For the purpose of this chapter, the following definitions shall apply unless the context clearly indicates or requires a different meaning.
ABANDONMENT OF SURFACE MINING. A cessation of surface mining operation for a continuous period of time exceeding 2 consecutive years.
ACCESS. A means of egress and ingress for pedestrians and vehicles to the parcel to which access is required.
ACCESSORY STRUCTURE. A structure or building, the use of which is incidental and secondary to the principal structure or building on the same parcel.
ACCESSORY USE. A use which is incidental and secondary to the principal use on the same parcel.
AIRCRAFT LANDING FIELD. Any area of land used for the landing and take-off of aircraft, any appurtenant areas which are used for airport buildings or other airport facilities or rights-of-way, together with all airport buildings and facilities located thereon. Airport buildings include buildings used for maintenance, service or repair of aircraft.
AIRPORT HAZARD. Any structure, tree or use of land which exceeds height limits established by the airport imaginary surfaces.
AIRPORT IMAGINARY SURFACES. Those imaginary areas in space which are defined by the approach zone, transitional zone, horizontal surface, clear zone, and conical surface and in which any object extending above these imaginary surfaces is an obstruction.
AMENDMENT, LEGISLATIVE. A legislative amendment is an amendment to the Zoning Chapter to establish or change a specific policy related to uses, criteria, procedure or other ordinance provisions of substantial general applicability. A LEGISLATIVE AMENDMENT may apply to the zone map or text of the Zoning Chapter.
AMENDMENT, QUASI-JUDICIAL. A quasi-judicial amendment is a zone map amendment changing the zone map from 1 zone designation to another. A QUASI-JUDICIAL AMENDMENT applies to a specified tax lot or lots and results in the realignment of zone district boundaries.
ANTENNA ARRAY. One or more whips, panels, discs or similar devices used for the transmission or reception of radio frequency signals, which may include omni-directional antenna (whip), directional antenna (panel) and parabolic antenna (disc). The ANTENNA ARRAY does not include the support structure as defined herein.
ATTACHED WIRELESS COMMUNICATIONS FACILITY (ATTACHED WCF). An antenna array that is attached or affixed to an existing building or structure (including but not limited to a utility pole, sign or water tower), along with any transmission cables and accompanying pole or device that attaches or affixes the antenna array to the existing building or structure.
AUTOMOBILE SERVICE STATION. A use which includes the retail sale of motor fuels, lubricating oils and vehicle accessories and may include the servicing and repair of motor vehicles as an accessory use. An AUTOMOBILE SERVICE STATION is not a repair garage nor a body shop.
AUTOMOBILE REPAIR GARAGE. A use which provides for the repair and maintenance of motor vehicles, and includes any mechanical and body work.
AUTOMOBILE WRECKING YARD. An area of land used for the storage, wrecking, dismantling, disassembling or sale of inoperable motor vehicles, trailers or farm equipment, or parts thereof.
A-WEIGHTED. Specific weighting of the sound pressure level for the purpose of determining human response to sound as described in ANSI § 1.4-1983.
BASAL COVER. The vegetative cover or extent of cover found at the crown or base of a plant.
BILLBOARD. An off-premises sign or sign assemblage maintained as advertising rental space by a business enterprise.
BOARDING OF HORSES FOR PROFIT. The keeping, breeding, rehabilitation, feeding, training and management of horses for a fee.
BUILDING. A structure of a permanent nature having a fixed base on, or fixed connection to, the ground.
BUILDING INSPECTOR. The official designated by the county to enforce the applicable federal, state and county building codes.
BUILDING PERMIT. The certificate of compliance issued by the Valencia County Building Inspector.
CLERK. The Valencia County Clerk or the Clerk's duly authorized representative.
CLINIC. A place used for the care, diagnosis or treatment of sick, ailing, infirm or injured persons and those who are in need of medical or surgical attention, but who are not provided with board or room or kept overnight on the premises.
CLUB or LODGE. A building and/or facilities owned and operated for a social, educational, or recreational, scientific, benevolent or charitable purpose, to which membership is required for participation, but is not operated primarily for profit or to render a service which is customarily carried on as a business. A CLUB does not include a public or private kindergarten, school, college or research institution, daycare or rehabilitation facility of any kind.
