For the purpose of this chapter, the following definitions shall apply unless the context clearly indicates or requires a different meaning.
APPEAL. A request for a review of the interpretation or application of any provision of this chapter.
AREA OF SHALLOW FLOODING. A designated AO or AH Zone on the city’s Flood Insurance Rate Map (FIRM) with a 1% or greater annual chance of flooding.
(1) AO Zones have a base flood depth that ranges from one foot to three feet above the natural ground; a clearly-defined channel does not exist; the path of flooding is unpredictable, and, velocity flow may be evident.
(2) AO is characterized as sheet flow; AH indicates ponding and is shown with standard base flood elevations.
AREA OF SPECIAL FLOOD HAZARD (SFHA). The land in the floodplain within a community subject to a 1% or greater chance of flooding in any given year. Zone designations on FIRMs include the letters A, AE, AO, and AH, also known as the SPECIAL FLOOD HAZARD AREAS (SFHA).
BASE FLOOD. The flood having a 1% chance of being equaled or exceeded in any given year (also referred to as the 100-YEAR FLOOD). Designated on flood insurance rate maps by the letters A or V.
BASE FLOOD ELEVATION (BFE). The elevation of surface water resulting from a flood that has a 1% chance of equaling or exceeding that level in any given year.
BASEMENT. Any area of the building having its floor subgrade (below ground level) on all sides.
CRITICAL FACILITY. A facility for which even a slight chance of flooding might be too great. CRITICAL FACILITIES include, but are not limited to, schools, nursing homes, hospitals, police, fire, and emergency response installations, and installations which produce, use, or store hazardous materials or hazardous waste.
DEVELOPMENT. Any human-made change to improved or 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 located within the area of special flood hazard.
ELEVATED BUILDING. For insurance purposes, a nonbasement building which has its lowest elevated floor raised above ground level by foundation walls, shear walls, posts, piers, pilings, or columns.
ELEVATION CERTIFICATE. The official form (FEMA Form 81-31) used to track development, provide elevation information necessary to ensure compliance with this chapter, and determine the proper insurance premium rate with FEMA Form 81-31 § B completed by the city.
EXISTING MANUFACTURED HOME PARK OR SUBDIVISION. 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) is completed before the effective date of the adopted floodplain management regulations.
EXPANSION TO AN EXISTING MANUFACTURED HOME PARK OR SUBDIVISION. 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 INSURANCE RATE MAP (FIRM). An official map on which the Federal Insurance Administration has delineated both the areas of special flood hazards and the risk premium zones applicable to the city, which has been adopted by the city.
FLOOD INSURANCE STUDY (FIS). Means the official report provided by the Federal Insurance Administration that includes flood profiles, the flood boundary-floodway map, and the water surface elevation of the base flood.
FLOOD OR FLOODING. Means a general and temporary condition of partial or complete inundation of normally dry land areas from:
(1) The overflow of inland or tidal waters;
(2) The unusual and rapid accumulation of runoff or surface waters from any source; and
(3) Mudslides, as defined in 44 C.F.R. § 59.1.
FLOOD PROTECTION ELEVATION (FPE). The elevation to which structures and uses within the SFHA are required to be elevated or floodproofed. The FPE for the city is base flood elevation plus one foot of freeboard.
FLOODWAY (OR REGULATORY 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 one foot.
FREEBOARD. A factor of safety usually expressed in feet above a flood level for the purposes of floodplain management. FREEBOARD tends to compensate for the many unknown factors that could contribute to flood heights greater than the height calculated for a selected-size flood and floodway conditions, such as wave action, obstructed bridge openings, debris and ice jams, and the hydrologic effects of urbanization in a watershed.
HIGHEST ADJACENT GRADE (HAG). The highest natural elevation of the ground surface prior to construction, adjacent to the proposed walls of a structure. Refer to the FEMA Elevation Certificate for HAG related to building elevation information.
HISTORIC STRUCTURE. Means any structure that is:
(1) Listed individually in the National Register of Historic Places (a listing maintained by the Department of the 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 of the Interior to qualify as a registered historic district;
(3) Individually listed on a State Inventory of Historic Places within the city with historic preservation programs that have been certified either:
(a) By an approved state program, as determined by the Secretary of the Interior; or
(b) Directly by the Secretary of the Interior in states without approved programs.
INCREASED COST OF COMPLIANCE (ICC). A flood insurance claim payment in an amount to be established by resolution of the City Council directly to a property owner for the cost to comply with floodplain management regulations after a direct physical loss caused by a flood. Eligibility for an ICC claim can be through a single instance of substantial damage or as a result of cumulative substantial damage, as defined herein. More information can be found in FEMA ICC Manual No. 301.
LOWEST FLOOR. The lowest floor of the lowest enclosed area (including basement). An unfinished or flood-resistant enclosure, usable solely for the parking of vehicles, building access, or storage in an area other than a basement area, is not considered a building’s LOWEST FLOOR. Provided, such enclosure is not built so as to render the structure in violation of the applicable nonelevation design requirements of this chapter found at § 152.41 (that is, provided there are adequate flood ventilation openings).
