(a)

For the purposes of this chapter, the following phrases, terms, words and their derivation shall have the meanings given in this section.

Accessory use or building. A subordinate use or building customarily incident to and located on the same lot with the main use or building.

Agriculture. The use of land for farming or breeding livestock, but excluding raising swine or keeping wild or exotic creatures. To be classified as agriculture, the use must occupy a minimum of ten acres. All agricultural buildings and structures must meet the setback requirements of the R-2 District.

Alley. A minor public right-of-way which is not intended to provide the primary means of access to abutting lots but which is used principally for utilities and/or vehicular service access to the back or sides of properties with primary access on a public street.

Animal clinic. A building which contains the offices, examining rooms and laboratories of a veterinarian treating domestic pets and small animals, but excluding outdoor boarding kennels.

Antique. Anything very old specifically applied to the remains of ancient art, including, but not limited to statues, paintings, vases, cameos, furniture, collectibles and the like.

Applicant. The legal or beneficial owner, or duly appointed owner's representative, of the land proposed to be included in the application. The holder of an option or contract to purchase, a lessee having a remaining term of not less than four years, or other person having an enforceable proprietary interest in such land, shall be deemed to be an applicant for the purposes of this chapter.

Art gallery. An establishment for the display of works of art, including sale of the items exhibited.

Bank. A financial institution, including a bank, savings bank, savings and loan, or other similar institution however designated, which transacts business with its customers in an interior banking lobby. A bank may also include a drive-in bank. An administrative office is one which is solely involved in managing the internal administration of a bank and which does not directly transact any business with the bank's customers.

Basement. That portion of a structure below grade level and enclosed on at least two sides.

Board. The board of adjustment of the City of Hill Country Village.

Building. A structure designed, built or occupied as a shelter or roofed enclosure for persons, animals or property, including tents, lunch wagons, dining cars, mobile homes, trailers, and other roofed structures on wheels or other supports, whether for residential, business, mercantile, storage, commercial, industrial, institutional, assembly, educational or other purposes. For the purpose of this definition, "roof" shall include an awning or other similar covering, whether or not permanent in nature.

Building, public. A building used by any governmental agency for administration or delivery of public services, such as a city hall, fire station, public library or post office.

Carport. A structure with a roof but no sides for the sole purpose of storing motor vehicles with a maximum height of eight feet.

Church. A building designed for public worship, including a separate parsonage and/or a community meeting facility, but excluding a school or community athletic facilities. A church must be located on a lot with a minimum area of 4½ acres, and it must conform to the setback requirements of the R-2 District.

Clinic, medical or dental. A building which contains the offices, examining rooms and laboratories of physicians, dentists, optometrists and their assistants, but not facilities for in-patient care or major surgery. Excluded from this definition are veterinary clinics, communicable disease clinics, and those for alcohol or drug dependent, delinquent, insane or feeble-minded persons.

Commercial establishment. A business selling goods or services at retail or wholesale, including a specialty retail shop with an office used for administrative purposes. Such an establishment does not include any manufacturing, or processing of goods (other than minor repair services or incidental packaging), and it does not involve any exterior repair or storage of goods, materials or supplies.

Commission. The zoning commission of the City of Hill Country Village.

Dwelling, one family. A single building occupied exclusively by not more than one family.

Dwelling unit. One or more rooms providing complete living facilities for one family, including equipment for cooking or provisions for the same, and including rooms for living, sleeping, eating, and sanitation.

Extended family (blood marriage or adoption). As used herein an extended family includes parents, children, siblings and cousins, grandparents, grandchildren, uncles, aunts, nephews and nieces.

Family. (1) An individual; or (2) two or more persons related by blood, marriage or adoption, living together in a dwelling unit; or (3) a group of not more than three persons who need not be related by blood, marriage or adoption living together as a single housekeeping unit in a dwelling unit, and sharing common facilities as considered reasonably appropriate for a family related by blood, marriage or adoption; in any case exclusive of usual servants.

Floor area, gross. The sum of the gross horizontal areas of the several floors of a building, including interior balconies or mezzanines, but excluding stairwells and elevator shafts. All horizontal dimensions are to be measured between the exterior faces of walls, including the walls of roofed porches having more than one wall. The floor area of a building shall not include the floor area of garages or accessory buildings on the same lot, measured in the same manner.

