Chapters 175A through 175K†5 as amended with passage and adoption on September 4, 1997, shall become in full force and effective from and after January 1, 1998, after its publication, as required by law. Title 17 as it exists on September 4, 1997, shall remain in effect and be enforced through December 31, 1997.

These Chapters 175A through 175K shall be known and may be cited and referred to as the “Zoning Ordinance” of the City of Norwalk, Iowa, and may be referred to herein as “this ordinance,” adopted pursuant to Chapter 414, 1997, Code of Iowa.

The purpose of this ordinance shall be to promote the public health, safety, morals, order, convenience, prosperity, and general welfare; to conserve and protect the value of property throughout the City and to encourage the most appropriate use of land; to lessen congestion in the streets; to prevent the overcrowding of land; to avoid undue concentration of population; and to facilitate the adequate provision of transportation, water, sewage, schools, parks and other public requirements.

In their interpretation and application, the provisions of this ordinance shall be held to be minimum requirements. Where this ordinance imposes a greater restriction than is imposed or required by other provisions of law or by other rules or regulations or ordinances, the provisions of this ordinance shall control.

For the purpose of this ordinance certain terms and words are hereby defined. Words used in the present tense shall include the future, the singular number shall include the plural and plural number includes the singular; the word “shall” is mandatory, the word “may” is permissive; the word “person” includes a firm, association, organization, partnership, trust, company, or corporation as well as an individual; the words “used or occupied” include the words “intended, designed, or arranged to be used or occupied.”

   1.   “Access” means the place, means, or way by which pedestrians or vehicles shall have ingress and egress to a property or parking area.

   2.   "Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU)" means a secondary living unit, on a single-family lot. An ADU contains its own kitchen, sleeping area, and bathroom facilities. ADUs are subordinate in size, location, and appearance to the primary dwelling unit.

   3.   “Accessory use or structure” means a use or structure on the same lot with the principal use or structure, and serving a purpose customarily incidental and subordinate to the principal use or structure. An accessory use shall not encompass more floor area or use a greater part of the lot than the principal permitted uses.

   4.   “Acquisition plat” means the graphical representation of the division of land or rights in land, created as the result of a conveyance or condemnation for right-of-way purposes by an agency of the government or other persons having the power of eminent domain.

   5.   “Addition” means an extension or increase in floor area or height of a building or structure.

   6.   “Adult” as used in this ordinance, refers to a person who has attained the age of eighteen (18) years.

   7.   “Adult entertainment facilities” means any one of or any combination of the following, which are customarily not open to persons who have not attained the age of eighteen (18) years.

      A.   “Adult art or adult modeling studio” means an establishment or business which provides the services of modeling for the purpose of viewing and/or reproducing the human body wholly or partially in the nude by means of photography, painting, sketching, drawing, or otherwise; provided entrance to such establishment and such services are available only to adults.

      B.   “Adult artist - body painting studio” means an establishment or business which provides the services of applying paint or other substance whether transparent or nontransparent to or on the human body when such body is wholly or partially nude; provided entrance to such establishment and such services are available only to adults.

      C.   “Adult bath house” means an establishment or business which provides the services of baths, including all forms and methods of hydrotherapy; provided entrance to such establishment and such services are available only to adults; and not including such services provided by a medical practitioner or professional physical therapist licensed by the State of Iowa.

      D.   “Adult book store” means an establishment having as the primary portion of its stock in trade, books, magazines, and other periodicals which are substantially devoted to the depiction of specified sexual activities and specified anatomical areas.

      E.   “Adult business” means any business or establishment where a specified sexual activity or a specified anatomical area is displayed.

      F.   “Adult motel” means a motel or similar establishment offering public accommodations for any form of consideration which provides patrons with closed-circuit television transmissions, films, motion pictures, video cassettes, slides or other photographic reproductions which are characterized by an emphasis upon the depiction or description of specified sexual activities or specified anatomical areas.

      G.   “Adult movie theater” means any theater, arcade, or similar establishment where an enclosed building or open-air facility is used for presenting material in the form of motion picture film, video tape, or other similar means which is substantially devoted to the depiction of specified sexual activities and specified anatomical areas for observation by persons therein.

      H.   “Adult news racks” means any coin-operated machine or device which dispenses material substantially devoted to the depiction of specified sexual activities and specified anatomical areas.

      I.   “Adult nightclub” means any club, cabaret, nightclub, bar, restaurant or similar establishment where an enclosed building or open-air facility is used for live performances which are characterized by the exposure of specified sexual activities and specified anatomical areas for observation by persons therein.

      J.   “Sexual encounter center” means a place provided by any business, agency or person where, for any form of consideration or gratuity, persons who are not all members of the same household may congregate, assemble, or associate for the purpose of engaging in sex acts or exposing specified anatomical areas.

   8.   “After hours business” means any business open during any time between the hours of two o’clock (2:00) A.M. to six o’clock (6:00) A.M. any day of the week and where patrons are allowed to bring their own beer and wine onto the business premises.

   9.   “Agriculture” means the use of land for agricultural purposes, including animal husbandry, apiculture, dairying, farming, floriculture, forestry, groves, horticulture, orchards, poultry husbandry, ranching, viticulture, and the necessary accessory uses for packing, treating or storing the produce; however, the operation of the accessory uses shall be subordinate to that of the normal agricultural activities.

   10.   “Airport” means the Des Moines International Airport.

   11.   “Airport elevation” means the reference point of an airport’s usable landing area measured in feet above mean sea level, which elevation is established to be 957.2 feet for the Des Moines International Airport.

   12.   “Airport hazard” means any structure, tree, or use of land which would exceed the federal obstruction standards as contained in 14 Code of Federal Regulations sections 77.21, 77.23, and 77.25 as revised March 4, 1972, and which obstruct the air space required for the flight of aircraft and landing or takeoff at an airport, or is otherwise hazardous to such landing or taking off of an aircraft.

   13.   “Airspace height” means, for the purpose of determining the height limits in all zones set forth in Section 175C.04 and shown on the zoning map, the datum shall be mean sea level (M.S.L.) elevation unless otherwise specified.

   14.   “Aliquot part” means a fractional part of a section within the United States public land survey system. Only the fractional parts one-half, one-quarter, one-half of one-quarter, or one-quarter of one quarter shall be considered an aliquot part of a section.

   15.   “Alley” means a private or public way, other than a street, twenty (20) feet or less in right-of-way width affording a secondary means of access to abutting property.

   16.   “Amendment” means a change in wording, context or substance of this ordinance, or a change in the zoning or district boundaries of the “Official Zoning Map,” which is a part of this ordinance when adopted by ordinance passed by the City Council in the manner prescribed by law.

   17.   “Amusement arcade” means a building or part of building in which five or more pinball machines, video games, or other similar player-operated amusement devices are maintained.

   18.   “Antenna” (see also satellite dish antenna and tower) means any system of wires, poles, rods, reflecting discs, or similar devices used for the transmission or reception of electromagnetic waves external to or attached to the exterior of any building.

   19.   “Antenna height” means the vertical distance measured from the base of the antenna support structure at grade to the highest point of the structure. If the support structure is on a sloped grade, then the average between the highest and lowest grades of the cell site shall be used in calculating the antenna height.

   20.   “Antenna support structure” means any tower or any other structure which supports a device used in the transmitting or receiving telecommunication signals.

   21.   “Apartment hotel” means a building designed for or containing both individual guest rooms or suites of rooms and rooms or suites or rooms for dwelling units. (See “dwelling, multiple family.”)

   22.   “Apartment house or building” means any building or portion thereof, which is designed, built, rented, leased, let or hired out to be occupied, or which is occupied as the home or residence of three or more families living independently of each other and doing their own cooking in the said building, and shall include flats and apartments. Said buildings have dwelling units that are both vertically and horizontally attached to one another.

   23.   "Appurtenant structure" means a structure which is on the same parcel of the property as the principal structure to be insured and the use of which is incidental to the use of the principal structure.

   24.   “Aquaculture” means land devoted to the hatching, raising, and breeding of fish or other aquatic plants or animals for sale or personal use.

   25.   “Aquifer” means a geological stratification in which porous and permeable conditions exist and thus are capable of yielding usable amounts of underground water.

   26.   “Aquifer recharge area” means an area that has soils and geological features that are conducive to allowing significant amounts of surface water to percolate into groundwater aquifers.

   27.   “Assisted living residential facility” means a building consisting of individual dwelling units where meals and assistance for daily living activities are provided to the residents, who are primarily elderly persons. Such facility must be licensed as a residential care facility, intermediate care facility or skilled nursing facility under Chapter 135C, Code of Iowa.

   28.   “Auditor’s plat” means a subdivision plat required by either the auditor or the assessor, prepared by a surveyor under the direction of the auditor, and in accordance with the City of Norwalk subdivision regulations.

   29.   “Automobile sales and storage lot” means an open off-street area where two or more operable motor vehicles are stored or offered or displayed for sale or advertising purposes.

   30.   “Automobile wrecking” (also see “junk yard”) means the dismantling or wrecking of motor vehicles or trailers, or the storage, sale, or dumping of dismantled or wrecked vehicles or their parts. The presence on any lot, parcel or tract of land, of five (5) or more vehicles which for a period exceeding thirty (30) days have not been capable of operating under their own power, and from which parts have been removed or are to be removed for re-use, salvage or sale, shall constitute prima facie evidence of an automobile wrecking yard.

   31.   “Awning” means any structure made of cloth or other non-rigid material with a metal or other rigid material for a frame and attached to a building and projecting outward from the building. (See “canopy.”)

   32.   “Balcony” means an unroofed platform, unenclosed except by a railing, which cantilevers from the outer wall of a building above ground level without support other than the building.

   33.   “Bar” means any establishment devoted primarily to the selling, serving or dispensing and drinking of malt, vinous, or other alcoholic beverage by 50% or more of total gross sales, or any place where any sign is exhibited or displayed indicating that alcoholic beverages are obtainable within or thereon, and where such beverages are consumed on the premises. (May also be referred to as “cocktail lounge,” “tavern,” or “saloon.”)

   34.   “Base flood” means the flood having one (1) percent chance of being equaled or exceeded in any given year. (Also commonly referred to as the “100-year flood”).

   35.   “Base flood elevation” (BFE) means the elevation floodwaters would reach at a particular site during the occurrence of a base flood event.

   36.   "Basement" means any enclosed area of a building which has its floor or lowest level below ground level (subgrade) on all sides. Also see "lowest floor" a structure which is on the same parcel of the property as the principal structure to be insured and the use of which is incidental to the use of the principal structure.

   37.   “Basement, walkout” means a basement which has more than one-half (½) the horizontal dimension of an exterior wall above the adjacent ground elevation permitting access to the exterior through a doorway with its base at floor level.

   38.   “Bed and breakfast inn” means an owner-occupied dwelling unit that contains no more than five guest rooms where lodging, with or without meals, is provided for compensation.

   39.   “Bedroom” means any room intended for sleeping purposes, provided that no room having less than one hundred (100) square feet of floor area shall be considered a bedroom.

   40.   “Billboard” means all signs, regardless of material used in the construction of the same, that are erected, maintained, or used for public display of poster, painted signs, wall signs, whether the structure be placed on the wall itself, pictures, or other pictorial reading matter which advertise a business, a commodity sold, service, or attraction which is not carried on or manufactured in or upon the premises upon which said signs or billboards are located.

   41.   “Block” shall be deemed to be all the property frontage along one public thoroughfare lying between the two nearest intersecting or intercepting streets, railroad right-of-way, waterway, golf course, campus, park or other similar space.

   42.   “Board” means Norwalk Board of Adjustment.

   43.   “Boarding house” means an establishment with lodging for five (5) or more unrelated persons for compensation, where meals are regularly prepared and served upon a table family style, without service or ordering of individual portions from a menu, but shall not include assisted living residential facilities.

   44.   “Body piercing studio” means any establishment or business wherein body piercing is practiced. Specifically excluded from this definition are retail jewelry businesses offering ear piercing as a complimentary service. (See “tattoo studio.”)

   45.   “Borrow pit” means any place or premises where dirt, soil, sand, gravel, or other material is removed below the grade of surrounding land for any purpose other than that necessary and incidental to site grading or building construction.

   46.   “Buffer” (also see “screening”) means a landscaped area, wall, or other structure intended to separate or partially obstruct the view between two adjacent zoning districts, land uses, or properties from one another.

   47.   “Buffer zone” means an area reserved for the establishment, construction, and continued maintenance of a buffer.

   48.   “Buildable area” means the area remaining on a lot after the minimum open-space requirement for yards has been met.

   49.   “Building” means any structure having a roof supported by walls or by columns intended for enclosure, shelter or housing of persons, animals, or chattel. When any portion thereof is entirely separated by walls in which there are no common walls, connecting doors or windows, or any similar opening, each portions so separated shall be deemed a separate building.

   50.   "Building footprint" means the overall exterior dimensions of a structure, measured at the foundation or exterior wall when a foundation is not present.

   51.   “Building frontage” means that wall or side of a building which is adjacent and most nearly parallel to a street.

   52.   “Building, height of” means the vertical distance from the average ground elevation at the building lines, to the highest point of the coping of a flat roof, or to the deck line of a mansard roof, or to the average height of the highest gable of a pitch or hip roof.

   53.   “Building line” means the extreme overall dimensions of a building as determined from its exterior walls or any part of a structural support or component which is nearest to the property line, other than usual uncovered steps, patios and decks. Horizontally projecting roof overhangs and chimneys into the setback up to two (2) feet shall be permitted, provided no part of a side of a building for residential occupancy which is not attached to another building shall be closer than five (5) feet to a lot line or within 10 feet of another building.

   54.   “Building plot or site” means the ground area of one (1) lot, or the ground area of two (2) or more lots which have been combined for the use of one building or permitted group of buildings, together with all open spaces required by this ordinance. (See “lot.”)

   55.   “Building sign” means a sign which is wholly supported by the building wall, parallel to the plane thereof and which does not extend beyond the surface of said building wall more than twelve (12) inches. This sign may be painted on, incorporated in, or affixed to the building wall, or any sign consisting of cut-out letters or devices affixed to the building wall with no background defined on the building wall.

   56.   “Bulk or tank stations” means distributing stations, commonly known as bulk or tank stations, used for the storage and distribution of flammable liquids or liquefied petroleum products, where the aggregate capacity of all storage tanks is more than twelve thousand (12,000) gallons.

   57.   “Caliper, tree trunk” means a tree trunk’s diameter as measured three (3) feet above grade.

   58.   “Campground” means an area or tract of land on which accommodations for temporary occupancy are located or may be placed, including cabins, tents, and major recreational equipment, and which is primarily used for recreational purposes and retains an open air or natural character.

   59.   “Canopy” means a permanent roofed structure, including marquees and awnings, attached to and supported by a building and projecting over private property, or over public property.

   60.   “Car wash” means an area of land and/or a structure with machine-or hand-operated facilities used principally for the cleaning, washing, polishing, or waxing of motor vehicles.

   61.   “Carport” means a roofed structure providing space for the parking of motor vehicles and enclosed on not more than two (2) sides. For the purpose of this ordinance a carport attached to a principal building shall be considered as part of the principal building and subject to all yard requirements herein.

   62.   “Cell site” means a tract or parcel of land that contains the wireless communication antenna, its support structure, accessory buildings, and parking, and may include other uses associated with and necessary for wireless communication transmission.

   63.   “Cemetery” means land used or intended to be used for the burial of the dead, including mausoleums, columbariums and crematoriums when operated in conjunction with and within the boundary of such cemetery.

   64.   “Centerline, public thoroughfare” means the line running parallel with the thoroughfare right-of-way boundaries and which is half the distance between the extreme edges of the official right-of-way width.

   65.   “Certificate of occupancy” means a document issued by the City to permit the use of a building which has been determined to have fulfilled City Zoning and building code requirements to permit occupancy.

   66.   “Certified survey” means a sketch, plan, map, or other exhibit bearing a written statement of its accuracy of conformity to specified surveying standards which is signed and sealed by a registered surveyor.

   67.   “Channel” means a natural or artificial watercourse of perceptible extent, with a definite bed and definite banks to confine and to conduct continuously or periodically flowing water.

   68.   “Child” means a person under eighteen years of age.

   69.   “Child care center” (also see “day care home”) means a facility providing child day care for seven or more children at one time, except when the facility is registered as a group care facility.

   70.   “Child day care” (see Chapter 237A of the Code of Iowa) means the care, supervision, or guidance of a child by a person other than the parent, guardian, relative, or custodian for periods of two hours or more, and less than twenty-four hours per day per child, on a regular basis, in a place other than the child’s home, but does not have:

      A.   An institutional program administered by a public or non-public school system approved by the Iowa State Department of Public Instruction or the Iowa State Board of Regents.

      B.   A religious-related instructional program of not more than one day per week.

      C.   Short-term classes held between school terms.

      D.   A program administered by a political subdivision of the State which is primarily for recreational or social purposes, and is limited to children who are five years of age or older and attending school.

   71.   “Child care home” means a private residence where care, protection, and supervision are provided, for a fee, at least twice a week to five (5) or fewer children at one time.

   72.   “Child development home” means a private residence, officially registered by the State of Iowa, to provide child day care with a maximum of eight (8) full time children (Category A and B as defined by the Iowa Department of Human Services (DHS) on July 1, 2015, and Category C with one provider (C-1) as defined by DHS on July 1, 2015). In no case shall an in home childcare service exceed twelve (12) children, with no more than eight (8) being considered full time.

   73.   “Church or place of religious worship” means an institution that people regularly attend to participate in or hold religious services, meetings, and other activities. The term “church” shall not carry a secular connotation and shall include buildings in which the religious services of any denomination are held.

   74.   “Clear-cutting” means the indiscriminate removal of tree, shrubs, or undergrowth with the intention of preparing real property for development purposes. This definition shall not include the selective removal of non-native tree and shrub species when the soil is left relatively undisturbed; removal of dead trees; or normal mowing operations.

   75.   “Clinic, medical or dental” means a building or buildings in which physicians, dentists, or allied professional assistants are associated for the purpose of carrying on their professions.

   76.   “Club” means an organization of persons for special purposes or for the promulgation of sports, arts, literature, politics, fitness, or the like but not operated for profit, excluding churches, or other houses of worship.

   77.   “Cluster development” means a development design technique that concentrates buildings in specific areas on a site to allow the remaining land to be used for recreation, common open space, and preservation of environmentally sensitive areas.

   78.   “Cocktail lounge” means any place of business, other than a night club, located in and accessory to a hotel, motel, or restaurant, where liquor, beer or wine is sold for consumption on the premises, where music or other entertainment is limited to a piano bar or other one person performance.

   79.   “Commercial use” means the barter, exchange, sale, service or trade of goods, materials, or services, either tangible or intangible for financial, material or monetary gain.

   80.   “Commission” means the Planning and Zoning Commission of Norwalk. (See Chapter 23 of this Code of Ordinances for the Powers and Duties of the Planning and Zoning Commission.)

   81.   “Communication tower” means a tower, pole, or similar structure which supports a telecommunications antenna operated for commercial purposes above ground in a fixed location, free standing, guyed or on a building.

   82.   “Complex” means a planned, coordinated development of a tract of land with two or more separate buildings. Such development is planned, designed, and constructed on an integrated and coordinated basis with special attention given to the master planning of on-site vehicular circulation, parking, utility needs, building design and orientation, and open space.

   83.   “Comprehensive Plan” means the Comprehensive Plan for the City of Norwalk which sets forth the City’s long range plans for land use, transportation, municipal utilities, city expansion, management and development policies to guide the City’s growth and from which the City’s zoning regulations shall be based.

   84.   “Communications tower” (also see “antenna”) means a structure that is intended for transmitting or receiving television, radio, or telephone communications.

   85.   “Conditional use” (see “special use”).

   86.   “Condominium” means an estate in real property as regulated by Chapter 499B of the Code of Iowa consisting of an undivided interest in common with other purchasers in a portion of a parcel of real property, together with a separate interest in space in a building, such as an apartment. A condominium may include, in addition, a separate interest in other portions of such real property.

   87.   “Condo-conversion” (condominium conversion) means the filing of a condominium regime, per the Code of Iowa, for an existing real estate property, such as the conversion of an apartment building into condominiums.

   88.   “Conservation easement” means an easement granting a right or interest in real property that is appropriate to retaining land or water areas predominately in their natural, scenic, open, wooded, or topographic condition, retaining such areas as suitable habitat for fish, plants, or wildlife; or maintaining existing slopes and land use.

   89.   “Consumer Fireworks Sales” means an establishment or temporary sales location used for the retail display and sale of consumer fireworks.

