St Mary Parish City Zoning Code

The purpose of this Chapter is to define what the words mean and establish the methodologies for the calculations and measurements that are required by this UDC.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

The definitions, calculations, and measurements of this Chapter shall be used wherever they are called for in this UDC.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Blocks shall be measured along a side of a street between two intersecting streets, or if the street is of a dead-end type, a block shall be considered to be measured between the nearest intersecting street and the end of such dead-end street.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Lot Frontage shall be measured along the line of the street, or if the street is dead-ended, then all of the property abutting on one side between an intersecting street and the dead-end of the street.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Site Grades shall be calculated as the average elevation of the highest and lowest elevations measured at the finished surface of the ground at any of the exterior corners of the building or structure.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Height of Buildings or Structures means:

1. Method of Measurement. The height of a building or structure shall be measured from the average ground level abutting a building or structure, in vertical distance to the highest point of the coping of a flat roof, the deck line of a mansard roof, or the average height of the highest gable of a pitched or hipped roof.
2. Story Equivalents. Height, where not regulated in feet, shall be regulated in stories, which shall equal 12 feet for purposes of measuring structures.
3. Properties in the 100-Year Floodplain. The height of structures within the Federal Emergency Management Agency's (FEMA's) 100-year flood plain shall be measured from the 100-year flood elevation, as certified by a licensed professional engineer or professional land surveyor.
4. Manufactured Home. The average height of a manufactured home shall be calculated at 90 degrees to the frame.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Lot Width shall be measured side lot lines in a horizontal manner, measured at right angles to the lot depth at a point midway between the front and rear lot lines.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Setback shall be measured between the building line and the front, side, corner, or rear property line in a horizontal manner. Required setback dimensions shall be measured from the property line to the outside wall of the structure, not to include normal eave projections of 30 inches or less.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Required Yards measurements

1. Required Corner Yard. Corner yards shall be measured along the street right-of-way along the side of the lot extending from the front lot line to the rear lot line.

2. Required Front Yard. Rear yards shall be across the front of a lot between the side lot lines, and being the required minimum horizontal distance between the street right-of-way and the main building or any projections thereof, other than the projections of the usual uncovered steps. The required front yard line represents the line in front of which no building or structure may be erected. On corner lots, the front yard shall be considered as parallel to the street upon which the lot has its least dimension.

3. Required Rear Yard. Rear yards shall be measured across the full width of the lot and lying between the rear lot line and the nearest line of the building. Rear yard depth shall be measured at right angles to the rear line of the lot.

4. Required Side Yard. Side yards shall be measured between any building and the side lot line, extending from the front yard to the rear yard. The width of the required side yard shall be measured horizontally from the nearest point of the side lot line to the nearest point of the building.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Maximum Building Coverage shall be calculated around the outside of the building or structure at ground level.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

1. Single-Family Detached means dwelling units that are:
   1. Located in individual buildings that are constructed on:
      1. Individual lots; or
      2. Land that is designated as a limited common element in a declaration of condominium;
   2. Separated from each other by outside walls; and
   3. Intended for the use of a single housekeeping unit.
2. Single-Family Attached means:
   1. Two or more dwelling units that are designed so that individual units have individual ground-floor access and are separated from each other by unpierced common walls from foundation to roof (e.g., side-by-side duplexes and all types of townhomes); or
   2. Two dwelling units that are designed so that individual units:
      1. May or may not have individual exterior doors, but provide no direct access between the first floor and second floor unit (access may be through a common interior foyer that provides access to both units or through separate exterior doors); and
      2. Are separated from each other by a floor (e.g., over-under duplexes).
3. Multiple-family means buildings that contain three or more dwelling units that are accessed by from interior elevators or hallways, or from individual exterior entrances; and are separated by interior walls and/or floors. Multiple-family does not include boarding houses, dormitories, fraternities, sororities, bed and breakfast establishments, single-family attached, or hotels and motels.
4. Manufactured Home means a factory-built, residential dwelling unit constructed to standards and codes, as promulgated by the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), under the National Manufactured Housing Construction and Safety Standards Act of 1974, 42 U.S.C. §5401 et seq., as amended. Further, the terms "manufactured home" and "manufactured housing" may be used interchangeably and apply to structures bearing the permanently affixed seal of the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development or to factory-built, residential dwellings that are mounted on a chassis.
5. Single-Family Detached Cluster means a development of single-family detached dwelling units that are arranged to provide common open spaces, sized according to minimum open space ratios that are established by this UDC.
6. Conservation or Preservation Subdivision mean forms of single-family detached cluster development with greater open space requirements.
7. Mixed Housing Neighborhood means a residential neighborhood that contains a mix of housing types.
8. Traditional Neighborhood Development (TND) means development that consists of a variety of residential lot sizes and more than one housing type, along with neighborhood supportive nonresidential development, designed so that its internal streets tend to give equal or greater dignity to the pedestrian compared to the automobile.
9. Community Homes means a living option, certified, licensed, or monitored by the Department of Health and Hospitals, where six or fewer people with developmental disabilities reside.
10. Live-Work Units means a dwelling unit that provides space that is designed for one or more commercial uses that are permitted in the zoning district. Access between the dwelling unit and the commercial space is provided within the unit.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

1. Home Occupation is an accessory use of a residential dwelling unit for any service, professional, or art occupation that is conducted in the residence, but does not change the essential character of the residential use. Home occupations may involve visits by customers and clients on a "by appointment only" basis. Examples of home occupations include, but are not limited to: small appliance or computer repair, and professional services or counseling provided to more than one person at a time within the home, Home occupations are further defined by the requirements set out in Section 1.4.3, Home Occupations.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

