For the purposes of this ordinance, certain terms or words used herein shall be interpreted as follows:

The word "person" includes a firm, association, organization, partnership, trust, company or corporation as well as an individual.

The present tense includes the future tense, the singular number includes the plural, the plural number includes the singular.

The word "shall" is mandatory, the word "may" is permissive.

The word "used" or "occupied" includes the words "intended," "designed" or "arranged to be used or occupied."

The word "lot" includes the word "plot" or "parcel."

Accessory use or structure. A use or structure on the same lot with and of a nature customarily incidental and subordinate to the principal use or structure.

Administrative official. The administrative official shall be the town manager or his/her designee.

Alcoholic beverage establishment. A commercial establishment wherein alcoholic beverages are sold and served for consumption on the premises, excluding full-service restaurants.

Bed and breakfast establishment. A single family dwelling in which lodging or lodging and meals are offered to the general public for compensation, offering no more than five bedrooms for lodging purposes.

Boutique. Boutiques are those small retail shops having floor space of 1,200 square feet or less with hours of operation within the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 9:00 p.m. and which sell antiques, arts, art objects, decorative accessories, art and craft supplies, clothing, flowers and plants, jewelry and similar items. The town board of adjustment shall determine whether or not a specific use falls within this definition.

Building official. The assistant town manager.

Commercial services. A business in which the primary occupation is the rendering of services to persons and/or businesses rather than the sale of products, including but not limited to electricians, plumbers, repair services, installation services, general contractors, cleaning services without bulk storage of chemical cleaning materials, and businesses providing similar commercial services. Commercial services may include, as an accessory use only, retail sales of items related to the services being provided.

Conditional use. A use listed as such in this ordinance and which may be permitted in a specified district under certain conditions to be determined in each case by the terms of this ordinance and by the mayor and council of the Town of Smyrna after public hearing and report by the planning commission in accordance with the procedures specified in this ordinance in section 6.16 [6.15] and applicable Delaware state laws.

Day care centers and nursery schools. A facility which provides a daytime care and/or instruction to children and operates on a regular or seasonal basis.

Density, maximum gross. The maximum number of individual dwelling units permitted per acre in a subdivision, calculated by dividing the total number of dwelling units in the subdivision by the total acreage of the subdivision tract (including all undevelopable areas).

Development. Any manmade change to improved or unimproved real estate, including but not limited to buildings or other structures, mining, dredging, filling, grading, paving, excavation or drilling operations.

Dwelling or Dwelling Unit. One or more rooms providing complete and all necessary living facilities for at least one person, which shall include, at a minimum, permanent cooking, sleeping, and bathroom facilities with a separate interior or exterior entrance for each dwelling unit. A dwelling unit shall not include hotels, motels, or rooming or boarding houses.

Dwelling Unit, Accessory (ADU). A residential dwelling unit located on the same lot as or incorporated within a one-family dwelling (single-family detached dwelling). Accessory dwellings may be located within an existing one-family dwelling, as an addition to an existing one-family dwelling, or within an accessory structure constructed on or before July 1, 2022.

Dwelling, one-family. A detached dwelling on a permanent foundation designed for or occupied by one family only. Also referred to as a Single-Family Dwelling or Single-Family Detached Dwelling.

Dwelling, two-family. A detached dwelling on a permanent foundation designed for or occupied by two families only, with separate housekeeping and cooking facilities for each.

Dwelling, semidetached. A one-family dwelling on a permanent foundation with one wall in common with only one adjacent dwelling.

Dwelling, townhouse. A single family dwelling in a row of at least three such units in which each unit has its own front and rear access to the outside, no unit is located over another unit, and each unit is separated from any other unit by one or more vertical common fire-resistant walls with separate housekeeping and cooking facilities for each.

Dwelling, apartment. A dwelling which contains three or more single family dwelling units within a building that are separated only by horizontal floors or by a combination of horizontal floors and vertical walls with separate housekeeping and cooking facilities for each.

Family day care home. An occupied residence in which a person provides day care for any child or children other than his or her own immediate family members. Such care in a family day care home is limited to that care given to six or less children, including preschool children living in the home and preschool children of close relatives cared for in the home.

Fill. Any nonstructural composition which is used to artificially alter the contours of the original land surface.