   90.   “Control zone” means airspace extending upward from the surface of the earth which may include one or more airports and is normally a circular area of five (5) statute miles in radius, with extensions where necessary to include instrument approach and departure paths.

   91.   “Convenience store” means any retail establishment offering for sale food products, household items and other goods commonly found in grocery stores, and having a gross floor area of less than 6,000 square feet. Any such business with 50% or more of its gross sales in alcohol and/or tobacco shall be considered a liquor store or a tobacco store.

   92.   “Conversion” means any change of one principal use to another principal use.

   93.   “Corridor preservation” means to preserve a right-of-way through the transfer of ownership, by easement or by an agreement, for a future public use as planned by the City of Norwalk or other public jurisdiction.

   94.   “Council” means the City Council of Norwalk.

   95.   “Court yard” means a space, open and unobstructed to the sky, located at or above grade level on a lot and bounded on three or more sides by walls or a building.

   96.   “Cul-de-sac” means a local street, one end of which is closed and consists of a circular turn around.

   97.   “Curb level” means the top level of the established curb in front of a lot. Where no curb has been established, the City Engineer may establish such curb level or its equivalent.

   98.   "Data Center" means an establishment engaging in the storage, management, processing, and/or transmission of digital data, and housing computer and/or network equipment, systems, servers, appliances and other associated components related to digital data operations.

   99.   “Day care home” means a private residence where care, protection and supervision are provided, for a fee, at least twice a week to less than seven (7) children at one time.

   100.   “Dead-end street” means a street with one end closed, and has only one location for entry and exit.

   101.   “Deciduous” means plants which shed their foliage after a growing season.

   102.   “Decision height” means the height at which a decision must be made, during an ILS instrument approach, to either continue the approach or to execute a missed approach.

   103.   “Delayed deposit services business” means a person or individual, group of individuals, partnership, association, corporation, or any other business unit or legal entity who for a fee does either of the following:

      A.   Accepts a check, draft, share draft, or other instrument for the payment of money dated subsequent to the date it was written.

      B.   Accepts a check, draft, share draft, or other instrument for the payment of money dated on the date it was written and holds it for a period of time prior to deposit or presentment pursuant to an agreement with, or any representation made to, the maker of the check, draft, or other instrument whether express or implied.

The above are typically referred to as check cashing, payday lending, or car title loan establishments.

   104.   “Density, gross” means the number of dwelling units permitted per gross acre of land within a defined area including public streets and open spaces.

   105.   “Density, net” means the number of dwelling units permitted per net acre of land being developed exclusive of public street rights-of-way.

   106.   "Development" means any subdivision of land or any man-made change to improved or unimproved real estate, including but not limited to buildings or other structures, mining, dredging, filling, grading, paving, excavation, drilling operations or storage of equipment or materials. "Development" does not include "minor projects" or "routine maintenance of existing buildings and facilities" as defined in this section. It also does not include gardening, plowing, and similar practices that do not involve filling or grading.

   107.   “Directory sign” means any sign that does not advertise a product or place of business, but exists solely to direct vehicular or pedestrian traffic to a location of a business or part of a business. A directory sign shall not contain names or logos. Any such sign shall not be more than eight (8) square feet per face, more than three (3) feet in height, and must be five (5) feet or more from public right-of-away. All directory signs must be located on the same property that the business or firm is located on. No more than five (5) directory signs shall be allowed per property.

   108.   “Dump” means a premises used for illegal discarding of trash, garbage, junk or other refuse; but not including legally operating land fills or junk yards.

   109.   “Duplex” (see “dwelling, two-family.”)

   110.   “Drive-in or drive-thru facility” means an establishment that provides or dispenses products or services, through an attendant or an automated machine, to persons remaining in their vehicle that are in designated drive-thru stacking lanes. A drive-thru facility may be in combination with other uses, such as financial institutions, restaurants, pharmacies, and service providers such as dry cleaners. In these guidelines, car washes and gas stations will not be categorized as drive-thru facilities.

   111.   “Driveway” means a privately owned roadway giving access from a public street to a building plat or abutting property.

   112.   “Dwelling” means any building or portion thereof which is designed or used exclusively for residential purposes, but not including a tent, cabin, trailer, or mobile home, shall be designed to be placed on, supported by and attached to a continuous perimeter foundation, which shall be permanent and constructed in accordance with the Norwalk Building Code for site built housing.

   113.   “Dwelling, single family” means a detached residence designed for or occupied by one family only, with the minimum width of twenty (20) feet or more than 65% of the length of the building exclusive of garages.

   114.   “Dwelling, two family” (commonly referred to as a duplex) means a residence designed for or occupied by two (2) families only, with separate housekeeping and cooking facilities for each, with a minimum width of twenty (20) feet for more than 65% of the length of the building, exclusive of garages.

   115.   “Dwelling, one and two family - rowhouse/townhome” means a building designed for or occupied by one (1) or two (2) families only, with separate housekeeping and cooking facilities for each, where the dwelling units are either detached (1 family) or attached horizontally to each other by party walls (2 families); where each unit maintains an individual entrance from the exterior of the building; and where the owner of the dwelling unit owns the lot beneath the unit.

   116.   “Dwelling, multiple family - rowhouse/townhome” means a dwelling unit attached horizontally to 2 or more other dwelling units by party walls, but no single unit shares party walls with more than two other units, and where each unit maintains an individual entrance from the exterior of the building.

   117.   “Dwelling, multiple family – apartment” means a building with three (3) or more dwelling units designed for or occupied by three or more families with separate cooking and housekeeping facilities for each, where either the units share a common entrance from the exterior of the building or any single unit has common walls or floors with more than two other units. Said buildings have dwelling units that are both vertically and horizontally attached to one another.

   118.   “Dwelling unit” means a room or group of rooms which are arranged, designed, or used as a dwelling for the occupancy of one (1) family containing sleeping, bathroom, and kitchen facilities.

   119.   “Easement” means a granted right by a land owner to a person, government agency, or public utility company to use land owned by another for a specific purpose.

   120.   "Enclosed Area Below Lowest Floor" means the floor of the lowest enclosed area in a building when all the following criteria are met:

      A.   The enclosed area is designed to flood to equalize hydrostatic pressure during flood events with walls or openings that satisfy the provisions of Section 175C.02(2)(E) of this Ordinance; and

         B.   The enclosed area is unfinished (not carpeted, drywalled, etc.) and used solely for low damage potential uses such as building access, parking or storage; and

         C.   Machinery and service facilities (e.g., hot water heater, furnace, electrical service) contained in the enclosed area are located at least one (1) foot above the base flood elevation; and

         D.   The enclosed area is not a "basement" as defined in this section.

   121.   “Evergreen” means plants which maintain their green foliage throughout the year, including the winter season in temperate climates.

   122.   “Existing construction” means any structure for which the “start of construction” commenced before the effective date of the first floodplain management regulations adopted by the community. May also be referred to as “existing structure.”

   123.   “Existing factory-built home park or subdivision” means a factory-built home park or subdivision for which the construction of the facilities for servicing the lots on which the factory-built homes are to be affixed (including at a minimum, the installation of utilities, the construction of streets, and either final site grading or the pouring of concrete pads) is completed before the effective date of the first floodplain management regulations adopted by the community.

   124.   “Existing use or structure” means any use or structure which exists as of January 1, 1998, or exists at the time of an amendment to this ordinance subsequent to its original adoption.

   125.   “Existing utility pole” means, for the purpose of siting a small cell facility, shall be a pole existing on or before July 1, 2017.

   126.   “Expansion of existing factory-built home park or subdivision” means the preparation of additional sites by the construction of facilities for servicing lots on which the factory-built homes are to be affixed (including at a minimum, the installation of utilities, the construction of streets, and either final site grading or the pouring of concrete pads).

   127.   “FAA” means the Federal Aviation Agency.

   128.   “FEMA” means Federal Emergency Management Agency.

   129.   "Factory-Built Home" means any structure, designed for residential use which is wholly or in substantial part, made, fabricated, formed or assembled in manufacturing facilities for installation or assembly and installation, on a building site. For the purpose of this Ordinance factory-built homes include mobile homes, manufactured homes, and modular homes; and also include "recreational vehicles" which are placed on a site for greater than 180 consecutive days and not fully licensed for and ready for highway use.

   130.   “Factory-built home park” means a parcel or contiguous parcels of land divided into two (2) or more factory-built home lots for rent or sale.

   131.   “Family” means a person living alone or any of the following groups living together as a single nonprofit housekeeping unit and sharing common living, sleeping, cooking, and eating facilities:

      A.   Any number of people related by blood (blood relatives), marriage, adoption, guardianship, or other duly authorized custodial relationship.

      B.   No more than three (3) unrelated people and any children related to any of them.

      C.   Not more than eight (8) people who are:

         (1)   Residents of a family home as defined in Section 414.22 of the Code of Iowa and this section; or

         (2)   Handicapped, as defined in the Fair Housing Act, 42 USC Section 3602(h). This definition does not include those persons currently illegally using or addicted to a controlled substance, as defined in the Controlled Substances Act, 21 USC Section 802(6).

The definition of a family does not include: (i) any society, club, fraternity, sorority, association, lodge, combine, federation, coterie, or like organization; (ii) any group of individuals whose association is temporary or seasonal in nature; and (iii) any group of individuals who are in a group living arrangement as a result of criminal offenses.

   132.   “Family home” means a community based residential home which is licensed as a residential care facility under Chapter 135C of the Code of Iowa or as a child foster care facility under Chapter 237 of the Code of Iowa to provide room and board, personal care, habilitation services, and supervision in a family environment exclusively for not more than eight (8) persons with a developmental disability or brain injury and any necessary support personnel. However, family home does not mean an individual foster care family home licensed under Chapter 237 of the Code of Iowa.

   133.   “Farm” means land area comprising ten (10) acres or more which is used for agriculture.

   134.   “Farmstead” means a grouping of buildings within a farm utilized for the storage and housing of equipment, agricultural products and livestock, and associated residence.

   135.   “Feedlot” means any tract of land or structure, pen, or corral, wherein cattle, horses, sheep, goats, or swine are maintained in close quarters for the purpose of fattening such livestock for final shipment to market.

   136.   “Fill” means to raise the grade of land with the depositing of earth.

   137.   "Five Hundred (500) Year Flood" means a flood, the magnitude of which has a two-tenths (0.2) percent chance of being equaled or exceeded in any given year or which, on average, will be equaled or exceeded at least once every five hundred (500) years.

   138.   “Flashing lights” means a sudden or transient outburst of bright light(s); a flood of light briefly appearing and disappearing. A single flash at regular intervals, the duration of light always being less than the duration of darkness.

   139.   “Flea market” means an occasional or periodic sales activity held within a building, structure, or open area where groups of individual sellers offer goods for sale to the public, not to include private garage sales.

   140.   “Flood” means a general and temporary condition of partial or complete inundation of normally dry land areas resulting from the overflow of streams or rivers or from the unusual and rapid runoff of surface waters from any source.

   141.   “Flood elevation” means the elevation floodwater reaches at a particular site during the occurrence of a specific flood. For instance, the one hundred (100) year flood elevation is the elevation of flood waters related to the occurrence of the one hundred (100) year flood.

   142.   “Flood Insurance Rate Map” (Firm) means the official map prepared by the Federal Insurance Administration as part of (but published separately from) the Flood Insurance Study which delineates both the flood hazard areas and the risk premium zones applicable to the community.

   143.   “Flood Insurance Study” means a study initiated, funded, and published by the Federal Insurance Administration for the purpose of evaluating in detail the existence and severity of flood hazards; providing the City with the necessary information for adopting a flood plain management program; and establishing actuarial flood insurance rates.

   144.   “Flood plain” means a land area susceptible to being inundated by water as a result of a flood.

   145.   “Flood plain basement” means any enclosed area of a building which has its floor or lowest level (subgrade) on all sides. Also see lowest floor.

   146.   “Flood plain management” means an overall program of corrective and preventive measures for reducing flood damages and promoting the wise use of flood plains, including but not limited to emergency preparedness plans, flood control works, floodproofing and flood plain management regulations.

   147.   “Flood profile” means a graph showing longitudinal sections of a designed waterway and the relationship of the water surface elevation of a flood event to any location along the watercourse.

   148.   “Floodproofing” means any combination of structural and nonstructural additions, changes, or adjustments to structures, including utility and sanitary facilities, which will reduce or eliminate flood damage to such structures.

   149.   “Floodway” means the channel of a river stream or other water course and those portions of the flood plain adjoining the channel, which are required to carry and discharge flood waters or flood flows so that confinement of flood flows to the floodway area will not result in substantially higher flood levels or flow velocities.

   150.   “Floodway fringe” means those portions of the flood plain, other than the floodway, which can be filled, levee, or otherwise obstructed without causing substantially higher flood levels or flood velocities.

   151.   “Floor” means the lower horizontal surface of a hollow structure, story or room, or the horizontal structure which separates stories in a building.

   152.   “Floor area” means the total area of all floors of a building or portion thereof measured to the outside surface of exterior walls or the centerline of walls to attached buildings or uses. It does not include garages, porches, balconies and other appurtenances. Space in the basement or cellar and all other space shall be included as floor area if habitable and used for a principal or accessory use permitted in the zone in which the building is located.

   153.   “Floor area ratio” means the square footage of floor area on all floors divided by the land area within the property lines.

   154.   “Freeboard” means a safety factor indicating the height above a projected flood occurrence level to which a levy or floodwall is constructed.

   155.   “Frontage” means the lot line adjoining a public street as measured along the street.

   156.   “Funeral home” means a building or part thereof used for human funeral services. Such building may contain space and facilities for: (i) embalming and the performance of other services used in preparation of the dead for burial; (ii) the performance of autopsies and other surgical procedures; (iii) the storage of caskets, urns, and other related funeral supplies; (iv) the storage of funeral vehicles; and (v) facilities for cremation. Where a funeral home is permitted, a funeral chapel shall also be permitted.

   157.   “Garage, private” means a building for the private use of the owner or occupant of a principal building situated on the same lot of the principal building for the storage of motor vehicles with no facilities for mechanical service or repair of a commercial or public nature. No dwelling or living space shall be contained within and shall not otherwise be used as a living quarters.

   158.   “Garage, public” means a building designed and used for the storage of automotive vehicles operated as a business enterprise with a service charge or fee being paid to the owner or operator for the parking or storage of privately owned vehicles.

   159.   “Garage, repair” means any building, premises, or land in which or upon which a business, service, or industry involving the maintenance, servicing, repair, or painting of motor vehicles is conducted or rendered.

   160.   “Gas or service station” means any building or premises used for the retail sale of liquefied petroleum products for the propulsion of motor vehicles, and including such products as kerosene, fuel oil, gasoline, diesel fuel, packaged naphtha, lubricants, tires, batteries, antifreeze, motor vehicle accessories, and other items customarily associated with the sale of such products. The rendering of accessory services is permitted including automatic car wash for one vehicle at a time, and making of repairs to motor vehicles except those of a major type. Repairs of a major type are defined to be spray painting; body, fender, differential, axle, spring, and frame repairs; major overhauling of engines requiring the removal of engine cylinder head or crankcase pan; repairs to radiators requiring the removal thereof; or complete recapping or retreading of tires.

   161.   “Grade” means the average of the finished ground level at the center of all walls of a building. In case walls are parallel to and within five (5) feet of a sidewalk, alley or other public way, the above ground level shall be measured at the elevation of the sidewalk, alley or public way.

   162.   “Grandfathered” means a use, or structure which exists at the time of the passage of an ordinance or regulation, and is permitted to continue to exist, although the use, or structure does not comply with the new ordinance or regulation.

   163.   “Greenhouse” means a building or accessory structure constructed chiefly of glass or other translucent material, which is devoted to the protection or cultivation of flowers or other tender plants.

   164.   “Group care facility” means a government licensed or approved facility which provides resident services in a dwelling to more than eight (8) individuals not including resident staff, but not exceeding 30 individuals. These individuals are developmentally disabled, aged or undergoing rehabilitation; are in need of adult supervision; and are provided services in accordance with their individual needs. Group care facilities shall not include nursing homes.

   165.   “Habitable room” means any room meeting the requirements of the City’s adopted Building Code and used for sleeping, living or dining purposes excluding such enclosed spaces as closets, pantries, bath or toilet rooms, service rooms, connecting corridors, laundries, unfinished attics, foyers, storage spaces, cellars, utility rooms and similar space.

   166.   “Half-story” means a story with at least two (2) of its opposite sides situated in a sloping roof, the floor area of which does not exceed two-thirds (2/3) of the floor area of the floor immediately below it.

   167.   “Hazardous materials” means any substances or materials that, by reason of their toxic, caustic, corrosive, abrasive, or otherwise injurious properties, may be detrimental or deleterious to the health of any person handling or otherwise coming into contact with such material or substance.

   168.   “Health club” means an establishment providing physical fitness facilities and services to the public for a fee, including but not limited to; game courts, exercise equipment, exercise areas, running tracks, swimming pools, physical fitness maintenance and weight control services and instructors, locker rooms, saunas and associated retail shop intended for members of club only.

   169.   "Heavy Industrial User" means an industrial use involving large-scale manufacturing, processing, or storage activities that typically generate significant noise, emissions, vibrations, or hazardous materials. These uses often involve the production, assembly, or treatment of raw materials or goods in a manner that may negatively impact the surrounding environment, such as, chemical processing plants, steel manufacturing, refineries, and large-scale freight or distribution centers.

   170.   “Highest adjacent grade” means the highest natural elevation of the ground surface prior to construction next to the proposed walls of a structure.

   171.   “Historic structure” means any structure that is:

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

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

         (1)   Individually listed on a state inventory of historic places in states with historic preservation programs which have been approved by the Secretary of the Interior; or

         (2)   Individually listed on a local inventory of historic places in communities with historic preservation programs that have been certified by either: (i) an approved state program as determined by the Secretary of the Interior; or (ii) directly by the Secretary of the Interior in states without approved programs.

   172.   “Home occupation” means a home occupation is a business, profession, occupation or trade conducted for gain or support as an accessory use entirely within a dwelling, or a structure, which is incidental and secondary to the use of such building for dwelling purposes and which does not change the essential residential character of such building. (See Section 175A.32)

   173.   “Homeowners or property owners association” means a formally constituted non-profit association or corporation made up of the property owners and/or residents of a definitive area; who collectively may take permanent responsibility for costs and upkeep of commonly owned or designated community property.

   174.   “Hookah lounge” means an establishment where patrons are provided shisha (flavored tobacco) in a hookah or nargile water smoking pipe. (See “smoking lounge” or “smoking den.”)

   175.   “Hospital” means an institution licensed by state law providing health services primarily for human in-patient medical or surgical care for the sick or injured and including related facilities such as laboratories, out-patient departments, training facilities, central services facilities, and staff offices that are an integral part of the facilities.

   176.   “Hotel or motel” means a building containing guest rooms in which lodging is provided and offered to the public on a temporary basis for compensation, and which is open to transient guests, in contrast to a bed and breakfast inn, boarding house, or rooming house. For establishments to be considered a hotel or motel, versus an apartment hotel or apartment house/building, all rooms must be available for rent for as little as one (1) night and no more than 30 days, no rental contract or similar agreement is involved, and the establishment must be licensed as a hotel by the State of Iowa and collect and pay to the State hotel/motel tax.

   177.   “Impervious surface” means a surface that has been compacted or covered with a layer of material so that it is highly resistant to infiltration by water. It includes surfaces such as compacted sand, lime rock, or clay, as well as most conventionally surfaced streets, roofs, sidewalks, parking lots, and other similar structures.

   178.   “Inoperable vehicle” means any motor vehicle, recreational vehicle, boat, trailer or semi-trailer which lacks a current registration or component part which renders the vehicle unfit for legal use.

   179.   “Insignias and flags” means insignias, flags, and emblems of the United States, the State of Iowa, municipal and other bodies of established government, or flags which display the recognized symbol of a non-profit or non-commercial organization.

   180.   “Instrument runway” means a runway having an existing instrument approach procedure utilizing air navigation facilities or area type navigation equipment, for which an instrument approach procedure has been approved or planned.

   181.   “Internet café” means a café, coffee bar, etc., that offers Internet access on its own computers or on customer's laptops, usually for a fee.

   182.   “Junk” means old, wrecked, inoperable, or discarded automobiles, trucks, tractors, and other such vehicles and parts thereof, wagons and other kinds of vehicles and parts thereof, scrap, used building materials, scrap contractor’s equipment, tanks, cans, barrels, boxes, drums, piping, bottles, glass, old iron, machinery, rags, paper excelsior, hair, mattresses, beds or bedding or any other kind of scrap or waste material which is stored, kept, handled or displayed for barter, resale, reuse, salvage, stripping, or trade.