COLLOCATION. Use of a common wireless communication facility (WCF) or common support structure by 2 or more wireless communications license holders or by 1 wireless communications license holder for more than 1 type of communications technology, or, placement of a WCF on a structure owned or operated by a utility or other public entity, or, placement of an attached WCF.
COMMISSION. The Valencia County Board of County Commissioners.
COMMUNITY SANITARY SEWER SYSTEM. A public or private sewage collection, treatment and disposal system, and all appurtenant improvements as approved by the State of New Mexico Environmental Department.
COMMUNITY WATER SUPPLY SYSTEM. A public or private water supply, treatment, storage, transmission and distribution system, and all appurtenant improvements as approved by the State of New Mexico. A COMMUNITY WATER SUPPLY SYSTEM includes a municipal water supply system.
COMPREHENSIVE PLAN. The generalized, coordinated land-use map and policy statement adopted by Valencia County as the Valencia County comprehensive plan (May, 1986) and all subsequent amendments thereto that covers all unincorporated land in Valencia County and addresses all functional and natural activities and systems in the unincorporated land. Land includes surface water. Coordinated means the needs of all government, semi-public and private agencies, and the citizens of Valencia County have been considered and accommodated to the greatest extent possible.
CONDITIONAL USE. A use not permitted outright in a zoning district but which may be allowed by permit, subject to review for compatibility with existing and anticipated future uses, and compliance with § 154.057 and any other applicable provisions of this chapter.
CONSTRUCTION. The placement of construction materials in a permanent position and fastened in a permanent manner. Where excavation, demolition, or removal of an existing structure has substantially begun preparatory to rebuilding, the excavation or demolition or removal shall be deemed to be construction, provided that work shall be carried on diligently. Installation of a septic tank/drain field shall be considered construction.
COUNTY. The unincorporated area of Valencia County, New Mexico.
DAY CARE FACILITY. An establishment or facility which has the primary function of providing care, services and supervision to 7 or more children for a period not exceeding 24 hours of any day; or any facility, as defined in the Public Health Act, NMSA § 24-1-1 et seq., as the same may be from time to time amended; or a facility that provides child care to children in a place other than the child's home, with or without compensation, except the home of a family day care provider.
DAY NURSERY. Any institution, establishment or place in which 3 or more children not of common parentage, under the age of 6 years, are commonly received for a period or periods not exceeding 12 hours for the purpose of being given board, care or training apart from their parents or guardians for compensation or reward.
DEPARTMENT. The Valencia County Code Enforcement Department is designated to enforce this chapter.
dB(A). Unit of sound level expressed in decibels (dB) as measured on the A-weighted scale.
DISCHARGES. Any measurable, natural or man-made, release of water, sediment or other particulates into the environment.
DISTURBED AREA. The area within the property which is altered by the mining and related activities, including but not limited to road, utility and facilities construction, and materials stockpiling areas.
DRAINAGE PLAN. A detailed plan prepared by a New Mexico registered professional engineer competent in the specialization of surface hydrology and hydraulics and which addresses drainage of stormwaters and other liquids on a particular area of surface or subsurface.
DWELLING.
(1) A building containing 1 dwelling unit designed for and occupied by 1 family only.
(2) The term DWELLING includes a mobile home but does not include a hotel, motel, travel trailer, boarding, lodging or rooming house, private hospital, rest home or nursing home or other accommodations used for transient occupancy.
DWELLING, DUPLEX. A building containing 2 dwelling units, designed for and occupied by not more than 2 families.
DWELLING, MULTI-FAMILY. A building containing 3 or more dwelling units, designed and occupied by 3 or more families, with the number of families in residence not exceeding the number of dwelling units.
DWELLING UNIT. One room or rooms connected together, constituting an independent housekeeping establishment designed and used for occupancy by 1 family, including dependent relatives, caretakers, and servants as appropriate.
EQUIPMENT FACILITY. Any accessory structure used to contain ancillary equipment for WCF which may include cabinets, small shelters, pedestals or other similar structures.
EXPLORATION. Any activity related to the determination of the geologic and economic extent of a sand and gravel or mineral resource, and includes both non-surface and surface disturbance activities, such as sonar sightings and test drilling, necessary to locate potential resource sites.
EXTRACTION. Includes any excavation made for producing oil, natural gas and/or geothermal resources and also includes activities and structures ancillary to the extraction operation including, but not limited to, pumping facilities, storage tanks, pipelines, waste ponds and equipment sheds.
