Words used in this Planning and Zoning Code are used in their ordinary English usage. However, for the purpose of this Planning and Zoning Code, certain words used herein are defined and whenever used in this Code shall have the meaning indicated in this section, except where the context clearly indicates a different meaning.
(a) The following are general terms of reference:
(1) “Building and Zoning Inspector” (or Inspector) means the official designated to administer the Planning and Zoning Code of the City of Willoughby, Ohio. Duties of the Building and Zoning Inspector may also be performed by a designated agent. (See Section 1105.02.)
(3) “City” means the City of Willoughby, Ohio.
(4) “City Engineer: means the individual or firm designated by the City to provide engineering expertise for reviewing and approving plans and plats. Reference to Engineer shall mean the City Engineer.
(7) “Date of passage: means the date upon which this Planning and Zoning Code, or any amendment thereto, was passed by Council.
(8) “Developer” means any individual, firm, association, corporation. trust or any other legal entity, including his agents, commencing proceedings under these regulations to effect a subdivision of land for himself or for another.
(9) “District” means a part of the City wherein regulations of this Planning and Zoning Code are uniform as classified by the provisions of Chapter 1121.
(10) “Municipal” means anything of or pertaining to the City.
(11) “Public notice” means advance notice of a hearing or proceeding as prescribed in this Code which states the subject matter to be heard and the time and place of the hearing or proceeding, printed once in a newspaper of general circulation in the City.
(b) Certain general terms are hereby defined as follows:
(1) “Abutting” means having a common border with, or being separated from, such a common border by a right-of-way, alley, or easement.
(2) “Accessory building” means a subordinate building which is detached from, but located on the same lot as, the principal building which is incident to that of the principal building or use, and which is constructed subsequent to the main use of the principal building or land.
(3) "Adult day-care facility" means an establishment that during any part of the normal business day provides supervised educational, recreational and social activities to elderly and/or handicapped adults, but not including persons suffering from acute or chronic alcoholism or other drug dependency and persons who regularly require restraint.
(Ord. 2020-21. Passed 2-18-20.)
(4) “Alcoholic beverage” means a liquor or brew containing alcohol as the active agent.
(Ord. 2016-50. Passed 5-3-16.)
(5) "Agriculture" means the cultivating of land for the raising or production of crops, flowers, vegetables, trees, ornamental plants or grapes; and the raising and keeping of horses and ponies.
(6) "Alley": See "Street".
(7) "Animal clinic" means a place where animals are given medical or surgical treatment and the boarding of animals is limited to short-term care incidental to the clinic use.
(8) "Antenna" means a system of electrical conductors that emit or receive radio waves.
(9) "Assisted Living Facility" means a licensed residential care facility for adults that provides rooms, supervision, meals, housekeeping, and personal care services as described in the Ohio Revised Code, and skilled nursing care as defined by the Ohio Revised Code but subject further to the limitation that such skilled nursing care shall not be administered to any one resident in excess of one hundred eighty (180) days for each period of three hundred sixty-five (365) days, to individuals who are dependent on the services of others by reason of age or physical or mental impairment and shall be the primary functions of the facility.
(10) "Auction" means a process of buying and selling goods or services to the public by offering them up for bid, taking bids, and then selling the items to the highest bidder on premises or internet. An electronic or internet auction is an e-business between auctioneers and bidders, which takes place on an electronic marketplace. It is an electronic commerce which occurs business to business, business to consumer, or consumer to consumer.
(11) "Automobile service station" (See also Gasoline Station) means a building, part of a building, structure or space which is used for the retail sale of lubricants and motor vehicle accessories, the routine maintenance and service and the making of repairs to motor vehicles, except that repairs described as major repairs in "garage, repair" shall not be permitted.
(12) "Automobile/truck rental agency" means the use of any building, land area or other premise for the leasing of automobiles, vans, and/or single axle trucks or trailers.
(13) "Basement" means a portion of a building partly or entirely underground whose ceiling or underpart of the floor above is four feet or less above the average finished ground elevation. The "average finished ground elevation" is the mean elevation of the finished grade around all of the exterior of the building.
(14) "Bed and breakfast" means an architecturally or historically significant building containing no more than seven guest rooms, in which lodging is provided and offered to the public for compensation at a daily rate and guest rooms are open to occupancy for periods of less than one week, and providing for occasional meals (usually breakfast) daily for guests. A bed and breakfast does not have kitchen facilities, except a group kitchen facility to serve all guests. The term "bed and breakfast" does not include: "rooming house", "hotel (or motel)", "inn", "restaurant-table service", or "restaurant counter service".
(15) "Block frontage" means all the property on one side of a street, between two streets which intersect such street or for a distance of 500 feet on either side of an existing or proposed building or structure, measured along the line of the street, or if the street is dead ended, then all of the properties abutting on one side between an intersecting street and the dead end of the street, but not including properties more than 500 feet distant on either side of an existing or proposed building or structure.
(16) "Brewpub" means a restaurant with an onsite micro production facility that sells 25 percent or more of its product on site.
(17) "Brewery, distillery or winery production facility" means an establishment that produces a quantity that exceeds the allowance for a "micro-brewery", "micro-distillery", or "micro-winery" production facility, as defined in this zoning code.
(18) "Buffer" means a combination of physical space and vertical elements, such as plants, berms, fences, or walls, the purpose of which is to separate and screen incompatible land uses from each other.
(19) "Building" means any structure having a roof supported by or suspended from columns or walls and which is completely enclosed to serve as a shelter or enclosure for persons, animals, chattels or property of any kind. The term "building" does not include any vehicle, trailer (with or without wheels) nor any removable device, such as furniture, machinery or equipment.
