The definition of any word or phrase not listed in this chapter which is in question when administering this title shall be as defined from one of the following sources which are incorporated herein by reference. These sources shall be utilized by finding the desired definition from source (a), but if it is not available there, then source (b) may be used and so on. Sources are as follows:
(a) 
City development regulations;
(b) 
Any city resolution, ordinance, code or regulation;
(c) 
Any statute or regulation of the state of Washington (i.e., the most applicable);
(d) 
Legal definitions from case law or a law dictionary;
(e) 
The common dictionary.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Abandonment of telecommunications facility"
means: (a) to cease operation for a period of 60 or more consecutive days; (b) to reduce the effective radiated power of an antenna by 75 percent for 60 or more consecutive days; (c) to relocate an antenna at a point less than 80 percent of the height of an antenna support structure; or (d) to reduce the number of transmissions from an antenna by 75 percent for 60 or more consecutive days.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Accessory building or structure"
means a building or structure, attached or detached from a principal building located on the same lot, the use of which is incidental, related and clearly subordinate to the principal use of the land or building. With the exception of an accessory dwelling unit, an accessory building or structure is used by the occupants of the principal building.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Accessory dwelling unit"
means a second dwelling unit added to a single-family detached dwelling or created within and on the same lot as a single-family detached dwelling unit, which is designed as a completely independent unit which provides for living, sleeping, cooking and sanitation.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Accessory use"
means a use incidental, related and clearly subordinate to the principal use of a lot or main building. An accessory use is only located on the same lot as a permitted principal use.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Adaptive management"
relies on scientific methods to evaluate how well regulatory and nonregulatory actions protect the critical area. An adaptive management program is a formal and deliberate scientific approach to taking action and obtaining information in the face of uncertainty.
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005)
"Adjacent"
means immediately adjoining (in contact with the boundary of the influence area) or within a distance that is less than that needed to separate activities from critical areas to ensure protection of the functions and values of the critical areas. "Adjacent" shall mean any activity or development located:
(a) 
On a site immediately adjoining a critical area;
(b) 
A distance equal to or less than the required critical area buffer width and building setback;
(c) 
A distance equal to or less than 800 feet from a bald eagle nest;
(d) 
A distance equal to or less than 300 feet upland from a stream, wetland, or water body;
(e) 
Bordering or within the floodway, floodplain, or channel migration zone; or
(f) 
A distance equal to or less than 200 feet from a critical aquifer recharge area.
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005)
"Adult bookstore"
means a retail establishment in which:
(a) 
Thirty percent or more of the stock-in-trade consists of books, magazines, posters, pictures, periodicals, or other printed materials distinguished by an emphasis on matter depicting, describing or relating to "specified sexual activities" or "specified anatomical areas."
(b) 
Any person is excluded by virtue of age from all or part of the premises generally held open to the public where such materials are displayed or sold.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Adult cabaret"
means a commercial establishment that presents go-go dancers, strippers, male or female impersonators, or similar types of entertainment and which excludes any person by virtue of age from all or any portion of the premises.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Adult entertainment"
means:
(a) 
Any exhibition, performance or dance of any type conducted in a premises where such exhibition, performance or dance involves a person who is unclothed or in such costume, attire or clothing as to expose any portion of the nipple, the areola, or the lower half of the female breast or any portion of the pubic region, anus, buttocks, vulva or genitals, or wearing any device or covering exposed to view which simulates the appearance of any portion of the nipple, the areola, or the lower half of the female breast or any portion of the pubic region, anus, buttocks, vulva or genitals, or human male genitals in a discernibly turgid state, even if completely and opaquely covered; or
(b) 
Any exhibition, performance or dance of any type conducted in a premises where such exhibition, performance or dance is distinguished or characterized by a predominant emphasis on the depiction, description, simulation or relation to the following specified sexual activities:
(1) 
Human genitals in a state of sexual stimulation or arousal;
(2) 
Acts of human masturbation, sexual intercourse or sodomy;
(3) 
Fondling or other erotic touching of human genitals, pubic region, buttocks or female breast;
(c) 
Any exhibition, performance or dance intended to sexually stimulate any patron and conducted in a premises where such exhibition, performance or dance is performed for, arranged with or engaged in with fewer than all patrons on the premises at that time, with separate consideration paid, either directly or indirectly, for such performance, exhibition or dance. For purposes of example and not limitation, such exhibitions, performances or dances are commonly referred to as table dancing, couch dancing, taxi dancing, lap dancing, private dancing or straddle dancing.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Adult family home"
means as defined in Chapter 70.128A RCW, Adult Family Homes, as amended: a regular family abode in which a person or persons provide personal care, special care, room and board to more than one but not more than six adults who are not related by blood or marriage to the person or persons providing the services. An adult family home is considered a family group home as defined in FMC § 22.98.273.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Adult retail store"
means a retail establishment in which 30 percent or more of the stock-in-trade consists of items, products, or equipment distinguished or characterized by an emphasis on or a simulation of "specified sexual activities" or "specified anatomical areas", and/or any person is excluded by virtue of age from all or part of the premises generally held open to the public where such items, products, or equipment are sold.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Adult video store"
means a retail establishment in which 30 percent or more of the stock-in-trade consists of prerecorded video tapes, discs, or similar material distinguished or characterized by an emphasis on matter depicting, describing or relating to "specified sexual activities" or "specified anatomical areas"; and/or any person is excluded by virtue of age from all or part of the premises generally held open to the public where such prerecorded video tapes, disks, or similar material are displayed or sold.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Advertising copy"
means any sign graphics, background colors, logos or trademarks that identify or promote the sign user or any product or service; or that provides information about the sign user, the building or the products or services available.
(Ord. 1322 § 5, 2003)
"Alley"
means a public right-of-way or city-approved private way, providing secondary access to adjacent property, which has less than 200 average daily trips and is no more than 30 feet in width.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Alteration"
means any human-induced change in an existing condition of a critical area or its buffer. Alterations include, but are not limited to, grading, filling, channelizing, dredging, clearing (vegetation), construction, compaction, excavation, or any other activity that changes the character of the critical area.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000; Ord. 1375 § 10, 2005)
"Amendment"
means a change in the wording, context or substance of this title or the comprehensive plan; a change in the official zoning map or comprehensive plan map; or a change to a condition of approval or modification of a permit or plans reviewed or approved by the director, hearing examiner, planning commission, or city council.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000; Ord. 1638 § 65, 2019)
"Anadromous fish"
means fish that spawn and rear in freshwater and mature in the marine environment. While Pacific salmon die after their first spawning, adult char (bull trout) can live for many years, moving in and out of saltwater and spawning each year. The life history of Pacific salmon and char contains critical periods of time when these fish are more susceptible to environmental and physical damage than at other times. The life history of salmon, for example, contains the following stages: upstream migration of adults, spawning, intergravel incubation, rearing, smoltification (the time period needed for juveniles to adjust their body functions to live in the marine environment), downstream migration, and ocean rearing to adults. (Ord 1375 § 9, 2005).
"Antenna"
means any exterior apparatus designed for telephonic, radio, data, Internet, or television communication through the sending and/or receiving of electromagnetic waves, and includes equipment attached to a tower or building for the purpose of providing personal wireless services, including unlicensed wireless telecommunications services, wireless telecommunications services utilizing frequencies authorized by the Federal Communications Commission for cellular, enhanced specialized mobile radio and personal communications services, telecommunications services, and its attendant base station.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Antenna height"
means the vertical distance measured from the base of the antenna support structure at grade to the highest point of the structure even if said highest point is an antenna. Measurement of tower height shall include antenna, base pad, and other appurtenances and shall be measured from the finished grade of the parcel. If the support structure is on a sloped grade, then the average between the highest and lowest grades shall be used in calculating the antenna height.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Applicant"
means the person, party, firm, corporation, or other legal entity that proposes any activity. The applicant is either the owner of the land on which the proposed activity would be located, a contract vendee, a lessee of the land, the person who would actually control and direct the proposed activity, or the authorized agent of such a person.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Antique"
means a work of art, piece of furniture or decorative object made at least 50 years ago and having a retail value greater than $75.00.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Aquifer"
means a geologic formation that contains sufficient saturated permeable material to conduct ground water and to yield sufficient quantity of water to serve as a private or public water supply.
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005)
"Aquifer, confined"
means an aquifer bounded above and below by beds of distinctly lower permeability than that of the aquifer itself and that contains ground water under sufficient pressure for the water to rise above the top of the aquifer.
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005)
"Aquifer, sole source"
means an area designated by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency under the Safe Drinking Water Act of 1974, Section 1424(e). The aquifer(s) must supply 50 percent or more of the drinking water for an area without a sufficient replacement available.
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005)
"Aquifer susceptibility"
means the ease with which contaminants can move from the land surface to the aquifer based solely on the types of surface and subsurface materials in the area. Susceptibility usually defines the rate at which a contaminant will reach an aquifer unimpeded by chemical interactions with the vadose zone media.
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005)
"Aquifer, unconfined"
means an aquifer not bounded above by a bed of distinctly lower permeability than that of the aquifer itself and containing ground water under pressure approximately equal to that of the atmosphere. This term is synonymous with the term "water table aquifer."
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000; Ord. 1375 § 12, 2005)
"Area of shallow flooding"
means an area designated AO or AH zone on the flood insurance map(s). 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. AO is characterized as sheet flow and AH indicates ponding.
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005)
"Articulation"
means the giving of emphasis to architectural elements such as windows, balconies, entries, etc., that create a complementary pattern of rhythm, dividing large buildings into smaller identifiable pieces. Articulating a building to divide up its mass and reduce its apparent size may be accomplished through facade modulation (see FMC § 22.98.456) and other design techniques.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Assisted living facility"
means any of the following:
(a) 
Congregate Care Facility. A building or complex of dwellings specifically designed for occupancy by senior citizens which provides for shared use of facilities, such as kitchens, dining areas, and recreation areas. Such complexes may also provide kitchens and dining space in individual dwelling units, and practical nursing care.
(b) 
Convalescent Home. Any home, place, institution or facility which provides convalescent or chronic care, or both, for a period in excess of 24 consecutive hours for three or more patients not related by blood or marriage to the operator, who by reason of illness or infirmity, are unable to properly care for themselves. A convalescent home shall be licensed as a "nursing home" pursuant to Chapter 18.51 RCW.
