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 it's most reasonable application.
"Accessory structure"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.
"Alteration of watercourse"Any action that will change the location of the channel occupied by water within the banks of any portion of a riverine waterbody.
"Appeal"A request for review of the county floodplain administrator's interpretation or application of any provision of this chapter or a request for a variance.
"Area of shallow flooding"A designated AO, AH, AR/AH Zone on the Flood Insurance Rate Map (FIRM) with a one percent or greater annual chance of flooding to an average depth 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. AO is characterized as sheet flow and AH indicates ponding.
"Area of special flood hazard"The land in the floodplain within a community subject to a one percent or greater chance of flooding in any given year. Designation on FIRM maps include the letters A, AO, AH, A1-30, AE, A99 and AR. Also referred to as "100-year floodplain" and "special flood hazard area."
"Agriculture""Agriculture" is the grazing, feeding, and watering of livestock; plowing, seeding, cultivation, and harvesting for the production of crops and pasture; soil and water conservation practices; the maintenance of farm or stock ponds, irrigation ditches, irrigation structures, drainage ditches, underground drainage systems, fences and farm roads, the control of noxious weeds or other generally accepted agriculture practices, and for purposes of this chapter does not include associated structures and/or appurtenances.
"ASCE 24"The most recently published version of ASCE 24, Flood Resistant Design and Construction, published by the American Society of Civil Engineers.
"Base flood"The flood having a one percent chance of being equaled or exceeded in any given year. Also referred to as the "100-year flood."
"Base flood elevation"The computed elevation to which flood water is anticipated to rise during the base flood period. Base Flood Elevations (also referred to as BFEs) are shown on Flood Insurance Rate Maps (FIRMs) and on the flood profiles. The BFE is the regulatory requirement for the elevation or floodproofing of structures. Relationship between the BFE and a structure's elevation determines the flood insurance premium.
"Basement"Any area of the building having its floor subgrade (below ground level) on all sides.
"Best available information."In the absence of official flood insurance rate map data, communities can use data from other federal, state, or other sources provided this data has either been generated using technically defensible methods or is based on reasonable historical analysis and experience.
"Building code"The most current edition of the International Building Code and the International Residential Code as adopted and amended by the Washington State Building Code Council.
"Building utility system"Mechanical equipment and appliances, electrical systems, communications, plumbing, water supply, fuel systems and conveyances identified in the most current version FEMA Publication 348 "Protecting Building Utility Systems from Flood Damage."
"Critical facility"A facility for which even a slight chance of flooding might be too great. Critical facilities include, but are not limited to, schools, nursing homes, hospitals, police, fire and emergency response installations, installations which produce, use or store hazardous materials or hazardous waste, and certain service facilities for utilities and special utilities (as defined under Chapter
17.61 KCC) as determined by the administrator.
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 areas of special flood hazard.
"Elevated building,"For insurance purposes, a non-basement building which has its lowest elevated floor raised above ground level by foundation walls, shear walls, post, piers, pilings, or columns.
"Elevation certificate"The official form (FEMA Form 81-31) used to track development, provide elevation information necessary to ensure compliance with community floodplain management ordinances, and determine the proper insurance premium rate with Section B completed by Community Officials.
"Existing manufactured home park or subdivision"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 the adopted floodplain management regulations.
"Expansion to an existing manufactured home park or subdivision"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).
"Flood" (or "flooding")1. A general and temporary condition of partial or complete inundation of normally dry land areas from the unusual and rapid accumulation of runoff or surface waters from:
a. The overflow of inland or tidal waters.
The unusual and rapid accumulation or runoff of surface waters from any source.
Mudslides (i.e., mudflows) which are proximately caused by flooding as defined in paragraph (1)(b) of this definition and are akin to a river of liquid and flowing mud on the surfaces of normally dry land areas, as when earth is carried by a current of water and deposited along the path of the current.
The collapse or subsidence of land along the shore of a lake or other body of water as a result of erosion or 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 flash flood or an abnormal tidal surge, or by some similarly unusual and unforeseeable event which results in flooding as defined in paragraph (1)(a) of this definition.
