Except as otherwise provided herein, all words shall have the customary dictionary meaning. The present tense includes the future tense. The singular number includes the plural and the plural includes the singular. The masculine gender includes the feminine and neuter genders. The word "person" includes a firm, corporation, association, organization, trust, or partnership. The word "lot" includes "plot" or "parcel." The word "building" includes "structure." The word "shall" is always mandatory. The word "used" or "occupied" as applied to any land or building shall be construed to include the words "intended, arranged, or designed to be used or occupied."

When used in this ordinance the following words and phrases shall have the meaning given in this section:

302.01-1

Accessory use means a use that is incidental and subordinate to that of the main building or use of land and that is located on the same lot.

302.01-2

Acreage. A parcel of land, regardless of area, described by metes and bounds which is not a numbered lot on any recorded subdivision plat.

302.01-3

Administrator, the, means the official charged with the enforcement of the zoning ordinance and/or subdivision ordinance. He may be any appointed or elected official who is by formal resolution designated to the position by the governing body. He may serve with or without compensation as determined by the governing body.

302.01-4

Agriculture means the tilling of the raising of crops, horticulture, and forestry, including the keeping of animals and fowl, and including any agricultural industry or business, such as fruit packing plants, dairies or similar use, not including abattoir.

302.01-5

Airport means a place, either on land or on water, where aircraft may land to discharge or receive cargo and passengers, make repairs, or take in fuel.

302.01-6

Airport hazard means any structure, tree, or use of land which obstructs the airspace required for, or is otherwise hazardous to, the flight of aircraft in landing or falling off at the airport.

302.01-7

Alley means a platted service way secondary means full access to abutting properties.

302.01-8

Alteration means any change in the total floor area, use, adaptability or external appearance of an existing structure.

302.01-9

Animal hospital or clinic means establishment where treatment is received and no activity is conducted outside the main building. Kennels are not included.

302.01-10

Apartment means a dwelling unit located in a building with other dwelling units or other uses, providing living quarters for a single family. Efficiency dwelling units are apartments.

302.01-11

Automobile graveyard means any lot or place which is exposed to the weather upon which more than five motor vehicles of any king, not displaying current Commonwealth of Virginia inspection certification are placed, located, or found.

302.01-12

Automobile service station means any area of land, including structures thereon, used for the retail sale of gasoline or oil, automobile accessories, and incidental services including facilities for lubricating, hand washing and cleaning, or otherwise servicing automobiles, but excluding painting, major repair or automobile washing.

302.02-1

Basement means a story having part but not more than one-half of its height below grade. A basement shall not be considered a story for the purposes of determining building height.

302.02-2

Bed and breakfast establishment means a bed and breakfast homestay or inn.

302.02-3

Bed and breakfast homestay means a single-family dwelling unit occupied by the owner which is used and regulated primarily as a private residence, but which provides up to two bedroom accommodations and meals to transients.

302.02-4

Bed and breakfast inn means a single-family dwelling occupied by the owner which provides more than two, but no more than five bedroom accommodations and meals to transients.

302.02-5

Beverage or food processing plants means a manufacturing facility where foods and/or beverages, including alcoholic beverages, are processed and packaged for local, regional or national distribution at an industrial scale. Products are typically not sold directly to the consumer on site.

302.02-6

Board means the board of zoning appeals as established under this ordinance.

302.02-7 Boarding house means a building or part thereof, other than a hotel, motel, or restaurant, where meals and/or residential lodging are provided for compensation for three to ten unrelated persons and where no cooking or dining facilities are provided in individual rooms. If the duration of stay of any guest is less than 30 days, then the establishment must be registered or licensed as a Residential Transient Occupancy use pursuant to section 714.00.

302.02-8

Building means any structure designed or intended for support, enclosure, shelter, or protection of persons, animals or property.

302.02-9 Building, accessory means a subordinate building located on the same lot as the main building, the use of which is incidental and accessory to that of the main building or use. No such accessory structure shall be used as a dwelling.

302.02-10

Building code means the Virginia Uniform Statewide Building Code, as adopted by the City of Buena Vista and as amended.

