Definitions not expressly prescribed herein are to be construed in accordance with the customary usage in municipal planning and engineering practices. Whenever used in this regulation, the word “may” is permissive, while the word “shall” is to be interpreted in its mandatory sense. For the purpose of interpreting this regulation, certain words used herein are defined as follows:
AASHTO. American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials.
ABUTTING. Having property or district lines in common. Since zoning district lines fall to the centerline of a street, alley, or waterway, lots that appear physically separated abut at said district line.
ACCESS. The way or means by which a piece of property is approached or entered.
ACCESS EASEMENT. An easement granted by an owner of land to provide access to a lot or parcel not fronting a street or roadway.
ADA. Americans with Disabilities Act.
AGENT (OF CITY). Person with delegated authority for a specific purpose.
ALLEY. A minor public right-of-way used for utility installations and vehicular access to the back or the side of properties abutting a street.
APPROVAL, CONDITIONAL. Approval of a plan, plat, or activity by the Commission subject to performance by the applicant of certain stipulated conditions.
ARDOT. Arkansas Department of Transportation.
BILL OF ASSURANCE.
A private agreement attached to a plat which establishes property use and development rules specific to the properties in the particular subdivision and which may be binding upon subsequent owners of the property.
BLOCK. A parcel of land, intended to be used for urban purposes, which is entirely surrounded by public streets, highways, railroad rights-of-way, public walks, parks, drainage channels, or a combination thereof.
BOARD OF ZONING ADJUSTMENT. The Board of Zoning Adjustment considers requests for relief (variances) from certain zoning ordinance provisions, and rules on matters of interpretation associated with the zoning ordinance.
BOND. Any form of security including a cash deposit, surety bond or instrument of credit in an amount and form satisfactory to the city.
BUFFER. A strip of land established to protect one type of land use from another. A buffer strip is landscaped and kept in open space.
BUFFER, PERIMETER LANDSCAPING. A continuous area of land set aside along the perimeter of a lot in which landscaping is used to provide a transition between, and reduce the environmental, aesthetic, and other impacts of one type of land use upon another.
BUILDING CODE. Regulations established by local governments describing the minimum requirements for buildings; includes foundation, roofing, plumbing, electrical, and other specifications for safety and sanitation.
BUILDING LINE. A line parallel to a lot line establishing an area between it and the lot line where no portion of the building may be erected.
BUILDING SETBACKS. See SETBACKS.
CERTIFICATE OF COMPLETION OF IMPROVEMENTS. A statement by a developer’s engineer of record certifying that all improvements and installations are complete and built in conformance with the city’s specifications and this subdivision regulation.
CIRCUIT CLERK. The Washington County Circuit Clerk.
CITY. The City of Tontitown, Arkansas.
CITY LIMITS. The limits of the land area occupied by, and under jurisdiction of the City of Tontitown.
CITY STAFF. Employees and designees of the City of Tontitown.
COMMENCEMENT OF CONSTRUCTION. Any clearing of the land, excavation, construction, or other substantial action that would adversely affect the natural environment of the site.
COMMISSION. The Planning Commission of the City of Tontitown, Arkansas.
COMPLETION DATE OF PROJECT. A date established by agreement between the planning commission and applicant as reached at time of preliminary plat approval.
COMPREHENSIVE PLAN. A composite of the mapped and written proposals, as adopted by the Planning Commission and City Council, whether in whole or in part, recommending the physical development of the community. Said plan includes, but not limited to, the planning area map, Land Use Plan, Master Street Plan and Master Street Plan Map for the city.
COUNCIL. The City Council of the City of Tontitown, Arkansas.
COUNTY. Washington County, Arkansas.
COVENANT. A provision in a deed limiting the use of the property and prohibiting certain uses.
CUL-DE-SAC. A street with only one outlet and being permanently terminated within the plat by a vehicular turnaround.
DBH. Diameter at breast height.
DEAD END STREET. A street having one end open to traffic and being permanently or temporarily terminated at the opposite end.
