Unless specifically defined below, words or phrases used in
this chapter shall be interpreted so as to give them the meanings
they have in common usage and to give this chapter its most reasonable
application:
A request for a preview of the Engineer's interpretation
of any provision of this chapter or a request for a variance.
A designated AO, AH or VO zone on a community's Digital
Flood Insurance Rate Map (DFIRM) with a 1% annual or greater chance
of flooding to an average depth of one (1') to three (3')
feet where a clearly defined channel does not exist, where the path
of flooding is unpredictable and where velocity flow may be evident.
Such flooding is characterized by ponding or sheet flow.
The land in the floodplain within a community subject to
a 1% or greater chance of flooding in any given year.
The flood having a 1% chance of being equaled or exceeded
in any given year.
Any area of the building having its floor subgrade (below
ground level) on all sides.
A wall that is not part of the structural support of the
building and is intended through its design and construction to collapse
under specific lateral loading forces without causing damage to the
elevated portion of the building or supporting foundation system.
Any manmade change to improved or unimproved real estate,
including but not limited to buildings or other structures, mining,
dredging, filling, grading, paving, excavation or drilling operations,
or storage of equipment or materials located within the area of special
flood hazard.
The official map on which the Federal Insurance Administration
has delineated both the areas of special flood hazards and the risk
premium zones applicable to the community.
A non-basement building (i) built in the case of a building
in an area of special flood hazard to have the top of the elevated
floor elevated above the ground level by means of piling, columns
(posts and piers), or shear walls parallel to the flow of the water,
and (ii) adequately anchored so as not to impair the structural integrity
of the building during a flood up to the magnitude of the base flood.
In an area of special flood hazard "elevated building" also includes
a building elevated by means of fill or solid foundation perimeter
walls with openings sufficient to facilitate the unimpeded movement
of flood waters.
A general and temporary condition of partial or complete
inundation of normally dry land areas from:
The official report in which the Federal Insurance Administration
has provided flood profiles, as well as the Flood Insurance Rate Map(s)
and the water surface elevation of the base flood.
The official map on which the Federal Insurance Administration
has delineated both the areas of special flood hazards and the risk
premium zones applicable to the community.
Zoning ordinances, subdivision regulations, building codes,
health regulations, special purpose ordinances (such as a floodplain
ordinance, grading ordinance and erosion control ordinance) and other
applications of police power. The term describes such state or local
regulations, in any combination thereof, which provide standards for
the purpose of flood damage prevention and reduction.
The channel of a river or other watercourse and the adjacent
land areas that must be reserved in order to discharge the base flood
without cumulatively increasing the water surface elevation more than
0.2 foot.
The highest natural elevation of the ground surface prior
to construction next to the proposed walls of a structure.
Any structure that is:
Listed individually in the National Register of Historic Places
(a listing maintained by the Department of Interior) or preliminarily
determined by the Secretary of the Interior as meeting the requirements
for individual listing on the National Register;
Certified or preliminarily determined by the Secretary of the
Interior as contributing to the historical significance of a registered
historic district or a district preliminarily determined by the Secretary
to qualify as a registered historic district;
Individually listed on a state inventory of historic places
in states with historic preservation programs which have been approved
by the Secretary of the Interior; or
Individually listed on a local inventory of historic places
in communities with historic preservation programs that have been
certified either:
The lowest floor of the lowest enclosed area (including basement).
An unfinished or flood resistant enclosure, usable solely for the
parking of vehicles, building access or storage in an area other than
a basement is not considered a building's lowest floor provided
that such enclosure is not built so to render the structure in violation
of other applicable nonelevation design requirements.
A structure, transportable in one or more sections, which
is built on a permanent chassis and is designed for use with or without
a permanent foundation when attached to the required utilities. The
term "manufactured home" does not include a "recreational vehicle."
A parcel (or contiguous parcels) of land divided into two
or more manufactured home lots for rent or sale.
Structures for which the start of construction commenced
on or after the effective date of a floodplain regulation adopted
by a community and includes any subsequent improvements to such structures.
A manufactured home park or subdivision for which the construction
of facilities for servicing the lots on which the manufactured homes
are to be affixed (including at a minimum, the installation of utilities,
the construction of streets, and either final site grading or the
pouring of concrete pads) is completed on or after the effective date
of the floodplain management regulations adopted by the municipality.
A vehicle which is [i] built on a single chassis; [ii] 400
square feet or less when measured at the longest horizontal projections;
[iii] designed to be self-propelled or permanently towable by a light
duty truck; and [iv] designed primarily not for use as a permanent
dwelling but as temporary living quarters for recreational, camping,
travel, or seasonal use.
For other than new construction or substantial improvements
under the Coastal Barrier Resources Act (P.L. 97-348), includes substantial
improvements, and means the date the building permit was issued, provided
the actual start of construction, repair, reconstruction, rehabilitation,
addition, placement, or other improvement was within 180 days of the
permit date. The actual start means either the first placement of
permanent construction of a structure on a site, such as the pouring
of a slab or footings, the installation of piles, the construction
of columns, or any work beyond the state of excavation; or the placement
of a manufactured home on a foundation.
Permanent construction does not include land preparation
such as clearing, grading and filling, nor does it include the installation
of streets and/or walkways; nor does it include excavation for a basement,
footings, piers, or foundations or the erection of temporary forms;
nor does it include the installation on the property of accessory
buildings, such as garages or sheds not occupied as dwelling units
or not part of the main structure. For a substantial improvement,
the actual start of construction means the first alteration of any
wall, ceiling, floor, or other structural part of a building, whether
or not that alteration affects the external dimensions of the building.
A walled and roofed building, a manufactured home, or a gas
or liquid storage tank that is principally above ground.
Damage of any origin sustained by a structure whereby the
cost of restoring the structure to its before damaged condition would
equal or exceed 50% of the market value of the structure before the
damage occurred
Any reconstruction, rehabilitation, addition, or other improvement
of a structure, the cost of which exceeds 50% of the market value
of the structure before the "start of construction" of the improvement.
This term includes structures which have incurred "substantial damage,"
regardless of the actual repair work performed. The term does not,
however, include either:
Any project for improvement of a structure to correct existing
violations of state or local health, sanitary or safety code specifications
which have been identified by the local Code Enforcement Officer and
which are the minimum necessary to assure safe living conditions;
or
Any alteration of a "historic structure," provided that the
alteration will not preclude the structure's continued designation
as a "historic structure."
A grant of relief from the requirements of this chapter that
permits construction in a manner that would otherwise be prohibited
by this chapter.
