(A) General. Certain words used in this chapter are defined below. Words used in the present tense shall include the future. The singular shall include the plural, and the plural the singular. The word “shall” is mandatory and is not permissive. Any term not defined below which is included in the definitions in the current Zoning Ordinance shall have the meaning set forth in the Zoning Ordinance. Words not defined below or in the Zoning Ordinance shall be construed to have their customary meanings.
(B) Access Control Handbook. Access Control for Local Roads and Streets in Small Cities and Rural Areas (H-86-5), published by Purdue University’s Highway Extension and Research Project for State Counties and Cities, or subsequent manual adopted by the Board of County Commissioners.
ACCESS EASEMENT. A private way which provides access to lots, tracts, or parcels of land and which meets the minimum standards set forth in this chapter. All ACCESS EASEMENT(S) must be described in any deed or contract and must be shown on any plat related to such easement.
ADMINISTRATOR. The officer appointed by and/or delegated the responsibility for the administration of these regulations by the Plan Commission. This term shall be construed to include those planning staff members working under the direction of the Administrator in the exercise of his or her responsibilities in regard to the enforcement of this chapter.
AGRICULTURAL PURPOSE. Land which is not used for construction of a new residence and:
(a) Contains at least 75% Class I or Class II soils, as shown in and defined by the soil survey of the county;
(b) Contains at least 75% of the land which is planted with fruit or nut-bearing trees, vines, bushes, or crops which have a non-bearing period of less than five years;
(c) Contains at least 75% of the land which is planted with ornamental plants or trees for sale for use in landscaping;
(d) Has at least 75% of its area planted with trees of the species Pinus, Picea, or Abies (pine, spruce, or fir) grown for the purpose of sale as Christmas trees; or
(e) Has been used in three of the last five years for the cultivation and harvesting of crops, grazing by livestock, production of dairy products, the raising of poultry and production of eggs, or the raising of livestock. Land which has been taken out of production through government-sponsored conservation, reserve, or similar programs shall be considered under cultivation for the purposes of this chapter.
CONSTRUCTION PLANS. Any maps or drawings accompanying a subdivision plat and showing the specific location and design of improvements to be installed for the subdivision in accordance with the requirements of this chapter as a condition of the approval of the plat.
COUNTY AUDITOR. The Cass County Auditor.
COUNTY DRAINAGE BOARD. The Cass County Drainage Board.
COUNTY ENGINEER. The Cass County Highway Engineer, or in the absence of an engineer, the person designated by the Board of County Commissioners to perform the duties specified in this chapter.
COUNTY HEALTH DEPARTMENT. The Cass County Health Department.
COUNTY RECORDER. The Cass County Recorder.
CUL-DE-SAC. A dead-end street (as defined) which has an appropriate terminal for the safe and convenient reversal of traffic movement including public safety vehicles.
CUT. An excavation. The difference between a point on the original ground and a designated point of lower elevation on the final grade. Also, the material removed in excavation.
DEAD-END STREET. A street or a portion of a street with only one vehicular traffic outlet.
DEDICATION. The setting apart of land, or interest in land, for use by the public by advance resolution or entry in the official minutes as by the recording of a plat.
DEPARTMENT RULES. The rules of procedure adopted by the Plan Commission.
DNR. The Department of Natural Resources of the state. This includes any division within the Department.
DRAINAGE SWALE. A natural or constructed waterway, usually broad and shallow, covered with erosion-resistant grasses, used to conduct surface water from a field, diversion, or other site feature.
DRAINAGE SYSTEM. Any combination of surface and/or subsurface drainage components fulfilling the drainage requirements of this chapter.
EASEMENT. A grant by a property owner for the use by another of any designated part of his or her property for a clearly specified purpose. All EASEMENTS must be shown on the plat and mentioned in each deed or contract.
EROSION. The removal of surface materials by the action of natural elements.
EROSION CONTROL HANDBOOK. Urban Development Planning Guide, 1985, published by the Hoosier Heartland Research Conservation and Development Council, Inc., or subsequent handbook adopted by the Board of County Commissioners.
EXCAVATION. Any act by which earth, sand, gavel, rock, or other similar material is dug into, cut, quarried, uncovered, removed, displaced, relocated, or bulldozed, and shall include the conditions resulting therefrom.
EXEMPT DIVISION. See definition of SUBDIVISION, EXEMPT.