DEDICATION. Land and improvements offered to the city and accepted by the city for public use, control and maintenance. DEDICATIONS may include streets, alleys, rights-of-way, utility easements, drainage easements, or other easement as appropriate.
DEED. A legal document conveying ownership of real property.
DESIGN SPEED. The maximum safe speed that can be maintained over a specified section of roadway when conditions are so favorable that the design features of the roadway govern.
DETENTION POND. A stormwater management facility designed to protect against flooding and, in some cases, downstream erosion by storing stormwater runoff for a limited period of time. Water stored by a detention pond is subsequently released at a controlled rate equal to or less than the pre-development runoff rate that the facility is designed to maintain. A DETENTION POND is intended to be dry except during and after stormwater producing events.
DEVELOPER. That person, firm or corporation undertaking to develop a subdivision or any other type of land development as defined in these subdivision regulations.
DEVELOPMENT. Any man-made change in improved and unimproved real estate, including but not limited to buildings or other structures, mining, dredging, filling, grading, paving, excavation or drilling operations or storage of equipment or materials.
DEVELOPMENT PLAN. A drawing showing all proposed improvements to a piece of property including streets, parking lots, buildings, drives, signs, utilities, drainage, and grading by size and location.
DRAINAGE EASEMENT. An easement providing for the flow and removal of surface water across a property.
DRIVEWAY.
An entrance to one or more properties created by the owner(s) thereof for the exclusive use and enjoyment of such properties and under the total control of such owner(s).
EASEMENT. A grant by a property owner or trustee for the use by the public, a corporation, or certain persons of a strip described area of land for specific purposes.
EGRESS. A means of exit from a property to a public street.
ENGINEER. A registered professional engineer in good standing, and licensed to practice in the State of Arkansas.
FEDERAL EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AGENCY (FEMA). The federal agency that, in addition to carrying out other activities, oversees the administration of the National Flood Insurance Program.
FINAL PLAT APPROVAL. Approval of a plat that is in conformance with the preliminary plat along with all required financial guarantees.
FIRE APPARATUS ROAD. A roadway provided for use by emergency and fire vehicles to access a subdivision from a main artery. Full specifications are provided in the Arkansas Fire Prevention Code.
FIRE CHIEF. The appointed official of the City of Tontitown responsible for all functions of the Tontitown Fire Department.
FIRE MARSHAL. The Tontitown Fire Chief or his or her designee, responsible for enforcement of the adopted Fire Prevention Code.
FIRM. Flood Insurance Rate Map.
FLOODPLAIN. A geographic area susceptible to periodic inundation from overflow of natural waterways and determined as to extent by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).
FLOODWAY. The channel of a river 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. Communities must regulate development in these floodways to ensure that there are no increases in upstream flood elevations. For streams and other watercourses where FEMA has provided Base Flood Elevations (BFEs), but no floodway has been designated, the community must review floodplain development on a case-by-case basis to ensure that increases in water surface elevations do not occur, or identify the need to adopt a floodway if adequate information is available.
FRONTAGE ROAD. A street, parallel to and adjacent to a major highway or thoroughfare, which provides access to abutting properties.
FUNCTIONAL CLASSIFICATION SYSTEM. The process by which streets and highways are grouped into classes, or systems, according to the character of service they are intended to provide.
HEALTH DEPARTMENT. The Washington County Health Department and/or Arkansas State Health Department.
HIGHWAY DEPARTMENT, STATE. Arkansas Department of Transportation.
HORIZONTAL DATUM. At its most basic level of definition, the HORIZONTAL DATUM is a collection of specific points on the earth that have been identified according to their precise northerly or southerly location (latitude) and easterly or westerly location (longitude) (National Geodetic Survey, 1986).
HORIZONTAL PROPERTY REGIME. Creation of a condominium project in which co-owners own free interests in units together with fractional interests in general common elements which determines the use to be made of improved land whether or not such improvement is composed of one or more separate buildings of one or more floors or stories.
HOUSING CODE. Part of the technical codes adopted by the City of Tontitown.
