Definitions. Words, terms and phrases are presumed to be used in their ordinary context unless otherwise defined in §
220-12 or this section:
ADAPTIVE USEThe process of converting a conforming use of a building to a use which is not presently permitted within the respective zoning district (i.e., conversion of a dwelling in a residential zone to a commercial use), subject to approval by the Zoning Hearing Board. Such conversions would be accomplished with varying alterations to the interior of the building with the intention of providing an income source for funding exterior preservation, rehabilitation or restoration efforts.
AMENITYA building, structure, area or landscape feature that contributes to the aesthetic fiber of the neighborhood, rather than one that is purely utilitarian.
ARCHITECTA professional registered in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania to practice architecture, who is retained for the purpose of developing building plans (site plan, foundation plan, floor plans, elevations, section, details, etc.) and specifications to be used in building construction. Services may include supervision of the construction of the building designed.
ARCHITECTUREIn addition to the profession of designing buildings, this term also refers to particular periods, styles and construction methods (i.e., victorian, gothic, provincial, etc.).
BACKGROUND OR CONTRIBUTING BUILDINGBuildings or structures that may lack exemplary character or significance but are nonetheless essential to the character of the neighborhood, district or community and contribute to maintaining a sense of place.
CULTURAL RESOURCEA building, structure, district, site, object or document that is of significance to American, Pennsylvanian, Lancaster County or Manheim Borough history, architecture, archeology or culture.
EASEMENTSA less-than-fee interest in real property which runs with the land and is carried as a deed restriction or covenant to protect important open space, utilities, access, buildings, facades or interiors.
HUMAN SCALEA combination of qualities in architecture, streetscape or the landscape that provide an appropriate relationship to human size, enhancing rather than diminishing the importance of people.
LANDSCAPEThe totality of built or human-influenced habitat experienced at any place. Dominant features are topography, plant cover, buildings or other structures and their patterns.
LETTER OF APPROPRIATENESSA document provided by the Historic Commission, stating support of an applicant's specific project, following a determination of the proposal's suitability in accordance with applicable criteria.
MAINTENANCE PROGRAMSpecific methods, procedures and schedules to maintain and repair a building or structure.
MASSINGComposition of a building's volumes and surfaces that contribute to its appearance (e.g., many classical-style buildings have a central mass or pavilion flanked by subordinate masses or wings).
MIXED USEA variety of authorized activities in a building or neighborhood, as distinguished from the isolated uses and planned separatism prescribed by many zoning ordinances.
MUSEUMSThe following specific types shall be considered in addition to those normally associated with the term "museum":
(1) HOUSEA dwelling whose structure itself is of historic, architectural or cultural significance and whose interpretation relates primarily to the building's architecture, furnishings and history.
(2) INDUSTRIALA former industrial or commercial structure of historic, architectural or cultural significance and whose interpretation relates primarily to the building's architecture, furnishings and history as well as similar information related to other industrial or commercial uses significant to the Borough.
(3) OUTDOORA restored or re-created site on which several buildings or structures have been restored, rebuilt or otherwise established for the purpose of interpreting a historical or cultural setting, period or activity.
NEIGHBORHOODAn area generally associated with the block in which an historic resource is located. For the purpose of this section, the neighborhood shall include all structures located on properties which are within 300 feet of the subject property (measured from property line to property line), regardless of the distance between the historic resource and the other structure. Furthermore, it shall be understood that the neighborhood includes those structures which are oriented to the same street, including those structures on the opposite side of the street.
PRESERVATIONThe act or process of saving old and/or historic buildings, structures, sites and objects from destruction or deterioration and providing for their continued use by means of restoration, rehabilitation or adaptive use. The process may include stabilization, where necessary, as well as ongoing maintenance of historic building materials.
PROPORTIONThe relative size of two or more dimensions of a building.
RECONSTRUCTIONThe act or process of reproducing, through new construction, the exact form or detail of a vanished building, structure, object, feature or a part thereof as it appeared at a specific period of time.
REHABILITATIONThe act or process of returning a property, building or structure to a state of utility through repair or alteration which makes possible establishment of an efficient contemporary permitted use while preserving those portions of the property, building or structure which are significant to its historic, architectural or cultural value.
RENOVATIONModernization of an old or historic building, structure or object that may produce inappropriate alterations or eliminate important features and details.
RESTORATIONThe act or process of accurately recovering the form and details of a property and its setting as it appeared at a particular period of time by means of the replacement of missing earlier architectural features and details.
SENSE OF PLACEA collection of attributes found within a neighborhood, property, district or community that gives it unique and distinctive character.
STABILIZATIONThe act or process of implementing construction measures designed to reestablish a weather-resistant enclosure or to structurally stabilize an unsafe or deteriorated premises while maintaining the essential form of the building or structural.
STREETSCAPEThe distinguished character of a particular street created by its width, degree of curvature, paving material, design and placement of landscape features and street furniture (i.e., planter boxes, street lamps, waste bins, benches, etc.), and the human scale, massing, proportions and style of the surrounding buildings and structures.
STYLEA type of architecture distinguished by special characteristics of the structure and ornamentation, often related to a particular time in history.
TOWNSCAPEThe relationship of buildings, structures, shapes, spaces and textures that give a borough its distinctive visual character or image.
VERNACULAR BUILDINGSBuildings designed and built without the aid of an architect or trained designer, wherein the design is based on ethnic, social or cultural traditions rather than on an architectural philosophy.