outdoor
storage area.
[Added 11-14-2017 by Ord.
No. 294-2017]
Any substance listed in the appendices to 40 CFR Part 355,
Emergency Planning and Notification.
The exterior wall of a building that is set along a frontage
line. See "elevation."
The Fair Housing Act of 1968, as amended, prohibits discrimination
in the sale, rental, and financing of dwellings, and in other housing-related
transactions, based on race, color, national origin, religion, sex,
familial status (including children under the age of 18 living with
parents or legal custodians, pregnant women, and people securing custody
of children under the age of 18), and disability.
The area within a determined radius referred to as the potential
fall radius, in which a wireless support structure may be expected
to fall in the event of a structure failure, as certified by a registered
New Mexico professional engineer.
One or more persons living together in a single dwelling
unit as a family or the functional equivalent of a family.
Any use of land for the growing and harvesting of crops,
the open-range grazing of livestock, or irrigated pasture for grazing
livestock for sale or profit, or uses that are directly ancillary
to these on-farm scalable activities, which is the exclusive or primary
use of the lot, including processing, packaging and warehousing.
Consist primarily of open lands used for agriculture or the
raising of livestock.
The federal agency under which the National Flood Insurance
Program (NFIP) is administered. In March 2003, FEMA became part of
the newly created United States Department of Homeland Security.
See "Federal Emergency Management Agency."
(E.g., fencing.) An enclosure or barrier used as a boundary,
means of protection, or privacy. Fencing is constructed of open or
solid materials, permitting some amount of light, visibility, and/or
air movement. Fences are not considered an expansion of use.
[Amended 11-14-2017 by Ord. No. 294-2017]
A fence at the primary frontage or a fence at the secondary
frontage.
A fence generally in proximity to and parallel to the boundary
between two lots.
A fence generally in proximity to and parallel to a rear
alley or rear lane.
A fence generally in proximity to and parallel to the primary
frontage.
A fence generally in proximity to and parallel to the secondary
frontage.
See "Fair Housing Act."
Deposition of earth materials by artificial means.
A survey plat prepared by a professional surveyor licensed
to practice in the State of New Mexico which contains a description
of the subdivided land with ties to permanent monuments prepared in
a form suitable for filing of record, meeting the requirements of
this chapter.
The covering of areas, exclusive of permanent structures,
by vegetation or nonvegetation methods, such that the site is protected
from erosion.
The County Fire Chief or Fire and Emergency Services Department,
or any duly authorized representative thereof.
Any area appurtenant to a building deemed necessary by the
County Fire Chief or his/her designee to remain free and clear of
parked vehicles for access to such building in case of fire or other
emergency and designated by him as such; may include sidewalks, driveways,
portions of parking lots or any other area adjacent to or near a building
or fire hydrant, as required by the County Fire Chief.
See "Flood Insurance Rate Map."
A lot having the configuration of an extended flag and pole.
The flag represents the width of a lot suitable for a principal building
and front setbacks conforming to the zoning district. The pole represents
the portion of the lot that serves as the access from the flag to
a thoroughfare.
A general and temporary condition of partial or complete
inundation of two or more acres of normally dry land area or of two
or more properties (at least one of which is the policyholder's property)
from overflow of inland or tidal waters; unusual and rapid accumulation
or runoff of surface waters from any source; mudflow; or collapse
or subsidence of land along the shore of a lake or similar body of
water as a result of erosion or undermining caused by waves or currents
of water exceeding anticipated cyclical levels that result in a flood
as defined above.
The measures necessary or taken to protect the public's health,
safety or welfare from the effects of flooding.
An area subject to flooding from storm runoff.
The official map of a community on which FEMA has delineated
both the special hazard areas and the risk-premium zoning districts
applicable to the community.
Any area susceptible to flooding by water from storm runoff
as designated on the Flood Insurance Rate Map (FIRM) prepared by the
United States Department of Housing and Urban Development, or similar
maps prepared by the United States Army Corps of Engineers, Federal
Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) or other similar agency or per
the Flood Commissioner's designation based on findings of fact.
A watercourse channel and that portion of the adjoining floodplain
required to provide for the passage of a one-hundred-year flood.
Motorized vehicles with on board power, refrigeration, food
preparation facilities, and usually room for two to four employees,
which are mobile food units and are not site-specific vendors.
A residential building with four attached dwelling units
each of which has direct access to the outside.
Any non-movable sign not affixed to a building that is not
a portable sign.
The face of the building occurring at the primary frontage.
The distance from the primary frontage at which a building
or streetscreen must be located. It is generally indicated by a range
of distances from the frontage line.
The area between a facade and the vehicular lanes, including
both built and planted components. Frontage is divided into private
and parkway.
The percentage of the lot width that is occupied by a facade
at the front setback.
A lot line bordering a street or access.
Any particulate matter entrained in the ambient air that
is caused from human or natural activities without first passing through
a stack or duct designed to control flow, including, emissions caused
by movement of soil, vehicles, equipment, windblown dust, or other
human or natural activities. Excluded particulate matter includes
matter emitted directly from the exhaust of motor vehicles, or from
other combustion devices, portable brazing, soldering or welding equipment,
and pile drivers.
The area of the parkway assembly that is available for street
furniture such as benches, wastebaskets, and newspaper boxes.
A building or portion thereof other than a private storage
garage, designed or used for equipping, servicing, repairing, hiring,
selling, storing or parking motor-driven vehicles. The term "repairing"
shall not include an automotive body repair shop nor the rebuilding,
dismantling or storage of wrecked or junked vehicles.
An informal event for the sale of used goods by private individuals,
in which sellers are not required to obtain business licenses or collect
sales tax.
Any animal or vegetable waste that is liable to decompose
or rot resulting from the handling, preparation, cooking or consumption
of foods, offal, scum, dregs, sediment, sweepings, trash, debris,
remains, or dross.
See "green infrastructure."
A degree of luminance caused by direct light or reflection.
Any excavation or fill or combination thereof, including
clearing and grubbing.
A permit to excavate or fill or a combination thereof, including
clearing and grubbing of land for the construction and development
of permitted buildings or structures, or to conduct other legal land
uses.
An approach to water management that protects, restores,
or mimics the natural water cycle. GI includes the physical and biological
processes found in each ecoregion's natural landscape, informing low-impact
development and water harvesting.
A civic space type for unstructured recreation, spatially
defined by landscaping rather than building frontages.
Any combination of mulch, low plants, seeding, or turf used
to prevent weeds and minimize erosion, but shall not include artificial
turf, asphalt, concrete, or bare soil.
[Amended 11-14-2017 by Ord. No. 294-2017]
This definition applies only to water quality, liquid and
solid waste disposal guidelines. Interstitial water which occurs in
saturated earth material. It is capable of entering a well in sufficient
amounts to be utilized as a water supply.
A dwelling unit where six or fewer unrelated people in need
of care, support, or supervision can live together.
The removal of stumps and roots.
The impervious portion of a landscape area, including shade
structures, walls, paving, and water features.
[Added 11-14-2017 by Ord.
No. 294-2017]
Discharges of any substance in a quantity determined to be
harmful to the public health, public welfare, or the environment.
The indicated presence in water or soil of chemical, biological
or other agents under such conditions that they may adversely impact
human health.
Any liquid, solid, or contained gas that contain properties
that are dangerous or potentially harmful to human health or the environment.