IMPROVEMENT. Any betterment of existing conditions of land such as, but not limited to, streets, curbs, gutters, sidewalks, trails, pavement, pedestrian ways, water mains, sanitary sewers, storm sewers, stormwater detention or retention facilities, signs, monuments, landscaping, streetlights, fire hydrants, or other actions resulting in permanent changes in the condition of the land.
IMPROVEMENT PLANS. The engineering drawings showing types of materials and construction details for the physical structures and facilities, excluding dwelling units to be installed in conjunction with the development of the subdivision.
INCIDENTAL SUBDIVISION. The subdivision of land that does not require an applicant to go through the complete preliminary and final plat process. INCIDENTAL SUBDIVISIONS include lot splits, informal plats, property line adjustments and correction plats.
INGRESS. A means of entrance to a property from a city street.
INTERNATIONAL FIRE CODE. This title is used synonymously with the ARKANSAS FIRE PREVENTION CODE.
IRREVOCABLE LETTER OF CREDIT. A legal financial instrument in the form approved by the City of Tontitown. The instrument gives the right to a dollar amount to the city to guarantee construction or maintenance of improvements in a subdivision.
LAND SURVEYOR. An individual licensed to practice land surveying in the State of Arkansas.
LAND USE PLAN. A written plan with goals and objectives along with a map depicting and describing present land uses and future land uses expected in the city. This plan is approved by the City Council.
LARGE SCALE DEVELOPMENT.
The development of a parcel or a lot within a platted subdivision. The term
DEVELOPMENT
shall include, but not be limited to, the construction of a new improvement, the construction of an addition to an existing improvement, or a revision of land use that results in the need for access and utilities.
(LID) LOW IMPACT DRAINAGE DESIGN. A method of designing drainage systems or facilities to allow runoff to penetrate the ground in-place instead of concentrating runoff in structures or facilities.
LOT. A parcel of land, legally defined in a recorded deed or a recorded plat, fronting on a public street, or other approved means of access. The LOT shall not be divided by any public highway or alley, including any part thereof subject to any easement for any purpose other than a public highway or alley, but excluding any part thereof severed from another lot where the severance creates any nonconformity of use or structure. The LOT shall establish one building site and comply with all subdivision rules and regulations of the city.
LOT, DOUBLE FRONTAGE. A lot that runs through a block from street to street and having frontage on two non-intersecting streets.
LOT, REVERSE FRONTAGE. A double frontage lot that is designed to be developed with the rear yard abutting a major street and with the primary means of ingress and egress provided on a minor street.
LOT SPLIT. A subdivision which involves the dividing or redesigning of an existing lot or lots within a block of a recorded subdivision and which does not involve the vacating, widening, narrowing or change of alignment of any thoroughfare, street, alley or easement, or involve improvements required by these regulations.
LUMEN. A unit of measure of the intensity of light produce by a lamp (bulb) as indicated by the manufacturer.
MASTER STREET PLAN. The plan made and adopted by the Planning Commission and accepted by the City Council classifying certain streets within the planning area as arterial or collector streets.
NWARPC. The Northwest Arkansas Regional Planning Commission.
OUTDOOR LIGHT FIXTURES, (OUTDOOR LIGHTING). An outdoor illuminating device, outdoor lighting or reflective surface, lamp or similar device, permanently installed or portable, used for illumination, decoration, or advertisement. Such devices shall include, but are not limited to lights used for buildings and structures; recreational areas; parking lot lighting; landscape lighting; architectural lighting; product display area lighting; building overhangs; open canopies; and security lighting.
ONE HUNDRED-YEAR (100-YEAR) FLOOD. A flood with 1% chance of occurring in any year. The term is misleading because of its statistical derivation. A 100- YEAR FLOOD may occur many times in any given 100-year period, or it may not occur at all in 100-years.
OUT LOTS. Parcels or tracts of land proposed as part of a large scale development for future use or development, or as part of a subdivision as non-conforming lots dedicated for stormwater detention, public uses, or use by a property owners association but not available for building purposes.
PARCEL. A division of land in contiguous ownership.