(c) 
Hospice Care Center. A facility licensed under Chapter 70.41 RCW which provides for the emotional and physical care of terminally ill patients. Such centers provide food, lodging, and palliative care on a 24-hour basis for two or more people, unrelated to the center's operator, who are in the latter stages of a disease expected to cause death.
(d) 
Nursing Home. See convalescent home.
(e) 
Residential Care Facility. A facility that cares for at least five, but not more than 15 functionally disabled persons, that is not licensed pursuant to Chapter 70.128 RCW.
(f) 
Residential Treatment Facility. A residential building that is licensed by the state to provide residential and domiciliary care to five or more individuals, or to provide rehabilitative treatment or services to individuals. Residential treatment facilities generally provide a limited term living arrangement for their residents in a family-like setting. Such facilities also provide rehabilitative services other than basic living skills training, often intended to provide residents with the future ability to live independently. Such facilities may provide medical treatment as an integral part of a rehabilitative program.
(g) 
Rest Home. See congregate care facility.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Base flood"
means a flood event having a one percent chance of being equaled or exceeded in any given year, also referred to as the 100-year flood. Designations of base flood areas on flood insurance map(s) always include the letters A or V.
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005)
"Basement"
means any area of the building having its floor below ground level on all sides, when used in the context of a frequently flooded area.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000; Ord. 1375 § 13, 2005)
"Battery exchange station"
means a fully automated facility that will enable an electric vehicle with a swappable battery to enter a drive lane and exchange the depleted battery with a fully charged battery through a fully automated process, which meets or exceeds any standards, codes, and regulations set forth by Chapter 19.27 RCW and consistent with rules adopted under RCW 19.27.540.
(Ord. 1509 § 16, 2011)
"Best available science"
means current scientific information used in the process to designate, protect, or restore critical areas, which is derived from a valid scientific process as defined by WAC 365-195-900 through 365-195-925. Sources of the best available science are included in Citations of Recommended Sources of Best Available Science for Designating and Protecting Critical Areas published by the Washington State Department of Community, Trade and Economic Development.
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005)
"Best management practices (BMPs)"
means conservation practices or systems of practices and management measures that:
(a) 
Control soil loss and reduce water quality degradation caused by high concentrations of nutrients, animal waste, toxics, and sediment;
(b) 
Minimize adverse impacts to surface water and ground water flow and circulation patterns and to the chemical, physical, and biological characteristics of wetlands;
(c) 
Protect trees and vegetation designated to be retained during and following site construction and use native plant species appropriate to the site for revegetation of disturbed areas; and
(d) 
Provide standards for proper use of chemical herbicides within critical areas.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000; Ord. 1375 § 14, 2005)
"Biodiversity"
means the variety of animal and plant life and its ecological processes and interconnections – represented by the richness of ecological systems and the life that depends on them, including human life and economies.
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005)
"Breakaway wall"
means 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.
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005)
"Buffer"
means an area contiguous or adjacent to a critical area that provides a naturally vegetated zone surrounding a critical area. A buffer provides for the continued maintenance, function, and structural stability of a critical area.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Building"
means any structure having a roof supported by columns, posts, or walls for the shelter, housing, or enclosure of any individual, animal, process, equipment, goods, or materials of any kind.
Building, accessory.
See FMC § 22.98.009, Accessory building or structure.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Facade"
means the elevation of a building extending from the ground level up to the bottom of the fascia on a pitched roof building, and up to the top of the wall or parapet on a flat roof building. The area of a building facade for purposes of calculating allowable wall signage includes the area of the windows and doors but excludes openings that do not have solid coverings, such as breezeways, colonnades and gateways that extend through, or to the back side of, the building.
(Ord. 1598 § 30, 2017)
"Building fascia"
means any flat horizontal member or molding with little projection, or any relatively narrow vertical surface (frieze) or board under a roof edge or which forms the outer surface of a cornice, visible to an observer.
(Ord. 1598 § 31, 2017)
"Building frontage"
means the ground floor horizontal distance of a building or portion thereof occupied by a tenant. Building frontage shall only be measured along a ground floor wall that has a customer entrance that faces and has access onto a public open space, such as a courtyard or plaza; or is adjacent to a public street, or adjacent to a driveway or parking lot that serves that use. If any building frontage does not consist of one straight line, the frontage of any offset portion shall be projected, for computation purposes, to the extension of the line of the most forward face of the building.
(Ord. 1598 § 32, 2017)
"Building height"
means the average vertical distance between the finished grade on each exterior wall and a horizontal plane level with the highest point of the coping of a flat roof, the deck of a mansard roof, or the highest ridge line of a pitched roof. The height of a stepped or terraced building is measured for each segment of the building.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Building, principal or main"
means a building devoted to the principal use of the lot on which it is situated; where a permissible use involves more than one building or structure designed or used for the principal purpose, each such permissible building on a lot shall be classified as a principal building.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Bulk regulations"
means standards and controls that establish the maximum size of buildings and structures on a lot and the buildable area within which the building or structure can be located, including lot coverage, setbacks, height, floor area ratio, and yard requirements.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Business or commerce"
means the purchase, sale or other transaction involving the handling or disposition of any article, service, substance or commodity for livelihood or profit; or the management of office buildings, offices, recreational or amusement enterprises; or the maintenance and use of buildings, offices, structures and premises by professions and trades rendering services. See FMC § 22.98.249, Establishment, business or commercial.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Caliper"
means the diameter of tree trunk measured at 12 inches above soil level. This measurement is used when sizing a tree for purchase and installation.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000; Ord. 1562 § 54, 2015)
"Camouflaged facility"
means a personal wireless service facility that is disguised, hidden, or integrated with an existing structure that is not a monopole or tower, or a personal wireless service facility that is placed within an existing or proposed structure, or new structure, tower, or mount within trees so as to be significantly screened from view.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Carport"
means a roofed structure providing space for the parking of motorized and nonmotorized vehicles and enclosed on not more than three sides.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Cell site"
means a tract or parcel of land that contains personal wireless service facilities including any antenna, support structure, accessory buildings, and parking, and may include other uses associated with and ancillary to personal wireless services.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Certificate of capacity"
means a document issued by the city of Fircrest indicating the quantity of capacity for each concurrency facility that has been reserved for a specific development project on a specific property. The document may have conditions and an expiration date associated with it.
(Ord. 1275 § 2, 2001)
"Channel migration zone (CMZ)"
means the lateral extent of likely movement along a stream or river during the next 100 years as determined by evidence of active stream channel movement over the past 100 years. Evidence of active movement over the 100-year time frame can be inferred from aerial photos or from specific channel and valley bottom characteristics. The time span typically represents the time it takes to grow mature trees that can provide functional large woody debris to streams. A CMZ is not typically present if the valley width is generally less than two bankfull widths, if the stream or river is confined by terraces, no current or historical aerial photographic evidence exists of significant channel movement, and there is no field evidence of secondary channels with recent scour from stream flow or progressive bank erosion at meander bends. Areas separated from the active channel by legally existing artificial channel constraints that limit bank erosion and channel avulsion without hydraulic connections shall not be considered within the CMZ.
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005)
"Character"
means the distinctive features or attributes of buildings, uses and site design on adjacent properties and in the vicinity, including but not limited to building facade, building length, building modulation, building height, building location, roof form, building exterior finish materials, tree cover, types of flora, location of landscaping, size and location of signs, setbacks, amount of parking, location of parking, fencing type, fencing height, location of fencing, and intensity of uses.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Charging levels"
means the standardized indicators of electrical force, or voltage, at which an electric vehicle's battery is recharged. The terms 1, 2, and 3 are the most common EV charging levels, and include the following specifications:
(a) 
Level 1 is considered slow charging.
(b) 
Level 2 is considered medium charging.
(c) 
Level 3 is considered fast or rapid charging.
(Ord. 1509 § 17, 2011)
"Clearing"
means the destruction, disturbance or removal of logs, scrub-shrub, stumps, trees or any vegetative material by burning, chemical, mechanical or other means.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Compensation"
means replacement by creation, enhancement, or restoration of critical areas or buffers equivalent in size, function and value to the one being altered or lost from development.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Compensatory mitigation"
means replacing project-induced losses or impacts to a critical area, and includes, but is not limited to, the following:
Restoration – Actions performed to reestablish wetland functional characteristics and processes that have been lost by alterations, activities, or catastrophic events within an area that no longer meets the definition of a wetland.
Creation – Actions performed to intentionally establish a wetland at a site where it did not formerly exist.
Enhancement – Actions performed to improve the condition of existing degraded wetlands so that the functions they provide are of a higher quality.
Preservation – Actions taken to ensure the permanent protection of existing, high-quality wetlands.
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005)
"Club"
means an association of persons for some common purpose, including social, civic, charitable, or recreational activities, operated by a private nonprofit institution or organization, but excluding groups organized primarily to render a service which is customarily carried on by a business.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Conditional use"
means a use identified within the zoning district regulations of this title, that because of size, location with respect to surroundings, equipment, unique characteristics and effects and/or demands on public facilities, requires a special degree of control in order to ensure compatibility with the vicinity.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Conservation easement"
means a legal agreement that the property owner enters into to restrict uses of the land. Such restrictions can include, but are not limited to, passive recreation uses such as trails or scientific uses and fences or other barriers to protect habitat. The easement is recorded on a property deed, runs with the land, and is legally binding on all present and future owners of the property, therefore providing permanent or long-term protection.
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005)
"Correctional group home"
means a dwelling structure consisting of more than one adult within a halfway-house, pre-release, training-release, work-release or other similar program under the supervision of a local, state or federal criminal justice system. Additionally, the dwelling structure is operated or contracted by a local, state or federal criminal justice system. A correctional group home includes staff who supervise the residents. A correctional facility which consists solely of individuals below the age of 18 under the supervision of a local, state or federal criminal justice system and correctional staff shall be classified as a family group home and not a correctional group home.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Covenant"
means a restriction or condition placed upon the use of property by private instrument recorded by the Pierce County Auditor.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Creation"
means bringing a wetland, stream corridor, fish and wildlife habitat, or other critical area, when possible, into existence at a site in which the critical area did not formerly exist.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Critical area tract"
means land held in private ownership and retained in an open condition in perpetuity for the protection of critical areas. Lands within this type of dedication may include, but are not limited to, portions and combinations of forest habitats, grasslands, shrub steppe, on-site watersheds, 100-year floodplains, shorelines or shorelines of statewide significance, riparian areas, and wetlands.