(20) "Building, attached" means a structure that shares at least four (4) lineal feet of common wall with an existing building. The existing building and building being attached shall be joined by a roof and permanent walls and shall be considered part of the existing building and subject to the requirements of the Ohio Building Code.
(21) "Building, detached" means a building surrounded by open space.
(22) "Building height" means the vertical distance from the grade to the highest point of the roof surface if it is a flat roof; to the deck line for a mansard roof; and to the mean height level between eaves and ridge line for gambrel, gable or hip roofs, each of which is measured to the average finished grade across the front of the building.
Figure 1. Building Height for Gambrel, Gable or Hip Roofs
(23) "Building line" means an imaginary linear extension of the building wall parallel to the street right-of-way line defining the limits of the front yard, or in the case of a corner lot, the side yard abutting the street.
(24) "Building, principal" means a building occupied by the main use or activity on the lot on which said building is located.
(25) "Business services" means any activity which renders services to other commercial or industrial enterprises, or which services and repairs appliances and machines used in homes and businesses and which involves only incidental retail sale for residential use.
(26) "Car sales agency" means any establishment engaged in activities such as displaying, offering for sale and selling motor vehicles at retail, and which may also include operating a service facility to perform repairs and maintenance on motor vehicles, offering for sale and selling motor vehicle parts at retail, and conducting all other acts that are usual and customary to the operation of a motor vehicle dealership. For purposes of this ordinance, possession of either a valid motor vehicle dealer franchise agreement or a motor vehicle dealers license, or both of these items, is not evidence that a person is operating as a car agency. Also for the purposes of this ordinance, the terms used herein not specifically defined in this ordinance shall be defined as in Ohio Revised Code Chapter 4517 and successors.
(27) "Car wash" means a building or enclosed area that provides facilities for washing and cleaning motor vehicles, which may use production line methods with a conveyor, blower, or other mechanical devices and/or which may employ hand labor.
(28) "Cellar": See "Basement".
(29) "Cemetery" means land used or intended to be used for the burial of the human dead and dedicated for cemetery purposes, including columbariums and mausoleums, when operated in conjunction with and within the boundaries of such cemetery.
(30) "Child day-care" means administering to the needs of infants, toddlers, pre-school children, and school children outside of school hours by persons other than their parents or guardians, custodians, or relatives by blood, marriage, or adoption for any part of the twenty-four-hour day in a place or residence other than a child's own home.
(31) "Child day-care center" means any place other than a child day-care home in which child day-care is provided.
(32) "Child day-care home" means a permanent residence of the provider in which child day-care is provided for one to six children at one time and in which no more than three children may be under two years of age at one time. In counting children for the purposes of this definition, any children under six years of age who are related to the provider and who are on the premises of the child day-care home shall be counted. The term "day-care home" does not include a residence in which the needs of children are administered to, if all such children are siblings of the same immediate family and the residence is their home.
(33) "Clinic" means a building where human patients are admitted for examination and treatment by a group of physicians or dentists practicing medicine together, but who are not lodged overnight.
(34) "Commercial vehicle" means any motor vehicle licensed by the state as a commercial vehicle.
(35) "Commercial recreation, indoor" means an indoor facility for any number of recreational, athletic, sporting or entertainment uses such as but not limited to gymnasiums, game courts, exercise equipment, exercise and/or dance floor area, pools, locker rooms, spa, whirlpool or hot tub, interactive/participatory entertainment productions, indoor batting cages, and indoor tracks for motocross, mountain bikes, go-carts, and other motorized or non-motorized vehicles, and which may include an accessory retail shop for the sale of related equipment and refreshments.
(36) "Commercial recreation, outdoor" means any outdoor commercial activity that is related to the entertainment or sports industry such as outdoor commercial swimming pools (subject to the community pool provisions), miniature golf, golf courses, driving ranges, and similar activities. This includes a family fun center.
(37) "Conditional use": See "Use, Conditional".
(38) "Conditional use permit" means a permit issued by the Building Inspector upon approval by the City Planning Commission to allow a use other than a principally permitted use to be established within the district on a specific parcel. See also; Use, Conditional
(39) "Corner lot": See "Lot Types."
(40) "Court" means an open space other than a yard, bounded on two or more sides by exterior walls of the building.
(41) "Crematory Facility" means the physical location at which a cremation chamber is located and the cremation process takes place. It does not include an infectious waste incarceration facility or a solid waste incineration facility.
(42) "Density" means the number of dwelling units permitted per acre of land.
(43) "Dormitory" means a building used as group living quarters for a student body, religious order, or other group as an associated use to a college, university, boarding school, orphanage, convent, monastery, or other similar use. Dormitories do not include kitchen facilities, except a group kitchen facility to serve all residents. The term "dormitory" does not include "rooming house".
(44) "Drainage-way" means the land required for construction of storm water sewers or drainage ditches, or required along a natural stream or watercourse.
(45) "Drive-thru facility" means any portion of a building or structure from which business is transacted, or is capable of being transacted, directly with customers located in a motor vehicle during such business transactions. The term "drive-thru" shall also include "drive-up" and "drive-in" but shall not include Car Wash, Gasoline Station, and Automobile Service Station.
(46) "Dry-cleaning and laundry counter outlets" means a business that provides home-type washing, drying, and/or ironing machines for use by customers on the premises, or serves as a drop-off for dry-cleaning or laundry, but where no dry-cleaning processing is done on the premises.
(47) "Dwelling" means any building or portion thereof which is designed and used exclusively by one or more human occupants for the purpose of residing for an extended time. A dwelling may be comprised of more than one dwelling unit.
(48) "Dwelling, apartments" means a multi-family dwelling comprised of three or more dwelling units arranged side by side and/or one above the other, and each unit having a separate entrance or entrances connected to a common entrance.
