(A) For the purpose of this chapter, the following definitions shall apply unless the context clearly indicates or requires a different meaning.
(B) Words not defined herein shall have the meanings stated in the Standard Building Code, Standard Plumbing Code, Standard Gas Code or International Fire Code. Words not defined in the codes shall have the meanings in Webster’s Ninth New Collegiate Dictionary, as revised.
(C) Words in the present tense include the future tense. Words used in the singular include the plural, and words used in the plural include the singular.
ABUTTING. Having a common border with or being separated from the common border by an easement.
ADULT USES. Any establishment or use which, as one of its principal purposes, sells, displays or exhibits materials, including books, magazines, movies, tapes, photographs, and the like, which appeal to prurient interests, contain patently offensive depictions of sexual conduct, and have no serious literary, artistic, political or scientific value.
ALTERATION. A change in the external architectural features of any historic structure or in the interior of any such structure if the interior feature is specifically included in the historic designation; a change in the landscape features of any historic site or place; or work having an adverse effect upon designated archaeological resources.
BED AND BREAKFAST INN. Any owner-occupied dwelling or portion thereof offering five or fewer guest rooms to transient lodgers in return for compensation, with or without meals. If meals are served, they shall be restricted to breakfast only. The use of a dwelling as a BED AND BREAKFAST INN shall not be considered as an accessory use nor a customary home occupation.
BOARD OF ZONING AND HOUSING APPEALS. The Board of Zoning and Housing Appeals for the city.
BUILDABLE AREA. That portion of any lot which may be used or built upon in accordance with the regulations governing the zoning district within which the lot is located when the front, side and rear yard, open space and applicable buffer area requirements have been met.
BUILDING.
(1) ACCESSORY BUILDING. A subordinate structure on the same lot as the principal or main building or incidental to the principal use. Included in this definition are private garages, storage sheds, workshops, animal shelters, pool houses, and the like, when detached from the principal building and carports attached to the principal building when at least 75% open or unenclosed.
(2) PRINCIPAL BUILDING. A building in which is conducted or in which is intended to be conducted, the main or principal use of the lot on which it is located.
BUILDING ALTERATION. Any act or process that changes one or more of the exterior architectural features of a structure, including but not limited to the erection, construction, reconstruction or removal of any structure.
CANOPY TREE. A deciduous tree that forms the top layer of vegetation in a forest. Examples of such trees include oaks, hickories, maples, poplars and others.
CERTIFICATE OF APPROPRIATENESS. Document issued by the Board of Architectural Review, following a prescribed review procedure, certifying that the proposed actions by an applicant are found to be acceptable in terms of design criteria relating to the individual property or the historic district.
CONDOMINIUM. A unit in a multi-unit structure owned by an individual who has use of all common areas associated with that structure.
COUNCIL or CITY COUNCIL. The legally elected governing body of the city.
DAY-CARE SERVICES.
(1) CHILD DAY-CARE SERVICE. Any home, center, agency or place, however styled, where children not related to the operator are received for custodial care, apart from their parents, whether for compensation, reward or otherwise during part or all of the day or night and upon any number of successive days or nights.
(2) FAMILY DAY-CARE HOME. A home in which care is given by a family member and no others during the day only for one and not more than 12 children, including the day-care parents’ own children.
DENSITY. The number of dwelling units per acre of land developed or used for residential purposes. Unless otherwise clearly stated, DENSITY requirements in this chapter are expressed in dwelling units per net acre; that is, per acre of land devoted to residential use and common open space exclusive of land utilized for streets, alleys, parks, playgrounds or other public uses.
DWELLING. A building or portion of a building arranged or designed exclusively for human habitation.
(1) APARTMENT DWELLING. See MULTI-UNIT DWELLING.
(2) ATTACHED DWELLING. A dwelling unit attached to one or more other units by common vertical walls.
(3) DETACHED DWELLING. A single dwelling unit, other than a mobile home, surrounded by open space or yards and which is not attached to any other dwelling by any means.
