Unless otherwise expressly stated, the following terms shall, for the purpose of this code, have the meanings indicated in this chapter.
(a) Interchangeability. Words used in the present tense include the future; the singular number includes the plural and the plural, the singular.
(b) Terms Defined in other Codes. Where terms are not defined in this code and are defined in the building, plumbing and/or mechanical codes, they shall have the same meanings ascribed to them as in those codes.
(c) Terms not Defined. Where terms are not defined under the provisions of this code or under the provisions of the building, plumbing and/or mechanical codes, they shall have ascribed to them their ordinarily accepted meanings or such as the context herein may imply.
(d) Applied Meanings of Words and Terms.
(1) “Accessory building” means a building, the use of which is incidental to that of the main building(s), on the premises, and which is not intended to be used as a dwelling.
(2) “Agent” means any person who has been designated by the owner of a building, or part thereof, in which dwelling units or rooming units are to be let, as the owner’s legal representative for the receipt of process pursuant to this chapter.
(3) “Approved” as applied to a material, device or method of construction, shall mean approved by the code official under the provisions of this chapter, or approved by other authority designated by law to give approval in the matter in question.
(4) “Basement” means the portion of a building which is partly underground and which has one-half or more of its ceiling height above the average finished grade of the ground adjoining the building.
(5) “Bathroom” means a non-habitable room of not less than thirty square feet which affords privacy to a person within said room and which is equipped with a sink, a shower or bathtub and a flush water closet, all of which in good working condition. Such room shall comply with all standards for lighting, ventilation and electrical outlets.
(6) “Building Code” means the Building Code officially adopted by Council, or such other code as may be officially designated by Council for the regulation of construction, alteration, addition, repair, removal, demolition, use, location, occupancy and maintenance of buildings and structures.
(7) “Building Official” means the official designated by the City to enforce building, zoning or similar laws, or a duly authorized representative.
(8) “Cellar” means that portion of a building which is partly or completely below grade and having at least one-half its height below grade.
(9) “Central heating” means the heating system permanently installed and adjusted so as to provide the distribution of heat to all habitable rooms, bathrooms and water closet compartments from a source outside of these rooms.
(10) “Certificate of Zoning Compliance” means written verification from the Zoning Inspector that the use of the subject property complies with the zoning laws.
(11) “Code official” means the official who is charged with the administration and enforcement of this code, or any duly authorized representative.
(12) “Compliance” means conformance with the provisions of this Code or lawful orders promulgated therefrom.
(13) “Condemn” means the adjudge unfit for use or occupancy.
(14) “Condemnation” means the act of judicially condemning.
(15) “Dilapidated building” means a structure that is no longer adequate for the purpose or use for which it was originally intended.
(16) “Dwelling” whenever the words, “Multi-family dwelling,” “residence building,” “dwelling unit,” “rooming house,” “rooming unit,” or “premises” are used in this code, they shall be construed as though they were followed by the words, “or any part thereof.”
(17) “Dwelling unit” means a single unit providing complete, independent living facilities for one or more persons including permanent provisions for living, sleeping, eating, cooking and sanitation.
(18) “Egress” means a means to travel from the interior of a building to the exterior at ground level.
(19) “Enforcement officer” means the official designated herein or otherwise charged with the responsibilities of administering this code, or the official’s authorized representative.
(20) “Exterior property areas” means the open space on the premises and on adjoining property under the control of owners or operators of such premises.
(21) “Extermination” means the control and elimination of insects, rats or other pests by eliminating their harborage places; by removing or making inaccessible materials that may serve as their food; by poison, spraying, fumigating, trapping or by any other approved pest elimination methods.
(22) “Guest”“ means for determining occupancy standards, any person who shares a dwelling unit or rooming unit on a nonpermanent status for not more than thirty days in a single year.
(23) “Habitable room” means a room or enclosed floor space used or intended to be used for living, sleeping, cooking or eating purposes, excluding bathrooms, water closet compartments, laundries, pantries, foyers or communication corridors, closets and storage spaces.
