[Ord. No. 58-1997, § 15.0, 6-17-1997]
(a)
In the interpretation and enforcement of this chapter, all words
shall carry their customary dictionary meanings. For the purpose of
this chapter, certain words and terms are defined as follows:
(1)
The term "city" means the City of Belfast.
(2)
The term "municipal officers" means the City council.
(3)
Words used in the present tense include the future tense, words used
in the singular include the plural, and words used in the plural include
the singular.
(4)
The word "shall" is always mandatory; the word "may" is permissive.
(5)
The word "person" includes a firm, association, organization, partnership,
trust, company, or corporation, as well as an individual.
(6)
The word "lot" includes the words "plot" and "parcel."
(7)
The word "building" includes the word "structure."
(b)
ACCESSORY STRUCTURE OR USE
AFFORDABLE HOUSING
AGGRIEVED PARTY
AREA OF SHALLOW FLOODING
AREA OF SPECIAL FLOOD HAZARD
AVERAGE DAILY TRAFFIC (ADT)
BASE FLOOD
BASEMENT
BASIN (DRAINAGE)
BITUMINOUS MIXING OPERATION
BREAKAWAY WALL
BUFFER YARD
BUILDING
BUILDING INSPECTOR
BUSINESS PARK
CALIPER
CEO
CERTIFICATE OF COMPLIANCE
CHANNEL
CITY ENGINEER
COASTAL WETLAND
CODE ENFORCEMENT OFFICER (CEO)
DETENTION STORAGE
DEVELOPMENT
(1)
(2)
DISCHARGE
DRAINAGE
DRAINAGE AREA OF BASIN (WATERSHED)
DRAINAGEWAY
DRIVEWAY
DWELLING, MULTIFAMILY
DWELLING, SINGLE-FAMILY
DWELLING, TWO-FAMILY
DWELLING UNIT
EARTH AND EARTH REMOVAL
EARTH FILLING
ELEVATED BUILDING
ELEVATION CERTIFICATE
EMERGENCY OPERATIONS
EROSION
ESSENTIAL SERVICES
EXCAVATION
FAMILY
FILLING OF LAND
FLOOD and FLOODING
(1)
(2)
FLOOD BASE ELEVATION
FLOOD ELEVATION STUDY
FLOOD INSURANCE RATE MAP (FIRM)
FLOOD INSURANCE STUDY
FLOODPLAIN AND FLOODPRONE AREA
FLOODPLAIN MANAGEMENT
FLOODPLAIN MANAGEMENT REGULATIONS
FLOODPROOFING
FLOODWAY
FLOODWAY ENCROACHMENT LINES
FLOOR AREA
FLOOR AREA FACTOR
FLOOR AREA RATIO
FOUNDATION
FREEBOARD
FREQUENTLY FLOODED
FRESHWATER WETLAND
GENERAL SURFACE WATER RESOURCE AREAS
GROSS FLOOR AREA
(1)
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
f.
g.
h.
(2)
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
HABITAT, SIGNIFICANT WILDLIFE
HAZARDOUS WASTE
HEIGHT OF A STRUCTURE
HISTORIC STRUCTURE
(1)
(2)
(3)
(4)
HYDRIC SOILS
IMPERVIOUS SURFACE
IMPERVIOUS SURFACE RATIO
IMPROVED LOT
INDUSTRIAL PARK
INTERMITTENT STREAM
LICENSED PLUMBING INSPECTOR (LPI)
LOCALLY ESTABLISHED DATUM
LOT
LOT AREA
LOT LINES
(1)
(2)
(3)
LPI
MAINE EROSION AND SEDIMENTATION CONTROL HANDBOOK FOR CONSTRUCTION
MEAN SEA LEVEL
MINERAL EXPLORATION
MINERAL EXTRACTION
MUNICIPAL UTILITY
NGVD
NORMAL HIGH-WATER MARK (LINE)
ONE-HUNDRED-YEAR FLOOD
OPEN SPACE
PARKING FACILITY
PARKING LOT
PARKING SPACE, OFF-STREET
PEAK FLOW
PERFORMANCE GUARANTEE
PERMANENT FOUNDATION
(1)
(2)
(3)
(4)
PERMITTEE
PERSON
PLANNED UNIT DEVELOPMENT
PREMISES
PRINCIPAL BUILDING OR STRUCTURE
PUBLIC FACILITY
PUBLIC UTILITY
RECENT FLOODPLAIN SOILS
REGULATORY FLOODWAY
(1)
(2)
REPLACEMENT SYSTEM
RIPRAP
RIVER
RIVERINE
ROAD
SCENIC OR NATURAL BEAUTY OF THE AREAS
SEDIMENTATION
SETBACK
SHORE FRONTAGE
SHORELAND ZONE
SIGNIFICANT WILDLIFE HABITAT
SOILS, HYDROLOGIC
(1)
(2)
(3)
(4)
SPECIAL FLOOD HAZARD AREA
STEEP SLOPE
STORMWATER DRAINAGE SYSTEM
STORMWATER RUNOFF
STORMWATER RUNOFF, EXCESS
STREAM
STREET
STREET, ARTERIAL
STREET, COLLECTOR
STREET LINE
STREET, LOCAL
STRUCTURE
SUBSTANTIAL COMPLETION
SUBSTANTIAL DAMAGE
SUBSTANTIAL EXPANSION
SUBSTANTIAL IMPROVEMENT
(1)
(2)
SUBSTANTIAL RISK
SUBSTANTIAL START
SUBSURFACE WASTEWATER DISPOSAL SYSTEM
SUSTAINED SLOPE
TECHNICAL STANDARDS HANDBOOK
TRACT OR PARCEL OF LAND
TRIBUTARY STREAM
UNREASONABLE CONGESTION
(1)
(2)
(3)
(4)
UNSAFE CONDITIONS
UTILITY
(1)
(2)
(3)
V ZONE
VARIANCE
VEGETATION
VIOLATION
VOLUME OF A STRUCTURE
WATER BODY
WATER CROSSING
WATERCOURSE
WETLAND (FRESHWATER)
(1)
(2)
(3)
WETLAND ASSOCIATED WITH GREAT PONDS AND RIVERS
YARD, FRONT
YARD, REAR
YARD, SIDE
The following words,
terms and phrases, when used in this chapter, shall have the meanings
ascribed to them in this section, except where the context clearly
indicates a different meaning:
A use or structure which is incidental and subordinate to
the principal use or structure.
