For the purpose of this title, words used in the present tense shall include the future; words in the singular shall include the plural, and the plural the singular; and the word "shall" is mandatory and not discretionary. For the purpose of this title, certain words and terms are hereby defined as follows:
ALLEY: A public right of way which affords a secondary means of access to abutting property.
BLOCK: An area of land within a subdivision that is entirely bounded by streets, or by streets and the exterior boundary or boundaries of the subdivision, or a combination of the above with a river or lake.
CITY: The city of Mendota Heights.
CITY COUNCIL: The governing body of the city of Mendota Heights.
COMPREHENSIVE PLAN: Refers to the group of maps, charts and text that make up the comprehensive long range plan of the city.
DESIGN STANDARDS: The specifications to land owners or subdividers for the preparation of plats, both preliminary and final, indicating, among other things, the optimum, minimum or maximum dimensions of such items as rights of way, blocks, easements and lots.
EASEMENT: A grant by a property owner for the use of a strip of land for the purpose of constructing and maintaining drives and utilities, including, but not limited to, sanitary sewers, water mains, electric lines, telephone lines, storm sewer or storm drainageways and gas lines.
FINAL PLAT: A drawing or map of a subdivision, meeting all of the requirements of the city, and in such form as required by Dakota County for the purposes of recording.
LOT: A portion of a subdivision or other parcel of land intended for building development or for transfer of ownership.
OWNER: Includes the plural as well as the singular and, where appropriate, shall include a natural person, partnership, firm, association, public or quasi-public corporation, private corporation, or a combination of any of them.
PARKS AND PLAYGROUNDS: Public land and open spaces in the city of Mendota Heights dedicated or reserved for recreation purposes.
PEDESTRIANWAY: A public or private right of way across a block or within a block to provide access for pedestrians and which may be used for the installation of utility lines.
PERCENTAGE OF GRADE: On street centerline, means the distance vertically (up or down) from the horizontal in feet and tenths of a foot for each one hundred feet (100') of horizontal distance.
PLANNING COMMISSION: The planning commission of the city of Mendota Heights.
PRELIMINARY PLAT: A tentative drawing or map of a proposed subdivision meeting requirements herein enumerated.
PROTECTIVE COVENANTS: Contracts made between private parties as to the manner in which land may be used, with the view to protecting and preserving the physical and economic integrity of any given area.
STREET: A public right of way affording primary access by pedestrians and vehicles to abutting properties, whether designated as a street, highway, thoroughfare, parkway, road, avenue, or boulevard, in accordance with the metropolitan council functional classification of transportation facilities.
Collector Streets: Those that carry traffic from minor streets to the major system of thoroughfares and highways, including the principal entrance streets of residential districts, as shown on the comprehensive plan.
Cul-De-Sac: A minor street with only one outlet and having an appropriate terminal for the safe and convenient reversal of traffic movement.
Marginal Access Streets: Minor streets which are parallel and adjacent to thoroughfares and highways and which provide access to abutting properties and protection from through traffic.
Minor Streets: Those which are used primarily for access to abutting properties.
Thoroughfares; Arterial Streets: Those used primarily for heavy traffic, and serving as arterial trafficways between the various districts of the community, as shown on the comprehensive plan.
STREET WIDTH: The shortest distance between lines of lots delineating the street's right of way.
SUBDIVIDER: Any individual, firm, association, syndicate, copartnership, corporation, trust or other legal entity having sufficient proprietary interest in the land sought to be subdivided to commence and maintain proceedings to subdivide the same under this title.
SUBDIVISION: A described tract of land which is to be or has been divided into two (2) or more lots or parcels for the purpose of transfer of ownership or building development or, if a new street is involved, any division of a parcel of land. The term includes resubdivision and, where it is appropriate to the context, relates either to the process of subdividing or to the land subdivided.
TANGENT: A straight line that is perpendicular to the radius of a curve where a tangent meets a curve.
VERTICAL CURVE: The surface curvature on a street centerline located between lines of different percentage of grade. (1981 Code 301 § 2)