PAVED WIDTH. The portion of a street available for vehicular traffic; where curbs are laid, it is the distance from back of curb to back of curb.
PAVING. A substance which is concrete, asphalt, asphaltic seal coat over rock base, or any other approved quality paving material.
PEDESTRIAN ACCOMMODATION. To provide continuous pedestrian travel, segregated from vehicular traffic, within the subdivision and the subdivision boundary.
PERFORMANCE BOND or GUARANTEE. Any security which may be accepted in lieu of a requirement that certain improvements be made before the planning commission approves a final plat, including performance bonds by subdividers or improvement contractors, escrow agreements, letters of credit, and other similar collateral or surety agreements.
PLANNING AREA, MAP or BOUNDARY. The area within the city’s territorial jurisdiction for which the Planning Commission has determined it will prepare plans and recommend ordinances and regulations; same being the TONTITOWN PLANNING AREA. The PLANNING AREA shall be the area in which provisions of Tontitown’s subdivision regulations shall apply.
PLANNING COMMISSION. The Planning Commission of the City of Tontitown.
PLANNING OFFICIAL. The staff person having overall responsibility for administering these regulations.
PLAT. A map or chart indicating the subdivision or re-subdivision of land, intended to be filed for record.
PLAT, CORRECTION. A correction to an existing plat that is necessary due to an incorrect legal description or scribner errors.
PLAT, FINAL. A finished drawing showing completely and accurately all legal and engineering information and certifications necessary for recording, and includes the bill of assurance, if applicable.
PLAT, PRELIMINARY. A drawing which shows the proposed layout of a subdivision in sufficient detail to indicate unquestionably its workability in all aspect, but is not in final form for recording and the details are not completely computed.
PLAT, SKETCH. An informal plan of the proposed subdivision to be submitted by the developer during the pre-application process, the purpose being to acquaint the developer with city plans and policies relevant to the proposed subdivision.
PRE-APPLICATION CONFERENCE. A meeting between planning officials and a developer to give the developer an opportunity to obtain advice concerning a proposed development or subdivision to avoid unnecessary costs or delays, and to obtain informal guidance to prevent conflicts. This conference takes place before submission of the formal application for approval of a plan or a preliminary plat.
PRIVATE STREET. A street or roadway that is privately owned and maintained, and has not sought public funding in the past for the maintenance of said road. PRIVATE ROADS will not prohibit access by any police, emergency, utility, or other service vehicles.
PROPERTY LINE ADJUSTMENT. A transfer or adjustment of a property line that does not create a separate, new lot. A PROPERTY LINE ADJUSTMENT may or may not dedicate right-of-way or utility easements.
PROTECTIVE COVENANTS. Property restrictions established by the subdivider and recorded with the final plat of the subdivision.
PUBLIC UTILITY. A public or private business organization, subject to governmental regulation, that provides an essential commodity or service, such as water, sewer, natural gas, electricity, transportation, or communication, to the public.
QUORUM COURT. The Washington County Quorum Court (13 Justices of Peace elected by district).
REPLAT. The act of platting the lots, parcels, and easements in a recorded subdivision or partition plat to achieve a reconfiguration of the existing subdivision or partition plat, or to increase or decrease the number of lots in the subdivision.
RE-SUBDIVISION. The changing of any existing lot or lots of any subdivision plat previously recorded with the County Circuit Clerk. RE-SUBDIVISION includes new townhouse or condominium projects, and the conversion of rental townhouses or condominiums into private ownership. RE-SUBDIVISION also includes lots, parcels, units and real property converted to time-share units or estates.
RETENTION POND. A stormwater management facility designed to protect against flooding and, in some cases, downstream erosion by storing additional water in the form of stormwater runoff for a limited period of time.
(1) Additional water stored by a detention pond is subsequently released at a controlled rate equal to or less than the pre-development runoff rate that the facility is designed to maintain.
(2) A RETENTION POND is designed to retain water at all times and is sometimes referred to as a WET DETENTION POND.
