[1]
Editor's Note: Prior ordinance history: Ordinance Nos. 947-97
and 1011-03.
[Ord. 1120-13, eff. July
4, 2013]
Unless specifically defined below, words or phrases used in
this chapter shall be interpreted so as to give them the meaning they
have in common usage and to give this chapter its most reasonable
application.
See "Base flood."
See "Special flood hazard area."
Shall mean a structure that is either:
Shall mean a use which is incidental and subordinate to the
principal use of the parcel of land on which it is located.
Shall mean a geomorphologic feature characterized by a cone
or fan-shaped deposit of boulders, gravel, and fine sediments that
have been eroded from mountain slopes, transported by flood flows,
and then deposited on the valley floors, and which is subject to flash
flooding, high velocity flows, debris flows, erosion, sediment movement
and deposition, and channel migration.
Shall mean a point on an alluvial fan or similar landform
below which the flow path of the major stream that formed the fan
becomes unpredictable and alluvial fan flooding can occur.
Shall mean a request for a review of the Floodplain Administrator's
interpretation of any provision of this chapter.
Shall mean a designated AO or AH Zone on the Flood Insurance
Rate Map (FIRM). The base flood depths range from one to three feet;
a clearly defined channel does not exist; the path of flooding is
unpredictable and indeterminate; and velocity flow may be evident.
Such flooding is characterized by ponding or sheet flow.
See "Special flood hazard area."
Shall mean the land within a community which is most likely
to be subject to severe flood-related erosion losses. The area may
be designated as Zone E on the Flood Insurance Rate Map (FIRM).
Shall mean the area subject to severe mudslides (i.e., mudflows).
The area is designated as Zone M on the Flood Insurance Rate Map (FIRM).
Shall mean a flood which has a 1% chance of being equaled
or exceeded in any given year (also called the "100-year flood").
Base flood is the term used throughout this chapter.
Shall mean the elevation shown on the Flood Insurance Rate
Map for Zones AE, AH, A1-30, VE and V1-V30 that indicates the water
surface elevation resulting from a flood that has a 1% or greater
chance of being equaled or exceeded in any given year.
Shall mean any area of the building having its floor subgrade
- i.e., below ground level - on all sides.
Shall mean any type of walls, whether solid or lattice, and
whether constructed of concrete, masonry, wood, metal, plastic or
any other suitable building material which is not part of the structural
support of the building and which is designed to break away under
abnormally high tides or wave action without causing any damage to
the structural integrity of the building on which they are used or
any buildings to which they might be carried by floodwaters. A breakaway
wall shall have a safe design loading resistance of not less than
10 and no more than 20 pounds per square foot. Use of breakaway walls
must be certified by a registered engineer or architect and shall
meet the following conditions:
See "Structure."
Shall mean an area of special flood hazard extending from
offshore to the inland limit of a primary frontal dune along an open
coast and any other area subject to high velocity wave action from
storms or seismic sources. It is an area subject to high velocity
waters, including coastal and tidal inundation or tsunamis. The area
is designated on a Flood Insurance Rate Map (FIRM) as Zone V1-V30,
VE, or V.
Shall mean any man-made change to improved or unimproved
real estate, including but not limited to buildings or other structures,
mining, dredging, filling, grading, paving, excavation or drilling
operations or storage of equipment or materials.
Shall mean the advance or infringement of uses, plant growth,
fill, excavation, buildings, permanent structures or development into
a floodplain which may impede or alter the flow capacity of a floodplain.
Shall mean 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 before
the effective date of this chapter.
Shall mean the preparation of additional sites by the construction
of facilities for servicing the lots on which the manufactured homes
are to be affixed (including the installation of utilities, the construction
of streets, and either final site grading or the pouring of concrete
pads).
Shall mean the official map on which the Federal Emergency
Management Agency or Federal Insurance Administration has delineated
both the areas of special flood hazards and the floodway.
Shall mean the official map on which the Federal Emergency
Management Agency or Federal Insurance Administration has delineated
both the areas of special flood hazards and the risk premium zones
applicable to the community.