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005)
"Critical facility"
means a facility for which even a slight chance of flooding, inundation, or impact from a hazard event might be too great. Critical facilities include, but are not limited to, schools, nursing homes, hospitals, police, fire and emergency response installations, and installations that produce, use, or store hazardous materials or hazardous waste.
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005)
"Critical root zone (CRZ)"
means an area where a tree's roots are located. This root zone is generally the area surrounding a tree at a distance that is equal to a one-foot radius for every one inch DBH. The CRZ may extend further from a tree depending on tree species, age, soil type and other factors.
(Ord. 1562 § 55, 2015)
"Curb level"
for any building means the level of the established curb in front of such building measured at the center of such front. Where no curb elevation has been established, the mean elevation of the finished lot grade immediately adjacent to a building shall be considered the curb level.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Dedication"
is the transfer of property by the owner to another party for a specific use such as roads, utilities and open space. A dedication is conveyed by written instrument and is completed with an acceptance.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Development"
means any activity upon the land consisting of construction or alteration of structures, earth movement, dredging, dumping, grading, filling, mining, removal of any sand, gravel, or minerals, driving of piles, drilling operations, bulkheading, clearing of vegetation, or other land disturbance. Development includes the storage or use of equipment or materials inconsistent with the existing use. Development also includes approvals issued by the city that binds land to specific patterns of use, including, but not limited to, subdivisions, short subdivisions, zone changes, conditional use permits, and binding site plans. When used in the context of critical areas regulations, development activity does not include the following activities:
(a) 
Interior building improvements.
(b) 
Exterior structure maintenance activities, including painting and roofing.
(c) 
Routine landscape maintenance of established, ornamental landscaping, such as lawn mowing, pruning, and weeding.
(d) 
Maintenance of the following existing facilities that does not expand the affected area: septic tanks (routine cleaning); wells; individual utility service connections; and individual cemetery plots in established and approved cemeteries.
(Ord. 1275 § 2, 2001; Ord. 1375 § 16, 2005)
"Diameter at breast height (DBH)"
means the diameter of a tree trunk in inches at four and one-half feet above the ground. On multistemmed or multitrunked trees, the diameter shall be the diameter equivalent to the sum of trunk areas measured at four and one-half feet above ground. This measurement is used when sizing a mature tree.
(Ord. 1562 § 56, 2015)
"Director"
means the planning/building director of the city of Fircrest or person appointed by the city manager to act in such a role.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000; Ord. 1562 § 57, 2015)
"Drip line"
means an imaginary ground line around the perimeter of a tree that defines the outer limits of the tree canopy, where precipitation falling from the branches of that tree lands on the ground.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Drive-thru"
means a lane or window which is intended to serve customers who remain in their motor vehicles during the business transactions, or which are designed in such a manner that customers must leave their automobiles temporarily in a driving line located adjacent to the facility.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Dwelling"
means a building or portion thereof designed exclusively for human habitation; including, single-family, duplex, and multifamily dwellings, accessory dwellings, modular homes, designated manufactured homes, but not including hotel or motel units having no kitchens.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Dwelling, duplex"
means a building designed exclusively for occupancy by two families living separately from each other and containing two dwelling units. A single-family dwelling which includes an accessory dwelling unit is not classified as a duplex dwelling.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Dwelling unit"
means one or more rooms designed for or occupied by one family for sleeping and living purposes and containing kitchen, sleeping and sanitary facilities for use solely by one family. All rooms comprising a dwelling unit shall have access through an interior door to other parts of the dwelling unit. Includes apartments, hotel rooms available on a month-to-month basis with kitchen facilities, designated manufactured and group homes, but excludes recreational vehicles.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Early notice"
means the city's written response to an applicant stating whether it considers issuance of a SEPA determination of significance likely for the applicant's proposal.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Electric vehicle"
means any vehicle that operates, either partially or exclusively, on electrical energy from the grid, or an off-board source, that is stored on-board for motive purpose. "Electric vehicle" includes: (a) a battery electric vehicle; (b) a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle; (c) a neighborhood electric vehicle; and (d) a medium-speed electric vehicle.
(Ord. 1509 § 19, 2011)
"Enhancement"
means the actions performed to improve the condition of existing wetlands and/or buffers so that the functions they provide are of a higher quality (e.g., increasing plant diversity, increasing wildlife habitat, installing environmentally compatible erosion controls, removing nonindigenous plant or animal species, removing fill material or garbage).
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
As used in Chapter 22.24 FMC, "equipment enclosure" means a structure, shelter, cabinet, or vault used to house and protect the electronic equipment necessary for processing wireless communication signals. Associated equipment may include air conditioning, backup power supplies and emergency generators.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Escort agency"
means a person or business association who furnishes, offers to furnish, or advertises to furnish escorts as one of its primary business purposes for a fee, tip or other consideration.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Essential public facilities"
means those facilities that are typically difficult to site, such as airports, state education facilities and state or regional transportation facilities, state and local correctional facilities, solid waste handling facilities and inpatient facilities including substance abuse facilities, mental health facilities and group homes.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Existing and ongoing agricultural activities"
means those activities conducted on lands defined in RCW 84.34.020(2), and those activities involved in the production of crops and livestock, including but not limited to operation and maintenance of farm and stock ponds or drainage ditches, irrigation systems, changes between agricultural activities, and normal operation, maintenance or repair of existing serviceable structures, facilities or improved areas. Activities which bring an area into agricultural use are not part of an ongoing activity. An operation ceases to be ongoing when the area on which it was conducted has been converted to a nonagricultural use or has lain idle both more than five years and so long that modifications to the hydrological regime are necessary to resume operations, unless the idle land is registered in a federal or state soils conservation program. For the purposes of this definition, if a large lot subdivision or other subdivision of land results in the creation of one or more lots five acres or larger, any such lot of five or more acres shall not be considered to be converted to a nonagricultural use. Forest practices are not included in this definition.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
As used in Chapter 22.12 FMC, "facility and service provider" means the department, district, or agency responsible for providing a specific concurrency facility. Examples include, but are not limited to the city of Fircrest, Pierce Transit, Tacoma School District, and University Place School District.
(Ord. 1275 § 2, 2001)
"Family"
means an individual, individuals related by blood, marriage, or adoption, up to and including six individuals who are not related by blood, marriage, or adoption, residing in a single-family dwelling unit (including family group home), individuals with a handicap as defined in the Federal Fair Housing Amendments Act of 1988 (42 USCS Section 3602) as amended and residing in a group home or children residing in a group home.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Family day-care facility"
means a facility licensed by the state carried on in the family residence of the licensee providing regularly scheduled care for 12 or fewer children, including children who reside at the family residence, within a birth through 11 years of age range exclusively, for periods of less than 24 hours.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Family group home"
means a dwelling unit consisting of individuals with a handicap as defined in the Federal Fair Housing Amendments Act of 1988 (42 USCS Section 3602) as amended, or children under the legal custody of an institution or an adult and any necessary staff for the care of individuals mentioned herein. An adult family home as defined in FMC § 22.98.033 is a family group home.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Fence"
means a wall or barrier for the purpose of enclosing space, separating property, reducing noise and/or visual impacts, and composed of bricks, concrete, masonry blocks, or posts connected by boards, rails, panels, or wire. The term fence does not include retaining wall.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Fill"
means any material dumped or placed, by any means, from, to or on any soil or sediment surface including temporary stockpiling of material.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Final plat"
is the final drawing of the subdivision and dedication prepared for filing of record with the Pierce County auditor, and containing all elements and requirements set forth in Chapter 22.21 FMC.
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005)
"Fish and wildlife habitat conservation areas"
means areas necessary for maintaining species in suitable habitats within their natural geographic distribution so that isolated subpopulations are not created as designated by WAC 365-190-080(5). These areas include:
(a) 
Areas with which state or federally designated endangered, threatened, and sensitive species have a primary association;
(b) 
Habitats of local importance, including but not limited to areas designated as priority habitat by the Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife;
(c) 
Naturally occurring ponds under 20 acres and their submerged aquatic beds that provide fish or wildlife habitat, including those artificial ponds intentionally created from dry areas in order to mitigate impacts to ponds;
(d) 
Waters of the state, including lakes, rivers, ponds, streams, inland waters, underground waters, salt waters, and all other surface waters and watercourses within the jurisdiction of the state of Washington;
(e) 
Lakes, ponds, streams, and rivers planted with game fish by a governmental or tribal entity;
(f) 
State natural area preserves and natural resource conservation areas; and
(g) 
Land essential for preserving connections between habitat blocks and open spaces.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000; Ord. 1375 § 18, 2005)
"Fish habitat"
means habitat that is used by fish at any life stage at any time of the year, including potential habitat likely to be used by fish that could be recovered by restoration or management and includes off-channel habitat.
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005)
"Flag"
means a piece of cloth, attached to a staff, with distinctive colors, patterns or symbols, used as a national or state symbol.
(Ord. 1598 § 33, 2017)
"Flood" or "flooding"
means the general and temporary condition of partial or complete inundation of normally dry land areas from the overflow of inland waters and/or the unusual and rapid accumulation of runoff of surface waters from any source.
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005)
"Flood insurance map"
means the official map on which the Federal Insurance Administration has delineated the areas of special flood hazards and included the risk premium zones applicable to the community. Also known as "flood insurance rate map" or "FIRM."
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000; Ord. 1375 § 19, 2005)
"Flood-resistant material"
means materials designed to be resistant to the impacts associated with flooding and defined and described in detail in the Federal Emergency Management Agency's Technical Bulletin No. 2-93, 1993, and FEMA publication FEMA-348, Protecting Building Utilities from Flood Damage.
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005)
"Floodway"
means the channel of a river or other watercourse and the adjacent land area that must be reserved in order to discharge the base flood without cumulatively increasing the surface water elevation more than two feet. Also known as the "zero rise floodway."
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005)
"Floor area, gross"
means the sum of the gross horizontal areas of the floor(s) of a building or portion thereof, measured from the exterior face of exterior walls and from the centerline of walls dividing uses or establishments. Gross floor area includes basement space, elevator shafts and stairwells at each floor, mechanical equipment rooms or attic space with headroom of 7.5 feet or more, penthouse floors, interior balconies and mezzanines, enclosed porches and malls. Gross floor area shall not include accessory water tanks and cooling towers, mechanical equipment or attic spaces with headroom of less than 7.5 feet, exterior steps or stairs, terraces, breeze ways and open space.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000; Ord. 1375 § 21, 2005)
"Frequently flooded areas"
means lands in the floodplain subject to a one percent or greater chance of flooding in any given year and those lands that provide important flood storage, conveyance, and attenuation functions, as determined by the director in accordance with WAC 365-190-080(3). Frequently flooded areas perform important hydrologic functions and may present a risk to persons and property. Classifications of frequently flooded areas include, at a minimum, the 100-year floodplain designations of the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the National Flood Insurance Program.
