All standards, regulations, and guidelines in this article shall be interpreted to bring about the general purpose of this article. All words used in this article shall have the customary dictionary meaning, unless specifically defined or described by this division or unless context requires a different meaning. The present tense includes the future tense and the future tense includes the present tense. The singular number includes the plural and the plural includes the singular. Graphics used in this article are to aid interpretation of the text, unless otherwise specifically stated. In the event of a conflict or ambiguity between a graphic and the text, the text shall control.

(Development Ord. 2004, § 15-4-501)

For the purpose of this chapter, certain terms and words shall have the specific meaning given below:

Abutting. Having a common border with, or being separated from such a common border by a right-of-way.

Accessory building. A building detached from a principal building located on the same lot and clearly and customarily incidental and subordinate to the principal building or use.

Accessory structure or accessory use. Any structure or use that is:

(1)

Clearly incidental to and customarily found in connection with the principal building or use;

(2)

Subordinate to and serves a principal building or use;

(3)

Contributes to the comfort, convenience or necessity of the occupants of the principal building or use served; and

(4)

Located on the same lot and under the same ownership as the principal building or use served.

Alteration. As applied to a building or structure, is a change or rearrangement in the structural parts of an existing building or structure, or an enlargement, increase in height, or the movement from one (1) location or position to another.

Antenna. For the purposes of this article regarding wireless communication facilities, towers and antennae, "antenna" shall mean any device used to transmit or receive electromagnetic signals for communication purposes. It shall not include antenna and satellite dishes used solely for home television or radio reception purposes, or transmitting and receiving antennae for amateur purposes. It shall include micro-cells and repeaters.

Antenna, micro-cell. A low-power mobile radio service communications facility used to provide increased capacity in high call demand areas or to improve coverage in areas of weak coverage.

Antenna, omni-directional. An antenna that is equally effective in all directions and whose size varies with the frequency and gain for which it is designed (a.k.a. whip antenna).

Antenna, panel. An antenna that transmits signals in specific directions and is typically square or rectangular in shape.

Antenna, repeater. A low-power mobile radio service communications facility that extends coverage of a cell to areas not covered by the originating cell.

Antenna, slim-line. A panel antenna which mounts directly to and parallel with a monopole or alternative tower structure.

Antenna support structure. Any pole, telescoping mast, tower tripod, or any other structure which supports a device or antenna used in the transmission or receipt of radio frequency energy.

Architectural relief. A structural building element that breaks up a wall plane by creating a projection or recession of at least eighteen inches (18") and occurring cumulatively over at least twenty-five percent (25%) of the wall plane requiring relief. Examples include dormers projecting from a roof, projecting front porches, or projections or recessions in the façade building line.

Architectural style. The individual personality of a building that emerges from a collective interaction of aesthetics, as they relate to use, construction, time-period, geographical location and regional character. Architectural style is characterized by the features that make a building or structure notable or historically identifiable and may include such elements as form, massing/volume, scale, patterns of doors/windows, rooflines, building materials, building ornamentation and method of construction. Architectural style is established by the site design standards for building façade, materials and massing set forth in Subsection 15-297(b). Examples of architectural styles within the City of Fairway include Cape Cod, Ranch, English Tudor, French Provincial, Mid-Century Modern, California Contemporary, English Country, Bungalow, Bauhaus International, Victorian Farmhouse, Colonial and combinations of these architectural styles.

Block. The land area bounded by the centerline of intersecting public streets, or where public streets do not provide a complete boundary, the centerline of intersecting public streets and private lanes.

Block faces. The area made up of the building line or street edge along a single side of a block.

Board or Board of Zoning Appeals (BZA). The Board of Zoning Appeals of the City, as authorized by statute and established by this article.

Building. A structure having a roof, supported by columns or walls, whether or not completely enclosed.

Character. The "look and feel" of buildings and neighborhoods within the City of Fairway, as established by the dimension standards, site design standards and special conditions for uses set forth in Sections 15-296 through 15-298.

(1)

The character of a building depends upon its capacity to express a particular function and status. Aesthetic components such as unity, composition, style, contrast and scale together make up the character of a building. The character of a building is reflected in terms of architectural style, function, treatment of openings, scale of elements, proportion, materials and technology of construction.