(49) "Dwelling, attached one-family" means two or more dwelling units that are structurally attached to one another, side by side, and erected as a single building, each dwelling unit being separated from the adjoining unit or units by a party wall without openings extending from the basement floor to the roof and each such building being separated from any other building by space on all sides, and including such elements as separate ground floor entrances, services and attached garages. An attached one-family dwelling that contains three or more units is a multi-family dwelling. See also "Townhouse building" and "Townhouse unit".
(50) "Dwelling, multi-family" means a building or portion thereof designed for occupancy by three or more families living independently of each other in three or more dwelling units where the units are separated by party walls with varying arrangements of entrances.
(51) "Dwelling, one-family" means a building designed or arranged for use by a single family consisting of one dwelling unit only, separated from other dwelling units by open space.
Figure 2. Dwelling, One-Family
(52) "Dwelling, senior citizen apartments" means a building or group of buildings containing dwelling units for households whose heads, or spouses, or sole members are "older persons" as defined by the Older Persons Act of 1995.
(53) "Dwelling, two-family" means a building consisting of two dwelling units arranged, intended or designed to be occupied by two families only. The dwelling units may be either attached side by side or one above the other.
(54) "Dwelling unit" means a group of rooms arranged, maintained or designed to be occupied by a single family and consisting of a complete bathroom with toilet, lavatory and tub or shower facilities; one and one only complete kitchen or kitchenette with approved cooking refrigeration and sink facilities; approved living and sleeping facilities. All of these facilities shall be in contiguous rooms and used exclusively by such family.
(55) "Dwelling, zero lot line" means a one-family dwelling unit which is situated on the lot so that the side yard setback is zero on one side of the lot, and no portion of the dwelling, above or below ground or any architectural feature extends beyond the property line.
(56) "Easement" means a grant by a property owner for the specific use of land by the general public, a corporation or another person.
(57) "Employer on-site child care facility" means an enclosed area provided by an employer which is both subordinate to and located upon the same lot as the employer's main use and which, under State licensing, administers exclusively to the needs of its employees' infants, toddlers, pre-school children and school children during the employees' work schedule.
(58) "Enclosed space" means an area that is surrounded on all sides. See also "Building".
(59) "Envelope lot" See "Lot, Envelope".
(60) "Family" means one individual, any number of individuals related by blood, adoption or marriage plus no more than three unrelated individuals, or not more than four unrelated individuals occupying a dwelling unit as their primary place of residence and living as a single housekeeping unit, but not including groups occupying a hotel or motel or other transient lodging facility as herein defined. Notwithstanding the provisions of this definition, no family unit shall exceed in total number those persons permitted under the applicable provisions of the Housing Code describing required habitable floor and bedroom areas for each occupant.
(61) "Fence" means any structure composed of wood, iron, steel, masonry, stone or other material and erected in such a manner and in such location as to enclose, secure, partially enclose or secure, provide privacy, decorate, define or enhance all or any part of any premises.
(62) "Fleet vehicle" means one or more cars, trucks, vans, and/or other vehicles, including motorized equipment, owned or leased by a business, government agency or other organization, and which is used as part of the entity's operations, but not including a privately owned customer or employee vehicle.
(63) "Floor area, gross" means the total number of square feet of all floor space contained within the outside surface of the exterior walls of a building or from the center line of a common wall separating two buildings but not including space in cellars or basements, space in machinery penthouses or floor space used for accessory off-street parking. However, if the cellar or basement is used for business or commercial purposes, it shall be counted as floor area in computing off-street parking requirements.
(64) "Floor area of a dwelling unit" means the sum of the gross horizontal areas of a building devoted to residential use measured from the exterior faces of exterior walls or from the center line of common walls separating two dwelling units. "Floor Area of a Dwelling Unit" shall not include unfinished basement, attached garage, attic, terraces, breezeways, open porches and covered steps.
(65) "Floor area ratio" means the ratio between the number of square feet of floor area and the number of square feet of land in the lot.
(66) "Funeral home" means a building or part thereof used for human funeral services. Such building may contain space and facilities for:
A. Embalming and the performance of other services used in preparation of the dead for burial;
B. The performance of autopsies and other surgical procedures;
C. The storage of caskets, funeral urns, and other related funeral supplies; and
D. The storage of funeral vehicles, but shall not include facilities for cremation. Where a funeral home is permitted, a funeral chapel shall also be permitted.
(67) "Garage, parking" means a principal or accessory building or an enclosed space within the principal building in which motor vehicles owned by the general public are parked, including facilities operated as a business enterprise with a service charge or fee paid to the owner or operator of such facility, with no facilities for mechanical service or repair of a commercial or public nature.
(68) "Garage, private" means a detached accessory building or portion of the principal building designed to store motor vehicles and other normal household accessories of the residents of the principal building, with no facilities for mechanical service or repair of a commercial or public nature.
(69) "Garage, repair" means a building or portion of a building in which major repairs are conducted. Major repairs include structural repair, rebuilding or reconditioning of motor vehicles, or parts thereof, including collision service; spray painting; body, fender, clutch, transmission, differential, axle, spring, and frame repairs; major overhauling of engines requiring the removal of the engine cylinder, head or crankcase pan; repairs to radiators requiring the removal thereof; complete recapping or retreading of tires; or similar activities.
(70) "Garage, service" means an area accessory to an automobile salesroom for the repair of automobiles.
(71) "Gasoline station" (See also Automobile Service Station) means an establishment where liquids used as motor fuels are stored and dispersed into the fuel tanks of motor vehicles by an attendant or by persons other than the station attendant and may include facilities available for the sale of other retail products.
(72) "Grade, natural" means the elevation of the undisturbed natural surface of the ground prior to any recent excavation or fill.
(73) "Grade, finished" means the average level of the finished surface of ground adjacent to the exterior walls of the building after final grading and normal settlement.