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005)
"Frontage"
means the property line of an individual lot, tract or parcel that abuts a public or private street right-of-way, excluding alleys and private driveways. The number of frontages on a lot is the same as the number of public or private street rights-of-way that the lot abuts.
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005; Ord. 1598 § 35, 2017)
"Functions and values"
means the beneficial roles served by critical areas including, but not limited to, water quality protection and enhancement; fish and wildlife habitat; food chain support; flood storage, conveyance and attenuation; ground water recharge and discharge; erosion control; protection from hazards; historical, archaeological, and aesthetic value protection; educational opportunities; and recreation.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000; Ord. 1375 § 22, 2005)
"Garage, private"
means an accessory building or an accessory portion of the main building, enclosed on not less than three sides and designed and primarily used for the shelter or storage of vehicles, including boats.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Geologically hazardous areas"
means areas that may not be suited to development consistent with public health, safety, or environmental standards, because of their susceptibility to erosion, sliding, earthquake, or other geological events as designated by WAC 365-190-080(4). Types of geologically hazardous areas include: erosion, landslide and seismic hazards.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000; Ord. 1375 § 23, 2005)
"Geologist"
means a person who has earned a bachelor's degree in geology and has at least one year of professional experience as a practicing geologist.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Grade, natural"
means the topographic condition or elevation of a site or portion of a site over the past five years, or the finished grade of an approved site development plan. Changes to grade or elevation resulting from fill, mounding or berming within five years preceding any requested permit other than a site development plan shall not be considered natural grade for permitting purposes.
(Ord. 1598 § 36, 2017)
"Groundcover"
means low growing vegetative materials with a mounding or spreading manner of growth that provide solid cover within three years after planting.
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005)
"Ground water management program"
means a comprehensive program designed to protect ground water quality, to ensure ground water quantity, and to provide for efficient management of water resources while recognizing existing ground water rights and meeting future needs consistent with local and state objectives, policies, and authorities within a designated ground water management area or subarea and developed pursuant to Chapter 173-100 WAC.
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005)
"Habitats of local importance"
means areas that include a seasonal range or habitat element with which a given species has a primary association, and which, if altered may reduce the likelihood that the species will maintain and reproduce over the long-term. These might include areas of high relative density or species richness, breeding habitat, winter range, and movement corridors. These might also include habitats that are of limited availability or high vulnerability to alterations such as cliffs, talus, and wetlands. (WAC 365-190-030)
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005)
"Halo illuminated"
means a light source placed behind totally opaque letter or symbol so that the light reflects off the wall or background to which the letters or symbols are mounted rather than emanating through the letters or symbols, creating a halo effect that leaves the letters or symbols viewable in silhouette form only.
(Ord. 1598 § 37, 2017)
"Hazardous substance"
means any liquid, solid, gas, or sludge, including any material, substance, product, commodity, or waste, regardless of quantity, that exhibits any of the characteristics or criteria of hazardous waste; and including waste oil and petroleum products.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"High intensity land use"
means land uses that are associated with high levels of human disturbance or substantial habitat impacts including, but not limited to, single-family and multifamily residential, commercial and industrial land uses, when used in the context of critical areas regulations.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000; Ord. 1375 § 25, 2005)
"High quality wetlands"
means those wetlands that meet the following criteria:
(a) 
No, or isolated, human alteration of the wetland topography;
(b) 
No human-caused alteration of the hydrology or the wetland appears to have recovered from the alteration;
(c) 
Low cover and frequency of exotic plant species;
(d) 
Relatively little human-related disturbance of the native vegetation, or recovery from past disturbance;
(e) 
If the wetland system is degraded, it still contains a viable and high quality example of a native wetland community; and
(f) 
No known major water quality problems.
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005)
"Home occupation"
means any activity conducted for financial gain or profit in a dwelling unit, and which activity is clearly incidental or secondary to the residential use of a dwelling unit or an associated accessory building.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Hotel"
means a building or group of buildings in which there are five or more guest rooms where lodging with or without meals is provided for compensation, and where no provision is made for cooking in any individual room or suite. Motels and bed-and-breakfasts are considered hotels under this title. Hotels with guest rooms that contain kitchen facilities shall be considered multifamily dwelling units subject to the provisions and requirements of this title governing such units for the zone in which the establishment is located.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Hydric soil"
means soil that is saturated, flooded or ponded long enough during the growing season to develop anaerobic conditions in the upper portion.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Hydrologic soil groups"
means soils grouped according to their runoff-producing characteristics under similar storm and cover conditions. Properties that influence runoff potential are depth to seasonally high water table, intake rate and permeability after prolonged wetting, and depth to a low permeable layer. Hydrologic soil groups are normally used in equations that estimate runoff from rainfall, but can be used to estimate a rate of water transmission in soil. There are four hydrologic soil groups:
Low runoff potential and a high rate of infiltration potential;
Moderate infiltration potential and a moderate rate of runoff potential;
Slow infiltration potential and a moderate to high rate of runoff potential; and
High runoff potential and very slow infiltration and water transmission rates.
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005)
"Hydrophyte"
means an aquatic plant growing in water or on a substrate (hydric soil) that is at least periodically deficient in oxygen where the saturated soil is too wet for most plants to survive. Examples of hydrophytes include plants such as cattails, sedges, and bulrush.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Hyporheic zone"
means the saturated zone located beneath and adjacent to streams that contains some portion of surface waters, serves as a filter for nutrients, and maintains water quality.
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005)
"Impervious surface"
means a hard surface area that either prevents or retards the entry of water into the soil mantle as under natural conditions prior to development or that causes water to run off the surface in greater quantities or at an increased rate of flow from the flow present under natural conditions prior to development. Common impervious surfaces include, but are not limited to, rooftops, walkways, patios, driveways, parking lots or storage areas, concrete or asphalt paving, gravel roads, packed earthen materials, and oiled macadam or other surfaces which similarly impede the natural infiltration of stormwater.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000; Ord. 1375 § 26, 2005)
"In-kind compensation"
means to replace critical areas with substitute areas whose characteristics and functions closely approximate those destroyed or degraded by a regulated activity. It does not mean replacement "in-category."
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000; Ord. 1375 § 27, 2005)
"Inoperable vehicle"
means a motor vehicle which is apparently inoperable or which requires repairs in order to be legally operated on the public roads, such as repair or replacement of a window, windshield, wheel, tire, motor or transmission.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Isolated wetlands"
means those wetlands that are outside of and not contiguous to any 100-year floodplain of a lake, river, or stream and have no contiguous hydric soil or hydrophytic vegetation between the wetland and any surface water.
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005)
"Kennel"
means a house, enclosure, or other structure in which five or more dogs, five or more cats, or any combination of eight or more cats and dogs, which individually exceed seven months of age, are kept for breeding, sale, training, boarding, or sporting purposes, or are kept or cared for as pets or for any other purpose.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Kitchen"
means any room or rooms, or portion of a room or rooms, used or intended or designed to be used for cooking or the preparation of food, including any room having a sink and provisions for a gas or electric stove, oven or range.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Landslide hazard areas"
means areas that are potentially subject to risk of mass movement due to geologic landslide resulting from a combination of geologic, topographic, and hydrologic factors. These areas are typically susceptible to landslides because of a combination of factors including: bedrock, soil, slope gradient, slope aspect, geologic structure, ground water, or other factors.
(Formerly 22.98.384; Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000; Ord. 1311 § 36, 2002; Ord. 1375 § 29, 2005)
"Logo"
means an identifying emblem or insignia containing sign graphics, symbols or colors typically used for identification and/or advertisement.
(Ord. 1322 § 7, 2003)
"Logo shield"
means a logo contained within an area no greater than four square feet, incorporated into a larger sign face or designed as an individual sign or a component of a sign containing individually mounted sign graphics.
(Ord. 1322 § 8, 2003)
"Lot"
means a division of land having fixed boundaries, which has been created by a subdivision or short subdivision; or is a parcel of property that was exempt from subdivision requirements or was established prior to the requirement that lots be created by a subdivision or short subdivision.
(Ord. 1322 § 9, 2003)
"Lot, corner"
means a lot abutting upon two or more streets at their intersection, or upon two portions of the same street forming an interior angle of less than 135 degrees within the lot lines.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Lot, flag"
means a lot that does not meet minimum frontage requirements and where access to the public road is by a narrow, private right-of-way or driveway.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Lot depth"
means the mean horizontal distance between the front lot line and the rear lot line of a lot measured within the lot boundaries.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Lot line"
means a line of record bounding a lot that divides one lot from another lot or from a public or private street or any other public space.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Lot line, rear"
means the lot line opposite and most distant from the front lot line. In the case of triangular or otherwise irregularly shaped lots, a line 10 feet in length entirely within the lot, parallel to and at a maximum distance from the front lot line.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Lot width"
means the horizontal distance between the side line of a lot measured at right angles to its depth along a straight line parallel to the front lot line at the minimum required front yard setback line.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Low intensity land use"
means land uses that are associated with low levels of human disturbance or low habitat impacts, including, but not limited to, passive recreation, open space, or forest management land uses, when used in the context of critical areas regulations.
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005)
"Lowest floor"
means the lowest floor of the lowest enclosed area, including the basement, when used in the context of a frequently flooded area. An unfinished or flood-resistant enclosure, usable solely for parking of vehicles, building access, or storage in an area other than a basement area, which 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 requirements of this title.
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005)
"Luminance"
means the photometric quality most closely associated with the perception of brightness. Luminance is measured in candelas per square meters or "nits."