(2)

The character of a neighborhood is an amalgam of various elements that give neighborhoods their distinct "personality." These elements include activities and land use, urban design, landscape patterns, streetscape, general building heights, setbacks, visual resources, historic resources, socioeconomic conditions, architectural style, traffic and/or noise.

Co-location. Placement of wireless communication facilities, towers or antennae by more than one (1) wireless service provider on a single tower or alternative tower structure.

Disability. Disability means, with respect to a person:

(1)

A physical or mental impairment which substantially limits one (1) or more of such person's major life activities;

(2)

A record of having such an impairment; or

(3)

Being regarded as having such an impairment. Such term does not include current, illegal use of or addiction to a controlled substance, as defined in Section 102 of the Controlled Substance Act (21 U.S.C. 802).

Drive aisles. Areas within a parking lot which provide access to parking spaces or other vehicle storage and service points on the lot.

Dumpster. Any container used for the collection of big item or bulk refuge, rubbish or waste disposal, which is placed upon any real property, and is typically rented to owners or occupants of real property for their use by a collector or contractor (whether or not appropriately permitted by the City under Article I of Chapter 6 of this Code), and is delivered or can then be transported to another location by an appropriate truck, tractor trailer or other motorized equipment.

Effective radiated power (ERP). The product of the antenna power input and the numerically equal power output gain.

Encroachment. An extension beyond a required or established line. To advance beyond the usual or proper limits established by zoning regulations or other City codes.

EPA. Environmental Protection Agency.

Façade. The exterior of the architectural face of a building lying between the grade and the lowest level of the roofline (also referred to as the elevation). A façade shall be considered as an entire composition of a building elevation and may involve multiple wall planes. (See wall plane.)

Family. Any number of people occupying a single dwelling unit living together as a single housekeeping unit, related by blood, marriage, formal adoption, in a legal foster family relationship, or other recognized housekeeping unit entitled by law to the benefits of single-family residential surroundings, plus not more than two (2) additional people not so related.

FAA. Federal Aviation Administration.

FCC. Federal Communications Commission.

Floor area. The total of all gross horizontal areas of the interior floors in a building measured from the exterior face of exterior walls or from the centerline of party walls. Floor area shall exclude any space where floor-to-ceiling height is less than five feet (5'). Floor area shall also exclude stairs, equipment rooms, garages, and floors below the ground floor, except when used or intended to be used for human habitation.

Frontage. In describing a lot or building area which is generally oriented to the street or public area and is thought of as providing a primary access point for the lot or structure.

Garage. An attached or individual structure for the storage of motor vehicles accessory to a dwelling unit.

Governing Body. Shall be as defined in Section 1-101 of this Code.

Ground floor area. All habitable space of a structure exclusive of porches, patios, attached garages or other accessory structures.

Group home. Any dwelling occupied by not more than ten (10) persons, including eight (8) or fewer persons with a disability who need not be related by blood or marriage and not to exceed two (2) staff residents who need not be related by blood or marriage to each other or to the residents of the home, which dwelling is licensed by a regulatory agency of the State.

Impervious surface. Any area of a lot that is covered with a structure, material, or other fixed physical element that does not allow the infiltration of ground water and cannot be planted with landscape materials.

Lot. A designated parcel, tract, or area of land established by plat, subdivision, or as otherwise permitted by law, to be separately owned, used, developed, or built upon.

Maintenance easement. An easement providing legal rights of access to the grantee onto adjacent property for the upkeep of any portion of a structure.

Manufactured home. A structure which is subject to the federal manufactured home construction and safety standards established pursuant to 42 U.S.C. 5403.

Mixed-use. A combination of uses, either within a building or on a single integrated parcel, designed and intended for the uses by more than one (1) use category described in this article.

New house. A new house shall be any construction that meets one (1) or more of the following criteria:

(1)

Construction of a new dwelling unit;

(2)

Repair or reconstruction resulting from the demolition of more than seventy percent (70%) of the structural components of an existing dwelling unit;

(3)

New construction and/or structural demolition totaling more than seventy percent (70%) of the total square footage, including the main and second floors, garage, and basement, of the existing dwelling unit.