   183.   “Junk yard” means any area where junk is stored, bought, sold, exchanged, baled or packed, disassembled or handled, including house wrecking yards, used lumber yards and places or yards for storage of salvaged house wrecking or structural steel materials and equipment; but not including areas where such uses are conducted entirely within a completely enclosed building, and not including the processing of used, discarded or salvaged materials necessary as a part of manufacturing operations.

   184.   “Kennel” means facility housing dogs, cats or other household pets and where grooming, breeding, boarding, training, or selling of animals is conducted as a business.

   185.   “Kennel, private” means any building or buildings, any land containing, or any housing, designed for the care of, or actually containing four (4) or more dogs, six (6) months of age or older.

   186.   “Kitchen” means any room or portion of a building used, intended or designed to be used for cooking and other preparation of food.

   187.   “Landfill” means a disposal site employing an engineering method of disposing of solid wastes in a manner that minimizes environmental hazards by spreading, compacting to the smallest volume, and applying cover material over all exposed waste at the end of each operating day.

   188.   “Lawful lot, structure, or use” means a lot, structure, or use which complies with the zoning regulations within this ordinance or any other city, federal, or state law or regulation, or is grandfathered under the terms and conditions of this ordinance and is permitted to exist.

   189.   “Livestock” means animals kept, or raised for use or pleasure including cattle, horses, sheep, goats, swine and similar hoofed animals.

   190.   “Laundry, self-service” means a business that provides home-type washing, drying and/or ironing machines for hire to be used by customers on the premises.

   191.   “Loading space” means any off-street space or berth on the same lot with a building or contiguous to a group of building, for the temporary parking (less than twenty-four hours) for a commercial vehicle while loading or unloading merchandise or materials.

   192.   “Lot,” for the purpose of this ordinance, means a parcel of land of at least sufficient size to meet minimum zoning requirements for use, coverage and area and to provide such yards and other open space as are herein required. Such lot shall have a frontage on a public street unless it is part of a townhouse complex or mobile home park, and may consist of: (i) a single lot of record; (ii) a portion of a lot of record; (iii) a combination of complete lots of record; of complete lots of record and portions of lots of record; or of portions of lots of record; and (iv) a parcel of land described by metes and bounds; provided that in no case of division or combination shall any residual lot or parcel be created which does not meet the requirements of this ordinance.

   193.   “Lot line” means a line dividing one lot from another lot or from a street or alley.

   194.   “Lot lines”:

      A.   Front: the lot lines which adjoin a public street right-of-way.

      B.   Rear: the rear lot line is that boundary which is opposite and most distant from the front lot line. In the case of a corner lot, either of the lot lines opposite the front lot line may be selected as the rear lot line. In the case of a double frontage lot, the rear lot line shall be that line opposite the front lot line from which street access is obtained for the lot. In case of an interior triangular or gore-shaped lot, it shall mean a straight line ten (10) feet in length which:

         (1)   Is parallel to the front lot line or its cord.

         (2)   Intersects the two (2) other lot lines at points most distant from the front lot line.

      C.   Side: any lot line not a front lot line or a rear lot line.

   195.   “Lot measurements”:

      A.   Area.   The gross area, exclusive of streets or other public rights-of-way, within the boundary lines of a lot.

      B.   Depth. The mean horizontal distance between the front and rear lot lines as measured perpendicular to the midpoint of the mean front lot line. In the case of an interior triangular or gore-shaped lot, the depth shall be the horizontal distance between the midpoints at the front lot line and rear lot lines.

      C.   Width. The horizontal distance between the side lot lines as measured perpendicular to the line comprising the lot depth at its point of intersection with the required minimum front yard setback.

   196.   “Lot of record” means a lot which is part of a subdivision recorded in the Office of the County Recorder or a lot or parcel described by metes and bounds, the description of which has been so recorded. For purposes of this ordinance, an existing contract of purchase at the time of the effective date of this ordinance also constitutes a lot of record.

   197.   “Lot, substandard” means a lot that has less than the required minimum area or width as required by the zone in which it is located.

   198.   “Lot types”:

      A.   Corner Lot: A lot located at the intersection of two (2) or more streets, and having the street right-of-way abut the front lot lines of the lot.

      B.   Double Frontage or Through Lot: A lot, other than a corner lot, with frontage on more than one (1) street or public thoroughfare which does not intersect one another.

      C.   Flag Lot: A lot with access provided to the bulk of the lot by means of a narrow corridor which does not meet the minimum permitted lot width requirements at the minimum setback distance from the public street.

      D.   Interior Lot: A lot, other than a corner lot, having frontage on but one (1) street or public thoroughfare.

      E.   Key Lot: A key lot is a lot so subdivided as to have its side lines coincide with the rear lot lines of adjacent lots on either or both sides of the aforesaid key lots.

      F.   Townhouse Lot or Postage Stamp Lot: A small lot typically contained within an associate owned common lot or outlot and intended to define the immediate area surrounding the perimeter of an individual townhouse or rowhouse unit for ownership purposes.

   199.   "Lowest Floor" means the floor of the lowest enclosed area in a building including a basement except when the criteria listed in the definition of Enclosed Area below Lowest Floor are met.

   200.   “Liquor store” means a retail shop or establishment that primarily sells prepackaged alcoholic beverages, including wine, beer, and alcoholic liquors, intended to be consumed off the store’s premises, and where 50% or more of total gross sales are derived from the sale of alcohol and tobacco.

   201.   “Maintenance guarantee” means a guarantee of facilities or work to ensure the correction of any failures of any improvements required pursuant to this ordinance and regulations, or to maintain same.

   202.   “Manufactured home” means a factory built home which is used as a single-family dwelling and is manufactured or constructed under the authority of 42 U.S.C. Sec. 5403, Federal Manufactured Home Construction and Safety Standards, and is to be used as a place for human habitation, but which is not constructed with a permanent hitch or other device allowing it to be moved other than for the purpose of moving it to a permanent site, and which does not have a permanently attached to its body or frame any wheels or axles. A mobile home is not a manufactured home unless it has been converted to real property as provided by the state code of Iowa, and is taxed as a site-built dwelling. For the purposes of these regulations, a manufactured home shall be considered the same as any site-built single-family detached dwelling.

   203.   “Marina” means a facility for storing, servicing, fueling, berthing, and securing and launching of private pleasure water craft that may include the sale of fuel and incidental supplies for the boat owners, crews, and guests.

   204.   “Marquee” means a canopy with rigid material of permanent construction projecting from and supported only by the wall of a building.

   205.   “Massage” means any method of treating the external parts of the human body by rubbing, stroking, kneading, tapping or vibrating with the hand, other parts of the body, or any instrument, for any form of consideration or gratuity.

   206.   “Massage establishment” means any establishment having a fixed place of business where massages are administered for any form of consideration or gratuity, including but not limited to, massage parlors, health clubs, sauna baths, and steam baths. This definition shall not be construed to include an establishment employing: (i) persons licensed by the State of Iowa under the provisions of Chapters 148, 148A, 148B, 150, 150A, 151, 152, 157, or 158 of the Code of Iowa, when performing massage services as a part of the profession or trade for which licensed; (ii) persons performing massage therapy or massage services under the direction of a person licensed as described in (i) above; (iii) persons performing massage therapy or massage services upon a person pursuant to the written instruction or order of a licensed physician; (iv) nurses, aides, technicians and attendants at any hospital or health care facility licensed pursuant to Chapter 135B, 135C, or 145A of the Code of Iowa, in the course of their employment and under the supervision of the administrator thereof or of a person licensed as described in (i) above; and (v) an athletic coach or trainer in any accredited public or private secondary school, junior college, college or university, or employed by a professional or semi-professional athletic team or organization, in the course of his/her employment as such coach or trainer. This definition shall not be construed to include a volunteer fire department, a volunteer rescue squad, or a non-profit organization operating a community center; swimming pool, tennis court, or other educational, cultural, recreational, and athletic facilities; and facilities for the welfare of the residents of the area.

   207.   “Master Plan” means a schematic plan for a unified, coordinated development of a tract of contiguous land which is designed in an integrated and coordinated basis showing streets, water lines and appurtenances, sanitary sewers and appurtenances, storm water management facilities and appurtenances, lot boundaries, building locations, parking and loading areas, access drives, landscaping, existing and proposed grades, buffers, and other information as required to properly depict and communicate the proposed utilization and improvement of the property.

   208.   "Maximum Damage Potential Development" means Hospitals and like institutions; buildings or building complexes containing documents, data, or instruments of great public value; buildings or building complexes containing materials dangerous to the public or fuel storage facilities; power installations needed in emergency or other buildings or building complexes similar in nature or use.

   209.   “Metes and bounds description” means a description of land that uses distances and angles, or distances and bearings, or describes the boundaries of the parcel by reference to physical features of the land.

   210.   “Mini-warehouse” means a building or group of buildings, no more than twenty-five (25) feet in height and not having any dimension greater than two hundred fifty (250) feet per building, containing varying sizes of individualized, compartmentalized, and controlled stalls or lockers for the dead storage of customers’ goods or wares, excluding junk, explosive, or flammable materials, and other noxious or dangerous materials. No business activities other than rental of storage units shall be conducted on the premises.

   211.   “Minimum descent altitude” means the lowest altitude, expressed in feet above mean sea level, to which descent is authorized on final approach or during circle-to-land maneuvering in execution of a standard instrument approach procedure, where no electronic glide slope is provided.

   212.   “Minimum en route altitude” means the altitude in effect between radio fixes which assures acceptable navigational signal coverage and meets obstruction clearance requirements between those fixes.

   213.   “Minimum obstruction clearance altitude” means the specified altitude in effect between radio fixes on VOR airways, off-airway routes, or route segments which meet obstruction clearance requirements for the entire route segment and which assures acceptable navigational signal coverage only within 22 miles of a VOR.

   214.   “Minor projects” means small development activities (except for filling, grading and excavating) valued at less than $500.00.

   215.   “Mobile home” means a factory built home without motive power and built on a chassis for conveyance upon highways or public streets, or waterways; so designed and so constructed as to permit occupancy thereof as a place of human habitation for one (1) or more persons. A mobile home shall not be construed to be a travel trailer or other form of recreational vehicle. A mobile home shall remain a mobile home, subject to all regulations applying thereto, whether or not wheels, axles, hitch, or other appurtenances of mobility are removed and regardless of the nature of the foundation provided, if such mobile home has not been converted to property tax assessable real estate in accordance with Chapter 135D.26 of the Code of Iowa. Nothing in this ordinance shall be construed as permitting a mobile home in other than an approved mobile home park.

   216.   “Mobile home park” means any lot or portion of lot upon which one or more mobile homes, modular homes, or trailers occupied for dwelling or sleeping purposes are located regardless of whether or not a charge is made for such accommodations.

   217.   “Modular home” means a factory-built home which is manufactured or constructed to be used as a place for human habitation, but which is not constructed or equipped with a permanent hitch or other device allowing it to be attached or towed behind a motor vehicle, and which does not have permanently attached to its body or frame any wheels or axles.

   218.   “Motel” (See “hotel.”)

   219.   “Multiple use” means the occupancy of a defined area of land or a building by more than one type of use, i.e., single-family residential, multi-family residential, commercial, office, or industrial.

   220.   “New construction” (new buildings, factory-built home parks) means those structures or development for which the start of construction commenced on or after the effective date of the first floodplain management regulations adopted by the community. Those structures or development for which the start of construction or installation commenced on or after the effective date of this ordinance.

   221.   “New factory-built home park or subdivision” means a factory-built home park or subdivision for which the construction of the facilities for servicing the lots on which the factory-built homes are to be affixed (including at a minimum, the installation of utilities, the construction of streets, and either final site grading or the pouring of concrete pads) is completed on or after the effective date of the first floodplain management regulations adopted by the community.

   222.   “Night club” means any place of business located within any building or establishment, established and operated for the purpose of supplying entertainment or music and a dance floor and providing meals and/or refreshments prepared for consumption on the premises.

   223.   “Noise and aviation easement” means an easement granted by a land owner to the Des Moines International Airport and all aircraft landing at the airport to use the air space above the described area of the easement, and to emit noise associated with the operation of the aircraft.

   224.   “Nonconforming lot” means a lot which lawfully existed prior to the adoption, revision, or amendment of this ordinance, but which fails by reason of such adoption, revision, or amendment to conform to the new district regulation in which it is located.

   225.   “Nonconforming structures” means a building or structure exists at the effective date of adoption or amendment of this ordinance which is allowed to lawfully exist, but does not comply with the terms of this ordinance by reason of restrictions on area, lot coverage, height, setbacks, architecture, or other characteristics of the structure or its location on the lot.

   226.   “Nonconforming use” means a lawful use of land that does not comply with the use regulations for its zoning district but which complied with applicable regulations at the time the use was established.

   227.   “Non-profit institution” means a non-profit establishment maintained and operated by a society, corporation, individual, foundation or public agency for the purpose of providing charitable, social, education or similar services to the public, groups, or individuals. Cooperative non-profit associations, performing a service normally associated with retail sales or trade such as cooperative groceries, granaries, equipment sales, etc., shall not be considered a non-profit institution under this ordinance.

   228.   “Nursing or convalescent home” means a building or structure having accommodations and where care is provided for invalid, infirm, aged, convalescent, or physically disabled, or injured persons; not including mentally insane, mental deficiency or deterioration, inebriate, or contagious cases.

   229.   “Occulting light” means light which is totally eclipsed at regular intervals; the duration of light is always greater than the duration of darkness (such as an electronic information display).

   230.   “Off-premises,” as used in this ordinance, means the purpose is to advertise, identify and/or direct attention to a profession, business, service, activity, product, campaign or attraction which is not carried on, sold, offered, or manufactured in or upon the premises.

   231.   “Official plat” means either an auditor’s plat or a subdivision plat that meets the requirements of the Code of Iowa and City subdivision regulations, and has been filed for record in the offices of the County recorder, auditor, and assessor.

   232.   “On-premises,” as used in this ordinance, means the primary purpose is to advertise, identify, and/or direct attention to a profession, business, service, activity, product, campaign or attraction which is carried on, sold, offered or manufactured in or upon the premises.

   233.   “One hundred (100) year flood” means a flood, the magnitude of which has a one (1) percent chance of being equaled or exceeded in any given year or which, on the average, will be equaled or exceeded at least once every one hundred (100) years.

   234.   “Open space” means an area that is intended to provide light and air, and is designed for either environmental, scenic, or recreational purposes. Open space may include, but is not limited to, lawns, decorative planting, walkways, active and passive recreation areas, playgrounds, fountains, swimming pools, wooded areas, and water courses. Open space shall not be deemed to include buildings, driveways, parking lots, display areas for retail sales of merchandise, loading areas, outdoor storage areas, or other surfaces designed or intended for vehicular travel.

   235.   “Ornamental tree” means small deciduous trees which normally have colorful flowers and leaves, and are generally less than thirty (30) feet in height at maturity.

   236.   “Outdoor storage” means the keeping, in an unroofed area, of any goods, junk, material, merchandise, or vehicles in the same place for more than twenty-four (24) hours, that is not wholly contained within a fully enclosed structure.

   237.   “Over-story tree” means a deciduous shade tree which grows to a sufficient height to establish an overhead canopy, and is generally greater than thirty (30) feet in height at maturity.

   238.   “Parcel” means a part of a tract of land.

   239.   “Park” means any public or private land reserved for active and passive recreation to include such facilities playgrounds, swimming pools, tennis courts, trails, shelters, and other similar uses associated with a designed recreation area. The term park is not intended to include private or public amusement parks, permanent carnivals, or similar type activities.

   240.   “Parking area, joint use” means an off-street parking area which is used commonly by two or more buildings or properties which are under different ownership.

   241.   “Parking area, satellite” means off-street parking spaces located on a separate lot not adjoining the principal use for which they are required or associated with, whether in the same ownership as the property occupied by the principal use or leased from a separate owner.

   242.   “Parking space” means an area on a lot and/or within a building intended for the use of parking of a personal vehicle. This term is used interchangeably with parking stall.

   243.   “Patron” means a customer who purchases a commodity or service.

   244.   “Pawnshop” means an establishment wherein the business of a pawnbroker is conducted. A pawnbroker shall be any person who lends or advances money or other things for profit on the pledge and possession of personal property, or other valuable things, other than securities or written or printed evidences of indebtedness; or who deals in the purchasing of personal property or other valuable things on condition of selling the same back to the seller at a stipulated price. A pawnshop shall not be deemed a retail sales establishment except for the purposes of determining off-street parking.

   245.   “Performance guarantee” means any security accepted by the City in the form of cash, certified check, performance bond, surety bond, or certificate of deposit endorsed to the City, to assure the completion of improvements within a subdivision or site-planned development.

   246.   “Permitted use” means any use allowed in a zoning district and subject to the restrictions applicable to that zoning district.

   247.   “Person” means a natural person, his or her executors, administrators, or assigns, and also includes a firm, partnership, or corporation, its or their successors or assigns, or the agent of any of the aforesaid.

   248.   “Place of business” means any vehicle, building, structure, yard, area, lot, premises, or part thereof, or any other place in which or on which one or more persons engage in a gainful occupation.

   249.   “Planned unit development” (PUD) means any development in which the proposed land use, transportation elements, population densities, building arrangement and types are set out in a unified, contiguous plan.

   250.   “Planning commission” means the Planning and Zoning Commission of the City of Norwalk.

   251.   “Plant nursery” means any land used to raise trees, shrubs, flowers, and other plants for transplanting.

   252.   “Plat of survey” means the graphical representation of a survey of one or more parcels of land, including a complete and accurate description of each parcel within the plat, prepared by a registered land surveyor.

   253.   “Porch, unenclosed” means a roofed projection which has no more than fifty (50) percent of each outside wall area enclosed by a building or siding material other than meshed screens.

   254.   “Post-secondary schools” means a public or non-public educational institution such as colleges, universities, professional business training schools, and technical training schools, established to provide curriculum, academic instruction, or training to persons who have completed their high school education.

   255.   “Premises” means any lot, plot, parcel or tract of land, building or buildings, structure or structures, used publicly or privately as a place of business, dwelling or meeting place.

   256.   “Primary surface” means a surface longitudinally centered on a runway. When the runway has a specially prepared hard surface, the primary surface extends 200 feet beyond each end of that runway. The width of the primary surface of a runway will be that width established in Part 77 of the Federal Aviation Regulations (FAR) for the most precise approach existing or planned for either end of that runway. The elevation of any point on the primary surface is the same as the elevation of the nearest point on the runway centerline.

   257.   “Principal building or structure” means a building or structure in which the principal use of the lot on which the building or structure is located is conducted.

   258.   “Principal use” means the primary use of land or structures as distinguished from an accessory use.

   259.   “Print shop” means a retail establishment that provides duplicating services using photocopy, blueprint, and offset printing equipment, including collating of booklets and reports.

   260.   “Proprietor” means a person who has a recorded interest in land, including a person selling or buying land pursuant to a contract, but excluding persons holding a mortgage, easement, or lien interest.

   261.   “Property line” (See “lot line.”)

   263.   “Public thoroughfare” means any right-of-way under the jurisdiction and maintenance of the governmental agencies of the federal, State or municipal government; which may be used by the public in general, and which may or may not serve as a frontage street to the abutting property. (See “street.”)

   263.   “Public view” means visible to the general populace from public streets, alleys, parks or other public property, adjoining privately-owned properties, and on-premises parking lots and other facilities accessible to the general populace including patrons and visitors.

   264.   “Recreation vehicle” (RV) means a vehicle which is: (i) built on a single chassis; (ii) 400 square feet or less when measured at the largest horizontal projection; (iii) designed to be self-propelled or permanently towable by a light duty vehicle; and (iv) designed primarily not for use as a permanent dwelling but as temporary living quarters for recreational, camping, travel, or seasonal use.

   265.   “Recreational vehicle (RV) park” means any parcel of land upon which two or more recreational vehicle sites are located, established, or maintained for occupancy by recreational vehicles of the general public as temporary living quarters for recreation or vacation purposes.

   266.   “Recycling center” means a building in which used material is separated and processed prior to shipment to others who will use those materials to manufacture new products.

   267.   “Recycling collection point” means an incidental use that serves as a neighborhood drop-off point for temporary storage of recoverable resources. No processing of such items would be allowed. This facility would generally be located in a shopping center parking lot or in other public/quasi-public areas, such as in churches and schools.

   268.   “Research laboratory” means a building or group of buildings in which are located facilities for scientific research, investigation, testing, or experimentation, but not facilities for the manufacture or sale of products, except as incidental to the main purpose of the laboratory.