Housing that is targeted to persons who cannot afford the
median cost to purchase or rent a housing unit in Belfast, and that
includes provisions to ensure the affordability of the housing unit
for a period of not less than 20 years.
[Added 10-6-2020]
A person whose land is directly or indirectly affected by
the granting or denial of a permit or variance under this chapter,
or a person whose land abuts land for which a permit or variance has
been granted.
The designated AO and AH zones on the City's flood insurance
rate map (FIRM), with a 1% or greater annual chance of flooding to
an average depth of one to three feet, where a clearly defined channel
does not exist, where the path of flooding is unpredictable, and where
velocity flow may be evident. Such flooding is characterized by ponding
or sheet flow.
The land in the floodplain having a 1% or greater chance
of flooding in any given year, as specifically identified in the flood
insurance study.
The number of vehicles using a street, in both directions,
during a twenty-four-hour period, specified as the average traffic
by the state department of transportation, or the number of vehicles
specified as the average daily traffic generated by a land use as
specified by the Traffic Generation Handbook of the Institute of Traffic
and Transportation Engineers.
The flood having a 1% chance of being equaled or exceeded
in any given year, commonly called the one-hundred-year flood.
Any area of a building having its floor subgrade (below ground
level) on all sides.
Those facilities which provide temporary or permanent impoundments
of water for flood control and other water resource purposes.
A use generally associated with gravel and other mineral
extraction operations which involves portable or fixed machinery or
equipment used to manufacturing bituminous concrete (a.k.a. hot top).
A wall that is not part of the structural support of the
building and is intended through its design and construction to collapse
under specific lateral loading forces without causing damage to the
elevated portion of the building or the supporting foundation system.
A unit of land, together with a specified type and amount
of planting thereon, and any structures, such as but not limited to
fences, retaining walls and berms, which may be required between land
uses to eliminate or minimize conflicts.
See "Structure."
The code enforcement officer.
A planned development designed and arranged for business
and professional uses, uses that are accessory or uses that provide
services to business and professional uses.
A measurement of the size of a tree equal to the diameter
of its trunk measured six inches above natural grade for trees having
calipers less than or equal to four inches in diameter, and measured
12 inches above grade for tree calipers greater than four inches in
diameter.
See "Code enforcement officer."
A document signed by the code enforcement officer stating
that a structure or development is in compliance with all of the provisions
of this chapter.
See "Watercourse."
The City engineer may be a regular employee of the City or
a consultant to the City. The individual designated as City engineer
shall be a registered professional engineer, licensed by the state.
All tidal and subtidal lands; all lands below any identifiable
debris line left by tidal action; all lands with vegetation present
that is tolerant of saltwater and occurs primarily in a saltwater
or estuarine habitat; and any swamp, marsh, bog, beach, flat or other
contiguous low land which is subject to tidal action during the maximum
spring tide level as identified in tide tables published by the National
Ocean Service. Coastal wetlands may include portions of coastal sand
dunes.
Any person responsible for performing the inspection, licensing,
and enforcement duties required by a particular statute or ordinance.
The temporary detaining or storage of stormwater in aboveground
or belowground reservoirs or other areas under predetermined and controlled
conditions, with a controlled rate of discharge therefrom.
Any change caused by individuals or entities to improved
or unimproved real estate, including but not limited to the construction
of buildings or other structures; subdivisions; the construction of
additions or substantial improvements to buildings or other structures;
mining, dredging, filling, grading, paving, excavation, drilling operations,
or storage of equipment or materials; and the storage, deposition,
or extraction of materials, public or private sewage disposal systems
or water supply facilities.
MAJOR DEVELOPMENTStructures which, together with parking lots and other impervious surface, cover a ground area in excess of three acres but less than seven acres. For purposes of City review authority of projects subject to the State of Maine Site Location Development Law, major development shall also include subdivisions in excess of 20 acres as defined in 38 M.R.S.A. § 481 et seq. After July 1, 1997, major developments shall include two types of subdivisions, generally, as defined in 38 M.R.S.A. § 482(5).
MINOR DEVELOPMENTA development which has a floor area in excess of 3,000 square feet or a development which will utilize more than one acre of nonvegetated surfaces but less than three acres.
The outflow of water, silt or other mobile substances passing
along a conduit, a watercourse, or a channel or released from detention
storage.
The removal of surface water or groundwater from land by
drains, grading, or other means. Drainage includes the control of
runoff to minimize erosion and sedimentation during or after development
and includes the means necessary for water supply preservation or
for prevention or alleviation of flooding.