(74) "Grade, established street" means the elevation established by the City, County Engineer or State Highway Department, at the roadway centerline or curb in front of the lot.
(75) "Group Development" means a residential development comprised of two or more residential buildings approved on one zoning lot and not developed in the usual public street and lot pattern.
(76) "Group Home" means a residential facility licensed by the State of Ohio and monitored by federal, state and county authorized personnel.
A. "Group Home, Small" means a licensed residential facility that provides accommodations, supervision and personal care services for:
1. Not more than five unrelated persons in a family setting and licensed as a facility that meets the criteria specified in ORC 5119.34 (B)(1)(b) and 5119.341(A), or
2. Not more than eight unrelated persons in a family setting, which complies with the requirements of ORC 5123.19(M).and is licensed as a facility under ORC 5123.19 or otherwise regulated by the department of developmental disabilities.
B. "Group Home, Large" means a licensed residential facility that provides accommodates, supervision and personal care services for:
1. Six to sixteen unrelated persons in a family setting and licensed as a facility that meets the criteria specified in ORC 5119.34 (B)(1)(b) and 5119.341(B), or
2. Nine to sixteen unrelated persons in a family setting, which complies with the requirements of ORC 5123.19(N).and is licensed as a facility under ORC 5123.19 or otherwise regulated by the department of developmental disabilities.
C. "Personal care services" means services including, but not limited to, the following, but does not include mental health treatment services or addiction services:
1. Assisting residents with activities of daily living;
2. Assisting residents with self-administration of medication in accordance with rules adopted under this section;
3. Preparing special diets, other than complex therapeutic diets, for residents pursuant to the instructions of a physician or a licensed dietitian, in accordance with rules adopted under this section.
(77) "Home occupation" means an occupation for gain which is subordinate and incidental to the use of the premises as a dwelling, carried on by a person in the home in which he resides. (Ord. 2020-21. Passed 2-18-20.)
(78) "Hotel (or motel)" means a building in which lodging is provided and offered to the public for compensation on a daily rate and which is open to occupancy for periods of not more than thirty days.
(Ord. 2021-66. Passed 8-10-21.)
(79) "Hot tub" means a permanent or semi-permanent structure located either above grade or below grade, designed to contain at least two feet of water at any one point with a diameter less than six feet and electrical connections, but not including temporary metal, plastic, fiberglass or inflatable structures intended to be used as pools by children. (See also "Swimming pool".)
(80) "Impound lot" means an open lot used for the temporary storage of motor vehicles, trailers and/or boats for which purpose the operator has a current contract with a municipality within a five-mile radius.
(81) "Inn" means a building containing eight to eighteen guest rooms in which lodging is provided and offered to the public for compensation at a daily rate and which are open to occupancy for periods of less than one week. The term "inn" may include "restaurant table service", and may provide other services such as meeting rooms and central services, but does not include "hotel (or motel)", "bed and breakfast", or "restaurant-counter service."
(82) "Institution" means any establishment of a public or charitable character, or foundation, including, but not limited to; churches, colleges, hospitals and schools, or similar uses as approved by the Planning Commission.
(83) "Junk motor vehicle" means any motor vehicle, licensed or unlicensed, without regard to its age or value, that is parked in any unenclosed area of any portion of a yard or lot, with or without the consent of the owner of the property, for a period of seventy-two hours or longer, when such motor vehicle is apparently inoperable, or is in such condition that it could not be legally operated on the public streets, or is in an extensively damaged, dilapidated, or disassembled condition.
(84) "Junk or wrecking yard" means any building, open area, or part thereof, used as a place to store or dump partly dismantled, obsolete or wrecked vehicles or their parts, second hand building materials, junk, or other salvaged non-organic material which is capable of being used again in some form.
(85) "Landscaped area" means an area that is permanently devoted to and maintained for the growing of trees, shrubs, grass or other plant material.
(86) "Loading space, off-street" means an area located totally outside of any public right-of-way for the temporary parking of vehicles entering the premises for picking up and making delivery of goods and materials.
(87) "Lot", for the purpose of this Planning and Zoning Code, means a parcel of land of sufficient size to meet minimum zoning requirements for use, coverage, and area, and to provide such yards and other open spaces as are herein required. The term "zoning lot" is used synonymously with "lot" in this Planning and Zoning Code. Such lot shall have frontage on an improved public street, except as permitted for envelope lots, but not include any portion thereof, or on an approved private street, and may consist of:
A. A single lot of record;
B. A portion of a lot of record;
C. A combination of complete lots of record, of complete lots of record and portions of lots of record, or of portions of lots of record.
(88) "Lot area" means the area contained within the lot lines exclusive of any portion of the right-of-way of any public street.
(89) "Lot coverage" means the ratio of total ground floor area of all buildings on a lot to the area of the lot expressed as a percentage.
(90) "Lot, depth" means the mean horizontal distance of a lot measured between the front and rear lot lines.
(91) "Lot line" means the boundary line defining the limits of the lot. Lot line is synonymous with "property line."
A. "Front lot line" means the line separating an interior lot from the street right-of-way on which the lot fronts, or the shortest line of a corner lot that abuts a street, except that when the lot lines abutting streets are of equal lengths, the front lot line shall be the lot line abutting the street having the longest block frontage.
B. "Rear lot line" means the lot line opposite and most distant from the front lot line; or in the case of triangular or otherwise irregularly shaped lots, a line ten feet in length entirely within the lot, parallel to and at a maximum distance from the front lot line.
C. "Side lot line" means any lot line other than a front or rear lot line.
(92) “Lot line adjustment” means the movement or relocation of one property line between two or more existing adjacent parcels where the land taken from one parcel is added to an adjacent parcel and where a greater or lesser number of parcels than originally existed are not thereby created.
