For the purpose of this Title, certain terms and words are hereby defined. Words used in the present tense shall include the future; the singular number shall include the plural and the plural the singular; and the word "shall" is mandatory and not directory.
ACCESSORY USE OR BUILDING: A use or structure subordinate to the principal use of a building or land on the same lot or parcel of ground and serving a purpose customarily incidental to the use of the principal building or use of land.
ALTERATIONS, STRUCTURAL: Any change in the supporting members of a building such as bearing walls, columns, beams or girders.
APARTMENT: A room or suite of rooms used as the dwelling of a family, including bath and culinary accommodations, located in a building in which there are three (3) or more such rooms or suites.
APARTMENT HOUSE: A building arranged, intended or designed to be occupied by three (3) or more families living independently of each other.
BASEMENT: A story having part but not more than one-half (1/2) its height below grade. A basement is counted as a story for the purpose of height regulation.
BOARDING HOUSE: A building other than a hotel where, for compensation and by arrangement, meals or lodging and meals are provided for three (3) of more persons.
BUILDING, HEIGHT OF: The vertical distance from the grade to the highest point of the coping of a flat roof or to the deck line of a mansard roof, or the mean height level between eaves and ridge for gable, hip and gambrel roofs.
BUILDING (STRUCTURE): Anything constructed, erected or built, the use of which requires more or less permanent location on the ground and designed for the support, enclosure, shelter or protection of persons, animals, chattels or property of any kind, including but without limiting the generality of the foregoing, installations such as signs, billboards, radio towers, and other facilities not designed for storage of property or occupancy by persons.
CELLAR: A story having more than one-half (1/2) of its height below grade. A cellar is not included in computing the number of stories for the purpose of height measurement.
COMMISSION: The Planning and Zoning Commission of the City of West Liberty.
DWELLING: Any building or portion thereof which is designed for the use exclusively for residential purposes.
DWELLING, MULTIPLE: A building designed for or occupied exclusively by more than two (2) families.
DWELLING, SINGLE-FAMILY: A building designed for or occupied by one family.
DWELLING, TWO-FAMILY: A building designed for or occupied exclusively by two (2) families.
FAMILY: One or more persons occupying a premises and living as a single housekeeping unit, whether or not related to each other by birth or marriage, as distinguished from a group occupying a boarding house, lodging house or hotel.
FARM: An area which is used for the growing of the usual farm products such as vegetables, fruits and grains, and their storage on the area, as well as for the raising thereon of the usual farm poultry and farm animals. The term "farming" includes the operating of such area for one or more of the above uses with the necessary accessory uses for treating or storing the produce; provided, however, that the operation of any such accessory uses shall be secondary to that of the normal farming activities and such accessory uses do not include the feeding of garbage or offal to swine or other animals, or commercial feeding of animals or poultry in confined lots or buildings.
FRONTAGE: All the property on one side of a street between two (2) intersecting streets (crossing or terminating), measured along the line of the street, or if the street is dead ended, then all of the property abutting on one side between an intersecting street and the dead end of the street.
GARAGE, PRIVATE: An accessory building designed or used for the storage of not more than four (4) motor-driven vehicles owned and used by the occupants of the building to which it is accessory. Not more than one of the vehicles may be a commercial vehicle of not more than two (2) tons' capacity.
GARAGE, PUBLIC: A building or portion thereof, other than a private or storage garage, designed or used for equipping, servicing, repairing, hiring, selling or storing motor-driven vehicles.
GRADE: The average level of the finished surface of the ground adjacent to the exterior walls of the building except when any wall approximately parallels and is not more than five feet (5') from a street line, then the elevation of the street at the center of the wall adjoining the street shall be grade.