302.02-11

Building, height of, means the vertical distance measured from the level of the edge of the pavement opposite the middle of the front of the structure to the highest point of the roof if a flat roof; to the deck line of a mansard roof, or to the mean height level between the eaves and the ridge of a gable, hip, or gambrel roof. For buildings set back from the road line, the height shall be measured from the average elevation of the ground surface along the front of the building.

302.02-12

Building inspector means the building official appointed by the city council to administer and enforce the provisions of the building code, or his designated representative or agent.

302.02-13

Building, main means a building in which is conducted the main or principal use of the lot on which said building is situated.

302.03-.5

Campground means a facility wherein two or more recreational vehicle, recreational park trailer, tent, or other camping unit sites are offered for use by the public or members of an organization for overnight stays.

302.03-1

Cellar means a story having more than one-half (½) of its height below grade. A cellar shall not be considered a story for the purposes of determining building height.

302.03-2

Child care center means any facility other than a family day care home, providing care, protection, and guidance to a group of children during only part of the day.

302.03-3

Clerk means the clerk of the circuit court having jurisdiction in the City of Buena Vista.

302.03-4

Commission, the, means the City of Buena Vista planning commission.

302.03-5

Common elements means all portions of a cooperative other than the units.

302.03-6

Community center means community entertainment, recreation, or meeting place operated by a nonprofit organization.

302.03-7

Communications equipment means any tower, dish or other equipment used to send or receive electronic transmissions for public or private use.

302.03-8

Condominium means a dwelling unit in an apartment building or residential development which is individually owned, but in which the common areas are owned, controlled, and maintained through an organization consisting of all individual owners.

302.03-9

Conversion building means a building that at any time before establishment of the cooperative was occupied wholly or partially by persons other than persons with an ownership interest in the cooperative organization owning or leasing the cooperative.

302.03-10

Cooperative means real estate owned or leased by a cooperative organization.

302.03-11

Cooperative interest means a leasehold interest under a proprietary lease coupled with ownership of an interest in the cooperative organization.

302.03-12

Cooperative organization means any corporation or entity which owns or leases real estate and disposes of cooperative interests in such real estate.

302.03-13

Cooperative unit means a physical portion of the cooperative designed for separate tenancy.

302.03-14

Cul-de-sac means a circular turning area at the end of a dean end street.

302.03-15

Curb grade means the elevation of the established curb in front of the building measured at the center of such front, where no curb grade has been established, the zoning administrator shall establish such curb grade.

302.03-16

Carport. Also car port. A roofed structure enclosed by walls on no more than two sides, designed for use as a parking shelter for private motor vehicles. A carport may be an independent structure or attached to another structure.

302.04-1

Dairy means a commercial establishment for the manufacture and sale of dairy products.

302.04-2

Developer means an owner of property being subdivided, whether or not represented by an agent.

302.04-3

Development means a tract of land developed or to be developed as a unit under a single ownership or unified control which is to contain three or more residential dwelling units. The term "development" shall not be construed to include any property which will be principally devoted to agricultural production.

302.04-4

Drive-through facility means building and site design features to allow a business to provide or dispense products or services, through an attendant or automated machine, to persons remaining in vehicles that are in designated stacking aisles. Drive-through facilities are typically accessory to another use.

302.04-5

Driveway means a private way, serving one or more lots each of which possess required frontage on a public or private street, which establishes a vehicular connection between an off-street parking space or an off-street loading space and a street.

302.04-6

Dwelling (or dwelling unit) means any building or portion thereof which is designed for or used primarily for residential purposes by one family as herein defined, except hotels, dormitories, and automobile trailers. Dwellings may be used for transient occupancy pursuant to section 714, residential transient occupancy.

302.04-7

Dwelling, multifamily, means a building designed for, or occupied exclusively by, three or more families living independently of each other; the term includes condominiums of similar physical appearance, character, and structure.

302.04-8

Dwelling, single-family, means a building designed for, or occupied exclusively by, one family, other than a manufactured home or mobile home.

302.04-9

Dwelling, two-family (duplex) means a residential building designed for, or occupied exclusively by, two families living independently of each other.