(Ord. 1598 § 38, 2017)
"Manufactured home"
means a factory-assembled structure intended solely for human habitation, which has sleeping, eating, and plumbing facilities, which is being used for residential purposes, which was constructed in accordance with the HUD federal manufactured housing construction and safety standards act in effect at the time of construction, and that is constructed in a way suitable for movement along public highways. A manufactured home is limited to those structures assembled after June 15, 1976, in accordance with state and federal requirements for manufactured homes, which are comprised of at least two fully enclosed parallel sections each of not less than 12 feet wide by six feet long; were originally constructed with and now have a composition or wood shake or shingle, coated metal, or similar roof of not less than three to 12 pitch; and have exterior siding similar in appearance to siding materials commonly used on conventional site-built single-family residences regulated by the International Building Code. The term does not include recreational vehicles.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000; Ord. 1473 § 6, 2009)
"Marquee"
means a permanent structure attached to, supported by, and projecting from a building and providing protection from the elements.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000; Ord. 1322 § 10, 2003; Ord. 1598 § 40, 2017)
"Medical or dental clinic"
means a building or complex occupied and used by physicians and dentists and other medical practitioners recognized by the state of Washington, for out-patients only; and including accessory uses including but not limited to therapeutic room and x-ray room, medical and dental laboratories, the dispensing of medicine and medical aides to out-patients of the clinic.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Microbrewery"
means a business known as a craft brewery that produces 5,000 barrels or less of beer per calendar year. A microbrewery may sell beer of its own production directly to a customer for off-premises consumption and by all other legal means. A microbrewery may operate a tasting room or in conjunction with a food-serving establishment. A microbrewery must be licensed by the Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board and the Federal Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau.
(Ord. 1611 § 22, 2018)
"Microdistillery"
means a business known as a craft distillery that produces 5,000 proof gallons or less of spirits per calendar year. A microdistillery may sell spirits of its own production directly to a customer for off-premises consumption and by all other legal means. A microdistillery may operate a tasting room or in conjunction with a food-serving establishment. A microdistillery must be licensed by the Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board and the Federal Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau.
(Ord. 1611 § 23, 2018)
"Microwinery"
means a business engaged primarily in the production, including crushing, fermentation, aging, bottling, and distribution, of no more than 5,000 cases of wine per year. A microwinery may sell wine of its own production directly to a customer for off-premises consumption and by all other legal means. A microwinery may operate a tasting room or in conjunction with a food-serving establishment. A microwinery must be licensed by the Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board and the Federal Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau.
(Ord. 1611 § 24, 2018)
"Mitigation"
means avoiding, minimizing, or compensating for adverse critical areas impacts. Mitigation, in the following sequential order of preference, is:
(a) 
Avoiding the impact altogether by not taking a certain action or parts of an action;
(b) 
Minimizing impacts by limiting the degree or magnitude of the action and its implementation, by using appropriate technology, or by taking affirmative steps, such as project redesign, relocation, or timing, to avoid or reduce impacts;
(c) 
Rectifying the impact to wetlands, critical aquifer recharge areas, and habitat conservation areas by repairing, rehabilitating, or restoring the affected environment to the conditions existing at the time of the initiation of the project;
(d) 
Minimizing or eliminating the hazard by restoring or stabilizing the hazard area through engineered or other methods;
(e) 
Reducing or eliminating the impact or hazard over time by preservation and maintenance operations during the life of the action;
(f) 
Compensating for the impact to wetlands, critical aquifer recharge areas, and habitat conservation areas by replacing, enhancing, or providing substitute resources or environments; and
(g) 
Monitoring the hazard or other required mitigation and taking remedial action when necessary.
Mitigation for individual actions may include a combination of the above measures.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000; Ord. 1375 § 30, 2005)
As used in Chapter 22.24 FMC, "modification" means the changing of any portion of a personal wireless service facility from its description in a previously approved permit. Examples include, but are not limited to, changes in design.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Monitoring"
means the process of collecting and evaluating data to assess the biological, hydrological or geological performance of newly created, restored, rehabilitated and/or affected critical ecosystem area.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Motion"
means the depiction of movement or change of position of text, images or graphics. Motion shall include, but not be limited to, visual effects such as dissolving and fading text and images, running sequential text, graphic bursts, lighting that resembles zooming, twinkling or sparkling, changes in light or color, transitory bursts of light intensity, moving patterns or bands of light, expanding or contracting shapes and similar actions.
(Ord. 1598 § 42, 2017)
"Mount"
means the structure or surface upon which personal wireless service facilities are mounted. There are three types of mounts:
(a) 
Building mount, which means a personal wireless service facility mount fixed to the roof or side of a building.
(b) 
Ground mount, which means a personal wireless service facility mount fixed to the ground, such as a tower.
(c) 
Structure mount, which means a personal wireless service facility fixed to a structure other than a building, such as a light standard, utility pole, or bridge.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Nits"
means a unit of measure of brightness or luminance. One nit is equal to one candela/square meter.
(Ord. 1598 § 44, 2017)
"Nonresidential zone"
means, in the context of Chapter 22.26 FMC, any zone that does not include residential dwelling units except for mixed use zoning districts where residential units are located above or behind nonresidential uses and the ground floor streetscape is characterized by commercial and other nonresidential uses.
(Ord. 1598 § 45, 2017)
"Noxious element"
means material which is capable of causing injury to living organisms by chemical reaction or is capable of causing detrimental effects upon the physical or economic well-being of individuals.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Nude or semi-nude"
means a state of complete or partial undress in such costume, attire, clothing so as to expose any portion of the nipple, the areola, or the lower half of the female breast or any portion of the pubic region, anus, buttocks, vulva, or genitals, or human male genitals in a discernibly turgid state, even if completely and opaquely covered.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Open fire"
means any fire upon woodland, lot, subdivision, grassland, field or public right-of-way within the city that is not within a receptacle approved by the city.
(Ord. 1507 § 6, 2011)
"Open space"
means any parcel or area of land or water essentially unimproved and set aside, dedicated, designated, or reserved for public or private use or enjoyment or for the use and enjoyment of owners, occupants and their guests of land adjoining or neighboring such space. As used in Chapter 22.92 FMC, open space means lands which contain distinctive geologic, botanic, zoologic, historic, scenic or other critical area features. These areas are often undeveloped and serve as greenbelts and wildlife habitats. Specific types of open space include gulches, steep slopes and wetlands.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Open space, common"
means land within or related to a development, not individually owned or dedicated for public use, that is designed and intended for the common use or enjoyment of the residents and their guests of the development and may include such complementary structures and improvements as are necessary and appropriate.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Ordinary high water mark (OHM)"
means the mark that is found by examining the bed and banks and ascertaining where the presence and action of waters are so common and usual, and so long continued in all ordinary years, that the soil has a character distinct from that of the abutting upland in respect to vegetation.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000; Ord. 1375 § 32, 2005)
"Outdoor storage"
means the keeping, in an unenclosed area, of any goods, junk, material, merchandise, or vehicles in the same place, or substantially the same place, for more than 24 hours.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Owner-occupied"
means when the property owner's primary and permanent legal residence is located on-site, as evidenced by voter registration, vehicle registration and/or other similar means.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Panorama or peepshow"
means any device which, upon insertion of a coin or by any other means of payment, including membership fee or other charge, exhibits or displays a picture or view by film, video or by any other means, including observation of live performances.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Parcel"
means a description of land which is on record with the Pierce County assessor's office. A parcel of land may or may not be a legal lot of record and may be for tax or description purposes only.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Parking area"
means an area of a lot accessible to vehicles, which is provided, improved, maintained and used for the primary purpose of accommodating a motor vehicle.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Permeability"
means the capacity of an aquifer or confining bed to transmit water. It is a property of the aquifer or confining bed and is independent of the force causing movement.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000; Ord. 1375 § 33, 2005)
"Person"
includes any individual, firm, joint venture, co-partnership, association, social club, fraternal organization, corporation, estate, trust, business trust, receiver or any other group or combination acting as a unit.
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005)
"Personal wireless service," "personal wireless service facilities," and "facilities,"
as used in Chapter 22.24 FMC, shall be defined in the same manner as in Title 47, United States Code, Section 332 (c)(7)(C), and includes facilities for the transmission and reception of radio or microwave signals used for communication, cellular phone, personal communications services, enhanced specialized mobile radio, and any other wireless services licensed by the FCC and unlicensed wireless services.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Pet shop"
means a retail establishment which sells fish, domesticated animals, birds and associated supplies, provided no boarding or veterinarian services are rendered, except bathing and clipping of dogs and cats. Pet shop does not include kennels.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Planned capacity"
means capacity for a public facility that is not yet available, but for which the necessary facility construction, expansion or modification project is contained in the current adopted capital facilities element of the comprehensive plan and scheduled to be completed within six years.
(Ord. 1275 § 2, 2001)
"Planned development"
means a development built under the provisions of Chapter 22.76 FMC, which permits departures from the conventional requirements of other sections of this title in the interest of achieving superior site development, creating open space and encouraging imaginative design by permitting design flexibility.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Plat"
means a map or representation of a subdivision, showing thereon the division of a tract or parcel of land into lots, blocks, streets and alleys or other divisions and dedications.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Porch"
means a roofed, open area, which may be screened, attached to or part of and with direct access to or from a building. A porch becomes a room when the enclosed space is heated or air-conditioned and when the percentage of window area to wall area is less than 50 percent.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Porous soil types"
means soils, as identified by the National Resources Conservation Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, that contain voids, pores, interstices, or other openings which allow the passing of water.
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005)
"Portable fire device"
means a commercially produced chamber or screened enclosure, portable in design, for the purpose of containing a fire of three feet or less in diameter and two feet or less in height for pleasure, cooking, warmth, or similar purposes. The products of combustion will either pass through a chimney prior to being emitted into the air or the chamber will be of screened enclosure.
(Ord. 1507 § 6, 2011)
"Practical alternative"
means an alternative that is available and capable of being carried out after taking into consideration cost, existing technology, and logistics in light of overall project purposes, and that has less impact to critical areas.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000; Ord. 1375 § 34, 2005)
"Preliminary plat"
means a neat and approximate drawing of a proposed subdivision showing the general layout of streets and alleys, lots, blocks and other elements of a subdivision consistent with the requirements of this title. The preliminary plat shall be the basis for the approval or disapproval of the general layout of a subdivision.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Primary association area"
means the area that is used on a regular basis by, is in close association with, or is necessary for the proper functioning of the habitat of a critical species. "Regular basis" means that the habitat area is normally or usually known to contain a critical species, or, based on known habitat requirements of the species, the area is likely to contain the critical species. "Regular basis" is species- and population-dependent. Species that exist in low numbers may be present infrequently yet rely on certain habitat types.