(24) “Handrail” means a horizontal or sloping rail grasped by the hand for guidance or support or for arresting falls to the adjacent surface.
(25) “Heated water” means water heated to a temperature of not less than 110 degrees F., at the outlet, giving appropriate consideration for a reasonable amount of time to reheat the water during peak periods of use.
(26) “Heating device” means all furnaces, unit heaters, domestic incinerators, cooking and heating stoves and ranges, and other similar devices.
(27) “Infestation” means the presence within a structure of insects, rats, vermin or other pests in a manner that constitutes a potential health hazard.
(28) “Junk vehicle” See Section 303.08.
(29) “Kitchen” means any room used for the storage of foods, preparation of foods and containing the following equipment: sink and one other device for cooking, refrigerator or other device for cold storage of food, cabinets and/or shelves for storage of equipment and utensils, and counter or table for food preparation.
(30) “Let for occupancy or let” means to permit possession or occupancy of a dwelling, dwelling unit, rooming unit, building or structure by a person who shall be legal owner or not be the legal owner of record thereof, pursuant to a written or unwritten lease, agreement or license, or pursuant to a recorded or unrecorded agreement of contract for the sale of land.
(31) “Maintenance” means conformance of a building and its facilities to the code under which the building was constructed.
(32) “Occupant” means any person over one year of age (including owner or operator) living and sleeping in a dwelling unit or having actual possession of said dwelling or rooming unit.
(33) “Operable area” means the part of a window or door which is available for unobstructed ventilation and which opens directly to the outdoors.
(34) “Operator” means any person who has or who has been designated by the owner to have charge, care or control of a building or part thereof in which the dwelling units or roofing units are let. An operator may or may not also be the owner’s agent.
(35) “Owner” means any person who alone or jointly or severally with others
A. Shall have legal title to any dwelling or dwelling unit with or without accompanying actual possession thereof; or
B. Shall have charge, care or control of any dwelling or dwelling unit as owner or agent of the owner or as buyer under land contract, or as executor, executrix, administrator, administratrix, trustee or guardian of the estate of the owner. Any such person thus representing the actual owner shall be bound to comply with the provisions of this chapter and of the rules and regulations adopted pursuant thereto, to the same extent as if he were the owner.
(36) “Plumbing” means the practice, materials and fixtures used in the installation, maintenance, extension and alteration of all piping, fixtures, appliances and appurtenances in connection with any of the following: drainage systems, vent systems, water-supply venting systems within or adjacent to any building, structure or conveyance; also, the practice and materials used in installation, maintenance or alteration of the storm water, liquid waste or drainage and water-supply systems of any premises.
(37) “Plumbing fixture” means a receptacle or device which is either permanently or temporarily connected to the water distribution system of the premises and demands a supply of water therefrom; or discharges used water, liquid-borne waste materials or sewage, either directly or indirectly to the drainage system of the premises; or which requires both a water supply connection and a discharge to the drainage system of the premises.
(38) “Premises” means a lot, plot or parcel of land including the buildings or structures thereon.
(39) “Public nuisance” includes the following:
A. The physical condition or use of any premises regarded as a public nuisance at common law; or
B. Any physical condition, use or occupancy of any premises or its appurtenances considered an attractive nuisance to children, including, but not limited to, abandoned wells, shafts, basements, excavations and unsafe fences or structures; or
C. Any premises which have unsanitary sewerage or plumbing facilities; or
D. Any premises designated as unsafe for human habitation or use; or
E. Any premises which are manifestly capable of being a fire hazard, or are manifestly unsafe or unsecure as to endanger life, limb or property; or
F. Any premises from which the plumbing, heating and/or facilities required by this code have been removed, or from which utilities have been disconnected, destroyed, removed or rendered ineffective, or the required precautions against trespassers have not been provided; or
G. Any premises which are unsanitary, or which are littered with rubbish or garbage, or which have an uncontrolled growth of weeds; or
H. Any structure or building that is in a state of dilapidation, deterioration or decay; faulty construction; overcrowded; open, vacant or abandoned; damaged by fire to the extent as not to provide shelter, in danger of collapse or failure and is dangerous to anyone on or near the premises.
