The following words and terms shall, for the purposes of these
regulations, have the meanings shown herein. Where terms are not defined
in these regulations and are defined in the building code (
CCR Title
24 Part 2) and used in the residential code (
CCR Title 24 Part 2.5),
such terms shall have the meanings ascribed to them in those codes.
Where terms are not defined in these regulations or the building code,
such terms shall have ordinarily accepted meanings such as the context
implies.
(Ord. 3220-23, 9/26/2023)
(a)
"A"
(1)
"Accessory structure" means a structure on the same parcel of
property as a principal structure and the use of which is incidental
to the use of the principal structure. For floodplain management purposes,
the term includes only accessory structures used for parking and storage.
(2)
"Alteration of a watercourse" means a dam, impoundment, channel
relocation, change in channel alignment, channelization, or change
in cross-sectional area of the channel or the channel capacity, or
any other form of modification which may alter, impede, retard or
change the direction and/or velocity of the riverine flow of water
during conditions of the base flood.
(3)
"ASCE 24" means the standard Flood Resistant Design and Construction,
referenced by the building code, developed and published by the American
Society of Civil Engineers, Reston, VA. Where cited, ASCE 24 refers
to the edition of the standard that is referenced by the building
code.
(b)
"B"
(1)
"Base flood" means the flood having a one-percent chance of
being equaled or exceeded in any given year. [Also defined in
CCR
Title 24 Part 2.]
(2)
"Base flood elevation" means the elevation of the base flood,
including wave height, relative to the National Geodetic Vertical
Datum (NGVD), North American Vertical Datum (NAVD) or other datum
specified on the Flood Insurance Rate Map (FIRM). [Also defined in
CCR Title 24 Part 2.]
(3)
"Basement" means, for the purpose of floodplain management,
the portion of a building having its floor subgrade (below ground
level) on all sides. [Also defined in
CCR Title 24 Part 2.]
(4)
(A) Part 2, applicable to buildings and structures
other than dwellings within the scope of this part.
(B) Part 2.5, applicable to one- and two-family dwellings
and townhouses not more than three stories, and accessory structures.
(C) Part 10, applicable to existing buildings (as defined
in that code).
(d)
"D"
(1)
"Design flood" means the flood associated with the greater of
the following two areas: [Also defined in
CCR Title 24 Part 2.]
(A) Area with a flood plain subject to a one-percent
or greater chance of flooding in any year.
(B) Area designated as a flood hazard area on a community's
flood hazard map, or otherwise legally designated.
(2)
"Design flood elevation" means the elevation of the "design
flood," including wave height, relative to the datum specified on
the community's legally designated flood hazard map. In areas designated
as Zone AO, the design flood elevation shall be the elevation of the
highest existing grade of the building's perimeter plus the depth
number (in feet) specified on the flood hazard map. In areas designated
as Zone AO where a depth number is not specified on the map, the depth
number shall be taken as being equal to two feet (610 mm). [Also defined
in
CCR Title 24 Part 2.]
(3)
"Development" means any manmade change to improved or unimproved
real estate, including, but not limited to, buildings or other structures,
temporary structures, temporary or permanent storage of materials,
mining, dredging, filling, grading, paving, excavations, drilling
operations, flood control projects, and other land-disturbing activities.
(e)
"E"
(1)
"Encroachment" means the placement of fill, excavation, buildings,
permanent structures or other development into a flood hazard area
which may impede or alter the flow capacity of riverine flood hazard
areas.
(2)
"Exceptional hardship" means, for the purpose of variances from
these regulations or the building code, the exceptional difficulty
that would result from a failure to grant a requested variance. Mere
economic or financial hardship is not exceptional. Inconvenience,
aesthetic considerations, physical handicaps, personal preferences,
or the disapproval of one's neighbors do not, as a rule, qualify as
exceptional hardships. All of these circumstances can be resolved
through other means without granting variances, even when the alternatives
are more expensive or require the property owner to build elsewhere
or put the parcel to a different use than originally intended.
(3)
"Existing manufactured home park" or "subdivision" means 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) was completed before December 19, 1997.
(4)
"Expansion to an existing manufactured home park or subdivision"
means 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).
(f)
"F"
(1)
"FIRM" means Flood Insurance Rate Map as defined in this section.
(2)
"FIS" means Flood Insurance Study as defined in this section.
(3)
"Flood or flooding" means a general and temporary condition
of partial or complete inundation of normally dry land from:
(A) The overflow of inland or tidal waters.
(B) The unusual and rapid accumulation or runoff of
surface waters from any source.
(C) Mudslides (i.e., mudflows) which are proximately
caused by flooding.