For the purposes of determining applicable permit fees, new house construction fees are calculated on total square footage of the finished project, including main and second floors, garage, and basement. All other work will be considered a remodel and based upon valuation unless a set building permit fee has been established.

Party wall. A common shared wall between two (2) separate structures, buildings, or dwelling units.

Permeable surface. A surface that allows water to infiltrate through itself into the material immediately below the surface and through the ground surface before disposal into the groundwater.

Planning Commission or Commission. The Planning Commission of the City of Fairway, as authorized by statute and established by Article II.

Portable storage unit. Any container designed for the storage of personal property, which is placed upon any real property, and is typically rented to owners or occupants of real property for their temporary use, and is delivered or can then be transported to another location by an appropriate truck, tractor trailer or other motorized equipment (a.k.a. portable storage container, portable on demand storage, and PODS).

Principal building. A building located on a lot which is used for the primary purpose of the applicable zoning district. (For example, the dwelling unit on a residentially zoned lot is the principal building.)

Primary entrance. The entrance to a building which is designed to accommodate the majority of patrons, residents, or visitors to the building.

Primary entrance feature. Significant architectural or structural details which signify prominence of the primary entrance.

Primary entrance feature, unenclosed. An entry feature with a floor and a ceiling, but where walls, rails, screens, windows, or other obstructions occupy no more than forty percent (40%) of the total wall area between the ceiling and floor.

Private lane. A private vehicle access point located and designed to mimic public street standards, including landscaping, pedestrian access, potential on-street parking, curb-cuts, and crosswalks. Private lanes are typically used on larger sites where public streets are unable to provide the access and block design standards called for in the zoning ordinance.

Public building. A building designed exclusively for City purposes.

Public open space. Any space dedicated for public use, exclusive of right-of-way and easements, and open from the ground to the sky. Public open space does not include any impervious surfaces designated for automobile use.

Solar energy system. Any apparatus or structure including any alteration to an existing apparatus or structure designed to collect, transfer or utilize solar energy, including, but not limited to, panels designed to collect and transfer solar energy into heated water, air or electricity and windows or window walls which admit solar rays to obtain direct heat or to obtain heat for storage.

Sport court. A use accessory to a residential use, where an area of a lot is altered primarily for the purpose of athletic play, whether through placement of structures such as special fencing or lighting, or through provision of a differentiated playing surface.

Structural components. The supporting members of a building including exterior walls, load bearing walls or partitions, columns, beams, joists, rafters or girders.

Street edge. A conceptual line that gives definition and consistency to a street or private lane by assembling physical elements across all lots along a block into a uniform pattern and providing a pedestrian scale to streets and private lanes. A street edge is typically made up of building façades but can incorporate alternative elements where building locations and site conditions dictate.

Structure. Anything constructed or erected which requires location on the ground or attachment to something having a location on the ground. Excluded from this definition are retaining walls, sidewalks, pavement and public improvements such as utility poles, street light fixtures and street signs.

Tower. A structure designed to support at least one (1) or more antennae. This does not include structures owned and operated by amateur radio personnel licensed by the FCC.

Tower, alternative tower structure. Manmade trees, clock towers, bell steeples, light poles, buildings and similar alternative-design mounting structures that camouflage or conceal the presence of antennas or facilities.

Tower, guyed. A tower that is supported, in whole or in part, by guy wires and ground anchors.

Tower, lattice. A three- or four-sided tower constructed of open steel framing.

Tower, monopole. A tower of single-pole design, constructed without support (guy) wires or anchors.

Wall plane. The exterior portion of the massing of a building, lying between the grade and the lowest level of the roofline and comprising a single vertical plane. Several wall planes offset horizontally may make up a façade. (See façade.)

Wireless communication facility. Any complex, including tower, antennae, antenna support structure, cabinet, building, screen walls, transmission equipment, power source or other equipment constructed on the ground and used to assist antennae in the generation or receipt of electromagnetic communication signals, or used for the transmission or receipt of electromagnetic communication signals.