(93) "Lot of record or parcel" means land designated as a separate parcel on a plat, map, or deed which has been recorded in the office of the Recorder of Deeds of Lake County prior to the effective date of this Planning and Zoning Code.
(94) "Lot split": See "Subdivision, minor".
(95) "Lot types" means terminology used in this ordinance with reference to corner lots, interior lots and through lots as follows:
A. "Corner lot" means a lot abutting on two streets at their intersection where the angle of such intersection is not more than 135 degrees.
B. "Envelope Lot" means a fee simple lot in a group development in an R-MF-L District which contains a dwelling unit, becomes a recorded lot and otherwise conforms to the standards and requirements of the Zoning Code and Chapter 1135. An Envelope Lot, once approved, shall be an exception to the requirement in the Zoning Code that all lots must be on an approved public street.
C. "Interior lot" means a lot with only one frontage on a street.
D. "Through lot" means a lot other than a corner lot with frontage on more than one street. Through lots abutting two streets may be referred to as double frontage lots.
Figure 3. Lot Types
(96) "Lot width" means the horizontal distance between the side lot lines measured along a straight line parallel to the front lot line at the required front setback line.
(97) "Manufacturing, heavy" means manufacturing, processing, assembling, storing, testing, and similar industrial uses which are major operations and extensive in character; require large sites, open storage and service areas, extensive services and facilities, ready access to regional transportation; and which generate some nuisances such as smoke, noise, vibration, dust, glare, air pollution, and water pollution, but not beyond the district boundary.
(98) "Manufacturing, light" means manufacturing or other industrial uses which are controlled operations; relatively clean, quiet, and free of objectionable or hazardous elements such as smoke, noise, odor, or dust; operating within enclosed structures with limited outdoor storage; and no nuisances.
(99) "Map" means a drawing showing geographic, topographic, or other physical features of the land.
(100) "Martial Arts" means any sport involving the traditional forms of self-defense or combat that utilizes physical skill and coordination without weapons, including but not limited to, karate, aikido, judo and kung fu.
(101) "Indoor sports/fitness facility" means an indoor facility for athletic or sporting activities/instruction such as gymnasiums, game courts, exercise equipment, pools, locker rooms, spa, whirlpool or hot tub, and which may include an accessory retail shop for the sale of related equipment. Such uses include facilities for martial arts, membership fitness clubs, but does not include a track or other facilities for motorized or nonmotorized vehicles.
(102) "Micro-production facility, including micro-brewery, micro-distillery, micro-winery" means a small scale facility that produces a limited amount of a 'craft' or 'artisan' alcoholic beverage, depending on the type of beverage produced, which possesses the appropriate liquor permit from the State of Ohio, and which may sell to the public by one or more of the following methods: the traditional three-tier system (producer to wholesaler to retailer to consumer); the two-tier system (producer acting as wholesaler to retailer to consumer); and, directly to the consumer through carry-outs and/or on-site tasting-room or restaurant sales, depending on the zoning district in which the use is located:
A. "Micro-brewery" means a facility that produces less than 15,000 barrels (17,600 hectoliters) of beer per year (as defined by the Brewer's Association).
B. "Micro-distillery" means a facility that produces less than 50,000 proof gallons per year (as defined by the American Distilling Institute).
C. "Micro-winery" means a facility that produces less than 10,000 cases of wine per year, where all aspects of production occur within the footprint of the structure.
(103) "Motel": See "Hotel".
(104) "Motor freight terminal" means a building, including accessory buildings and uses, in which merchandise and freight from various sources brought by motor truck is assembled, sorted or reloaded for shipment by motor truck.
(105) "Motor freight distribution terminal" means a warehouse, or other building or buildings used for the assembly, sorting or reloading of merchandise from one establishment for shipment by motor truck or rail.
(106) "Nonconformity" means a lot, use of land, building, use of buildings, or use of buildings and land in combination lawfully existing at the time of enactment of this Planning and Zoning Code or its amendments which do not conform to the regulations of the district or zone in which it is situated, and is therefore incompatible.
A. "Nonconforming building" means a building lawfully existing on the effective date of this Planning and Zoning Code or any amendment thereto, which, on such effective date, does not conform to the area, height, or bulk regulations pertaining to buildings or yard regulations of the district in which it is located.
B. "Nonconforming lot" means a lot lawfully existing on the effective date of this Planning and Zoning Code or any amendment thereto which on such effective date, does not conform to the lot area, width or frontage requirements of the district in which it is located.
C. “Nonconforming site condition" means any structure lawfully existing on the effective date of this Planning and Zoning Code or any amendment thereto, which, on such effective date, does not conform to the yard regulations, parking requirements (including the number of parking spaces and the location of the parking spaces), sign regulations, landscaping or screening requirements or other development standards of the district in which it is situated.
D. “Nonconforming land use" means any building or land lawfully occupied by a use on the effective date of this Planning and Zoning Code or any amendment thereto which, on such effective date, does not conform with the use regulations or the performance standards of the district in which it is situated.
(107) "Nursing home" means a licensed extended or intermediate care facility that provides skilled nursing and dietary care for persons who are ill or incapacitated or which provides service for the rehabilitation of the persons who are convalescing from illness or incapacitation, excluding homes or similar institutions or facilities for persons suffering from acute or chronic alcoholism, or other drug dependency, or persons who are mentally incapacitated from causes other than simple senility or who regularly require restraint.
(108) "Outdoor display/sales" means merchandise that is removed from its shipping packaging, located in an outdoor area that is open to the general public, and which is representative of merchandise that is available for purchase inside the building and/or is available for purchase by the general public directly from the display area.
(109) "Outdoor storage" means the keeping, in an area outside of a building, of any goods, material, merchandise, or vehicles in the same place for more than twenty-four hours, except for merchandise placed in an area for outdoor display/sales.