1. Cemetery means any place, including a mausoleum, niche, or crypt, in which there is provided space either below or above the surface of the ground for the interment of the remains of human bodies.
2. College / University / Vo-Tech means a community college, college, university, vocational / technical school, trade school, language school, business school, training center, beauty school, culinary school, and comparable advanced or continuing education facilities. The phrase does not include music schools, fitness centers, sports instruction, swimming instruction, or martial arts instruction (See Section 9.3.4, Commercial Uses, subsection M., Services).
3. Hospitals means hospitals, walk-in clinics, birthing centers, and medical laboratories, including general medical and surgical hospitals and specialty hospitals. The term “hospitals” does not mean alcoholism or drug rehabilitation facilities, nor does it mean medical offices where patients are generally seen by appointment.
4. Institutional Residential means institutional housing combined with common food service, nursing, counseling, health care, or comparable services, but does not include assisted living facilities, congregate care, nursing homes, or continuing care neighborhoods. The phrase "institutional residential" includes:
   1. Facilities, other than community homes, in which residents live in an institutional environment and are, generally, under the care or control of staff;
   2. In-patient drug and alcoholism hospitals and rehabilitation centers, in which residents have institutional care, or are treated by staff in an institutional setting, rather than living independently; and
   3. Any sheltered care, group care, community home, or residential substance abuse facility with more than six total occupants.
5. Place of Public Assembly means a place where the people assemble for civic, educational, cultural, or day care purposes. This use includes the following:
   1. Places of worship; theaters; conference centers;
   2. Cultural or arts centers; museums; and aquariums;
   3. Libraries;
   4. Pre-schools;
   5. Elementary, middle, and high schools;
   6. Adult day care; and
   7. Child care centers.
6. Private Club means organizations or associations of persons for some common purpose, such as a fraternal, social, educational or recreational purpose, but not including clubs organized primarily for-profit or to render a service which is customarily carried on as a business. Examples of private clubs include (but are not limited to) 4-H Clubs, veterans organizations, Boy Scout and Girl Scout facilities, Elks Lodges, YMCA, YWCA, private community clubhouses, golf clubhouses, and fraternities and sororities that do not include residential facilities. The phrase "private club" does not include organizations with a principal purpose of serving alcoholic beverages to its members or others.
7. Protective Care means housing where the residents are assigned to the facility and are under the protective care of the county, state, or federal government. This use includes: jails or prisons; work release; psychiatric hospitals; and comparable facilities.
8. Public Service uses include emergency service, buildings, or garages (e.g., ambulance, fire, police, rescue), and conservation agencies. (NAICS 62191, 92212, 92216).
9. Residential Eldercare Facilities means any one or combination of the following units types: assisted living, congregate care, continuing care, and/or nursing home facilities. Units are on the same parcel proposed for development, designed to provide progressively increasing levels of care to residents as their needs for such care increase.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

1. Agricultural Support and Other Rural Services means uses that support agricultural uses, including:
   1. Farm supply services and feed stores;
   2. Farm equipment dealers; and
   3. Crop storage and packing.
2. Alcoholic Beverage Sales means the retail sale of beer, wine, or other alcoholic beverages for on- or off-premises consumption, which:
   1. Requires one of the following types of licenses: retail liquor store license; brew pub license; or tavern license; or
   2. Requires a beer and wine license or vinter restaurant license, and more than 40 percent of the business's gross receipts are from the sale of beer and wine.
3. Car Wash means any area or business using, self-service, in-bay automatic, or conveyor equipment for cleaning and washing motor vehicles, whether as a part of another business operation (e.g., as an accessory use to light automobile service / gas station or vehicle sales, rental, and service), or as a standalone operation, of any type, on a commercial basis. The definition includes fleet and municipal in-bay automatic and conveyor vehicle wash facilities.
4. Commercial Lodging means places that offer overnight accommodations for short-term rental, including hotels and motels. The phrase "commercial lodging" also includes hotels that secondarily offer convention facilities; meeting rooms; or areas for ;meals, entertainment, and personal services, offered to the public for compensation. As such, it is open to the public in contradistinction to a boarding house, or an apartment, which are herein separately defined.
5. Commercial Retail means commercial and retail uses that do not include regular outside storage or sales. The phrase "commercial retail" includes uses that are comparable to the following:
   1. Furniture and home furnishings stores;
   2. Electronics and appliance stores;
   3. Paint and wallpaper stores;
   4. Hardware stores;
   5. Food and beverage stores;
   6. Health and personal care stores;
   7. Clothing and clothing accessory stores;
   8. Sporting goods, hobby, book, and music stores;
   9. General merchandise stores; and
   10. Miscellaneous store retailers.
6. Drive-in / Drive Through Facility means a facility used by an approved commercial retail or service use to provide service to customers in vehicles who either:
   1. Drive up to a window or station; or

   2. Drive through the building for purchases.

7. Heavy Retail means retail and/or service activities that have regular outside service or outside storage areas, exceptionally large floor areas, or partially enclosed structures, as listed below:

   1. Permanent retail operations that are located outside of enclosed buildings, except nurseries;
   2. Home centers;
   3. Lumber and other building materials;
   4. Lawn, garden equipment, and related supplies stores;
   5. Warehouse clubs and super stores;
   6. Recreational equipment rental where the equipment is stored outside;
   7. Heavy truck or recreational vehicle leasing or sales;
   8. Manufactured home sales; and
   9. Industrial or construction equipment leasing or sales.
8. Kennel means any building, establishment, place, or premises wherein any person engages in the boarding, breeding, buying, selling, letting for hire, or training for a fee, any canine or feline animal or animals, or wherein any person keeps, harbors, possesses, or maintains more than four dogs or four cats, or a combination of said animals, with the total number exceeding four over three months old.
9. Light Automobile Service means:
   1. The sale of motor fuel to passenger vehicles (a gasoline service station with, or without, a convenience store);
   2. Quick service oil, tune-up, brake, and muffler shops in which:
      1. Repairs are made in fully enclosed bays;
      2. Repairs are of a type that is typically completed in less than two hours (e.g., oil changes, brake service, tire rotation and balancing, glass repair, tire replacement, fluid checks and replacement, muffler service, spark plug replacement, and comparable services); and
      3. Vehicles are generally not stored on-site, and on the occasion when overnight storage is necessary, vehicles are stored indoors; or
   3. Any combination of 1. or 2., above.
10. Mixed Use means development in which a combination of residential and commercial uses (e.g., residential-over-retail), or several classifications of commercial uses (e.g., office and retail), are located on the same parcel proposed for development.
11. Office means uses in which professional, outpatient medical, or financial services are provided. The term includes:
    1. Accounting, auditing and bookkeeping;
    2. Advertising and graphic design;
    3. Architectural, engineering, and surveying services;
    4. Attorneys and court reporters;
    5. Banks, mortgage companies; and financial services;
    6. Call centers;
    7. Computer programming;
    8. Corporate headquarters;
    9. Counseling services;
    10. Data processing and word processing services;
    11. Detective agencies;
    12. Government offices;
    13. Insurance;
    14. Interior design;
    15. Medical, dental, and chiropractic offices;
    16. Real estate sales;
    17. Research and development that does not include on-site manufacturing;
    18. Retail catalog, internet, and telephone order processing, but not warehousing; and
    19. Virtual office services.
12. Restaurant means an establishment that serves prepared meals to customers for consumption on-site or off-site, including, but not limited to a cafe, cafeteria, grill, pizza parlor, diner, snack shop, hamburger shop and steak or seafood house.
13. Services means commercial and personal services, such as:
    1. Copy centers;
    2. Social services, except those defined elsewhere in this UDC;
    3. Repair services and shops, except automobile, truck, large appliance, and heavy equipment repair;
    4. Health clubs, exercise studios, sports instruction, swimming instruction, martial arts schools, yoga studios, or dance instruction studios;
    5. Parcel service drop-off locations and mailbox services;
    6. Nail salons, beauty and barber shops, skin care, tanning salons, and day spas; and
    7. Laundry and dry-cleaning services, except dry cleaner processing plants that use petrochemical solvents.
14. Shopping Center means a group of retail, personal, or professional service establishments planned, developed, owned, or managed as a unit, with off-street parking provided on the property.
15. Vehicle Sales, Rental, and Service means uses that sell, rent and perform service on automobiles, light trucks, boats, and motorcycles. The phrase does not include auto body (e.g., collision repair), paint or upholstery services.
16. Veterinarian (Dogs, Cats, Exotic Pets) means veterinary clinics and hospitals that provide care for small domestic animals. The term does not include large animal and livestock veterinarians, which are classified as agricultural support and other rural services.

Effective on: 2/4/2014

1. Commercial Amusement, Indoor means uses that provide commercial amusement indoors (except adult uses or sexually oriented businesses), including but not limited to:
   1. Bowling alleys and pool rooms;
   2. Indoor sports arenas;
   3. Movie theaters and live theaters;
   4. Indoor skating rinks (ice or roller);
   5. Video arcades; and
   6. Shooting arcades.
2. Commercial Amusement, Outdoor means uses that provide commercial amusement outdoors (except adult uses or sexually oriented businesses), including but not limited to:
   1. Outdoor arenas or stadiums (including but not limited to amphitheaters, sports stadiums, concert facilities, rodeos, and racing facilities);
   2. Amusement parks or theme parks;
   3. Fairgrounds;
   4. Miniature golf establishments;
   5. Golf driving ranges;
   6. Water slides;
   7. Batting cages; and
   8. Shooting ranges.
3. Recreation, Indoor means uses that provide recreation opportunities indoors for the public (open to the community) or residents of a subdivision or development, which are not commercial in nature. Specifically excluded from the definition are health and exercise clubs and commercial amusement uses. The phrase "recreation, indoor" includes:
   1. Community recreation centers;
   2. Gymnasiums;
   3. Indoor swimming pools; or
   4. Tennis, racquetball, or handball courts.
4. Recreation, Outdoor means uses that provide recreation opportunities outdoors for the public (open to the community) or residents of a subdivision or development, which are not commercial in nature (except for golf courses, which may be commercial in nature). The phrase "recreation, outdoor" includes public areas for active or passive recreational activities including, but not limited to:
   1. Jogging, cycling, tot-lots, playing fields, playgrounds, outdoor swimming pools, and tennis courts;
   2. Golf courses (regardless of ownership or membership);
   3. Arboretums, wildlife sanctuaries, forests, and other natural areas which may be used for walking or hiking; or
   4. Other passive recreation-oriented parks, including picnic areas, and garden plots.
5. Adult Uses means:
   1. Any use of property available to the public, whether for profit or not, that:
      1. Involves nude or topless dancing;
      2. Predominantly advertises and offers material and/or items that depict and/or are generally used in sexual activity; or,
      3. Allows other similar activities that depict, describe, simulate, or relate to sexual activities.
   2. Not limiting the preceding, the phrase "adult use" shall also include any:
      1. Bookstore/shop in which the primary type of material offered is of a sexual nature;
      2. Motion picture arcade/motion picture theater in which the predominant type of material shown depicts sexual acts;
      3. Cabaret/lounge/night club in which the predominant attraction is nude or topless dancing;
      4. Health spa/sauna in which services of a sexual nature are offered to the public;
   3. Not limiting the preceding, and with respect to specific business types, the phrase "adult use" also includes, but is not limited to, any:
      1. Adult arcade;
      2. Adult bookstore or supply store;
      3. Adult cabaret, lounge, or night club;
      4. Adult health spa or sauna;
      5. Adult hotel or motel;
      6. Adult model studio;
      7. Adult motion picture theater;
      8. Adult novelty business;
      9. Adult outdoor motion picture theater;
      10. Escort agency;
      11. Lingerie Modeling Studio;
      12. Massage parlor;
      13. Sexual encounter center; or
      14. Any other sexually oriented business that offers its patrons services or entertainment that provide nude dancing or other live recording performances that depict, describe, or relate to “specified anatomical areas” or “specified sexual activities."
6. Campgrounds means a form of commercial lodging where guests bring tents, travel trailers, recreational vehicles (RVs), campers, or other similar forms of shelter. The campground rents pads to the guests. The term "campgrounds" also includes the phrase "RV Parks."