Wireless service provider (provider). Any provider of cellular or wireless communication service (digital, PCS, and PCN) allowing customers to use mobile telephones to connect, via low-power radio transmitter sites, either to the public switched network or to other mobile telephones. Such providers shall be licensed by the FCC in a specific geographical area in which the radio frequency spectrum is divided into discrete channels.

(Development Ord. 2004, § 15-4-502; Ord. No. 1487; Ord. No. 1517, § 1, 12-12-2011; Ord. No. 1582, § 21, 12-8-2014; Ord. No. 1715, § 3, 5-11-2020; Ord. No. 1758, § 3, 3-14-2022)

For the purposes of this article, the dimensional standards shall have the meanings and be given interpretations in accordance with the following definitions and rules. In a case where the definitions and rules below do not strictly apply to the specific circumstances, an interpretation shall be given that is most consistent with the rules and definitions, and which brings about the purposes and intent of the specific ordinance provisions and of the zoning district.

Build-to line means the line specified as a distance from the right-of-way or other public easement or private lane at which structures are required to be constructed for some portion of the lot.

Building height means the vertical distance measured from the lesser of: finished grade of the previous structure measured at the previous threshold or current finished grade measured at the current threshold, to the highest ridge of the roofline of a building, exclusive of chimneys. Where a maximum building height is established in both stories and feet, each shall apply as a maximum, neither of which may be exceeded. When measuring any single façade or wall plane for purposes other than the overall building height, the distance used for building height shall be from the lowest grade to the highest point on the wall plane.

Building line means the actual line at which a building on a lot is constructed.

Lot, corner, means a lot abutting upon two (2) or more streets at their intersection or upon two (2) parts of a street which form an interior angle of less than one hundred thirty-five (135) degrees. The point of intersection of the right-of-way lines is the corner.

Lot, depth, means the mean (average) horizontal distance between the front and rear lot lines, measured at right angles to the front right-of-way lines.

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

Lot width, means the horizontal distance between the side lot lines, measured at the right angles to the lot depth and measured parallel to the front lot line. A minimum lot width shall be applied at the front setback line and the rear setback line. In calculating the lot width for purposes of determining a required side setback, the largest width between the front setback and the rear setback line shall be the applicable lot width.

Lot line, front, means the lot line contiguous to the right-of-way line of the street on which the lot has least dimension.

Lot line, rear, means the lot line opposite to, parallel or nearly parallel with, and most distant from the front lot line. In the case of triangular or otherwise irregular shaped lots, where no lot line is nearly parallel with the front lot line, the rear lot line shall be interpreted as a line ten feet (10') in length, entirely within the lot, parallel to and at a maximum distance from the front lot line.

Lot line, side, means any lot line other than a front or rear lot line. A side lot line of a corner lot separating a lot from a right-of-way is called a side street lot line. A side lot line separating a lot from another lot is called an interior lot line.

Setback lines means a line that is the required minimum distance from any lot line and establishes the area on the lot within which a building or structure shall be built, except where specifically permitted otherwise. In cases where a setback line for a principal building is listed as a range having a minimum setback and a maximum setback, the maximum setback shall be interpreted as a built-to line at or within that distance a building line must be established.

Story means the portion of a building included between the surface of any floor and the surface of the floor next above it, or if there is no floor above it, then the space between the floor and the ceiling next above it, generally not exceeding more than fourteen feet (14') total height.

Story, half, means a space under a sloping roof that has the line of intersection of the roof and wall supporting the roof not more than three feet (3') above the floor level and in which space the possible floor area with head room of five feet (5') or less occupies between thirty percent (30%) and seventy percent (70%) of the total floor area of the story directly beneath.

Tower height means the vertical distance measured from the base of the tower or alternative tower structure at grade to the highest point of the tower or alternative tower structure. If the tower or alternative tower structure is on a sloped grade, then the average between the highest and lowest grades shall be used in calculating the tower height.

Wall plane means any plane of continuous vertical and horizontal orientation not set off by projections or recessions. The term "wall plane" includes any plane on an angle or incline, such as a roof surface.

(Development Ord. 2004, § 15-4-503; Ord. No. 1314; Ord. No. 1455; Ord. No. 1517; Ord. No. 1530, § 7, 7-9-2012; Ord. No. 1542, § 1, 11-13-2012)