The area contributing runoff water to a watercourse, drainage
system or detention basin.
See "Watercourse."
A vehicular accessway serving not more than two lots or dwelling
units.
A dwelling containing three or more dwelling units.
A dwelling containing one dwelling unit.
A dwelling containing two dwelling units.
A room or group of rooms designed and equipped exclusively
for use as permanent, seasonal, or temporary living quarters for only
one family. The term shall include single-family and multifamily housing,
condominiums, timeshare units, apartments, and mobile homes, but not
recreational vehicles.
The term "earth" shall include topsoil (loam), sand, gravel,
and clay taken from the land. The term "earth removal" shall mean
the extraction of topsoil, sand, gravel, and clay from the earth.
See Development, Filling and Mineral extraction.
The placement of clean soil material, rocks, bricks, or cured
concrete that is not mixed with other solid or liquid waste and is
not derived from an ore mining activity, in a different location from
that where the material was removed.
A nonbasement building.
An official form (FEMA Form 81-31, 05/90, as amended) that:
Includes operations conducted for the public health, safety
or general welfare, such as protection of resources from immediate
destruction or loss, law enforcement, and operations to rescue human
beings, property and livestock from the threat of destruction or injury.
The detachment and movement of soil, organic matter or rock
fragments by water, wind, ice or gravity.
The construction, alteration or maintenance of gas, electrical
or communication facilities; steam, fuel, telephone, electric power
or water transmission or distribution lines, towers and related equipment;
gas, oil, water, slurry or other similar pipelines; municipal sewage
lines, collection or supply systems; and associated storage tanks.
For the purposes of this chapter, such systems do not include poles,
wires, mains, drains, pipes, conduits, cables, fire alarms and police
call boxes, traffic signals, hydrants and similar accessories, nor
do such systems include service drops or buildings which are necessary
for the furnishing of such services. Facilities shall be for the public
interest, and, if other than City-owned facilities, such facilities
shall be deemed public facilities by the City council.
Any act by which organic matter, earth, sand, gravel, rock
or any other similar material is cut into, dug, quarried, uncovered,
removed, displaced, relocated or bulldozed, and shall include the
conditions resulting therefrom.
One or more persons occupying premises and living as a single
housekeeping unit.
See "Earth filling."
The collapse or subsidence of land along the shore of a lake or other body of water as a result of erosion or undermining caused by waves or currents of water exceeding anticipated cyclical levels or suddenly caused by an unusually high water level in a natural body of water, accompanied by a severe storm, or by an unanticipated force of nature, such as flash flood or an abnormal tidal surge, or by some similarly unusual and unforeseeable event which results in flooding as defined in subsection (1) of this definition.
The elevation of the highest flood of not less than one-hundred-year,
twenty-four-hour duration as set forth by the floodplain maps and
profiles adopted therein.
An examination, evaluation and determination of flood hazards
and, if appropriate, corresponding water surface elevations.
An official map of a community on which the administrator
of the Federal Emergency Management Agency has delineated both the
special hazard areas and the risk premium zones applicable to the
community.
See "Flood elevation study."
Any land area susceptible to being inundated by water from
any source (see definition of "flood" and "flooding").
The operation of an overall program of corrective and preventive
measures for reducing flood damage, including but not limited to emergency
preparedness plans, flood control works, and floodplain management
regulations.
Zoning ordinances, subdivision regulations, building codes,
health regulations, special purpose ordinances, such as a floodplain
ordinance, grading ordinance, and erosion control ordinance, and other
applications of police power. The term describes such state or local
regulations, or any combination thereof, which provide standards for
the purpose of flood damage prevention and reduction.
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.
See "Regulatory floodway."
The lines marking the limits of floodways on federal, state,
and local floodplain maps.
The sum of the horizontal areas of the floors of a structure
enclosed by exterior walls, plus the horizontal area of any unenclosed
portions of a structure such as porches and decks.
A ratio derived by dividing the total floor area by the net
buildable site area.
A ratio derived by dividing the total floor area by the total
site area.
The supporting substructure of a building or other structure,
including but not limited to basements, slabs, sills, posts or frost
walls.
A factor of safety, usually expressed in feet above a flood
level, for purposes of floodplain management. Freeboard tends to compensate
for the many unknown factors, such as wave action, bridge openings,
and the hydrological effect of urbanization of the watershed, that
could contribute to flood heights greater than the height calculated
for a selected size flood and floodway conditions.
See "Hydric soils." Frequently flooded means that flooding
is likely to occur often under usual weather conditions, with more
than a 50% chance of flooding in any year, or more than 50 times in
100 years.
See "Wetland."
Areas along all brooks, streams, wetland and natural drainageways
not protected by 38 M.R.S.A. but considered to have value in their
natural state for the maintenance of biotic systems and in their capacity
to carry stormwater.
Gross floor area — The sum of the gross area of the several
floors of a building or buildings measured from the exterior faces
of exterior walls, or from the centerlines of walls separating two
buildings. In particular, floor area generally includes:
Basement space, except as specifically excluded.
Elevator shafts or stairwells at each floor.
Floorspace in penthouses.
Attic space, whether or not a floor has been laid, providing
structural headroom of seven feet six inches or more.
Floorspace in interior balconies or mezzanines.
Any other floorspace used for dwelling purposes, no matter where
located within a building.
