For the purpose of this chapter, the following definitions shall apply unless the context clearly indicates or requires a different meaning.
ACCESSORY BUILDING OR USE. A subordinate building or use which is located on the same lot on which the main building or use is situated and is reasonably necessary and incidental to the conduct of the primary or principal use of that building or main use.
ADULT ENTERTAINMENT. One or more of the following: adult bookstores, adult motion picture theaters, adult mini motion picture theaters, adult massage parlors, adult steam room/bath house facilities, and adult enterprises, businesses, or places open to some or all members of the public at or in which there is an emphasis on the presentation, display, depiction, or description of sexual activities or sexual anatomical areas, which are capable of being seen by members of the public.
AGRICULTURE USES. Uses commonly associated with the growing of produce on farms. These include: field crop farming; pasture for hay; fruit growing; tree, plant, shrub, or flower nursery without building; truck gardening; roadside stand for sale in season; and livestock raising and feeding, but not including fur farms, commercial animal feed lots, and kennels.
ALLEY. A public right-of-way which affords secondary access to abutting property.
APARTMENT. A room or suite of rooms with cooking facilities available which is occupied as a residence by a single family. Includes buildings with two or more dwelling units and efficiency units.
BANNERS and PENNANTS. Attention-getting devices which resemble flags and are of a paper, cloth, or plastic-like consistency.
BASEMENT. A portion of a building located partly underground and having one-half or less of its floor to ceiling height below the average grade of the adjoining ground.
BOARDING HOUSE. A building other than a motel or hotel where, for compensation and by prearrangement for definite periods, meals or lodgings are provided for three or more unrelated persons, but not to exceed ten persons.
BOATHOUSE. Means a structure used solely for the storage of boats and boating equipment.
BUILDABLE AREA. The portion of a lot remaining after required yards have been provided.
BUILDING. Any structure having a roof which may provide shelter or enclosure for any use or occupancy of persons, animals, or chattel. When the structure is divided by party walls without openings, each portion of the building so separated shall be deemed a separate building.
BUILDING HEIGHT. The vertical distance from the average elevation of the adjoining ground level or the established grade adjacent to the building, whichever is lower, to the top of the cornice of a flat roof, to the deck line of a mansard roof, to a point of the roof directly above the highest wall of a shed roof, to the uppermost point on a round or other arch type roof, or to the highest gable on a pitched or hip roof.
BUILDING LINE. The line measured across the width of the lot at the point where the main structure is placed in accordance with setback provisions.
BUILDING SETBACK. The minimum horizontal distance between the building and the specified lot line as prescribed in this chapter.
CELLAR. The portion of the building having more than half of the floor to ceiling height below the average grade of the adjoining ground.
CHURCH. A building, together with its accessory buildings and uses, where persons regularly assemble for religious worship and which building, together with its accessory buildings and uses, is maintained and controlled by a religious body organized to sustain public worship.
CLEAR-CUTTING. The removal of an entire stand of trees.
CLUB or LODGE. A non-profit association of persons who are bona fide members paying annual dues, use of premises being restricted to members and their guests. It shall be permissible to serve food and meals on the premises, provided adequate dining room space and kitchen facilities are available. Serving of alcoholic beverages to members and their guests shall be allowed, provided this serving is secondary and incidental to the operation of the dining room for the purpose of serving food and meals, and provided further that the serving of alcoholic beverages is in compliance with the applicable federal, state, and municipal laws.
COMMERCIAL RECREATION. Bowling alley, cart track, jump center, golf, pool hall, vehicle racing or amusement, dance hall, ski lodge, skating, tavern, theater, firearms range, and similar uses.
COMMERCIAL USES. All permitted accessory and conditional uses allowed in the B-1 and B-2 districts, except for residential uses.
CONDITIONAL USE. A use permitted in a particular zoning district upon showing that the use in a specified location will comply with all the conditions and standards for the location or operation of the use as specified in the zoning code and authorized by the City Council.
CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT. A permit issued by the Council in accordance with procedures specified in this chapter, as a flexibility device to enable the Council to assign dimensions to a proposed use or conditions surrounding it after consideration of adjacent uses and their functions and the special problems which the proposed use presents.
DOG KENNEL. Any place where four dogs or more over six months of age are boarded, bred, and/or offered for sale, except a veterinary clinic.
