Brooklyn Center City Zoning Code
35-900 Definitions
35-900DefinitionsThe language set forth in the text of this zoning ordinance shall be interpreted in accordance with the following definition. Words used in the present tense shall include the future; words used in the singular include the plural and the plural includes the singular.Abutting lots or parcels - Any lots or parcels which have a common boundary line.Accessory Building - A building which is used in relation to an accessory use.Accessory Eating Establishment - An establishment within a multistory office building or apartment building where food is prepared, sold, and consumed by clients who work or live within the same building or within a complex of which the building is a part. Such establishments do not appeal through signery or other advertising to the general public. 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.Amusement Center - The operation of one or more amusement devices (except those designed for and used exclusively as rides for children) as a principal or secondary use available for use by nonemployees upon commercial premises other than those listed in Section 23-2109 Subdivision B of the City ordinances.Antenna Support Structure - any building or other structure 75 ft. in height or taller other than a telecommunications tower which can be used for location of telecommunications facilities. Apartment Building - A building with three or more dwelling units attached both horizontally and vertically.Apartment Building, High Rise - A multiple family dwelling six or more stories in height, whose upper floors are accessible by elevators.Apartment, Walk-up - A multiple family dwelling whose upper floors are accessible only stairs.Area Learning Center (ALC) - A non-traditional State approved alternative learning facility for students between the ages of 15 and 21 years that meet the criteria established in Minnesota Statute 124D.68.Basement - means any area of a structure, including crawl spaces, having its floor or base subgrade (below ground level) on all four sides, regardless of the depth of excavation below ground level.Boarding House - A building within which rooms are rented and meals are provided to two or more persons not members of the owner's or lessee's family.Building - Any structure erected for the support, shelter, or enclosure of persons, animals, chattels, or movable property of any kind.Business - Any establishment, occupation, employment or enterprise wherein merchandise is manufactured, exhibited or sold, or where services are offered for compensation.Canopy - An accessory roof-like structure, either attached to or detached from a permitted building, open on all sides, other than where attached; which is located over and designed to provide temporary cover for entrances, exits, walkways, and approved off-street vehicle service areas (such as gasoline stations, drive-in establishments, and loading berths).Carport - An accessory roof-like structure, either attached to or detached from a permitted building, enclosed on not more than two sides, which is designed to provide cover for approved off- street vehicle parking or vehicle storage space.Co-Location - the location of wireless telecommunications equipment from more than one provider on one common tower, building or structure.Condominium Single Family Attached Dwelling Units - Two or more dwelling units horizontally attached in a linear or cluster arrangement, with the individual dwelling units separated from each other by a wall or walls extending from foundation to roof, and with each dwelling unit located upon a separate platted lot. Characteristic features of such a development include individual ownership of dwelling units, and common (nonpublic) ownership of open areas, site amenities, and recreation facilities. A condominium single family attached dwelling unit development includes at least one large common area of open space for aesthetic or recreational purposes.Convenience-Food Restaurant - An establishment with over 40 dining seats or in a separate building, whose principal business is the sale of foods, frozen desserts, or beverages to the customer in a ready-to-eat state for consumption either within the premises or for carry-out with consumption either on or off the premises, and whose design or principal method of operation includes both of the following characteristics:1)Foods, frozen desserts, or beverages are usually served in edible containers or in paper, plastic, or other disposable containers.2)The customer is not served food at his/her table by an employee but receives it at a counter, window, or similar facility for carrying to another location on or off the premises for consumption.Deck - A horizontal, unenclosed, above-ground, level platform without a roof, which may be attached or unattached to a principal dwelling, including any attached railings, seats, trellises, or other features not more than 36 inches above the platform, and which platform is functionally related to a principal use. An unattached deck is considered an accessory structure in any yard, wetland, floodplain, or river corridor critical area.Drive-in Establishment - A commercial enterprise that customarily offers goods, services or