   269.   “Residential” (Residence) means any lot, plot, parcel, tract, area, or place of land or any building used exclusively for family dwelling purposes or intended to be used, including accessory uses specified herein.

   270.   “Restaurant” means an establishment that prepares and serves food and beverages to persons for immediate consumption. Any establishment with 50% or more of total gross sales in alcoholic beverages shall be defined as and considered a bar and not a restaurant.

      A.   Dine-in: a restaurant where the patron consumes foods and beverages while seated at tables or counters located on the premises.

      B.   Drive-in: a restaurant that delivers prepared food and/or beverages to patrons in motor vehicles, regardless of whether or not it also serves prepared food and/or beverages to customers who are not in motor vehicles, for consumption on or off the premises. This definition includes coffee shops, ice cream parlors, and any other business that serves food or drinks to patrons in a motor vehicle.

      C.   Carry-out: a restaurant which prepares food and/or beverages which are packaged and delivered to the patrons or are picked-up at the establishment by the customer; there is no consumption of food or beverages on the premises by patrons.

   271.   “Re-subdivision” means any change in the shape or size of any lot, tract or parcel of land previously platted for the purpose, whether immediate or future, of sale, rent, lease, building development, or other use. Any change in the shape or size of any lot, tract or parcel of land previously approved for building purpose whether immediate or future and regardless whether or not the same is vacant or improved in whole or in part, for sale, rent, lease, building development or other use.

   272.   “Right-of-way” means a strip of land occupied or intended to be occupied by a street, highway, walkway, drainageway, railroad, electric transmission line, oil or gas pipeline, water main, sanitary or storm sewer, trail, or other public use.

   273.   "Road, Commercial Private" means a privately owned road for the common use of ingress and egress for a group of adjacent commercial properties. This definition shall not apply to individual driveways.

   274.   "Road, Parking Access" means a private road that provides ingress and egress access to Parking Lots and Parking Aisle Roads.

   275.   "Road, Parking Aisles" means the path of ingress and egress providing direct access to a parking stall within a parking lot.

   276.   "Road, Private" means a right-of-way open to vehicular ingress and egress established as a separate tract for the common use and benefit of certain, adjacent properties. This definition shall not apply to individual driveways.

   277.   "Road, Residential Private" means a privately owned road for the common use of ingress and egress for a group of adjacent residential properties. This definition shall not apply to individual driveways.

   278.   “Rooming house” means a residential structure that provides lodging with or without meals, is available for permanent occupancy only, and which makes no provision for cooking in any of the rooms occupied by paying guests.

   279.   "Routine Maintenance of Existing Buildings & Facilities" means repairs necessary to keep a structure in a safe and habitable condition that do not trigger a building permit, provided they are not associated with a general improvement of the structure or repair of a damaged structure. Such repairs include:

      A.   Normal maintenance of structures such as re-roofing, replacing roofing tiles and replacing siding;

      B.   Exterior and interior painting, papering, tiling, carpeting, cabinets, counter tops and similar finish work;

      C.   Basement sealing;

      D.   Repairing or replacing damaged or broken window panes;

      E.   Repairing plumbing systems, electrical systems, heating or air conditioning systems and repairing wells or septic systems.

   280.   “Runway” means a defined area on an airport prepared for landing and takeoff of aircraft along its length.

   281.   “Satellite dish antenna” means a device incorporating a reflective surface that is solid, open mesh, or bar configured and is in the shape of a shallow dish, cone, horn, or cornucopia. Such device shall be used to transmit and/or receive radio or electromagnetic waves between terrestrially and/or orbitally based uses. This definition is meant to include but not be limited to what are commonly referred to as satellite earth stations, TVROs (television reception only satellite dish antennas), and satellite microwave antennas.

   282.   “School” means a facility that provides a curriculum of elementary and secondary academic instruction, including kindergartens, elementary schools, junior high schools, middle schools and high schools.

   283.   “School, business training” means a school which specializes in business, commercial and industrial training courses and is operated for commercial gain.

   284.   “Scenic corridor” means a strip of land on each side of a stream or roadway that is generally visible to the public traveling on such route.

   285.   “Scenic easement” means an easement, the purpose of which is to limit development in order to preserve a view or scenic area.

   286.   “Screening” (also see “buffer”) means the method by which a view of one site from another adjacent site is shielded, concealed, or hidden. Screening techniques include fences, walls, hedges, berms, or other features.

   287.   “Seating capacity” means the actual seating capacity of an area based upon the number of fixed seats or one seat per eighteen (18) inches of bench or pew length. For other areas where seats are not fixed, the seating capacity shall be determined as indicated by the Uniform Building Code.

   288.   “Section” means a section of this ordinance unless some other ordinance, code or statute is indicated.

   289.   “Self-service storage facility” (See “mini-warehouse.”)

   290.   “Senior citizen center” means a facility that is generally open to the public and owned or operated by a public or non-profit agency for the purpose of providing social services, activities, and/or meals to seniors or the elderly.

   291.   “Servant’s quarters” means a secondary dwelling unit occupied by a domestic employee of the principal residential building and conforming to the restrictions of this ordinance including those for accessory buildings.

   292.   “Setback” means the required minimum horizontal distance permitted between the building line and the related front, side, or rear property line.

   293.   “Shopping center” means a grouping of retail business and service uses within a single Master Planned Complex of one or more buildings with common parking facilities, access and open space.

   294.   “Side yard” (See “yard, side.”)

   295.   “Sidewalk café” means an area which is part of and adjacent to and directly in front of a street-level restaurant and located within the sidewalk area of the public right-of-way exclusively for dining, drinking, and pedestrian circulation. The encroachment area of a sidewalk cafe may be separated from the remainder of the sidewalk by railings, fencing, or landscaping planter boxes or a combination thereof as required by the City Council.

   296.   “Sign” means any device fixed to, painted on, or incorporated into the building surface or displayed from or with a building or structure, or free standing upon the site and which is visible from the public right-of-way and designed to covey or direct a message to the public concerning the identification of the premises, to advertise or promote the interests of any private or public firm, person, organization, or other entity, or to draw attention to the use on the premises.

   297.   “Sign, awning” means a sign painted on or incorporated into an awning. The area of an awning sign shall be the area of the inscription or message incorporated into the awning, provided the awning is not internally illuminated. For an awning sign incorporated on an awning internally illuminated, the area of the entire awning shall be considered the sign area.

   298.   “Sign, building” means a sign which is wholly supported by the building wall, parallel to the plane thereof and which does not extend beyond the surface of said building wall more than twelve (12) inches. A building sign may be painted on, incorporated in, or affixed to the building wall, or any sign consisting of cut-out letters or devices affixed to the building wall with no background defined on the building wall.

   299.   “Sign, bulletin board” means a sign containing a surface area upon which is displayed the name of a religious institution, charitable organization, school, library, community center or similar institution and the announcement of its services or activities.

   300.   “Sign, changeable copy” means the graphic content, in letter or alphabetical form, of a sign, which can be changed or altered through mechanical or electrical means.

   301.   “Sign, construction” means such signs identifying the architects, engineers, contractors and other individuals involved in the construction of a building and such signs announcing the character of the building enterprise or the purpose for the building is intended but not including product advertising.

   302.   “Sign, directory” means any sign that does not advertise a product or place of business, but exists solely to direct vehicular or pedestrian traffic to a location of a business or part of a business. A directory sign shall not contain names or logos. Any such sign shall not be more than eight (8) square feet per face, more than three (3) feet in height, and must be five (5) feet or more from public right-of-way. All directory signs must be located on the same property that the business or firm is located on. No more than five (5) directory signs shall be allowed per property.

   303.   “Sign, finance” means such signs identifying the financial contributors or lenders involved in the construction of a building or subdivision.

   304.   “Sign, free standing,” including pole and ground signs, as regulated by this chapter, includes any sign which is supported by one or more uprights or braces in or upon the ground and not attached to any building or wall.

   305.   “Sign, identification” means an on-premises sign that displays no more than the name, address, crest or insignia, occupation or profession of an occupant of the premises, name of any building on the premises or the trademark of the occupant.

   306.   “Sign, illuminated” means any sign which has characters, letters, figures, designs or outline illuminated by electric lights or luminous tubes as part of the sign proper.

   307.   “Sign, interstate high rise” means an on-premises pole sign which is constructed to attract the attention of interstate travelers and is located within six hundred (600) feet of the centerline of Highway 5 and identifies or advertises the use of the principal buildings.

   308.   “Sign, memorial” means memorial signs or tablets, names of buildings and date of erection when engraved into any masonry surface or when constructed of bronze or other incombustible materials. Memorial signs shall not contrast in color from the material of which said sign is constructed.

   309.   “Sign, monument” means an on-premises free standing identification sign identifying the name of a development or principal tenant(s) of said development, which is anchored to the ground. The sign has a monolithic or columnar line and which maintains essentially the same contour from grade to top. The standards listed in Chapters 175G and 175H apply to the design of monument signs.

   310.   “Sign, obsolete” means a sign that advertises an activity, business, product or service no longer conducted on the premises on which the sign is located.

   311.   “Sign, panel” means a message, inscription or logo which is painted or affixed to a panel of wood, plastic, cloth, fiberglass, or other material which is not part of the building's exterior materials, is of greater area than the message, inscription or logo, and provides a background for the message, inscription or logo.

   312.   “Sign, pole” means an on-premises free standing sign that is supported by one or more uprights not attached to, or braced by, any other structure. Pole signs shall have a clear open space of not less than ten (10) feet between the base line of said sign and the ground level.

   313.   “Sign, political campaign” means a sign, either on or off-premises, announcing candidates seeking public political office in a forthcoming election or signs announcing political issues, for or against, to be considered in a forthcoming election.

   314.   “Sign, portable” means a freestanding sign not permanently anchored or secured to the ground or any building or wall.

   315.   “Sign, projecting” means a sign, other than an awning sign, canopy sign, building sign, or marquee which projects from and is supported by a wall of a building or structure, and whose message is on a plane which is generally perpendicular to the supporting wall.

   316.   “Sign, public” means signs of a non-commercial nature and in the public interest, erected by or upon the order of a public officer in the performance of his public duty, such as safety signs, danger signs, trespassing signs, traffic signs, memorial plaques, signs of historical interest and all other similar signs, including signs designating City entry, hospitals, libraries, schools, airports and other institutions or places of public interest or concern.

   317.   “Sign, real estate” means signs advertising the sale, rental or lease of the premises or part of the premises on which the signs are displayed.

   318.   “Sign, roof” means a sign erected upon or above a roof or parapet of a building.

   319.   “Sign, service” means a sign identifying rest rooms, public telephone facilities, first aid stations, emergency shelters and other similar public service facilities.

   320.   “Sign, vehicle” means a message, inscription or logo painted, attached, or incorporated on a motor vehicle which advertises or promotes the interest of any private or public firm, person, organization, or other entity, or to draw attention to the use on the premises.

   321.   “Sign area” means that area of a sign’s exposed facing determined by the Zoning Administrator using actual dimensions where practical, or approximate dimensions when irregularity of a sign shape warrants. Such area shall be measured from the extreme points or edges of the painted background, panel sign, or the peripheral encasement or structural trim which forms part of the sign proper, or the display, provided however, the area of a sign composed of characters or words attached directly to a wall surface shall be of the smallest rectangle which enclosed the whole group of characters or words.

   322.   “Sign perimeter” means the external boundary of a sign at its widest point per plan view.

   323.   “Site improvements” includes all improvements to a site plan in addition to proposed buildings, and including but not limited to utilities, storm water management, parking, loading areas, landscaping, buffers, and free standing signs.

   324.   “Site plan” means a plan, prepared to scale, showing accurately and with complete dimensions, the boundaries of a site and the location of all buildings, structures, uses, and principal site development features proposed for a specific parcel of land. (See Chapter 175I for regulations.)

   325.   “Slope” means the change in ground elevation between two points.

   326.   “Smoking lounge or smoking den” means an establishment where patrons can purchase and consume tobacco products on site.

   327.   “Solar Energy Systems” (SES) means an aggregation of parts including the base, supporting structure, photovoltaic or solar thermal panels, inverters and accessory equipment such as utility interconnect and battery banks, etc., in such configuration as necessary to convert radiant energy from the sun into mechanical or electrical energy.

   328.   “Solar Energy System, Building Mounted” means an SES which is securely fastened and flush mounted to any portion of a building roof, whether attached directly to the principal or accessory building.

   329.   “Solar Energy System, Ground Mounted” means an SES which is not located on a building and is ground mounted.

   330.   “Spa” commonly referred to as a ‘hot tub’, means a product intended for the immersion of persons in temperature-controlled water circulated in a controlled system, and not intended to be drained and filled with each use. A spa usually includes a filter, an electric, solar or gas heart, a pump or pumps, and a control, and can include other equipment, such as lights, blowers, and water-sanitizing equipment.

   331.   "Special Flood Hazard Area (SFHA)" means the land within a community subject to the "base flood". This land is identified on the community's Flood Insurance Rate Map as Zone A, A1-30, AE, AH, AO, AR, and/or A99.

   332.   “Special use” means a use of land, water or building which is allowable only after the issuance of a special use permit by the Board of Adjustment under conditions specified in this ordinance.

   333.   “Specified anatomical areas” as used in this ordinance, are defined as: (i) less than completely and opaquely covered human genitals, human pubic region, mature human buttocks, and mature human female breasts, below a point, immediately above the top of the areola; and (ii) human male genitals in a discernable turgid state, even if completely and opaquely covered.

   334.   “Specified sexual activities” as used in this ordinance, are defined as: (i) human genitals in the state of sexual stimulation or arousal; (ii) acts of masturbation, sexual intercourse or sodomy; (iii) fondling or other touching of human genitals, pubic region, buttocks, or female breasts; and (iv) minors engaged in a prohibited sexual act or simulation of a prohibited sexual activity.

   335.   “Stable, private” means an accessory building in which horses are kept for private use and not for remuneration, hire or sale.

   336.   “Stable, public” means an accessory building in which horses are kept for commercial use including boarding, hire, instructions, and sale.

   337.   “Stable, riding club” means a building or structure used or intended to be used, for the housing only of horses by a group of persons for non-commercial purposes.

   338.   “Start of construction” means the actual start which occurs when footings or structural support columns are installed or constructed. For a factory-built home, actual start will occur when it is placed on a site or foundation is constructed.

   339.   “State plane coordinates” - All runway edges and height limitation boundary surfaces are located within the airport’s survey foot coordinate system which is closed to the calculated point in the National Geodetic Survey’s State Plane Coordinate System of 1983 at the quarter section corner near Fleur Drive and Army Post Road. The calculated U.S. survey foot coordinates for this quarter section corner are:

   Northing   556,209.5724

   Easting   1,600,720.5140

Within the closed airport coordinate system the ultimate runway end coordinates for each of the runway ends are located as follows:

   13L:   Northing   563,308.61

      Easting   1,592,510.75

      Elevation   911.27

   31R:   Northing   556,960.54

      Easting   1,599,451.27

      Elevation   957.23

   13R   Northing   561,694.69

      Easting   1,587,904.08

      Elevation   899.0

   31L:   Northing   555,346.62

      Easting   1,594,844.60

      Elevation   938.1

   5:   Northing   554,950.26

      Easting   1,591,755.30

      Elevation   915.8

   23:   Northing   560,484.49

      Easting   1,599,354.71

      Elevation   934.5

(Those coordinates must be verified from the City of Des Moines Engineering Department and used when calculating the heights and distances around the airport. These coordinates are the official centers of each end of the runway surfaces, and must be used in all calculations, zoning requirements, and plans around the airport.)

   340.   “Story” means that portion of a building included between the upper surface of any floor and the upper surface of the floor next above, except that the top most story shall be that portion of a building included between the upper surface of the topmost floor and the ceiling or roof above. If the finished floor level directly above a walkout basement is more than five (5) feet above grade such basement shall be considered a story.

   341.   “Street” means a public or private thoroughfare with a right-of-way not less than twenty (20) feet which is used, or intended to be used, for passage or travel by motor vehicles.

   342.   “Street line” means a dividing line between a lot, tract or parcel of land and a contiguous street. (See “lot line, front.”)

   343.   “Structural alterations” means any replacement or changes in the type of construction or in the supporting members of a building, such as bearing walls or partitions, columns, beams or girders, beyond ordinary repairs and maintenance.

   344.   “Structural trim” means the molding, battens, capping, nailing strips, latticing, and platforms, which are attached to the sign structure.

   345.   “Structure” means anything constructed or erected with a fixed location on the ground, or attached to something having a fixed location on the ground. Among other things, structures include buildings, antenna, smoke stacks, mobile homes, billboards, signs, poster panels, factories, sheds, cabins, factory-built homes, overhead transmission lines, poles, satellite dish antenna, storage tanks, towers, and other similar uses.

   346.   “Subdivision” means a division of a lot, tract, or parcel of land into two (2) or more lots, building plots or sites, or other subdivisions of land for the purpose, whether immediate or future, of sale, transfer for building development, right-of-way dedication, or other use, provided, however, this definition of a subdivision shall not include divisions of land into aliquot parts or more for agricultural purposes.

   347.   “Subdivision plat” means the graphical representation of the subdivision of land, prepared by a registered land surveyor, having a number or letter designation for each lot within the plat and a succinct name or title that is unique for the county and city where the land is located.

   348.   “Substantial damage” means damage of any origin sustained by a structure whereby the cost of restoring the structure to its before damage condition would equal or exceed fifty percent (50%) of the market value of the structure before the damage occurred.

   349.   “Substantial improvement” means any reconstruction, rehabilitation, addition, or other improvement of a structure, the cost of which equals or exceeds fifty percent (50%) of the market value of the structure before the start of construction of the improvement. This includes structures which have incurred substantial damage regardless of the actual repair work performed. The term does not, however, include either: (i) any project for improvement of a structure to correct existing violations of state or local health, sanitary, or safety code specifications which have been identified by the local code enforcement officer and which are the minimum necessary to assure safe living conditions; or (ii) any alteration will not preclude the structure’s continued designation as a historic structure.

   350.   “Surveyor” means a registered land surveyor who engages in the practice of land surveying pursuant to the Code of Iowa.

   351.   “Swimming pool” means all outdoor artificial or semi-artificial receptacles of either temporary or permanent construction, whether above or below ground, capable of containing water of a dept of eighteen (18) inches or more, whether used for swimming or aesthetic purposes, but shall exclude spas and man-made lakes or ponds created through the collection of storm water or drainage runoff. (See also ‘Spa’)

   352.   “Tattoo studio” means any establishment in which tattooing is carried out professionally and may or may not include ear and body piercing. (See “body piercing studio.”)

   353.   “Tavern” (See “bar.”)

   354.   “Telecommunications” means the transmission, between or among points specified by the user, of information of the user’s choosing, without change in the form or content of the information as sent and received.

   355.   “Temporary Sales” means a sales activity occurring outside of the principal structure, without connection to utility services, conducted by a business separate from the occupant of the principal structure that exists at the same location for a period of time greater than 24 hours.

   356.   “Temporary Sales Tent” means a fabric tent with sides that may be raised or lowered, a traditional canopy cover is not considered a tent.

   357.   “Temporary use” means a use intended for a limited duration which may or may not be permitted in the zoning district in which it is proposed to be located, and which is permitted subject to the approval of a temporary use permit by the City Council.

   358.   “Tent” means any structure or enclosure, the roof or one-half or more of the sides of which are of silk, cotton, canvas, or any light material, either attached to a building or structure, or unattached.

   359.   “Tobacco store” means a retail shop or establishment primarily engaged in the sale of tobacco and tobacco related products for off premises consumption only, and where 50% or more of total gross sales are derived from the sale of tobacco and alcohol.

   360.   “Tourist, cabin” means a small single family dwelling of simple construction used as one of the units of a tourist park.

   361.   “Tourist park” means any lot or plot of real property upon which two (2) or more tourist cabins or two (2) or more recreational vehicles, camp sites, travel trailers or any combination of tourist cabins, recreational vehicles, camp sites, are located and maintained for seasonal temporary occupancy.

   362.   “Tower” means a tall free-standing framework or structure, other than a building, used for television, radio, telephone, and personal communication transmitters or antennas, as well as observation, liquid storage, or wind generation, and not including utility wire poles.

   363.   “Townhouse” means a dwelling unit which is attached horizontally, and not vertically to one or more other dwelling units, wherein the land or lot beneath each dwelling is individually owned by the owner of the dwelling. A townhouse subdivision shall have common elements which are specified in or determined under the rules and regulations set forth by recorded covenants. Covenants for a townhouse subdivision shall establish the guidelines for maintenance of common elements and permit free movement through common areas by members of the homeowners association (council of co-owners) to assure access to the structural exterior of each townhouse unit by the individual unit owner.

