Borough of Elizabethtown, PA DEFINITIONS

[Ord. 974, 3/17/2016]

Words used in the present tense shall include the future, and words used in the singular number shall include the plural number, and the plural the singular, where the context requires.

The word "shall" is mandatory and not discretionary.

The word "may" is permissive.

The words not defined as follows shall be construed in their generally accepted meanings as defined in the most recent publication of Webster's Dictionary.

The words and terms set forth herein, wherever they occur in this chapter, shall be interpreted as herein defined:

ACCESSORY USE OR STRUCTURE

A use or structure on the same lot with, and of a nature customarily incidental and subordinate to, the principal use or structure.

AGRICULTURAL

Land, the principal use or uses of which are growing farm or truck garden crops, pasturage, horticulture, floriculture and forestry.

APPLICANT

Any legal or equitable landowner, holder of an option to purchase land, lessee or authorized agent who submits plans and data and/or an application to the Borough for the purpose of obtaining approval thereof.

BASE FLOOD

A flood which has a one-percent chance of being equaled or exceeded in any given year (also called the "one-hundred-year flood" or "one-percent-annual-chance flood").

BASE FLOOD ELEVATION (BFE)

The elevation shown on the Flood Insurance Rate Map (FIRM) for Zones AE, AH, A1-30 that indicates the water surface elevation resulting from a flood that has a one-percent or greater chance of being equaled or exceeded in any given year.

BASEMENT

Any area of the building having its floor below ground level on all sides.

BOROUGH

The Borough of Elizabethtown, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania.

BOROUGH COUNCIL

The governing body of the Borough of Elizabethtown, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania.

BUILDING

A combination of materials to form a permanent structure having walls and a roof. Included shall be all manufactured homes and trailers to be used for human habitation.

COMPLETELY DRY SPACE

A space which will remain totally dry during flooding; the structure is designed and constructed to prevent the passage of water and water vapor.

DEVELOPMENT

Any man-made change to improved or unimproved real estate, including, but not limited to, the construction, reconstruction, renovation, repair, expansion or alteration of buildings or other structures; the placement of manufactured homes; streets, and other paving; utilities; filling, grading and excavation; mining; dredging; drilling operations; storage of equipment or materials; and the subdivision of land.

ESSENTIALLY DRY SPACE

A space which will remain dry during flooding, except for the passage of some water vapor or minor seepage; the structure is substantially impermeable to the passage of water.

FIVE-HUNDRED-YEAR FLOOD

A flood that statistically has one chance of occurring in 500 years (0.20% chance of occurring in one year). For the purpose of this chapter, the five-hundred-year flood shall be delineated and defined in the profiles where available in the flood insurance study prepared by the Federal Emergency Management Agency on April 5, 2016, or the most recent revision thereof, including all digital data developed as part of the Flood Insurance Study.

[Ord. 974, 3/17/2016; as amended by Ord. 976, 6/16/2016]

FLOOD

A temporary inundation of normally dry land areas.

FLOOD INSURANCE RATE MAP (FIRM)

The official map on which the Federal Emergency Management Agency has delineated both the areas of special flood hazards and the risk premium zones applicable to the community.

FLOOD INSURANCE STUDY (FIS)

The official report provided by the Federal Emergency Management Agency that includes flood profiles, the Flood Insurance Rate Map, the Flood Boundary and Floodway Map, and the water surface elevation of the base flood.

FLOOD-FRINGE

This area between the floodway and the boundary of the five-hundred-year flood.

FLOODPLAIN

[Ord. 974, 3/17/2016; as amended by Ord. 976, 6/16/2016]

A relatively flat or low land area which is subject to partial or complete inundation from an adjoining or nearby stream, river or watercourse.

An area subject to the unusual and rapid accumulation of runoff of surface waters from any source. For the purpose of this chapter, the floodplain includes areas within the five-hundred-year flood as indicated and defined in the Flood Insurance Study on April 5, 2016, or the most recent revision thereof, including all digital data developed as part of the Flood Insurance Study.

FLOODPLAIN ELEVATION

The elevation of the five-hundred-year flood.

FLOODPROOFING

Any combination of structural and nonstructural additions, changes, or adjustments to structures which reduce or eliminate flood damage to real estate or improved real property, water and sanitary facilities, structures and their contents.

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.

HISTORIC STRUCTURE

Any structure that is:

Listed individually in the National Register of Historic Places (a listing maintained by the United States Department of the Interior) or preliminarily determined by the Secretary of the Interior as meeting the requirements for individual listing on the National Register;

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 to qualify as a registered historic district;

Individually listed on a state inventory of historic places in states with historic preservation programs which have been approved by the Secretary of the Interior; or

Individually listed on a local inventory of historic places in communities with historic preservation programs that have been certified either:

(1)

By an approved state program as determined by the Secretary of the Interior; or

(2)

Directly by the Secretary of the Interior in states without approved programs.

IDENTIFIED FLOODPLAIN AREA

The floodplain area specifically identified in this chapter as being inundated by the five-hundred-year flood.

LAND DEVELOPMENT

Any of the following activities:

The improvement of one lot or two or more contiguous lots, tracts, or parcels of land for any purpose involving:

(1)

A group of two or more residential or nonresidential buildings, whether proposed initially or cumulatively, or a single nonresidential building on a lot or lots regardless of the number of occupants or tenure; or

(2)

The division or allocation of land or space, whether initially or cumulatively, between or among two or more existing or prospective occupants by means of or for the purpose of streets, common areas, leaseholds, condominiums, building groups or other features.