(4) DUPLEX DWELLING. A building containing two dwelling units connected by a common wall.
(5) GROUP OCCUPIED DWELLING. A dwelling unit occupied by four or more individuals unrelated by blood, marriage, adoption or guardianship living as a single housekeeping unit. The term also applies to mentally or physically handicapped persons for which care is provided on a 24-hour basis, in accord with S.C. Code § 6-7-830.
(6) MOBILE HOME DWELLING. A transportable structure of one or more sections built on a permanent metal chassis and designed to be towed. The term MOBILE HOME, as used in this chapter, shall not include prefabricated, modular or unitized dwellings placed on permanent foundations, nor shall it include travel trailers, motor homes, campers or similar units designed for recreation or other short term uses.
(7) MULTI-UNIT DWELLING. A building containing five or more dwelling units.
(8) PATIO HOUSE DWELLING. A single-family detached or semi-detached dwelling unit. It is built on a small lot generally enclosed by walls which provide privacy. The term is synonymous with zero lot lines dwellings.
(9) QUADRUPLEX DWELLING. A building containing four dwelling units.
(10) SINGLE-FAMILY OCCUPIED DWELLING. A dwelling unit occupied by one family.
(11) TOWNHOUSE DWELLING. A series of attached dwelling units on separate lots which may or may not have a common floor and are separated from each other by common vertical walls.
(12) TRIPLEX DWELLING. A single unit providing complete, independent living facilities for one or more persons including permanent provisions for living, sleeping, eating, cooking and sanitation.
(13) ZERO LOT LINE DWELLING. A single-family detached unit which instead of being centered on a lot, is placed against at least one of the side lot lines. The term is synonymous with patio house.
FAMILY. One or more persons related by blood, marriage, adoption or guardianship, and not more than three persons not so related.
FLOOR AREA RATIO. An intensity measure of land use derived at by dividing the total floor area of a building by the total site area.
FRONTAGE LINE. All lot lines that abut a public right-of-way. A corner lot or a through lot has two frontage lines.
HISTORIC DISTRICT. An area, designated by the City Council, upon the recommendation of the Board of Architectural Review and pursuant to the provisions of this chapter.
HISTORIC PROPERTY. Any place (including an archaeological site or the location of a significant historical event), building, structure, work of art, fixture or similar object that has been individually designated by City Council or designated as a contributing property within a historic district.
HOME OCCUPATION. Any occupation within a dwelling, including a family day-care home, and clearly incidental thereto, carried on by a member or members of the family residing on the premises and no others, provided that:
(1) No exterior indication of the use or change in the character or exterior appearance is evident other than a sign permitted by these regulations;
(2) The maximum floor area used for operations shall not exceed 600 square feet or 25% of the gross floor area;
(3) No mechanical equipment is installed or used except such as is normally used for domestic purposes;
(4) No display of products shall be visible from the street and only articles made on the premises may be sold; and
(5) Creates no disturbing or offensive noise, vibration, smoke, dust, odor, heat, glare, traffic hazard, unhealthy or unsightly condition.
IMPERVIOUS SURFACE RATIO. A measure of the intensity of land use. It is determined by dividing the total area of all impervious surfaces within the site by the total site area.
IMPERVIOUS SURFACE. Surfaces that do not absorb water. All buildings, paved parking areas, driveways, roads, sidewalks and any areas in concrete or asphalt shall be considered impervious surfaces within this definition. In addition, other areas determined by the Building Official to be impervious within the meaning of this definition also will be classified as IMPERVIOUS SURFACES.
LOT. A parcel of land considered as a unit. The terms LOT, “lot of record,” “property,” “plot,” “parcel” or “tract,” whenever used in this chapter, are interchangeable.
(1) CORNER LOT. A lot located at the intersection of two or more streets.
(2) DOUBLE FRONTAGE LOT. A lot which has frontage on two parallel streets, or upon two streets which do not intersect at the boundaries of the lot.
(3) INTERIOR LOT. A lot, other than a corner lot, which has frontage on only one street other than an alley.