   364.   “Tract” means an aliquot part of a section, a lot within an official plat, or a government lot.

   365.   “Trail” means a pedestrian walk way or bikeway designated with a paved surfaced pathway for travel by means other than by motorized vehicles.

   366.   “Trailer park” (See “mobile home park.”)

   367.   “Transfer of development rights” means the conveyance of development rights to another parcel of land by legal instrument authorized by local law.

   368.   “Transitional use” means a permitted use or structure that by nature or level and scale of activity acts as a transition or buffer between two or more incompatible uses.

   369.   “Trash” means cuttings from vegetation, refuse, paper, bottles, rags. (Also see “junk.”)

   370.   “Travel trailer” means a recreational vehicle, with or without motive power; designed as a temporary habitation, not exceeding eight (8) feet in width and forty (40) feet in length, exclusive of separate towing unit. Such vehicles are used for travel or recreational purposes and not used for permanent habitation.

   371.   “Travel trailer park” (See “tourist park.”)

   372.   “Truck stop” means a service station which is designed principally for the servicing and temporary parking of trucks.

   373.   “Truck terminal” means land and buildings used as a relay station for the transfer of a load from one vehicle to another or one party to another. The terminal cannot be used for permanent or long-term storage. The terminal facility may include storage areas for trucks, and buildings or areas for the repair of trucks associated with the terminal.

   374.   “Unlawful lot, structure, or use” means a lot, structure, or use which does not comply with the zoning regulations within this ordinance or any other city, federal, or state law or regulation, is not grandfathered under the terms and conditions of this ordinance, and is not permitted to exist.

   375.   “VOR” means very high frequency omnidirectional range station. A ground based electronic navigation aid transmitting very high frequency navigation signals, 360 degrees in azimuth, oriented from magnetic north. Used as the basis for navigation in the National Airspace System.

   376.   “Variance” means a modification of the specific regulations of this ordinance granted by resolution of the Board of Adjustment in accordance with the terms of this ordinance for the purpose of assuring that no property, because of special circumstances and hardships applicable to it, shall be deprived of privileges commonly enjoyed by other properties in the same vicinity and zoning district.

   377.   “Violation” means the failure of a structure or other development to be fully compliant with the community's floodplain management regulations.

   378.   “Visual runway” means a runway intended solely for the operation of aircraft using visual approach procedures with no straight-in instrument approach procedure and no instrument designation indicated on a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) approved airport layout plan, a military services approved military airport layout plan, or by any planning document submitted to the FAA by competent authority.

   379.   “Warehouse” means a building used primarily for the storage of goods and materials.

   380.   “Waterfront” means any site shall be considered as waterfront premises providing any of its lot lines abut on or are contiguous to any body of water, including a creek, canal, lake, river or any other body of water, natural or artificial, not including a swimming pool, whether said lot line is front, rear or side.

   381.   “Yard” means an open space on the same lot with a building or structure unoccupied and unobstructed by any portion of a structure from thirty (30) inches above the general ground level of the graded lot upward, provided however that fences, walls, signs, poles, post, and other customary yard accessories, ornaments, and furniture more than thirty (30) inches in height may be permitted in any yard subject to requirements limiting obstruction of visibility and other provisions of this ordinance. In measuring a yard for the purpose of determining the depth of a yard, the minimum setbacks shall be used.

   382.   “Yard, front” means a yard extending across the full width of the lot and measured between the front lot line and the building line or any projection thereof, other than the projection of the usual uncovered steps, patios or decks.

   383.   “Yard, rear” means a yard extending across the full width of the lot and measured between the rear lot line and the building or any projections other than steps, unenclosed balconies or unenclosed porches.

   384.   “Yard, side” means a yard extending from the front yard to the rear yard and measured between the side lot lines and the building line.

   385.   “Zero lot line” means the location of a building on a lot in such a manner that one or more of the building's sides rests directly on a lot line.

   386.   “Zone” means any one of the classes of districts established by this ordinance which is designated by area upon the Official Zoning Map of the City of Norwalk.

   387.   “Zoning Administrator” means the administrative officer designated or appointed by the City to administer and enforce the regulations contained in this ordinance.

   388.   “Zoning certificate” means written statement issued by the Zoning Administrator authorizing buildings, structures, or uses consistent with the terms of this ordinance and for the purpose of carrying out and enforcing the provisions of this ordinance.

In order to classify, regulate, and restrict land use; regulate and restrict the location of trades and industries; regulate and restrict the location of buildings designed for specified uses; regulate and restrict the height, bulk, architecture and construction of buildings hereafter erected or altered; to regulate and limit the intensity of the use of lot areas; and to regulate and determine the area of yards, courts, and other open spaces within and surrounding such buildings, the City of Norwalk, Iowa, is hereby divided into the following zoning districts. The use, height, area, and construction regulations are uniform in each zoning district, and said districts shall be known as:

 

The boundaries of the Zoning Districts are indicated upon the Official Zoning Map of the City of Norwalk, Iowa, which is made a part of this ordinance by reference. The Official Zoning Map and all notations, references and other matters shown thereon shall be as much a part of this ordinance as if the notations, references and other matters set forth by said map were all fully described herein; the original of which is properly attested to and is on file in the Office of the City Clerk, of the City of Norwalk, Iowa. The City Council may from time to time amend the Official Zoning Map or adopt a new Official Zoning Map, which shall supersede the prior Map, in the event the Official Zoning Map becomes damaged or destroyed, or for purposes of clarity due to a number of boundary changes, or to correct drafting errors or omissions; provided, however, that any such adoption shall not have the effect of amending this zoning ordinance or any subsequent amendment thereof. The district boundaries are either lot lines or the centerlines of streets and alleys, unless otherwise shown. Where uncertainty exists as to the boundaries of districts as shown on the Official Zoning Map, the following rules shall apply:

   1.   Boundaries indicated as approximately following the center lines of streets, highways, alleys, or other public rights-of-way shall be construed to follow such centerlines.

   2.   Boundaries indicated as approximately following platted lot lines shall be construed as following such lot lines.

   3.   Boundaries indicated as approximately following corporate limits shall be construed as following corporate limits.

   4.   Boundaries indicated as approximately following section lines, quarter section lines, or quarter-quarter section lines shall be construed as following such lines.

   5.   Boundaries indicated, as following railroad lines shall be construed to be the centerline of the railroad right-of-way.

   6.   Boundaries indicated as approximately following the center lines of rivers, streams, creeks or other waterways shall be construed to follow such centerlines.

   7.   Boundaries not capable of being determined in the previous paragraphs shall be as dimensioned on the Official Zoning Map or if not dimensioned shall be determined by the scale shown on the map.

Except as hereinafter specified within Sections 175A.13, 175A.14, 175A.15, 175A.16, 175A.17, and 175A.18, no building or structure shall be erected, converted, enlarged, reconstructed, or structurally altered, nor shall any building or land be used or site improved, or land subdivided, which does not comply with all of the district regulations established by this ordinance for the district in which the building or land is located.

There is hereby created the position of Zoning Administrator who shall be appointed by the Mayor subject to confirmation by the City Council. The Zoning Administrator shall administer and enforce the provisions of this ordinance and shall have the following powers and duties, in connection therewith:

   1.   The Zoning Administrator shall issue all permits and certificates required and authorized by this ordinance.

   2.   If the Zoning Administrator shall find that any of the provisions of this ordinance are being violated, he or she shall notify in writing the person(s) responsible for such violations, indicating the nature of the violation, and ordering the action necessary to correct it. The Zoning Administrator shall order discontinuance of illegal use of land, buildings, or structures; removal of illegal buildings, structures, or signs; or additions, alterations, or structural changes thereto; discontinuance of any illegal work being done; or shall take any other action authorized by this ordinance to insure compliance with or to prevent violation of this ordinance.

   3.   The Council may, by resolution approved by a majority vote of the entire Council, delegate the powers and duties of the office of Zoning Administrator to any officer or employee of the City or may combine the powers and duties of the Zoning Administrator with any other office or position.

No land shall be occupied or used, and no building hereafter erected or structurally altered shall be occupied or used in whole or in part for any purpose whatsoever, until there is a Confirmation of Compliance with Zoning Regulations issued by the Zoning Administrator, stating that the use of the building and the site improvements comply with the provisions of this ordinance. Any change of site improvements not conforming to the current and approved site plan for the property or change of use shall not be made on any land, in any building or part thereof, existing or hereafter erected or structurally altered, without a Zoning Certificate being issued by the Zoning Administrator. No Certificate of Occupancy shall be issued unless the uses, buildings and site improvements are in conformity with provisions of this ordinance. No building or premises shall be occupied until a Certificate of Occupancy has been issued. Application for building permits and Certificates of Occupancy shall be signed by the Zoning Administrator to confirm zoning compliance and conformity to the provisions of this ordinance. Nothing in this section shall prevent the continuance of a nonconforming use, building or site improvements as herein authorized, unless a discontinuance is necessary for the safety of life or property.   Any change of use, which occurs without the need to apply for a building permit or site plan application, shall obtain a letter of Zoning Compliance from the City. The cost of a letter of Zoning Compliance is contained in Chapter 177 Rates and Fees.

Where one (1) parcel of property has two (2) or more portions covered by different zoning districts, each of these portions shall comply with the regulations of its respective zoning district.

All property that may hereafter be annexed into the City shall be zoned A-R, Agricultural Reserve District unless otherwise designated by the City Council in accordance with the City of Norwalk Comprehensive Plan.

The lawful use of land or structures existing on the beginning date of enforcement of this ordinance, January 1, 1998, or at the date of a subsequent amendment to this ordinance may be continued, even though such use or structure may not conform with the regulations of this ordinance, or amendment thereto, for the district in which it is located. Any use or structure in existence on January 1, 1998, which was not a lawful nonconforming use or structure under the previous Zoning Ordinance, shall not be authorized to continue as a nonconforming use or structure pursuant to this ordinance, or amendments thereto, and shall be considered an unlawful use or structure.

The lawful use of land upon which no structure is erected or located which becomes nonconforming under the terms of this ordinance as adopted or amended may be continued so long as it remains otherwise lawful, subject to the following provisions:

   1.   No such nonconforming use of land shall be enlarged or increased nor extended to occupy a greater area of land than was occupied on January 1, 1998, or at the time of an amendment of this ordinance which makes the use nonconforming.

   2.   No such nonconforming use of land shall be moved in whole or in part to any other portion of the lot or parcel which was not occupied by such use on January 1, 1998, or at the time of an amendment of this ordinance which makes the use nonconforming.

   3.   If any such nonconforming use of land ceases for any reason for a period of more than six (6) months, any subsequent use of such land shall conform to the district regulations for the district in which such land is located.

The lawful use of a structure, and adjacent land which is part of the plot upon which the structure is located, which becomes nonconforming under the terms of this ordinance as adopted or amended, may be continued so long as it remains otherwise lawful, subject to the following provisions:

   1.   Any existing structure in an R District devoted entirely, or in part, to a use not permitted by this ordinance, or any amendment thereto, in the district in which it is located, except when required by law, shall not be enlarged, extended, reconstructed, relocated on the site, or structurally altered, unless the use is changed to a use permitted in the district in which such structure is located.

   2.   Any existing structure, in any district other than an R District, which is devoted to a use made nonconforming by this ordinance, or any amendment thereto, may be structurally altered or enlarged in conformity with the lot area, lot coverage, frontage, width, yard, height, and parking requirements of the district in which it is located, provided such structural alteration or enlargement shall be limited to structures on land owned, of record, by the owner of the land devoted to the nonconforming use prior to January 1, 1998, or at the time of an amendment of this ordinance which makes the use or structure nonconforming. Such structural alteration or enlargement shall not authorize the substitution of a nonconforming use that is less restrictive than the one to which the structure was devoted on January 1, 1998, or at the time of an amendment of this ordinance which makes the use or the structure nonconforming.

   3.   Any nonconforming use may be extended throughout any part of a structure which was manifestly arranged or designed for such use on January 1, 1998, or at the time of an amendment of this ordinance which makes the use nonconforming. No such use shall be extended to occupy any land outside such structure.

   4.   If no structural alterations are made, a nonconforming use of a structure may be changed to another nonconforming use of a similar nature permitted within the same or a more restricted zoning district classification. Whenever a nonconforming use has been changed to a more restricted use or to a conforming use, such use shall not thereafter be changed to a less restrictive use.

   5.   In the event that a nonconforming use of a structure, or structure and land in combination, is discontinued or abandoned for a period of two (2) years, the use of the same shall thereafter conform to the uses permitted in the district in which it is located. Where nonconforming use status applies to a structure and land in combination, removal or destruction of the structure shall eliminate the nonconforming status of the land.

   6.   Any structure devoted to a use made non-conforming by this ordinance that is destroyed or has damage by any means to an extent of sixty (60) percent or more of its replacement cost at the time of destruction, exclusive of the foundations, shall not be reconstructed and used as before such event. If the structure is less than sixty (60) percent destroyed above the foundation, it may be reconstructed and used as prior to the event, provided a building permit is issued by the City within one (1) year of such event, and is built of like materials, or materials conforming to architectural standards for the zoning district in which the structure or building is located.

If a structure exists on January 1, 1998, or at the time of an amendment of this ordinance which makes such structure nonconforming, and does not comply with the terms of this ordinance and any amendment thereto by reason of restrictions on area, lot coverage, height, setbacks, architecture, or other characteristics of the structure or its location on the lot, such structure may be continued so long as it remains otherwise lawful, subject to the following provisions:

   1.   No such building or structure may be enlarged or altered in a way which increases its nonconformity.

   2.   Should such structure be destroyed by any means to an extent of sixty (60) percent or more of its replacement cost at the time of its destruction, it shall not be reconstructed except in conformity with the provisions of this ordinance. However, such structure may be rebuilt with the same building line as the original structure if all of the following apply:

      A.   The structure was a one or two-family residential structure.

      B.   The structure was located, at the time of destruction, in an R-1 or R-2 district.

   3.   If the site improvements on an existing building site do not conform to the requirements of this ordinance, the use of the site cannot be expanded or new structure constructed, unless the site improvements are brought into conformance with this ordinance.

   4.   A lawful nonconforming building which exists on or before January 1, 1998, may be altered or enlarged up to 100 percent of its existing size as of January 1, 1998, in accordance with the zoning regulations and standards which existed prior to January 1, 1998, provided such structural alteration or enlargement shall be limited to structures on land owned, of record, by the owner of the land devoted to the nonconforming structure prior to January 1, 1998. Any enlargement or alteration greater than 100 percent of the building size as of January 1, 1998, shall require compliance with this ordinance.

   5.   An accessory structure lawfully in existence prior to the adoption of this provision may be reconstructed, rebuilt, or replaced within the same building setback line as the original structure. However, any nonconformity of the structure cannot be increased. Any expansion from the footprint and/or overhang of the original structure must comply with the current building setback requirements.

   1.   Nothing in this ordinance shall be deemed to prevent the restoring to a safe condition any building or part thereof declared to be unsafe by any official charged with protecting the public safety, upon order of such official, provided such repair does not constitute a substantial improvement.

   2.   Any use of land, use of a structure, or structure, in existence on January 1, 1998, which was an unlawful nonconformity under any previous zoning ordinance or similar regulations shall not be considered “grandfathered,” and shall not be authorized to continue its nonconforming status pursuant to this ordinance or amendments thereto.

Nothing herein contained shall require any change in the overall layout, plans, construction, size, or designated use of any structure or part thereof, for which approvals and required permits have been granted prior to January 1, 1998, or prior to an amendment to this ordinance which makes the structure nonconforming, the construction of which in conformance with such plans shall have been started prior to January 1, 1998, or prior to an amendment to this ordinance which makes the structure nonconforming, and completion thereof carried on in a normal manner and not discontinued for reasons other than those beyond the builder’s control.

The City Council may, from time to time, on its own action, upon request by the owner of a parcel of land, or on petition, initiate the process to change the zoning of the property and after public notice and hearings as provided by law, and after recommendation by the Planning and Zoning Commission, change the zoning boundaries and classifications shown on the Official Zoning Map, or subsequently established, and such amendment shall not become effective except by the favorable vote of a majority of all the members of the City Council.

   1.   Procedures. Whenever any person, firm or corporation desires that any amendment, or change be made in the Official Zoning Map, as to any property covered by this ordinance, there shall be presented to the Council a petition requesting such change or amendment and clearly describing the property and its boundaries as to which the change or amendment is desired, duly signed by the owners of fifty (50) percent or more of the area of all real estate included within the boundaries of said tract as described in said petition, and in addition, duly signed by the owners of fifty (50) percent or more of the area of all real estate lying outside of said tract but within two hundred (200) feet of the boundaries thereof; intervening streets and alleys shall not be included in computing such two hundred (200) feet. It shall be the duty of the Council to vote upon such petition within a reasonable time after the filing of such petition with the City Clerk. In lieu of a petition, a property owner may submit a written request to the City Council to initiate the rezoning of the owner’s property. The Council may initiate a rezoning, if it is determined the rezoning is compatible with the Comprehensive Plan, or for other reasonable cause. Prior to voting or holding a public hearing upon the petition or request for rezoning, the City Council shall refer the rezoning proposal to the Planning and Zoning Commission requesting its comments and recommendations. The Planning and Zoning Commission after public hearing, shall advise the City Council of its recommendations and the vote thereon. In case the proposed amendment, supplement, or change be disapproved by the Planning and Zoning Commission, or a protest be presented duly signed by the owners of twenty (20) percent or more either of the area of the lots included in such proposed change, or of those immediately adjacent thereof, extending the depth of one (1) lot or not to exceed two hundred (200) feet therefrom, such amendment shall not become effective except by the favorable vote of at least three-fourths (3/4) of all members of the Council. A protest, if filed, must be filed before or at the public hearing held by the City Council. Whenever any petition or request for amendment, or change of the zoning districts shall have been denied by the City Council, then no new petition or request for the same zoning change covering the same property or the same property and additional property shall be filed with or considered by the City Council until one (1) year shall have elapsed from the date of filing of the first petition or request.

   2.   Notice Requirement. Whenever any amendment or change is petitioned to be made in the Official Zoning map, as to any property covered by this ordinance, the City shall publish notice as required by the State Code of Iowa, and notify all owners of property within the affected boundaries and all owners of property within two hundred (200) feet. The notice of time and place of the public hearing shall be published in accordance with state law and all property owners are to be sent notices in accordance with state law prior to any public hearing by the Planning and Zoning Commission and the City Council on the proposed zoning change. If the proposed amendment, change or alteration has a similar impact on all of the property within the district, setback regulations, square footage requirement, accessory uses, or other bulk regulations within a district; or adds, deletes, or changes an entire district, notice by publication, only shall be required. For all rezoning of property by petition or owners request, the owner of the property shall be required to post a sign which is 4 feet by 4 feet in size with letters of not less than four (4) inches in height stating notice of rezoning and zoning district designations proposed to be changed and telephone number and address of the City Zoning Administrator. A sign shall be placed on each public street right-of-way and shall not be greater than thirty (30) feet from the street right-of-way.

   3.   Filing Fees. Before any action shall be taken as provided in this section, the owners of the land for which a change in the zoning has been initiated by petition or Council action in response to a request by the owner of the land shall pay to the City a filing fee to cover the costs of the procedure. Under no conditions shall said fee or any part thereof be refunded for failure of said amendment to be enacted into law. The amount of the fee for all rezoning of land subject to a filing fee shall be in accordance with Chapter 177, Rates and Fees, of this Code of Ordinances. Cost of mailing public notices sent to property owners shall be paid by the petitioner.

   1.   Board Created. The Board of Adjustment, hereafter called Board, previously created shall continue to consist of five (5) members. The terms of office of each member of the Board shall be staggered and for five (5) years. Each member shall be appointed by the Mayor subject to confirmation by the City Council.

   2.   Meetings. The meetings of the Board shall be held at the call of the chairperson and at such other times as the Board may determine. Such chairperson, or in his/her absence the acting chairperson, may administer oaths and compel the attendance of witnesses. All meetings of the Board shall be open to the public. The Board shall keep minutes of its proceedings, showing the vote of each member on each question, or if absent, and failing to vote, indicating such fact, and shall keep records of its examinations and other official actions, all of which shall be immediately filed in the office of the Board and City Clerk, and shall be a public record. The presence of three (3) members shall be necessary to constitute a quorum.