Front of building. The facade of a building facing a public street. If a residence is on a corner lot, the resident's official postal address is considered to be the front. In nonresidential buildings, the front is the side which has a main entrance nearest the adjacent street.

Garage, private. A building or part thereof accessory to a main building, enclosed on all four sides, and pierced only by windows and customary doors, for parking of motor vehicles and recreational water crafts. No occupation or business for profit may be carried on in a private garage.

Height of building. The vertical dimension measured from the average elevation of the finished lot grade at the front of the building, to the highest point of the ceiling of the top story in the case of a flat roof, to the deck line of a mansard roof, or to the average height between the plate and ridge of a gable, hip or gambrel roof.

Junk. Any worn out, cast off, or discarded article or material which is ready for destruction or has been collected or stored for salvage or conversion to some other use. Any article or material which, unaltered or unchanged and without further reconditioning, can be used for its original purpose as readily as when new shall not be considered junk.

Junk vehicle. A vehicle that is self-propelled and does not have lawfully attached to it: an un-expired license plate; or a current, valid motor vehicle inspection certification; and is wrecked, dismantled partially dismantled, or discarded; or inoperable and has remained inoperable for more than 72 consecutive hours, if the vehicle is on public property, or 30 consecutive days, if the vehicle is on private property.

Lot. A tract or parcel of land which has frontage on a public street and has been properly subdivided, platted and recorded.

Massage therapy. A business wherein massage of the body is performed only by massage therapists licensed by the state.

Museum. A nonprofit or profit establishment which is operated as an historical site or as a repository for a collection of natural, scientific or literary curiosities or objects of interest or works of art.

Nursery, day-care. A place where organized care is imparted to children under the age of seven years who are not of the same household.

Office, home. A portion of a dwelling unit, not exceeding 25 percent of its gross floor area, which is incidentally or occasionally used by the dwelling unit's occupant for professional or administrative activities related to the occupant's business, trade or profession, provided that it gives no evidence to an outside observer that the building is not used solely and exclusively as a residence, and provided that it is not out of keeping with the basic character of a quiet residential neighborhood.

Office building. One or more buildings designed and operated as a single unit for lease to one or more tenants as professional or administrative offices, medical and dental clinics and such retail establishments as may be provided as a convenience to the occupants.

Office, professional or administrative. A place where: (a) professional practitioners perform or deliver professional services (except clinics, as defined elsewhere), or (b) the administration/management of a business is conducted, as opposed to the actual production of goods or services by that business or the display or sale of merchandise or the storage of materials, equipment or supplies.

Office suite. A business who's sole purpose is to provide office space to separate professional practitioners who perform or deliver professional services (except clinics, as defined elsewhere) and is characterized by more than one professional operating as a separate business at the location.

Outbuilding. A building in zones R-1 and R-2 customarily incidental to and located on the same lot with the main use building. Such buildings are not for human habitation on either a temporary or permanent basis.

Permanent cosmetics. The permanent application of pigment into the skin for eyebrows, eyeliner, lip liner, blush, nipple areola, and scar camouflage.

Planned unit development. A residential subdivision which includes private streets, landscaped areas and other facilities or amenities, all of which are developed as a unit and owned and maintained as common area property by a mandatory association of the property owners in the subdivision.

Restaurant. Any establishment, however designated, in which the principal business is the sale of food for consumption on the premises, including alcoholic beverages incidental to a meal, but excluding bars or nightclubs.

School. A nonprofit institution for the education of children through the high school level and for adult continuing education, but excluding a trade or technical school.

Servants' quarters. A dwelling unit for occupancy by domestic servants who are employed on the premises full-time.

Setback. A minimum horizontal space extending across the front, rear, or side property lines of a lot (as specified) which shall remain open and unoccupied by any building or structure except for fences, flatwork such as sidewalks and driveways, and landscaped buffers. The location of signs shall be governed by chapter 50.

Sexually-oriented business. Includes any of the land uses defined as follows:

(a)

Adult arcade means any place to which the public is permitted or invited, wherein coin-operated or slug-operated or electronically, electrically, or mechanically controlled still or motion picture machines, projectors, or other image-producing devices are designated and maintained to show images to five or fewer persons per machine or device at any one time, and where the images so displayed are distinguished or characterized by the depiction or description of specified sexual activities or specified anatomical areas.

