(§ 99-5 - § 99-6)

Unless specifically defined below, words or phases used in this chapter shall be interpreted so as to give them the meanings they have in common usage and to give this chapter its most reasonable application.

APPEAL - A request for a review of the Floodplain Manager's interpretation of any provision of this chapter or a request for a variance.

AREA OF SHALLOW FLOODING A designated AO, AH, or VO Zone on a community's Flood Insurance Rate Map with a one-percent or greater 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.

AREA OF SPECIAL FLOOD HAZARD The land in the floodplain within a community subject to a one-percent or greater chance of flooding in any given year.

AREAS OF SPECIAL FLOOD-RELATED EROSION HAZARD The land within a community which is most likely to be subject to severe flood-related erosion losses. After a detailed evaluation, the special flood-related erosion hazard area will be designated a Zone E on the Flood Insurance Rate Map.

BASE FLOOD The flood having a one-percent chance of being equaled or exceeded in any given year.

BASEMENT Any area of the building having its floor subgrade (below ground level) on all sides.

BREAKAWAY WALL 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 supporting foundation system.

COASTAL HIGH-HAZARD AREA An area of special flood hazard extending from offshore to the inland limit of a primary frontal dune along an open coast and any other area subject to high velocity wave action from storms or seismic sources.

DEVELOPMENT Any man-made change to improved or unimproved real estate, including, but not limited to, buildings or other structures, mining, dredging, filling, grading, paving, excavation or drilling operations, or storage of equipment or materials located within the area of special flood hazard.

ELEVATED BUILDING A nonbasement building built, in the case of a building in a area of special flood hazard, to have the top of the elevated floor or, in the case of a building in a coastal high-hazard area, to have the bottom of the lowest horizontal structural member of the elevated floor elevated above the ground level by means of pilings, columns (posts and piers), or shear walls parallel to the flow of the water, and adequately anchored so as not to impair the structural integrity of the building during a flood up to the magnitude of the base flood. In an area of special flood hazard "elevated building" also includes a building elevated by means of fill or solid foundation perimeter walls with openings sufficient to facilitate the unimpeded movement of floodwaters. In areas of coastal high-hazard "elevated building" also includes a building otherwise meeting the definition of "elevated building" even though the lower area is enclosed by means of breakaway walls.

EROSION The process of the gradual wearing away of land masses.

FLOOD OR FLOODING A general and temporary condition of partial or complete inundation of normally dry land areas from:

A. The overflow of inland or tidal waters; and/or

B. The unusual and rapid accumulation or runoff of surface waters from any source.

FLOOD INSURANCE RATE MAP (FIRM) The official map on which the Federal Insurance Administration has delineated both the areas of special flood hazards and the risk premium zones applicable to the community.

FLOOD INSURANCE STUDY (FIS) The official report provided in which the Federal Insurance Administration has provided flood profiles, as well as the Flood Insurance Rate Map(s) and the water surface elevation of the base flood.

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, in any combination thereof, which provide standards for the purpose of flood damage prevention and reduction.

FLOOD-RELATED EROSION The collapse or subsidence of land along the shore of a lake or other body of water as a result of undermining caused by waves or currents of water exceeding anticipated cyclical levels or suddenly caused by unusually high water level in a natural body of water, accompanied by a severe storm, or by unanticipated force of nature, such as a flash flood or an abnormal tidal surge, or by some similarly unusual and unforeseeable event which results in flooding.

FLOOD-RELATED EROSION AREA OR FLOOD-RELATED EROSION PRONE AREA A land area adjoining the shore of a lake or other body of water which, due to the composition of the shore line or bank and high water levels or wind-driven currents, is likely to suffer flood-related erosion.

FLOOD-RELATED EROSION AREA MANAGEMENT The operation of an overall program of corrective and preventive measures for reducing flood-related erosion damage, including but not limited to emergency preparedness plans, flood-related erosion control works, and floodplain management regulations.