FAMILY DAY CARE BUSINESS. An occupied dwelling in which a person(s) provides care, services, and supervision for at least 3 but not more than 6 children at any 1 time and for a period of not more than 24 hours of any day; or for any number of children from only 1 family other than the person's own family.
FARM USE. The current employment of land for the primary purpose of obtaining a profit in money by raising, harvesting and selling crops or the feeding, breeding, management and sale of, or the produce of, livestock, poultry, fur-bearing animals or honeybees or for dairying and the sale of dairy products or any other agricultural or horticultural use or animal husbandry or any combination thereof. FARM USE also includes the current employment of land for the primary purpose of obtaining profit in money by stabling or training equines including but not limited to providing riding lessons, training clinics and schooling shows. FARM USE includes the preparation, storage and disposal by marketing or otherwise of the products or by-products raised on the land for human or animal use. FARM USE includes the on-site construction and maintenance of equipment and facilities used for the activities described in the chapter.
FLOOD BASE. A flood, the level of which has a 1% change of being equaled or exceeded in any given year; commonly referred to as a 100-year flood.
FLOOD INSURANCE RATE MAP (FIRM). The official map on which the Federal Insurance Administration has delineated both the areas of special flood hazards (floodplain) and the risk premium zones.
FLOOD OBSTRUCTION. Any dam, wall, embankment, levee, dike, pile, abutment, projection, excavation, channel rectification, culvert, structure or matter which is in, along, across or projecting into any channel, watercourse or floodplain area, which may impede, retard or change the direction of the flow of water, either in itself or by catching or collecting debris carried by the water or which is placed where the flow of water might carry the same downstream to the damage of life or property.
FLOODPLAIN. The areas adjoining the Rio Grande river, arroyo or other waterway which may be subject to periodic inundation of floodwaters as defined in the FEMA and FIRM rate maps.
FLOODPROOFING. Any combination of structural and nonstructural additions, changes, or adjustments to properties and structures primarily for the reduction or elimination of flood damage potential to lands, water and sanitary facilities, structures and contents of buildings.
FLOOR AREA. The sum of the areas of each story of a building measured between the exterior walls of the building, but excluding garages and attic space providing headroom of less than 7 feet.
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.
FOLIAR COVER. The percentage of ground cover covered by the vertical projection of the aerial portion of plants and excluding small openings in the canopy.
FUGITIVE DUST. Particulate matter not emitted from a duct or stack which becomes airborne during operations or windy conditions.
GRADE. The average elevation of the finished ground elevation at the centers of all walls of a building, except that if a wall is parallel to and within 5 feet of a sidewalk, the sidewalk elevation nearest the center of the wall shall constitute the ground elevation.
GREENBELT. The area of land in the middle Rio Grande Valley, including the land east of the Belen Highline canal up to and including the Chical Highline canal on the east side of the Rio Grande River.
GROUND COVER The amount (measured as a percentage) of rock, litter and vegetative basal covering the ground. This further broken down into the components; such as percent litter, percent rock and percent basal cover.
HEIGHT. The vertical distance from the finished grade to the highest point of the structure.
HEIGHT, WCF. The vertical distance of a wireless communications facility (WCF) or support structure, as measured from the ground elevation at the base of the WCF or support structure to the top of the structure, including antenna array(s).
HISTORIC DISTRICT OR LANDMARK. A zone district overlay classification by the county of a site or area in the county that has historical interest and significance pursuant to NMSA § 3-22-1, et seq.
HOME OCCUPATION. Any occupation or activity involving off-site sales, the manufacture of a product, or the provision of a service that is clearly incidental and secondary to use of the premises for a dwelling. There shall be no exterior display, no exterior storage of materials, no nuisances emitted from the premises and no other exterior indication of the home occupation or variation from the residential character of the main building. The home occupation shall not be open to the public (clients, customers, patients, patrons, or similar individuals or groups) unless specifically approved as a conditional use. Only members of the residing family are employed, unless approved as a conditional use for up to two full or part-time employees. Not more than 25% of the floor area is devoted to the home occupation, nor more than 600 square feet of any accessory building.
HOSPITAL, PRIVATE. A use which provides for the care of the sick, ailing, infirm, injured or aged other than in a public hospital, and includes convalescent homes and nursing homes.