entertainment to clientele within automobiles (example: automobile service stations, drive-in restaurants, outdoor theaters, and car washes, but not "drive-in"cleaners where the customer must leave his automobile to pick up or deliver goods).Drop-in Child Care Center - A facility licensed by the Minnesota Department of Public Welfare to provide child care on an irregular basis for periods not to exceed five (5) consecutive hours in a given 24 hour period. Such centers are intended to provide babysitting service for parents who wish to shop and/or pursue leisure activities and do not provide regular care of children while parents travel to a place of work.Dwelling - A building, or portion thereof, designed or used predominantly for residential occupancy of a continued nature, including one-family dwellings, two-family dwellings, and multiple family dwellings, including earth-sheltered homes and manufactured homes; but not including hotels, motels, commercial boarding or rooming houses, tourist homes and recreational vehicles, such as travel trailers, camping trailers, pick-up campers, motor coaches, motor homes and buses.Dwelling, Attached - (Apartment, Condominium, Cooperative, Townhouse or Duplex) - A dwelling joined to one or more other dwellings by party wall or walls.Dwelling, Detached - A dwelling entirely surrounded by open space.Dwelling, Multiple Family (apartment and flat) - A residential building or portion thereof containing three or more dwelling units.Dwelling, One-Family - A residential building containing one dwelling unit.Dwelling, Two-Family (duplex) - A residential building containing two dwelling units.Dwelling Unit - A single residential accommodation which is arranged, designed, used or intended for use exclusively as living quarters for one family; must include complete permanently installed kitchen facilities. Where a private garage is structurally attached, it shall be considered as part of the building in which the dwelling unit is located.Efficiency Units - A dwelling unit with one primary room which doubles as a living room (in its ordinary sense) and a bedroom and may, in addition, serve for other residential uses.Equal Degree of Encroachment - A method of determining the location of floodway boundaries so that flood plain lands on both sides of a stream are capable of conveying a proportionate share of flood flows.Establishment1)A distinct business entity situated in a single building.2)A distinct business entity located in a structure attached to other similar structures by common walls and ceilings or floors, or attached by means of an enclosed arcade.3)A distinct business entity contained within a single structure and not separated by walls or other physical barriers, but made distinct due to its existence as a single lease space and operation by separate entrepreneurs, or by its singularity of purpose (such as clothing sales, furniture sales, and so on) carried on by a single or separate proprietors.Family1)A person or persons related by blood, marriage or adoption, together with his or their domestic servants or gratuitous guests, maintaining a common household in a dwelling unit.2)Group or foster care of not more than six wards or clients by an authorized person or persons, related by blood, marriage, or adoption, together with his or their domestic servants or gratuitous guests, all maintaining a common household in a dwelling unit approved and certified by the appropriate public agency.3)A group of not more than five persons not related by blood, marriage, or adoption maintaining a common household in a dwelling unit.Floor Area, Gross - The sum of the horizontal areas of the several floors of a building or buildings, measured from the exterior faces of the exterior walls or from the center line of partywalls separating two buildings. In particular, "gross floor areas" shall include:1)Basement space, if at least fifty percent of its story height is above the average level of the finished grade.2)Elevator shafts and stairwells at each floor.3)Floor space used for mechanical equipment where the structural headroom exceeds 7- 1/2 feet, except equipment, open or enclosed, located on the roof, i.e., bulk needs, water tanks, and cooling towers.4)Attic floor space where the structural headroom exceeds 7-1/2 feet.5)Interior balconies and mezzanines, where the structural headroom exceeds 7-1/2 feet.6)Enclosed porches, but not terraces and breezeways.7)Accessory uses other than floor space devoted exclusively to accessory off-street parking or loading. But shall not include the following:1)Garages, open porches, and open patios.Floor/Area Ratio - The numerical value obtained through dividing the gross floor area of a building or buildings by the total area of the lot or parcel of land on which such building is located.Garage, Private - An accessory building or an accessory portion of the dwelling building intended for or used to store private passenger vehicles of the families resident upon the premises and in which no business, service or industry connected directly or indirectly with automotive vehicles may be carried on.Garage - School Bus - A building, or portion of a building, used for the storage of school buses (defined in M.S.A. Section 