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005)
"Priority habitat"
means habitat type or elements with unique or significant value to one or more species as classified by the state Department of Fish and Wildlife. A priority habitat may consist of a unique vegetation type or dominant plant species, a described successional stage, or a specific structural element.
Principal use.
See FMC § 22.98.720, Use, principal.
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005; Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Printing, small-scale"
means a printing establishment generally serving both walk-in and account customers, utilizing small-scale printing presses which are set up and operated by an individual and may include a bindery person as an assistant. Products primarily consist of business cards, envelopes, letterheads, reports, manuals and brochures.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Processed materials"
examples include natural or synthetic materials, including but not limited to bristles, canvas, cellophane and similar synthetics, chalk, clay, cloth, cork, feathers, felt, fiber, fur, glass, graphite, hair, horn, leather, metal products (nonprecious), paper, paraffin, plastic and resins, precious or semi-precious metals or stones, putty, pumice, rubber, shell, textiles, tobacco, wire, wood, wool and yarn.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Professional office"
means an office maintained and used as a place of business conducted by persons engaged in recognized professions, and others whose business activity consists primarily of services to the person as distinguished from the handling of commodities.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Project area"
means all areas within 50 feet of the area proposed to be disturbed, altered, or used by the proposed activity or the construction of any proposed structures, when used in the context of critical area regulations. When the action binds the land, such as a subdivision, short subdivision, binding site plan, planned unit development, or rezone, the project area shall include the entire parcel, at a minimum.
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005)
As used in Chapter 22.24 FMC, "provider" means every corporation, company, association, joint stock company, firm, partnership, limited liability company, other entity and individual which provides personal wireless service over personal wireless service facilities.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Public or quasi-public utility"
means a private corporation performing a public service and subject to special governmental regulations; or a governmental agency performing a similar public service, the services by either of which are paid for directly by individual recipients. Such services shall include, but are not limited to, water supply, electric power, gas and transportation of persons and freight.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Qualified professional"
means a person with experience and training in the pertinent scientific discipline, and who is a qualified scientific expert with expertise appropriate for the relevant critical area subject in accordance with WAC 365-195-905(4). A qualified professional must have obtained a B.S. or B.A. or equivalent degree in biology, engineering, environmental studies, fisheries, geomorphology, or related field, and two years of related work experience.
(a) 
A qualified professional for habitats or wetlands must have a degree in biology and professional experience related to the subject species.
(b) 
A qualified professional for a geological hazard must be a professional engineer or geologist, licensed in the state of Washington.
(c) 
A qualified professional for critical aquifer recharge areas means a hydrogeologist, geologist, engineer, or other scientist with experience in preparing hydrogeologic assessments.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000; Ord. 1375 § 35, 2005)
"Raceway"
means a box-type conduit to house electrical wires for signs and used to support and/or affix signage on a wall.
(Ord. 1598 § 48, 2017)
"Reclaimed water"
means municipal wastewater effluent that has been adequately and reliability treated so that it is suitable for beneficial use, consistent with treatment levels and water quality requirements in the water reclamation and reuse standards adopted by the state Departments of Ecology and Health.
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005)
"Recreation, passive"
means activities that involve relatively inactive or less energetic activities, such as walking, sitting, picnicking, card games and table games such as chess. Passive recreation also includes open space for nature walks and observation.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Recreational fire"
means fires lit in chimineas, contained fire pits, fire bowls, cooking appliances and barbeques, portable fire devices and similar free-standing devices commonly sold at home-improvement stores and mass retailers, and permanent outdoor fireplaces that occur on private property for cooking, pleasure or ceremonial purposes.
(Ord. 1507 § 6, 2011)
"Recreational vehicles"
means all vehicles, self-propelled or propelled by another vehicle, designed primarily for touring with living/or sleeping quarters on board. Includes, but is not limited to, campers, travel trailers and motor homes.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Regulated activities"
means any act which would destroy natural vegetation in a critical area or its buffer; result in significant change in water temperature, physical or chemical characteristics; substantially alter existing pattern of tidal flow; obstruct the flow of sediment or alter the natural contours of a site.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Religious institution"
means an establishment, the principal purpose of which is religious worship and for which the principal building or other structure contains the sanctuary or principal place of worship. Accessory uses in the main building or in separate buildings may include, but are not limited to, religious educational classrooms, assembly rooms, kitchen, library or reading room, recreational hall, and a single-family dwelling unit for use by an institution official. Accessory uses to a religious institution do not include day-care facilities or facilities for residence or for training of religious orders.
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005)
"Repair or maintenance"
means an activity that restores the character, scope, size, and design of a serviceable area, structure, or land use to its previously authorized and undamaged condition. Activities that change the character, size, or scope of a project beyond the original design and drain, dredge, fill, flood, or otherwise alter critical areas are not included in this definition.
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005)
"Restoration"
means measures taken to restore an altered or damaged natural feature including:
(a) 
Active steps taken to restore damaged wetlands, streams, protected habitat, or their buffers to the functioning condition that existed prior to an unauthorized alteration; and
(b) 
Actions performed to reestablish structural and functional characteristics of the critical area that have been lost by alteration, past management activities, or catastrophic events.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000; Ord. 1375 § 36, 2005)
"Retail establishment"
(also known as retail store) means an establishment in which 60 percent or more of the gross floor area is devoted to the sale or rental of goods or merchandise to the general public for personal or household consumption or to services incidental to the sale or rental of such goods or merchandise.
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005)
"Rills"
means deep-sided channels resulting from accelerated erosion. A rill is generally a few inches deep and not wide enough to be an obstacle to farm machinery. Rill erosion tends to occur on slopes, particularly steep slopes with poor vegetative cover.
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005)
"Riparian habitat"
means areas adjacent to aquatic systems with flowing water that contain elements of both aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems that mutually influence each other. The width of these areas extends to that portion of the terrestrial landscape that directly influences the aquatic ecosystem by providing shade, fine or large woody material, nutrients, organic and inorganic debris, terrestrial insects, or habitat for riparian-associated wildlife. Widths shall be measured from the ordinary high water mark or from the top of bank if the ordinary high water mark cannot be identified. It includes the entire extent of the floodplain and the extent of vegetation adapted to wet conditions as well as adjacent upland plant communities that directly influence the stream system. Riparian habitat areas include those riparian areas severely altered or damaged due to human development activities.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000; Ord. 1375 § 37, 2005)
"Roadway"
means that portion of the street improved, designed, or ordinarily used for vehicular travel, exclusive of the sidewalks and shoulder. Where there are curbs, the roadway is the curb to curb width of the street.
(Ord. 1311 § 38, 2002; Ord. 1375 § 38, 2005; Ord. 1598 § 49, 2017)
"Roofline"
means the uppermost edge of the roof or the top of the parapet, excluding mechanical equipment screens, whichever is highest. Where a building has several roof levels, the roofline shall be the one belonging to that portion of the building on which the sign is located.
(Ord. 1322 § 17, 2003; Ord. 1375 § 39, 2005; Ord. 1598 § 50, 2017)
"Scientific process"
means a valid scientific process that produces reliable information useful in understanding the consequences of a decision. The characteristics of a valid scientific process are as follows:
(a) 
Peer Review. The information has been critically reviewed by other qualified scientific experts in that scientific discipline.
(b) 
Methods. The methods that were used are standardized in the pertinent scientific discipline or the methods have been appropriately peer-reviewed to ensure their reliability and validity.
(c) 
Logical Conclusions and Reasonable Inferences. The conclusions presented are based on reasonable assumptions supported by other studies and are logically and reasonably derived from the assumptions and supported by the data presented.
(d) 
Quantitative Analysis. The data have been analyzed using appropriate statistical or quantitative methods.
(e) 
Context. The assumptions, analytical techniques, data, and conclusions are appropriately framed with respect to the prevailing body of pertinent scientific knowledge.
(f) 
References. The assumptions, techniques, and conclusions are well referenced with citations to pertinent existing information.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000; Ord. 1322 § 18, 2003; Ord. 1375 § 40, 2005)
As used in Chapter 22.24 FMC, "screening" means a personal wireless telecommunication facility such as a tower or mount placed amongst and adjacent to (within 20 feet of) three or more trees at least 75 percent of the height of the facility.
(Ord. 1322 § 19, 2003)
As used in Chapter 22.24 FMC, "secondary use" means a use subordinate to the principle use of the property, such as commercial, residential, utilities, etc.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Section 404 Permit"
means a permit issued by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for the placement of dredge or fill material or clearing in waters of the United States, including wetlands, in accordance with 33 USC Section 1344. Section 404 Permits may also be for endangered species consultation. They require a consultation under Section 7 of the Federal Endangered Species Act.
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005)
As used in Chapter 22.24 FMC, "security barrier" means a wall, fence, or berm that has the purpose of sealing a personal wireless service facility from unauthorized entry or trespass.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Second-hand store"
means a retail establishment that is involved in the selling of any or all second-hand goods or items of personal property which can be used again for the purpose for which they were originally intended. The establishment may include, but not be limited to, arrangements whereby a building or area is sold, leased, rented, offered or donated to one or more persons where such persons may offer or display second-hand or junk items. This term includes antique stores and consignment shops.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Sensitive receptor"
means a public park or open space area, or any establishment that provides caretaking, education, or recreation for persons under 18 years of age, including a community college, trade or vocational school that on a regular basis has at least one student under the age of 18 years.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000; Ord. 1562 § 58, 2015)
"Service station"
means a building or lot having storage tanks and pumps for the retail sale of fuel to vehicle drivers and where minor repair service and/or the retail sale of food and vehicle supplies is incidental thereto.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Setback"
means the minimum required distance between any structure and a specified line such as a property or lot line, easement or buffer line, or public or private right-of-way line, which is required to remain free of structures unless otherwise provided in this title.
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005)
"Shorelines"
means all of the water areas of the state as defined in RCW 90.58.030, including reservoirs and their associated shorelands, together with the lands underlying them except:
(a) 
Shorelines of statewide significance;
(b) 
Shorelines on segments of streams upstream of a point where the mean annual flow is 20 cubic feet per second (20 cfps) or less and the wetlands associated with such upstream segments; and
(c) 
Shorelines on lakes less than 20 acres in size and wetlands associated with such small lakes.
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005)
"Shorelands or shoreland areas"
means those lands extending landward for 200 feet in all directions as measured on a horizontal plane from the ordinary high water mark; floodways and contiguous floodplain areas landward 200 feet from such floodways; and all wetlands and river deltas associated with the streams, lakes, and tidal waters which are subject to the provisions of Chapter 90.58 RCW.