IMPULSE NOISE. Any single sound pressure peak (with either a rise time less than 200 milliseconds or total duration less than 200 milliseconds) or multiple sound pressure peaks (with either rise time less than 200 milliseconds or total duration less than 200 milliseconds) spaced at least by 200 millisecond pauses.
IMPOUNDMENTS. A closed basin, naturally formed or constructed, having the effect or purpose of water or sediment detention or retention.
KENNEL. A site providing for the accommodation of 15 or more dogs of licensable age under the Valencia County Dog Control Chapter, where dogs are kept for board, propagation, training or sale.
Ldn.
(1) Day/night equivalent sound level measured over a 24-hour period; it is further defined to be equivalent in terms of sound energy to the level of a continuous A-weighted sound level with 10 dB added to the night time levels.
(2) Ldn is computed pursuant to the United States Environmental Protection Agency Standards and Procedures.
LIVESTOCK. Domestic animals of types customarily raised or kept on farms for profit or other purposes, but not including household pets or poultry.
LIVESTOCK FEEDING YARD. An enclosure or structure of 1,000 square feet or more in ground area designed or used for the concentrated feeding or fattening of livestock for marketing; or an enclosure or structure of less than 1,000 square feet in ground area designed or used for the concentrated feeding or fattening of 5 or more head of livestock for marketing.
LIVESTOCK SALES YARD. An enclosure or structure designed or used for holding livestock for purposes of sale or transfer by auction, consignment or other means.
LOT. See parcel.
MANUFACTURED HOME.
(1) A MANUFACTURED HOME or modular home that is a single-family dwelling with a heated area of at least 840 square feet and at least 840 square feet, constructed in a factory to the standards of the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development, the National Manufactured Housing Construction and Safety Standards Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. 5401 et seq.) and the Housing and Urban Development Zone Code II or the Uniform Building Code, as amended to the date of the unit's construction, and installed consistent with the Manufactured Housing Act (NMSA §§ 60-14-1 et seq.).
(2) A MANUFACTURED HOME does not include any unit identified as a recreational vehicle by the manufacturer.
MINE or MINE SITE. The portion of the disturbed area on the property from which a sand and gravel resource or a mineral resource is removed or extracted by whatever means.
MINERAL RESOURCE. Sand, gravel, rock, stone, precious metals, oil, gas, coal, ore, soil or other earth materials.
MINERAL RESOURCE EXTRACTION. The initial removal or excavation of a mineral resource from the deposit area by mechanical techniques, including the removal of overburden and stockpiling of the raw material.
MINERAL RESOURCE PROCESSING. The blasting, crushing, washing, screening, weighing, sorting, blending or refining of mineral resources.
MINERAL RESOURCE SITE/OPERATION.
(1) A tract of land from which mineral resources are removed or excavated, stockpiled or processed for sale and intended for use off-premise as commercial or industrial products through retailing, wholesaling, contract purchase or other means.
(2) Operation does not include site preparation such as land clearing.
MINING. Includes the extraction of rock materials, sand and gravel materials and all activities typically associated with these uses, including but not limited to the transportation of materials by vehicles.
MINOR WCF. Includes those wireless communications facilities that do not exceed 60 feet in height, not including the support structure or any antenna arrays and are generally regarded as micro cells or repeater stations.
MITIGATION MEASURES. Any proposed or undertaken activity taken for the purpose of lessening or eliminating adverse impacts resulting from mining and related activities.
MOBILE HOME. A structure constructed for movement on the public highways that was constructed with sleeping, cooking and plumbing facilities, or that was originally is intended for human occupancy, that may be used for residential purposes, and that was constructed between 1-1-1962, and 6-15-1976, and met the construction requirements of the New Mexico Manufactured Home Association Regulations in effect at the time of construction.
MOBILE HOME PARK. An area of land on which spaces or lots are leased or rented for occupancy of mobile homes for habitation for periods of 30 days or more, and which contains junctions for utilities.
MOTEL. One or more attached or detached buildings containing housekeeping or sleeping units designed and used for the temporary accommodation of tourists or transients with off-street parking space for each unit.
MULCH. Vegetation residues or other materials that aid in stabilizing soils and conserving soil moisture.
NATIVE VEGETATION. Indigenous vegetation.
NOISE SENSITIVE ZONE. Areas where ensuring of exceptional quiet is of importance during day and night hours. Noise sensitive activities include, but are not limited to, operations of schools; libraries open to the public, churches, hospitals and nursing homes.
