“Accessory Structure” means a structure on the same parcel of property as a principal structure and the use of which is incidental to the use of the principal structure. For floodplain management purposes, the term includes only accessory structures used for parking and storage.
“Alteration of a watercourse” means a dam, impoundment, channel relocation, change in channel alignment, channelization, or change in cross-sectional area of the channel or the channel capacity, or any other form of modification which may alter, impede, retard or change the direction and/or velocity of the riverine flow of water during conditions of the base flood.
“ASCE 24” means the standard Flood Resistant Design and Construction, referenced by the building code, developed and published by the American Society of Civil Engineers, Reston, VA. Where cited, ASCE 24 refers to the edition of the standard that is referenced by the building code.
“Base flood” means the flood having a one percent (1%) chance of being equaled or exceeded in any given year. [Also defined in CCR Title 24 Part 2.]
“Base flood elevation” means the elevation of the base flood, including wave height, relative to the National Geodetic Vertical Datum (NGVD), North American Vertical Datum (NAVD) or other datum specified on the Flood Insurance Rate Map (FIRM). [Also defined in CCR Title 24 Part 2.]
“Basement” means, for the purpose of floodplain management, the portion of a building having its floor subgrade (below ground level) on all sides. [Also defined in CCR Title 24 Part 2.]
“Building code” means California Code of Regulations Title 24, the California Building Standards Code, the family of building codes specifically adopted by the State of California and composed of:
(1) Part 2, applicable to buildings and structures other than dwellings within the scope of this part.
(2) Part 2.5, applicable to one- and two-family dwellings and townhouses not more than three (3) stories, and accessory structures.
(3) Part 10, applicable to existing buildings (as defined in that code).
(4) Other specified codes.
“Design flood” means the flood associated with the greater of the following two (2) areas: [Also defined in CCR Title 24 Part 2.]
(1) Area with a flood plain subject to a one percent (1%) or greater chance of flooding in any year.
(2) Area designated as a flood hazard area on a community’s flood hazard map, or otherwise legally designated.
“Design flood elevation” means the elevation of the “design flood,” including wave height, relative to the datum specified on the community’s legally designated flood hazard map. In areas designated as Zone AO, the design flood elevation shall be the elevation of the highest existing grade of the building’s perimeter plus the depth number (in feet) specified on the flood hazard map. In areas designated as Zone AO where a depth number is not specified on the map, the depth number shall be taken as being equal to two (2) feet (610 mm). [Also defined in CCR Title 24 Part 2.]
“Development” means any manmade change to improved or unimproved real estate, including but not limited to, buildings or other structures, temporary structures, temporary or permanent storage of materials, mining, dredging, filling, grading, paving, excavations, drilling operations, flood control projects, and other land-disturbing activities.
“Encroachment” means the placement of fill, excavation, buildings, permanent structures or other development into a flood hazard area which may impede or alter the flow capacity of riverine flood hazard areas.
“Exceptional hardship” means, for the purpose of variances from this chapter or the building code, the exceptional difficulty that would result from a failure to grant a requested variance. Mere economic or financial hardship is not exceptional. Inconvenience, aesthetic considerations, physical handicaps, personal preferences, or the disapproval of one’s neighbors do not, as a rule, qualify as exceptional hardships. All of these circumstances can be resolved through other means without granting variances, even when the alternatives are more expensive or require the property owner to build elsewhere or put the parcel to a different use than originally intended.
“Existing manufactured home park or subdivision” means a manufactured home park or subdivision for which the construction of facilities for servicing the lots on which the manufactured homes are to be affixed (including, at a minimum, the installation of utilities, the construction of streets, and either final site grading or the pouring of concrete pads) was completed before July 16, 1979.
“Expansion to an existing manufactured home park or subdivision” means the preparation of additional sites by the construction of facilities for servicing the lots on which the manufactured homes are to be affixed (including the installation of utilities, the construction of streets, and either final site grading or the pouring of concrete pads).
“Flood or flooding” means a general and temporary condition of partial or complete inundation of normally dry land from:
(1) The overflow of inland or tidal waters.
(2) The unusual and rapid accumulation or runoff of surface waters from any source.
(3) Mudslides (i.e., mudflows) which are proximately caused by flooding.
“Flood control project” means a dam or barrier design and constructed to keep water away from or out of a specified area, including but not limited to levees, floodwalls, and channelization.
“Flood damage-resistant materials” means any construction material capable of withstanding direct and prolonged contact with floodwaters without sustaining any damage that requires more than cosmetic repair. [Also defined in CCR Title 24 Part 2.]