Manufacturing or other enterprises that pose significant
risks due to the use or storage of explosives or radioactive materials,
or of poisons, herbicides, or other hazardous materials in reportable
quantities under the standards of the Environmental Protection Agency.
See "airport."
See "household hazardous waste."
On-site average wind speed greater than 15 miles per hour,
gusts of 20 miles per hour, or an active wind advisory issued by the
National Weather Service for Doña Ana County.
A rural and suburban thoroughfare of high vehicular speed
and capacity.
A building in which lodging or boarding and lodging are provided
and offered to the public for compensation and in which ingress to
and egress from all rooms are made through an inside lobby or office
supervised by a person in charge at all times.
Any material generated in a household (including single and
multiple residences, hotels and motels, bunk houses, ranger stations,
crew quarters, campgrounds, picnic grounds, and day-use recreational
areas) by a consumer which, except for the exclusion provided in 40
CFR 261.4(b)(1), would be classified as a hazardous waste under 40
CFR Part 261.
A flood having an average frequency of occurrence in order
of once in 100 years, although the flood may occur in any year.
The natural ability of landscape features to absorb, store,
and release intercepted water.
Any discharge to the MS4 that is not composed entirely of
stormwater, except discharges pursuant to a NPDES permit (other than
the NPDES permit for discharges from the MS4) and discharges resulting
from fire-fighting activities.
A husband, wife, father, stepfather, mother, stepmother,
brother, stepbrother, sister, stepsister, son, stepson, daughter,
stepdaughter, grandson, stepgrandson, granddaughter, stepgranddaughter,
nephew and niece, whether related by natural birth or adoption.
A road enhanced in value or quality by application of an
all-weather surfacing material, including asphalt or cement treated
base course, soil cement, double penetration, seal coating, pervious
concrete, palliative sprays or an engineered surface design based
on traffic loading and drainage, which will impede and reduce dust
emissions and protect against potholes and erosion when maintained
on a regular basis.
Infrastructure including streets, curbs, gutters, sidewalks,
fire hydrants, storm drainage facilities, bike paths, trails, water,
sewer, electric, telephone, cable and gas systems or parts thereof.
A disposal system that receives liquid waste from one lot
and includes septic tank systems and aerobic disposal systems, is
subject to the New Mexico Environment Department regulations.
Facilities and services needed to sustain industry, residential,
commercial and all other land use activities.
A lodging expressly for, or converted to, the rental of seven
to 12 rooms to paying guests and providing breakfast to paying guests
for 14 days or less. The owner or resident manager resides on the
lot. This definition does not include a hotel, motel or boardinghouse.
An international educational and scientific association of
transportation and traffic engineers and other professionals who are
responsible for meeting mobility and safety needs.
An unsteady flow of water characterized by repeated starts
and stops.
A point where two or more streets meet or cross.
A plant species not considered native, which is prohibited
from use in landscaping due to strong negative characteristics within
the built and desert environment. Such a plant cannot be included
in, or fulfill, required landscaping, including if existing on the
property. Refer to Appendix Y, Plant List, Prohibited, or Not Recommended.[3]
See "Institute of Transportation Engineers."
See "airport."
The use of premises for the open storage of old, wrecked,
inoperable, dilapidated automobiles, trucks, tractors, and other such
vehicles and parts thereof; scrap building materials, scrap contractor's
equipment, tanks, cases, cans, barrels, boxes, drums, piping, bottles,
glass, old iron, machinery, rags, paper excelsior, hair, mattresses,
beds, or bedding; or any other kind of scrap or waste material.
A commercial establishment for the breeding, sale, grooming,
or boarding of small animals and household pets.
A building or group of buildings in which are located facilities
for scientific research, investigation, testing, or experimentation,
but not including facilities for manufacture of products for sale.
The development of one or more lots by any means and for
any purpose, but that does not include easements, rights-of-way or
construction of private roads for extraction, harvesting or transporting
of natural resources.
Any activity that is subject to the regulations of this chapter
that is conducted on, below and in the space above the surface of
the earth to a height of 500 feet.
See "airport."
See "landscaping."
The area of a property or parcel, and adjoining right-of-way,
which can be used for all required landscaping and plant quantities.
Landscaping is categorized based on location within or adjacent
to a property and the density of plantings and other landscape treatments,
using the following types: general or ornamental landscaping is overall
enhancement and beautification of a space; revegetation is replacing
disturbance of a space by recreating original grading, drainage and
vegetation patterns, including site-specific native plants (also called
restoration or reclamation); erosion control addresses potential drainage
and erosion issues with a mix of living and non-living covers to better
bind the soil, including ponding area slopes and basins; vehicular
use area landscaping is general landscaping but applied to unique
requirements of parking, parking area driveways, and pedestrians in
vehicular areas.
An area that has been enhanced and/or mitigated through a
harmonious combination of introduced, live vegetation, irrigation,
and mulch. Landscaping may contain hardscape areas and natural topping
materials such as, boulders, rock, stone, granite, other approved
material, or existing and naturally occurring live vegetation and
site features.
A minor access way that is used primarily for vehicular service
access to the back or side of properties otherwise abutting on a street.
The portion of a roadway for the movement of a single line
of vehicles, not including the gutter or shoulder of the roadway.
A contract by which a rightful possessor of real property
conveys the right to use and occupy the property in exchange for consideration,
usually rent.
A metes-and-bounds description of a parcel of land filed
in accordance with the requirements of the State of New Mexico and
Doña Ana County.
Action by the P&Z or BOCC that reflects public policy
relating to matters of a permanent or general character, that is not
usually restricted to individual persons or groups and is usually
prospective, including, by way of example text amendments that are
not quasi-judicial in nature or comprehensive County-wide rezoning.
A tenant, or any person to whom land or structures are leased.
A landlord, or any person who leases land or structures to
another.
Characterizes the operating conditions on the facility in
terms of traffic performance measures related to speed and travel
time, freedom to maneuver, traffic interruptions, and comfort and
convenience.
The limits of the structure, enclosed area or tenant space
licensed for a cannabis retailer or cannabis consumption area.
[Added 6-13-2023 by Ord. No. 335-2023]
See "low-impact deveopment."
Enterprises engaged in the processing, manufacturing, compounding,
assembly, packaging, treatment or fabrication of materials and products
from processed or previously manufactured materials and produces minimal
if any external effects from the manufacturing process, such as smoke,
noise, soot, dirt, vibration, odor, etc.
Domestic wastewater containing human excreta or other water-carried
waste.
A system which is designed, constructed, operated, and maintained
to receive, treat, and dispose of liquid wastes. It usually consists
of collection, treatment, and disposal components.
The percentage of living vegetation, compared to the total
area of bare soil and/or mulch or rock cover, in required and provided
landscaping and based on mature size and plant area in the plant list.
A mixed-use unit consisting of a residential use and a commercial
use that is not necessarily incidental to or accessory to the residential
use. The commercial use may be anywhere in the unit.
A place where small and large animals are kept on a seasonal
or occasional basis as part of an agricultural enterprise or operation,
as distinguished from a stockyard.
A thoroughfare whose primary function is to provide access
to abutting properties and to other thoroughfares from individual
properties and to provide right-of-way beneath it for sewer, water,
and storm drainage pipes or other utilities.
See "level of service."
A tract or parcel or a portion of a subdivision or other
parcel of land described by metes and bounds, as shown on the records
in the County Clerk's office.
The portion of a lot occupied by impervious surfaces, such
as buildings, sheds, enclosures, structures, patios, decks, pavements,
driveways, parking areas, walkways or other similar surfaces.