Floorspace in accessory buildings, except for floorspace used
for accessory off-street parking.
Any other floorspace not specifically excluded.
The gross floor area of a building shall not include:
Cellar space, except that cellar space used for retailing shall
be included for the purpose of calculating requirements for accessory
off-street parking spaces and accessory off-street loading berths.
Elevator or stair bulkheads, accessory water tanks, or cooling
towers.
Uncovered steps.
Attic space, whether or not a floor actually has been laid,
providing structural headroom is less than seven feet six inches.
Floorspace used for mechanical equipment.
Areas designated by the state department of environmental
protection pursuant to the Natural Resources Protection Act, 38 M.R.S.A.
§§ 480A-480S.
Any gaseous, liquid, or solid materials or substance designated
as hazardous by the United States Environmental Protection Agency
or state department of environmental protection.
The vertical measurement from the average grade of the ground
to the highest point on the roof.
Any structure that is:
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;
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;
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:
Soils that are saturated, flooded, or ponded long enough
during the growing season to develop anaerobic conditions in the upper
part (USDA Soil Conservation Service 1987). In general, hydric soils
are flooded, ponded, or saturated for usually one week or more during
the period when soil temperatures are above biologic zero (41°
F.) as defined by Soil Taxonomy (USDA Soil Survey Staff 1975). These
soils usually support hydrophytic vegetation.
Any hard-surfaced manmade area that does not readily absorb
or retain water, including but not limited to building roofs, paved
or graveled parking and driveway areas, sidewalks and paved recreational
facilities.
Is a measure of the intensity of land use which is determined
by dividing the total area of all impervious surfaces on a site by
the lot area.
A parcel which has been developed, including but not limited
to construction of buildings and/or installation of utilities.
A subdivision of land intended or designed exclusively for
and/or developed for more than one distinct industrial use, its accompanying
accessory use and uses that service industrial uses.
See "Stream."
An individual licensed by the state department of human services
to review and inspect requests for internal and external plumbing
permits and to enforce the provisions of the state plumbing codes
as well as local codes related to plumbing.
An elevation established for a specific site to which all
other elevations at the site are referenced. This elevation is generally
not referenced to the National Geodetic Vertical Datum or any other
established datum and is used in areas where mean sea level data is
too far from a specific site to be practically used.
A registered or recorded parcel of land of at least sufficient
size to meet minimum zoning requirements for use and dimensions and
to provide such yards and other open spaces as are required in this
chapter. For the purposes of this chapter, an easement shall not be
considered a lot.
The area of land enclosed within the boundary lines of a
lot, minus land below the normal high-water line of a water body or
upland edge of a wetland and areas beneath roads serving more than
two lots.
FRONT LOT LINEThe line separating any lot from a street or streets.
REAR LOT LINEA lot line which is opposite and most distant from the front lot line. In the case of a triangular or irregular lot, the rear lot line is a line 10 feet long within the lot, parallel to and farthest from the front lot line.
SIDE LOT LINEAny lot line not a front or rear lot line.
Licensed plumbing inspector.
The handbook developed and published by the state department
of environmental protection, first draft dated April 15, 1990, and
titled "Urban BMP's."
For purposes of the National Flood Insurance Program, means
the National Geodetic Vertical Datum of 1929 or other datum to which
base flood elevations shown on the City's flood insurance rate map
are referenced.
Hand sampling, test boring, or other methods of determining
the nature or extent of mineral resources which create minimal disturbance
to the land and which include reasonable measures to restore the land
to its original condition.
Any operation within any twelve-month period which removes
more than 100 cubic yards of soil, topsoil, loam, sand, gravel, clay,
rock, peat, or other mined material from its natural location or which
transports the product removed away from the extraction site. Uses
associated with mineral extraction include, but are not limited to,
bituminous mix plants, crushing/screening operations, and ready-mix
concrete plants.
See "Utility."
National Geodetic Vertical Datum; see "Mean sea level."
That line which is apparent from visible markings or changes
in the character of soils due to prolonged action of the water or
changes in vegetation, and which distinguishes between predominantly
aquatic and predominantly terrestrial land. In the case of wetlands
adjacent to rivers and great ponds, the normal high-water line is
the upland edge of the wetland, and not the edge of the open water.
See "Base flood."
Land used for recreation, resource protection, amenities
and/or buffers. In no event shall any area of a lot constituting the
minimum lot area of the lot or any part of any existing or future
road or right-of-way be counted as constituting open space.
A parking deck or garage.
A parcel or area of land designed for the parking of motor
vehicles.
A space adequate for parking an automobile with room for opening doors on both sides, together with properly related access to public street or alley and maneuvering room (see section 90-12).
The maximum rate of flow of water at a given point in a channel,
watercourse, or conduit resulting from a specified five-, twenty-,
fifty-, one-hundred-year, etc., storm or flood.
A financial guarantee to ensure that all improvements, facilities,
or work required by this chapter will be completed or maintained in
compliance with this chapter.
Any of the following:
A full poured concrete or masonry foundation;
A poured concrete frost wall or a mortared masonry frost wall,
with or without a concrete floor;
A reinforced floating concrete pad, for which the City may require
an engineer's certification if it is to be placed on soil with high
frost susceptibility; or
Any foundation which, pursuant to the building code for the
City, is permitted for other types of single-family dwellings.
Any person receiving a permit from the City.
An individual, corporation, governmental agency, municipality,
trust, estate, partnership, or association, two or more individuals
having a joint or common interest, or other legal entity.