(b)

Adult bookstore means an adult bookstore, adult novelty store, or adult video store where more than 35 percent of its inventory or floor space (that is offered for sale, rental or viewing for any form of consideration to on-premises customers) consists of one or more of the following:

a.

Books, magazines, or sound recordings, or printed, visual or audio material of any kind which are characterized by their emphasis on the description or depiction of specified anatomical areas or specified sexual activities; or

b.

Noncontraceptive instruments, devices, toys, or paraphernalia designed for use in connection with specified sexual activities, books, magazines, pamphlets, pictures, drawings, photographs, motion picture films, or sound recordings, or printed, visual or audio material of any kind, which, because of the depiction or description of specified sexual activities in the materials offered for sale, is restricted to adults. Novelty items designed as sight gags, advertised as such and not designed or advertised for sexual activity, are not instruments or devices as defined and regulated herein.

(3)

Adult entertainment establishment means a nightclub, bar, restaurant "bottle club", "men's club", "gentlemen's club", "cabaret" or similar place of business, or portion thereof where live entertainment is provided for patrons, whether or not alcoholic beverages are served which features as a significant portion of the entertainment an emphasis on the exhibition, depiction, or description of specified anatomical areas or specified sexual activities; or a place where entertainment is provided to patrons wherein, because of the nudity or semi-nudity of person(s) employed by or associated with the operation of the business, admittance is limited to adults, or admittance is advertised or promoted as being restricted to adults.

(4)

Adult motion picture theater means a business place where one or more files, videos, slides, motion pictures, or similar photographic reproductions are shown that have as a dominant theme, or are distinguished by, an emphasis on the depiction or description of specified sexual activities for observation by patrons or guests, and where admittance to such showings are restricted to adults.

(5)

Adult theater means a theater, concert hall, auditorium, or similar commercial establishment which, for any form of consideration, regularly features employees, volunteer patrons, or independent contractors, who appear nude or semi-nude and/or engage in specified sexual activity, or live performances which are characterized by exposure of specified anatomical areas or engagement in specified sexual activities.

(6)

Sexual encounter establishment means any business or commercial establishment that, as of its primary business purposes, offers for any form of consideration, a place where two or more persons may congregate, associates, or consort for the purpose of specified sexual activities or the exposure of specified anatomical areas when one or more of the persons is in a state of nudity or semi-nudity. The definition of sexual encounter establishment shall not include an establishment where a medical practitioner, psychologist, psychiatrist, or medical professional, licensed by the state engages in medically approved and recognized therapy or treatment.

(7)

Nude modeling studio means any place where a person who, for money or any form of consideration, appears in a state of nudity or displays specified anatomical areas, to be observed, sketched, drawn, painted, sculptured, photographed, or otherwise depicted by other persons. This definition shall not include nude modeling by an adult that occurs in conjunction with art classes of a university, college, or any art class supervised by an art instructor paid by an arts school.

(8)

Nudity attraction establishment means any place of business where nudity or semi-nudity is regularly or routinely advertised as a characteristic of the business or which regularly attracts patrons with nudity or semi-nudity.

(9)

Specified anatomical areas means the human genitals, crevice of the buttocks, pubic region, anus, and the areola of the post puberty female breast.

(10)

Specified sexual activity means actual and simulated human genitals in a state of sexual stimulation or arousal, actual or simulated human masturbation, sexual intercourse, sodomy, fellatio, cunnilingus, fondling or other erotic touching of human genitals, pubic region, buttock or female breast, and excretory functions as part of or in connection with the above described activity.

(11)

Nude or nudity or state of nudity means a state of dress which fails to cover the human anus, genitals, pubic region, and the areola of the post puberty female breast.

(12)

Semi-nude or semi-nudity or state of semi-nudity means a state of dress which fails to fully opaquely cover the crevice of the human buttocks, genitals, pubic region, and the post puberty female breast areola.

(13)

Negative secondary effects means any one of the following conditions caused by geographic proximity to a sexually oriented business:

a.

Depreciation in surrounding property values; and/or

b.