NON-CONFORMING USE. A building, structure or use which was legally established prior to the adoption of any provision of this chapter with which the building, structure or use does not comply.
OFFICIAL ZONING MAP. The zoning map and any amendments thereto adopted as part of this chapter as amended, as described in § 154.021.
OPEN SPACE. Any land so designated by the comprehensive plan, or any land area, the preservation of which in its present use would:
(1) Conserve and enhance natural or scenic resources;
(2) Protect air, streams or water supply;
(3) Promote conservation of soils or wetlands;
(4) Conserve landscaped areas, such as public or private golf courses, which reduce pollution and enhance the value of abutting or neighboring property;
(5) Enhance the value to the public of abutting or neighboring parks, forests, wildlife preserves, nature reservations or sanctuaries or other open space;
(6) Enhance recreation opportunities;
(7) Preserve historic sites;
(8) Promote orderly urban or rural development; or
(9) Retain in their natural state tracts of land, on the conditions as may be reasonably required by Valencia County.
OVERBURDEN. Consolidated or unconsolidated materials of any nature, that overly a mineral resource deposit, including sand and gravel.
OWNER. An owner in fee simple of land, a purchaser or seller of land pursuant to a recorded real estate contract, or the authorized agent of the same.
OWNER(S) OF RECORD.
(1) As pertaining to property on which mining is taking place is defined by any 1 or a combination of the relationship outlined in (a) and (b) below;
(a) Being a permittee of a mining or a sand gravel operation;
(b) Based on instruments of ownership or voting securities, owning of record in excess of 50% of an entity; or,
(c) Having other relationships which give 1 person authority directly or indirectly to control the manner in which an applicant, an operator, or other entity conducts mining or sand and gravel operations.
(2) The following relationships constitute ownership or control unless it can be demonstrated that the person subject to the presumption does not in fact have the authority directly or indirectly to control the manner in which the relevant mining or sand and gravel operation is conducted:
(a) Being an officer or director or an entity;
(b) Being the operation of a mining or a sand and gravel operation;
(c) Having the ability to commit the financial or real property assets or working resources of an entity;
(d) Being a general partner in a partnership;
(e) Based on the instruments of ownership or the voting securities of a corporate entity, owning a record 10 through 50% of the entity; or
(f) Owning or controlling the mineral or sand and gravel resources to be mined by another person under lease, sublease or other contract and having the right to receive mineral resources or sand and gravel after mining or having authority to determine the manner in which that person or another person conducts a mining or sand and gravel mining operation.
PARCEL or LOT. A unit of land, excluding any public right-of-way, created by an authorized subdivision or partitioning of land or that was created by deed or land sale contract and was recorded or platted with the acknowledgment by signature of the County Clerk.
PARCEL COVERAGE. The area of a parcel covered by a building or buildings expressed as a percentage of the total area.
PARCEL LINE, FRONT. Any boundary line separating the parcel from a public road. Where a parcel has no frontage on a public road, the front parcel line is the line of the easement or private road which serves the parcel and which is nearest to the principal dwelling, if any.
PARCEL LINE, REAR. The boundary line or lines most distant from the front parcel line and not intersecting a front parcel line.
PARK. Any public or private land reserved for recreational, educational, cultural, or open space uses.
PARKING SPACE, OFF-STREET. A space adequate for parking 1 automobile with room for opening doors on both sides, together with properly related access to a road or alley and maneuvering room.
PERFORMANCE BOND. A type of a contract bond, either in surety or in guarantee which contains the promise of a third party, (usually a bonding company) to pay for the cost of completion or performance of conditions of approval under the chapter and which protects the county against any loss due to inability or refusal of an applicant, petitioner, association, or developer from performing the conditions of approval under this chapter.
PERMITTED USE. A use permitted in a zoning district which complies with all of the regulations applicable in that district.
PERMANENT FOUNDATION. Constructed or assembled components consisting of durable materials (i.e. concrete, masonry, or other approved materials), and are required to be constructed on-site and shall have attachment points to anchor and stabilize the manufactured or mobile home. The design of the foundation shall be approved by the Design Approval Primary Inspection Agency of the Housing and Urban Development, or it shall be designed by a licensed professional engineer who has expertise in the field in accordance with the manufacturer's specifications.