The distance between side lot lines measured across the front
yard, parallel to the street or access.
Development that integrates infrastructure and active landscape
features, preserves natural landscape functions and minimizes impervious
surfaces, to create functional drainage strategies. LID promotes water
capture near the source, and is most effective when considered in
a project's predevelopment phases.
The primary indoor or outdoor gathering place for a community.
The cleaning, shaping, grading and repair of roads, drainage,
flood control and erosion control facilities and structures.
Any channel or watercourse that carries more than 100 cubic
feet per second or has a contributing drainage basin of more than
40 acres.
A matter that is required to be as described.
A single-family dwelling with a heated area of at least 864 square feet, and measuring at least 36 feet by 24 feet, constructed in a factory to the standards of the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), the National Manufactured Housing Construction and Safety Standards Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. § 5401 et seq.) and the Housing and Urban Development Zone Code II or the latest Building Code adopted by the County, as amended to the date of the unit's construction, and installed consistent with the Manufactured Housing Act (NMSA 1978, Chapter 60, Article 14) and with the regulations made pursuant thereto relating to ground-level installation. A manufactured home is distinct from a mobile home.
Establishments engaged in the initial processing or treatment
of raw materials or creation of products that required additional
processing, fabrication, or assembly.
A canopy or roof-like projection over the entrance to a theater,
hotel, or other building, usually bearing a sign on its face or sides.
Enterprises in which goods are generally mass produced from
raw materials on a large scale through use of an assembly line or
similar process, usually for sale to wholesalers or other industrial
or manufacturing uses, including compounding, processing, packaging,
storage and assembly and/or treatment of material or other enterprises
which produce external effects such as smoke, noise, soot, dirt, vibration,
odor, etc.
A building available for gatherings, including conferences.
A federally regulated agency responsible for long- and short-range
transportation planning and determining air quality conformity for
the regional transportation air shed. The two MPOs that have jurisdiction
within Doña Ana County are located in Las Cruces, NM and El
Paso, TX.
The Mesilla Valley Metropolitan Planning Organization Metropolitan
Thoroughfare Plan or the El Paso Metropolitan Transportation Plan,
as applicable.
Minor arterials serve a mobility function for longer-distance
trips but handle moderate volumes of traffic at moderate speeds. Minor
arterials receive connections from collector routes, which serve communities
and local areas. Access from some major traffic generators is allowed
to minor arterials.
The mounting of a proposed wireless facility or wireless
facilities on a wireless support structure that minimally changes
the physical dimensions of the support structure.
(E.g., mixed use.) Denotes multiple uses within the building,
lot, block, or other area to which the term refers.
A structure that meets the definition of a mobile home in
the Manufactured Housing and Zoning Act, NMSA 1978, § 3-21A-2,
or any future enactment that revises or substantially replaces said
Act.
A business operation on a single lot on which five or more
mobile home spaces are located, either free of charge or for revenue
purposes. Such business operations are not considered subdivisions
under these regulations.
A subdivision created for the purpose of placing mobile homes
on individually platted lots.
A standardized factory-fabricated transportable building
module not having a chassis or wheels of its own, designed and constructed
in accordance with all applicable local building codes and intended
to be placed on a permanent foundation, meeting all local zoning codes
and to be used by itself or incorporated with similar units at a building
site. Modular buildings can be used for residential or commercial
uses when located in appropriate zoning districts.
The percentage of moisture within the subgrade or embankment
material.
A single freestanding pole-type structure supporting one
or more antennas. For the purposes of this section, a monopole is
not a tower or a utility pole.
A low-level freestanding sign supported by a solid base,
where poles or supports are hidden or covered.
A building in which lodging or boarding and lodging are provided
and offered primarily to the motoring public for compensation and
in which ingress to and egress from all rooms need not be made through
an inside lobby or office.
Any vehicle crankcase oil, antifreeze, transmission fluid,
brake fluid, differential lubricant, gasoline, diesel fuel, gasoline/alcohol
blend, and any other fluid used in a motor vehicle.
See "Metropolitan Planning Organization."
See "municipal separate storm sewer system."
A material covering bare soil to insulate plant roots and
conserve moisture for optimal plant growth, or minimize erosion when
used with plants. Inorganic mulches are aggregate with mineral composition,
including gravel, rock, rip-rap, crusher fines, or decomposed granite,
compatible with low and some medium water-use plants. Organic mulches
are from living material, including shredded cedar or cypress, and
pecan shells, compatible with high and some medium water-use plants.
A building designed for two or more families.
A civic space type for structured recreation and stormwater
management. It may be spatially defined by landscaping rather than
frontages.
The system of conveyances (including roads with drainage
systems, municipal streets, flood control dams, retention and detention
basins, grate and/or curb inlets, curbs, gutters, ditches, man-made
channels, arroyos, agriculture drains, storm drains or designated
flow paths) owned, operated or controlled by the County and designed
or used for collecting or conveying stormwater, and which is not used
for collecting or conveying sewage.
The permitting system established by the Clean Water Act
for all discharges to waters of the U.S. and administered by the EPA
for issuing, modifying, revoking and reissuing, terminating, monitoring
and enforcing permits, and imposing and enforcing pretreatment requirements.
A plant species that is indigenous to the Chihuahuan Desert
or adjacent ecoregions; this can include plant species naturally occurring
within 200 miles and 1,000 feet in elevation of the project site.
A native plant tends to establish in disturbed and wild areas without
cultivation. This excludes exotic and invasive plants. Refer to Appendix
X, Plant List, and Appendix Y, Plant List, Prohibited or Not Recommended.[4]
A condition that arises from or is found in nature and not
modified by human intervention.
Any vegetation that exists on the property, prior to construction
activity or achieved through vegetation restoration to a natural state,
including native plant areas, proposed plantings, and/or the placement
of turf (e.g., lawn or sod).
Also referred to as Soil Conservation Service (SCS). An agency
of the federal government that provides leadership in a partnership
effort to help people conserve, maintain, and improve natural resources
and the environment.
An area of a community with characteristics that distinguish
it from other community areas and that may include schools, or boundaries
defined by physical barriers or natural features.
Retail sales and services, personal services and business
and office services generally intended to serve a neighborhood of
up to a one-mile radius. The scale of development and traffic generated
is accommodated by access to a collector street.
A term for one of several community types regulated by this
chapter.
The state department that is responsible for promoting a
safe, clean and productive environment through implementing environmental
programs and regulations within the State of New Mexico.
The New Mexico office charged with administering the state's
water resources, e.g. the Office of the State Engineer or State Engineer's
Office.
A place of entertainment where alcohol may be served.
See "New Mexico Environmental Department."
See "notice of intent."
See "notice of termination."
The form, written or electronic, that must be filed with
the EPA, when required, for authorization of coverage under NPDES
General Permit for Discharges from Construction Activities (CGP).
The form, written or electronic, that must be filed with
the EPA, when required, for terminating coverage under the NPDES General
Permit for Discharges from Construction Activities.
See "National Polutant Discharge Elimination System."
The permit issued by the EPA under the authority of the Clean
Water Act (CWA) to regulate the discharge of pollutants from construction
activities. The permit is revised and reissued by the EPA at regular
intervals. Construction site owners and/or operators obtain authorization
under the permit to discharge stormwater from their construction site
by preparing a SWPPP and submitting an NOI to the EPA.