   3.   Appeals. Appeals to the Board may be made by any person aggrieved by any officer, department, board, or Commission of the City of Norwalk pertaining to the enforcement of this zoning ordinance. Such appeal shall be made within ten (10) days by filing with the Zoning Administrator a notice of appeal specifying the grounds thereof. The Zoning Administrator shall forthwith transmit to the Board all papers constituting the record upon which the action appealed from is taken. An appeal stays all proceedings in furtherance of the action appealed from, unless the Zoning Administrator certifies to the Board, after notice of appeal shall have been filed with him or her, that by reason of the facts stated in the certificate, a stay would, in his/her opinion, cause imminent peril to life or property. In such case, proceedings shall not be stayed otherwise than by a restraining order which may be granted by the Board or by a court of record on application, on notice to the Zoning Administrator and on due cause shown. The Board shall fix a reasonable time for the hearing on the appeal, give public notice thereof as well as due notice to the petitioner and adjoining property owner, and decide the same within a reasonable time. At the hearing any party may appear in person or by agent or attorney. Before an appeal is filed with the Board of Adjustment, the appellant shall pay a fee to be credited to the general fund of the City of Norwalk in accordance with Chapter 177, Rates and Fees, of this Code of Ordinances.

   4.   Powers and Duties. The Board shall have the following powers and duties:

      A.   To hear and decide appeals where it is alleged there is an error in any order, requirement, decision, or determination made by the Zoning Administrator in enforcement of this ordinance.

      B.   To grant a variation from the terms of this ordinance when a property owner can show that their property by reason of exceptional narrowness, shallowness, or shape of a specific piece of property, or where by reason of exceptional topographical conditions or other extraordinary or exceptional site conditions, the strict application of the terms of this ordinance actually prohibits the use of their property in a manner reasonably similar to that of other property in the same district, and where the Board is satisfied under the evidence before it that a literal enforcement of the provisions of this ordinance would result in unnecessary hardship; provided, however, that all variations granted under this section shall be in harmony with the general purpose and intent of this ordinance. In granting any variance, the Board may prescribe appropriate conditions and safeguards in conformity with this ordinance. Violation of such conditions and safeguards, when made a part of the terms under which the variance is granted shall be deemed a violation of this ordinance. Under no circumstances shall the Board grant a variance to allow a use not permissible under the terms of this ordinance in the district involved, or any use expressly or by implication prohibited by the terms of this ordinance in said district.

      C.   To permit the following exceptions to the district regulations set forth in this ordinance, provided all exceptions shall by their design, construction and operation adequately safeguard the health, safety, and welfare of the occupants of adjoining and surrounding property, shall not impair an adequate supply of light and air to adjacent property, shall not increase congestion in the public streets, shall not increase public danger of fire and safety, and shall not diminish or impair established property values in surrounding areas.

         (1)   To permit erection and use of a building or the use of the premises or vary the height, yard, or area regulations in any location for a public service corporation for public utility purposes, or for purposes of public communication, which the Board determines is reasonably necessary for the public convenience or welfare.

         (2)   To permit the extension of a zoning district where the boundary line of a district divides a lot in single ownership as shown of record or by existing contract or purchase at the time of the passage of this ordinance, but in no case shall such extension of the district boundary line exceed forty (40) feet in any direction.

      D.   To issue permits and decide such matters as may be required by other chapters or sections of this ordinance.

   5.   Decisions of the Board of Adjustment. In exercising the powers and duties of the Board enumerated in this section, the Board may, in conformity with the provisions of law, reverse or affirm, wholly or partly, or modify the order, requirement, decision, or determination appealed from, and may make such order, requirement, decision, or determination as it believes proper. The concurring vote of three (3) members of the Board shall be necessary to reverse any order, requirement, decision, or determination of the Zoning Administrator, or to decide in favor of the applicant on any matter upon which it is required to pass under this section; provided, however, that the action of the Board shall not become effective until after the resolution of the Board, setting forth the full reason for its decision and vote of each member participating therein, has been filed. Such resolution shall be filed in the office of the Board and City Clerk, recorded at the Office of the County Recorder, and shall be open to public inspection. Every variation and exception granted or denied by the Board shall be supported by written testimony and evidence submitted in connection therewith. The City Council may review appeals, variances, exceptions or other requests granted by the Board before their effective date and may remand a decision to grant an appeal, variance, exception or other request to the Board for further study. Upon Council action to remand a decision by the Board, the effective date of the decision shall be delayed for thirty (30) days from the date of the remand. Any taxpayer or any officer, department, board, or bureau of the City of Norwalk; or any person or persons jointly or severally aggrieved by any decision of the Board may present to a court of record a petition, duly verified, setting forth that such decision is illegal, in whole or in part, specifying the grounds of the illegality. Such petition shall be presented to the court within thirty (30) days after the filing of the decision in the office of the Board, in accordance with the Code of Iowa.

The regulations specified in this ordinance shall be subject to the following exceptions, modifications, and interpretations:

   1.   Use of Existing Lots of Record.

      A.   In any zoning district where single-family detached dwellings are permitted, a single family detached dwelling may be located on any lot or plot of official record as of January 1, 1998, or at the time of an amendment of this ordinance which makes a lot or plot non-conforming irrespective of the lot's area or width, provided however:

         (1)   The side yard setbacks shall comply with the bulk regulations of the R-1 zoning district classification with the largest permitted minimum lot width less than the width of the lot of record, provided no side yard shall be less than five (5) feet.

         (2)   The depth of the rear yard of any such lot shall not be required to exceed twenty (20) percent of the depth of the lot, but in no case less than twenty (20) feet at a minimum buildable depth of forty (40) feet.

      B.   In any zoning district, a building other than a single-family detached dwelling may be located on a lot of record as of January 1, 1998, or at the time of an amendment to this ordinance which makes a lot or plot non-conforming, irrespective of the lot's area or width, provided however:

         (1)   The depth of the rear yard of any such lot may be reduced to no less than twenty (20) percent of the depth of the lot, but in no case less than twenty (20) feet, and

         (2)   The side yard setbacks may be reduced, provided the side yard setback as a ratio of the lot of record width is not less than the ratio of the minimum side yard setback as a ratio of the minimum lot width permitted for the zoning district, and no side yard shall be reduced to less than five (5) feet.

   2.   Structures Permitted Above the Height Limit. The building height limitations of this ordinance shall be modified as follows: chimneys, cooling towers, elevator bulk-heads, fire towers, monuments, stage towers or scenery lofts, water towers, churches, ornamental towers and spires, radio or television towers or necessary mechanical appurtenances may be erected to a height greater than that permitted for the zoning district in which the structure is proposed, provided the structure is permitted in accordance with all other conditions or regulations as set forth in this ordinance.

   3.   Area Requirements. In any residential district, where neither public or a private multiple-user off-site water supply system, or waste water disposal facility is accessible, the lot area and width requirements shall be as follows, or the minimum required for the particular district, whichever is the greater: lot area shall be ten (10) acres; provided, however, that where a public or private multiple-user off-site water supply system is available these requirements shall be forty thousand (40,000) square feet.

   4.   Double Frontage Lots. Buildings on double frontage lots extending from street to street shall provide the required minimum front yard setback on the street side where the city may determine access is permitted, and shall provide the required minimum rear yard setback on the street frontage where the City may determine that no vehicle access shall be permitted. The City may also require an additional landscape buffer area within the rear yard adjacent to the adjoining thoroughfare, in lieu of a buffer wall.

   5.   Exceptions to Yard Requirements. Every part of a required yard setback area shall be open to the sky, unobstructed with any building or structure, except for a permitted accessory building in the designated rear yard, and except for the ordinary projections of sills, belt courses, cornices, chimneys, fireplace projections, bay windows, ornamental features, roof overhangs, and gutters that do not extend or encroach more than twenty-four (24) inches into any required yard setback. Ground-mounted external air-conditioning or HVAC units for residential dwellings may encroach within a side or rear yard setback area. Uncovered steps, patios and decks may extend up to 15 feet into any front yard setback area and up to 25 feet into any rear yard setback area, provided a minimum fifteen (15) foot setback is maintained. No steps, patios or decks, covered or uncovered, may extend or encroach into a required side yard setback area. Detached canopies placed over fuel pumping facilities which are accessory to gas stations or convenience stores may be located in the front yard, provided a minimum fifteen (15) foot setback is maintained.

   6.   Mixed-Use Yard Requirements. In instances where buildings are erected containing two (2) or more uses housed vertically, the required side yards for the first floor use shall control.

Except as herein provided, no lot shall contain any building used for residential purposes unless such lot abuts for at least forty (40) feet on a public street. In situations of hardship, the Board of Adjustment may grant a variance from the minimum forty (40) feet street frontage requirement, if an exclusive unobstructed private easement of access or private right-of-way of at least forty (40) feet wide to a street is provided for no more than one (1) single family detached dwelling, and if a common easement of access or right-of-way of at least sixty (60) feet wide is provided for two (2) single family dwellings. The lot across which an easement of access is located, shall have adequate dimensions and area, exclusive of the easement area, to meet minimum bulk regulations for the Zoning District in which the lot is located. The subdivision of land into flag lots shall not be permitted, except by variance, if it is determined the property being subdivided can not be included as part of adjoining vacant land to create a subdivision in compliance with the minimum standards of this ordinance and the City’s subdivision ordinance. Where more than two (2) single family or two (2) two-family dwellings could be served now or in the future from a private easement of access or right-of-way, there shall be a public street including public utility extensions provided in accordance with the Norwalk Subdivision Ordinance prior to development.

For corner lots, platted after the effective date of this ordinance, each street frontage shall meet the minimum required front yard setback for the Zoning District in which it is located, and the minimum required lot width shall be increased by an amount not less than twenty (20) feet so as to allow for the additional required front yard setback, i.e. for a minimum required lot width of sixty (60) feet, the minimum width of a corner lot shall be not less than eighty (80) feet. On corner lots platted and of record at the time of the effective date of this ordinance, the same regulations shall apply except that this regulation shall not be so interpreted as to reduce the buildable width of the corner lot to less than twenty (20) feet nor to prohibit the erection of an accessory building.

In any R District, there shall be a minimum front yard setback required as stated in the yard requirements in the bulk regulations for that particular zoning district; provided, however, that in no case shall the front yard setback be less than the smallest front yard setback as platted or of an existing dwelling in the same block; whichever is lesser, located within two hundred (200) feet of either side lot line; provided, however, this regulation shall not be interpreted as to require a greater setback than double the minimum required front yard setback for the zoning district in which it is located. This regulation shall not be interpreted as to permit a setback which is less than the minimum required front yard for the zoning district in which it is located. On any lot in any district, the depth of a front yard abutting a major collector or arterial street shall be measured from the planned right-of-way line based on the City’s Comprehensive Plan and subdivision ordinance to accommodate future street widening.

Whenever the plat of a land subdivision approved by the City Council and on record in the Offices of the County Recorder and County Auditor shows a minimum setback line along any frontage for the purpose of creating a front yard, or other building setback line, the building line thus shown shall apply along such frontage in place of any other yard line required in this ordinance unless specific yard requirements in this ordinance require a greater setback.

No yard or lot existing at the time of passage of this ordinance shall be reduced in dimension or area below the minimum required by this ordinance. No part of a yard or other open space, or off-street parking or loading space provided for any building, structure, or use for the purpose of complying with the provisions of this ordinance shall be included as part of a yard, open space, or off-street parking or loading space required under this ordinance for another building, structure, or use. The right to use any property by way of easement (expressed, implied, or by prescription), permit or other similar type of conveyance or permission that will not ultimately vest title in fee simple, except those for public utility purposes, shall not be included as part of any yard or lot for the purpose of complying with yard setback provisions of this ordinance.

Existing two-family dwellings which lawfully existed in District R-2 and were amended to District R-1 with the amendment to this ordinance on September 4, 1997, shall be considered a lawful conforming use. Any expansion or alteration of the two-family structures shall adhere to the bulk regulations for District R-1.

Not more than one (1) principal structure on any lot of record or legally described tract of land shall be allowed as of January 1, 1998, or for any lot which has been created by platting or replatting since such date in any district zoned RE-1, R-1, and R-2. Multiple occupancy of a lot by more than one (1) principal building in all other districts shall be permitted, only if approved as a complex, or as part of an approved site plan or planned unit development.

No accessory building or, structure and no fence or wall which exceeds six (6) feet in height shall be erected in a required yard or court, except as provided hereinafter.

   1.   No accessory building or structure shall be constructed upon a lot until the construction of the main building has been actually commenced, and no accessory building shall be used if the main building has been unused for a period of six (6) months or longer. In any non-single or two family residential zoning district, all accessory buildings and structures shall meet the setback requirements of the principal building or structure and shall have similar architectural features and level of finish as the principal building or structure and comply with the provisions of City Code Section 175G, Architectural Standards.

   2.   Accessory Buildings in Residential Zoning Districts. In any single family residential zoning district (RE-1, R-1, R-2, R-TC) no accessory building shall be erected in any required yard other than a rear and side yard, except as provided hereinafter, and shall not extend past the front face of the principal building or otherwise be located between the front yard and the front of the principal building. Accessory buildings shall be at least five (5) feet from the rear yard lot line and five (5) feet from the side yard lot lines including any horizontal projections such as roof overhangs. Within the R-TC Zoning District, the side yard setback is reduced to no less than three (3) feet. On a corner lot or double frontage lot, the setback regulations for each street frontage shall apply. There shall be at least ten (10) feet of separation from a principal building and any other separate building or structure on the same lot, and at least five (5) feet from any alley line, except that, when any vehicle entrance to an accessory building faces the alley, said accessory building shall be at least twenty (20) feet from the alley line. Any accessory building with less than ten (10) feet of separation from a principal building may be permitted provided it shall meet all setback requirements of the principal building as if it were attached to and a part of the principal building. No portion or part of an accessory building may be located within the required setback. All setbacks and building separations shall be measured from the closest point of any horizontal projection including roof-overhangs. Detached garages and accessory buildings, greater than 120 square feet in size, shall be residential in character, with similar architectural features as the principal building, including roof slope, overhangs, siding and roofing material, trim detail, etc. Galvanized metal, corrugated metal, and metal panel type roofing and siding is prohibited as the exterior finish material in residential zoning districts. Metal horizontal (lap style) siding and standing seam metal roofing may be allowed if it matches that used on the principal building.

   3.   Accessory buildings, except buildings housing animals or fowl, may be erected as part of the principal building or may be connected thereto by a breezeway or similar structure, provided, an accessory building which is not a part of the main building shall not occupy more than thirty (30) percent of the rear yard and shall not exceed fifteen (15) feet in height.

   4.   No satellite dish antenna, antenna, or tower shall be permitted within the front or side yards or attached to the front wall or face of any building or structure, unless the property owner can adequately demonstrate to the satisfaction of the Zoning Administrator that it is not physically possible to locate the satellite dish antenna within the confines of the rear yard and obtain a satellite signal. No satellite dish antenna with a dish diameter greater than three (3) feet, or height greater than fifteen (15) feet shall be permitted in RE-1, R-1, or R-2 Districts, except by special use permit. Satellite dish antennas shall be located and screened as practical from view of all adjoining residential uses and public streets.

   5.   An accessory structure which is constructed underground (such as an emergency shelter, garage, wine cellar, etc.) may be beneath the ground surface of any yard area; providing said structure shall comply with the following requirements:

      A.   No portion of the accessory structure shall be located less than five (5) feet, measured horizontally, from any lot line from which a minimum surface yard area is required. However, in the R-TC zoning district, the accessory structure side yard setback is reduced to no less than three (3) feet.

      B.   The surface area covering the structure shall be finished in a manner natural to the landscape so as to entirely conceal the underground structure.

      C.   No portion of the finished surface area above the surrounding ground elevation may exceed a two (2) foot height increase above the normal finished elevation of any required yard area.

      D.   Ingress-egress to the underground structure shall be located within the allowable surface buildable area of the lot and shall not be located in any required yard area.

   1.   General Regulations:

      A.   Industrial Districts. Within the M-1 zoning district, unless otherwise specified herein, fences and walls not exceeding eight feet (8') in height are allowed within the limits of side and rear yards. Fences and walls may be allowed within the limits of the front yard if approved by the City Council either through the site plan process, or through a fence permit application submitted to the City Council for review and consideration.

      B.   All Other Districts. Within all zoning districts, unless otherwise specified herein, fences and walls not exceeding six feet (6') in height are allowed within the limits of side and rear yards. A fence or wall, not exceeding four feet (4') in height is allowed up to the property line within the front yard setback provided the visual clearance is maintained. In no case shall a fence taller than four feet (4') be located beyond the front building line of the principal building or structure except as noted in Paragraph E of this subsection.

      C.   Decorative Features. In all zoning districts, decorative features such as individual posts, trellises, brick or stone columns, and similar features constructed as part of a fence or wall shall be allowed to exceed the maximum fence and wall height by no more than twelve inches (12"). Pedestrian entry features which only include arbors, arched entries, arcades or finials may exceed the maximum allowable fence height in any yard subject to design review and approval of the Zoning Administrator.

      D.   Single Faced Fences. Single faced fences shall have their unfinished side (side with exposed posts) facing towards the property on which the fence is erected.

      E.   Corner Lots and Double Frontage Lots. On corner lots and double frontage lots, fences and walls not more than six feet (6') in height may be placed in a required front yard abutting a street where all the following are met:

         (1)   The required front yard abutting the street is used as a side yard and not as a front yard.

         (2)   The fence or wall maintains a minimum setback from the ultimate right-of-way of fifteen feet (15').

         (3)   The vision clearance area is maintained.

         (4)   All other requirements of this ordinance are met.

         (5)   No fence or wall is permitted within a required buffer unless specifically approved by the City Council through the site plan or subdivision plat process.

   F.   Permit Required. No person shall remove, reconstruct or install a fence unless such person has obtained a permit from the City and has agreed in writing that said removal, reconstruction or installation will comply with all ordinances and requirements of the City for such work. A written application for such permit shall be filed with the City and shall be accompanied by a permit fee as required by Section 164.07 of this Code of Ordinances. The specific fine for violation of this Chapter is contained in Chapter 177 Rates and Fees.

   G.   Removal of Illegal Fence. A fence illegally located on property is hereby declared a nuisance and shall be promptly removed. The specific fine for violation of this Chapter is contained in Chapter 177 Rates and Fees.

   2.   Materials and Maintenance:

      A.   Allowed Materials:

         (1)   Fences are to be constructed of customarily used materials such as chain-link, welded wire mesh, wrought iron, aluminum, wood, polyvinyl chloride (PVC), ornamental woven wire and other similar materials, unless specified otherwise herein. Any fence considered by the Zoning Administrator to not be a standard or customarily styled or constructed fence is prohibited.

         (2)   The use of materials such as sheet metal, chicken wire, temporary construction fencing, snow fencing, woven wire commonly used for the penning of livestock or other animals or similar materials shall not be permitted for permanent fencing. A fence shall not be constructed or covered with: paper sheets or strips; cloth or fabric tarps, sheets, or strips; plastic or vinyl tarps, sheets, mesh, or strips; bamboo; reed; or plywood sheeting. Chain-link or woven wire type fences shall not include plastic or wood slats or strips, bamboo, or reed. Wood fences shall be constructed of treated lumber, cedar, redwood, or similar types of wood that are resistant to decay. All fences must be of an earth tone, neutral, or natural color such as white, black, gray (silver), tan, brown, green. Bright or fluorescent colors are not permitted. Pictures, images, lettering, logos, graphics, or artwork are not permitted on fences.

         (3)   An exception may be approved by the Zoning Administrator for sun and/or wind screen material applied to fences directly associated with a sports or recreation facility such as tennis court fences, baseball field fences, or basketball courts, subject to the provisions of Paragraph 5C of this section. An exception also may be approved by the Zoning Administrator for mesh screen material associated with a commercial or industrial site.

         (4)   Walls are to be constructed of brick, stone, textured concrete, precast concrete, tile block, etc. Walls constructed of weather resistant wood or manufactured substitutes may be used if brick or stone columns are incorporated and spaced no more than twenty feet (20') on center. Pictures, images, lettering, logos, graphics, or artwork are not permitted on walls unless part of an approved and permitted sign in accordance with the City’s Sign Regulations.

      B.   Prohibited Materials: A fence or wall may not be designed to cause pain or injury to humans or animals. Therefore, the use of spikes, broken glass, barbed wire, razor wire, nails, electrical charge or other similar materials shall be prohibited, unless specified otherwise herein.

      C.   Construction and Maintenance: All fences and walls shall be constructed in a sound and sturdy manner and shall be maintained in a good state of repair, including the replacement of defective parts, painting, and other acts required for maintenance. The Zoning Administrator, after 30 days of notice to the owner of the fence or wall, may order the removal of any fence or wall that is not maintained in accordance with the provisions of this code and the cost assessed against the property where said fence or wall is located. An extension of time may be granted, upon filing a verified statement that the delay is not a result of any act of the owner.