(110) "Overlay district" means a district described on the Zoning Map within which, through superimposition of a special designation, further regulations and requirements apply in addition to those of the underlying districts to which such designation is added.
(111) "Parcel": See "Lot of Record".
(112) "Parking lot" (See also Garage, Parking) means an area not within a building where motor vehicles may be stored for the purposes of temporary, daily or overnight off-street parking.
(113) "Parking space, off-street" means an open or enclosed area adequate for parking an automobile with room for opening doors on both sides, with access to a public street. Arrangement of the parking space shall be such as to allow ingress and egress of an automobile without the necessity of moving any other automobile, and shall be located totally outside of any public right-of-way.
(114) "Pedestrian way" means a dedicated public right-of-way limited to pedestrian traffic.
(115) "Performance standard" means a criterion established to control enclosure, dust, smoke, fire and explosive hazards, glare and heat, noise, odor, toxic and noxious matter, vibrations and other conditions created by or inherent in uses of land or buildings.
(116) "Personal services" means any legal enterprise conducted for gain which offers services directly to the general public at the site of the business, and which includes but is not limited to shoe repair, watch repair, barber shops, beauty parlors and photography studios.
(117) "Pet shop/pet store" shall be construed to include a retail establishment selling dogs, cats, and other animals such as rabbits, guinea pigs, mice, hamsters, gerbils, chinchillas, harmless snakes and turtles, pet supplies, pet food and accessories, and which no more than twenty percent (20%) of the space of the pet shop/pet store shall be used for the display of dogs and cats.
(118) "Places of worship" means a building, structure or other indoor or outdoor facility used for public worship, and may include a cemetery, columbarium or mausoleum as a secondary use. The words "place of worship" include the words "church", "chapel", "synagogue" and "temple" and their uses and activities which are customarily related.
(119) "Plan" means a drawing of a proposed design or work to be performed.
(120) "Plan, Comprehensive" means a composite of the mapped and written proposals for the future development of the City and duly adopted by the Commission and/or Council, indicating its recommendations for the uses of private land, public open spaces and buildings and general street systems.
(121) "Plan, Development" means drawing(s) and map(s) illustrating the proposed design, layout and other features for the development of one or more lots and including all the elements set forth in Section 1109.04(b).
(122) "Plan, Park and Recreation" means a map showing the location and size of existing and proposed parks, playgrounds and other open public grounds of the City and duly adopted by the Commission and/or Council.
(123) "Plan, Thoroughfare" means a map showing the location and width of existing and proposed streets of the City and duly adopted by the Commission and/or Council.
(124) "Plat" means a map of a lot, tract or subdivision on which the lines of each element are shown by accurate distances and bearings.
(125) "Plat, final" means a map of all or a portion of a subdivision, with accompanying material, intended for final approval and recording, on the basis of which land can be transferred, leased or encumbered.
(126) "Plat, preliminary" means a drawing for the purpose of study of a major subdivision and which, if approved, permits proceeding with the preparation of the Final Plat.
(127) "Plat, sketch" means a rough sketch map of a proposed subdivision to be used for the purpose of discussion.
(128) "Premises" means a lot together with all buildings and structures thereon.
(129) "Private Country Club" is a corporation or other legal entity which consists of private memberships that are available to individuals by invitation. At a minimum, the club shall have a clubhouse containing rooms for dining, meeting and events sponsored by the club or by other organizations authorized by the club to use the facilities, an eighteen hold golf course with separate pro shop, practice range, tennis courts, swimming pool and other recreational facilities and maintenance buildings.
(130) "Public safety facility" means a governmentally owned and operated facility established to provide police or fire safety services to the surrounding area.
(131) "Public service facility" means the erection, construction, alteration, operation, or maintenance of buildings, power plants, or substations, water treatment plants, or pumping stations, sewage disposal or pumping plants, and other similar public service structures by a public utility, a railroad, whether publicly or privately owned, or a municipal or other governmental agency, including the furnishing of electrical, gas, rail transport, communication, public water and sewage services.
(132) "Recycling collection station" means an accessory use that serves as a neighborhood drop-off point for the collection and temporary storage of small recoverable resources such as glassware, plastic jugs and metal cans, but which does not involve any processing.
(133) "Research and testing laboratory" means a building or group of buildings for scientific research, investigation, testing or experimentation, but not facilities for the manufacture or sale of products, except as incidental to the main purpose of the laboratory. (Ord. 2020-21. Passed 2-18-20.)
(134) "Restaurant” means a retail establishment where meals and beverages are prepared and served to customers for consumption within the restaurant building or on a patio, or for carry out for consumption off the premises.
(Ord. 2016-50. Passed 5-3-16.)
(135) "Retail establishment" means an establishment engaged in the selling of goods or merchandise to the general public for personal or household consumption, which is open to the general public during regular business hours and which has display areas that are designed and laid out to attract the general public, but does not include the sale of marijuana products. In determining a use to be a retail use, the Planning Commission may consider the proportion of display area vs. storage area and the proportion of the building facade devoted to display windows.
(136) Retail, large format" means a retail establishment that sells primarily large, oversized, bulky goods which consumers purchase relatively infrequently and that generates a low volume of customer traffic compared to traditional retail. Examples of such establishments include but are not limited to the sale of furniture, large appliances, and swimming pools.
(137) “Retail Sales (controlled substances)” means the sale and/or consumption in completely enclosed buildings of controlled substances known as Kava, Kratom, Delta 8-THC and/or Delta 9-THC.
(138) “Retail Sales (electronic cigarettes and vaping devices)” means the sale in completely enclosed buildings of electronic devices, including any device that can be used to deliver aerosolized or vaporized nicotine or any other substance to the person inhaling from the device, including, but not limited to e-cigarettes, e-cigars, e-pipes, vapor products, or e-hookas.