DRIVE-THROUGH. Any use where products and/or services are provided to the customer under conditions where the customer does not have to leave the car or where fast service to the automobile occupants is the principal service offered.
DWELLING. A building or one or more portions thereof occupied or intended to be occupied exclusively for human habitation, but not including rooms in motels, hotels, nursing homes, boarding houses, nor trailers, tents, cabins, or trailer coaches. A DWELLING shall not be interpreted to include lodging rooms.
DWELLING, DUPLEX. A building having accommodations for and occupied exclusively by not more than two families.
DWELLING, MULTIPLE. A building having accommodations for and occupied exclusively by more than two families.
DWELLING, TOWNHOUSE. A one or two story single family building having one or more walls in common with another single family building oriented and designed so each unit has separate individual front and rear entrances.
ENGINEERS and/or ENGINEERING. Persons and/or firms engaged in these occupations hired by the city.
ESSENTIAL SERVICES. Underground or overhead gas, electrical, steam, or water transmission or distribution systems; collection, communication, supply, or disposal systems including poles, wires, mains, drains, sewers, pipes conduits, cables, fire alarm boxes, police call boxes, traffic signals, hydrants, or other similar equipment and accessories in conjunction therewith; not including buildings.
FAMILY. An individual, or two or more persons each related by blood, marriage, or adoption living together as a single housekeeping unit, or a group of not more than four persons not so related, maintaining a common household.
FARM. A tract of land which is principally used for commercial agriculture, all of which is owned and operated by a single family, farm corporation, individual, partnership, or LLC (Limited Liability Company).
FARMING OPERATIONS. A tract of land in a residential zone that is ten acres or more in size which is principally used for raising farm animals or crops.
GARAGE, PRIVATE. An accessory building or accessory portion of the principal building which is intended for and used to store the private passenger vehicles of the family or families resident upon the premises, and in which no business service or industry is carried on; provided that not more than one-half of the space may be rented for the private vehicles of persons not resident on the premises.
GARAGE, REPAIR. A building or space for the repair or maintenance of motor vehicles, but not including factory assembly of these vehicles, auto wrecking establishments, or junk yards.
HOME OCCUPATION. A gainful occupation carried on in the home when engaged in by person or persons residing in the dwelling.
HOTEL. A building having provision for six or more guests in which lodging is provided with or without meals for compensation and which is open to transient or permanent guests or both, and in which ingress and egress to and from all rooms is made through an inside lobby or office supervised by a person in charge.
INDUSTRIAL USE. A permitted, accessory, or conditional use allowed in the I-1 district.
JUNK YARD. An area where waste and discarded or salvaged materials are bought, sold, exchanged, stored, baled, cleaned, packed, disassembled, or handled, including but not limited to scrap iron and other metals, paper, rags, rubber products, bottles, and used building materials. Storage of this type of material in conjunction with a permitted manufacturing process when within an enclosed area or building shall not be included. This use shall not include organic waste or material.
LOT. A parcel, piece, or portion of land designated by metes and bounds, registered land survey, plat, or other means and separated from other parcels or portions by that description which is recorded or to be recorded in the office of the County Register of Deeds.
LOT, CORNER. A lot situated at the junction of and abutting on two or more intersecting streets, or a lot at the point of deflection in alignment of a continuous street, the interior angle of which does not exceed 135 degrees.
LOT, INTERIOR. A lot other than a corner lot, including through lots.
LOT, THROUGH. Any lot, other than a corner lot, which abuts more than one street.
LOT AREA. The area of a lot in a horizontal plane bounded by the lot lines.
LOT DEPTH. The mean horizontal distance between the front lot line and the rear lot line.
LOT LINE. The property line bounding a lot, except that where any portion of a lot extends into the public right-of-way or a proposed public right-of-way, the line of the public right-of-way shall be the LOT LINE for applying this chapter.
LOT OF RECORD. A platted lot or metes and bounds parcel which has been recorded in the office of the Register of Deeds prior to the adoption of this chapter.
LOT WIDTH. The horizontal distance between the side lot lines of a lot measured parallel to the front line of the lot at the setback line.