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005)
"Sidewalk"
means that property between the curb lines or the lateral lines of a roadway and the adjacent property, set aside and intended for the use of pedestrians or such portion of private property parallel and in proximity to a street and dedicated to use by pedestrians.
(Ord. 1322 § 20, 2003)
"Sidewalk cafe"
means a group of tables and chairs situated and maintained upon the public sidewalk for use in connection with the consumption of food and beverages sold to the public from or in an adjoining restaurant.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Sign"
means letters, figures, symbols, trademarks, or logos, with or without illumination, intended to identify any place, subject, person, firm, business, product, article, merchandise or point of sale. A sign also includes balloons attached to sign structures, products, streamers, spinners, pennants, flags, inflatables or similar devices intended to attract attention to a site or business, as well as architectural or structural forms, illuminated panels, spandrels, awnings and other structural or architectural features not common to classic vernacular or noncorporate regional architecture and that are intended to convey a brand, message or otherwise advertise a location or product, whether or not such features include text or graphics and whether or not they serve other practical purposes such as lighting, covering or enclosure of persons or products. A sign includes any device which streams, televises or otherwise conveys electronic visual messages, pictures, videos or images, with or without sound or odors. Refer to FMC § 22.26.026 for a list of prohibited signs.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000; Ord. 1322 § 21, 2003; Ord. 1598 § 51, 2017)
"Sign, abandoned"
means a sign, the face of which has been removed or is broken and is not refaced within 180 days thereafter. Abandoned signs shall also include signs with rusted, faded, peeled, cracked or otherwise deteriorated materials or finishes that have not been repaired within 90 days after the city provides notice of the sign's deteriorated condition under FMC § 22.26.009.
(Ord. 1322 § 22, 2003; Ord. 1598 § 52, 2017)
"Sign, accessory"
means a permanent, freestanding or building-mounted sign of limited height and size that provides supplemental opportunity for freestanding or building-mounted signage on a site.
(Ord. 1322 § 23, 2003; Ord. 1598 § 53, 2017)
"Sign alteration"
means a change to the copy, color, size, shape, illumination, position, location, construction or supporting structure of a sign, not including ordinary maintenance.
(Ord. 1322 § 24, 2003; Ord. 1598 § 54, 2017)
"Sign area"
means the smallest square, rectangle, parallelogram or circle that will enclose the extreme limits of writing, representation, logo, or any figure of similar character, together with any frame, background area, structural trim, or other materials or color forming an integral part of the display or used to differentiate such sign from the background against which it is placed. The supports or uprights on which any such sign is supported shall not be included in determining the sign area. The area of signs with two faces shall be considered to be the area of the largest face. The area of signs with three or more faces shall be considered to be the area of the largest face or one-half the area of all of the faces, whichever is less. For sign copy that has varying sizes of letters or graphics, the sign area may be calculated by combining two or more geometric shapes.
(Ord. 1322 § 25, 2003; Ord. 1598 § 55, 2017)
"Sign, awning, canopy or marquee"
means a sign affixed to or imprinted on a temporary shelter or a permanent architectural projection, such as an awning, canopy or marquee, composed of rigid or nonrigid materials on a supporting framework, affixed to the exterior wall of a building, extending over a door, entrance, window or outdoor service area.
(Ord. 1322 § 26, 2003; Ord. 1598 § 56, 2017)
"Sign, changeable copy"
means a sign or portion thereof that is designed to have its message or copy readily changed manually or by remote or automatic means without altering or replacing the face or surface. Changeable copy signs support hard-copy text or graphics and do not use digital or electronic text or images.
(Ord. 1322 § 27, 2003; Ord. 1598 § 57, 2017)
"Sign, digital"
means a changeable copy sign with monochrome LED (light emitting diodes) text, graphics or symbols over a black, nonilluminated background.
(Ord. 1322 § 28, 2003; Ord. 1598 § 58, 2017)
"Sign, flashing"
means an electrical sign or portion thereof, except electronic message center signs, that changes light intensity in a sudden transitory burst, or that switches on and off in a constant pattern in which more than one-third of the nonconstant light source is off at any one time, random, or irregular pattern or contains motion or the optical illusion of motion by use of electrical energy.
(Ord. 1322 § 31, 2003; Ord. 1598 § 61, 2017)
"Sign height"
means the vertical distance measured from the adjacent grade at the base of the sign support to the highest point of the sign or sign structure.
(Ord. 1322 § 34, 2003; Ord. 1598 § 64, 2017)
"Sign, neon"
means a sign with illumination affected by a light source consisting of a neon or other gas tube which is bent to form letters, symbols or other shapes.
(Ord. 1322 § 37, 2003; Ord. 1598 § 67, 2017)
"Sign, nonconforming"
means any sign which at one time conformed to all applicable requirements and standards of Chapter 22.26 FMC, including all permit requirements, but which subsequently ceased to so conform due to changes in such requirements and standards.
(Ord. 1322 § 38, 2003; Ord. 1598 § 68, 2017)
"Sign, pan channel"
means a sign graphic that is constructed of a three-sided metal channel, usually having a light source contained within the channel. The open side may face inward, resulting in silhouette lighting, or it may face outward to allow full illumination. The open side of the channel may be enclosed with a translucent material.
(Ord. 1322 § 39, 2003; Ord. 1598 § 69, 2017)
"Sign, permanent"
means a sign constructed of weather resistant material and intended for permanent use and that does not otherwise meet the definition of "temporary sign." Wall-mounted sign holders designed for insertion of signs and posters shall be considered permanent signage and subject to all standards of this chapter.
(Ord. 1322 § 40, 2003; Ord. 1598 § 70, 2017)
"Sign, portable"
means a freestanding sign that is readily moveable and not permanently affixed to the ground, including A-frame or sandwich board signs, pole signs mounted on weighted bases, and similar signs that are used on more than a temporary basis.
(Ord. 1322 § 42, 2003; Ord. 1598 § 72, 2017)
"Sign, projecting"
means a sign attached to a building with the face not parallel to the vertical surface of the building. Projecting signs include signs projecting directly from walls, or signs hanging from porch ceilings or other support structures.
(Ord. 1322 § 44, 2003; Ord. 1598 § 74, 2017)
"Sign, roof-mounted"
means a sign that has a point of attachment to the roof or mansard of a building. Architectural projections, including mechanical equipment screens, above any parapet or roof line whose sole function is a background for signs shall be considered a sign structure. A sign on such an architectural projection shall be considered a roof-mounted sign.
(Ord. 1322 § 49, 2003; Ord. 1598 § 78, 2017)
"Sign, temporary"
means any sign that is used temporarily and is not permanently mounted, painted or otherwise affixed, excluding portable signs as defined by this chapter, including any poster, banner, placard, feather sign, stake sign or sign not placed in the ground with concrete or other means to provide permanent support, stability and rot prevention. Temporary signs may only be made of nondurable materials including, but not limited to, paper, corrugated board, flexible, bendable or foldable plastics, foamcore board, vinyl canvas or vinyl mesh products of less than 20-ounce fabric, vinyl canvas and vinyl mesh products without polymeric plasticizers, and signs painted or drawn with water soluble paints or chalks. Signs made of any other materials shall be considered permanent and are subject to the permanent sign regulations of this chapter.
(Ord. 1322 § 53, 2003; Ord. 1598 § 81, 2017)
"Sign, under-canopy"
means a sign that is placed under an awning, marquee or canopy, and is placed perpendicular to the storefront so that it is oriented to pedestrians on a sidewalk or an internal walkway.
(Ord. 1322 § 54, 2003; Ord. 1598 § 82, 2017)
"Significant tree"
means a healthy evergreen tree with a height of 10 feet or more and a healthy deciduous tree with a minimum caliper of six inches measured at four feet above finished planting grade.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Site"
means a unit of land, together with all improvements thereon, determined as follows:
A unit of land that may be conveyed separately from all adjacent land without the requirement of approval of a boundary line adjustment, short plat, or a preliminary plat.
Two or more buildings or business activities that are or will be related to each other physically or architecturally, such as by sharing off-street parking facilities, so as to form an integrated development, such as a shopping center, mixed-use center, or office complex.
(Ord. 1598 § 86, 2017; Ord. 1667 § 49, 2020)
"Slope,"
as determined or agreed upon by the city engineer, means an inclined earth surface, the inclination of which is expressed as the ratio of horizontal distance from the top-of-slope to the toe-of-slope to the vertical distance (height of slope). Slope percent is computed by dividing the vertical distance by the horizontal distance times 100. A change in grade of more than five percent along any slope analyzed, or a vertical elevation variation of two feet off of the base line slope, whichever is less, constitutes a separate slope calculation, beginning at the location of grade breaks.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000; Ord. 1417 § 13, 2006)
"Soil survey"
means the most recent soil survey for the local area or county by the National Resources Conservation Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture.
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005)
"Spandrel"
means a panel or box-type structure that spans between and/or is connected to the support columns of a porch, colonnade or canopy, usually for architectural embellishment and/or signage purposes.
(Ord. 1598 § 87, 2017)
"Special protection areas"
means aquifer recharge areas defined by WAC 173-200-090 that require special consideration or increased protection because of unique characteristics, including, but not limited to:
(a) 
Ground waters that support an ecological system requiring more stringent criteria than drinking water standards;
(b) 
Ground water recharge areas and wellhead protection areas that are vulnerable to pollution because of hydrogeologic characteristics; and
(c) 
Sole source aquifer status.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000; Ord. 1375 § 42, 2005)
"Species"
means any group of animals classified as a species or subspecies as commonly accepted by the scientific community.
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005)
"Species, priority"
means any fish or wildlife species requiring protective measures and/or management guidelines to ensure their persistence as genetically viable population levels as classified by the Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife, including endangered, threatened, sensitive, candidate and monitor species, and those of recreational, commercial, or tribal importance.
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005)
"Species, threatened"
means any fish or wildlife species that is likely to become an endangered species within the foreseeable future throughout a significant portion of its range without cooperative management or removal of threats, and is listed by the state or federal government as a threatened species.