Effective on: 11/1/2013

1. Disposal means facilities for the disposal of non-nuclear waste or fill, or the composting of organic wastes. The term includes landfill and composting facility.
2. Extraction means uses that involve extraction of minerals and fossil fuels from the ground, including surface and subsurface mining and quarrying facility.
3. Heavy Industry means:
   1. Primary processing or manufacturing or repair operations not specifically defined elsewhere in this Section, which involve:
      1. An outside storage area that is larger than the area of the first floor of buildings on the same lot;
      2. A material risk of environmental contamination, explosion, or fire;
      3. Perceptible ground vibration;
      4. Excessive noise or dust;
      5. Emission of objectionable odors; or
      6. More than 12 trips by semi trailer trucks per day; or
   2. Petroleum Storage;
   3. Truck fueling and repair;
   4. Processing of minerals (except precious and semi-precious stone cutting for jewelry or precision instruments such as lasers or watches), ores, or fossil fuels; or
   5. Industries that are required to undergo New Source Review under the Federal Clean Air Act, or are subject to construction or operation permits pursuant to the Louisiana Stationary Sources Program or Title V of the Federal Clean Air Act;
   6. For illustrative purposes, heavy industrial uses include, but are not limited to:
      1. Coal cleaning plants with thermal dryers; coke oven batteries; carbon black plants (furnace process); petroleum refineries; petroleum storage and transfer units (except retail gasoline stations); and bulk fuel dealers;
      2. Facilities used in the primary or secondary production of metals (e.g., primary zinc, copper, or lead smelters; primary aluminum ore reduction plants; iron and steel mills; sintering plants; secondary metal production plants; and blacksmith shops);
      3. Portland cement plants;
      4. Sawmills and pulp mills;
      5. Incinerators with the capacity to charge more than 250 tons of refuse per day;
      6. Lime plants; phosphate rock processing plants; sulfur recovery plants; and hydrofluoric, sulfuric, or nitric acid plants;
      7. Fossil fuel combustion (boilers or electricity generation) totaling more than 250 million BTUs per hour of heat input;
      8. Fabrication of building materials such as countertops, drywall, and cut stone;
      9. Fabrication of vehicles, manufacturing equipment, durable goods, or pre-fabricated homes or home components;
      10. Auto or marine body, paint, or upholstery shops;
      11. Drycleaner processing plants that use PERC or comparable petrochemical solvents;
      12. Meat or seafood processing plants;
      13. Manufacture of glass products (e.g., window panes, bottles and jars), except hand-blown products;
      14. Manufacture of plastic products (except assembly of parts that are manufactured elsewhere);
      15. Plasma arc welding, cutting, gouging, surfacing, or spraying; gas welding (but not brazing); arc welding with equipment that is rated at more than 200 amps; TIG welding; and other heavy welding procedures (e.g., for structural steel, automotive body, or heavy equipment manufacture or repair);
      16. Hot mix asphalt plants;
      17. Regional wastewater utilities;
      18. Fossil fuel power plants, waste-to-energy plants, and biomass plants that produce more than 100 megawatts of electricity;
      19. Fossil fuel peaker power plants.
4. Light Industry means uses that involve research and development, assembly, compounding, packaging, testing, or treatment of products from previously prepared materials, with limited outside storage and limited external impacts or risks; or wholesale uses; or rental or sale of large items that are stored outside. For illustrative purposes, light industry and wholesale uses include:
   1. Assembly, testing, or refurbishing of products, instruments, electronics, office and computing machines, and fixtures from pre-manufactured components;
   2. Offices of general contractors, specialty subcontractors, or tradesmen which include:
      1. Bay door access to indoor storage of tools, parts, and materials;
      2. Parking of commercial vehicles; or
      3. Outdoor storage areas that are smaller than the area of the first floor of the building that are used for storage of materials or vehicles that are less than 12 feet in height.
   3. Communications facilities, except wireless telecommunications facilities;
   4. Data centers, server farms, telephone exchange buildings, and telecom hotels;
   5. Food production and packaging other than meat and seafood processing and restaurants;
   6. Furniture making or refinishing;
   7. Manufacture of textiles or apparel;
   8. Screen printing of apparel;
   9. Printing and publishing, except copy centers (which are commercial and personal services), and except printing presses that require a Stationary Source permit or Title V permit for air emissions (which are heavy industry);
   10. Wholesale trade, durable and non-durable, except:
       1. Farm products;
       2. Combustible or hazardous materials, and
       3. Wholesale clubs that are open to the public for membership;
   11. Research and development, scientific testing, and product testing;
   12. Manufacture or compounding of pharmaceutical products, dietary supplements, health and beauty products, and herbal products; and
   13. Packaging of products.
5. Recycling and Salvage means any land or structure used for collection, sorting, aggregation, and re-sale (or transfer) of recyclable materials or for the aggregate storage of inoperable man-made equipment, machinery, scrap, or other used or discarded materials having a total cubic volume of at least 700 cubic feet, for the purposes of recycling, re-using, or re-selling components. The phrase does not include "waste transfer stations," (even if they include a separate space for collection of recyclable materials), and does not include facilities where the materials are actually recycled into raw materials (such uses are typically heavy industry), but does include:
   1. Recycling centers;
   2. Composting facilities;
   3. Vehicle recycling or scrap metal processing; and
   4. Collection, dismantlement, storage, and salvage of inoperable vehicles, boats, trucks, farm vehicles or equipment, or other types of heavy machiner
6. Utilities, Community means a water, wastewater, or stormwater treatment facility that is designed to provide services to more than one square mile of land area; and the generation of not more than 500kW of electricity using wind energy conversion systems or ground-mounted photovoltaic arrays. The phrase "utilities, community" does not include the production of electricity using fossil, biomass, waste, or nuclear fuels, nor the storage of natural gas.
7. Utilities, Neighborhood means water, wastewater, or stormwater treatment facility that serves an area of one square mile or less; utility substations or lift stations; local utility distribution or collection facilities, including electric, gas, telephone, water, sewer, and stormwater; and the generation of not more than 250kW of electricity using wind energy conversion systems or ground-mounted photovoltaic arrays. The phrase “utilities, neighborhood” does not include the production of electricity using fossil, biomass, waste, or nuclear fuels, nor the storage of natural gas.