"Flood elevation study"An examination, evaluation and determination of flood hazards and, if appropriate, corresponding water surface elevations, or an examination, evaluation and determination of mudslide (i.e., mudflow) and/or flood-related erosion hazards. Also known as a Flood Insurance Study (FIS).
"Flood insurance rate map (FIRM)"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 FIRM that has been made available digitally is called a Digital Flood Insurance Rate Map (DFIRM).
"Floodplain administrator"The community official designated by title to administer and enforce the floodplain management regulations.
"Floodplain management regulations"Zoning ordinances, subdivision regulations, building codes, health regulations, special purpose ordinances (such as floodplain ordinance, grading ordinance and erosion control ordinance) and other application 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.
"Flood proofing"Any combination of structural and nonstructural additions, changes, or adjustments to structures which reduce or eliminate risk of flood damage to real estate or improved real property, water and sanitary facilities, structures, and their contents. Flood proofed structures are those that have the structural integrity and design to be impervious to floodwater below the Base Flood Elevation.
"Floodway"The channel of a river or other watercourse and the adjacent land areas (a portion of the 100-year floodplain) that must be reserved in order to discharge the base flood without cumulatively increasing the water surface elevation more than a designated height. Also referred to as “Regulatory Floodway.”
"Functionally dependent use"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.
"Highest adjacent grade"The highest natural elevation of the ground surface prior to construction next to the proposed walls of a structure.
"Historic structure"Any structure that is:
1. 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:
a. 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.
"Lowest floor"The lowest floor of the lowest enclosed area (including basement). An unfinished or flood resistant enclosure, 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 that such enclosure is not built so as to render the structure in violation of the applicable non-elevation design requirements in KCC §
14.08.250(2).
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."
"Mean sea level,"For purposes of the National Flood Insurance Program, the vertical datum to which Base Flood Elevations shown on a community’s Flood Insurance Rate Map are referenced.
"New construction,"For purposes of determining insurance rates, structures for which the "start of construction" commenced on or after the effective date of an initial Flood Insurance Rate Map or after December 31, 1974, whichever is later, and includes any subsequent improvements to such structures. For floodplain management purposes, “new construction” means structures for which the “start of construction” commenced on or after the effective date of this ordinance codified in this chapter and includes any subsequent improvements to such structures.
"New manufactured home park or subdivision"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 adopted floodplain management regulations.
"Reasonably safe from flooding"Development that is designed and built to be safe from flooding based on consideration of current flood elevation studies, historical data, high water marks and other reliable date known to the community. In unnumbered A zones where flood elevation information is not available and cannot be obtained by practicable means, reasonably safe from flooding means that the lowest floor is at least two feet above the Highest Adjacent Grade.
"Recreational vehicle"A vehicle which is:
1. 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.
"Riverine"Relating to, formed by, or resembling a river (including tributaries), stream, brook, etc.
"Start of construction"Includes substantial improvement, 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 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.
"Structure"A walled and roofed building, including gas or liquid storage tanks, that are principally above ground, as well as a manufactured home.
"Substantial damage"Damage of any origin sustained by a structure whereby the cost of restoring the structure to it's before damaged condition would equal or exceed 50 percent of the market value of the structure before the damage occurred.
"Substantial improvement"Any reconstruction, rehabilitation, addition or improvement of a structure, the cost of which equals or exceeds 50 percent 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 include either:
1. 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 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.”
"Variance"A grant of relief from the requirements of this chapter which permits construction in a manner that would otherwise be prohibited by this chapter.
"Water surface elevation"The height, in relation to the vertical datum utilized in the applicable flood insurance study of floods of various magnitudes and frequencies in the floodplains of coastal or riverine areas.
"Water dependent"A structure for commerce or industry which cannot exist in any other location and is dependent on the water by reason of the intrinsic nature of its operations.
(Ord. 93-18 § 2.0, 1993; Ord. 2001-03; Ord. 2007-22, 2007; Ord. 2012-009, 2012; Ord. 2014-015, 2014; Ord. 2021-010, 2021; Ord. 2023-010, 2023)