MANUFACTURED HOME. A structure, transportable in one or more sections, which in the traveling mode, is 8 body feet or more in width or 40 body feet or more in length, or, when erected on site, is 320 or more square feet, and which is built on a permanent chassis and designed to be used as a dwelling with or without a permanent foundation when connected to the required utilities, and includes the plumbing, heating, air conditioning, and electrical systems contained in it, and which complies with the manufactured home building code established by M.S. § 327.31, subd. 3, as amended from time to time. See M.S. § 327.31, subds. 3 and 6, as they may be amended from time to time.
MAY. The act referred to is permissive.
NONCONFORMING STRUCTURE OR USE. Any structure or use which on the effective date of this code does not, even though lawfully established, conform to the applicable conditions if the structure or use were to be erected under the guidance of this chapter.
OFF-STREET LOADING SPACE. A space accessible from the street, alley, or way, in a building or on the lot, for the use of trucks while loading or unloading merchandise or materials. This space shall be of a size as to accommodate one truck of the type typically used in the particular business.
OPEN STORAGE. Storage of any material outside of a building.
ORDINARY HIGH WATER MARK. A mark delineating the highest water level which has been maintained for a sufficient period of time to leave evidence upon the landscape. The ORDINARY HIGH WATER MARK is commonly that point where the natural vegetation changes from predominantly aquatic to predominantly terrestrial.
PARKING SPACE. An area, enclosed in the main building, in an accessory building, or unenclosed, sufficient in size to store one automobile, which has adequate access to a public street or alley and permitting satisfactory ingress and egress of an automobile.
PARTY WALL. A common wall which divides two independent structures.
PERFORMANCE STANDARD. Criterion established to control noise, odor, toxic or noxious matter, vibration, fire and explosive hazards, or glare or heat generated by or inherent in uses of land or buildings.
PERSON. An individual, to include both male and female and shall also extend and be applied to bodies political and corporate, and to partnerships and other unincorporated associations.
PLANNED UNIT DEVELOPMENT. A large lot or tract of land developed as a unit rather than as individual development, wherein two or more buildings may be located in relationship to each other rather than to lot lines or zoning district boundaries.
PLANNING COMMISSION. The Planning Commission of the city.
PUBLIC USES. Uses owned or operated by municipal, school districts, county, state, or other governmental units.
PUBLIC WATER. Any waters of the state which serve a beneficial public purpose, as defined by Minnesota Statutes. However, no lake, pond, or floodage of less than ten acres in size and no river or stream having a total drainage area less than two square miles. PUBLIC WATER shall be determined by the state Department of Natural Resources. Any body of water created by a private user where there was no previous shoreland for a designated private use as approved by the Commissioner of the State Department of Natural Resources is not included as a PUBLIC WATER.
RECREATIONAL VEHICLE. A vehicular portable structure used for amusement, vacation, or recreational activities, including but not limited to travel trailers, motor homes, camping trailers, snowmobiles, boats, bicycles, motorcycles, RVs, and ATVs.
RESTAURANT. Establishment which serves food to be consumed while seated at tables or booths within the building or which serves food to be consumed after going through a drive-through convenience.
SETBACK. The minimum horizontal distance between a building and normal ordinary high water mark, street right-of-way, or property line. Distances are to be measured perpendicularly from the property line to the most outwardly extended portion of the structure at ground level.
SEWAGE DISPOSAL SYSTEM. Any system for the collection, treatment, and dispersion of sewage, including but not limited to septic tanks, soil absorption systems, and drain fields.
SHALL. The act referred to is mandatory.
SHORELAND. Land located within the following distances from public water: 1,000 feet from the ordinary high water mark of a lake, pond, or flowage; and 300 feet from a river or stream, or the landward extent of a flood plain designated by ordinance on that river or stream, whichever is greater. The practical limits of SHORELANDS may be less than the statutory limits whenever the waters involved are bounded by topographic divides which extend landward from the waters for lesser distances and when approved by the Commissioner.
SIGN. Any written announcement, declaration, demonstration, display, illustration, insignia, or illumination used to advertise or promote the interest of any person when the same is displayed or placed out of doors in view of the general public, and shall include every detached SIGN.
SIGN, BUSINESS. A sign which directs attention to a business or profession conducted or to a commodity, service, or entertainment sold or offered on the premises on which the sign is located.