A development in which clustering of units or uses permits
better land use practices to be employed.
Land with or without the buildings and structures thereon.
The building or structure occupied by the chief or principal
use on the premises.
Any facility, including but not limited to buildings, property,
recreation areas, and roads, which is owned, leased or otherwise operated
or funded by a governmental body or public nonprofit entity.
See "Utility."
The following soil series as described and identified by
the National Cooperative Soil Survey; Alluvial, Cornish, Charles,
Fryeburg, Hadley, Limerick, Lovewell, Medomak, Ondawa, Podunk, Rumney,
Saco, Suncook, Sunday, and Winooski.
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; and
In zone A, the channel of a river or other watercourse and the
adjacent land areas to a distance of 1/2 the width of the floodplain
as measured from the normal high-water mark to the upland limit of
the floodplain.
A system intended to replace:
Rocks, irregularly shaped, and at least six inches in diameter,
used for erosion control and soil stabilization, typically used on
ground slopes of two units horizontal to one unit vertical or less.
A free-flowing body of water including its associated floodplain
wetlands from that point at which it provides drainage for a watershed
15 square miles to its mouth.
Relating to, formed by, or resembling a river (including
tributaries), stream, brook, or other natural flowage.
A route or track consisting of a bed of exposed mineral soil,
gravel, asphalt, or other surfacing material constructed for or created
by the repeated passage of motorized vehicles.
As determined by the City's comprehensive plan.
The deposition of soil particles that have been transported
from their site of origin by water, ice, wind, gravity, or other natural
means.
The nearest horizontal distance from a lot line or normal
high-water line to the nearest part of a structure, road, parking
space or other regulated object or area.
The length of a lot bordering on a water body or a wetland
measured in a straight line between the intersections of the side
lot lines with the shoreline at normal highwater elevation.
The land located within 250 feet, horizontal distance, of
the normal highwater line of any great pond, river, or saltwater body,
within 250 feet of the upland edge of a coastal or freshwater wetland,
or within 75 feet of the normal high-water line of a stream.
See "Habitat, significant wildlife."
Group A — Low runoff potential: Soils having high infiltration
rates even when thoroughly wetted and consisting of deep well to excessively
drained sands or gravels.
Group B: Soils having a moderate infiltration rate when thoroughly
wetted, and consisting of moderately deep, moderately well drained
to well drained soils with moderately fine to moderately coarse textures.
Group C: Soils having slow infiltration rates when thoroughly
wetted, consisting of moderately fine to fine texture soils with a
layer that impedes the downward movement of water. The majority of
the soils in the state generally fall into this group.
Group D — High runoff potential: Soils having a very slow
infiltration rate when thoroughly wetted, consisting mainly of silt
to silty clay and clay soils. These soils are also characteristic
of wetland type areas.
See "Area of special flood hazard."
Land area where the inclination of the land's surface from
the horizontal is 15% or greater. See "Sustained slope."
All facilities used for conducting stormwater to, through
or from a drainage area to the point of final outlet.
The waters derived from rains falling within a tributary
drainage basin, flowing over the surface of the ground or collected
in channels, watercourses or conduits.
The volume and rate of flow of stormwater discharged from
a developed drainage area which is or will be in excess of that volume
and rate which existed before development.
A free-flowing body of water from the outlet of a great pond
or the point of confluence of two perennial streams as depicted on
the most recent edition of a United States Geological Survey 7.5 minute
series topographic map, or, if not available, a fifteen-minute series
topographic map, to the point where the body of water becomes a river.
Intermittent streams run six months or less during any twelve-month
period. See "Tributary stream."
For the purpose of this chapter and for determining minimum
road frontage requirements, a street is considered to be any public
way maintained by public authority, or a private way of a specified
width, or a private way shown on a recordable subdivision plan, approved
by the planning board.
A street which serves or connects major urban activity centers,
is a high-volume travel corridor, provides for long trip desires and/or
is part of any integrated network providing intercounty and interstate
service.
A street serving as an intracity travel corridor channelizing
and distributing traffic to and from arterial and local streets.
The right-of-way line of a street.
A street providing access to adjacent land, service to travel
short distances, and the lowest level of mobility and access service
to other streets.
Anything built for the support, shelter or enclosure of persons,
animals, goods or property of any kind, together with anything constructed
or erected with a fixed location on or in the ground, exclusive of
fences, utility poles and associated appurtenances, sidewalks and
handicap ramps. The term includes structures permanently or temporarily
located, such as decks, signs (see the City sign ordinance), gas or
liquid storage tanks that are principally stored above ground and
satellite dishes. The term includes any structure having a roof supported
by columns or walls. Buildings separated only by party walls or abutting
walls without openings shall be deemed to be separate buildings.
The state at which a certificate of occupancy can be granted.
Damage of any origin sustained by a structure whereby the
cost of restoring the structure to its before-damage condition would
equal or exceed 50% of the market value of the structure before the
damage occurred.
Expansion of a structure in excess of 30% of the gross floor
area or volume prior to expansion. See "Floor area" and "Volume of
a structure."
Any reconstruction, rehabilitation, addition, or other improvement
of structure, the cost of which equals 50% of the market value of
the structure before the start of construction of the improvement.
This term includes structures which have incurred substantial damage,
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 ensure safe living conditions;
or
Any alteration of a historic structure, provided that the alteration
will not preclude the structure's continued designation as a historic
structure.