GRADING. Any stripping, cutting, filling, stockpiling, or any combination thereof, and shall include the land in its cut or filled condition.
INDIVIDUAL SEWAGE DISPOSAL SYSTEM. A sewage disposal system for a single parcel or structure, usually, but not necessarily, a septic tank and filter field approved by the Health Department.
INTERESTED PARTIES. Parties who are to be notified by mail of a public hearing on a proposed subdivision of land. For purposes of this chapter, INTERESTED PARTIES shall be those parties so defined in the Department Rules as per I.C. 36-7-4-706
.
LEGAL ACCESS. A platted access easement or the minimum required frontage on a street.
LEGAL DESCRIPTION. A written portrayal that locates a parcel or parcels of land and defines the boundary of the land using distances (in feet and hundredths of feet) and bearings (using degrees, minutes, and seconds) that must have closure of at least one part in 5,000.
LEGAL DRAIN. Any drainage system consisting of an open drain, a tiled drain, or any combination of the two, that is under the jurisdiction of the County Drainage Board, as provided by I.C. 36-9-27
.
LIMITED ACCESS HIGHWAY. A road, providing a trafficway for through traffic, in respect to which owners or occupants of abutting property or lands which other persons have no legal right to access to or from the same, except at such points and in such manner as may be determined by the public authority having jurisdiction over such trafficway.
LOCATION MAP. A map showing the location of the property proposed to be subdivided. The map shall show the closest cross-streets in all directions.
LOT. A portion of a subdivision or any parcel, site, tract, or interest of land intended as a unit for the purpose, whether immediate or future, of offer, sale, lease, transfer of ownership, or of building development.
LOT, PIPESTEM. Also known as a FLAG LOT; one lot deriving access from a single access easement or a single private drive, and not having frontage on a public street.
MAP. A representation of a part or the whole, or the earth’s surface, in signs and symbols, on a plane surface, at an established scale, with a method of orientation indicated.
MARKER or MONUMENT. A pipe, rod, nail, or any other object which is intended to be a permanent survey point for record purposes.
NON-RESIDENTIAL SUBDIVISION. Any subdivision of land involving land which is zoned, or intended to be used, for commercial or industrial purposes as defined in the Zoning Ordinance.
OFF-SITE. Any premises not located within the area of the property to be subdivided, whether or not such premises are in the same ownership as the property to be subdivided.
OVERSIZED IMPROVEMENTS. Improvements required by the Plan Commission which are in excess of those needed for the subdivision under review. These include, but are not limited to: increased pavement width; oversized culverts or drainage swales; sewer and water lines; and oversized retention ponds. When such improvements are required, the county or utility shall pay the difference between the cost of improvements necessary for the subdivision and the cost of the actual required improvement.
OWNER. Any person, firm, corporation, or other legal entity listed in the records of the County Auditor having title to land sought to be subdivided under these regulations. For purposes of this chapter, any land which is involved in a contract purchase may be subdivided only if both the contract seller and the contract purchaser sign the application for the subdivision.
PARCEL. A part or portion of land having a legal description formally set forth in a conveyance together with the boundaries thereof, in order to make possible its easy identification.
PARENT TRACT. The parcel of land from which a new lot or tract of land is being taken from, as recorded in the County Recorder’s office at the time of adoption of this chapter, or appropriate previous ordinance or amendment.
PERIMETER STREET. Any existing street to which the parcel of land to be subdivided abuts on only one side.
PERSON. Includes a corporation, firm, partnership, association, organization, or any other group that acts as a unit or legal entity.
PLAT. The map, drawing, or plan described in this chapter of a subdivision and any accompanying material submitted to the Plan Commission or Plat Committee for approval, and which, if signed by the designated official(s), may be submitted to the County Recorder for recording.
PLAT, PRIMARY. The preliminary drawing or drawings, described in these regulations, indicating the proposed manner or layout of the subdivision to be submitted to the Plan Commission or Plat Committee for primary approval.
PLAT, SECONDARY. A plat submitted to the Administrator for secondary approval, and which, if signed by the Administrator and affixed with the Plan Commission seal, may be submitted to the County Recorder for recording.
PLAT COMMITTEE. The permanent committee of the Plan Commission which reviews and approves subdivisions according to the Plan Commission’s rules of procedure.