SIGN, NAMEPLATE. Any sign which states the name or address or both of the business or occupant of the lot where the sign is placed, or may be a directory listing the names, address, and business or occupants.
STORY. The portion of a building included between the surface of any floor and the surface of the floor next above it; or if there is no floor above, the space between the floor and ceiling next above. A basement shall be counted as a STORY.
STREET. A public right-of-way which affords a primary means of access to abutting property, and shall also include avenue, highway, or road.
STRUCTURAL ALTERATION. Any change, other than incidental repairs, which would prolong the life of the supporting members of a building, such as bearing walls, columns, beams, girders, or foundations.
STRUCTURE. Anything constructed or erected, the use of which requires location on the ground, or attached to something having a location on the ground. This shall include signs.
STRUCTURE, NONCONFORMING. Any structure which is legally existing upon the effective date of this code, which would not conform to the applicable regulations if the structure were to be erected under the provisions of this chapter.
SUBDIVISION. The division of any parcel of land into two or more lots, blocks, and/or sites, with or without streets or highways, and including resubdivision.
SUBSTANDARD USE. Any use of shorelands existing prior to the enactment of any municipal ordinance which is permitted within the applicable zoning district but does not meet the minimum lot area and length of water frontage, structure setbacks, or other dimensional standards of this chapter.
UNDUE HARDSHIP. As used in connection with the granting of a variance means the property in question cannot be put to a reasonable use if used under conditions allowed by the official controls, the plight of the landowner is due to circumstances unique to the property not created by the landowner, and the variance, if granted, will not alter the essential character of the locality. Economic considerations alone shall not constitute an undue hardship if reasonable use for the property exists under the terms of the ordinance. UNDUE HARDSHIP also includes, but is not limited to, inadequate access to direct sunlight for solar energy systems. Variances shall be granted for earth sheltered construction.
USE. The purpose or activity for which the land or building thereon is designated, arranged, or intended, or for which it is occupied, utilized, or maintained, and shall include the performance of this activity as defined by the performance standards of this chapter.
USE, ACCESSORY. A use subordinate to and serving the principal use or structure on the same lot and customarily incidental thereto.
USE, OPEN. The use of a lot without a building or including a building incidental to the OPEN USE.
USE, PERMITTED. A public or private use which of itself conforms with the purposes and objectives of a particular district and which conforms with all requirements, regulations, and performance standards of that district.
USE, PRINCIPAL. The main use of land or buildings as distinguished from subordinate or accessory uses. A PRINCIPAL USE may be either permitted or conditional.
USEABLE OPEN SPACE. A required ground area or terrace area on a lot which is graded, developed, landscaped, and equipped, and intended and maintained for either active or passive recreation or both; available and accessible to and useable by all persons occupying a dwelling unit or rooming unit on the lot and their guests. These areas shall be grassed and landscaped or covered only for a recreation purpose. Roofs, driveways, and parking areas shall not constitute USEABLE OPEN SPACE.
VARIANCE. The waiving action of the literal provisions of this chapter in instances where their strict enforcement would cause unusual hardship because of physical circumstances unique to the individual property under consideration.
WAREHOUSING. The storage of materials or equipment within an enclosed building as a principal use.
WHOLESALING. The selling of goods, equipment, and materials by bulk to another business that in turn sells to the final customer.
YARD. An open space on a lot, which is occupied, and unobstructed by a structure from its lowest ground level to the sky except as expressly permitted in this chapter. A yard shall extend along a lot line and at right angles to that lot line to a depth or width specified in the yard regulations for the district in which that lot is located.
YARD, FRONT. A yard extending across the front of the lot between the inner side yard lines and lying between the front line of the lot and the nearest line of the building.
YARD, REAR. A yard extending across the full width of the lot and lying between the rear line of the lot and the nearest line of the building.
YARD, SIDE. A yard between the side line of the lot and the nearest line of the building and extending from the front line of the lot to the rear yard.
ZONING ADMINISTRATOR. A person appointed by the City Manager-Clerk to enforce this chapter.
ZONING DISTRICT. An area or areas within the limits of the zoning jurisdiction for which the regulations and requirements governing use are uniform.
ZONING MAP. The maps or map incorporated into this chapter as part thereof, and as amended, designating the zoning districts.
(Ord. 134/94, passed 3-24-94; Am. Ord. 483, passed 6-16-21)