The risk is not imaginary or illusory, is considerable in
quantity, and is not merely trivial.
Completion of 30% of a permitted structure or use measured
as a percentage of estimated total cost.
A collection of treatment tanks, disposal areas, holding
tanks and ponds, private individual surface spray systems, cesspools,
wells, surface ditches, alternative toilets, or other devices and
associated piping designed to function as a unit for the purpose of
disposing of wastes or wastewater on or beneath the surface of the
earth. The term shall not include any wastewater discharge system
licensed under 38 M.R.S.A. § 414, any surface wastewater
disposal system licensed under 38 M.R.S.A. § 413(1)(A) or
any public sewer. The term shall not include a wastewater disposal
system designed to treat wastewater which is in whole or in part hazardous
waste as defined in 38 M.R.S.A. chapter 13, subchapter 1.
A change in elevation where the referenced percentage grade
is substantially maintained or exceeded throughout the measured area.
Substantially shall mean for at least 30% of the measured area.
The City technical standards handbook ordinance maintained by the City, codified herein as chapter 98.
All contiguous land in the same ownership, provided that
lands located on opposite sides of a public or private road are considered
each a separate tract or parcel of land unless the road was established
by the owner of land on both sides of the road.
A channel between defined banks created by the action of
surface water, whether intermittent or perennial, and which is characterized
by the lack of upland vegetation or presence of aquatic vegetation
and by the presence of a bed devoid of topsoil containing waterborne
deposits on exposed soil, parent material or bedrock, and which flows
to a water body or wetland. This definition does not include the term
"stream" as defined in this section, and only applies to that portion
of the tributary stream located within the shoreland zone of the receiving
water body or wetland.
Traffic congestion, which when it exceeds a reasonable level
of service, causes increased air pollution and energy consumption,
hinders the passage of public safety vehicles, contributes to lost
labor productivity, increases stress, and in general degrades the
quality of life in the state. Level of service D, as determined from
a capacity analysis, shall be considered the minimum level of service
needed to provide safe and convenient traffic movement. Where a road
or intersection in the vicinity of the proposed development is determined
to operate at level of service E or level of service F in the horizon
year, the board shall find that the proposed development will result
in unreasonable congestion, unless:
Improvements will be made to raise the level of service of the
road or intersection to D or above;
The level of service of the road or intersection will be raised
to D or above through transportation demand management techniques;
The board finds that it is not possible to raise the level of
service of the road or intersection to D or above by road or intersection
improvements or by transportation demand management techniques, but
improvements will be made or transportation demand management techniques
will be used such that the proposed development will not increase
delay at a signalized intersection, decrease the reserve capacity
at an unsignalized intersection, or otherwise worsen the operational
condition of the road or intersection in the horizon year; or
The board finds that improvements cannot reasonably be made
because the road intersection is located in a central business district
or because implementation of the improvements will adversely affect
a historic site as defined in chapter 375(11) of the state department
of environmental protection regulations, and transportation demand
management techniques will be implemented to the fullest extent possible.
A roadway segment or intersection determined to be a high
accident location by the state department of transportation.
A municipal or public utility or communication facility includes
the following: Central Maine Power, New England Telephone, Belfast
Water District, Belfast Sanitary District, cable TV, a private telephone
company or paging service, any utility regulated by the state public
utilities commission, and any other commercial communication tower.
Major municipal or public utilities/communication facilities
include water; sanitary treatment plants; electric transmission lines;
electric generation plants; and microwave, radio, and other commercial
telecommunication transmitters and towers.
Minor municipal or public utilities/communication facilities
include pumping and pressure control stations; standpipes, reservoirs,
wells and other water storage structures; telephone equipment huts
(over 200 square feet); and electricity regulating substations.
That land area of special flood hazard subject to a 1% or
greater chance of flooding in any given year, and subject to additional
hazard from high-velocity water due to wave action.
As it applies to the floodplain, means a grant of relief
by the board of zoning appeals from the terms of a floodplain management
regulation, or from any dimensional requirement of this chapter, in
accordance with 30-A M.R.S.A. § 4353(4).
All live trees, shrubs, ground cover, and other plants.
The failure of a structure, use or other development to fully
comply with the regulations found in this chapter.
The volume of all portions of a structure enclosed by roof
and fixed exterior walls as measured from the exterior faces of these
walls and roof.
Any great pond, river, stream or tidal area.
Any project extending from one bank to the opposite bank
of a river or stream, whether under, through, or over the watercourse.
Such projects include but are not necessarily limited to roads, fords,
bridges, culverts, water lines, sewer lines, and cables, as well as
maintenance work on these crossings.
A channel, drainageway, stream, or brook, or any defined
area of land conveying surface water or runoff. A watercourse may
be intermittent or perennial (perennial means greater than six months
in any twelve-month period).
A wetland as identified on the duly adopted shoreland zoning
maps, and includes freshwater swamps, marshes, bogs and similar areas
which are:
Ten or more contiguous acres; or
Less than 10 contiguous acres and adjacent to a surface water
body, excluding any river, stream or brook, such that, in a natural
state, the combined surface area is in excess of 10 acres; and
Inundated or saturated by surface water or groundwater at a
frequency and for a duration sufficient to support, and which under
normal circumstances do support, a prevalence of wetland vegetation
typically adapted for life in saturated soils. Freshwater wetlands
may contain small stream channels or inclusions of land that do not
conform to the criteria or to the definition of stream.