Shall mean the official report provided by the Federal Insurance
Administration that includes flood profiles, the Flood Insurance Rate
Map, the Flood Boundary and Floodway Map, and the water surface elevation
of the base flood.
Shall mean:
A general and temporary condition of partial or complete inundation
of normally dry land areas from the overflow of inland or tidal waters;
the unusual and rapid accumulation or runoff of surface waters from
any source; and/or mudslides (i.e., mudflows); and
The condition resulting from flood-related erosion.
Shall mean the collapse or subsidence of land along the shore
of a lake or other body of water as a result of undermining caused
by waves or currents of water exceeding anticipated cyclical levels
or suddenly caused by an unusually high water level in a natural body
of water, accompanied by a severe storm, or by an unanticipated force
of nature, such as a flash flood or an abnormal tidal surge, or by
some similarly unusual and unforeseeable event which results in flooding.
Shall mean the operation of an overall program of corrective
and preventive measures for reducing flood-related erosion damage,
including but not limited to emergency preparedness plans, flood-related
erosion control works, and floodplain management regulations.
Shall mean a land area adjoining the shore of a lake or other
body of water, which due to the composition of the shoreline or bank
and high water levels or wind-driven currents, is likely to suffer
flood-related erosion damage.
Shall mean the Planning Director or other community official
designated by title to administer and enforce the floodplain management
regulations.
Shall mean the operation of an overall program of corrective
and preventive measures for reducing flood damage and preserving and
enhancing, where possible, natural resources in the floodplain, including
but not limited to emergency preparedness plans, flood control works,
floodplain management regulations, and open space plans.
Shall mean this chapter and other zoning ordinances, subdivision
regulations, building codes, health regulations, special purpose ordinances
(such as grading and erosion control) and other application of police
power which control development in flood-prone areas. This term describes
Federal, State or local regulations in any combination thereof which
provide standards for preventing and reducing flood loss and damage.
Shall mean any land area susceptible to being inundated by
water from any source - see "Flooding."
Shall mean any combination of structural and nonstructural
additions, changes, or adjustments to structures which reduce or eliminate
flood damage to real estate or improved real property, water and sanitary
facilities, structures, and their contents. For guidelines on dry
and wet floodproofing, see FEMA Technical Bulletins TB 1- 93, TB 3-93,
and TB 7-93.
Shall mean the channel of a river or other watercourse and
the adjacent land areas that must be reserved in order to discharge
the base flood without cumulatively increasing the water surface elevation
more than one foot. Also referred to as "regulatory floodway."
Shall mean that area of the floodplain on either side of
the "regulatory floodway" where encroachment may be permitted.
As related to Article 6 of this chapter, shall mean that
the variance granted must not cause fraud on or victimization of the
public. In examining this requirement, the City Council will consider
the fact that every newly constructed building adds to government
responsibilities and remains a part of the community for 50 to 100
years. Buildings that are permitted to be constructed below the base
flood elevation are subject during all those years to increased risk
of damage from floods, while future owners of the property and the
community as a whole are subject to all the costs, inconvenience,
danger, and suffering that those increased flood damages bring. In
addition, future owners may purchase the property, unaware that it
is subject to potential flood damage, and can be insured only at very
high flood insurance rates.
Shall mean a use which cannot perform its intended purpose
unless it is located or carried out in close proximity to water. The
term includes only docking facilities, port facilities that are necessary
for the loading and unloading of cargo or passengers, and ship building
and ship repair facilities, and does not include long-term storage
or related manufacturing facilities.
Shall mean the local governing unit, i.e. County or municipality,
that is empowered to adopt and implement regulations to provide for
the public health, safety and general welfare of its citizenry.
As related to Article 6 of this chapter shall mean the exceptional
hardship that would result from a failure to grant the requested variance.
The City Council requires that the variance be exceptional, unusual,
and peculiar to the property involved. Mere economic or financial
hardship alone is not exceptional. Inconvenience, aesthetic considerations,
physical handicaps, personal preferences, or the disapproval of one's
neighbors likewise cannot, as a rule, qualify as an exceptional hardship.