8. Warehousing and Transportation means warehousing and logistics facilities, except:

   1. Mini- or self-storage warehouses;
   2. Warehousing that is accessory to a manufacturing facility, occupying less than 25 percent of the total floor area of the facility; and
   3. Parcel service drop-off locations that are not accessory to a parcel service processing facility.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

1. Agricultural Use refers to the use of land where such land is devoted to the production of plants, animals, or horticulture products, including but not limited to forages; grains and feed crops; dairy animals and dairy products; poultry and poultry products; beef cattle; sheep; swine and horses; bees and apiary products; trees and forest products; fruits; nuts and berries; vegetables; or nursery, floral, ornamental and greenhouse products.
2. Commercial Stables means the stabling, training, feeding of horses, or the provision of riding facilities for the use of anyone other than the resident of the property. Equestrian trails that are constructed as part of the common open space of a subdivision and intended for the exclusive use of residents of the subdivision are not commercial stables.
3. Nursery or Greenhouse (Wholesale or Retail) means an enterprise that conducts the retail and/or wholesale sale of plants grown on the premises. The terms also include, as an accessory use, the sale of a limited selection of items (e.g., soil, planters, pruners, mulch, lawn or patio furniture, garden accessories, etc., but not power equipment) that are directly related to the care and maintenance of landscapes.
4. Animal Husbandry Projects means the keeping or raising of a calf, horse, goat, sheep, hog, chicken, rabbit, bird or other animal as part of a current and certified school, 4-H, Future Farmers of America (FFA), or similar sponsored organization project conducted primarily for educational purposes or school credits as allowed in the districts where the use is specified in Table 1.3.4, Industrial, Agricultural, and Special Uses, as an Agricultural Use.

Effective on: 3/12/2014

1. A.

   Airport means the Harry P. Williams Memorial Airport, located near Patterson (St. Mary Parish), Louisiana which could include aircraft take-off and landing fields and flight training schools; or airstrips for personal aircraft for the private use of an individual. The term "airport" also includes the term "heliport," which is any area used for the take-off and landing of helicopters that also includes passenger and cargo facilities, fueling, and emergency service facilities.

2. B.

   Landfill means a facility for the disposal of solid waste, other than landfarm(s) or surface impoundment(s), that disposes of solid waste by placing it on or into the land surface and usually also compacting and covering with suitable cover material to a depth and at a frequency sufficient to control disease vectors and odors and in a manner that protects human health and the environment.

3. C.

   Sanitary Landfill means a landfill for the disposal of commercial or residential solid waste by deposit in a landfill in layers covered with suitable cover material of a depth and at a frequency adequate to control disease vectors and odors, and in such a manner that minimizes the risk to human health and the environment. It is located, contoured, and designed so that it will not constitute a source of water pollution.

4. D.
   Solar Energy means radiant energy received from the sun that can be collected in the form of heat or light by the solar collector.
5. E.
   Solar Energy System means a device or structural design feature intended to provide for collection, storage, and distribution of solar energy for heating or cooling, electricity generation, or water heating.
6. F.
   Solar Farm means the use of land where a series of solar collectors and related equipment and accessories are placed in an area on a parcel of land for the purpose of generating photovoltaic power which has a generation capacity of at least 50 kilowatts (kW) direct current (dc) or more when operating at maximum efficiency. Solar farm shall not be interpreted to mean one or more solar collectors intended to provide electrical power generation for a single residential dwelling or commercial property.

(Ord. No. 2341, 06/14/2023) 

Effective on: 6/14/2023

1. For the purpose of this UDC, certain terms and words used herein shall be used, interpreted, and defined as set forth in this Chapter.
2. Unless the context clearly indicates to the contrary, words used in the present tense include the future tense; words used in the plural number include the singular; the word "herein" means "in these regulations" or "in this UDC"; the word "regulations" means "these regulations" or "this UDC."