Wetlands contiguous with or adjacent to a great pond or river,
and which during normal high water are connected by surface water
to the great pond or river. Also included are wetlands which are separated
from the great pond or river by a berm, causeway, or similar feature
less than 100 feet in width, and which have a surface elevation at
or below the normal high-water line of the great pond or river. Wetlands
associated with a great pond or river are considered to be part of
that great pond or river.
A yard adjoining the front lot line, extending between the
principal structure and the street.
A yard adjoining the rear lot line and extending between
the rear lot line and the principal structure.
A yard adjoining a side lot line extending from the front
lot line to the rear lot line as required by district regulations.
[Ord. No. 58-1997, § 12.0, 6-17-1997]
(a)
Violations generally. Any violation of this chapter shall be deemed
to be a nuisance and a land use violation enforceable under the provisions
of 30-A M.R.S.A. § 4452.
(b)
Responsibility for enforcement; notice of violation. This chapter
shall be enforced by a code enforcement officer appointed by the City
council. If the code enforcement officer shall find that any provision
of this chapter is being violated, he shall notify in writing the
person responsible for such violation and/or the City manager, indicating
the nature of the violation and ordering the action necessary to correct
it, including discontinuance of illegal use of land, buildings, structures,
or work being done, removal of illegal buildings or structures, and
abatement of nuisance conditions. A copy of such notices shall be
maintained as a permanent record.
(c)
Legal action. When the action described in subsection (b) of this section does not result in the correction or abatement of the violation or nuisance condition, the City manager, upon notice from the code enforcement officer, is hereby authorized to cause the commencement of any and all actions and proceedings, either legal or equitable, including actions seeking injunctions of violations and the imposition of penalties, that may be available or necessary to enforce the provisions of this chapter in the name of the City.
(d)
Penalty; additional remedies. Any person, including but not limited
to a landowner, a landowner's agent or a contractor, who violates
any provision of this chapter shall be penalized in accordance with
30-A M.R.S.A. § 4452. In addition, the City shall be entitled
to all of the relief, including its costs and legal fees, as allowed
by 30-A M.R.S.A. § 4452. Notwithstanding any provision to
the contrary, including the provisions of 30-A M.R.S.A. § 4452,
The City shall be entitled to judgment against any violator for its
costs, expert witness fees, code enforcement expenses and attorneys'
fees incurred in enforcing this chapter. The City shall also have
the right to enforce this chapter through civil action, either at
law or equity. The enforcement provisions contained in this subsection
shall exist in addition to those which may exist under state statutory
law or Rule 80K of the Maine Rules of Civil Procedure, or any other
court rule or statutory provision. Each and every day of violation
shall constitute a new and separate offense for which a minimum penalty
of $100 shall be assessed.
(e)
Conditions for issuance of permits. No code enforcement officer may
issue any permit for a building or use within a development unless
the development has been approved under this chapter and unless all
conditions of the approval have been met.
[Ord. No. 58-1997, § 1.0, 6-17-1997]
This chapter outlines site plan application requirements and
approval procedures to be followed by the code enforcement officer
and/or the planning board for all major and minor developments.
[Ord. No. 58-1997, § 1.2, 6-17-1997]
Unless specified in this chapter, this chapter does not repeal
any other law, ordinance, regulation, rule, code or otherwise lawful
deed restriction or covenant. Whenever the requirements of this chapter
are at variance with the regulations or restrictions of any other
lawfully adopted law, ordinance, code, rule or regulation imposed
by any governmental authority or any deed restriction or covenant,
that which is more restrictive or imposes the higher standards or
requirements shall govern. Notwithstanding any other provisions of
this chapter, no premises shall be used or maintained in violation
of any state or federal pollution control or environmental protection
law or regulation.
[Ord. No. 58-1997, § 1.3, 6-17-1997]
The provisions set forth in this chapter may from time to time
be amended, supplemented or repealed in accordance with the Revised
Statutes of Maine, as amended, the Charter, and the comprehensive
plan of the City. Any amendment to the provisions of this chapter
shall be adopted by the City Council, provided it holds a public hearing
on the proposed amendment for which hearing seven days' public notice
is given.
[Ord. No. 58-1997, § 1.4, 6-17-1997]
This chapter implements the comprehensive plan for the City
which was adopted by the City Council on March 14, 1995, and is to
supplement the zoning ordinance duly adopted by the City and establish
standards and procedures for the review of developments in the City.
[Ord. No. 58-1997, § 2.0, 6-17-1997]
The code enforcement officer and/or the Planning Board of the
City shall administer this chapter. The code enforcement officer,
or his appointed designee, shall be the enforcing officer. The City
engineer, or designee, shall make a written report to the board with
respect to the traffic, proposed grades, drainage, profiles, cross
sections, relationship of abutting land, roads, parking or other impervious
surfaces of development before the final plan may be approved. The
board may also obtain reports from the engineers of utility companies
and districts (water, sanitary, electric, telephone, cable TV), and
such others, including fire and police departments, as it deems advisable.
Such reports shall be in writing. A permanent record of all Planning
Board meetings, proceedings and correspondence shall be maintained
by the code enforcement officer.
[Ord. No. 58-1997, § 3.0, 6-17-1997]
(a)
Submission requirements. As to any intended development, the developer
shall prepare and formally submit:
(1)
To the City, a preapplication for study, and modification where required.
(2)
To the code enforcement officer and/or Planning Board, a preliminary
plan for study, and modification where required; and a final plan
for review, and modification where required, approval, approval with
conditions, or disapproval.