PLACE OF PUBLIC ASSEMBLY. A structure or place which the public may enter for purposes as deliberation, education, worship, shopping, entertainment, amusement, awaiting transportation or similar activity.
PLANNED DEVELOPMENT. A development which includes mixed uses and mixed densities approved as a zone to combine site-specific design, the purpose of which is to allow design flexibility, application of new technology and/or other chapter modifications in exchange for providing site improvements, administrative mechanisms and other amenities not required of a typical development.
P&Z. The Valencia County Planning and Zoning Commission.
POST-MINING LAND USE. Specific uses or management-related activities that follow closure of a mine.
PRINCIPAL DWELLING. The primary dwelling on any parcel.
PRINCIPAL USE. The primary use of a lot or parcel, which may be either a permitted or conditional use.
PROPERTY. Lands that have a legal description and recorded ownership attached, that are the subject in part or in whole to mining or proposed mining related activities.
PUBLIC RIGHT-OF-WAY. The area of land deeded, dedicated or reserved by plat, or otherwise acquired by the county, or the State of New Mexico, primarily for the general public use, for utilities, and for the movement of people, goods and vehicles.
RECLAMATION. Those activities taken to return mined and disturbed lands to an approved post-mining land use. These activities may include backfilling, grading, compacting, soil stabilization, reseeding, re-vegetation, and planting of nursery stock.
RECREATIONAL VEHICLE or RV. A travel trailer, camper, motor home, or other unit with or without motive power that is designed for human occupancy and to be used temporarily for recreational or emergency purposes, and that has a gross floor area not exceeding 400 square feet.
RECREATIONAL VEHICLE OR RV PARK. Any lot or tract developed primarily to provide parking and related services to 2 or more transient recreational vehicles on a fee basis.
RESIDENTIAL GROUP HOME. A residential treatment or training or an adult foster home licensed under the authority of the Department of Health pursuant to NMSA § 24-1- 1 et seq. which provides residential care alone or in conjunction with treatment or training or a combination thereof for 5 or fewer individuals who need not be related. Staff persons required to meet licensing requirements shall not be counted in the number of facility residents, and need not be related to each other or to any resident of the residential facility.
RESIDENTIAL TRAILER. A structure constructed for movement on the public highways that has sleeping, cooking and plumbing facilities, that is intended for human occupancy, that is being used for residential purposes, and that was constructed before 1-1-1962.
ROAD. Any public or private access road, street, alley, highway, walkway easement or way platted, recorded or shown on any official map, whether or not the street is actually developed, used or dedicated.
ROAD DEPARTMENT. The Valencia County Road Department, otherwise referred to as the ROAD DEPARTMENT.
SAND AND GRAVEL. Rock or similarly occurring consolidated or unconsolidated, naturally occurring materials, including but not limited to, stone, sand, gravel, aggregate and riprap.
SCHOOL. A public or private elementary school, grade school, middle school, junior high school, high school, college or university. The term SCHOOL as used in this chapter does not include commercial operations which offer classes of a primarily recreational nature.
SEARCH RING. A limited geographical area with an approximate radius of mile, depending upon terrain and technology, around the engineering defined ideal site for a wireless communication facility (WCF), within which the WCF could suitably function.
SECONDARY DWELLING. A dwelling other than a principal dwelling, used for a caretaker, health care or farm worker residence, guest house or similar use accessory to the principal residence.
SETBACK. The horizontal distance measured perpendicularly from the edge of right-of-way of a public road, or 30 feet from the centerline of a public road, whichever is furthest, to the nearest point of any structure on any parcel.
SIGN. An identification, description, illustration or device which is affixed to or represented directly or indirectly, upon land, or a building or structure, and which attracts the attention of, or conveys a message to any person not on the premises on which the sign is located in respect to a product, service, activity, person, institution, place or business, provided, however, that the following shall not be included in the application of sign regulations herein:
(1) Signs not more than 2 square feet in area and bearing only property numbers, postal box numbers, names of occupants of premises or other identification of premises, or traffic directional signs, providing the signs do not have commercial connotations;
(2) Flags and insignia of any government, except when displaced in connection with commercial promotion;
(3) Legal notices, or identification, informational or directional signs erected or required by governmental bodies;
(4) Integral decorative or architectural features of buildings, except letters, trademarks, moving parts or moving lights; and sculpture and other work of fine art created for appreciation rather than advertising; or
(5) Signs directing and guiding traffic and parking on private property, but bearing no advertising matter.
