For the purpose of this chapter, the following definitions shall apply unless the context clearly indicates or requires a different meaning.
ACCESS DRIVE. A strip of land not less than 50 feet in width designed to connect one or two lots with a street, thereby providing equal access to each lot. (See SUBDIVISION.)
ALLEY. A permanent public service way or right-of-way, dedicated to public use, other than a street, place, road, crosswalk or easement, designed to provide a secondary means of access for the special accommodation of abutting property.
AREA ENGINEER. An engineer employed by the Area Plan Commission or by the Board of County Commissioners or the County Surveyor or as determined by the Plan Commission.
BLOCK. A unit of property entirely surrounded by public highways, streets, railroad rights-of-way, waterways or other barriers or a combination thereof.
BLOCK FRONTAGE. Property abutting on one side of a street, and lying between the two nearest intersecting or intercepting streets, or between the nearest intersecting or intercepting street and railroad right-of-way, waterway or other definite barrier.
BUILDING SETBACK LINE or BUILDING LINE. The line nearest the front or side of and across a lot establishing the minimum yard to be provided between the principal building or structure and the lot line.
CITY. The City of Rising Sun, Indiana.
COMMISSION, PLAN COMMISSION. The county’s Advisory Plan Commission.
COMPREHENSIVE PLAN. A composite of all materials prepared and approved under the 500 series of I.C. 36-7-4 or under prior law. It includes a master plan adopted under any prior law.
COUNTY. Ohio County, Indiana.
CUL-DE-SAC (COURT OR DEAD END STREET). A short residential street having one end open to traffic and being permanently terminated by a vehicle turnaround.
EASEMENT. A grant by the property owner of the use of a strip of land by the public or a person for specified purposes.
HEALTH OFFICER. The County Health Officer.
JURISDICTION OF THE COMMISSION. The jurisdiction of the county’s Advisory Plan Commission, which includes all of the area over which this chapter is effective: specifically, all of the unincorporated territory in the county.
LOT. A portion of subdivision, or other parcel of land intended as a unit for transfer of ownership or development.
PERSON. A corporation, firm, partnership, association, organization or any other group acting as a unit, as well as a natural person.
PLACE. An open, unoccupied, officially designated space, other than a street or alley, permanently reserved for use as the principal means of access to abutting property.
PLAN COMMISSION STAFF. The staff of the county’s Advisory Plan Commission, specifically, the Building Inspector and any other persons employed by the Advisory Plan Commission, who are under the supervision of the Building Inspector and who have regular duties in the Advisory Plan Commission office.
PLAT. A map or chart indicating the subdivision or re-subdivision of land intended to be filed for record. Also, PLAT OF A SUBDIVISION OF THE SUBDIVISION.
PRIMARY APPROVAL. An approval that may be granted by the Plan Commission and signed and certified by the President of the Plan Commission on a plat of a subdivision in which the procedures, standards of improvement and conditions have been met by the applicant as required by this code. A PRIMARY APPROVAL is a final decision of the Plan Commission inasmuch as it may be reviewed by the courts.
REPLAT. A subdivision or plat, the site of which has heretofore been platted or subdivided with lots or parcels of land, previous subdivision or plat.
SECONDARY APPROVAL. An approval that may be granted by the Plan Commission and signed and certified by the President of the Plan Commission on a plat of a subdivision which the Plan Commission has already given its primary approval before it can be filed with the County Auditor and recorded by the County Recorder, and the improvements and installations have been completed as required by this chapter; or, if the improvements and installations have not been completed as required, the applicant therefor has provided a bond or other proof of financial responsibility in accordance with the requirements of this chapter.
STREET. A right-of-way, other than an alley, dedicated or otherwise legally established to the public use, usually affording 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.
STREET, ARTERIAL. A street designated for large volumes of traffic movement. Certain ARTERIAL STREETS may be classed as limited access highways to which entrances and exits are provided only at controlled intersections and access is denied to abutting properties.
STREET, FEEDER. A street planned to facilitate the collection of traffic from residential streets and to provide circulation within neighborhood areas and convenient ways for traffic to reach arterial streets.
STREET, RESIDENTIAL. A street designated primarily to provide access to abutting properties, usually residential. Certain RESIDENTIAL STREETS may be marginal access streets parallel to arterial streets, which provide access to abutting property and ways for traffic to reach access points on arterial streets.
SUBDIVIDER. Any person responsibly engaged in developing or improving a tract of land which complies with the definition of “subdivision” as defined in this section.
SUBDIVISION.
(1) The division of any parcel of land shown as a unit, as part of a unit or as contiguous units on the last preceding transfer of ownership thereof, into two or more parcels, sites or lots, any one of which is less than five acres in area, for the purpose, whether immediate or future, of transfer of ownership; provided, however, that the division or partition of land into parcels of more than five acres, not involving any new street or easements of access, and the sale or exchange of parcels between adjoining lot owners, where such sale or exchange does not create additional building sites, shall not be considered a SUBDIVISION;
(2) The improvement of one or more parcels of land for residential, commercial or industrial structures or groups of structures involving the SUBDIVISION and allocation of land as streets or other open spaces for common use by owners, occupants or lease holders or as easements for the extension and maintenance of public sewer, water, storm drainage or other public utilities and facilities; or
(3) In the A-1 Agriculture District shown on the Zone Map, the improvement of one or two parcels of land not adjoining another SUBDIVISION and each having not less than five acres in area with a rectangular or near rectangular configuration with a depth of not more than two and one-half times the minimum width of 300 feet, and an access drive of at least 50 feet in uniform width, except where topographical features, drainage ways or structures necessitate additional width and extending from a street to each of the parcels, provided that each owner of each lot shall have one-half or full interest, as the case may be, in fee simple of the entire access drive, and provided further that none of the area contained in the access drive shall be counted toward the minimum five-acre area requirement for the parcel(s). See Figure 2 for typical SUBDIVISION and other divisions of land which shows examples of subdivision and non-subdivisions in divisions (1) and (2) of this definition.
THOROUGHFARE PLAN. The part of the Comprehensive Plan, now or hereafter adopted, which includes a THOROUGHFARE PLAN and sets forth the location, alignment, dimensions, identification and classification of existing and proposed streets, highways and other thoroughfares.
ZONING ORDINANCE. An ordinance now or hereafter adopted under the 600 Series of I.C. 36-7-4 including a Zone Map which divides the jurisdiction of the Commission into districts, with regulations and requirements and procedures for the establishment of land use controls, and which indicates where subdivision of land may occur; specifically, Chapter 156 of this code.
(Ord. 8-7-12-4, passed 12-4-1987; Ord. passed 12- -1999)