LOT AREA. The area contained within the boundary line of a lot.
LOT DEPTH. The horizontal distance between front and rear lot lines.
LOT LINE. A line bounding a lot which divides one lot from another or from a street or any other public or private space.
LOT WIDTH. The distance between side lot lines measured at the front of the building line.
MAP or ZONING MAP. The official zoning map of the city.
MAY. The act is permissive.
MINI-WAREHOUSE. A building or group of buildings in a controlled-access and fenced compound that contains individual, compartmentalized and controlled-access stalls or lockers for the dead storage of customer’s goods or wares.
MOBILE HOME. See DWELLING, MOBILE HOME DWELLING.
MOBILE HOME PARK. A lot or parcel with space, improvements and utilities for the long-term parking or two or more mobile homes which may include services and facilities for the residents.
MOBILE HOME SPACE. A plot or ground within a mobile home park designed for the accommodation of one mobile home.
MODULAR UNIT or MODULAR STRUCTURE. A building, including the necessary electrical, plumbing, heating, ventilating and other service systems, manufactured off-site and transported to the point of use for installation or erection, with or without other specified components, as a finished building and not designed for ready removal to another site. This term is not to be limited to residential dwellings. When meeting the requirements of the Modular Building’s Construction Act, S.C. Code § 23-43-10, the building or structure may be located in any of the city’s several zoning districts.
NONCONFORMITY. Any lot of record, use, building, structure or vegetation in existence prior to the effective date of this chapter, but which fails, by reason of the adoption, revision or amendment to conform to the present requirements of the chapter.
OPEN SPACE RATIO. A measure of the intensity of land use. It is arrived at by dividing the total amount of open space within the site by the total site area.
PERSON. Includes a firm, association, organization, partnership, trust company or corporation, as well as an individual.
PLANNING COMMISSION. The City Planning Commission.
PRINCIPAL USE. The primary purpose for which land is used.
PRIVATE GARAGE. As defined by the Standard Building Code.
PUBLIC GARAGE. As defined by the Standard Building Code.
PUBLIC SPACE WITHIN A BUILDING. Spaces designed for use by the public, such as auditoriums, court rooms, lobbies, entrance halls, etc. These spaces are usually gathering places as opposed to corridors for public use.
RECREATIONAL VEHICLE. A vehicular type portable structure without permanent foundation, which can be towed, hauled or driven and primarily designed as temporary living accommodation for recreational, camping and travel use and including, but not limited to travel trailers, truck campers, camping trailers and self-propelled motor homes.
SHALL. The act is always mandatory.
SIGN. Any object, device display or structure, or part thereof, situated outdoors or indoors, which is used to advertise, identify, display, direct or attract attention to an object, person, institution, organization, business, product, service, event or location by any means, including words, letters, figures, design, symbols, fixtures, colors, illumination or projected images.
(1) ABANDONED SIGN. A sign structure not containing a sign for 120 continuous days or a sign not in use for 120 continuous days, or a sign advertising a business no longer occupying the site on which the sign exists or to which it refers.
(2) ANIMATED SIGN. Any sign that uses movement or change of lighting to depict action or creates a special effect or scene.
(3) AWNING, CANOPY OR MARQUEE SIGN. A sign that is mounted or painted on or attached to an awning, canopy or marquee.
(4) BANNER SIGN. Any sign of lightweight fabric or similar material that is permanently mounted to a pole or a building by a permanent frame at one or more edges. National flags, state or municipal flags or the official flag of any institution or business shall not be considered BANNER SIGNS.
(5) BUILDING SIGN. Any sign attached to any part of a building.
(6) CHANGEABLE COPY SIGN. A sign or portion thereof with characters, letters or illustrations that can be changed or rearranged without altering the face or the surface of the sign. A sign on which the message changes more than eight times per day shall be considered an ANIMATED SIGN and not a CHANGEABLE COPY SIGN for purposes of this chapter. A sign on which the only copy that changes is an electronic or mechanical indication of time or temperature shall be considered a “time and temperature” portion of a sign and not a CHANGEABLE COPY SIGN for purposes of this chapter.