SIGN, FLASHING. Any illuminated sign within or upon which the illumination is not maintained stationary and constant in intensity and color.
SIGN, ILLUMINATED. Any sign designated to give forth any artificial light or designed to be illuminated by artificial light from another source, and does not include a flashing sign.
SIGN, OFF-PREMISE. A sign which advertises goods, products, services, accommodations or activities which are not sold, manufactured, distributed or made available on or from the premises.
SIGN, PROJECTING. Any sign attached to a structure and projecting perpendicularly out from the wall or roof to which it is attached.
SIGN, SURFACE AREA. The surface area of a sign shall be computed as including the entire area within a regular geometric form or combination of regular geometric forms comprising all of the display area on 1 side of any free standing sign or roof or wall mounted sign with backing, or the area resulting from encircling the lettering and all of the other elements of signage displayed on roof or wall mounted signs without backing. Frames and structural members not bearing advertising matter shall not be included in computation of surface area.
SIGN WITH BACKING.
(1) Any sign that is displayed upon, against or through any material or colored surface or backing that forms an integral part of the display, and that differentiates the overall display from the background against which it is placed.
(2) Words, letters, and other advertising elements attached directly to a roof or wall shall not be considered a sign with backing.
SPECIAL USES. Those specific types of uses identified specifically in §§ 154.135 et seq. of this chapter, which, due to their unique characteristics, are subject to the particular requirements or standards provided in §§ 154.135 et seq., which may differ from or exceed those required of other uses in the same zoning district.
STRUCTURE. Something constructed or built and having a fixed base on, or fixed construction to the ground or another structure excepting utility poles.
STRUCTURAL ALTERATION. Any change to the supporting members of a building, including foundations, bearing walls or partitions, columns, beams, girders or any structural change in the roof or in the exterior walls.
SUITABLE MATERIAL. Soil, subsoil, or geologic material with sufficient nutrient content and that can be used to support vegetation in a post-mining land use.
SUPPORT STRUCTURE.
(1) Any structure designed and constructed specifically to support an antenna array, and may include a monopole, self-supporting (lattice) tower, guy-wire support tower and other similar structures.
(2) Any device used to attach an attached WCF to an existing building or structure shall be excluded from this definition.
TEMPORARY WCF. Any portable antenna array or attached wireless communication facility (WCF) that is designed for temporary placement and does not require the construction of a support structure.
USE. The purpose for which land or a building or structure is used, designed, arranged or intended, or for which it is occupied or maintained.
UTILITY. Any area of land or any structure used for the generation, storage conversion or transfer of energy or for communication facilities, such as telephone, telegraph, radio or television, or water distribution or wastewater system whether privately or publicly owned.
VARIANCE. A discretionary exception from this Zoning Chapter requirements to grant the property owner limited reasonable use of the land.
WIRELESS COMMUNICATIONS. Any wireless services as defined in the Federal Telecommunications Act which includes FCC licensed commercial wireless telecommunications services (PCS), specialized mobile radio (SMR) enhanced specialized mobile radio (ESMR), paging, and other similar services that currently exist or that may in the future be developed.
WIRELESS COMMUNICATIONS FACILITY (WCF). Any unstaffed facility for the transmission and/or reception of wireless communications services, usually consisting of an antenna array, transmission cables, equipment facilities, and a support structure.
WCF. Wireless communications facility.
YARD. A required open area unoccupied and unobstructed by any structure or portion of a structure at the general ground level of the graded parcel upward; provided, however, that fences, walls, poles, posts and other customary yard accessories, ornaments and furniture may be permitted in any yard subject to height limitations and requirements limiting obstruction of visibility.
YARD, FRONT. Any yard abutting a street or lying parallel to the front parcel line.
YARD, REAR. Any yard abutting a rear parcel line.
YARD, SIDE. Any yard abutting a side parcel line.
ZONING AUTHORITY. The Board of County Commissioners of Valencia County, or the Commission.
(Ord. 2004-05, passed 9-15-2004; Am. Ord. 01, passed 9-15-2004; Am. Ord. 07, passed 9-15-2004; Am. Ord. 2006-06, passed 6-16-2006; Am. Ord. 2017-03, passed 11-1-2017)