302.04-10

Dwelling unit. A room or group of rooms connected together containing cooking, bathroom and sleeping facilities constituting a separate, independent housekeeping unit, physically separated from any other dwelling unit in the same structure.

302.04-11

Dormitory. A building, or portion thereof, specifically designed for a long-term stay by students of a college, university, or nonprofit organizations including religious institutions for the purpose of providing rooms for sleeping purposes. One common kitchen and some common gathering rooms for social purposes may also be provided.

302.05-1

Easement means a grant by a property owner of the use of land for a specific purpose or purposes by the general public, a corporation, or a certain person or persons.

302.05-2

Engineer, civil, licensed or professional, means an engineer registered by the Commonwealth of Virginia.

302.06-1

Family means a single housekeeping unit consisting of:

(1)

An individual; or

(2)

Two (2) or more persons related by blood, marriage, adoption, or guardianship; or

(3)

Two (2) or more persons related by blood, marriage, adoption, or guardianship and not more than two (2) persons not related by blood, marriage, adoption, or guardianship; or

(4)

A group of not more than four (4) persons not related by blood, marriage, adoption or guardianship.

Such housekeeping units are distinguished from persons occupying a boarding house, dormitory, hotel, or tourist home. Private household workers employed and housed on the premises may be considered as included in the family occupying said premises but shall not be counted toward occupancy thresholds.

302.06-2

Family day care home means any private family home providing care, protection, and guidance to not more than ten children during only part of the day. Children related by blood or marriage to the person who maintains the home shall not be counted.

302.06-3

Family, immediate member of, means any person who is a natural or legally defined offspring, spouse, or parent of the owner.

302.06-4

Flood means a general temporary inundation of lands not normally covered by water that are used or usable by man. Concurrent mudslides shall be deemed to be included in this definition.

302.06-5

Flood area means the sum of the gross horizontal areas of the total number of floors of a building measured from the exterior faces of the exterior walls or from the centerline of walls separating two buildings, but not including any attic space providing headroom of less than seven feet, unusable basement or cellar space not used for retailing, uncovered steps or fire escapes, open porches, accessory water or cooling towers, accessory off-street parking spaces, and accessory off-street loading berths.

302.06-6

Flood hazard area means the maximum area of the floodplain which is likely to be flooded once every 100 years or for which mudslides can be reasonably anticipated. These areas are defined by the department of housing and urban developments flood hazard mapping or rate study mapping as appropriate.

302.06-7

Floodplain means an area, usually a relatively flat or low land area adjoining a river, stream, or watercourse, which has been in the past, or can be reasonably expected in the future, to be covered temporarily by a flood.

302.06-8

Floodproofing means a combination of structural provisions, changes, or adjustments to properties and structures subject to flooding required for new construction in the floodway by the Virginia Uniform Statewide Building Code.

302.06-9

Floodway means the channel of a river or other watercourse and the adjacent land areas required to carry and discharge the waters of the 100 year flood.

302.06-11

Frontage means the horizontal length of the front lot line of a lot or parcel which abuts a street. If a lot has frontage on more than one street, frontage on one street only may be used to satisfy the minimum lot frontage.

302.07-1

Garage, private, means accessory building designed or used for the storage of not more than three automobiles owned and used by the occupants of the building to which it is accessory. On a lot occupied by a multiple-unit dwelling, the private garage may be designed and used for the storage of one and one-half (1½) times as many automobiles as here are dwelling units blood or marriage to the operator of the facility shall not be counted.

302.07-2

Governing body shall mean the city council of Buena Vista.

302.08-1

Home occupation means an accessory use carried on by the occupant of a dwelling in connection with which there is no display, no one is employed other than immediate members of the family residing on the premises, and the activities are conducted within the dwelling or accessory building.

302.08-2

Hospital means an institution rendering medical, surgical, obstetrical, or convalescent care, including any institution licensed as a hospital by the state hospital board.

302.08-3

Hospital, special care, means a special care hospital shall mean an institution rendering care primarily for mental or feeble-minded patients, epileptics, alcoholics, or drug addicts.

302.08-4

Host means the person who is owner and operator of the residential transient occupancy premises.