See "Natural Resource Conservation Service."
A lot that due to shape or frontage has irregular property
lines, such as multisided or triangular shaped lots that do not fit
the definition of front, side and rear lot lines making the setbacks
difficult to determine.
Any area not located within the boundaries of the property
to be developed, whether or not in the ownership of the applicant.
A location not in a street or alley, exclusive of driveways,
permanently reserved for the temporary storage of one vehicle and
connected with a street or alley by a driveway that affords ingress
and egress for a vehicle.
An interior space available for the transaction of general
business but excluding retail, artisanal and manufacturing uses, generally
larger than 1,500 square feet.
An interior space limited to 1,500 square feet and available
for the transaction of general business but excluding retail, artisanal
and manufacturing uses.
A retention area used to store runoff within an individual
lot.
The flood event that has a one-percent chance of being equaled
or exceeded in any given year. It is also known as the "base flood."
Land intended to remain undeveloped, or when required within
a lot, a publicly or privately owned and maintained ground area that
satisfies visual and physiological needs of the community for light
and air.
Ensures that wireless facilities and wireless support structures
are kept in good operating condition. Ordinary maintenance includes
inspections, testing and modifications that maintain functional capacity
and structural integrity, such as the strengthening of a wireless
support structure's foundation or of the wireless support structure
itself. Ordinary maintenance includes replacing antennas of a similar
size, weight, shape, color and accessory equipment within an existing
equipment compound and relocating the antennas to different height
levels on an existing monopole or tower upon which they are currently
located. Ordinary maintenance does not include substantial modifications.
See "New Mexico Office of the State Engineer."
Any person, association, partnership, or corporation that
has dominion over, ultimate control of, or title to real property.
See "Planning and Zoning Commission."
A contiguous area of land owned by, or recorded as property
of the same person or company. (See also "lot.")
[Amended 12-8-2020 by Ord. No. 317-2020]
A civic space type that is a natural preserve available for
unstructured recreation.
A portion of a development set aside for off-street parking.
An area, typically paved, designed for vehicular parking.
An area of a public street that is between the curb and the
property line.
The combination of the items that make up the parkway, including
the sidewalk, planting strip, lighting, street signs, and street furniture.
[Amended 12-8-2020 by Ord. No. 317-2020]
Any material emitted or entrained into the air as liquid
or solid particulate, with the exception of uncombined water.
A pedestrian way traversing a park or rural area, with landscape
matching the contiguous open space, and which usually connects directly
with any nearby sidewalk network.
The combination of sub-base, base course, and/or surface
course placed on a subgrade to support the traffic load and distribute
it to the roadbed.
An area providing pedestrian access with a dedicated easement
such as a sidewalk, path, or passage.
An area centered on a common destination. Its size is related
to average walking distances for the applicable community type. (Informally
"ped shed.")
This definition applies only to these water quality, liquid
and solid waste disposal guidelines. The rate of entry of water into
soil. It is determined from a standard percolation test performed
on the soil at the depth of the proposed soil absorption system.
When used as a noun, any duly authorized permit for construction
issued by the County or any authorization that includes soil disturbance;
when used as a verb, a legal grant of permission.
Any individual, partnership, co-partnership, firm, company,
corporation, association, joint-stock company, trust, estate, governmental
entity, or any other legal entity; or their legal representatives,
agents, or assigns or an individual who has control over day-to-day
activities. This definition includes all federal, state, and local
governmental entities.
Uses such as beauty shops, barbershops, dry cleaners, mailing
services, self-service laundromats and similar uses that provide service
to the public individually.
Pavement compiled in a manner to effectively treat, detain
and infiltrate stormwater run-off where landscape-based strategies
are restricted or less desired.
A product that is obtained from distilling and processing
crude oil and that is capable of being used as a fuel for the propulsion
of a motor vehicle or aircraft, including motor gasoline, gasohol,
other alcohol blended fuels, aviation gasoline, kerosene distillate
fuel oil, and No. 1 and No. 2 diesel.
Any one or a combination of aboveground or underground storage
tanks that contain petroleum products and any connecting underground
pipes.
Refers to a portion of a multiunit subdivision which is intended
to be developed as a unit.
A construction BMP that is sequencing disturbing activities
during construction, on lots in distinct areas of the project, with
the stabilization of each area before the disturbing of the next.
The Planning and Zoning Commission of Doña Ana County,
New Mexico, who are appointed by the BOCC.
Overall area coverage of plant canopy, calculated in the
following manner including the plant list: trees at 50% of the canopy
width times that same canopy width, rounded up (example: a tree listed
with a twenty-foot canopy width is 20' x 20' = 400 square feet x 50%
= 200 square foot area); other plants at 100% of the canopy width
times that same canopy width (example: an accent plant listed with
a five-foot canopy width is 5' x 5' = 25 square feet x 100% = 25 square
feet area). Refer to Appendix X, Plant List.[5]
Typical, mature width or spread of plant canopy. Refer to § 350-824, Appendix X: Plant list.
[Amended 11-14-2017 by Ord. No. 294-2017]
Plant with fruit or parts, eaten or used by humans in the
preparation of food. Refer to Appendix X, Plant List.[6]
Typical, mature height of plant canopy. Refer to Appendix
X, Plant List.[7]
A live plant that mostly survives on 25 inches or greater water per year; also called a mesic or phreatophytic plant; grows best in a high water-use zone with other high water-use plants. High water-use plants can require less water where moisture availability is higher, particularly where specialized soil types and higher water tables combine in valley locations. Unless in such locations and when supporting documentation is provided, high water-use plants shall not be counted towards required landscaping. Refer to § 350-824, Appendix X: Plant list.
[Amended 11-14-2017 by Ord. No. 294-2017]
A live plant that mostly survives on 10 inches or less water per year, once established (about the average annual precipitation in Doña Ana County); also called a xeric plant; grows best in a low water-use zone with other low water-use plants. Refer to § 350-824, Appendix X: Plant list.
[Amended 11-14-2017 by Ord. No. 294-2017]
A live plant that mostly survives on between 10 and 25 inches of water per year; also called a mesic plant; grows best in a medium water-use zone with other medium water-use plants. Refer to § 350-824, Appendix X: Plant list.
[Amended 11-14-2017 by Ord. No. 294-2017]
The element of the parkway that accommodates street trees
(whether continuous or individual).
A map of a townsite, section, or subdivision, certified by
a surveyor, showing the location and boundaries of individual parcels
of land subdivided into lots, with streets, alleys, easements, etc.,
with references to permanent monuments.
[Amended 12-8-2020 by Ord. No. 317-2020]
A civic space designed and equipped for children's recreation.
A civic space type designed for civic purposes and commercial
activities. A plaza is generally paved and spatially defined by building
frontages.
See "lot."
Any outdoor sign that is mounted on one or more freestanding
poles or other support so that the bottom edge of the sign face is
not in direct contact with a solid base or the ground.
Generally, any substance introduced into the environment
that adversely affects the usefulness of a resource or the health
of humans, animals or ecosystems. Pollutants may include dredged spoil,
solid waste, incinerator residue, sewage, garbage, rubbish, sewage
sludge, munitions, chemical waste, biological materials, radioactive
materials, heat, wrecked or discarded equipment, rock, sand, dirt,
and industrial, municipal, and agricultural waste discharged into
water. The term "pollutant" does not include tail water or runoff
water from irrigation or stormwater runoff from cultivated or uncultivated
range land, pasture land, and farm land.