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Abandonment means to cease or discontinue a use or activity without the intent to resume, but excluding temporary or short-term interruptions of a use, e.g., the change of tenancy or ownership, or activity during periods of remodeling, maintaining, or otherwise improving or rearranging a facility, or during normal periods of vacation or seasonal closure. A use is considered abandoned if the facts show the owner's intent to discontinue the use or activity and the discontinuance of the use continues for six months or more.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Accessory Building means a subordinate building having a use customarily incident to and located on the lot occupied by the principal building. A building housing an accessory use is considered to be an integral part of the principal building when it has any part of a wall in common with the principal building, or is under an extension of the main roof and designed as an integral part of the principal building.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Accessory Dwelling Unit means a building or group of rooms with a separate entrance, kitchen, sleeping area, and full bathroom facilities, which is a detached or attached extension to an principal single-family building. Accessory dwelling units are subordinate in size and scale to principal dwelling units, and may be subject to limitations on their configuration and floor area.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Accessory Structure means a structure which is on the same parcel of property as a principal use or building, the use of which is incidental to the use of the principal use or building (such as gazebos and carports).

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Accessory Use means a use of a building or land, which serves an incidental function to the principal use of a building or land. An accessory use is a subordinate use customarily incident to and located on the same lot occupied by the main use.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Accessory Use, Agriculture means an agricultural use or building that specifically supports the agriculture activity on the same farm or lot.