302.08-5

Hotel means a building in which lodging, or board and lodging, are provided and offered to the public for compensation and in which cooking facilities may be provided or in which lodging facilities are provided primarily for travelers and in which the length of stay is primarily less than one week in duration. The term "hotel" includes the term "motel."

302.09-1

Institution means a public or private establishment or facility whose primary purpose and audience is charitable, civic, educational, healthcare, or religious. Institutions need not be non-profit but generally do not have a commercial orientation.

302.11-1

Kennel means any location where breeding, raising, grooming, caring for or boarding of dogs, cats, or other similar small animals for commercial purposes is carried on.

302.12-1

Land use plan means the Land Use Plan of the City of Buena Vista, as amended.

302.12-2

Light industry means including warehousing and light manufacturing uses which produce some noise, traffic congestion or danger, but which are of such limited scale or character that they present no serious hazard to neighboring properties from-fire, smoke, noise, or odors.

302.12-3

Livestock means any cattle, sheep, swine, goats, horses, mules or other equines (means a horse, pony, mule donkey or hinny, which is an offspring of a male horse and a female donkey).

302.12-4

Livestock market means a commercial establishment wherein livestock is collected for sale, sold, or auctioned off.

302.12-5

Loading space means a space within the plain building or on the same lot, providing for the standing, loading, or unloading of trucks and other carriers.

302.12-6

Lot means numbered and measured portion or parcel of land separated from other portions or parcels by description in a site plan or a recorded plat, or by metes and bounds, intended to be a unit for the purpose, whether immediate or future, or transfer of ownership, or of development or separate use. The term applies to units of land whether in a subdivision or a development.

302.12-7

Lot area means the total horizontal area within the lot lines of a lot. No alley, public way, public land, or area proposed for future street purposes is included within the net area of the lot.

302.12-8

Lot, corner, means a lot abutting upon two or more streets at their intersection. Of the two sides of a corner lot, the front shall be deemed to be the shorter of the two sides fronting on streets.

302.12-9

Lot coverage means the ratio of the horizontally projected area of the main and accessory buildings on a lot to the total area of the lot, except where otherwise defined herein.

302.12-10

Lot, depth of, means the average horizontal distance between the front and rear lot lines.

302.12-11

Lot, double frontage (through), means an interior lot having frontage on two streets as distinguished from a corner lot.

302.12-12

Lot, interior, means any lot other than a corner lot.

302.12-13

Lot of record means a lot or parcel of land whose existence, location, and dimensions have been recorded in the office of the clerk of the circuit court of Buena Vista at the time of the adoption of this ordinance.

302.12-14

Lot width means the average horizontal distance between side lot lines.

302.13-1

Main use means the primary purpose for which land or a building is used.

302.13-2

Makerspace means a workshop facility with a combination of hand tools, machinery, and computer equipment for shared educational, hobby, research, design, business, or prototyping use; often by members of a public or private organization. Makerspaces often incorporate educational and social programming, and are not intended for production at a commercial scale.

302.13-3

Manufacture and/or manufacturing. The processing and/or of raw materials, or products, or either of them, into articles of substances of different character, or for use for a different purpose.

302.13-4

Manufactured home means a structure subject to federal regulation which is transportable in one or more sections; is eight body feet or more in width and 40 body feet or more in length in the traveling mode, or is 320 or more square feet when erected on site; is built on a permanent chassis; is designed to be used as a single-family dwelling, with or without a permanent foundation, when connected to the required utilities; and includes the plumbing, heating, air-conditioning, and electrical systems contained in the structure.

302.13-5

Mobile home means a structure, transportable in one or more sections, not subject to federal regulations and constructed prior to June 15, 1976, which is constructed on a chassis for towing to the point of use and designed to be used, with or without permanent foundation, for continuous year-round occupancy as a single-family dwelling when connected to the required utilities. A camping vehicle or travel trailer shall not be considered a mobile home.

302.13-6

Manufactured home park means any development in which space is leased providing for three or more manufactured homes intended for residential use for a period of time longer than 30 days.

302.13-7

Manufactured home stand means a plot of ground within a manufactured home park designed to accommodate one manufactured home.