169.01, Subdivision 6), or where any such vehicles are kept for remuneration or hire, excluding major repair of such vehicles.Green Strip - An area containing only vegetation such as grass, trees, flowers, hedges, and other related landscaping materials, and maintained expressly for such purpose.Group Day Care Facility - A facility licensed by the Minnesota Department of Public Welfare to provide child care for six or more children at one time. This term also includes, but is not limited to, facilities having programs for children known as nursery schools, day nurseries, child care centers, play groups, day care centers, cooperative day care centers and Head Start programs.Home Occupation - Subject to the further limitations of Section 35-405 of the Zoning Ordinance, a home occupation is any gainful occupation or profession, carried on within a dwelling unit, by a family member residing within a dwelling unit, which is clearly incidental and secondary to the residential use of the dwelling unit and the lot upon which it is constructed, including, without limitation, dressmaking, secretarial services, professional offices, answering services, individual music or art instruction, individual hobby crafts, and day care and similar activities.Home Occupation, Special - Subject to the further limitations of Section 35-406 hereof, and subject to approval by the City Council, a special home occupation is any gainful occupation or profession carried on within a dwelling unit or any permitted accessory buildings or installations on a lot, by a family member residing within the dwelling unit, which is clearly incidental and secondary to the residential use of the dwelling unit, the accessory structures, and the lot upon which it is constructed, including, without limitation, barber and beauty services, shoe repair, photography studios, group lessons, saw sharpening, motor driven appliances and small engine repair, and similar activities.Hospital B) rehabilitation services for the rehabilitation of injured, disabled, or sick persons.Hotel - A building which provides a common entrance, lobby, and stairways, and in which lodging is commonly offered with or without meals for periods of less than a week.Loading Space - A space accessible from a street, alley, or way in a building or a lot for the use of motor vehicles while loading or unloading merchandise or materials.Lot - A lot is a parcel or portion of land in a subdivision or plat of land, separated from other parcels or portions by description, as on a subdivision or record of survey map, or by metes and bounds, for the purpose of sale or lease or separate use thereof.Lot Area - The area of a horizontal plane bounded by the front, side and rear lot lines.Lot, Corner - A lot at the junction of and abutting on two or more intersecting streets.Lot, Depth - The mean horizontal distance between the front lot line and the rear lot line of a lot measured within the lot boundaries.Lot, Interior - A lot other than a corner lot.Lot Line - A property boundary line of any lot held in a single or separate ownership.Lot Line, Front - That boundary of a lot which is along an existing or dedicated street. Ianthe case of corner lots, the zoning official shall determine, but only for the purpose of this ordinance, which lot line or lines shall be considered front lot lines; such determination shall not be construed as stating in which direction buildings shall face. In general, the narrower of the lines abutting streets shall be the front line for the above stated purpose.Lot Line, Rear - The boundary of a lot line which is most distant from and is approximately parallel to the front lot line.Lot Line, Side - Any boundary of a lot which is not a front or rear lot line.Lot Width - The horizontal distance between the side lot lines of a lot measured at the front yard setback line.Manufactured Home - A structure, transportable in one or more sections, which in the traveling mode, is eight body feet or more in width or 40 body feet or more in length, and which is built on a permanent chassis and designed to be used as a dwelling with a permanent foundation when connected to required utilities, and includes the plumbing, heating, air conditioning (if any) and electrical systems contained therein, except that the term includes any structure which meets all the requirements, and which bears the HUD seal of certification of compliance with the federal standards as required by state law.Massage - Rubbing, stroking, kneading, tapping or rolling of the body of another with the hands for the exclusive purpose of physical fitness, relaxation, beautification and for no other purpose.Marginal Access Street - A minor street which is parallel and adjacent to a thoroughfare and which provides access to abutting properties and protection from through traffic.Motel - A hotel in which rooms are directly accessible to an outdoor automobile parking area.Nursing Care Home, Rest Home, or Convalescent Home - A facility which provides for the accommodation of persons who are not acutely ill and not in need of hospital care, but who do require nursing care and related medical services. Examples of nursing care include: bedside care and rehabilitative nursing techniques, administration