RIGHT-OF-WAY. The usage of the term RIGHT-OF-WAY for land platting purposes shall mean that every right-of-way hereafter established and shown on a final plat. Every RIGHT-OF-WAY is to be separate and distinct from the lots or parcels adjoining such right-of-way and not included within the dimensions or areas of such lots. RIGHTS-OF-WAY intended for streets, trails, water mains, sanitary sewers, storm drains, or any other use involving maintenance by a public agency or utility company, shall be dedicated to public use by the maker of the plat on which such right-of-way is established.
SETBACKS, BUILDING. Lines imposed on each lot or parcel where the placement of structures is restricted.
SKETCH PLANS. See PLATS, SKETCH.
STAFF. Employees and designees of the City of Tontitown.
STREET. A general term denoting a public or private thoroughfare that affords the principal means of access to abutting property. The term includes all facilities that normally occur within the right-of-way; it shall also include such other designations as highway, thoroughfare, parkway, road, throughway, pike, avenue, boulevard, land, place, court, but shall not include an alley or a pedestrian way. For the purpose of this chapter, STREETS shall be classified as follows.
(1) ARTERIAL STREETS. Those streets designated as arterial, major and minor, on the Tontitown Master Street Plan.
(2) COLLECTOR STREETS. Those streets designated as collector and sub-collector streets on the Master Street Plan.
(3) RESIDENTIAL STREETS. Streets that are used primarily for access to abutting properties.
(4) LOOP STREETS. Minor streets that begin from one minor street and curve to end on the same minor street.
(5) CUL-DE-SAC. Short local streets having one end open to traffic and being permanently terminated at the other end by a circular area which permits vehicles to turn around without having to stop and back up.
(6) DEAD-END STREETS. Those streets that have terminated at one end where vehicles must stop and back up in order to turn around.
STREET, EXISTING. Any street that has a minimum width of 18 feet of hard surfaced material. Gravel roads or roads which are in extremely poor condition will not qualify as an EXISTING STREET for purposes of this regulation.
STREET WIDTH. The width of the street used for traffic or when curbs are used the distance from back of curb to back of curb.
STRUCTURE. Anything inanimate constructed or erected with a fixed location on the ground, or attached to something having a fixed location on the ground including roof overhangs, carports, garages, porches, and other similar structures.
SUBDIVIDER. Any person dividing or proposing to divide land so as to constitute a subdivision and includes any agent of the subdivider.
SUBDIVISION. The division of any parcel of land into separate lots, units or building sites for the purpose (whether immediate or future) of sale or building development.
SUBDIVISION, MINOR. A subdivision of land into five or less lots, parcels or other divisions.
SURVEYOR. See LAND SURVEYOR.
SWALE, DRAINAGE. A shallow trough-like depression that carries water mainly during rainstorms.
TERRITORIAL JURISDICTION. The territory surrounding the city, as defined in state planning statutes, within which the city’s planning area is constrained.
TRACT. A specified or limited area of land, normally measured by a metes and bounds description.
USE. The purpose for which land or a building is designed, arranged, or intended, or for which either is, or may be, occupied or maintained.
USGS. United States Geological Survey.
UTILITY EASEMENT. A grant by a property owner or trustee for the use by the public, a corporation, or certain persons of a described area of land by public or private utilities.
VACATION. Legal abandonment of a platted street right-of-way or easement.
VARIANCE. An official dispensation to act contrary to a zoning regulation.
VERTICAL DATUM. Used to measure heights given on maps. The starting point for measuring these heights are mean sea level points established at coastal places.
WAIVER. Permission from the Planning Commission to depart from certain requirements herein.
WATERCOURSE (WET OR DRY). A running stream of water having a bed and banks; or the easement one may have in the flowing of such a stream in its accustomed course. A WATERCOURSE may sometimes be dry.
ZONING ORDINANCE. Laws that control the use of land within the city.
(Ord. 2013-04-417, passed 4-2-13; Am. Ord. 2013-09-440, § 152.200.01, passed 9-3-13; Am. Ord. 2014-12-488, passed 12-2-14; Am. Ord. 2017-12-668, passed 12-5-17)