302.13-8

Manufactured home subdivision means any area designated to accommodate three or more manufactured homes intended for residential use on lots owned by the manufactured home owner.

302.13-9

Modification means a modification is a relaxation of the terms used in the zoning ordinance where such modification will not be contrary to the public interest and where, owing to conditions peculiar to the property and not the result of the action of the applicant, a literal enforcement of the ordinance would result in unnecessary and undue hardship. As used in this ordinance, a modification is authorized from any provision contained in the zoning ordinance with respect to physical requirements on a lot or parcel of land, including but not limited to size, height, location or features of or related to any building, structure, or improvements; establishment or expansion of a use otherwise prohibited shall not be allowed by modification, nor shall a modification be granted because of the presence of nonconformities in the zoning division or district or adjoining zoning divisions or districts.

302.13-10

Modular building means, but shall not be limited to, single and multifamily houses, apartment units, commercial buildings, and permanent additions thereof, comprised of one or more sections that are intended to become real property, primarily constructed at a location other than the permanent site, built to comply with the Virginia Industrialized Building Safety Law, Code of Virginia, § 36-70 et seq., as regulated by the Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development, and shipped with most permanent components in place to the site of final assembly. For purposes of this chapter, a modular building shall not include a mobile office as defined in Code of Virginia, § 58.1-2401 or any manufactured building subject to and certified under the provisions of the National Manufactured Housing Construction and Safety Standards Act of 1974 (42 USC 5401 et seq.).

302.13-11

Motor home or camper means a unit or subunit which is or becomes self-propelled and is designed for human habitation on a short-term basis.

302.14-1

Nonconforming lot means an otherwise legally platted lot that does not conform to the minimum area or width requirements of this ordinance for the district in which it is located either at the effective date of this ordinance or as a result of subsequent amendments to the ordinance.

302.14-2

Nonconforming use of structures means the otherwise legal use of a building or structure that does not conform to the use regulations of this ordinance for the district in which it is located, either at the effective date of this ordinance or as a result of subsequent amendments to the ordinance.

302.14-3

Nonconforming structure means a structure existing at the time of enactment or amendment of this ordinance which does not conform to the requirements of this ordinance by reason of height or condition, or by reason of its impingement upon required yard areas.

302.14-4

Nonconforming use of land means a use of land existing at the time of the enactment of this ordinance, or at the time of a zoning amendment, which does not conform to the regulations of the use district in which it is located.

302.14-5

Nursing home means any facility or any identifiable component of any facility in which the primary function is the provision, on a continuing basis, of nursing services and health-related services for the treatment and inpatient care of two or more nonrelated individuals, including facilities known by varying nomenclature or designation such as convalescent homes, skilled care facilities, intermediate care facilities, extended care facilities and infirmaries.

302.15-1

Off-street parking area means space provided for vehicular parking outside the dedicated street right-of-way.

302.15-2

One-hundred year flood means a flood that, on the average, is likely to occur once every 100 years.

302.16-1

Parking space. (Repealed 1-8-2009.)

302.16-2

Parks, playgrounds and outdoor recreation areas means land publicly or privately owned devoted to recreational pursuits, usually an open area reserved for outdoor activities such as play, hiking, exercise or competitive sport not requiring structures for habitation

302.16-3

Pen means a small enclosure used for the concentrated confinement and housing of animals or poultry; a place for feeding and fattening animals; a coop. Enclosed pasture or range with an area in excess of 100 square feet for each small animal or two hundred (200) square feet for each larger animal shall not be regarded as a pen. Any enclosure containing a hog is a hog pen. (See 302.78.)

302.16-4

Performance guarantee means a bond with surety and/or cash deposit, escrow, or letter of credit approved by the governing body or its administrator in the amount equal to the full cost of improvements required by these regulations and providing for completion of said improvements within a definite term and to provide an additional ten percent of total estimate for administrative costs.

302.16-5

Plat means including the terms: map, plan, plot, replat, or replot; a map or plan of a tract or parcel of land which is to be, or which has been subdivided. When used as a verb "plat" is synonymous with "subdivide."

302.16-6

Prefabricated building means the completely assembled and erected building or structure, including the service equipment, of which the structural parts consist of prefabricated individual units or subassemblies using ordinary or controlled materials; and in which the service equipment 'may be either prefabricated or at-site construction.