HIGHEST ADJACENT GRADE The highest natural elevation of the ground surface prior to construction next to the proposed walls of a structure.

HISTORIC STRUCTURE Any structure that is:

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

B. Certified or preliminarily determined by the Secretary of the Interior as contributing to the historical significance of a registered historic district preliminarily determined by the Secretary to qualify as a registered historic district;

C. 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

D. 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.

LOWEST FLOOR The lowest floor of the lowest enclosed area (including basement). An unfinished or flood-resistant enclosure, useable solely for the parking of vehicles, building access or storage in an area other than a basement is not considered a building's lowest floor, provided that such enclosure is not built so to render the structure in violation of other applicable nonelevation design requirements.

MANUFACTURED HOME A structure, transportable in one or more sections, which is built on a permanent chassis and is designed for use with or without a permanent foundation when attached to the required utilities. The term "manufactured home" does not include a recreation vehicle.

MANUFACTURED HOME PARK OR MANUFACTURED HOME SUBDIVISION A parcel (or contiguous parcels) of land divided into two or more manufactured home lots for rent or sale.

NEW CONSTRUCTION Structures for which the start of construction commenced on or after the effective date of a floodplain regulation adopted by a community and includes any subsequent improvements to such structures.

NEW MANUFACTURED HOME PARK OR SUBDIVISION A manufactured home park or subdivision for which the construction of facilities for servicing the lots on which the manufactured homes are to be affixed (including at a minimum, the installation of utilities, the construction of streets, and either final site grading or the pouring of concrete pads) is completed on or after the effective date of the floodplain management regulations adopted by the municipality.

PRIMARY FRONTAL DUNE A continuous or nearly continuous mound or ridge of sand with relatively steep seaward and landward slopes immediately landward and adjacent to the beach and subject to erosion and overtopping from high tides and waves from coastal storms. The inland limit of the primary frontal dune occurs at the point where there is a distinct change from the relatively steep slope to a relatively mild slope.

RECREATIONAL VEHICLE A vehicle which is:

A. Built on a single chassis;

B. Four hundred square feet or less when measured at the longest horizontal projections;

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

D. Designed primarily not for use as a permanent dwelling but as temporary living quarters for recreational, camping, travel, or seasonal use.

REFERENCE FEATURE The receding edge or bluff or eroding frontal dune, or if such a feature is not present, the normal high-water line or the seaward line of permanent vegetation if a high-water line cannot be identified.

SAND DUNES Naturally occurring accumulations of sand in ridges or mounds landward of the beach.

SIXTY-YEAR SETBACK A distance equal to 60 times the average annual long-term recession rate at a site, measured from the reference feature.

START OF CONSTRUCTION For other than new construction or substantial improvements under the Coastal Barrier Resources Act (P.L. No. 97-348), includes substantial improvements and means the date the building permit was issued, provided the actual start of construction, repair, reconstruction, rehabilitation, addition, placement, or other improvement was within 180 days of the permit date. The actual start means either the first placement of permanent construction of a structure on a site such as the pouring of a 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/or walkways, nor does it include excavation for a basement, footings or 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.

STRUCTURE A walled and roofed building, a manufactured home, or a gas or liquid storage tank, that is principally above ground.

SUBSTANTIAL DAMAGE Damage of any origin sustained by a structure whereby the cost of restoring the structure to its before damaged condition would equal or exceed 50% of the market value of the structure before the damage occurred.

SUBSTANTIAL IMPROVEMENT Any reconstruction, rehabilitation, addition, or other improvement of a structure, the cost of which exceeds 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:

A. 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 officer and which are the minimum necessary to assure safe living conditions; or

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

THIRTY-YEAR SETBACK A distance equal to 30 times the average annual long-term recession rate a site, measured from the reference feature.

VARIANCE A grant of relief from the requirements of this chapter that permits construction in a manner that would otherwise be prohibited by this chapter.