(139) "Right-of-way" means a strip of land taken, dedicated, or otherwise recorded as an irrevocable right-of-passage for use as a public way. In addition to the roadway, it normally incorporates the curbs, lawn strips, sidewalks, water and sewer lines, lighting, and drainage facilities, and may include special features (required by the topography or treatment) such as grade separation, landscaped areas, viaducts, and bridges.
(140) "Right-of-way line" means the line between a lot, tract, or parcel of land and a contiguous public street, and demarcating the public right-of-way. "Right-of-way line" also means "street line."
(141) "Roadway" means the portion of a street that is paved and available for vehicular traffic, including on-street parking lanes.
(142) "Rooming house" means any dwelling, or that part thereof containing one or more rooming units, in which space is let to four or more persons.
(143) "Row house": See "Dwelling, Attached One-Family".
(144) "Sales lot" means an unenclosed area used for the display, sales, or rental of new or used motor vehicles, and in which no repair work is performed.
(145) "Satellite receiving antenna", also referred to as a satellite earth station, means an antenna designed to send and/or receive television broadcasts relayed by microwave signals from communications satellites orbiting the earth.
(146) "School facilities" means publicly or privately owned facilities providing full-time day instruction and training at the elementary, junior high and high school levels in accordance with the requirements of Chapter 3313 of the Ohio Revised Code; or publicly or privately owned facilities providing kindergarten or nursery school training and care which are operated by a board of education or an established religious organization.
(147) "School; private boarding" means a facility that provides a curriculum of elementary and/or secondary academic instruction equivalent to standards prescribed by the Ohio Revised Code for compulsory-age children attending the school and may include facilities for administration, classrooms, student housing, faculty housing, dining, laboratories, faculty and staff offices, libraries, infirmaries, social and athletic activities including equestrian facilities, as well as customary accessory structures and uses which support the academic, extra-curricular and social functions for the institution.
(148) "Senior citizen housing" means an age-restricted housing development that complies with the Housing for Older Persons Act and is exempt from the federal Fair Housing Act prohibiting discrimination on the basis of familial status. Also referred to as independent senior housing and active adult communities.
(149) "Setback" means the required minimum horizontal distance between a lot line and a structure as established by this Code.
(150) "Setback line" (See also "Yard, Required") means a line established by this Planning and Zoning Code generally parallel with and measured from the lot line, defining the limits of the required yard in which no building, or structure may be located above ground, except as may be provided in this Planning and Zoning Code. The term "setback line" shall also include "required setback line."
(151) "Sign" means any identification, description, illustration or device which is affixed to or integrated into a building, structure or land, or otherwise situated on a lot and which is intended to direct or attract attention to, or announce or promote a product, place, activity, person, institution or business by means of letters, words, designs, colors, symbols, flags, banners, fixtures, images or illuminations.
(152) "Similar use" means a use not specifically listed in any of the schedules of permitted uses of any district, but which may be found similar and added to a schedule for a particular district.
(153) "Story" means the part of a building other than a basement or a half-story between any floor and the floor above, or, in its absence, the ceiling or roof above.
(154) "Studios for instruction" means a building or portion of a building that is used or intended to be used for nonacademic group instructional purposes, which include, but are not limited to, art, crafts, dance, and computer instruction.
(155) "Street" means an avenue, highway, road, thoroughfare, boulevard, parkway, alley or other way proposed for vehicular traffic, and any existing State, County, or City street or way shown upon a plat heretofore duly approved, filed and recorded in the office of the County Recorder. Included is the land between the street right-of-way lines, whether improved or unimproved, and may comprise pavement, shoulder, gutters, sidewalks, division strips or other areas within the street lines. Streets shall be classified as follows:
A. "Limited access highway" ("freeway") means a strip of public land devoted to movement of traffic, not providing access to the abutting properties.
B. "Parkway" means a roadway running through a strip of public park land, to which right of access may or may not be permitted.
C. "Major street or thoroughfare" means a street which is primarily for moving fast or heavy traffic between large or intensively developed districts.
D. "Secondary or Collector Street" means a street supplementary to and connecting major streets to local streets and to district centers.
E. "Local street" means a street primarily for access to abutting properties and to serve local needs.
1. "Cul-de-sac" means a street with only one permanent outlet.
2. "Marginal access street" means a local street providing access to lots which abut or are adjacent to a limited access-highway or major street.
3. "Alley" means a street providing service access to the rear or side of properties abutting also on other streets.
4. "Private street" means a paved area located on private land providing access to abutting properties.
(156) "Street center line" means a line halfway between the street right-of-way lines.
(157) "Structure" means anything constructed or erected, the use of which requires a fixed location on the ground or is attached to something having a fixed location on the ground, and including, but not limited to buildings, barriers, bridges, cages providing for shelter or feeding of animals and fowl, decks, fences, garages, gazebos, outdoor seating facilities, platforms, poles, backstops for tennis courts, pergolas, pools, patios, paved areas, sidewalks, tanks, tents, towers, sheds, sign and walls; and any movable structure that may be on blocks, skids, or similar support, but not including trailers and other vehicles, whether on wheels or other supports.
(158) "Structural alteration" means any change that would prolong the life of the supporting members of a building or structure, such as the bearing walls, columns, beams or girders.
(159) "Subdivision" means:
A. A division of any parcel of land (shown as a unit or as contiguous units in the current records of the County Recorder) into two or more lots, parcels, sites or other divisions of land, any one of which is five acres or less, for the purpose, whether immediate or future, of transfer of ownership;
B. A division or allocation of land for the opening, widening or extension of any street, or as open spaces for common use, or as easements for the extension and maintenance of public sewer, water, storm drainage or other public facilities in connection with the improvement of one or more parcels or land for residential, commercial or industrial developments; and
C. A resubdivision or replatting.
(160) "Subdivision, major" means any proposed division of a parcel of land that does not meet the definition of a minor subdivision.