Financial institution. Any establishment wherein the primary occupation is concerned with such state regulated businesses as banking, savings and loans, loan companies and investment companies.

Flood or flooding.

a.

A general and temporary condition of partial or complete inundation of normally dry land areas from:

(1)

The overflow of inland or tidal waters;

(2)

The unusual and rapid accumulation or runoff of surface waters from any source;

(3)

Mud slides (i.e., mud flows) which are proximately caused or precipitated by accumulations of water on or under the ground.

b.

The collapse or subsidence of land along the shore of a lake or other body of water as a result of erosion or undermining caused by waves or currents of water exceeding anticipated cyclical levels or suddenly caused by an unusually high water level in a natural body of water, accompanied by a severe storm, or by an unanticipated force of nature, such as flash flood or an abnormal tidal surge, or by some similarly unusual and unforeseeable event which results in flooding as defined in (a)(1) of this section.

Flood hazard area. Any area within the town identified as having some probability of flooding by the National Flood Insurance Program.

Flood, 100-year. The flood having a one percent chance of being equalled or exceeded in any given year.

Floodproofing. Any combination of structural and nonstructural additions, changes, or adjustments to structures which reduce or eliminate flood damage to real estate, improved real property, water and sanitary facilities, structures and their contents.

Floodway, regulatory. The channel of a river or other watercourse and the adjacent land areas that must be reserved in order to discharge the base flood without cumulatively increasing the water surface elevation more than a designated height.

Floor area. The sum of the gross horizontal areas of the several floors of the building or buildings on a lot measured from the exterior walls or from the centerline of party walls separating two buildings, excluding cellar and basement areas only for storage or for the operation and maintenance of the building.

Floor, habitable. Any floor usable for living purposes, which includes working, sleeping, eating, cooking or recreation, or a combination thereof. A floor used only for storage purposes is not a habitable floor.

General retail business. Establishments engaged in the selling or rental of goods or merchandise directly to the public, including services incidental to the sale of such goods and merchandise. The establishment may process or manufacture some of the products, such as a jeweler or bakery, but such processing or manufacturing is incidental to the selling activities.

Please note: General retail business establishments shall not include motor vehicle sales and service uses.

Hazardous waste or material. Any waste or material which, because of its quantity, concentration of physical, chemical or infectious characteristics may:

1.

Cause or significantly contribute to an increase in mortality or an increase in serious irreversible or incapacitating reversible illness; or

2.

Pose a substantial present or potential hazard to human health or to the environment when improperly treated, stored, transported, disposed of or otherwise managed.

Home occupation. An occupation or profession which:

(a)

Is customarily carried on in a dwelling or in a building or other structure accessory to a dwelling.

(b)

Is carried on by a member of the family residing in the dwelling with not more than one assistant.

(c)

Is clearly incidental and secondary to the use of the dwelling for residential purposes.

(d)

Must maintain the residential character of the structure.

(e)

Does not display goods, store a stock in trade, or sell commodities on the premises.

In particular, a home occupation includes but is not limited to the following:

Art studio.

Dressmaking.

Professional office of a physician, dentist, lawyer, engineer, architect or certified public accountant within a dwelling occupied by the same.

However, a home occupation shall not be interpreted to include the following:

Barbershops and beauty parlors;

Real estate offices;

Restaurants;

provided further, however, that a barbershop or beauty parlor limited to one chair and otherwise coming within the definition of a "home occupation" may be permitted if approved by the board of adjustment as a special exception pursuant to section 9, 2 of this ordinance. For purposes of this section, a "one-chair barbershop or beauty parlor" shall mean a one-operator shop with not more than one chair for washing, one chair for styling and not more than two chairs for drying.

Institutions. Any building or open area used only by an educational, religious, medical, charitable philanthropic or other essentially nonprofit organization, either public or private.

Junkyard. A lot, land, or structure, or part thereof used primarily for collecting, storage or sale of wastepaper, rags, scrap metal, or discarded material; or for the collecting, dismantling, storage or salvaging of machinery or vehicles not in running condition or for the sale of parts thereof.