   3.   Measuring Fence or Wall Height:

      A.   The height of a fence or wall shall be determined by a measurement from the ground beneath the fence or wall as follows:

         (1)   In a yard abutting a street, the total effective fence or wall height above the finished grade shall be measured on the side nearest the street. Notwithstanding, if a property or premises is lower than an adjacent street, then the height of the fence or wall shall be determined by a measurement from the street grade at a ninety degree (90°) angle from the fence or wall; provided the total vertical measurement from the ground beneath the fence or wall to the top of the fence or wall shall not exceed eight feet (8') (see Figure #1).

         (2)   In any other required yard the total effective fence or wall height above the finished grade shall be measured on the side nearest the adjacent property.

         (3)   On a property line, the fence or wall height shall be measured from the finished grade of the side of the adjacent property.

      B.   Swales and other earth depressions up to six feet (6') wide shall not be used when measuring the fence or wall height.

      C.   Manmade earth berms, terraces, and retaining walls that elevate the fence or wall shall be considered a part of the fence or wall.

      D.   For purposes of calculating the total property or lot area occupied by accessory structures, the total area occupied by a fence or wall shall not be included in the calculation.

   4.   Overland Flowage Easements:

      A.   Fences may encroach into an overland flowage easement providing measures are taken to make certain that the fence does not restrict the water flow, cause siltation buildup, etc.

      B.   Permitted fence material includes chain-link, wrought iron fencing, picket style fencing that is at least thirty percent (30%) open, or other fencing styles that are at least thirty percent (30%) open.

      C.   Solid fencing shall be elevated a minimum of six inches (6") through the swale part of the easement to allow water flowage.

      D.   In no case shall a fence or wall be permitted to obstruct the natural flow and/or drainage of water.

   5.   Exceptions To Fence Requirements:

      A.   Agricultural Purposes. In the A-R zoning district, barbed wire and woven wire fencing may be allowed provided it is used to contain livestock or to protect crops and plantings. An electrified fence to contain livestock may be allowed, subject to a minimum setback of ten feet (10') from all property lines.

      B.   Industrial Districts. Within the M-1 zoning district, fences or walls topped with barbed wire that is not less than six (6) feet above the ground may be allowed, subject to review and approval by the City Council either through the site plan process or through a fence permit application submitted to the City Council for review and consideration.

      C.   Recreational Purposes. Fences associated with the uses of a sports or recreational facility or other similar area, shall not be subject to the height restrictions specified elsewhere in this section, provided that such fence is constructed to maintain a consistency of at least seventy-five percent (75%) open area, allowing an unobstructed view through the fence, for the full length of the fence and does not impede the required vision clearance. Any such fence is subject to design review and approval of the Zoning Administrator. Fences associated with an accessory tennis, basketball, or similar ball courts located on a single family residential lot (R-1 or R-2 zoning district) may be over six feet (6') but not more than 12 feet in height provided the fence is located in the rear yard and meets the setback requirements of the principal structure. Any such fence is subject to design review and approval of the Zoning Administrator.

      D.   Swimming Pool Enclosures. Barriers constructed for the purpose of enclosing swimming pools are subject to the requirements of the municipal building code. Fences enclosing a swimming pool may be up to eight (8) feet in height.

      E.   Temporary Fences. Temporary construction fences, barricades, railings, or other similar fences installed to provide temporary site security and/or safety in conjunction with construction work may be allowed in any district during periods of construction. Any such temporary fences shall be removed upon completion of the construction work.

   6.   Retaining Walls:

      A.   Retaining walls shall be set back from the property line one foot (1') for every one foot (1') of height, unless a mutual written agreement on the height and location of the retaining wall has been made with the adjoining property owner.

      B.   Retaining walls which are more than four feet (4') in height shall be structurally engineered. No single wall face shall be greater than six feet (6') in height without terraces to break up the wall expanse. A minimum one foot (1') of terrace shall be used for each two feet (2') of wall height. Each terrace shall contain vegetation. The design specifications, elevations and site plan showing the exact location of the wall shall be provided along with the required building permit application to the City Building Department.

   7.   Vision Clearance:

      A.   Intersections. On a corner lot or at the intersection of two (2) streets, public and/or private, nothing shall be erected, placed, planted or allowed to grow in such a manner as to impede vision between a height of two and one-half (2-1/2) feet and ten (10) feet above the centerline grades of the area described as follows:

That area bounded by the street right-of-way lines of a corner lot and a straight line joining points on said right-of-way lines twenty-five (25) feet from the point of intersection of said right-of-way lines (see Figure #2).

      B.   Driveways. At the intersection of a driveway and a public or private street, nothing shall be erected, placed, planted or allowed to grow in such a manner as to impede vision between a height of two and one-half (2-1/2) feet and ten (10) feet above the centerline grades of the area described as follows:

That area bounded by the street right-of-way line and the intersecting driveway line and a straight line joining points on said right-of-way line and driveway line fifteen (15) feet from the point of intersection of said right-of-way line and driveway line (see Figure #3).

      C.   Undeveloped Property. At the intersection of an undeveloped adjoining property line and the right-of-way line of a public or private street, nothing shall be erected, placed, planted or allowed to grow in such a manner as to impede vision between a height of two and one-half (2-1/2) feet and ten (10) feet above the centerline grades of the area described as follows:

That area bounded by the street right-of-way line and the intersecting adjoining undeveloped property line and a straight line joining points on said right-of-way line and property line fifteen (15) feet from the point of intersection of said right-of-way line and property line (see Figure #4).

   1.   Swimming pools shall be allowed as an accessory use in all zoning districts unless otherwise specifically prohibited in this ordinance.

   2.   All swimming pools located in R districts shall be located in the side or rear yard and shall observe a ten (10) foot setback from any principal structure, accessory structure and property lines.

   3.   All swimming pools shall meet the structural enclosure and security requirements of the City’s building code.

   4.   All outdoor swimming pools shall be enclosed by a barrier. The barrier shall be a non-climbable fence or wall not less than four feet in height located on or between the property lines and not less than ten feet from each side of the pool. For all swimming pools, any opening to the swimming pool shall be equipped with a self-closing and self-latching device with a locking mechanism for keeping the gate or door securely closed at all times when not in actual use.

   1.   Permitted Uses. This section is intended to protect residential areas from potential adverse impacts of activities defined as home occupations without eliminating certain businesses and occupations that may be compatible with residential areas. These regulations establish criteria to permit residents of the community a broad choice in the use of their homes as a place of livelihood in the production or supplementation of personal/family income. Home occupations apply only to the residents that are living in the home where the occupation is taking place. The following operations and/or uses are considered permitted in any district that allows household living:

      A.   Home sewing or tailoring.

      B.   Studios for painting, sculpting, ceramics or other similar arts.

      C.   Writing or editing.

      D.   Office activities (scheduling, telephone answering, etc.) requiring a limited number of trips to the home.

      E.   Production of crafts such as handiwork, model-making, weaving, lapidary, and wood working for the purpose of selling a product off-premises.

      F.   Tutoring to no more than four (4) students at any one time.

      G.   Home-cooking, preserving and baking for the purpose of selling a product off-premises.

      H.   Computer programming, repair, internet services and similar occupations.

      I.   Mail order business where products are shipped directly from an off-site supplier to the customer.

      J.   Office for architects, engineers, realtors, accountants, or similar occupations.

      K.   In-home child care home or child development home, provided the following requirements are met:

         (1)   All child care homes and child development homes shall be registered, as required, with the Iowa Department of Human Services (DHS) and shall be in current, good standing.

         (2)   Child development homes registered as either a Category A, Category B, or Category C with one provider (C-1) or two providers (C-2), as defined by DHS on July 1, 2015, shall be permitted. In no case shall an in-home child care service exceed sixteen (16) children.

         (3)   All Category B and Category C child development homes shall have all outdoor play areas fully enclosed with a minimum six (6) foot tall privacy fence or wall and hours of operation shall be limited to between 6:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m., Monday through Friday.

         (4)   All child care homes and child development homes shall register with the City prior to the start of operation and thereafter on an annual basis.

         (5)   All child care homes and child development homes shall follow all other requirements of this chapter, applicable zoning codes, and applicable building codes.

         (6)   No in-home child care service shall be allowed that does not meet items 1 through 5 above.

      L.   Barber shops and beauty parlors.

      M.   Small repair shops, including engines, small appliances, mower repair, blade sharpening and similar uses.

      N.   Catering businesses.

      O.   Private construction contractors provided there shall be no storage of machinery, construction equipment, and similar products except in an enclosed private garage.

      P.   Bed and breakfast establishments.

      Q.   State licensed massage therapists having no age requirement for admittance.

      R.   Other uses and/or activities that are similar to the uses stated above or that conform to the intent of this chapter, as determined by the Community Development Department.

   2.   Restrictions for All Home Occupations.

In addition to all of the use limitations applicable to the district in which it is located, no home occupation shall be permitted unless it complies with the following restrictions:

      A.   Not more than one (1) person who is not a resident on the premises shall be employed.

      B.   No alteration of the principal residential building shall be made which changes the character and appearance thereof as a dwelling.

      C.   There shall be no outdoor storage of equipment or materials used in the home occupation. Not more than one (1) vehicle and one fully enclosed cargo trailer, which is less than 17 feet in length, used in commerce in connection with any home occupation shall be parked on either the property or on public streets.

      D.   Off-street parking space shall be adequate to accommodate the parking demand generated by the home occupation.

      E.   No sign, other than one (1) unlighted sign not over one (1) square foot in area attached flat against the dwelling and displaying only the occupant’s name and occupation, shall advertise the presence or conduct of the home occupation.

      F.   Shall not cause an adverse impact on the neighborhood, as determined by the Zoning Administrator.

   3.   Guidelines for Determining the Appropriateness of All Home Occupations.

The following shall be used by the Zoning Administrator to determine if a home occupation is appropriate and/or having an adverse impact on the neighborhood:

      A.   An average of no more than twenty-five (25) percent of the floor area of the dwelling unit shall be devoted to the home occupation.

      B.   No stock of goods shall be displayed or sold on the premises in excess of thirty (30) cubic feet in volume.

      C.   The home occupation shall be conducted entirely within the principal dwelling unit or an average of six hundred (600) square feet of floor area in a permitted building accessory. No home occupation shall be conducted in an accessory dwelling unit by the occupant of the principal residence.

      D.   No home occupation shall be apparent to adjoining residences and from any public street.

      E.   No mechanical, electrical, or other equipment which produces noise, electrical or magnetic interference, vibration, heat, glare, or other nuisance outside the residential or accessory structure.

      F.   No home occupation shall be noxious, offensive, or hazardous by reason of vehicular traffic generation or emission of noise, vibration, smoke, dust or other particulate matter, odorous matter, heat, humidity, glare, refuse, radiation, or other objectionable emissions.

      G.   Employment for home occupations shall be limited to family members residing in the principal structure and one additional employee that is not a family member residing in the principal structure.

      H.   Home occupations are limited to one operation per lot, and rental property must have landlord approval prior to operation.

      I.   Except for an in-home a child care home or a child development home (daycare), home-based businesses may generate no more than 25 vehicle trips per day.

      J.   Delivery or service by commercial vehicles or trucks over ten tons gross empty weight is prohibited for any home-based business located on a local street.

   4.   Violations. Any violation of this section shall be grounds for a cease and desist order and punishable as a municipal infraction.

Flashing or pulsing lights, moving lights, strobe lights or rotating beacons, spotlights, and floodlights shall be prohibited out-of-doors or visible from the out-of-doors in all zoning districts except when otherwise legally displayed as emergency lights or warning lights or authorized by the City Council for a temporary period for a special occasion. Any lighting used for illumination out-of-doors shall be arranged as to divert the light away from adjoining residences n any residential district and away from public streets. Tilting of fixtures upward (such as shoebox fixtures that are designed to illuminate 90 degrees downward) is hereby prohibited.

   1.   Purpose. It is recognized that adult entertainment facilities have certain objectionable side effects which render these adult facilities incompatible with residential and family-oriented uses when the adult facilities are located directly adjacent to or near such uses. This section seeks to ensure that residential and family-oriented uses and adult entertainment facilities will be located in separate and compatible locations. It is a subject of legitimate concern for the City to preserve the quality of life, preserve the City’s neighborhoods, and to meet effectively the increasing encroachments of urbanization upon the quality of life within the City.

   2.   Location of Adult Entertainment Facilities. No person, whether as principal or agent, clerk, or employee, either for himself, herself, or any other person, or as an officer of any corporation or otherwise shall place, maintain, own, or operate any adult entertainment facility in the City of Norwalk which is prohibited by any city, state, or federal law. Adult entertainment facilities which are not prohibited by any City, state, or federal law shall be permitted only in accordance with the following restrictions:

      A.   Prohibited Locations:

         (1)   In any zoning district, except the M-1 District, subject to approval of a special use permit.

         (2)   In any residential area in the City, including upon any sidewalk abutting upon such residential area.

         (3)   Within one thousand (1,000) feet of any residentially zoned or used property, or any property designated on the City’s Comprehensive Plan for residential use.

         (4)   Within one thousand (1,000) feet of any parcel of real property upon which is located any of the following facilities:

            a.   An elementary school, junior high school, or senior high school.

            b.   A church which conducts religious programs.

            c.   A part or recreational facilities operated, maintained, or improved by the City, Warren County, Warren County Conservation Board, any private residential association, benefited recreation district, or the State of Iowa.

            d.   Federal, state, county, City, or any other governmental offices.

            e.   A supermarket or convenience market primarily engaged in the sale of food.

            f.   A restaurant, fast food, or food establishment catering to family trade.

            g.   Any other retail or rental establishment catering to family trade.

         (5)   Within two thousand (2,000) feet of any other adult entertainment facility. “Adult newsrack,” for the purpose of this section, means a single coin-operated device, and not a machine with double or triple dispensing capacity.

      B.   Measurement of Distance. The distance between an adult entertainment facility and any other use of land described herein shall be measured in a straight line, without regard to intervening structures, from the closest property line of each business or use.

      C.   Viewing Area.

         (1)   It is unlawful to maintain, operate, or manage or permit to be maintained, operated, or managed, any adult theater or arcade in which the viewing areas are not visible from a continuous main aisle, or are obscured by a curtain, door, wall, or other enclosure. For purposes of this section, “viewing area” means the area where a patron or customer would ordinarily be positioned while watching the performance, picture, show, or film.

         (2)   It is unlawful for more than one person at a time to occupy any individually partitioned viewing area or booth.

         (3)   It is unlawful to create, maintain, or permit to be maintained, any holes or other openings between any two (2) booths or individual viewing areas for the purpose of providing viewing or physical access between the booth or individual viewing area.

         (4)   The opening to the viewing area shall be from the main aisle.

      D.   Adult Newsracks. Adult newsracks shall not be located in an area which is accessible to the general public. Any newsrack shall also be continually monitored to ensure inaccessibility by minors.

   3.   Identification of Newsracks. The owners of adult newsracks shall have their name, address, and telephone number clearly visible on each newsrack located within the City. If the identification is not clearly visible, that shall be grounds for immediate impounding of the newsrack by the City.

   4.   Impounding of Adult Newsracks.

      A.   An adult newsrack found in violation of this chapter may be impounded by the Zoning Administrator, any police officer or any other code enforcement officer of the City immediately, if deemed necessary by the officer, or after the following actions have occurred:

         (1)   A notice of violation has been affixed to the adult newsrack stating the section of this chapter which has been violated, and stating that the adult newsrack will be impounded if the violation is not abated within seven (7) days.

         (2)   A notice of violation has been sent by certified mail, return receipt requested, to the owner of the adult newsrack as identified on the newsrack, if readable, stating the part of this ordinance which has been violated, and stating that the adult newsrack will be impounded if the violation is not abated within seven (7) days.

         (3)   The violation has not been abated within seven (7) days of the posting of the notice of violation or the mailing of the certified letter, whichever occurs later.

      B.   Whenever an adult newsrack is impounded, notice of the impoundment will be provided to the owner by certified mail if proper identification is provided on the newsrack as required. That notice will provide fourteen (14) days for the owner to claim the newsrack and all of its contents. If the owner does not claim the newsrack within fourteen (14) days of delivery of the notice or thirty (30) days of impoundment, the City shall dispose of the newsrack and its contents.

   1.   Notwithstanding other provisions of this ordinance, the City Council may without notice, or public hearing authorize the operation of charitable or other non-profit sponsored carnival for the period not to exceed (7) days.

   2.   No person, firm or corporation shall place or erect any trailer, mobile home, building, shed or office on any lot for use in connection with the construction of any commercial, industrial or residential building or buildings, of for conducting retail or concession activity for part-time or seasonal use, or while the permanent building is constructed on site without first obtaining a permit from the Zoning Administrator and payment of a permit fee of in accordance with Chapter 177 Rates and Fees of the Code of Ordinances of the City of Norwalk, Iowa. Any person, firm or corporation requesting such permit must state the type of trailer, mobile home, building, shed or office to be placed or erected upon the lot. A temporary permit granted by the Zoning Administrator shall not exceed one (1) year from the date of issuance thereof except with the express consent of the City Council. If an extension is granted, the City Council may require that the property owner and the city enter into an agreement that would cover the details and timeframe of the use and removal of the temporary structure. Any temporary trailer, mobile home, building, shed or office herein permitted shall conform to the zoning setback requirements.

   3.   A Certificate of Occupancy for a principal building or structure shall be withheld from issuance, if the temporary trailer, mobile home, building, shed or office used in connection with the construction of any commercial, industrial or residential building or buildings is not removed from construction site or lot.

   4.   Upon issuance of a Certificate of Occupancy for a permanent structure, no temporary facilities shall be used for sales, leasing, storage or promotion.

The development of a complex of buildings for any permitted use which proposes the common use of private streets, water facilities, sanitary sewer facilities, and storm water management facilities by more than two buildings and two property owners, and eventual maintenance of common facilities by a homeowners or property owners association, shall require the design and construction of such common facilities in accordance with City standards required for the construction of like public improvements, and the provision of associated City construction observation to verify that construction is acceptable and in accordance with City standards.

The developer of all such common use facilities shall submit to the City for review and approval detailed construction plans of the facilities. Said plans shall be prepared and signed by a licensed engineer. All common use facilities shall be inspected by the City as if said facilities were public improvements and the appropriate inspection fees shall be charged to the developer. Upon completion of the common use facilities, final “as-built” plans shall be submitted to the City, signed and sealed by a licensed engineer. Nothing in this section shall be construed to imply or otherwise require the City to own and/or maintain said common use facilities.

   1.   Private Utilities. All private utilities shall be placed within a common outlot or private easement of sufficient width to allow for their maintenance, service, and replacement.

All One and Two-Family Dwellings Rowhouse/Townhouse units and Multiple-Family Dwellings Rowhouse/Townhome units shall have individual and separate service line connections to a public sanitary sewer main and a public water main. Sanitary sewer, water service, and sump pump drain lines shall be contained within the lot on which the dwelling unit is located, within a common association owned lot, and/or within a public street right-of-way. Said service lines shall not cross through a separately owned private individual lot without a private easement.

2.   Private Streets and Roadways. Except as provided herein this section, all private streets and roadways shall be constructed with a paving design standard and street width consistent with the City standards as if said street were a public street. All typical street appurtenances, including sidewalks, street lights, traffic control and street name signage shall be provided in accordance with City standards for a public street. Private streets shall only be allowed in developments that have been master planned for private streets and where the private streets will be owned and maintained by a common association. A Residential Private Road in a residential development shall not provide a through connection between two separate public streets. A Residential Private Road in a residential development shall not connect to an existing private street, if that connection would encourage the use of the private streets as an alternate route to an existing public street. A private street for an RE-1, R-1, R-F and R-2 development shall not connect to any private street serving higher intensity zoning districts of R-3, R-4, R-5, C-O, C-1, C-2, C-3, C-4, TC, PC, IC and M-1.

A commercial Private Road in a commercial development may provide a through connection between two separate public streets when it functions as a Parking Access Road. A through private street in a commercial development will only be allowed in Master Planned developments or specifically identified and approved with an official plat or site plan by the City. Commercial Private Roads shall be constructed and maintained to the same standard as a public road. The City may identify failure to maintain a Commercial Private Road, a Parking Access Road, or Parking Aisle as a nuisance under Chapter 50, Nuisances, of the Norwalk City Code and abate the nuisance according to the abatement procedures in Chapter 50.