The alteration of the physical, thermal, chemical, or biological
quality of, or the contamination of, any water in the state that renders
the water harmful, detrimental, or injurious to humans, animal life,
vegetation, or property, or to the public health, safety, or welfare,
or impairs the usefulness or the public enjoyment of the water for
any lawful or reasonable purpose.
A sign that is not permanently affixed to the ground. Portable
signs are sometimes located on trailers or are trailers with writing
or logos affixed to them.
A private frontage conventional for retail use wherein the
facade is aligned close to the frontage line with an attached cantilevered
shed or lightweight colonnade overlapping the sidewalk.
This definition applies only to water quality, liquid and
solid waste disposal guidelines. Any source which could release substances
resulting in the degradation of a body of water and a hazard to public
health.
A map of a proposed subdivision showing the character and
proposed layout of the subdivision and the existing conditions in
and around it.
On corner lots, the private frontage designated to bear both
the address and primary entrance to the building, and the measure
of minimum lot width. See "frontage."
Principal arterials provide higher-speed travel and mobility
for long-distance trips. These roads function within the region or
community to carry large volumes of traffic to minor arterials and
collector routes. Access may be limited by medians.
The main building on a lot or that houses a primary use usually
located near the primary frontage.
The main point of access for pedestrians into a building.
The portion of the frontage between the facade and the frontage
line.
A lot, together with the building or structures thereon,
owned by an individual person, company, or interest.
This definition applies only to water quality, liquid and
solid waste disposal guidelines. A water supply system that has fewer
than 15 service connections or serves fewer than 25 individuals per
NMED standards.
A series of acts of changes proceeding one to the next; a
method of manufacturing or conditioning; or to submit something to
a treatment or preparation.
A person who has been duly licensed and registered by the
State Board of Licensure for professional engineers to engage in the
practice of engineering in the State of New Mexico.
(E.g., lot line.) A legal boundary of a lot or property.
Any legal entity or person who holds superior title to and
can evidence superior title on real or personal property.
See "petroleum storage tank."
A proceeding held by the BOCC or the P&Z, preceded by
notice, at which time applicants and other members of the public may
be heard on matters listed on the BOCC or P&Z agenda.
Property owned by any political subdivision not specifically
exempted by state or federal law.
The civic spaces, public rights-of-way, and the private frontages
generally applicable to community types and transect zones.
Land area, property or interest therein, usually in a strip,
acquired for or devoted to transportation and/or utility purposes
which is acquired, by the city, County, state or federal government
for public use.
A water system which has at least 15 service connections
or serves at least 25 individuals. It is subject to the drinking water
regulations per NMED standards.
Any person who buys a real property interest.
A person knowledgeable in the principles and practice of
erosion and sediment controls and pollution prevention, who possesses
the skills to assess conditions at the construction site that could
impact stormwater quality, and the skills to assess the effectiveness
of any stormwater controls selected and installed to meet the requirements
of this permit (as demonstrated by sufficient education, training,
experience, or any required certification or licensing).
Action by the P&Z or BOCC that involves a determination
of the rights, duties or obligations of specific individuals on the
basis of the application of currently existing legal standards or
policy considerations of past and present facts developed at a hearing
conducted for the purpose of resolving the particular interest in
question. For example, small-scale rezoning directed at a small number
of properties that newly restrict (or expand) the uses of those properties
in ways that are not applicable to the surrounding area, such restriction
(or expansion) being limited to identifiable properties and not being
general policy decisions that apply broadly. The characterization
of an action as quasi-judicial carries with it important procedural
consequences such as the right to individual notice, an opportunity
to be heard, the opportunity to present and rebut evidence, to a tribunal
that is impartial in the matter, i.e., having had no pre-hearing or
ex-parte contacts concerning the question at issue, and to a record
made and adequate findings executed.
The distance from the rear lot line at which a building or
structure may be located. It is generally indicated by a range of
distances per zoning classifications from the rear lot line.
A matter that is not required to be as described, but which
this chapter advises as the intended or optimal condition.
Public or private facilities used for the nurturing and development
of mental or physical strength, agility, or energy through forms of
play, amusement, exercise or relaxation.
[Added 12-8-2020 by Ord. No. 317-2020]
A vehicle on wheels with sleeping, cooking and washing or
sanitary facilities designed to be used as a temporary dwelling unit;
and defined as a recreational vehicle by the New Mexico Motor Vehicle
Code.
A lot where travel trailers or other nonpermanent types of
shelters are erected or maintained. Permitted related buildings and
facilities may include an office, delicatessen and/or grocery store,
laundry facilities, showers, bathrooms, and playgrounds to be operated
during operating hours of the park for the patrons of the park.
An area of land used for shopping centers and commercial
activities of a size intended to generally serve a major portion of
Doña Ana County and/or nearby settlements in adjoining counties
or states; may include retail, services, entertainment, and wholesale
activities.
Any spilling, leaking, pumping, pouring, emitting, emptying,
discharging, injecting, escaping, leaching, dumping, or disposing
into the MS4, channels, watercourses, water, waters of the U.S., or
onto the ground that is not authorized by an NPDES or RCRA permit.
Any facility that generates power from resources which are
naturally replenished on a human time scale.
Pole of equal proportions and of equal height or such other
height that would not constitute a substantial modification to an
existing structure in order to support wireless facilities or to accommodate
co-location. Requires removal of the wireless support structure it
replaces.
For any hazardous substance, the quantity established and
listed in Table 302.4 of 40 CFR Part 302; and for any extremely hazardous
substance, the quantity established in 40 CFR Part 355 and thereof
listed in its Appendix A.
Activities within land areas used predominantly for housing.
A lane providing vehicular access from a thoroughfare, right-of-way
or easement to a principal single-family residence. The term does
not include access to accessory structures or accessory buildings
or vehicle parking for non-residence of the principal single-family
residence.
The sale of goods, wares, or merchandise directly to the
consumer.
A water storage facility that has no outlet for storm events
with a one-hundred-year storm frequency.
A general term denoting land, property, or interest therein,
usually in a strip, acquired for the public intended for transportation
or other related uses.
Land legally acquired by the County for the public intended
for transportation or other related uses.
A local, rural and suburban thoroughfare of low-to-moderate
vehicular speed and capacity. This type is allocated to the more rural
zoning districts.
A written agreement signed by a property owner defining the
property owner's responsibilities for maintaining all elements of
a roadway.
A general term denoting the area adjoining the outer edge
of the roadway. Extensive areas between the roadways of a divided
highway may also be considered roadside.
A structure that is used solely for the display or sale of
farm products produced on the premises.
A public or private way (other than an alley) which may be
dedicated or reserved by plat that affords the principal means of
access to abutting properties.
See "reportable quantity."
Solid waste, excluding food waste and ashes, from homes,
institutions and workplaces.
Water from rain, snowmelt or irrigation that flows over the
land surface and is not absorbed into the ground.
The system of pipes, conduits, and other conveyances which
carry waste sewage to a sewage treatment plant (and to which stormwater,
surface water, and groundwater are not intentionally admitted).
An opaque wall or fence used to obscure or block unsightly
views or visual conflicts and which may be part of a buffer.
[Amended 12-8-2020 by Ord. No. 317-2020]
See "Soil Conservation Service."
The highest level to which the upper surface of the groundwater
may be expected to rise within a one-year period.
All sides of a building not considered a primary facade shall
be considered a secondary facade. Buildings which have side and rear
facades facing a primary street shall treat all such facades as primary
facades.