“Flood hazard area” means the greater of the following two (2) areas: [Also defined in CCR Title 24 Part 2.]
(1) The area within a floodplain subject to a one percent (1%) or greater chance of flooding in any year.
(2) The area designated as a flood hazard area on the community’s flood hazard map, or otherwise legally designated.
“Flood Insurance Rate Map (FIRM)” means an official map of a community on which the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has delineated both the special flood hazard areas and the risk premium zones applicable to the community. [Also defined in CCR Title 24 Part 2.]
“Flood Insurance Study” means the official report provided by the Federal Emergency Management Agency containing the Flood Insurance Rate Map (FIRM), the Flood Boundary and Floodway Map (FBFM), the water surface elevation of the base flood and supporting technical data. [Also defined in CCR Title 24 Part 2.]
“Floodplain Administrator” means the community official designated by title to administer and enforce the floodplain management regulations.
“Floodway” means the channel of the river, creek or other watercourse and the adjacent land areas that must be reserved in order to discharge the base flood without cumulatively increasing the water surface elevation more than a designated height. [Also defined in CCR Title 24 Part 2.]
“Fraud or victimization” means, for the purpose of variances from this chapter or the building code, the intentional use of deceit to deprive another of rights or property, making a victim of the deprived person or the public. As it pertains to buildings granted variances to be constructed below the elevation required by the building code, future owners or tenants of such buildings and the community as a whole may bear the burden of increased risk of damage from floods, increased cost of flood insurance, and increased recovery costs, inconvenience, danger, and suffering.
“Functionally dependent use” means a use that cannot perform its intended purpose unless it is located or carried out in close proximity to water, including only docking facilities, port facilities necessary for the loading or unloading of cargo or passengers, and shipbuilding or ship repair facilities. The term does not include long-term storage, manufacture, sales or service facilities.
“Highest adjacent grade” means the highest natural elevation of the ground surface prior to construction next to the proposed walls or foundation of a structure.
“Historic structure” means any structure that is:
(1) Listed individually in the National Register of Historic Places (a listing maintained by the Department of Interior) or preliminarily determined by the Secretary of the Interior as meeting the requirements for individual listing on the National Register;
(2) Certified or preliminarily determined by the Secretary of the Interior as contributing to the historical significance of a registered historic district or a district preliminarily determined by the Secretary to qualify as a registered historic district;
(3) Individually listed on the inventory of historic places maintained by the California Office of Historic Preservation; or
(4) Individually listed on a local inventory of historic places in communities with historic preservation programs that have been certified by the California Office of Historic Preservation.
“Letter of Map Change (LOMC)” means an official determination issued by FEMA that amends or revises an effective Flood Insurance Rate Map or Flood Insurance Study. Letters of Map Change include:
(1) Letter of Map Amendment (LOMA): An amendment based on technical data showing that a property was incorrectly included in a designated special flood hazard area. A LOMA amends the current effective Flood Insurance Rate Map and establishes that a specific property, portion of a property, or structure is not located in a special flood hazard area.
(2) Letter of Map Revision (LOMR): A revision based on technical data that may show changes to flood zones, flood elevations, special flood hazard area boundaries and floodway delineations, and other planimetric features.
(3) Letter of Map Revision Based on Fill (LOMR-F): A determination that a structure or parcel of land has been elevated by fill above the base flood elevation and is, therefore, no longer located within the special flood hazard area. In order to qualify for this determination, the fill must have been permitted and placed in accordance with the community’s floodplain management regulations.
(4) Conditional Letter of Map Revision (CLOMR): A formal review and comment as to whether a proposed flood protection project or other project complies with the minimum NFIP requirements for such projects with respect to delineation of special flood hazard areas. A CLOMR does not revise the effective Flood Insurance Rate Map or Flood Insurance Study; upon submission and approval of certified as-built documentation, a Letter of Map Revision may be issued by FEMA to revise the effective FIRM.
“Light-duty truck” means, as defined in 40 C.F.R. 86.082-2, any motor vehicle rated at eight thousand five hundred (8,500) pounds Gross Vehicular Weight Rating or less which has a vehicular curb weight of six thousand (6,000) pounds or less and which has a basic vehicle frontal area of forty-five (45) square feet or less, which is:
(1) Designed primarily for purposes of transportation of property or is a derivation of such a vehicle; or
(2) Designed primarily for transportation of persons and has a capacity of more than twelve (12) persons; or
(3) Available with special features enabling off-street or off-highway operation and use.