HOME OCCUPATION: An occupation or a profession which:
A. Is carried on in a dwelling unit; and/or accessory structure and
B. Is carried on by a member of the family residing in the dwelling unit; and
C. Is clearly incidental and secondary to the use of the dwelling unit for residential purposes; and
D. Does not employ more than one person outside the immediate family; and
E. Has no exterior display, no exterior storage of materials and no other exterior indication of the home occupation or variation from the residential character of the principal building; and
F. Does not occupy more than thirty percent (30%) of the area of one floor of the dwelling unit; and
G. Has not more than one exterior sign mounted flush with the face of the building, which sign shall not exceed three (3) square feet in area; and
H. Produces no offensive noise, vibration, smoke, dust, odors, heat or glare rendering such building or premises objectionable or detrimental to the residential character of the neighborhood.
(Home Occupation Definition - Ord. 20220517-03 - Sep. 23 Supp.)
INSTITUTION: A building occupied by a nonprofit corporation or a nonprofit establishment for public use.
JUNKYARD: Any area where waste, discarded, or salvaged materials are bought, sold, exchanged, baled or packed, disassembled, stored, abandoned, or handled, including the dismantling or "wrecking" of automobiles or other vehicles or machinery, house wrecking yards, used lumber yards and places or yards for storage of salvage house wrecking and structural steel materials and equipment, but not including areas where such uses are conducted entirely within a completely enclosed building.
KENNEL: An establishment where dogs are boarded for compensation or where dogs are bred or raised for commercial purposes or sale.
LOADING SPACE: A space within the main building or on the same lot providing for the standing, loading, or unloading of trucks, having minimum dimensions of twelve feet by thirty five feet (12' x 35') and vertical clearance of at least fourteen feet (14').
LOT: A parcel of land occupied or intended for occupancy by one main building together with its accessory buildings officially approved and having its principal frontage upon a dedicated street. The boundaries of the lots shall be determined by its lot lines.
LOT, CORNER: A lot abutting upon two (2) or more streets at their intersections.
LOT, DEPTH OF: The mean horizontal distance between the front and rear lot lines.
LOT, DOUBLE FRONTAGE: A lot having a frontage on two (2) nonintersecting streets, as distinguished from a corner lot.
LOT, INTERIOR: A lot other than a corner lot.
LOT OF RECORD: A lot which is a part of a subdivision, the plat of which has been recorded in the office of the County Recorder of Muscatine County, Iowa.
LOT, REVERSED CORNER: A corner lot, the side street line of which is substantially a continuation of the front line of the first lot to its rear.
LOT WIDTH: The width of a lot measured at the building line and at right angles to its depth.
MOBILE HOME: A vehicle used, or so originally constructed as to permit being used, as conveyance upon the public streets or highways and duly licensed as such, and constructed in such a manner as will permit occupancy thereof for human habitation, dwellings, or sleeping places for one or more persons; provided further, that this definition shall refer to and include all portable contrivances used or intended to be used generally for living and sleeping quarters and which is capable of being moved by its own power, towed or transported by another vehicle. This definition shall also include and apply to such vehicles or structures that are located on a permanent or temporary foundation but shall not include "mobile homes converted to real estate" as defined herein.
MOBILE HOME PARK: Any site, lot, field or tract of land upon which two (2) or more occupied mobile homes are harbored either free of charge or for revenue purposes and shall include any building, structure, vehicle or enclosure intended for use as part of the equipment of such mobile home park.
MOBILE HOME SUBDIVISION: A subdivision created for the purpose of, and restricted to the sale or lease of individual lots for occupancy by independent mobile homes, or mobile homes converted to real estate and having public streets, utilities, and other public facilities installation approved by the City Council in accordance with Title 11, Subdivisions, of this Code.
MOBILE HOMES CONVERTED TO REAL ESTATE: An unencumbered mobile home which has been attached to a permanent foundation on real estate owned by the mobile home owner, which has had the vehicular frame modified or destroyed, rendering it impossible to be reconverted to a mobile home and which has been inspected by the Assessor, the mobile home title, registration and license plates collected from the owner and the property entered on the tax rolls of Muscatine County.
NURSING HOME: A home for the aged, chronically ill or incurable persons in which three (3) or more persons not of the immediate family are received, kept and provided with food, or shelter and care, for compensation; but not including hospitals, clinics or similar institutions devoted primarily to the diagnosis, treatment or care of the sick or injured.