MANUFACTURED HOME. A structure, transportable in one or more sections, which is built on a permanent chassis and is designed for use with or without a permanent foundation when attached to the required utilities. The term MANUFACTURED HOME does not include a recreational vehicle.
MANUFACTURED HOME PARK OR SUBDIVISION. Means a parcel (or contiguous parcels) of land divided into two or more manufactured home lots for rent or sale.
MAP. The Flood Hazard Boundary Map (FHBM) or the Flood Insurance Rate Map (FIRM) for a city issued by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).
NEW CONSTRUCTION. Structures for which the start of construction commenced on or after the effective date of this chapter, and includes any subsequent improvements to such structures.
NEW MANUFACTURED HOME PARK OR SUBDIVISION. 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) is completed on or after the effective date of this chapter adopted by the city.
PROGRAM. The National Flood Insurance Program authorized by 42 U.S.C. Chapter 50, § 4011, and any amendments thereto.
RECREATIONAL VEHICLE. A vehicle:
(1) Built on a single chassis;
(2) Four hundred square feet or less when measured at the largest horizontal projection;
(3) Designed to be self-propelled or permanently towable by a light duty truck; and
(4) Designed primarily not for use as a permanent dwelling but as temporary living quarters for recreational, camping, travel, or seasonal use.
REGULATORY FLOODWAY. See definition of FLOODWAY.
REPETITIVE LOSS. Flood-related damages sustained by a structure on two separate occasions during a ten-year period for which the cost of repairs at the time of each such flood event, on the average, equals or exceeds 25% of the market value of the structure before damage occurred.
SPECIAL FLOOD HAZARD AREA (SFHA). The land area covered by the floodwaters of the base flood as shown on FIRM. The SFHA includes Zones A, AO, and AH.
START OF CONSTRUCTION. Includes substantial improvement, as defined herein; the date the building permit was issued, provided the actual start of construction, repair, reconstruction, placement, or other improvement was within 180 days of the permit date.
(1) ACTUAL START.
(a) Either the first placement of permanent construction of a structure on a site, such as the pouring of slab or footings, the installation of piles, the construction of columns, or any work beyond the stage of excavation; or the placement of a manufactured home on a foundation.
(b) For a substantial improvement, the actual START OF CONSTRUCTION means the first alteration of any wall, ceiling, floor, or other structural part of a building, whether or not that alteration affects the external dimensions of the building.
(2) PERMANENT CONSTRUCTION. Does not include land preparation, such as clearing, grading, and filling; nor does it include the installation of streets and/or walkways; nor does it include excavation for a basement, footings, piers, or foundations or the erection of temporary forms; nor does it include the installation on the property of accessory buildings, such as garages or sheds not occupied as dwelling units or not part of the main structure.
STRUCTURE. A walled and roofed building, including a gas or liquid storage tank that is principally above-ground, as well as a manufactured home, and means as follows:
(1) A building with two or more outside, rigid walls and a fully-secured roof that is affixed to a permanent site;
(2) A MANUFACTURED HOME, also known as a MOBILE HOME, is a structure built on a permanent chassis, transported to its site in one or more sections, and affixed to a permanent foundation; or
(3) A TRAVEL TRAILER without wheels, built on a chassis and affixed to a permanent foundation, that is regulated under the city’s floodplain management and building ordinances, codes, rules, or regulations.
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 50% of the market value of the structure before the damage occurred.
SUBSTANTIAL IMPROVEMENT. Any repair, reconstruction, rehabilitation, addition, or other improvement of a structure, the cost of which equals or exceeds 50% of the market value of the structure.
(1) The term includes structures which have incurred substantial damage, regardless of the actual repair work performed, and either of the following:
(a) Before the improvement or repair is started; or
(b) If the structure has been damaged and is being restored, before the damage occurred. For the purposes of this definition, SUBSTANTIAL IMPROVEMENT is considered to occur when the first alteration of any wall, ceiling, floor, or other structural part of the building commences, whether or not that alteration affects the external dimensions of the structure.
(2) The term excludes:
(a) Any alteration of an historic structure, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, either individually or as a city, or a state’s Inventory of Historic Places; provided, the alteration will not preclude the structure’s continued designation as a historic structure; or
(b) Any project for improvement of a structure to correct existing violations of state or local Health Code, Sanitary Code, or Safety Code specifications which have been identified by the local code enforcement official and which are the minimum necessary to assure safe living conditions.
VARIANCE. A grant of relief from the Planning and Zoning Commission and/or City Council, from the requirements of this chapter that permits construction in a manner that would otherwise be prohibited by this chapter.
VIOLATION. The failure of a structure or other development to be fully compliant with this chapter.
(1) A structure or other development without the elevation certificate, other certifications, or other evidence of compliance required by this chapter or other federal or state statutes, rules, or regulations until such time as the documentation evidencing compliance can be provided to the city.
WATER DEPENDENT. A structure for commerce or industry that cannot exist in any other location and is dependent on the water by reason of the intrinsic nature of its operations.
(Prior Code, § 14-1-2) (Ord. 2015-02, passed 6-10-2015)