Large scale indoor entertainment use. Cocktail lounge, bar, billiard parlor and/or similar place of indoor entertainment exceeding 6,000 square feet and/or serving alcoholic beverages and/or offering live entertainment, excluding movie theaters.

Libraries, museums. Public or quasi-public facilities, examples of which include: aquariums, arboretums, art galleries and exhibitions, botanical gardens, historic sites and exhibits, libraries, museums, observatories, planetariums, and zoos. May also include accessory retail uses such as a gift/book shop or a restaurant. Line, front. Any property line which separates a lot from a street right-of-way.

Line, side. Any property line which separates a lot from an adjoining lot or an alley and which extends from a street right-of-way to a rear line, another side line, or another street right-of-way.

Line, rear. Any property line which separates a lot from an adjoining lot or an alley and which extends from one line to another.

Lodging: A building or group of buildings containing individual rooms or suites of rooms, each having a private bathroom, for the purpose of providing overnight lodging facilities to the general public for compensation with or without meals, and which has common facilities for reservations and cleaning services and on-site management. Includes hotels and motels.

Lot. For zoning purposes, as covered by this ordinance, a lot is 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 spaces as are herein required. Such lot shall have frontage on an improved public street and may consist of:

(a)

A single lot of record;

(b)

A portion of a lot of record;

(c)

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;

(d)

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.

Lot frontage. The front of a lot shall be construed to be the portion nearest the street. For the purpose of determining yard requirements of corner lots and through lots, all sides of a lot adjacent to streets shall be considered frontage, and yards shall be provided as indicated under Yards in this section.

Lot measurements.

(a)

Depth of a lot shall be considered to be the distance between the midpoints of straight lines connecting the foremost points of the side lot lines in front and the rearmost points of the side lot lines in the rear.

(b)

Width of a lot shall be considered to be the distance between straight lines connecting front and rear lot lines at each side of the lot, measured across the rear of the required front yard, provided however that width between side lot lines at their foremost points (where they intersect with the street line) shall not be less than 80 percent of the required lot width except in the case of lots on the turning circle of culs-de-sac, where the 80-percent requirement shall not apply.

Lot of record. A lot which is part of a subdivision recorded in the office of the county recorder of deeds, or a lot or parcel described by metes and bounds, the description of which has been so recorded.

Major site plan. Any nonresidential use including new construction or addition which exceeds 3,500 sq. ft. shall require plans as described in section 7.5 of this ordinance. Review of site plans will be conducted by the planning commission at a regularly scheduled meeting.

Mean sea level. The average height of the sea for all stages of the tide.

Minor site plan. Any nonresidential use including new construction or additions under 3,500 sq. ft. shall not require plans as in section 7.5 of this ordinance unless required by the administrative official. The administrative official shall approve, conditionally approve or refer minor site plans to the planning commission.

Mixed-use building. Any structure with a commercial use that is used simultaneously for residential purposes. The commercial use must (a) occupy at least 30 percent of the total floor area of the mixed-use building, (b) be specifically authorized in and receive the same approvals required in the underlying zoning district, and (c) include, at a minimum, a useable portion of the first floor of the structure that fronts the public right-of-way.

Mobile home. A structure that: (a) is not constructed in accordance with the standards set forth in the Town of Smyrna building code; and (b) is composed of one or more components, each of which was substantially assembled in a manufacturing plant and designed to be transported to the home site on its own chassis.

Offices. Premises available for the transaction of general business and services including but not limited to professional, management, financial, legal, health, social, or government offices, but excluding retail, artisan, and manufacturing uses.

Offices, small. Small offices are those business offices with 1,200 square feet or less of floor space with hours of operation within the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 9:00 p.m. and which serve as an office or studio for artists, craftsmen, composers, and the like; barber and beauty shops; funeral homes; or as offices for business and professional purposes.

Outdoor advertising business. Provision of outdoor displays or display space on a lease or rental basis only.

Parking space, off-street. An off-street parking space shall comprise not less than 180 square feet per parking stall plus necessary maneuvering space. Space for maneuvering incidental to parking or unparking shall not encroach upon any public way. Every off-street parking space shall be accessible from a public way. Off-street parking spaces for single-family residential dwelling units and for manufacturing development shall be paved with sufficient stone aggregate, hot mix or concrete to support the vehicular traffic for which it is designed to handle. Off-street parking spaces for multifamily dwelling units, two-family dwelling units, apartment dwelling units and all commercial developments shall be paved with hot mix or concrete to a sufficient thickness to support the traffic for which it is designed to handle.