On corner lots, the private frontage that is not the principal
frontage as it affects the public realm.
Per the Comprehensive Plan, a term for identified land areas
that are recommended for specific land policies in this chapter.
A map within the Comprehensive Plan, indicating the location
of sectors.
The act or process of depositing sediment by human or natural
forces.
Per the State of New Mexico Subdivision Act, to give up property
to another for money or any other valuable consideration and to hand
over or transfer title.
A tank and attached absorption field that is designed and
constructed to separate solids from liquids in the effluents from
a lot or lots to digest organic matter through anaerobic processes,
and disperse the liquid excess into the soil.
Any domestic sewage removed from holding tanks such as vessels,
chemical toilets, campers, trailers, and septic tanks.
The minimum distance between the property/lot line and the
foundation, wall, or main frame of a building or structure or any
projection thereof measured from the exterior lot line to the greatest
projection. Where a site abuts a road or highway having only a portion
of its required right-of-way (ROW) width dedicated or reserved for
roadway purposes, setbacks shall be measured from the line establishing
the additional width required for ROW purposes. Where a site abuts
an easement for access or a private access road is located within
the boundary lines of the site, the setback shall be measured from
the easement or from the private road. On a site that is not rectangular
or approximately rectangular in shape, the required setbacks shall
be measured in a manner prescribed by the Zoning Administrator.
The waste that is discharged into sanitary sewer systems
and flows to a sewage treatment plant for treatment.
See "special flood hazard area."
A very small pedestrian-oriented sign suspended from a bracket
below the fascia and near the top of the ground-floor windows and
doors.
A private frontage conventionally for retail use, with substantial
glazing, wherein the facade is aligned close to the frontage line
with the entrance to the retail use at sidewalk grade.
A group of commercial business establishments operated as
a unit with off-street parking provided on the property, and related
in locations, size and types of shops to the trade area that the unit
serves.
The distance from the common lot line between two lots at
the side of a lot, at which a building or structure may be located.
It is generally indicated by a range of distances from the common
lot line per the zoning classification.
A pedestrian walkway with permanently improved surfacing.
A small, highly portable sign, typically in the form of a
folding A-frame, and placed in the parkway.
The length of the roadway ahead that is visible to the driver.
Any outdoor display surface or structure intended to convey
information or instructions.
[Added 12-8-2020 by Ord. No. 317-2020]
Scenic resources in Doña Ana County including views
to mountains, ridges, farmland, and riparian areas along the Rio Grande.
Any housing unit designed for the use of one family that
has a private, ground-level entrance and a private outdoor space for
the use of the residents of such dwelling units.
A single-family dwelling consisting of or including a mobile
home. This definition does not include an existing mobile home which
has been enclosed within a permanent structure.
A single-family dwelling that is not a single-family dwelling,
mobile-home. This definition includes modular buildings that are assembled
on-site as well as site-built homes that are moved to the site from
another location.
The total area to be used for development of a project or
activity.
A detailed sketch, including a North arrow, scale and all
road/street names, or a cut-out of a vicinity map and sufficient detail
to find the specific location of the property.
A plan to scale showing existing and proposed uses and structures
on a lot as required by this chapter.
A map showing proposed street layout, lots, drainage structures,
arroyos, and land proposed for public use, with estimated dimensions.
A sketch plan shall include a general vicinity map showing the location
of the proposed subdivision or development with reference to existing
roadways, municipalities, and other landmarks.
The measurement of an incline or decline (rise/run).
A term for one of several community types regulated by this
chapter.
Also referred to as Natural Resource Conservation Service
(NRCS). An agency of the federal government that provides leadership
in a partnership effort to help people conserve, maintain, and improve
natural resources and the environment.
A national cooperative soil survey conducted by the USDA,
Natural Resources Conservation Service in cooperation with the State
Agricultural Experiment Station and other federal and state agencies,
or any other survey containing information of comparable quality and
detail following the national standards for an Order 2 survey.
Any solid or semi-solid discarded material which results
from household, commercial, municipal, industrial, mining, agricultural
or other operations which is not waterborne in a sewage system.
A portion of the floodplain subject to inundation of the
base flood. Special flood hazard areas in Doña Ana County currently
include Zones A, AO, AH, and AE.
Authorization for a specific land use that is potentially
appropriate in, and compatible with other uses in, its zoning district,
but due to the scale, intensity and nature of the use has the potential
to make a major negative impact on other uses in the district.
[Amended 6-13-2023 by Ord. No. 335-2023]
Less than completely covered human genitals, pubic region,
buttock, and female breast below a point immediately above the top
of the areola; and human male genitals in a discernibly turgid state,
even if completely and opaquely covered.
Includes human genitals in a state of sexual stimulation
or arousal; acts of human masturbation, sexual intercourse or sodomy;
and fondling or other erotic touching of human genitals, pubic region,
buttock or female breast.
An attempt to wrench a single lot from its environment and
give it a new rating that disturbs the tenor of the neighborhood,
and which affects only the use of a particular piece of property or
a small group of adjoining properties and is not related to the general
plan for the community as a whole, but is primarily for the private
interest of the owner of the parcel. Spot zoning is determined on
an ad hoc basis depending on the facts and circumstances of each case.
Factors to be considered are:
A civic space type designed for unstructured recreation and
civic purposes, spatially defined by building frontages and consisting
of paths, lawns and trees, formally disposed.
The state of or the process necessary to reduce a surface's
capability of generating fugitive dust by paving, dust suppression,
watering, compacting, or restoring natural cover to the disturbed
surface sufficient to prevent a violation of this chapter.
A building having stalls or compartments where domestic animals
are sheltered and fed.
A large building or structure with tiers of seats for spectators
at sporting or other recreational events.
A pedestrian shed that is an average 1/4 mile radius or 1,320
feet, about the distance of a five-minute walk at a leisurely pace.
See "New Mexico Office of the State Engineer."
A private frontage wherein the facade is aligned close to
the frontage line with the first story elevated from the sidewalk
for privacy, with an exterior stair and landing at the entrance.
A system and series of pipes (separate from sanitary sewers)
used to convey runoff from precipitation that falls on buildings and
land surfaces.
Precipitation runoff, snowmelt runoff, and surface runoff
and drainage.
A document required by the construction general permit (CGP)
that describes and ensures the implementation of controls and practices
to reduce the pollution resulting from construction activity.
A habitable level within a building, excluding an attic or
basement.
A local thoroughfare of low speed, generally allocated to
the more intense zoning districts.
An official sign erected to designate an approved or accepted
street name.
The entire area between the primary facade of an industrial
use, furthest from the primary frontage to that property line, extended
along the entire primary frontage.
[Added 11-14-2017 by Ord.
No. 294-2017]
A freestanding wall built along the frontage line, or coplanar
with the facade. It may mask a parking lot from the thoroughfare,
provide privacy to a side yard, and/or strengthen the spatial definition
of the public realm. As used in this chapter, a streetscreen is a
form of screen which need not be part of a landscape buffer.
A zoning action that would give an area different zoning
and benefit than the surrounding zoning to a strip of land along a
thoroughfare.
Anything that is constructed or erected with a fixed location
on the ground or attached to something having a fixed location on
the ground.
To divide a surface area of land into a subdivision as defined
by this chapter and NMSA 1978, § 47-6-2.