“Lowest floor” means the lowest floor of the lowest enclosed area, including basement, but excluding any unfinished or flood-resistant enclosure, usable solely for vehicle parking, building access or limited storage provided that such enclosure is not built so as to render the structure in violation of the non-elevation requirements of the building codes. [Also defined in CCR Title 24 Part 2.]
“Manufactured home” means a structure that is transportable in one (1) or more sections, built on a permanent chassis, designed for use as a single-family dwelling with or without a permanent foundation when connected to the required utilities, and constructed to the Manufactured Home Construction and Safety Standards promulgated by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Also see definitions in Health and Safety Code sections18000.(a)(2) and 18001.(a). For the purposes of floodplain management, the term also includes mobile homes and recreational vehicles, park trailers, travel trailers and similar transportable structures that are placed on a site for one hundred eighty (180) consecutive days or longer.
“Manufactured home park or subdivision” means a parcel (or contiguous parcels) of land divided into two (2) or more manufactured home lots for rent or sale.
“Market value” means the price at which a property will change hands between a willing buyer and a willing seller, neither party being under compulsion to buy or sell and both having reasonable knowledge of relevant facts. As used in this chapter, the term refers to the market value of buildings and structures, excluding the land and other improvements on the parcel. Market value may be established by one of the following methods: (1) actual Cash Value (replacement cost depreciated for age and quality of construction); (2) tax assessment value adjusted to approximate market value by a factor provided by the Property Appraiser; or (3) A qualified independent appraiser.
“New manufactured home park or subdivision” means a manufactured home park or subdivision for which the construction of facilities for servicing the lots on which the manufactured homes are to be affixed (including at a minimum, the installation of utilities, the construction of streets, and either final site grading or the pouring of concrete pads) was completed on or after July 16, 1979.
“Nuisance” means that which is injurious to safety or health of an entire community or neighborhood, or any considerable number of persons, or unlawfully obstructs the free passage or use, in the customary manner, of any navigable lake, or river, bay, stream, canal, or basin.
“Permit for floodplain development” means an official document or certificate issued by the community, or other evidence of approval or concurrence, which authorizes performance of specified development activities that are located in flood hazard areas and that are determined to be compliant with this chapter.
“Recreational vehicle” means a vehicle that is built on a single chassis, four hundred (400) square feet (37.16 m2) or less when measured at the largest horizontal projection, designed to be self-propelled or permanently towable by a light-duty truck, and designed primarily not for use as a permanent dwelling but as temporary living quarters for recreational, camping, travel or seasonal use. A recreational vehicle is ready for highway use when it is on its wheels or jacking system, is attached to the site only by quick disconnect type utilities and security devices and has no permanently attached additions. Also see definitions in Health and Safety Code section 18010.
“Riverine” means relating to, formed by, or resembling a river (including tributaries), stream, brook, etc.
“Special flood hazard area (SFHA)” means the land area subject to flood hazards and shown on a Flood Insurance Rate Map or other flood hazard map as Zone A, AE, A1-30, A99, AR, AO, AH, V, VO, VE, or V1-30. [Also defined in CCR Title 24 Part 2.]
“Substantial damage” means damage of any origin sustained by a structure whereby the cost of restoring the structure to its before-damaged condition would equal or exceed fifty percent (50%) of the market value of the structure before the damage occurred. [Also defined in CCR Title 24 Part 2.]
“Substantial improvement” means any repair, reconstruction, rehabilitation, alteration, addition or other improvement of a building or structure, the cost of which equals or exceeds fifty percent (50%) of the market value of the structure before the improvement or repair is started. When the structure has sustained substantial damage, any repairs are considered substantial improvement regardless of the actual repair work performed. The term does not, however, include either: [Also defined in CCR Title 24 Part 2.]
(1) Any project for improvement of a building required to correct existing health, sanitary or safety code violations identified by the building official and that are the minimum necessary to assure safe living conditions.
(2) Any alteration of a historic structure provided that the alteration will not preclude the structure’s continued designation as a historic structure.
“Utility and Miscellaneous Group U” means buildings and structures of an accessory character and miscellaneous structure not classified in any special occupancy, as described in the building code.
“Variance” means a grant of relief from the requirements of this chapter which permits construction in a manner otherwise prohibited and where specific enforcement would result in exceptional hardship.
“Violation” means a development that is not fully compliant with this chapter or the flood provisions of the building code, as applicable.
“Watercourse” means a river, creek, stream, channel or other topographic feature in, on, through, or over which water flows at least periodically.
(Ord. MC-1622, 1-17-24)
PART III. – FLOOD RESISTANT DEVELOPMENT