Violations of law not limited to but including: indecent exposure, drug use, prostitution, pandering, exposing minors to harmful materials, possession and distribution of obscene materials, possession and distribution of controlled substances, public intoxication, disturbing the peace.

Sign. Any structure, placard, words, lettering, parts of letters, figure, numeral, phrase, sentence, emblem, notice, logo, picture, trade name, trademark, device, design or designation which arranged, intended, designed maintained or used as an advertisement, identification, announcement or direction, including advertising and display devices of any kind, which is visible from any public street or right-of-way and designed to attract attention. The term "sign" shall not include the flag, pennant insignia or any nation, state, or city nor of any sports club, team or organization, civic or nonprofit organization.

Sign, advertising. A billboard or other sign which directs attention to a business or profession which is conducted, or to a commodity, entertainment or service which is sold or offered, elsewhere than upon the premises where such sign is located, or to which it is affixed.

Sign, business. A sign which directs attention to a business or profession which is conducted, or to a commodity, entertainment or service which is sold or offered, upon the premises where such sign is located or to which it is affixed.

Sign, flashing. An illuminated sign on which the artificial light is not maintained stationary and/or constant in intensity and color at all times when such sign is in use. For the purposes of this chapter any revolving, illuminated sign shall be considered a "flashing sign."

Snack and beverage shop. Limited to nonalcoholic beverage sales, primarily smoothies, coffee, tea, sodas, ice cream, soft drinks, and incidental sales of snack food which is prepared off site, no stove or stove exhaust, limited consumption on site, and food handling limited to drink preparation. This type of business is also allowed in connection with a health food establishment.

Specialty retail shop. A business that sells directly to consumers goods or services of a distinctive kind or of particular superiority, such as antiques; clothing and accessories; jewelry; health and beauty products; spa or beauty salon services; home furnishings, accents, accessories and décor; fine art and fine art gallery; and paper products. Restaurants are considered an accessory use permitted by right of use in a specialty retail shop.

Story. That portion of a building included between one floor and the floor or roof next above it. A story with more than one-half of its height below the level of the building grade shall be termed a basement, and it shall not be counted as a story unless the ceiling height exceeds four feet above grade or unless more than 40 percent of its floor area is for living purposes as part of the dwelling unit above.

Street. A public right-of-way which provides primary vehicular access to adjacent land, whether designated as a street, highway, thoroughfare, parkway, avenue, lane, boulevard, road, place, drive or otherwise.

Structural alteration. A change or rearrangement of structural parts of a building or structure, or an enlargement of a building or structure, whether by extending on a side or by increasing in height, or the moving of a building or structure from one location or position to another. A structural alteration does not include maintenance and repairs of existing structures or structural parts.

Structure. Anything constructed or erected which requires location on the ground or attached to something having location on the ground.

Structure, attached. An accessory structure having a common wall with the main use structure.

Structure, completely enclosed. A structure enclosed by a permanent roof and by solid exterior walls pierced only by windows and customary entrance and exit doors.

Structure, detached. A structure having no common wall with another structure.

Structure, nonconforming. A structure or part thereof which does not conform to all the regulations of the zoning district in which it is located.

Studio. The working place of an artist, sculptor, musician, photographer or artisan, including a place for lessons in the fine arts but excluding amplified music and further including cheerleading studios, martial arts and ballroom dancing.

Tattoo studio. A business wherein permanent markings in the skin are made by using a colored substance that is forced into the skin with a needle. The term "tattoo studio" includes "body piercing" but excludes "permanent cosmetics".

Use. The purpose for which land or structures thereon is designed, arranged, or intended to be occupied or used or for which it is occupied, maintained, rented or leased.

Use, nonconforming. A use of a building, structure or land which does not conform to all the regulations of the district in which it is located.

Utility. Any facility, other than an administrative office, of any agency which under public franchise or ownership or certificate of convenience and necessity provides the public with any general public service, such as gas, electricity, water, sewerage, telephone, telegraph, cable television, or any other similar service.

(b)

In the event that there is a question as to a permitted use or its definition or any definition, the city council's decision of such shall be final.

(Ord. No. 929, § 3, 1-20-2005; Ord. No. 956, § 10(3), 9-15-2005)