Any person who creates or who has created a subdivision,
individually or as part of a common promotional plan, or any person
engaged in the sale, lease, or other conveyance of subdivided land;
however, "subdivider" does not include any duly licensed real estate
broker or salesperson acting on another's account.
The division of land into two or more properties identified
by a block and lot system referenced as a platted subdivision or phase
thereof that is described by place and recorded with the County Clerk's
Office; however, "subdivision" does not include:
[Amended 12-8-2020 by Ord. No. 317-2020]
The sale, lease or other conveyance of any parcel that is 35
acres or larger in size within any twelve-month period; provided that
the land has been used primarily and continuously for agricultural
purposes, in accordance with NMSA 1978, § 7-36-20 for the
preceding three years;
The sale or lease of apartments, offices, stores or similar
space within a building;
The division of land within the boundaries of a municipality;
The division of land in which only gas, oil, mineral or water
rights are severed from the surface ownership of the land;
The division of land created by court order where the order
creates no more than one parcel per party per tract or area of land;
if created through a probate proceeding no more than one parcel per
heir. Subsequent sale or division of any parcel so created shall be
subject to these regulations;
The division of land for grazing or farming activities; provided
the land continues to be used for grazing or farming activities;
The division of land resulting only in the alteration of parcel
boundaries where parcels are altered for the purpose of increasing
or reducing the size of contiguous parcels and where the number of
parcels is not increased;
The division of land to create burial plots in a cemetery;
The division of land to create a parcel that is sold or donated
as a gift to an immediate family member; however, this exception shall
be limited to allow the seller or donor to sell or give no more than
one parcel per tract of land per immediate family member, furthermore,
a deed restriction shall be included in the conveyance documents limiting
the further division, transfer or conveyance in equity of any parcel
that is originally sold or donated as a gift to an immediate family
member for a period of five years following the transfer;
The division of land created to provide security for mortgages,
liens or deeds of trust and not for the purposes of conveyance of
legal or equitable title, provided that the division of land is not
the result of a seller-financed transaction;
The sale, lease or other conveyance of land that creates no
parcel smaller than 140 acres;
The division of land to create a parcel that is donated to any
trust or nonprofit corporation granted an exemption from federal income
tax, as described in § 501(c)(3) of the United States Internal
Revenue Code of 1986, as amended; school, college or other institution
with a defined curriculum and a student body and faculty that conducts
classes on a regular basis; or church or group organized for the purpose
of divine worship, religious teaching or other specifically religious
activity;
The division of a tract of land into two parcels that conform
with applicable zoning ordinances; provided that a second or subsequent
division of either of the two parcels within five years of the date
of the division of the original tract of land shall be subject to
the provisions of the New Mexico Subdivision Act; provided further
that a survey, and a deed if a parcel is subsequently conveyed, shall
be filed with the county clerk indicating that the parcel shall be
subject to the provisions of the New Mexico Subdivision Act if the
parcel is further divided within five years of the date of the division
of the original tract of land; or
The purchase of land by a government entity for the purpose
of constructing a public works project.
Infrastructure improvements which are essential for the protection
of health, safety, and welfare, required by the approved subdivision
construction improvement plans, including the construction, installation
and operation of the following: roadways; utilities including water,
fire flow, wastewater, electric, natural gas and telephone; drainage
systems and facilities; earth-retaining structures; and erosion control
measures.
"Type one subdivision" means any subdivision containing 500
or more parcels, any one of which is less than 10 acres in size;
"Type two subdivision" means any subdivision containing not
fewer than 25 but not more than 499 parcels, any one of which is less
than 10 acres in size;
"Type three subdivision" means any subdivision containing not
more than 24 parcels, any one of which is less than 10 acres in size;
"Type four subdivision" means any subdivision containing 25
or more parcels, each of which is 10 acres or more in size; and
"Type five subdivision" means any subdivision containing not
more than 24 parcels, each of which is 10 acres or more in size.
That degree of completion of construction of a required subdivision
infrastructure improvement necessary for such infrastructure improvement
to operate and function appropriately as designed and to be utilized
for the purpose for which it is intended and permitted.
Any reconstruction, rehabilitation, addition, or other improvement
of a building when the cost of the improvement equals or exceeds 50%
of the market value of the building before the start of construction
of the improvement.
The mounting of a proposed wireless facility or wireless
facilities on a wireless support structure that substantially changes
the physical dimensions of the support structure.
See "special use permit."
A person who is qualified to practice surveying in the State
of New Mexico, defined by the Engineering and Surveying Practice Act.
See NMSA 1978, § 61-23-1 et seq.
A shallow drainage feature used to convey and/or store runoff,
generally located at the side of a thoroughfare.
See "stormwater pollution prevention plan."
A condition where exposed soils or disturbed areas are provided
a protective cover or other structural controls to prevent the erosion
of soil when construction has halted for at least 14 days and is anticipated
to resume at some time in the future.
The flood event that has a ten-percent chance of being equaled
or exceeded in any given year.
A location at the axial conclusion of a thoroughfare.
A private frontage type with a shallow setback and front
elevated patio, usually with a low wall at the frontage line. This
type buffers residential use from sidewalks.
Control of floods, drainage and erosion, and measures necessary
to adapt proposed development to existing soil characteristics and
topography.
A public way that affords the principal means of access from
a lot, or area of land to other lots, or areas of land, and which
has been dedicated or reserved by plat. A thoroughfare may be maintained
by the County, or may be privately maintained.
The particular assembly of driving and parking lanes, planters,
sidewalks, and other elements that characterize a type of thoroughfare.
A plan indicating the location, extent, and type of thoroughfares
within a regulating plan and land development plat.
The functional classification for a particular type of thoroughfare.
The direction toward the center of a thoroughfare shall be
termed its "inside" direction.
The direction toward the lateral limit of a thoroughfare
shall be termed its "outside" direction.
A strip of property devoted to transportation purposes which
is not dedicated to the County.
The time of signing any document obligating the person signing
the document to purchase, lease, or otherwise acquire a legal interest
in land.
The severe cutting back of limbs to stubs larger than three
inches within the tree's crown to such a degree so as to remove the
normal canopy and disfigure the tree.
The sum of liquid waste design flows for all liquid waste
systems on a lot. See "NMED standards."
A lattice-type structure, guyed or freestanding, that supports
one or more antennas.
A term for one of several community types regulated by this
chapter.
A structured meeting held by an applicant or the applicant's
representative for the purpose of presenting a proposed development
and seeking public input.
A single-family dwelling that shares at least one party wall
with another of the same type and occupies the full frontage line
on the attached side(s).
Visible bulk material deposited on a paved, public or private
roadway capable of going airborne due to human or natural activity.
See "parcel."
[Amended 12-8-2020 by Ord. No. 317-2020]
A study that assesses the effects that a particular development's
traffic will have on the transportation network. These studies vary
in their range of detail and complexity depending on the type, size
and location of the development, which are regulated by this chapter.
One of several zones that reflect the historic development
patterns of the County and are predominately compact mixed-use zones,
which are also available for new development.
A woody plant with an expected mature height of a minimum of
12 feet and/or one story, possessing either a single trunk or multiple
trunks. Trees are often described in subcategories by common attributes
and the uses they serve. They can be some combination of evergreen,
deciduous, coniferous, and/or broadleaf, and be used for shade, screening,
understories to larger trees, or ornamental uses such as flowering;
Skyline accent: usually evergreen succulents, sometimes developing
woody trunks, providing functions and heights similar to smaller trees
via visual impact, enclosure, or structure against the sky or architecture,
but often lacking shade. This includes many commonly used and often
native plants that do not meet typical plant categories, such as yuccas,
ocotillos, and fan palms.