POSITIONAL TOLERANCE. The maximum distance that any point/monument of the survey may be mislocated with respect to any other point/monument as opposed to its theoretical location, by state-of-the-art equipment, given the location of any one point/monument and the determination of the meridian used for the survey. It represents the radius in feet from the theoretically correct point.
PRIMARY APPROVAL. An approval (or approval with conditions) granted to a subdivision by the Plat Committee or Plan Commission indicating that it has determined after a public hearing that the subdivision complies with the standards prescribed in this chapter.
PRIVATE DRIVE. Driveways, paved or unpaved, which are wholly within private property, not maintained by the public, providing vehicular access to no more than four lots or parcels.
PUBLIC IMPROVEMENT. Any drainage ditch, street, highway, parkway, sidewalk, pedestrian-way, tree, lawn, off-street parking area, lot improvement or other facility for which the local government may ultimately assume the responsibility for maintenance and operation, or which may affect an improvement for which local government responsibility is established. All such improvements shall be properly bonded.
PUBLIC WAY. Any highway, street, avenue, boulevard, road, land, or alley as defined in I.C. 36-7-1-17
.
REGISTERED LAND SURVEYOR. A land surveyor properly licensed and registered or through reciprocity permitted to practice in the state.
REGISTERED PROFESSIONAL ENGINEER. An engineer properly licensed and registered in the state, or permitted to practice in the state through reciprocity.
RESTRICTIVE COVENANTS. Limitations of various kinds on the usage of lots within a subdivision which are placed by the subdivider, and, in the case of public health, safety, and welfare required by the Plan Commission, that are recorded with the plat and run with the land.
RESUBDIVISION or REPLAT. A change in a map of a plat having secondary approval or a recorded subdivision plat. Any RESUBDIVISION that does not meet the minor subdivision definition must be approved by the Plan Commission according to major subdivision procedure.
RIGHT-OF-WAY. A strip of land, other than an easement, occupied, or intended to be occupied, by a street, pedestrian way, crosswalk, railroad, electric transmission line, oil or gas pipeline, water main, sanitary or storm sewer main, special landscaping, drainage swale, or for another special use. The boundaries of the RIGHTS-OF-WAY are considered to be the lot lines of adjoining property from which setback distances are measured and must be shown on the plat.
RUNOFF. The surface water discharge or rate of discharge of a given watershed after a fall of rain or snow that does not enter the soil, but runs off the surface of the land.
RUNOFF FROM DEVELOPED AND UNDEVELOPED AREAS UPSTREAM. The surface water runoff that can be reasonably anticipated upon maximum development of that area of the watershed located upstream from the subject tract, as permitted by the Zoning Ordinance.
SALE (SELL) or LEASE. Any immediate or future transfer of ownership, or any possessory interest in land, including contract of sale, lease, devise, intestate succession, or transfer, of an interest in a subdivision, or part thereof, whether by metes and bounds, deed, land contract, plat, map, lease, devise, intestate succession, or other written instrument.
SAME OWNERSHIP. Ownership by the same person, corporation, firm, entity, partnership, or unincorporated association; or ownership by different corporations, firms, partnerships, entities, or unincorporated associations, in which a stockholder, partner, or associate, or a member of his or her family owns an interest in each corporation, firm, partnership, entity, or unincorporated association.
SECONDARY APPROVAL. An approval by the Administrator indicating that all conditions of primary approval have been met.
SECTION CORNER. A corner established as part of the United States Public Land Survey System used for horizontal control in describing land.
SEDIMENTATION. The process by which mineral or organic matter is accumulated or deposited by moving wind, water, or gravity.
SEWAGE DISPOSAL REGULATIONS. ISBH Rule 410 I.A.C. 6-8 or subsequent regulations.
SKETCH PLAN. An informal, informational drawing, as described in this chapter, preparatory to the drawing of the primary plat to enable the subdivider to save time and expense in reaching general agreement with the Administrator as to the form of the plat and conformance to the objectives of this chapter.
SLOPE. The face of an embankment or cut section; any ground whose surface makes an angle with the plane of the horizon. Slopes are usually expressed in a percentage based upon vertical difference in feet per 100 feet of horizontal distance.
SOIL STABILIZATION. Chemical or structural treatment of a mass of soil to increase or maintain its stability or otherwise improve its engineering properties.
STREET. A right-of-way dedicated or otherwise legally established which affords the principal means of access to abutting property. A STREET may be designated as a highway, thoroughfare, parkway, boulevard, road, avenue, lane, drive, or other appropriate name. A STREET shall be public.