302.16-7

Professional means, when used in connection with "use" and "occupancy," a use or occupancy by persons generally engaged in rendering personal, executive, sales, or administrative services or activities, including accountants, architects, professional engineers and land surveyors, doctors, lawyers, insurance offices, real estate offices, religious organizations, stockbrokers, and administrative agencies-considered professional in character. The term does not include repair or, sale of tangible personal property stored or, located within the structure nor any use which would create any loud noises or noxious odors.

302.16-8

Property means any tract, lot, parcel, or several of the same collected together for the purpose of subdividing.

302.16-9

Public service or storage buildings means governmental facilities necessary for public health, safety, and welfare.

302.16-10

Public water and sewage systems means a water or sewage disposal system owned and operated by a municipality or any water or sewage disposal system serving three or more families which is properly licensed.

302.16-11

Public utilities means public service structures such as power plants or substations; water lines. Treatment plants, or pumping stations, sewage disposal systems and treatment plants; or such similar operations publicly or privately owned furnishing electricity, gas, rail transport, communications or related services to the general public.

302.18-1

Ramada means a structure erected over a mobile home for the purpose of providing shade or shelter.

302.18-2

Required open space means any space required in any front, side, or rear yard.

302.18-3

Residential transient occupancy means a bed and breakfast homestay, a bed and breakfast inn, a Type A short term rental, or a Type B short term rental. The term does not include hotels.

302.18-4

Residential use means any place, building, or establishment used in whole or in part as a dwelling.

302.18-5

Restaurant means any building in which, for compensation, food or beverages are dispensed to person, not residing on the premises for consumption on the premises, including, among other establishments, cafes, delicatessens, or refreshment stands.

302.18-6

Restaurant, drive-in, means an eating and/or drinking establishment which caters to motor-driven vehicle business where the person being served may consume his food and/or drink while sitting in a motor-driven vehicle, as opposed to a restaurant serving exclusively inside or adjacent to the main building.

302.18-7

Retail stores and shops means buildings for display and sale of merchandise at retail of for the rendering or personal services (but specifically exclusive of coal, wood, and lumber yards), such as the following, which will serve as illustrations drug store, newsstand, food store, candy shop, milk dispensary, dry goods and notions store, antique store and gift shop, hardware store, household appliance store, furniture store, florist, optician, music and radio store, tailor shop and beauty [shop] and barbershop.

302.18-8

Right-of-way means access over or across particularly described property for a specific purpose or purposes.

302.18-9

Right-of-way line means the dividing line between a lot, tract, or parcel of land and a contiguous street, railroad, or public utility right-of-way.

302.19-1

Sawmill means a mill or machine for the processing of timber into lumber.

302.19-2

Self-storage facility, also referred to as a mini-storage facility, means a facility consisting of individual storage spaces available for rent to the general public.

302.19-3

Setback means the minimum distance by which any building structure must be separated from the front lot line.

302.19-4

Setback line means a line generally parallel with and measured from the lot line, defining the limits of a yard in which no building or structure may be located above ground.

302.19-5

Short-term rental means a dwelling, or portion of a dwelling, used or advertised for transient occupancy in increments of 30 or fewer consecutive days. This use type does not include bed and-breakfast establishments and does not apply to month to month extensions following completion of a year's lease.

302.19-6

Site plan means the proposal for a development or a subdivision including all covenants, grants or easements and other conditions relating to use, location and bulk of buildings, density of development, common open space, public facilities, and such other information as is required in applicable sections of this ordinance.

302.19-7

Small-scale alcohol production establishment means a facility for the production and packaging of beer, cider, distilled spirits, malt beverages, mead, wine, or similar beverages within the following limits:

(a)

Beer, cider, or malt beverages: 15,000 barrels per year;

(b)

Distilled spirits: 5,000 gallons per year;

(c)

Wine or mead: 5,000 gallons per year.

These facilities may also known as microbreweries, microdistilleries, or microwineries, respectively; and product is frequently sold directly to the consumer on-site.