(161) "Subdivision, minor" means a proposed division of a parcel of land along an existing public street, not involving the opening, widening, extension or improvement of any street or the installation of any underground public utility, and does not involve more than five lots. Also known as a "lot split".
(162) "Supplemental use regulation" means a standard(s) that applies to a specific use which is in addition to the general district requirements.
(163) "Swimming pool", for the purpose of this Planning and Zoning Code, swimming pools shall be defined and classified as follows:
A. "Swimming pool" means any permanent in-ground structure, pond, or lake used for recreational swimming or bathing, or a temporary above-ground structure used for recreational swimming or bathing which is not located within a completely enclosed building, and which is designed to contain at least one and one-half feet of water at any point and has a diameter greater than six feet. Any reference to the pool or area of the pool shall include lounging and spectator areas and any accessory buildings, structures or equipment. (See also "Hot Tub".)
B. "Private swimming pool" means a pool maintained by an individual for the sole use of his household and guests, without charge for admission and not operated for profit, and located on a lot as an accessory use to a dwelling.
C. "Club swimming pool" means a pool operated by a private club incorporated as a nonprofit organization to maintain and operate a swimming pool for the exclusive use of members or limited to residents of a geographic area.
D. "Commercial swimming pool" means a pool operated for profit and open to the public upon payment of a fee.
(164) "Temporary retail activities" means activities that are characterized by their short-term or seasonal nature and by the fact that permanent improvements are not made to the site.
(165) "Townhouse building" means a building composed of two (2) or more townhouse units.
(166) "Townhouse unit" means a single dwelling unit, situated at ground level, served by its own exclusive exterior entrance, and attached to one (1) or more other such units by fire walls or fire separation walls. The terms "townhouse" and "row house" shall have the same meaning unless otherwise indicated. A townhouse building that contains three or more units is a multi-family dwelling. See also "Dwelling, attached one-family".
(167) "Transmission tower" means the structure on which transmitting and/or receiving antennae are located, but not including accessory structures for the purpose of supporting private non-commercial antennae.
(168) "Treelawn" means the portion of a street right-of-way between the edge of the pavement or curb of the roadway and the public sidewalk or property line.
(169) "Use, accessory" means a use located on the same lot with the principal use of building or land, but incidental to and constructed subsequent to the principal use of the principal building or land.
(170) "Use, conditional" means a use permitted in a district, other than a principal use permitted by right, which is allowed only under certain conditions as set forth in Chapter 1155, and which requires a conditional use permit and approval of the City Planning Commission, in accordance with the standards and procedures of Section 1109.05.
(171) "Use, principal" means the main purpose of, or activity in, a building, structure or land.
(172) "Variance" means a grant by the Board of Zoning Appeals to a property owner authorizing the property owner to vary from the strict, literal terms of the relevant regulations where such variance will not be contrary to the public interest.
(173) "Vocational, trade or technical school" means a school offering preponderant instruction in the technical, commercial, or trade skills, such as electronic schools, automotive and aircraft technicians' schools and similar commercial establishments operated by a school district.
(174) "Warehouse" means a building used primarily for the storage of goods and materials which are intended for future sale or use but specifically excluding commercial multi-unit storage facilities.
(175) "Wholesale business" means business establishments that sell commodities in large quantities or by the piece to retailers, jobbers, other wholesale establishments, or manufacturing establishments. These commodities are for further resale, for use in the fabrication of a product, or for use by a business service.
(176) "Work/Live Unit" means a space within a commercial building used jointly for a business use and as residential living space for the owner of the business or the owner's employee and that person's household.
(177) "Yard" means an open space on the same lot with a principal building that lies between the principal building and the nearest lot line, unoccupied and unobstructed by any portion of the structure from the ground upward, except for accessory uses, structures or buildings as expressly permitted in this Planning and Zoning Code.
Figure 4. Yards and Required Yards
(178) "Yard, corner side" means on a corner lot, the yard between the principal building and the side lot line adjacent to the street and extending from the front yard to the rear lot line.
(179) "Yard, front" means a yard across the full width of the lot extending from the front wall of the principal building to the front lot line. It shall be measured from the existing right-of-way or from a planned right-of-way line established on a duly adopted street plan or by ordinance.
(180) "Yard, rear" means a yard extending the full width of the lot between the principal building and the rear lot line. On a corner lot, the rear yard shall be the area between the rear lot line and the principal building, extending from the side lot line abutting an interior lot to the side yard abutting a street.
(181) "Yard, required" (See also Setback Line) means the open space between a lot line and a setback line for a building, parking area or use that is the minimum area required to comply with the regulations of the district in which the lot is located, and within which no structure shall be located except as expressly permitted in this Planning and Zoning Code.
(182) "Yard, side" means a yard between the nearest wall of the principal building and the side lot line and extending from the front yard to the rear yard. See also "Yard, Corner Side".
(183) "Yard, width or depth" means the horizontal distance from a lot line to the principal building measured perpendicular to the building.
(184) "Zoning Certificate of Compliance" means an official statement asserting that a given building, other structure or parcel of land is in compliance with the provisions of all existing codes, or is a lawfully existing nonconforming building or use and hence may be occupied and used lawfully for the purposes designated thereon.
(185) "Zoning lot": See Lot.
(186) "Zoning permit" means a type of authorization that must be granted by the Building and Zoning Inspector before site improvements can be made, and before buildings and structures can be erected, moved, constructed, reconstructed, enlarged, or structurally altered.
(Ord. 2020-21. Passed 2-18-20; Ord. 2024-41. Passed 4-16-24; Ord. 2024-42. Passed 4-16-24.)