For the purpose of this chapter, the following definitions shall apply unless the context clearly indicates or requires a different meaning.
ACCESSORY DWELLING. An ACCESSORY BUILDING that is a separate dwelling for immediate family, hired help, or used as guest quarters.
ACCESSORY USE, ACCESSORY STRUCTURE, or ACCESSORY BUILDING. A use or structure which is clearly incidental and secondary to the primary use and which does not change the character thereof, including, but not limited to, stables, barns, detached garages, bathhouses, greenhouses, tool sheds, and portable buildings over 120 square feet floor area.
ADMINISTRATOR. The person responsible for administration of city ordinances; ORDINANCE ADMINISTRATOR.
AGRICULTURE. The practice of farming and ranching; including:
(1) Cultivating the soil (tilling soil in order to better prepare it for planting);
(2) Producing crops for human food, animal feed, planting seed, or fiber;
(3) Floriculture (cultivation and management of ornamental and flowering plants);
(4) Viticulture (the cultivation or culture of grapes especially for wine making);
(5) Horticulture (growing fruits, vegetables, flowers, or ornamental plants--wildflowers may exceed 12 inches when growing, but shall be mowed to a maximum height of 12 inches after seeding);
(6) Silveculture (dealing with the development and care of forests);
(7) Current wildlife management; and
(8) Current raising or keeping livestock or poultry.
ANIMAL, LARGE. Any animal whose adult body weight is greater than 500 pounds.
ANIMAL, MEDIUM. Any animal whose body weight is between 200 and 500 pounds.
ANIMAL, SMALL. Any animal whose adult body weight is less than 200 pounds.
BARN. A structure used for shelter of animals or storage of agricultural products or equipment.
BUFFERYARD. A unit of land and any structures such as fences, walls, or berms that may be required between different land uses on adjacent lots to eliminate or minimize conflicts between them. Example: an area of trees or landscaping between larger residential lots in one city and smaller residential lots or commercial development in another city.
BUILDING. Any structure affixed to the land and built for the support, shelter, or enclosure of persons, animals, or moveable property.
BUILDING AREA. The BUILDING AREA of a lot is the area covered by the buildings or structures when placed on the lot.
BUILDING, HEIGHT OF. The vertical distance measured from the average elevation of the finished grade along the front of the building to the highest point of the roof’s surface.
CITY. The City of Parker, Collin County, Texas.
CITY COUNCIL. The City Council of this city.
COMMISSION. The Planning and Zoning Commission of the city.
COMPREHENSIVE PLAN. A plan and associated maps showing the existing and proposed land uses within the city and its extraterritorial jurisdiction (ETJ).
COMPREHENSIVE ZONING ORDINANCE. This chapter, and as hereafter amended.
CONCEPT PLAN. The development plan for one or more lots that shows the existing and proposed conditions of the development, including lot lines; landscaping; open spaces; means of ingress, egress, and circulation; berms, buffer yards, and screening devices; surrounding roadways; basic drainage information; and any other information required so an informed decision can be made by the city.
CONDITIONAL USE. A use that requires a variance from an existing ordinance as approved through a formal application process.
CONSTRUCTION PLAN. A plan for new construction or for additions to any structure submitted in application for a building permit.
DEVELOPMENT. The process of converting land to a new purpose by constructing buildings or making use of its resources.
EMPLOYEE. A person who receives a wage, salary, or percentage of profits related to the home occupation and whose place of work is at the residence.
ETJ. Extraterritorial jurisdiction.
GROSS (SITE) AREA. The total area of a tract of land, including rights-of-way and dedicated easements.
HOME OCCUPATION. Commercial non-agricultural activity within the home or on the grounds that does not involve more than one other unrelated person, client visitation without appointment, operation of commercial trucks, or signage or outside storage of business-related equipment or materials. HOME OCCUPATION is defined as a business activity within the residence, or any other building, or on the grounds, that does not involve more than one other unrelated person, operation of commercial trucks, signage, or visible storage of business related equipment or materials. Business activity is broadly construed to include all non-residential activity, for profit or otherwise, including, but no limited to, retail, commercial, industrial, manufacturing, or similar use.
LOT COVERAGE. Area of a lot covered by buildings usually expressed as a percentage.
LOT SIZE. Area enclosed by the metes and bounds of a given lot.
OFFENSIVE TRADE ACTIVITY. Any activity prohibited by federal or state law or city ordinance and not authorized by a special use permit.
OFFICER. A person referred to in this chapter by title means the person employed or appointed by the city to that position, or his or her duly authorized representative.
OPEN SPACE. An outdoor area for outdoor living, recreation, pedestrian access, or landscaping, but excluding parking facilities.
PASTURE. Land used primarily for the grazing of animal stock.
RECREATIONAL EQUIPMENT. Items of personal use and enjoyment other than automotive vehicles and trucks, specifically including boats and boat trailers, travel trailers, pick-up campers or coaches (designed to be mounted on automotive vehicles or trucks), motorized dwellings/RVs, tent trailers, and cases or boxes used for transporting recreational equipment, whether occupied by such equipment or not.
SINGLE-FAMILY RESIDENCE. A one-family detached dwelling.
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 be no floor above it, then the space between that floor and the ceiling above it.
STRUCTURE. Anything that is constructed that emanates above the ground, or descends below ground, considered either permanent or temporary.
SUBDIVISION. The division of a lot, tract, or parcel of land situated within the corporate limits or within the city’s statutory extraterritorial jurisdiction into two or more parts, lots, or sites for the purpose, whether immediate or future, of sale, division of ownership, or building development, including resubdivision. SUBDIVISION of land does not include the division of land for agricultural purposes in parcels or tracts of 25 acres or more.
TREES, REQUIRED. Pecan, Texas Ash, Eastern Red Cedar, Chinese Pistachio, Austrian Pine, Bur Oak, Live Oak, Red Oak, Sycamore, Lacebark Elm. Examples of trees not to be planted in the bufferyard are: Arizona Ash, Chinese Tallow, Cottonwood, Siberian Elm, Honeylocust, Hackberry, Mimosa, Fruitless Mulberry, Pin Oak, Poplar, Silver Maple, and Italian Cyprus.
VARIANCE. A legal modification from city ordinances, granted to relieve hardship conditions existing within a single piece of property other than financial and not of the applicant’s making.
ZONING MAP. A map of the city showing current zoning.
(Ord. 483, passed 6-6-2000; Am. Ord. 508, passed 7-10-2001; Am. Ord. 562, passed 2-8-2005; Am. Ord. 820, passed 8-2-2022)