(4)
"Flood control project" means a dam or barrier design and constructed
to keep water away from or out of a specified area, including, but
not limited to levees, floodwalls, and channelization.
(5)
"Flood damage-resistant materials" means any construction material
capable of withstanding direct and prolonged contact with floodwaters
without sustaining any damage that requires more than cosmetic repair.
[Also defined in
CCR Title 24 Part 2.]
(6)
"Flood hazard area" means the greater of the following two areas:
[Also defined in
CCR Title 24 Part 2.]
(A) The area within a floodplain subject to a one-percent
or greater chance of flooding in any year.
(B) The area designated as a flood hazard area on the
community's flood hazard map, or otherwise legally designated.
(7)
"Flood Insurance Rate Map" or "FIRM" means an official map of
a community on which the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)
has delineated both the special flood hazard areas and the risk premium
zones applicable to the community. [Also defined in
CCR Title 24 Part
2.]
(8)
"Flood Insurance Study" or "FIS" means the official report provided
by the Federal Emergency Management Agency containing the Flood Insurance
Rate Map (FIRM), the Flood Boundary and Floodway Map (FBFM), the water
surface elevation of the base flood and supporting technical data.
[Also defined in
CCR Title 24 Part 2.]
(9)
"Floodplain administrator" means the community official designated
by title to administer and enforce the floodplain management regulations.
(10)
"Floodway" means the channel of the river, creek 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 a designated height. [Also defined in
CCR Title 24 Part
2.]
(11)
"Fraud or victimization" means, for the purpose of variances
from these regulations or the building code, the intentional use of
deceit to deprive another of rights or property, making a victim of
the deprived person or the public. As it pertains to buildings granted
variances to be constructed below the elevation required by the building
code, future owners or tenants of such buildings and the community
as a whole may bear the burden of increased risk of damage from floods,
increased cost of flood insurance, and increased recovery costs, inconvenience,
danger, and suffering.
(12)
"Functionally dependent use" means a use that cannot perform
its intended purpose unless it is located or carried out in close
proximity to water, including only docking facilities, port facilities
necessary for the loading or unloading of cargo or passengers, and
shipbuilding or ship repair facilities. The term does not include
long-term storage, manufacture, sales or service facilities.
(13)
"Highest adjacent grade" means the highest natural elevation
of the ground surface prior to construction next to the proposed walls
or foundation of a structure.
(h)
"H"
(1)
"Historic structure" means any structure that is:
(A) 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;
(B) 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;
(C) Individually listed on the inventory of historic
places maintained by the California Office of Historic Preservation;
or
(D) Individually listed on a local inventory of historic
places in communities with historic preservation programs that have
been certified by the California Office of Historic Preservation.
(l)
"L"
(1)
"Letter of Map Change (LOMC)" means an official determination
issued by FEMA that amends or revises an effective Flood Insurance
Rate Map or Flood Insurance Study. Letters of Map Change include:
(A) Letter of Map Amendment (LOMA): An amendment based
on technical data showing that a property was incorrectly included
in a designated special flood hazard area. A LOMA amends the current
effective Flood Insurance Rate Map and establishes that a specific
property, portion of a property, or structure is not located in a
special flood hazard area.
(B) Letter of Map Revision (LOMR): A revision based
on technical data that may show changes to flood zones, flood elevations,
special flood hazard area boundaries and floodway delineations, and
other planimetric features.
(C) Letter of Map Revision Based on Fill (LOMR-F):
A determination that a structure or parcel of land has been elevated
by fill above the base flood elevation and is, therefore, no longer
located within the special flood hazard area. In order to qualify
for this determination, the fill must have been permitted and placed
in accordance with the community's floodplain management regulations.
(D) Conditional Letter of Map Revision (CLOMR): A formal
review and comment as to whether a proposed flood protection project
or other project complies with the minimum NFIP requirements for such
projects with respect to delineation of special flood hazard areas.
A CLOMR does not revise the effective Flood Insurance Rate Map or
Flood Insurance Study; upon submission and approval of certified as-built
documentation, a Letter of Map Revision may be issued by FEMA to revise
the effective FIRM.
(2)
"Light-duty truck" means, as defined in 40 C.F.R. 86.082-2,
any motor vehicle rated at 8,500 pounds Gross Vehicular Weight Rating
or less which has a vehicular curb weight of 6,000 pounds or less
and which has a basic vehicle frontal area of 45 square feet or less,
which is:
(A) Designed primarily for purposes of transportation
of property or is a derivation of such a vehicle, or
(B) Designed primarily for transportation of persons
and has a capacity of more than 12 persons; or
(C) Available with special features enabling off-street
or off-highway operation and use.