All of these problems can be resolved through other means without
granting a variance, even if the alternative is more expensive, or
requires the property owner to build elsewhere or put the parcel to
a different use than originally intended.
Shall mean the highest natural elevation of the ground surface
prior to construction next to the proposed walls of a structure.
Shall mean 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 Interior; or
Individually listed on a local inventory of historic places
in communities with historic preservation programs that have been
certified either by an approved state program as determined by the
Secretary of the Interior or directly by the Secretary of the Interior
in states without approved programs.
Shall mean a man-made structure, usually an earthen embankment,
designed and constructed in accordance with sound engineering practices
to contain, control or divert the flow of water so as to provide protection
from temporary flooding.
Shall mean a flood protection system which consists of a
levee, or levees, and associated structures, such as closure and drainage
devices, which are constructed and operated in accord with sound engineering
practices.
Shall mean the lowest floor of the lowest enclosed area,
including basement (see "Basement" definition).
An unfinished or flood resistant enclosure below the lowest
floor that is usable solely for parking of vehicles, building access
or storage in an area other than a basement area, is not considered
a building's lowest floor provided it conforms to applicable non-elevation
design requirements, including, but not limited to:
The flood openings standard in § 6-9.501(c)(3);
The anchoring standards in § 6-9.501(a);
The construction materials and methods standards in § 6-9.501(b); and
The standards for utilities in § 6-9.502.
For residential structures, all subgrade enclosed areas are
prohibited as they are considered to be basements (see "Basement"
definition). This prohibition includes below-grade garages and storage
areas.
Shall mean 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."
Shall mean a parcel (or contiguous parcels) of land divided
into two or more manufactured home lots for rent or sale.
Shall be determined by estimating the cost to replace the
structure in new condition and adjusting that cost figure by the amount
of depreciation which has accrued since the structure was constructed.
The cost of replacement of the structure shall be based on a
square foot cost factor determined by reference to a building cost
estimating guide recognized by the building construction industry.
The amount of depreciation shall be determined by taking into
account the age and physical deterioration of the structure and functional
obsolescence as approved by the Floodplain Administrator, but shall
not include economic or other forms of external obsolescence.
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Use of replacement costs or accrued depreciation factors different
from those contained in recognized building cost estimating guides
may be considered only if such factors are included in a report prepared
by an independent professional appraiser and supported by a written
explanation of the differences.
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Shall mean, for purposes of the National Flood Insurance
Program, the National Geodetic Vertical Datum (NGVD) of 1929, North
American Vertical Datum (NAVD) of 1988, or other datum, to which base
flood elevations shown on the City of Avalon's Flood Insurance Rate
Map are referenced.
Shall mean a condition where there is a river, flow or inundation
of liquid mud down a hillside, usually as a result of a dual condition
of loss of brush cover and the subsequent accumulation of water on
the ground, preceded by a period of unusually heavy or sustained rain.
Shall mean an area with land surfaces and slopes of unconsolidated
material where the history, geology, and climate indicate a potential
for mudflow.
Shall mean structures for which the "start of construction"
commenced on or after the effective date of these regulations, and
includes any subsequent improvements to such structures.
Shall mean 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 these regulations.
Shall mean, but is not limited to, any dam, wall, wharf,
embankment, levee, dike, pile, abutment, protection, excavation, channelization,
bridge, conduit, culvert, building, wire, fence, rock, gravel, refuse,
fill, structure, vegetation or other material in, along, across or
projecting into any watercourse which may alter, impede, retard or
change, the direction and/or velocity of the flow of water, or due
to its location, its propensity to snare or collect debris carried
by the flow of water, or its likelihood of being carried downstream.
Shall mean a continuous or nearly continuous mound or ridge
of sand with relatively steep seaward and landward slopes immediately
landward and adjacent to the beach and subject to erosion and overtopping
from high tides and waves during major coastal storms. The inland
limit of the primary frontal dune occurs at the point where there
is a distinct change from a relatively mild slope.
Shall mean a defect in a community's floodplain management
regulations or administrative procedures that impairs effective implementation
of those floodplain management regulations.