(40) “Rain carrier” means a drainage device, such as gutters or downspouts, used to remove drainage water from roof surfaces of any building or structure.
(41) “Ratproofing” means a form of construction which will prevent the ingress or egress of rats to or from a given space or building, or gaining access to food, water or harborage. This construction of the closing and keeping closed of every opening in foundations, basements, cellars, exterior and interior walls, ground or first floors, sidewalks, gratings, sidewalk openings and other places that may be reached and entered by rats by climbing, burrowing or other methods, by the use of materials impervious to rat gnawing and other methods approved by the Code Enforcement Office.
(42) “Refuse container” means a watertight container that is constructed of metal or other durable material impervious to rodents, which is capable of being served without creating unsanitary conditions, or such other containers as have been approved by the code official. Openings into the containers, such as covers and doors, shall be tight fitting.
(43) “Renovation” means a building and its facilities made to conform to present day minimum standards of sanitation, fire and life safety.
(44) “Rooming house” means any residence building, or any part thereof, containing one or more rooming units, in which space is let by the owner or operator to more than five persons who are not members of the same family. This includes fraternity and sorority houses.
(45) “Rooming unit” means any room or group of rooms forming a single habitable unit used or intended to be used for living and sleeping, but not for cooking or eating purposes.
(46) “Space heater” means a room heater which is a self-contained above-the- floor device for furnishing heated air through openings in its casing directly into the space in which the device is located or immediately adjacent to it. The device may be free-standing or recessed in a wall or partition.
(47) “Structure” See Section 1125.02(53).
(48) “Supplied” means installed, furnished or provided by the owner or operator.
(49) “Toilet room” means a nonhabitable room equipped with a flush water closet.
(50) “Total habitable room area” means the total space of all habitable rooms having a ceiling height of seven feet or more.
(51) “Unsafe structure” means a structure in which all or part thereof is found to be dangerous to life, health, property or the safety of the public or its occupants because it is so damaged, decayed, dilapidated, structurally unsafe or of such faulty construction or unstable condition that it is likely to partially or completely collapse.
(52) “Unsafe equipment” includes any boiler, heating equipment, elevator, moving stairway, electrical wiring or device, flammable liquid containers or other equipment on the premises or within the structure which is in such disrepair or condition that it is found to be a hazard to life, health, property or safety of the public or occupants of the premises or structure. Unsafe equipment may contribute to the finding that the structure is unsafe or unfit for human occupancy or use.
(53) “Unfit for human occupancy” means a structure that is unsafe, unlawful, or because of the degree in which it lacks maintenance or is in disrepair, is unsanitary, vermin or rat infested, contains filth and contamination, or lacks ventilation, illumination, sanitary or heating facilities or other essential equipment required by this code, or because its location constitutes a hazard to its occupants or to the public.
(54) “Unlawful structure” means a structure found in whole or in part to be occupied by more persons than permitted under this code, or was erected, altered or occupied contrary to law.
(55) “Ventilation.” The process of supplying and removing of air by natural or mechanical means to or from any space.
A. Mechanical: Ventilation by power-driven devices.
B. Natural: Ventilation by opening to outer air through windows, skylights, doors, louvers or stacks without wind-driven devices.
(56) “Violation” means any specific condition which is not in conformance with the provisions of this chapter.
(57) “Workmanlike.” Whenever the words, “workmanlike state of maintenance and repair,” are used in this code, they shall mean that such maintenance and repair shall be made in a reasonably skillful manner.
(58) “Yard” means an open unoccupied space on the same lot with a building extending along the entire length of street or rear or interior lot line.
(Ord. 49(98-99). Passed 7-12-99.)