STREETS, CLASSIFICATION. All roads must be classified according to their function for the purpose of providing for their development, future improvement, reconstruction, realignment, and necessary widening, including provision for curbs, gutters, and sidewalks. The classification of each street is based upon its location in the respective zoning district and its present and estimated future traffic volume and relative importance and function, as specified in the Comprehensive Plan and/or its Thoroughfare Plan component. Roads not elsewhere classified shall be classified by the Plan Commission. The CLASSIFICATIONS are as follows.
(a) LOCAL ROAD. Roads intended to move traffic from local subdivision roads to collectors. A LOCAL ROAD serves the needs of a smaller geographical area such as a township or neighborhood. Most existing county roads and city streets are LOCAL ROADS.
(b) MAJOR AND MINOR COLLECTORS. Roads intended to collect and distribute traffic in a manner similar to arterials, except that these roads service minor traffic-generating areas, such as smaller established towns, airports, educational facilities, hospitals, and recreational areas, and/or are designed to carry traffic from local and subdivision roads to arterials.
(c) PLACE. A short residential street, cul-de-sac, or court with a maximum of ten residential units.
(d) PRINCIPAL AND MINOR ARTERIALS. Roads intended to move through traffic to and from such major attractors as larger communities, major shopping areas, military installations, major industrial areas, and similar traffic generators.
(e) SUBDIVISION ROAD. Roads intended to provide primary access from within a subdivision and other individual properties to other higher-classified roads.
SUBDIVIDER. Any person who, having a proprietary interest in land, causes it, directly or indirectly, to be divided into a subdivision; or who, directly or indirectly sells, leases, or develops, or offers to sell, lease, or develop, or advertises for sale, lease, or development, any interest, lot, parcel, site, unit, or plat in a subdivision; or who engages directly, or through an agent, in the business of selling, leasing, developing, or offering for sale, lease, or development a subdivision of any interest, lot, parcel, site, unit, or plat in a subdivision; and who is directly, or indirectly, controlled by, or under direct, or indirect, common control, with any of the foregoing.
SUBDIVISION. The division, or partial division, of a parent tract (as defined) or any parcel of land into one or more lots, parcels, sites, units, plats or interests for the purpose of offer, sale, lease, transfer of ownership or development. It also includes resubdivision and the grant of an easement which is needed to provide legal access to any property under the terms of this chapter. Divisions of parent tracts which meet the definition of an exempt division shall not be counted in determining if a division qualifies as a SUBDIVISION. However, the exemption allowing land being divided which results in no more than one lot, parcel, or the like may be applied only once to a parent tract. (See SUBDIVISION, EXEMPT definition, division (g).) No division shall create a non-conforming lot from the original parcel.
MAJOR SUBDIVISION. Any subdivision of land which includes the following:
(a) Any land being divided which involves the construction, extension, or substantial realignment of any street, other than one pipestem lot;
(b) Any land being divided that under the terms set forth in this chapter involves the substantial improvement or realignment of an existing street or road or the provisions of any public facility or utility;
(c) Any land being divided into more than five lots, or the combined and cumulative total of more than five lots from an original parent tract;
(d) Any resubdivision or changes on a recorded secondary plat approved pursuant to this chapter which is not a minor subdivision (as defined);
(e) Any subdivision which requires a modification to the terms of this chapter; and
(f) Any subdivision which has common open space or land to be maintained by a property owners association.
MINOR SUBDIVISION. Any subdivision of land which includes the following:
(a) Any land being divided into five or fewer lots, or the combined and cumulative total of five or fewer lots from an original parent tract which does not involve the construction, extension, or substantial realignment of any street; and
(b) Any resubdivision of a recorded secondary plat approved pursuant to this chapter which involves only the changing of the notations written on the plat or correction of errors thereon, which involves only the removal, location, or relocation of easements on the property, or which involves only the removal of interior lot or parcel lines provided the outside perimeter of the property remains unchanged and that fewer parcels result than were contained in the original plat.
SUBDIVISION BENCHMARK. A permanent monument of known elevation, tied to the U.S.G.S. Benchmark System, installed at ground level.
SUBSURFACE DRAINAGE. A system of pipes, tile, conduit, or tubing installed beneath the ground surface used to collect ground water from individual parcels, lots, or building footings.