(b)
Joint municipal review. If any portion of the proposed development
crosses municipal boundaries, the Planning Board and the municipal
reviewing authority from each affected municipality shall meet jointly
to discuss the application.
[Ord. No. 58-1997, § 4.0, 6-17-1997]
Before submission of a formal preliminary plan, a preapplication
for a development shall be made to the code enforcement officer and
shall include four copies of a sketch plan. The intent of the preapplication
phase is to provide an opportunity for the developer to meet with
the code enforcement officer and other reviewing agencies to informally
review the proposal. The preapplication shall include the following
information:
(1)
A fifty-foot/one-hundred-foot scale (200 feet if clarity is maintained).
(2)
True north arrow.
(3)
Abutters and neighbors within 150 feet.
(4)
Five-foot contours. For developments with unvegetated area less than
two acres this provision may be modified by the code enforcement officer
when in his opinion the existing contours do not warrant five-foot
conditions.
(5)
Available utilities, including easements, both public and private.
(6)
Road frontage, including existing street names.
(7)
Location plan.
(8)
Name of owner.
[Ord. No. 58-1997, § 8.0, 6-17-1997]
The approval of a final plan by the code enforcement officer
and/or the Planning Board shall not be deemed as acceptance by the
City of the dedication of any street or other public way or grounds.
All street names, public or private, require approval of the City
Council.
[Ord. No. 58-1997, § 9.0, 6-17-1997]
A copy of the approval of a development plan shall be filed
with the code enforcement officer, the assessor, the sewer department
and the highway department of the City.
[Ord. No. 58-1997, § 10.0, 6-17-1997]
Chapter 98, pertaining to technical standards, shall apply to all developments subject to review under the regulations of this chapter.
[Ord. No. 58-1997, § 11.0, 6-17-1997]
(a)
Types of guarantees. With submittal of the application for final
plan approval, the developer shall provide one of the following performance
guarantees for an amount of 110% of the total construction cost of
all required improvements, taking into account the time span of the
construction schedule and the inflation rate for construction costs:
(1)
Either a certified check payable to the City or a savings account
or certificate of deposit naming the City as owner for the establishment
of an escrow account.
(2)
A performance bond payable to the City issued by a surety company,
approved by the City manager and City attorney.
(3)
An irrevocable letter of credit from a financial institution
to the City, being in an amount sufficient for the construction of
the required improvements, against which the City may draw if construction
is inadequate or incomplete. This letter shall be in a form satisfactory
to the City attorney. The conditions and amount of the performance
guarantee shall be determined by the Planning Board and/or code enforcement
officer with the advice of the City engineer, highway superintendent,
code enforcement office and/or City attorney.
(b)
Release of guarantee. Prior to the release of the performance guarantee,
the code enforcement officer shall determine to his satisfaction,
in part upon the report of the City engineer and whatever other agencies
and departments may be involved, that the proposed improvements meet
or exceed the design and construction requirements.
(c)
Default. If, upon inspection, the City engineer and/or the code enforcement
officer finds that any of the required improvements have not been
constructed in accordance with the plans and specifications filed
as part of the application, they shall so report in writing to the
developer and/or builder. The code enforcement officer shall take
any steps necessary to preserve the City's rights upon default under
this chapter.
[Ord. No. 58-1997, § 13.0, 6-17-1997; Ord. No. 25-2005, 12-7-2004]
Powers of Zoning Board of Appeals. The Zoning Board of Appeals shall have the power to hear and decide administrative appeals where it is alleged that there is an error in any order, requirement, decision, or determination made by, or failure to act by, the code enforcement officer or Planning Board in the enforcement or administration of this chapter. A request for an administrative appeal shall comply with the procedures described in chapter 102, Zoning, article II, Administration, division 4, Appeals and Variances.
[Ord. No. 58-1997, § 14.0, 6-17-1997]
The City Council shall establish all fees applicable to this
chapter.
[Ord. No. 58-1997, § 16.0, 6-17-1997]
All proposed developments shall be in conformity with the comprehensive
plan of the City and with the provisions of all pertinent federal,
state, and local codes, ordinances, rules and/or regulations.
[Ord. No. 58-1997, § 17.0, 6-17-1997]
The latest standards of the state department of environmental
protection as referenced in 38 M.R.S.A. §§ 481-490
shall be applied to for all projects which require City approval as
major developments and/or developments which substantially affect
the environment, as delegated under the review authority provisions
of 38 M.R.S.A. § 489A.
[Ord. No. 58-1997, § 18.0, 6-17-1997]
A permit application for site location review shall be required
for all projects which require City approval as a major development
and/or developments which substantially affect the environment, as
delegated under the review authority provisions of 38 M.R.S.A. § 489A.
[Added 10-6-2020]
(a)
Post October 6, 2020, a site plan permit approved by the Code Enforcement
Officer or the Planning Board shall expire and be considered void
five years after the date it is issued if no project development identified
in the approved site plan permit has occurred on the property. In
the case of a site plan permit that was approved prior to October
6, 2020, and if no project development identified in the approved
site plan permit has occurred on the property by December 31, 2025,
said permit shall be considered void on January 1, 2026.
(b)
An applicant, for good cause shown, may request a one-year extension
regarding the date of expiration of a site plan permit from the authority
that issued the original permit; however, the City is not required
to approve the request for an extension if the original issuing authority
determines that the applicant has not demonstrated good cause shown.