PARKING SPACE: A surfaced area, enclosed in the main building or in an accessory building, or unenclosed, having an area of not less than one hundred eighty (180) square feet, exclusive of driveways, permanently reserved for the temporary storage of one automobile and connected with a street or alley by a surfaced driveway which affords satisfactory ingress for automobiles.
PLACE: An open, unoccupied space or a public or private thoroughfare other than a street or alley permanently reserved as the principal means of access to abutting property.
SATELLITE ANTENNA: Any apparatus greater than thirty six inches (36") in diameter capable of receiving television or radio signals from orbiting satellites.
SIGN: Any structure or part thereof or device attached thereto or painted, or represented thereon, which shall display or include any letter, word, model, banner, flag, pennant, insignia, device or representation used as, or which is in the nature of an announcement, direction or advertisement. The word "sign" includes the word "billboard" or other political unit, or of any political, educational, charitable, philanthropic, civic, professional, religious or like campaign, drive, movement or event.
STORY: That portion of a building, other than a cellar, 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 the floor and the ceiling next above it.
STORY, HALF: A partial story under a gable, hip or gambrel roof, the wall plates of which on at least two (2) opposite exterior walls are not more than three feet (3') above the floor of such story, except that any partial story used for residence purposes, other than for a janitor or caretaker or his family, or by a family occupying the floor immediately below it, shall be deemed a full story.
STREET: A public or private thoroughfare which affords the principal means of access to abutting property.
STRUCTURE (BUILDING): Anything constructed, erected or built, the use of which requires more or less permanent location on the ground and designed for the support, enclosure, shelter or protection of persons, animals, chattels or property of any kind, including, but without limiting the generality of the foregoing, installations such as signs, billboards, radio towers, and other facilities not designed for storage of property or occupancy by persons.
TRAILER CAMP OR TOURIST CAMP: An area providing spaces for two (2) or more travel trailers, camping trailers or tent sites for temporary occupancy, with necessary incidental services, sanitation and recreation facilities to serve the traveling public.
TRAVEL TRAILER OR CAMPING TRAILER: A vehicle without motive power used or so manufactured or constructed as to permit its being used as a conveyance upon the public streets and highways and so designed to permit the vehicle to be used as a place of human habitation by one or more persons. Such vehicle shall be customarily or ordinarily used for vacation or recreation purposes; if used as a place of human habitation for more than ninety (90) days in any twelve (12) month period, it shall be classed as a mobile home, regardless of the size. This definition shall also include house cars and camp cars having motive power and designed for temporary occupancy as defined herein.
YARD: An open space between a building and the adjoining lot lines unoccupied and unobstructed by any portion of a structure from thirty inches (30") above the ground upward, except as otherwise provided herein. In measuring a yard for the purpose of determining the width of a side yard, the depth of a front yard, or the depth of the rear yard, the minimum horizontal distance between the lot lines and the main building shall be used.
YARD, FRONT: A yard extending across the front of a lot and being the minimum horizontal distance between the street or place line and the main building or any projections thereof other than the projections of the usual uncovered steps, uncovered balconies, or uncovered porch. On corner lots the front yard shall be considered as parallel to the street upon which the lot has its least dimension, except where the owner shall elect to front his building on the street parallel to the lot line having the greater dimension.
YARD, REAR: A yard extending across the rear of a lot and being the required minimum horizontal distance between the rear lot line and the rear of the main building or any projections thereof other than the projections of uncovered steps, unenclosed balconies or unenclosed porches. On all lots the rear yard shall be in the rear of the front yard.
YARD, SIDE: A yard between the main building and the side line of the lot and extending from the required front yard to the required rear yard, and being the minimum horizontal distance between a side lot line and the side of the main building or any projection thereto. (Ord. 94-69, 11-18-1969; amd. Ord. 6-85, 9-17-1985; Ord. 1-96, 1-16-1996; 1998 Code)