302.19-8

Small-scale production establishment means an establishment where shared or individual tools, equipment, or machinery are used to make or grow products on a small scale, including the design, production, processing, printing, assembly, treatment, testing, repair, and packaging, as well as any incidental storage, retail or wholesale sales and distribution of such products. Typical small-scale production establishments include, but are not limited to, vertical farming or the making of electronics, food products, non-alcoholic beverages, prints, jewelry and clothing/apparel, metal work, furniture, glass, ceramics; together with accessory uses such as training or educational programs.

302.19-9

Special exception means a special use not permitted in a zoning district unless approved by the board of zoning appeals in accordance with the terms of this ordinance.

302.19-10

Special use permit means a permit allowing a use within a zoning district for which a special exception is required.

302.19-11

Story means that portion of a building, other than the cellar, included between the surface of any floor and the floor next above it. If there be no floor above it, the space between the floor and the ceiling next above it.

302.19-12

Story, half, means a space under a sloping roof, which has the line of intersection of roof decking and wall face not more than three feet above the top floor level and in which space not more than two thirds of the floor area is finished off for use.

302.19-13

Street means any improved thoroughfare which affords the principal means of access to abutting property, including avenue, place, way, drive, lane, boulevard, highway, road and any other thoroughfare except an alley. Also known as a road.

302.19-14

Street centerline means a line established as a center line of a street by any state, city or other official agency or governing body having jurisdiction thereof and shown as such on an officially adopted or legally recorded map. If there is no official center line of a street, the center line shall be a line lying midway between the street or right-of-way lines thereof. Where street lines are indeterminate and a pavement or a traveled way exists, the center line shall be established by the zoning administrator or shall be assumed to be a line midway between the edges of such pavement or traveled way.

302.19-15

Street, half means a street that does not meet the minimum right-of-way width requirements set forth or referenced in this ordinance.

302.19-16

Street, internal, means a street providing access to lots within a development, but not including driveways.

302.19-17

Street line means the dividing line between a street or road right-of-way and the contiguous property.

302.19-18

Street, private means a street which is not publicly owned and maintained.

302.19-19

Street, public means a street owned, accepted, and maintained by the City of Buena Vista or other applicable governmental entity.

302.19-20

Street, service drive, means a public right-of-way generally parallel and contiguous to a major highway, primarily designated to promote safety by eliminating promiscuous ingress and egress to the right-of-way by providing safe and orderly points of access to the highway.

302.19-21

Street width means the total width of the strip of land dedicated or reserved for public travel, including roadway, curbs, gutters, sidewalks, planting strips, and bikeways.

302.19-22

Structure means anything constructed or erected, the use of which requires a location on the ground, or attached to something having a location on the ground.

302.19-23

Subdivider means any individual, corporation or registered partnership owning any tract, lot, or parcel of land to be subdivided, or a group of two or more persons owning any tract, lot, or parcel of land to be subdivided who have given their power of attorney to one of their groups or another individual to act on their behalf in planning, negotiating for, in representing, or executing the legal requirements of the subdivision.

302.19-24

Subdivision means the division of any tract, parcel, or lot of land into three or more parts, any one of which contains an area of less than two acres for the purpose of transfer of ownership or building development. If a new street (see 302.158) is involved in any such division, any division of a parcel of land is a subdivision. The word "subdivision" shall be taken to include re-subdivision and, when appropriate to the context, shall relate to the process of subdividing or to the land subdivided.

302.19-24.1

Subdivide includes the resubdivision of lots of record or the vacation of plats. The term subdivide shall apply either to the process of subdivision or the land subdivided.

302.19-24.2

To subdivide shall not include a bona fide division or partition of agricultural land into parcels of less than two acres for agricultural purposes or for building sites for the farmstead or tenant houses. Plats of divisions so excused will contain notice that the plat has not been approved for residential purposes and must be approved by the agent prior to recordation. The term "to subdivide" shall not include a single division of a lot or parcel for the purpose of sale or gift to a member of the immediate family of the owner. Only one such division shall be allowed per family member, and shall not be for the purpose of circumventing the provisions of the subdivision ordinance. A plat of the division is required to be approved by the agent prior to recordation.