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005)
"Specified sexual activities"
means an act of sexual intercourse within its ordinary meaning, occurring upon a penetration, however slight; a penetration of the vagina or anus, however slight, by an object; a contact between persons involving the sex organs of one person and the mouth or anus of another; masturbation, manual or instrumental, of oneself or one person by another; touching of the sex organs, anus, or female breasts, whether clothed or unclothed, of oneself or of one person by another.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000; Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005)
"Specified anatomical areas"
means less than completely and/or opaquely covered human genitals, pubic region, buttock, or any portion of the nipple, the areola, or the lower half of the female breast and human male genitals in a discernibly turgid state even if completely or opaquely covered.
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005)
"Stock-in-trade"
means the dollar value of all products, equipment, books, magazines, posters, pictures, periodicals, other printed materials, prerecorded video tapes, discs, or similar material readily available for purchase, rental, viewing or use by patrons of the establishment, excluding material located in any storeroom or other portion of the premises not regularly open to patrons; the number of titles of all products, equipment, books, magazines, posters, pictures, periodicals, other printed materials, prerecorded video tapes, discs, or similar material readily available for purchase, rental, viewing or use by patrons of the establishment, excluding material located in any storeroom or other portion of the premises not regularly open to patrons.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Story"
means that portion of a building included between the upper surface of any floor and the upper surface of the floor next above, except that the topmost story shall be that portion of a building included between the upper surface of the topmost floor and the ceiling or roof above. If the finished floor level directly above a basement or unused underfloor space is more than six feet above grade as defined herein for more than 50 percent of the total perimeter or is more than 12 feet above grade as defined herein at any point, such basement or unused underfloor space shall be considered as a story.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Stream corridor"
means perennial, intermittent, or ephemeral waters included within a channel of land and its adjacent riparian zones which serves as a buffer between the aquatic and terrestrial upland ecosystems.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Street"
means a public right-of-way or private road which provides a primary means of access to abutting property.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Street furniture"
means constructed, aboveground objects, such as outdoor seating, kiosks, bus shelters, sculpture, tree grids, trash receptacles, fountains, and telephone booths, that have the potential for enlivening and giving variety to streets, sidewalks, plazas, and other outdoor spaces open to, and used by, the public.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Streetscape"
is a design term referring to all the elements that constitute the physical makeup of a street and that, as a group, define its character, including trees and other plantings, awnings and marquees, signs, and lighting.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Subdivision"
means the division or redivision of land into five or more lots, tracts, parcels, sites or divisions for the purpose of sale, lease, or transfer of ownership, except as provided in Chapter 22.16 FMC.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Subdrainage basin or subbasin"
means the drainage area of the highest order stream containing the subject property impact area. "Stream order" is the term used to define the position of a stream in the hierarchy of tributaries in the watershed. The smallest streams are the highest order (first order) tributaries. These are the upper watershed streams and have no tributaries of their own. When two first order streams meet, they form a second order stream, and when two second order streams meet they become a third order stream, and so on.
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005)
"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.
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005)
"Substantial improvement"
means any repair, reconstruction, or improvement of a structure, the cost of which equals or exceeds 50 percent of the assessed value of the structure either: before the improvement or repair is started; or if the structure has been damaged and is being restored, before the damage occurred.
(Ord. 1375 § 44, 2005; Ord. 1562 § 59, 2015)
"Tenant space"
means the entire building which encompasses a building or use on a site; or in buildings designed for multi-tenant occupancy, it is the space between demising walls and which has an independent entrance to common corridors or to the outside. Portions of tenant spaces that are sublet to or otherwise allowed to be used by persons or businesses other than the principal person or business of a tenant space are not considered tenant spaces in the context of this chapter.
(Ord. 1598 § 89, 2017)
"Toe of slope"
means a distinct topographic break in slope at the lower most limit of an area where the ground surface drops 10 feet or more vertically within a horizontal distance of 25 feet.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
As used in Chapter 22.24 FMC, "tower" means any structure that is designed and constructed primarily for the purpose of supporting one or more antennas, including self-supporting lattice towers, guy towers, or monopole towers. The term encompasses personal wireless service facilities including radio and television transmission towers, microwave towers, common-carrier towers, cellular telephone towers or personal communications services towers, alternative tower structures, and the like.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Unavoidable"
means adverse impacts to a critical area that remain after all appropriate and practical avoidance and minimization have been achieved.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000; Ord. 1375 § 45, 2005)
"Use"
means the nature of the occupancy, the type of activity, or the character and form of improvements to which land is devoted or may be devoted.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Variance"
means a means, approved by the hearing examiner or director, of altering the requirements of this title in specific instances where the strict application of these regulations would deprive a property of privileges enjoyed by other properties which are similarly situated, due to special features or constraints unique to the property involved.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000; Ord. 1638 § 67, 2019)
"Variance, de minimis"
means a minimal or minor deviation from a bulk or dimensional zoning requirement that does not require proof of unnecessary hardship and compliance with other statutory requirements for the granting of a variance.
(Ord. 1575 § 22, 2016)
"Vehicle repair, major"
means the rebuilding or reconditioning of motor vehicles or trailers including trucks over one and one-half tons capacity, including but not limited to engine replacement or rebuilding; collision service, including body, frame or fender straightening or repair; and vehicle painting.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Vehicle wrecker"
means every person, firm, partnership, association or corporation engaged in the business of buying, selling or dealing in vehicles of a type required to be licensed under the laws of the this state, for the purpose of wrecking, dismantling, disassembling or substantially changing the form of a vehicle, or who buys or sells integral second-hand parts of component material thereof, in whole or in part, or who deals in second-hand vehicle parts.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Water dependent"
means a use or portion of a use that cannot exist in a location that is not adjacent to the water, but is dependent on the water by reason of the intrinsic nature of its operations; a use that can be carried out only on, in, or adjacent to water. Examples of water dependent uses include: ship cargo terminal loading areas; fishing; ferry and passenger terminals; barge loading, ship building, and dry docking facilities; marinas, moorage, and boat launching facilities; aquaculture; float plane operations; surface water intake; and sanitary sewer and storm drain outfalls.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000; Ord. 1375 § 46, 2005)
"Water table"
means that surface in an unconfined aquifer at which the pressure is atmospheric. It is defined by the levels at which water stands in wells that penetrate the aquifer just far enough to hold standing water.
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005)
"Watercourse"
means any portion of a channel, bed, bank, or bottom waterward of the ordinary high water line of waters of the state including areas in which fish may spawn, reside, or through which they may pass, and tributary waters with defined beds or banks, which influence the quality of fish habitat downstream. This definition includes watercourses that flow on an intermittent basis or which fluctuate in level during the year and applies to the entire bed of such watercourse whether or not the water is at peak level. This definition does not include irrigation ditches, canals, stormwater run-off devices, or other entirely artificial watercourses, except where they exist in a natural watercourse that has been altered by humans.
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005)
"Well"
means a bored, drilled, or driven shaft, or a dug hole whose depth is greater than the largest surface dimension for the purpose of withdrawing or injecting water or other liquids.
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005)
"Wetland edge"
means the boundary of a wetland as delineated based on the definitions contained in this title. "Wetland edge" also means a line dividing uplands from water habitat. The line can be identified through procedures in the Federal Manual for Identifying and Delineating Jurisdictional Wetlands by examining the presence or absence of aquatic plants (hydrophyte), hydric soils and/or water table at or near the surface.
(Ord. 1375 § 9, 2005)
"Wetlands"
means those areas that are inundated or saturated by surface or ground water at a frequency and duration sufficient to support, and that under normal circumstances do support, a prevalence of vegetation adapted for life in saturated soil conditions. Wetlands generally include swamps, marshes, bogs, and similar areas. Wetlands do not include those artificial wetlands intentionally created from nonwetland sites, including, but not limited to, irrigation and drainage ditches, grass-lined swales, canals, detention facilities, wastewater treatment facilities, farm ponds, and landscape amenities, or those wetlands created after July 1, 1990, that were unintentionally created as a result of the construction of a road, street, or highway. Wetlands may include those artificial wetlands intentionally created from nonwetland areas to mitigate the conversion of wetlands.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000; Ord. 1375 § 49, 2005; Ord. 1574 § 9, 2016)
"Wetlands mitigation bank"
means a site where wetlands are restored, created, enhanced, or in exceptional circumstances, preserved expressly for the purpose of providing compensatory mitigation in advance of authorized impacts to similar resources.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000; Ord. 1375 § 50, 2005)
"Window"
means the entire window unit including individual sashes or panes that might otherwise divide the area between the head, jamb and sill; except that in commercial storefront window assemblies, a single "window" is the glass area between each mullion that divides the window assembly, whether installed as a single piece of glass or as multiple pieces of glass divided by muntins.
(Ord. 1598 § 91, 2017)
"Wrecked vehicle"
[as defined by RCW 46.80.010(4), as amended] means a vehicle which is disassembled or dismantled or a vehicle which is acquired with the intent to dismantle or disassemble and never again to operate as a vehicle, or a vehicle which has sustained such damage that its cost to repair exceeds the fair market value of a like vehicle which has not sustained such damage, or a damaged vehicle whose salvage value plus cost to repair equals or exceeds its fair market value, if repaired, or a vehicle which has sustained such damage or deterioration that it may not lawfully operate upon the highways of this state for which the salvage value plus cost to repair exceeds its fair market value, if repaired; further it is presumed that a vehicle is a wreck if it has sustained such damage or deterioration that it may not lawfully operate upon the highways of the state.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Yard"
means a space defined by the required setback on any lot and unoccupied by a structure and unobstructed from the ground upward except as otherwise provided in this title. A yard extends along a lot line and at right angles to such lot line to a depth or width specified in the yard regulations for a specified zoning district or use.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Yard, front"
means a yard lying between the minimum setback line for a principal building and the front property line and extending across the width of the lot.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Yard, rear"
means a yard lying between the minimum setback line for a principal building and the rear property line and extending across the width of the lot.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Yard, required"
means the open space between a lot line and the minimum building setback line, which is required to remain free of structures unless otherwise provided in this title.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Yard, side"
means a yard lying between the minimum setback line for a principal building and the side property line and extending along the length of the lot between the front yard and the rear yard.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Zone" or "zoning district"
means an area accurately defined as to boundaries and location, and classified by this title as available for certain types of uses and within which other types of uses are excluded. Such district includes specific conditions, standards and requirements related to the permitted use of land within such district.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)
"Zoning map"
means the official map, adopted as a part of this title, as amended, which accurately defines boundaries and locations of zoning districts. The official map may contain one or more map sheets and may be produced in multiple copies.
(Ord. 1246 § 27, 2000)