A subdivision of land.

LOWEST FLOOR

The lowest floor of the lowest enclosed area (including basement). An unfinished, flood-resistant partially enclosed area, used solely for the parking of vehicles, building access, and incidental storage, in an area other than a basement area is not considered the lowest floor of a building, provided that such space is not designed and built so that the structure is in violation of the applicable nonelevation design requirements of this chapter.

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 includes park trailers, travel trailers, recreational and other similar vehicles which are placed on a site for more than 180 consecutive days.

MANUFACTURED HOME PARK

A parcel of land under single ownership, which has been planned and improved for the placement of two or more manufactured homes for non transient use.

MINOR REPAIR

The replacement of existing work with equivalent materials for the purpose of its routine maintenance and upkeep, but not including the cutting away of any wall, partition or portion thereof, the removal or cutting of any structural beam or bearing support, or the removal or change of any required means of egress, or rearrangement of parts of a structure affecting the exitway requirements; nor shall minor repairs include addition to, alteration of, replacement or relocation of any standpipe, water supply, sewer, drainage, drain leader, gas, oil, waste, vent, or similar piping, electric wiring or mechanical or other work affecting public health or general safety.

NEW CONSTRUCTION

Structures for which the start of construction commenced on or after April 17, 1978, and includes subsequent improvements thereto.

ONE-HUNDRED-YEAR FLOOD

A flood that, on the average, is likely to occur once every 100 years (i.e., that has one-percent chance of occurring each year, although the flood may occur in any year).

PERSON

An individual, partnership, public or private association or corporation, firm, trust, estate, municipality, governmental unit, public utility or any other legal entity whatsoever, which is recognized by law as the subject of rights and duties.

RECREATIONAL VEHICLE

A vehicle which is:

Built on a single chassis;

Not more than 400 square feet, measured at the largest horizontal projections;

Designed to be self-propelled or permanently towable by a light-duty truck;

Not designed for use as a permanent dwelling but as temporary living quarters for recreational, camping, travel, or seasonal use.

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 average, equals or exceeds 25% of the market value of the structure before the damages occurred.

SPECIAL FLOOD HAZARD AREA (SFHA)

An area in the floodplain subject to a one-percent or greater chance of flooding in any given year. It is shown on the FIRM as Zone A, AO, A1-A30, AE, A99, or AH.

SPECIAL PERMIT

A special approval which is required for hospitals, nursing homes, jails and new manufactured home parks and subdivisions and substantial improvements to such existing parks, when such development is located in all or a designated portion of the identified floodplain area.

START OF CONSTRUCTION

Includes substantial improvement and other proposed new development and means the date the permit was issued, provided that the actual start of construction, repair, reconstruction, rehabilitation, addition, placement, or other improvement was within 180 days after the date of the permit and shall be completed within 12 months after the date of issuance of the permit unless a time extension is granted, in writing, by the Floodplain Administrator. The "actual start" means 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. Permanent construction does not include land preparation, such as clearing, grading, and filling; nor does it include the installation of streets and 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. 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.

STREAM CHANNEL

That area which is inundated by water during normal, nonflooding conditions.

STRUCTURE

Anything constructed or erected on the ground or attached to the ground, including, but not limited to, buildings, sheds, manufactured homes, and other similar items. This term includes any man-made object having an ascertainable stationary location on or in land or water, whether or not affixed to land.

SUBDIVISION

The division or redivision of a lot, tract, or parcel of land by any means into two or more lots, tracts, parcels or other divisions of land, including changes in existing lot lines for the purpose, whether immediate or future, of lease, partition by the court for distribution to heirs, or devisees, transfer of ownership or building or lot development; provided, however, that the subdivision by lease of land for agricultural purposes into parcels of more than 10 acres, not involving any new street or easement of access or any residential dwelling, shall be exempted.

SUBSTANIAL IMPROVEMENT

Any reconstruction, rehabilitation, addition, or other improvement of a structure, the cost of which equals or exceeds 50% of the market value of the structure before the start of construction of the improvement. This term includes structures that have incurred substantial damage or repetitive loss, regardless of the actual repair work performed. The term does not, however, include either:

Any project for improvement of a structure to correct existing violations of state or local health, sanitary, 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; or

Any alteration of an historic structure, provided that the alteration will not preclude the structure's continued designation as an historic structure.

SUBSTANTIAL DAMAGE

Damage from any cause sustained by a structure whereby the cost of restoring the structure to its before-damaged condition would equal or exceed 50% or more of the market value of the structure before the damage occurred.

UNIFORM CONSTRUCTION CODE (UCC)

The current statewide building code adopted by the Pennsylvania General Assembly applicable to new construction in all municipalities, whether administered by the municipality, a third party or the Department of Labor and Industry. Applicable to residential and commercial buildings, the Code adopted the International Residential Code (IRC) and the International Building Code (IBC), by reference, as the construction standard applicable with the commonwealth floodplain construction. For coordination purposes, references to the above are made specifically to various sections of the IRC and the IBC.

[Ord. 974, 3/17/2016; as amended by Ord. 976, 6/16/2016]

VIOLATION

The failure of a structure or other development to be fully compliant with the community's floodplain management regulations. A structure or other development without the elevation certificate, other certifications, or other evidence of compliance required in 44 CFR 60.3(b)(5), (c)(4), (c)(10), (d)(3), (e)(2), (e)(4), or (e)(5) is presumed to be in violation until such time as that documentation is provided.