Permitee. The individual or entity that owns an Alcoholic Beverage Establishment and to whom a Conditional Use approval to operate an Alcoholic Beverage Establishment has been granted.

Personal services. The primary occupation is the repair, care of, maintenance or customizing of personal properties that are worn or carried about the person or are a physical component of the person. Personal service establishments shall include, but need not be limited to, the following:

1.

Barber shops and beauty salons.

2.

Establishments in which massage is administered to the upper body of a fully clothed client while seated in a chair and/or to the scalp, face, neck, shoulders, arms, hands and or feet. Also referred to herein as massage parlors.

3.

Laundries/laundromats which provide self-service type washing, drying and ironing facilities for the use of retail customers.

4.

Cleaning pickup stations, which are establishments where there is no on-site cleaning of garments, articles or goods of fabric and the use consists of drop off and pickup by customers of such articles that are sent to another location for cleaning.

5.

Tailors, dressmaking shops, shoe cleaning or repair shops, and other similar places of business.

Please note: Personal services do not include motor vehicle related services or body art establishments.

Potable water. That water that is satisfactory for drinking, culinary and domestic purposes, meeting current state and federal drinking water standards.

Private clubs and lodges. Any building which serves as a meeting place for a selected membership, together with recreation and dining facilities which are not open to the general public.

Professional office. The office of a person engaged in any occupation, vocation or calling, not purely commercial, mechanical or agricultural, in which a professed knowledge or skill in some department of science of learning often gained after intensive academic preparation is used by its practical application to the affairs of others, either by advising or guiding them in serving their interest or welfare through the practice of an act founded thereon. By way of example, and not limitation, a "professional office" would be an office in which professional services are rendered by licensed architects, certified or other public accountants, chiropodists, chiropractors, doctors of dentistry, doctors of medicine, optometrists, osteopaths, professional engineers and attorneys at law.

Residential conversion. A structure that has been modified or converted from a one-family dwelling to a two-family or multi-family dwelling.

Restaurant or café. An establishment whose function is the preparation and serving of food to patrons primarily on the premises, with carry-out facilities as a subordinate function.

Restaurant, full-service. A place which is regularly used and kept open for the serving of meals to guests for compensation which has: 1) suitable kitchen facilities; 2) a primary use of sit-down meal service to patrons; 3) adequate seating arrangements for patrons provided on the premises; 4) a restaurant license or brewery-pub license issued by the Delaware Alcoholic Beverage Control Commission, as applicable; 5) alcoholic beverages served for consumption on the premises are clearly incidental to the primary food services, as applicable. The sale or service of sandwiches and snack foods (whether prepared in a kitchen or made elsewhere) shall not constitute a full service restaurant.

Restaurant patios and sidewalk cafes. Decks, porches, or similar structures, whether covered or uncovered, raised or at grade, or the placing or locating of chairs and tables directly on sidewalks, used in connection with restaurants or cafes.

Riverine. Relating to, formed by, or resembling a river (including tributaries), stream, brook, etc.

Sanitary landfill. A disposal site where solid wastes, including putrescible wastes or hazardous wastes, are disposed of on land by placing earth cover thereon.

School bus stop shelter. A three-sided bus stop shelter, approved as a special exception use by the board of adjustment, meeting the following criteria: Placement, construction and set-up shall be approved by the town building official; however, no shelter shall be approved without documentation evidencing liability insurance coverage of at least $300,000.00, and a contractual obligation to maintain the shelter on, at least, a monthly basis. Approval shall also be obtained from the school which the students who utilize the shelter attend. Bus shelters shall not exceed the dimensions of eight feet wide × ten feet deep and shall not exceed the height of eight and one-half feet. Any bus shelter so constructed shall have a minimum setback of five feet from the street line, and no shelter shall be erected within 25 feet of the right-of-way line of an intersection with another street. Anything in this ordinance to the contrary notwithstanding, up to two signs may be display on any school bus shelter, which signs may be displayed only on the sides thereof. The sign area shall not exceed 32 square feet per sign (per side). Such signs shall also be in accordance with all other provisions of the town Code.