As related to Article 6 of this chapter, shall mean that
the granting of a variance must not result in anything which is injurious
to the safety or health of an entire community or neighborhood, or
any considerable number of persons, or unlawfully obstructs the free
passage or use, in the customary manner, of any navigable lake, or
river, bay, stream, canal, or basin.
Shall mean a vehicle which is:
Built on a single chassis;
Four hundred square feet or less when measured at the largest
horizontal projection;
Designed to be self-propelled or permanently towable by a light-duty
truck; and
Designed primarily not for use as a permanent dwelling but as
temporary living quarters for recreational, camping, travel, or seasonal
use.
Shall mean the channel of a river or other watercourse and
the adjacent land areas that must be reserved in order to discharge
the base flood without cumulatively increasing the water surface elevation
more than one foot.
Shall mean to bring the structure or other development into
compliance with State or local floodplain management regulations,
or if this is not possible, to reduce the impacts of its noncompliance.
Ways that impacts may be reduced include protecting the structure
or other affected development from flood damages, implementing the
enforcement provisions of the chapter or otherwise deterring future
similar violations, or reducing State or Federal financial exposure
with regard to the structure or other development.
Shall mean relating to, formed by, or resembling a river
(including tributaries), stream, brook, etc.
Shall mean naturally occurring accumulations of sand in ridges
or mounds landward of the beach.
See "Area of shallow flooding."
Shall mean an area in the floodplain subject to a 1% or greater
chance of flooding in any given year. It is shown on an FHBM or FIRM
as Zone A, AO, A1-A30, AE, A99, AH, V1-V30, VE or V.
Includes substantial improvement and other proposed new development
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 from the date
of the permit. The actual start means either the first placement of
permanent construction of a structure on a site, such as the pouring
of slab or footings, the installation of piles, the construction of
columns, or any work beyond the stage of excavation; or the placement
of a manufactured home on a foundation. Permanent construction does
not include land preparation, such as clearing, grading, and filling;
nor does it include the installation of streets and/or walkways; nor
does it include excavation for a basement, footings, piers, or foundations
or the erection of temporary forms; nor does it include the installation
on the property of accessory buildings, such as garages or sheds not
occupied as dwelling units or not part of the main structure. For
a substantial improvement, the actual start of 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.
Shall mean a walled and roofed building that is principally
above ground; this includes a gas or liquid storage tank or a manufactured
home.
Shall mean:
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; or
Flood-related damages sustained by a structure on two separate
occasions during a ten-year period for which the cost of repairs at
the time of each such event, on the average, equals or exceeds 25%
of the market value of the structure before the damage occurred. This
is also known as "repetitive loss."
Shall mean any reconstruction, rehabilitation, addition,
or other improvement of a structure, the cost of which equals or exceeds
50% of the market value of the structure before the "start of construction"
of the improvement. This term includes structures which have incurred
"substantial damage," regardless of the actual repair work performed.
The term does not, however, include either:
Any project for improvement of a structure to correct existing
violations or State or local health, sanitary, or safety code specifications
which have been identified by the local code enforcement official
and which are the minimum necessary to assure safe living conditions;
or
Any alteration of a "historic structure," provided that the
alteration will not preclude the structure's continued designation
as a "historic structure."
See "Coastal high hazard area."
Shall mean a grant of relief from the requirements of this
chapter which permits construction in a manner that would otherwise
be prohibited by this chapter.
Shall mean the failure of a structure or other development
to be fully compliant with this chapter. A structure or other development
without the elevation certificate, other certifications, or other
evidence of compliance required in this chapter is presumed to be
in violation until such time as that documentation is provided.
Shall mean the height, in relation to the National Geodetic
Vertical Datum (NGVD) of 1929, North American Vertical Datum (NAVD)
of 1988, or other datum, of floods of various magnitudes and frequencies
in the floodplains of coastal or riverine areas.
Shall mean a lake, river, creek, stream, wash, arroyo, channel
or other topographic feature on or over which waters flow at least
periodically. Watercourse includes specifically designated areas in
which substantial flood damage may occur.