302.19-25

Surveyor means a land surveyor certified by the Commonwealth of Virginia.

302.21-1

Television and/or radio stations means a broadcasting a facility licensed in the public interest, convenience, and necessity by the Federal Communications Commission, which includes transmitting and receiving equipment, studios, offices, utility buildings, and other necessary accessories required to operate a station.

302.21-2

Townhouse means a unit separated from adjacent units by a vertical wall with no openings, providing a dwelling for a single family, in which separate access to the outside is provided, and in which the major orientation of the unit is vertical rather than horizontal.

302.21-3

Townhouse development means one or more single-family dwellings consisting of townhouses, with accessory parking, open space, and recreational and management facilities.

302.21-4

Transient means for a period of 30 days or less in the context of a guest accommodation unit, or means a guest occupying such a unit.

302.21-5

Travel trailer means a vehicular, portable structure built on the chassis, designed to be used as a temporary occupancy for travel, recreation, or vacation; being of any length provided its gross weight does not exceed 40,500 pounds, or being of any weight provided its overall length does not exceed 28 feet.

302.21-6

Travel trailer park or travel trailer camp means premises where travel trailers are parked temporarily in conjunction with travel, recreation or vacation

302.21-7

Tree means a woody perennial plant having a single main stem

302.21-8

Type A short term rental means a short term rental where the host is the permanent resident of the dwelling, and the host is present during the short term rental.

302.21-9

Type B short term rental means a short term rental where the host is not the permanent resident of the dwelling, or where the permanent resident of the dwelling is not present during the guest stay.

302.23-1

Variance means a variance is a relaxation of the terms of the zoning ordinance where such variance will not be contrary to the public interest and where, owing to conditions peculiar to the property and not the result of the action of the applicant, a literal enforcement of the ordinance would result in unnecessary and undue hardship. As used in this ordinance, a variance is authorized only for height, area, and size of structure or size of yards and open spaces; establishment or expansion of a use otherwise prohibited shall not be allowed by variance, nor shall a variance be granted because of the presence of nonconformities in the zoning division or district or adjoining zoning divisions or districts.

302.24-1

Wayside stand, roadside stand, wayside market means any structure or land used for the sale of agricultural or horticultural produce, livestock or merchandise produced by the owner or his family on their farm.

302.25-1

Yard means a space on the same lot with a main building, such space being open, unoccupied, and unobstructed by buildings from ground to sky except where encroachments and accessory buildings are expressly permitted.

302.25-2

Yard, front, means an open, unoccupied space, excluding steps, on the same lot with the main building, extending the full width of the lot and situated between the right-of-way line and the front line of the building projected to the side lines of the lot. On corner lots, the depth of the front yard shall be considered as parallel to the street upon which the lot has its least dimension.

302.25-3

Yard, rear, means an open space, excluding steps, on the same lot with the main building, such space being unoccupied except possibly by an accessory building and extending the full width of the lot and situated between the rear line of the lot and the rear line of the main building projected to the side lines of the lot. On all corner lots the rear yard shall be the opposite end of the lot from the front yard.

302.25-4

Yard, side, means an open, unoccupied space, excluding steps, on the same lot with a main building, situated between the side line of the building and the adjacent side line of the lot extending from the rear line of the front yard to the front line of the rear yard. If no front yard is required, the front boundary of the side yard shall be the front line of the lot and if no rear yard is required, the rear boundary of the side yard shall be the rear line of the lot. On corner lots, the side yard shall be considered as parallel to the street upon which the lot has its greatest dimension.

(Ord. of 6-10-2004; Ord. of 4-10-2008; Ord. of 1-18-2009; Ord. No. 18-14, 7-19-2018; Ord. No. 18-15, 7-19-2018; Ord. No. 18-18, Exh. A, 11-15-2018; Ord. No. 20-01, Exh. A, 1-16-2020; Ord. No. 21-09, Exh. A, 7-15-2021; Ord. No. 22-05, Exh. A, 2-25-2022; Ord. No. 22-11, Exh. A, 7-7-2022; Ord. of 2-2-2023, Exh. A; Ord. of 9-7-2023; Ord. of 2-1-2024(2))