(7) FLAT SIGN. A single-faced sign attached flush to a building or projecting no more than 12 inches.
(8) FREE-STANDING SIGN. Any non-movable sign not affixed to a building.
(9) INCIDENTAL SIGN. A sign, generally informational, that has a purpose secondary to the use of the zone lot on which it is located, such as “no parking,” “entrance,” “loading only,” “telephone” and other similar directives. No sign with a commercial message legible from a position off the zone lot on which the sign is located shall be considered an INCIDENTAL SIGN.
(10) PERMANENT SIGN. A sign attached to a building, structure or the ground in some manner and made of materials intended for more than short term use.
(11) POLITICAL SIGN. A temporary sign announcing or supporting political candidates of issues in connection with any national, state or local election.
(12) PORTABLE SIGN. A sign that is not permanently affixed to a building, structure or the ground.
(13) PROJECTING SIGN. A sign that is wholly or partly dependent upon a building for support and which projects more than 12 inches from the building.
(14) ROOF SIGN. A sign that is mounted on the roof of a building or which is wholly dependent upon a building for support and which projects above the point of a building with a flat roof, the eave line of a building with a gambrel, gable or hip roof or the deck line of a building with a mansard roof.
(15) TEMPORARY SIGN. A sign that is used only for a short period of time and is not permanently mounted.
(16) WALL SIGN. A sign painted on the wall of a building and has no sign structure.
(17) WINDOW SIGN. A sign that is applied or attached to the exterior or interior of a window or located in a manner within a building that it can be seen from the exterior of the structure through a window.
SIGN FACE. The area or display surface used for the message.
SUBSTANTIAL HARDSHIP. Hardship, caused by unusual and compelling circumstances, based on one or more of the following:
(1) The property cannot reasonably be maintained in the manner dictated by the chapter;
(2) There are no other reasonable means of saving the property from deterioration or collapse; or
(3) The property is owned by a nonprofit organization and it is not feasible financially or physically to achieve the charitable purposes of the organization while maintaining the property appropriately.
UNDERSTORY TREE. A small deciduous tree that forms the layer of vegetation under the canopy trees in a forest. Examples of such trees include dogwoods, sourwoods, fruit trees and others.
USE. The purpose or activity for which land or any building thereon is designed, arranged or intended, or for which it is occupied or maintained.
USED or OCCUPIED. The land or building is in actual use or occupancy and shall be construed to include the words “intended,” “arranged” or “designed to be used or occupied.” An intended project shall be defined as one where substantial monies have been spent towards the goal of the project.
VARIANCE. A modification of the area regulations of this chapter, granted by the Board of Zoning and Housing Appeals, where the modification will not be contrary to the public interest, and where owing to conditions peculiar to the property, a literal enforcement of the chapter would result in unnecessary and undue hardship, and where the modification will not authorize a principal or accessory use of the property which is not permitted within the zoning district in which the property is located.
YARD. An open space that lies between the principal or accessory building or buildings and the nearest lot line. The YARD is unoccupied and unobstructed from the ground upward except as may be specifically provided by this chapter.
(1) FRONT YARD. A yard extending the full width of the front of a lot between the front (street) right-of-way line or property line and the front building line.
(2) REAR YARD. A yard extending the full width of the lot in the area between the rear lot line and the rear building line.
(3) REQUIRED YARD. That part of a yard between a lot line and the minimum required building setback line, within which no structure shall be located except as provided by this chapter.
(4) SIDE YARD. A yard extending the full length of the lot in the area between the side lot line and a side building line.
ZONING DISTRICT. A specifically delineated area or district in the city within which regulations and requirements govern the use, placement, spacing and size of land and buildings.
(Ord. 94-06-01, passed 6-14-94; Am. Ord. 00-08-01, passed 8-15-00; Am. Ord. 02-04-06, passed 4-16-02; Am. Ord. 05-02-03, passed 2-15-05; Am. Ord. passed 11-20-12)