Private streets and roadways serving One and Two-Family Dwellings - Rowhouse/Townhouse units and Multiple-Family Dwellings - Rowhouse/Townhome developments may be 24 feet wide, measured back-of-curb to back-of-curb, with no on-street parking permitted, or 28 feet wide, measured back-of-curb to back-of-curb, with parking permitted on one side of the street or roadway. At the discretion of the City Council, sidewalks may be required along at least one side of the street or roadway and may be permitted to be constructed back-of-curb of the roadway.

A private street easement or outlot shall be established for all private streets and roadways. The width of the private street easement or outlot shall be no less than the width of the private street or roadway plus any adjoining sidewalks. For Single-Family and Two-Family dwelling developments, the minimum private street easement or outlot width shall be no less than 50 feet wide.

Private Street and Roadway Signage options. Any private street shall be signed with an entry sign which identifies the street as private. Text on the sign shall read “PRIVATE STREETS ARE MAINTAINED BY ASSOCIATION.” The lettering on the sign shall be designed to meet MUTCD standards. The sign shall be erected at all entrances to the street prior to final plat approval by the City.

Public street sign example (white on green):

Private street sign example (white on blue):

If the developer chooses to do decorative street signs the white on blue requirement may be waived by the City Council, the sign shall still have the words PRIVATE STREET under the street name with letters at least 50% the size of the private street’s name.

Private decorative street sign example:

Private street and roadway signs shall be installed by the developer. The standard City signage of white on green is reserved for use on any public street. Signage for private streets and roadways shall be white on blue. In addition to the street name, the private street shall have the words PRIVATE STREET under the street name with letters at least 50% the size of the private street’s name.

Private Street Maintenance Sign example:

PRIVATE STREET

MAINTAINED BY

ASSOCIATION

The installation of sidewalks shall be required as part of the development of any land within the City to permit pedestrian movement through the City and to connect residential areas to schools, places of work, shopping, recreation, parks, trails, and other activities. Notwithstanding other provisions of this ordinance and the City of Norwalk’s subdivision regulations, public sidewalks shall be required on both sides of all public streets and within private property as determined necessary by the Commission and the Council as part of a site plan review to permit pedestrian movement from within the development to the public sidewalk system. For subdivisions proposed within the RE-1 Single-Family Rural Estate District, the City Council, upon receipt of a recommendation from the Planning and Zoning Commission, may waive the requirement for sidewalks along local streets and cul-de-sacs, and along streets with rural cross-section design which do not permit the installation of public sidewalks, provided, however, alternative locations for sidewalks or trails are planned which provide pedestrian movement through the development and surrounding area.

The construction or installation of any structure, except mailboxes, public sidewalks and driveway approaches by any person, other than an employee or agent of the City, county, or state government having jurisdiction shall not be permitted within the public street right-of-way, unless authorized by the City Council. Mailboxes located within the right-of-way of higher-permitted-speed arterial or major collector streets, as designated by the City’s Comprehensive Plan, shall have support structures which are constructed to readily break or bend without creating significant damage to a vehicle or a danger to its passengers upon impact with the mailbox. Mailboxes with a single 4-inch x 4-inch or 4 ½-inch diameter wooden post or a metal post with a size no greater than a 2-inch diameter standard-strength steel pipe and buried no more than 24 inches into the ground will be acceptable as a mailbox support within the right-of-way of an arterial or major collector streets. A metal post shall not be fitted with an anchor plate, but it may have an anti-twist device that extends no more than 10 inches below the ground surface. The post-to-box attachment details should be of sufficient strength to prevent the box from separating from the post top if the installation is struck by a vehicle. Mailbox supports shall not be set in concrete, and shall not be constructed of brick, concrete, stone, or masonry of any type in the public right-of-way of arterial or major collector streets. Mailboxes within the right-of-way of any public street shall be located on the non-parking side of the roadway. The bottom of the box shall be set at an elevation established by the U.S. Postal Service, usually 4.0 feet above the roadway surface. On curbed streets, the roadside face of the mailbox shall be set back from the face of curb a distance of 6 to 8 inches, and support structure 12 inches or more. On residential streets without curbs or all-weather shoulders, the roadside face of the mailbox shall be set back 6 to 8 inches and support structure 12 inches or more behind the edge of pavement or graveled surface. On paved roads with driveable all-weather shoulders, the mailboxes shall be set back 6 to 8 inches and support structure 12 inches or more from the edge of the shoulder. Where a mailbox is located at a driveway entrance, it shall be placed on the far side of the driveway in the direction of the delivery route. Mailboxes shall maintain a minimum setback of 25 feet from the radius of an intersecting street.

   1.   Intent. The intent of this section is to balance the need for clean, renewable energy resources and the necessity to protect the public health, safety, and welfare of the community. The City finds these regulations are necessary to ensure that small wind energy conversion systems are appropriately designed, sited, and install.

   2.   Definitions.

      A.   “Height, total system” means the height above grade of the system, including the generating unit and the highest vertical extension of any blades or rotors.

      B.   “Height, tower” means the height above grade of the fixed portion of the tower, excluding the generation unit and attached blades or rotors.

      C.   “Off grid” means an electrical system that is not connected to a utility distribution grid.

      D.   “Shadow flicker” means changing light intensity caused by sunlight through the moving blades of a wind energy conversion system.

      E.   “Small wind energy conversion system, building mounted” means a SWECS which is securely fastened to any portion of a principal building in order to achieve desired elevation, whether attached directly to the principal building or attached to a tower structure which is in turn fastened to the principal building.

      F.   “Small wind energy conversion system, freestanding” means a SWECS which is elevated by means of a monopole tower only and is not located on another supporting structure except that the tower shall have an appropriately constructed concrete base. Guyed, lattice, or other non-monopole style towers shall not meet this definition.

      G.   “Small wind energy conversion system, horizontal axis” means a small wind energy conversion system that has blades which rotate through a horizontal plane.

      H.   “Small wind energy conversion system” (SWECS) means a wind energy conversion system which has a nameplate rated capacity of up to fifteen (15) kilowatts for residential uses and districts and which is incidental and subordinate to a principal use on the same parcel. A system is considered an SWECS only if it supplies electrical power solely for use by the owner on the site, except that when a parcel on which the system is installed also receives electrical power supplied by a utility company, excess electrical power generated and not presently needed by the owner for on site use may be used by the utility company in a accordance with section 199, chapter 15.11(5) of the Iowa Administrative Code, as amended from time to time.

      I.   “Small wind energy conversion system, vertical axis” means a small wind energy conversion system that has blades which rotate through a vertical plane.

      J.   “Tower” means the vertical component of a wind energy conversion system that elevates the wind turbine generator and attached blades above the ground.

      K.   “Wind energy conversion system” means an aggregation of parts including the base, tower, generator, rotor, blades, supports, guywires, and accessory equipment such as utility interconnect and battery banks, etc., in such configuration as necessary to convert the power of wind into mechanical or electrical energy, e.g., wind charger, windmill or wind turbine.

      L.   “Wind turbine generator” means the component of a wind energy conversion system that transforms mechanical energy from the wind into electrical energy.

   3.   General Regulations:

      A.   Special Use. A small wind energy conversion system (SWECS) shall be allowed only as a special accessory use to a permitted principal use or approved permitted special principal use.

      B.   Permit Required. It shall be unlawful to construct, erect, install, alter or locate any SWECS within the City of Norwalk, unless a permitted special use permit has been obtained from the Board of Adjustment. The permitted special use permit may be revoked by resolution of the Board of Adjustment any time the approved system does not comply with the rules set forth in this chapter and the conditions imposed by the Board of Adjustment. The owner/operator of the SWECS must also obtain any other permits required by other federal, state, and local agencies/departments prior to erecting the system.

      C.   Tower. Only monopole towers shall be permitted for freestanding SWECS. Lattice, guyed, or towers of any other type shall not be considered to be in compliance with this section.

      D.   Installation. Installation must be done according to manufacturer’s recommendations. All wiring and electrical work must be completed according to the applicable building and electrical codes. All electrical components must meet code recognized test standards.

      E.   Number of Systems Per Zoning Lot. No more than one SWECS may be placed on any residential estate or single-family residential zoned lot. Building mounted SWECS shall be prohibited on any parcel or lot containing a one- or two-family use.

      F.   Engineer Certification. Applications for any SWECS shall be accompanied by standard drawings of the wind turbine structure, including the tower, base, and footings. An engineering analysis of the tower showing compliance with the applicable regulations and certified by an Iowa licensed professional engineer shall also be submitted.

      G.   Location.

         (1)   No part of an SWECS shall be located within or over drainage, utility or other established easements, or on or over property lines.

         (2)   A SWECS shall be located entirely in the rear yard.

         (3)   A SWECS shall not be located in any required setback.

         (4)   A SWECS shall be located in compliance with the guidelines of applicable federal aviation administration (FAA) regulations as amended from time to time.

         (5)   No SWECS shall be constructed within twenty feet (20') laterally of an overhead electrical power line (excluding secondary electrical service lines or service drops). The setback from underground electric distribution lines shall be at least five feet (5').

         (6)   No part of an SWECS, including guywires, may be located closer than ten feet (10') to any property line.

      H.   Color. The SWECS shall be a neutral color such as white or light gray. Other colors may be allowed at the discretion of the board of adjustment. The surface shall be nonreflective.

      I.   Shadow Flicker. No SWECS shall be installed and operated so to cause a shadow flicker to fall on or in any existing residential structure.

      J.   Lighting. No lights shall be installed on the tower, unless required to meet FAA regulations.

      K.   Signage. No signage or advertising of any kind shall be permitted on the tower or any associated structures.

      L.   Climbing Apparatus. All climbing apparatus shall be located at least ten feet (10') above the ground, and the tower must be designed to prevent climbing within the first ten feet (10').

      M.   Maintenance. Facilities shall be well maintained in an operational condition that poses no potential safety hazard.

      N.   Displacement of Parking Prohibited. The location of the SWECS shall not result in the net loss of required parking as specified in Chapter 175E of this Zoning Code of Ordinances.

      O.   Utility Notification. No SWECS shall be installed until evidence has been given that the utility company has been informed of the customer’s intent to install an interconnected customer owned generator. Off grid systems shall be exempt from this requirement.

      P.   Interconnection. The SWECS, if interconnected to a utility system, shall meet the requirements for interconnection and operation as set forth by the utility and the Iowa utilities board.

      Q.   Restriction on Use of Electricity Generated. An SWECS shall be used exclusively to supply electrical power for on site consumption, except that excess electrical power generated by the SWECS and not presently needed for on site use may be used by the utility company in accordance with Section 199, Chapter 15.11(5) of the Iowa Administrative Code.

      R.   Noise. Except during short term events including utility outages and severe wind events, an SWECS shall be designed, installed and operated so that the noise generated does not violate noise levels as defined in 40 of the Norwalk Code of Ordinances.

      S.   Safety Controls. Each SWECS shall be equipped with both an automatic and manual braking, governing, or feathering system to prevent uncontrolled rotation, over speeding, and excessive pressure on the tower structure, rotor blades, or turbine components. Said automatic braking system shall also be capable of stopping turbine rotation in the event of a power outage so as to prevent back feeding of the grid.

      T.   Shutoff. A clearly marked and easily accessible shutoff for the wind turbine will be required as determined by the Fire Marshal.

      U.   Electromagnetic Interference. All SWECS shall be designed and constructed so as not to cause radio, wireless Internet, cellular phone and television interference. If it is determined that the SWECS is causing electromagnetic interference, the operator shall take the necessary corrective action to eliminate this interference including relocation or removal of the facilities, subject to the approval of the appropriate City authority. A permit granting an SWECS may be revoked if electromagnetic interference from the SWECS becomes evident.

      V.   Wind Access Easements. The enactment of this section does not constitute the granting of an easement by the City. The owner/operator shall acquire covenants, easements, or similar documentation to assure sufficient wind to operate the SWECS unless adequate accessibility to the wind is provided by the site.

      W.   Insurance. The owner/operator of an SWECS must demonstrate liability insurance of not less than one million dollars ($1,000,000) coverage.

      X.   Compliance with National Electric Code. Applications for SWECS shall be accompanied by a line drawing of the electrical components in sufficient detail to allow for a determination that the manner of installation conforms to the national electrical code.

      Y.   Removal. If the SWECS remains nonfunctional or inoperative for a continuous period of one year, the system shall be deemed to be abandoned. The owner/operator shall remove the abandoned system at their expense. Removal of the system includes the entire structure, transmission equipment and fencing from the property excluding foundations. Nonfunction or lack of operation may be proven by reports from the interconnected utility. For off grid systems the City shall have the right to enter the property at its sole discretion to determine if the off grid system is generating power. Such generation may be proven by use of an amp meter. The owner/operator and successors shall make available to the director of development services or their designee all reports to and from the purchaser of energy from the SWECS if requested. If removal of towers and appurtenant facilities is required, the director of development services or designee shall notify the owner/operator in writing.

      Z.   Right of Entrance. As a condition of approval of a permitted special use permit an applicant seeking to install SWECS shall be required to sign a petition and waiver agreement which shall be recorded and run with the land granting permission to the City of Norwalk to enter the property to remove the SWECS pursuant to the terms of approval and to assure compliance with the other conditions set forth in the permit. Removal shall be at the expense of the owner/operator and the cost may be assessed against the property.

   4.   Bulk Regulations:

      A.   Setbacks. The minimum distance between any SWECS and any property line shall be a distance that is equivalent to one hundred fifty percent (150%) of the total system height. The setback shall be measured from the property line to the point of the SWECS closest to the property line.

      B.   Minimum Lot Size. The minimum lot size for an SWECS shall be one acre.

      C.   Maximum Height. Height shall be measured from the ground to the top of the tower, including the wind turbine generator and blades. Man-made earth berms, terraces, and retaining walls that elevate the wind turbine shall be considered a part of the turbine.

         (1)   For lots of more than one and fewer than three (3) acres, the maximum height shall be sixty-five feet (65').

         (2)   For lots of three (3) to seven (7) acres, the maximum height shall be eighty feet (80').

         (3)   For lots of more than seven (7) acres the maximum height shall be one hundred feet (100').

      D.   Maximum Blade Diameter. The maximum diameter of the blades for an SWECS shall be twenty feet (20').

      E.   Clearance of Blade. No portion of a horizontal axis SWECS blade shall extend within thirty feet (30') of the ground. No portion of a vertical axis SWECS shall extend within ten feet (10') of the ground. No blades may extend over parking areas, driveways or sidewalks. No blade may extend within twenty feet (20') of the nearest tree, structure or aboveground utility facilities.

   5.   Application Required. Application for SWECS shall be made on forms provided by the city of Norwalk. No action may be taken regarding requests for SWECS until completed applications have been filed and fees paid.

Condominiums as set out in the general provisions and administration of this Zoning Ordinance under definitions Section 175A.05 provides: “Condominium means an estate in real property as regulated by Chapter 499B of the Code of Iowa consisting of an undivided interest in common with other purchasers in a portion of a parcel of real property, together with a separate interest in space in a building, such as an apartment. A condominium may include, in addition, a separate interest in other portions of such real property.” In the instance that there be a conversion to condominium or multiple housing cooperative the following rules and regulations in the City of Norwalk, Iowa shall apply.

   1.   The conversion of any building or portion thereof to a horizontal property regime or to a multiple housing cooperative shall be treated as a change of occupancy classification for the building.

   2.   Any person or entity seeking to establish a horizontal property regime or multiple housing cooperative by establishing a horizontal property regime pursuant to Iowa Code 499B or by establishing a multiple housing cooperative pursuant to Iowa Code 499A shall establish and document compliance with the following, by filing and obtaining approval from the Planning and Building Department of the development application defined in Subsection 3 of this section:

      A.   That all materials, manner and means of construction in the proposed building meet current building codes for new residential construction including current fire, building, plumbing, electrical, mechanical, energy conservation, and post construction storm water management codes.

      B.   That the building and site meet all requirements of the zoning ordinance that would be required for new residential construction.

      C.   That the building and site meet all requirements for handicapped accessibility that would be required for new residential construction.

      D.   That separate utility services, with separate metering, be provided to each dwelling unit that would be required for new residential construction.

   3.   At least sixty (60) days before a declaration or other instrument establishing a horizontal property regime pursuant to Iowa Code 499B or establishing a multiple housing cooperative pursuant to Iowa Code 499A (“declaration”) is to be recorded in the office of the county recorder, any person or entity shall file a development application for approval with the Planning and Building Department. In addition to the development application, the applicant shall file the following:

      A.   A site plan, building plans and code analysis demonstrating compliance with the provisions addressed above.

      B.   A copy of the declaration or other instrument consistent with Iowa Code 499A or 499B.

   4.   The declaration shall not be recorded unless a certificate of occupancy for the proposed building has been issued by the City.

No temporary sales shall be conducted unless the following conditions are met:

   A temporary sales permit is obtained from the City. The permit fee shall be charged in accordance with Chapter 177 Rates & Fees.

   Sales occur from a Temporary Sales Tent only.

   The current property owner consents to the presence and location of the Temporary Sale site.

   Location of temporary storage shall be identified on the site plan submitted with the permit.

   Temporary storage, including trailers, vehicles, and other enclosures, shall be located in a manner to minimize view of storage containers from Major Arterial Streets.

   Minimum principal building setbacks for the appropriate zoning district shall be followed for the location of a Temporary Sale site.

   Required parking for the principal use shall not be negatively impacted by the presence and location of the Temporary Sale site and the temporary storage.

The City Council may waive the above requirements for operations conducted by a charitable or non-profit organization.

No accessory dwelling unit shall be constructed except as allowed below:

   1.   Accessory dwelling units may be erected as part of the principal structure or as a detached structure.

   2.   ADUs may only exist on properties where the property owner lives on-site.

   3.   Any ADU attached to the principal building shall meet principal building setbacks and bulk regulations.

   4.   ADUs may only be built on properties containing a detached single family dwelling.

   5.   Detached accessory dwelling units shall be located in a rear yard and meet the following setback and bulk regulations:

      A.   Side yard setback: zoning district principal building side setback

      B.   Rear yard setback: 10 ft

      C.   Separation from all other structures: 10 ft

      D.   Maximum building footprint: 650 sq ft, or the footprint of the principal structure, whichever is lesser

      E.   Maximum height: 15 ft, or higher if allowed via special use permit under the Zoning Ordinance requirements for accessory structures

   6.   ADUs shall be residential in character with similar architectural features as the principal building.

   7.   No mobile home, trailer, recreational vehicle, camper, tent or other similar temporary dwelling shall be permitted or utilized as an accessory dwelling unit.

   8.   ADUs must be provided with one additional parking spot to that required for residential dwellings.

   9.   ADUs shall be subjected to the same building codes and inspection protocols as principal buildings.

   10.   All ADUs shall have connections to all public utilities. ADUs may be permitted to connect to the utility service lines of the principal dwelling.

   11.   Home occupations shall not be conducted in ADUs by the occupant of the principal dwelling.

   12.   The owner of an accessory dwelling unit is responsible for addressing the stormwater conditions of their property and ensuring that no adverse stormwater conditions arise on neighboring property as a result of ADU construction. Grading of stormwater drainage corridors and easement areas shall not be encumbered by construction of an ADU.

   13.   This ordinance shall be issued to the builder of an ADU along with the approved permit and require a signature of receipt.

No solar energy system (SES) shall be installed within the City of Norwalk without first obtaining a building permit. The following criteria will be applied consistently to all solar energy system applicants that request a permit:

   1.   Engineer Certification: Applications for any SES shall be accompanied by standard drawings of the receiving structure if newly constructed, including the supporting frame and footings. For systems to be mounted on existing buildings an engineering analysis showing sufficient structural capacity of the receiving structure to support the SES per the applicable code regulations, certified by an Iowa licensed professional engineer shall be submitted.

   2.   Color: The SES shall be a neutral color. All surfaces shall be nonreflective to minimize glare. Measures to minimize glare may be required including modifying the surface material, placement or orientation of the system, and if necessary, adding screening to block glare.

   3.   Building Mounted SES shall adhere to the following requirements:

      A.   Location: Placement of building mounted SES shall adhere to all local building and fire codes.

      B.   Height:

         (1)   The SES panel surface and mounting system shall not extend higher than eighteen (18) inches above the roof surface of a sloped roof.

         (2)   The SES must match roof slope whenever possible.

      C.   Design: The SES shall be designed to minimize its visual presence to surrounding properties. SES panels shall be placed in a consistent manner without gaps unless necessary to accommodate vents, skylights, or equipment.

   4.   Ground Mounted SES shall not be allowed on any property within the City.

Any person violating any provision of this chapter or any rule or regulation adopted herein by reference shall be guilty of a municipal infraction and subject to a civil penalty as set forth in Chapter 4 of this Code of Ordinances.