SUBDIVISION, EXEMPT. Any subdivision of land which includes the following:
(a) Any land that is being divided for agricultural purposes (as defined) and not for the purpose, whether immediate or future, of use, building development, or other improvement for residential, commercial, industrial, recreational, or other non-residential purpose; or any land being divided as a farm (as defined by the Zoning Ordinance) that is at least 20 acres in size. These divisions are considered non-buildable, except agricultural structures, and do not have to comply with lot area or lot width of the Zoning Ordinance;
(b) 1. Any land being divided for sale or exchange between adjoining land-owners or for the combining with an existing adjacent parcel, such divisions are considered non-buildable and do not have to comply with lot area or lot width of the Zoning Ordinance;
2. Unless they are combined with an existing parcel and meet all standards of the Zoning Ordinance, in such instance the exempt parcel may not be sold off separately from the adjoining land-owner or existing adjacent parcel;
(c) Any land being divided which had an existing residence or business structure located on the parcel on the effective date of this section, May 6, 1988, and which meets Zoning Ordinance’s standards and regulations;
(d) Any land being divided pursuant to court decree, such divisions are considered non-buildable and do not have to comply with lot coverage, lot area, lot width, or setbacks of the Zoning Ordinance;
(e) Any land being divided or acquired by a public agency or utility for a street or utility right-of-way or easement or any essential service, other than those required for a subdivision as defined in this chapter. These divisions are considered non-buildable and do not have to comply with lot area or lot width standards of the Zoning Ordinance. Divisions for public use may create an adjoining parcel to become a legal nonconforming parcel, such parcels do not have to comply with lot coverage, lot area, lot width, lot area per family, or setbacks of the Zoning Ordinance;
(f) Any land being divided into cemetery plots. These splits will be considered non-buildable and do not have to comply with lot area or lot width of the Zoning Ordinance;
(g) Any land being divided from the parent tract, as of May 5, 2003, which results in no more than one lot, parcel, site, unit, plat, or interest for the purpose of offer, sale, lease, transfer of ownership, or development. These divisions must comply with all standards of the Zoning Ordinance or be recorded as non-buildable lot;
(h) Any land being divided for the paramount purpose of establishing a site for a radio or television tower, telecommunications antenna, cell towers, wind towers, or facility; provided such use has zoning approval. These lots are considered buildable lots and must comply with all standards of the Zoning Ordinance except for lot area and lot width; or
(i) Any other land being divided that is not a major or minor subdivision (as defined), which may or may not comply with the standards of the Zoning Ordinance will be a non-buildable and be recorded as such.
SURFACE DRAINAGE. A system by which the stormwater run-off is conducted to an outlet. This would include the proper grading of parking lots, streets, driveways, yards, and the like so that stormwater runoff is removed without ponding and flows to a drainage swale, open ditch, or a storm sewer.
SWALE. A low lying stretch of land which gathers or carries surface water runoff.
TECHNICAL REVIEW COMMITTEE. Governmental and other public agencies and utilities which are specified by Department Rules to review and comment on a proposed subdivision.
TEMPORARY IMPROVEMENT. Improvements built and maintained by a subdivider during construction of the subdivision and intended to be replaced by a permanent improvement prior to release of the performance bond or turnaround improvements at the ends of stub streets intended to be replaced when the adjoining area is developed and the through street connection made.
THOROUGHFARE PLAN. The part of the Comprehensive Plan as permitted by I.C. 36-7-4-506
now or hereafter adopted, which sets forth the location, alignment, dimensions, identification, and classification of any new, extended, widened, or narrowed public ways in any part of the jurisdiction.
TOP SOIL. Surface soils and subsurface soils which presumably are fertile soils and soil materials, ordinarily rich in organic matter of humus debris. TOP SOIL is usually found in the uppermost soil layer called the “A Horizon.”
WAIVERS. The Plan Commission may give waives to subdivisions and/or splits that cannot meet certain development standards. (See § 153.118.)
WATERCOURSE. A permanent stream, intermittent stream, river, brook, creek, channel, or ditch for water, whether natural or human-made.
WITNESS MONUMENT. A marker or monument that is set as a reference to the actual corner when it is not possible or practical to set the actual corner.
(Prior Code, § 152.016) (Ord. 87, passed 4-18-1988; Ord. 2015-04, passed 4-20-2015)