A residential building with three attached dwelling units
each of which has direct access to the outside.
The United States Environmental Protection Agency, the regional
office thereof, any federal department, agency, or commission that
may succeed to the authority of the EPA, and any duly authorized official
of the EPA or such successor agency.
Not containing a harmful quantity of any pollutant.
Land uses that do not have a building, or customer storefront
and parking, and which do not have a way to calculate a required landscaping
area.
[Added 11-14-2017 by Ord.
No. 294-2017]
A term for one of several community types regulated by this
chapter.
One of several zones that are developed and regulated primarily
by specific uses and are typically characterized by adjacent or similar
development.
Governmental entities, nonprofit organizations, corporations,
or any entity defined as a public utility for any purpose by and used
in connection with the production, delivery, transmission, collection,
or storage of water, sewage, gas, oil, electricity, or electronic
signals.
A structure owned and/or operated by a public utility or
municipality that is designed specifically for and used to carry lines,
cables or wires for telephone, cable television, electricity or to
provide lighting.
The act of rescinding (canceling) all or part of a recorded
subdivision plat, including legal descriptions and grants of easements.
A grant of permission by the Zoning Administrator, P&Z
or the BOCC that authorizes the recipient to do that which, according
to the letter of this chapter, the recipient could not otherwise legally
do.
Living plants or flora, the planted portion of landscaping.
The portion of a parkway located between the sidewalk (including
future and potential locations for a sidewalk) and the curb, curb
line, or edge of the roadbed.
A map used to locate the subdivision, showing relationship
to existing roadways, municipalities and other landmarks.
A term for one of several community types regulated by this
chapter.
An enclosure or barrier used as a boundary, means of protection,
or privacy. A wall is constructed of solid materials, allowing minimal
light, visibility, and/or air movement.
Any sign painted on or attached to an exterior wall of a
building parallel to the wall surface.
The manipulation of stormwater runoff, to lessen erosion
and provide extra water that benefits plantings. Water harvesting
is often a part of low-impact development and green infrastructure,
classified into methods that are passive (using grading, rock cover
and vegetation, also called rain gardens) and/or active (using storage
systems such as cisterns or barrels, with gravity or pump conveyance
to plantings).
This definition applies only to water quality, liquid and
solid waste disposal guidelines. A well, spring, infiltration gallery,
surface water intake structure, or other source of water used to furnish
water to a public or private water supply system.
A system which is designed, constructed, operated, and maintained
to provide water suitable for end users. It usually consists of source,
treatment, transmission, storage, pumping, and distribution facilities.
A water storage tank, standpipe or elevated tank situated
on a support structure, originally constructed for use as a reservoir
or facility to store or deliver water.
An area of vegetation within an ecoregion, having similar
water and cultural requirements and unique from nearby but different
water use zones; they correspond with low, medium, and high water-use
plants and planting areas within a landscape.
A permanent, intermittent, or occasional river, arroyo, stream,
creek or other depression, either natural or man-made, having definite
limits and evidence of the gathering and conveying surface water.
See "drainage area."
See "wireless communications facility or wireless facility."
Also called "weed barrier" or "filter fabric," this is a
material that can minimize perennial weed growth (grows back and reseeds/spreads
from roots and seed each year during growing season; nightshades,
bindweeds included), but rarely minimizes annual weed growth (does
not grow back from roots each year during growing season, relying
on seed to germinate; goatheads/puncture vine, tumbleweeds included).
Weed fabric is more applicable for use with inorganic mulches; it
is rarely applicable for use with organic mulches, often with few
to counterproductive effects in the purpose of organic mulches adding
organic nutrients to soil for higher water-use plants.
Utilities including water, wastewater and drainage.
An area that is inundated or saturated by surface water or
groundwater at a frequency and duration sufficient to support, and
that under normal circumstances does support, a prevalence of vegetation
typically adapted for life in saturated soil conditions.
The sale of goods to a person or company which may sell products
to the ultimate consumer.
The lane nearest the curb that is wider than a standard lane
and provides extra space so that the lane may be shared by motor vehicles
and bicycles.
An area of habitat indicated on a plan, to connect wildlife
populations that would otherwise be separated by human-induced changes
in the natural landscape.
A sign placed or painted on the interior of a window or the
window of a door.
The set of equipment and network components exclusive of
the underlying wireless support structure including, but not limited
to, antennas, accessory equipment, transmitters, receivers, base stations,
power supplies, cabling and associated equipment necessary to provide
wireless telecommunications services.
A freestanding structure such as a monopole or tower, designed
to support wireless facilities. This definition does not include utility
poles.
Any place where motor vehicles not in running condition,
or the parts thereof, are stored in the open and are not being restored
to operation; any land, building or structure used for the dismantling
or storing of such motor vehicles or the parts thereof.
See "wireless support structure."
Small freestanding sign that is not a monument sign. A yard
sign is typically supported by one or two pole-like supports, and
rises to head-height or below.
Leaves, grass clippings, yard and garden debris, and brush
that results from landscaping maintenance and land-clearing operations.
The classification of land into different areas and districts
that regulates land use, building height, intensity, density, design,
and placement of buildings, which are generally referred to as "zones,"
"districts" or "zoning districts."
The Director of the Community Development Department or designee
responsible for administering this chapter.
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A
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AASHTO
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Association of American State Highway and Transportation Officials
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ADA
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American with Disabilities Act
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ADT
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Average daily traffic
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AHSD
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Affordable housing subdivision design
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B
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BFE
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Base flood elevation
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BMP, BMPs
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Best management practice
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BOCC
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Board of County Commissioners
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C
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CDD
|
Community Development Department
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CFR
|
Code of Federal Regulations
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CGP
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NPDES General Permit for Discharges from Construction Activities
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COW
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Carrier on wheels or cell on wheels
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CRZ
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Critical root zone
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CWA
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Clean Water Act
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D
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DRC
|
Development Review Committee
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E
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ECP
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Erosion control plan
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EPA
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U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
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F
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FHA
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Fair Housing Act
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FEMA
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Federal Emergency Management Agency
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FIRM
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Flood Insurance Rate Map
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G
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GI
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Green infrastructure
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H
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HHW
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Household hazardous waste
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I
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ITE
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Institute of Transportation Engineers
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J
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K
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L
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LID
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Low-impact development
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LOS
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Level of service
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M
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MPO
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Metropolitan Planning Organization
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MS4
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Municipal separate storm sewer system
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N
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NPDES
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National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System
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NRCS
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Natural Resource Conservation Service
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NMED
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New Mexico Environment Department
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NOI
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Notice of intent
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NOT
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Notice of termination
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O
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OSE
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New Mexico Office of the State Engineer
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P
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PST
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Petroleum storage tank
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P&Z
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Planning and Zoning Commission
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Q
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R
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RV PARK
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Recreational vehicle park
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ROW
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Right-of-way
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RQ
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Reportable quantity
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S
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SCS
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Soil Conservation Service
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SFHA
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Special flood hazard area
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SUP
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Special use permit
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SWPPP
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Stormwater pollution prevention plan
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T
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U
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V
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W
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WCF
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Wireless communications facility or wireless facility
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WSS
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Wireless support structure
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X
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Y
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Z
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ZA
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Zoning Administrator
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