of medicines, a modified diet regime, irrigations and catheterization, application of dressings or bandages and other treatments prescribed by a physician. In addition, the social, religious, education and recreational needs of these patients may be fulfilled.Outlot - A parcel of land included in a plat which is smaller than the minimum size permitted and which is thereby declared unbuildable until combined with additional land; or a parcel of land which is included in a plat and which is more than double the minimum size and which is thereby subject to future subdivision; or a parcel of land designated as a private roadway in a townhouse development plat.Parking, Accessory Off-Site - A legal arrangement in which parking spaces, located on property other than that of the principal use, are encumbered solely for use by the off-site principal use. Such spaces may be credited to the ordinance parking requirements of the principal use by a special use permit if the requirements of Section 35-701 are met.Parking - Joint - An easement agreement over certain property which gives a use located on a nearby or adjacent property the right to make use of parking stalls within the easement area. Such agreements are for the convenience of the respective uses which share the same parking stalls at different times and cannot be used to meet the ordinance parking requirements for the off-site use.Person - An individual, firm partnership, association, corporation or joint venture or organization of any kind.Porch, Enclosed - A horizontal roofed platform attached to an entrance of a dwelling, with an integrated wall system consisting of roof support members such as pillars, posts or columns, and which is fully enclosed by walls, screens, windows, or removable storm-windows that cannot be accessed from the outside except through a door that is capable of being locked.Porch, Unenclosed - A horizontal roofed platform attached to an entrance of a dwelling, with a roof support system consisting of pillars, posts or columns, which may or may not have railings or knee-wall railings no higher than 36-inches from the platform level, and which does not include walls, screens, windows, or doors.Program, Nonresidential - shall have the meaning given it in Minnesota Statute 245A.02, Subdivision 10.Program, Residential - shall have the meaning given it in Minnesota Statute 245A.02, Subdivision 14.Public Transportation Terminal - A point of assembly or disassembly of people arriving or departing by means of public transportation.Public Uses - uses, facilities and properties owned or operated by a school district, a municipality, county, state, or other governmental units, and any religious institutions such as churches, chapels, temples, synagogues and mosques.Retail Sale - A transfer of title or possession of personal property to a purchaser for a price.Right-of-way - That property within the boundary of a street or highway easement, or that property owned by a governmental body for roadway purposes; generally the right-of-way extends beyond the actual surfaced portion of the roadway. The street right-of-way line is coincident with the property line of the abutting property, and is the line generally used in calculating setbacks.Rummage Sale - The infrequent temporary display and sale, by an occupant on his or her premises, of personal property, including general household rummage, used clothing and appliances, provided: the exchange or sale of merchandise is conducted within the residence or accessory structure; the number of sales does not exceed four per year; the duration of the sale does not exceed three consecutive days; any related signery shall conform with the sign ordinance provisions; and the conduct of the sale does not encroach upon the peace, health, safety, or welfare of the citizens of Brooklyn Center.Sauna - Steam bath, hot water bath, or heat bathing by use of heat lamps, and any such room or facility specially constructed therefor, used for the purposes of bathing, relaxing or reducing utilizing steam, hot air, hot water, or heat lamps as a cleaning, relaxing, or reducing agent.Service Station (Gas or Filling Station) - Any building or premises used for dispensing, sale or offering for sale at retail any automotive fuels or oils, and where battery, tire, and other similar services may be rendered. When such dispensing, sale or offering for sale of any fuels or oils is incidental to the conduct of a public repair garage, the premises shall be classified as a public repair garage.Setback - A minimum horizontal distance from a building, hedge, fence, wall or structure to the street or lot line.Sign - Any message-bearing device for visual communication that is used primarily for the purpose of bringing the subject thereof to the attention of the public including any banner, pennant, valance or similar display.Special Use - Means a specific type of structure or land use listed in the Zoning Ordinance that may be allowed, but only after an in-depth review procedure and with appropriate conditions or restrictions as provided in the official zoning controls or building codes and upon a finding that: (1) certain standards as detailed in the Zoning Ordinance are, or will be met and (2) the structure and/or land use are compatible with the existing neighborhood.Stealth - any telecommunications tower or telecommunications facility which is designed to blend into the surrounding environment.Story - Each of the stages, separated by floors, one above another, of which a building consists.Street - A public right-of-way for roadway purposes.Street Line - The common boundary of the street right-of-way and abutting property.String Lighting - Strings of lights suspended between poles by cables or similar devices generally consisting of a number of bare, incandescent bulbs, but also including those with separate shields suspended from the individual light fixtures.Structure - Anything constructed or erected on the ground or attached to the ground or on-site utilities, including, but not limited to, buildings, factories, sheds, detached garages, cabins, manufactured homes, and other similar items.Structural Alterations - Any change, other than incidental repairs, in the supporting members of a building or structure, such as bearing walls or partitions, columns, beams or girders or any substantial change in the roof or exterior walls.Telecommunications Facilities - Cables, wires, lines, wave guides, antennae and other equipment or facility associated with the transmission or reception of communications which a person seeks to locate or install upon or near a tower or antenna support structure. The term Telecommunications Facilities shall not include:a)Any satellite earth station two meters in diameter or less which is located in an area zoned industrial or commercial;b)Any satellite earth station antenna one meter or less in diameter, regardless of zoning category;c)Amateur radio operators equipment as licensed by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC)Telecommunications Tower - A self supporting guyed or mono-pole structure constructed from grade which supports telecommunications facilities. This term shall not include amateur radio operator equipment, as licensed by the FCC or lattice designed towers.Temporary Seasonal Swimming Pool - A swimming pool that is removed and not in use before May 1 and after September 30.Thoroughfare, Major - For the purpose of this ordinance, major thoroughfares include all state, county, and federal highways (including interstate freeways), and the following municipal streets:1)Xerxes Avenue North from T.H. 100 to 59th Avenue North and from F.A.I. 94 to Shingle Creek Parkway.2)Shingle Creek Parkway from C.T.H. 10 to 69th Avenue North.3)France Avenue North from T.H. 100 to 50th Avenue North.4)Humboldt Avenue North from F.A.I. 94 to 70th Avenue North.5)Freeway Boulevard from Xerxes Avenue North to Humboldt Avenue North.6)69th Avenue North from Shingle Creek Parkway to Brooklyn Boulevard.Townhouse/Garden Apartment - Three or more dwelling units horizontally attached in a linear or cluster arrangements, with the separate dwelling units within the building separated from each other by a wall or walls extending from foundation to roof. Characteristic features of townhouses or garden apartments are their private entrances and small private yards for outdoor living. A townhouse or garden apartment development includes at least one large common area of open space for aesthetic or recreational purposes.Transient Lodging - A multiple living accommodation such as a hotel or motel in which lodging is commonly offered for periods of less than a week but which may include one dwelling unit for a live-in resident manager.Used Car Lot - Any land used or occupied for the purpose of buying and selling secondhand passenger cars and/or trucks.Variance - means a modification of a specific permitted development standard required in an official control, including this ordinance, to allow an alternative development standard not stated as acceptable in the official control, but only as applied to a particular property for the purpose of alleviating a hardship, or unique circumstance as defined in Section 35-240.Vending Machine - Any self-service device which, upon insertion of a coin, coins or tokens, or by other similar means, dispenses unit servings of food or other goods, either in bulk or in packages without the necessity of replenishing the device between each vending operation.Yard - An open space which is unoccupied and unobstructed, except as otherwise permitted by this ordinance. A yard extends along a lot line and at right angles to such lot line to a depth or width specified in the yard regulations for the district in which such lot is located.Yard, Front - A yard extending along the full width of the front lot line between the side lot lines. Notwithstanding provisions to the contrary, on corner lots, the front yard shall generally be the full width of the yard which the front of the house faces, lying between the side lot line and the opposite lot line abutting a public street.Yard, Rear - A yard extending along the full width of the rear lot line between the two side lot lines.Yard, Side - A yard extending along the side lot line between the front and rear lot lines.Zoning Official - The zoning official shall be the City Manager who may designate other employees or agents of the City to perform the duties of the zoning official.