Setback line, building or structure. The interior line of the required yard space on a lot.

Small office. Small offices are those business offices with 1,200 square feet or less of floor space with hours of operation within the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 9:00 p.m. and which serve as an office or studio for artists, craftsmen, composers and the like; barber and beauty shops, funeral homes; or as offices for business and professional purposes.

Street line. The right-of-way line of a street.

Structure. 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, mobile homes, walls, fences, billboards, and poster panels.

Structure (supplementing). For floodplain management purposes, a walled and roofed building, including a gas or liquid storage tank, that is principally above ground, as well as a mobile home.

Substantial improvement. Any repair, reconstruction or improvement of a structure, the cost of which equals or exceeds 50 percent of the market value of the structure either (a) before the improvement or repair is started, or (b) if the structure has been damaged and is being restored, before the damage occurred. For the purpose of this definition, substantial improvement is considered to occur when the first alteration of any wall, ceiling, floor, or other structural part of the building commences, whether or not that alteration affects the external dimensions of the structure. The term does not, however, include either (1) any project for improvement of a structure to comply with existing state or local health, sanitary or safety code specifications which are solely necessary to assure safe living conditions or (2) any alteration of a structure listed on the National Register of Historic Places or a state inventory of historic places.

Theater. An indoor facility for group entertainment, other than sporting events. Examples of these facilities include civic theaters, facilities for live concerts and movie theaters.

Truck stop. A facility intended to provide services to the trucking industry including but not limited to the dispensing of fuel, repair shops, truck washing facilities, restroom and showering facilities, restaurant facilities, and overnight or long-term parking of tractors and trailers.

Truck terminal. A building, structure or place where trucks or transports are rented, leased, kept for hire, or stand or park for remuneration, or from which trucks or transports, stored or parked on the property, are dispatched for hire as common carriers or where goods are stored temporarily for further shipment.

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

Water surface elevation. The projected heights in relation to mean sea level reached by floods of various magnitudes and frequencies in the floodplains of coastal or riverine areas.

Wellhead. The upper terminal of a well, including adapters, ports, seals, valves and other attachments.

Wellhead protection area. The surface and subsurface area surrounding a water well or well field supplying a public water system through which contaminants are reasonably likely to move toward and reach such well or well field.

Yard. The required open space, unoccupied and unobstructed by any structure or portion of a structure on any lot measured horizontally from the lot line to the building setback line and measured vertically from the ground to the sky.

Yard, front. There shall be a front yard along each front line between the sidelines extending inward to a line separated from the front line by a dimension equal to the required front yard dimension.

Yard, side. There shall be a side yard along each sideline extending its entire length from the rear of the front yard, extending inward to a line separated from the sideline by a dimension equal to the required side yard dimension.

Yard, rear. There shall be a rear yard along each rear line between the inner side yard lines, extending inward to a line separated from the rear line by a dimension equal to the required side yard dimension.

Year [yard], rear on corner lots. In the case of a corner lot in a residential district with no rear lines as herein defined, the shorter of the remaining side lines shall be treated as a rear line. Where the lines are of equal length, any may be selected.

(Ord. of 9-21-92; Ord. of 4-19-93, § 1; Ord. of 8-16-93(2), § 8; Ord. of 8-16-93(3), § 1; Ord. of 7-20-98(7), § 2; Ord. of 4-15-02(2), § 1; Ord. of 5-20-02, § 1; Ord. No. 001-08, § 5, 1-7-08; Ord. No. 010-10, § 3, 5-17-10, eff. 6-2-2010; Ord. No. 018-14, § 4, 12-1-14; Ord. No. 020-14, §§ 10, 11, 12-15-14; Ord. No. 021-14, §§ 4, 5, 1-20-15; Ord. No. 004-19, § 12, 4-15-19; Ord. No. 009-19, § 10, 12-2-19; Ord. No. 020-21, § 2, 11-15-21; Ord. No. 022-21, § 4, 12-6-21; Ord. No. 018-22, § 1, 10-17-22; Ord. No. 010-23, § 2, 5-15-23)

Cross reference— Definitions generally, § 1-2.