(3)
"Lowest floor" means the lowest floor of the lowest enclosed
area, including basement, but excluding any unfinished or flood-resistant
enclosure, usable solely for vehicle parking, building access or limited
storage provided that such enclosure is not built so as to render
the structure in violation of the non-elevation requirements of the
building codes. [Also defined in
CCR Title 24 Part 2.]
(m)
"M"
(1)
"Manufactured home" means a structure that is transportable
in one or more sections, built on a permanent chassis, designed for
use as a single-family dwelling with or without a permanent foundation
when connected to the required utilities, and constructed to the Manufactured
Home Construction and Safety Standards promulgated by the U.S. Department
of Housing and Urban Development. Also see definitions in Health and
Safety Code sections 18000(a)(2) and 18001(a). For the purposes of
floodplain management, the term also includes mobile homes and recreational
vehicles, park trailers, travel trailers and similar transportable
structures that are placed on a site for 180 consecutive days or longer.
(2)
"Manufactured home park or subdivision" means a parcel (or contiguous
parcels) of land divided into two or more manufactured home lots for
rent or sale.
(3)
"Market value" means the price at which a property will change
hands between a willing buyer and a willing seller, neither party
being under compulsion to buy or sell and both having reasonable knowledge
of relevant facts. As used in these regulations, the term refers to
the market value of buildings and structures, excluding the land and
other improvements on the parcel. Market value may be established
by one of the following methods: (1) Actual Cash Value (replacement
cost depreciated for age and quality of construction), (2) tax assessment
value adjusted to approximate market value by a factor provided by
the Property Appraiser, or (3) a qualified independent appraiser.
(n)
"N"
(1)
"New manufactured home park or subdivision" means 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) was completed on or after December 19, 1997.
(2)
"Nuisance" means that which is injurious to 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.
(p)
"P"
(1)
"Permit" means an official document or certificate issued by
the community, or other evidence of approval or concurrence, which
authorizes performance of specified development activities that are
located in flood hazard areas and that are determined to be compliant
with these regulations.
(r)
"R"
(1)
"Recreational vehicle" means a vehicle that is built on a single
chassis, 400 square feet (37.16 m
2) or
less when measured at the largest horizontal projection, designed
to be self-propelled or permanently towable by a light-duty truck,
and designed primarily not for use as a permanent dwelling but as
temporary living quarters for recreational, camping, travel or seasonal
use. A recreational vehicle is ready for highway use when it is on
its wheels or jacking system, is attached to the site only by quick
disconnect type utilities and security devices and has no permanently
attached additions. Also see definitions in
Health and Safety Code
section 18010.
(2)
"Riverine" means relating to, formed by, or resembling a river
(including tributaries), stream, brook, etc.
(s)
"S"
(1)
"Special flood hazard area (SFHA)" means the land area subject
to flood hazards and shown on a Flood Insurance Rate Map or other
flood hazard map as Zone A, AE, A1-30, A99, AR, AO, AH, V, VO, VE,
or V1-30. [Also defined in
CCR Title 24 Part 2.]
(2)
"Substantial damage" means 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 percent of the market value of
the structure before the damage occurred. [Also defined in
CCR Title
24 Part 2.]
(3)
"Substantial improvement" means any repair, reconstruction,
rehabilitation, alteration, addition or other improvement of a building
or structure, the cost of which equals or exceeds 50 percent of the
market value of the structure before the improvement or repair is
started. When the structure has sustained substantial damage, any
repairs are considered substantial improvement regardless of the actual
repair work performed. The term does not, however, include either:
[Also defined in
CCR Title 24 Part 2.]
(A) Any project for improvement of a building required
to correct existing health, sanitary or safety code violations identified
by the building official and that are the minimum necessary to assure
safe living conditions.
(B) Any alteration of a historic structure provided
that the alteration will not preclude the structure's continued designation
as a historic structure.
(u)
"U"
(1)
"Utility and Miscellaneous Group U" means buildings and structures
of an accessory character and miscellaneous structure not classified
in any special occupancy, as described in the building code.
(v)
"V"
(1)
"Variance" means a grant of relief from the requirements of
these regulations which permits construction in a manner otherwise
prohibited and where specific enforcement would result in exceptional
hardship.
(2)
"Violation" means a development that is not fully compliant
with these regulations or the flood provisions of the building code,
as applicable.
(w)
"W"
(1)
"Watercourse" means a river, creek, stream, channel or other
topographic feature in, on, through, or over which water flows at
least periodically.
(Ord. 3220-23, 9/26/2023)