Effective on: 2/4/2014

Airport Board of Appeals means a board consisting of the members of the Board of Adjustment appointed by the Parish Council as prescribed by Section 386(c) of title 2 of the Louisiana Revised Statutes and as provided for in Division 4.5, Airport Board of Appeals.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Airport Elevation means the highest point of the airport's usable landing area measured in feet from mean sea level, specifically nine feet above mean sea level.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Alley means a minor public right-of-way not intended to provide for through traffic or as the primary means of access to abutting lots, which is used primarily for vehicular service access to the back or sides of properties otherwise abutting a street. An alley affords only a secondary means of access to property abutting thereon.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Alluvial Fan Flooding means flooding occurring on the surface of an alluvial fan or similar landform which originates at the apex and is characterized by high-velocity flows; active processes of erosion, sediment transport and deposition; and unpredictable flow paths.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Alteration, Structural means any change or rearrangement in the supporting members of a building or structure, such as bearing walls, columns, beams, or girders, as well as any change in doors or windows, or any enlargement or diminution of a building or structure, whether horizontally or vertically, or moving a building or structure from one location to another; provided, however, that applying exterior siding to an existing building for the purpose of beautifying and modernizing shall not be considered a structural alteration.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Apartment means a room or suite of rooms, with toilet and culinary accommodations, intended, designed, or used as a residence by a single family, located in a building containing three or more such rooms or suites.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Apex means a point on an alluvial fan or similar landform below which the flow path of the major stream that formed the fan becomes unpredictable and alluvial fan flooding can occur.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Approach Surface means for aircraft, a surface longitudinally centered on the extended runway centerline, extending outward and upward from the end of the primary surface and at the same slope as the approach zone height limitation slope set forth in Section 1.5.3, Height Limitations. In plan, the perimeter of the approach surface coincides with the perimeter of the approach zone. For helicopters, the approach surface begins at each end of the heliport primary surface with the same width as the primary surface and extends outward and upward for a horizontal distance of 4,000 feet where its width is 500 feet. The slope of the approach surface is eight to one.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Approach, Transitional, Horizontal, and Conical Zones means zones which apply to the areas under the approach, transitional, horizontal, and conical surfaces defined in Federal Aviation Regulations (FAR) Part 77, and as set forth in Section 1.5.2, Zone Types.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Area of Shallow Flooding means a designated AO, AH, or VO zone on a community's flood insurance rate map (FIRM) with a one percent chance or greater annual chance of flooding to an average depth of one to three feet where a clearly defined channel does not exist, where the path of flooding is unpredictable and where velocity flow may be evident. Such flooding is characterized by ponding or sheet flow.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Area of Special Flood Hazard is the land in the floodplain within a community subject to a one percent or greater chance of flooding in any given year. The area may be designated as zone A on the flood hazard boundary map (FHBM). After detailed ratemaking has been completed in preparation for publication of the FIRM, zone A usually is refined into zones A, AE, AH, AO, A1-99, VO, V1-30, VE or V.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Area Regulations means the regulations controlling lot area, lot width, lot depth, front yard, side yard, rear yard, lot coverage and floor-area ratio.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Base Flood means the flood having a one percent chance of being equaled or exceeded in any given year.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Basement means any area of the building having its floor subgrade (below ground level) on all sides.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Block means a tract of land bounded by streets, or by a combination of streets and public parks, cemeteries, railroad rights-of-way, shorelines of waterways, or boundary lines of municipalities.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Bond means any form of security including a cash deposit, surety bond, collateral, property, or instrument of credit in an amount and form satisfactory to the governing body. All bonds shall be approved by the governing body wherever a bond is required by this UDC.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Breakaway Wall means a wall that is not part of the structural support of the building and is intended through its design and construction to collapse under specific lateral loading forces, without causing damage to the elevated portion of the building or supporting foundation system.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Building means any structure designed or built for the support, enclosure, shelter, or protection of persons, animals, or property of any kind. When separated by a firewall, each portion of such structure so separated shall be deemed a separate building. This definition shall include structures wholly or partly enclosed with an exterior wall.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Building Coverage means the percent of lot area, which is covered by a roof, floor or other structure and is not open to the sky. Roof eaves to the extent of 30 inches and the ordinary projections from the building not exceeding 12 inches shall not be counted in computing coverage.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Building Line means a line parallel or approximately parallel to the street right-of-way at a specified distance therefrom, marking the minimum distance from the street right-of-way that a building may be erected. For existing buildings, the building line shall be the exterior wall or omitted wall line, which is closest to the street.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Building Setback means that area between a lot line and the respective setback line, which shall remain unobstructed by buildings or structures from the ground to the sky, except as may be specifically permitted by other provisions of this UDC.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Bunkhouses means that portion or unit of any housing accommodation, structure, project or premises, including a mobile home, manufactured home and modular home, which is occupied on a temporary, seasonal, or permanent basis by a total of four or more laborers or workers who are employed by the same or different employers, who live together on the same premises and who are quartered together on such premises by the employers, whether or not such premises is maintained in connection with any work or workplace.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Centerline, Street or Alley means a line designated midway between the bounding right-of-way lines of a street or alley. Where the bounding right-of-way lines are irregular, the centerline shall be determined by the Director.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Central Sewerage [Sewer] System means a community sewer system including collection and treatment facilities established by the subdivider and privately owned to serve a new subdivision in an outlying area.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Certificate of Occupancy means a certificate issued by the Parish for the use of a building, structure, or land, when it is determined by it that such building, structure or land complies with the provisions of this UDC and all other applicable Parish codes, ordinances, and regulations.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Coastal High Hazard Area means an area of special flood hazard extending from offshore to the inland limit of a primary frontal dune along an open coast and any other area subject to high velocity wave action from storms or seismic sources.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Collector Street means a street that functions as a traffic service and land access. Its principal service is oriented to intermediate and short distance travel and to provide access to connecting local streets.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Commercial Districts refer to zoning districts "NC" Neighborhood Commercial, "GC" General Commercial and "HC" Highway Commercial.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Composting Facility means a facility where organic matter is processed by natural or mechanical means to aid the microbial decomposition of the organic matter.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Condominium means a single-family attached dwelling unit with party walls located within a development and having individual ownership in fee simple of the unit only. Each unit is located on a site that is owned in common with other purchasers of the common elements of the structure, including the land, improvements and appurtenances.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Condominium Apartment Structure means a structure containing four or more apartments wherein the airspace within the apartment is individually owned by the occupant, together with the right of access and required automobile parking space, and where the lot upon which the building is located is under single ownership.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Conical Surface means a surface extending outward and upward from the periphery of the horizontal surface at a slope of 20 to 1 for a horizontal distance of 4,000 feet.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Construction/Demolition Debris means nonhazardous waste generally considered not water-soluble, including but not limited to metal, concrete, brick, asphalt, roofing materials (shingles, sheet rock, plaster), or lumber from a construction or demolition project, but excluding asbestos-contaminated waste, white goods, furniture, trash, or treated lumber. The admixture of construction and demolition debris with more than five percent by volume of paper associated with such debris or any other type of solid waste (excluding woodwaste or yard waste) will cause it to be classified other than construction/demolition debris.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Convalescent Home/Nursing and Convalescent Hospital refers to any place or institution which provides 24-hour care for one or more chronic or convalescent patients, who, by reason of illness or physical infirmity, are unable to properly or adequately care for themselves.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Critical Feature means an integral and readily identifiable part of a flood protection system, without which the flood protection provided by the entire system would be compromised.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Crosswalk means a servitude through or across any portion of a block used primarily by pedestrian traffic.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Cul-de-sac means a local street with only one outlet and having an appropriate terminal for the safe and convenient reversal of traffic movement.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Density means the relationship of dwelling units or rooms to the area of the lot or tract upon which a residential structure is located or erected.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Department, where not used in reference to a specific department (e.g., "Department of Public Works"), means the Department of Planning and Zoning (or title as amended).

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Detached means that a building does not have a wall in common or in contact with another building.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Developer means any person, firm, corporation or any agent thereof, who develops or proposes to develop land for rental or lease purposes, or for the sale and transfer of an undivided interest in the title of the land to be developed, which land is either owned, optioned or otherwise under his control.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Development means the division of land into two or more parcels; construction, reconstruction, conversion, structural alteration, relocation, or enlargement of any structure; any mining, dredging, filling, grading, paving, excavation or drilling operations, or storage of equipment or materials, or land disturbance. Development can also mean parcels of land for rental or lease purposes in which there will be no transfer of title or transfer of an undivided interest in the title of the land, and/or no streets, passage ways or utility servitudes are dedicated to public use. These developments are those commonly associated with apartment complexes, condominiums, camp sites, manufactured home parks and shopping centers.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Director, where not used in reference to a specific department (e.g., "Director of Public Works"), means the Director of Planning and Zoning (or title as amended) for the Parish of St. Mary, State of Louisiana, or designee thereof, and whose duties include administration and enforcement of this UDC.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Director of Public Works means the head of the Department of Public Works (or name as amended) for the Parish of St. Mary, State of Louisiana, and whose duties include decision-making authority over specific sections of this UDC and providing technical support to the Director.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Dirt Pit which can include sand pits and other similar excavation means an excavation from which extracted dirt, clay, sand or gravel is or may be used at the same location or may be transported for use at a different location and which has one or more of the following characteristics:

1. 1.
   Exceeds a total surface area of 20 acres; or
2. 2.
   The excavated area exceeds an average depth of 25 feet at any time after the commencement of excavation; or
3. 3.
   The time needed for completion will exceed 180 days.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Display Area means an off-street area designated for the advertisement or display of customary passenger cars, motor vehicles, recreational vehicles, boats, tractors, and other motorized or non-motorized machinery or accessory equipment.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Driveway means a private accessway, primarily for vehicles, leading from a street to a dwelling unit, parking lot, parking garage, or loading area.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Dwelling means a building designed exclusively for residential occupancy, including single-family (attached or detached), two-family, and multiple family dwellings, but not including hotels or motels. See also Section 9.3.1, Residential Uses, for further classification of dwelling types.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Dwelling Unit means an enclosure containing sleeping, kitchen, and bathroom facilities and used or held ready for use as a permanent residence by one family.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Elevated Building means a nonbasement building that is:

1. 1.
   Built, in the case of a building in zones A1-30, AE, A, A99, AO, AH, B, C, X, and D, to have the top of the elevated floor, or in the case of a building in zones V1-30, VE, or V, to have the bottom of the lowest horizontal structure member of the elevated floor elevated above ground level by means of pilings, columns, (posts and piers), or shear walls parallel to the floor of the water; and
2. 2.
   Adequately anchored so as not to impair the structural integrity of the building during a flood of up to the magnitude of the base flood. In the case of zones A1-30, AE, A, A99, AO, AH, B, C, X, and D, "elevated building" also includes a building elevated by means of fill or solid foundation perimeter walls with openings sufficient to facilitate the unimpeded movement of flood waters. In the case of zones V1-30, VE, or V, "elevated building" also includes a building otherwise meeting the definition of "elevated building," even though the lower area is enclosed by means of breakaway walls if the breakaway walls met the standards of Section 60.3(e)(5) of the National Flood Insurance Program regulations.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Existing Construction means for the purposes of determining rates, structures for which the "start of construction" commenced before the effective date of the FIRM or before January 1, 1975, for FIRMS effective before that date. "Existing construction" may also be referred to as "existing structures."

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Existing Manufactured Home Park or Subdivision means a manufactured home park or subdivision for which the construction of facilities for servicing the lots on which the manufactured 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 floodplain management regulations adopted by the Parish.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Expansion to an Existing Manufactured Home Park or Subdivision means the preparation of additional sites by the construction of facilities for servicing the lots on which the manufactured homes are to be affixed (including the installation of utilities, the construction of streets, and either final site grading or the pouring of concrete pads).

Effective on: 11/1/2013

FAA means the Federal Aviation Administration of the U.S. Department of Transportation.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

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, including:

1. 1.
   Any number of people related by blood, marriage, adoption, guardianship, or duly authorized custodial relationship;
2. 2.
   Two unrelated people;
3. 3.
   Two unrelated people and any children related to either of them;
4. 4.
   Not more than eight people who are:

   1. a.
      Residents of a "family home" or "family group home" as defined by state law; or
   2. b.
      "Handicapped" as defined in the Federal Fair Housing Act.

This definition does not include persons currently illegally using or addicted to a "controlled substance." Family does not include any society, club, fraternity, sorority, association, lodge combine, federation, or like organization; any group of individuals whose association is temporary or seasonable in nature; or any group of individuals who are in a group living arrangement as a result of criminal offenses.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Flag Lot means a tract of land having insufficient lot width along a road or at the minimum setback line to meet the requirements of Chapter 1, Zoning Districts and Land Use, but with sufficient lot area to meet all lot requirements further back on the lot. Individual flag lots are normally accessed by an servitude through the lot that abuts the street, or by a small strip of land that is owned by the owner of the flag lot.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Flood or Flooding means a general and temporary condition of partial or complete inundation of normally dry lands areas from:

1. 1.
   The overflow of inland or tidal waters.
2. 2.
   The unusual and rapid accumulation or runoff of surface waters from any source.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Flood Insurance Rate Map (FIRM) means an official map of a community, on which the Federal Emergency Management Agency has delineated both the areas of special flood hazards and the risk premium zones applicable to the community.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Flood Insurance Study is the official report provided by the Federal Emergency Management Agency. The report contains flood profiles, water surface elevation of the base flood, as well as the flood boundary-floodway map.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Floodplain or Flood-prone Area means any land area susceptible to being inundated by water from any source (See the definition of flooding).

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Floodplain Management means the operation of an overall program of corrective and preventive measures for reducing flood damage, including but not limited to emergency preparedness plans, flood control works and floodplain management regulations.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Floodplain Management Regulations means unified development codes, zoning ordinances, subdivision regulations, building codes, health regulations, special purpose ordinances (such as a floodplain ordinance, grading ordinance and erosion control ordinance) and other applications of police power. The term describes such state or local regulations, in any combination thereof, which provide standards for the purpose of flood damage prevention and reduction.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Flood Protection System means those physical structural works for which funds have been authorized, appropriated, and expended and which have been constructed specifically to modify flooding in order to reduce the extent of the areas within a community subject to a "special flood hazard" and the extent of the depths of associated flooding. Such a system typically includes hurricane tidal barriers, dams, reservoirs, levees or dikes. These specialized flood modifying works are those constructed in conformance with sound engineering standards.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

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

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Floodway (Regulatory Floodway) means 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.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Frontage, Lot means the length of street frontage between property lines or lease lines.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Frontage, Street means all property on one side of a street between intersecting streets (crossing or terminating), measured along the line of the street, or if the street is dead-ended, then all of the property abutting on one side between an intersecting street and the dead-end of the street.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Functionally Dependent Use means a use which cannot perform its intended purpose unless it is located or carried out in close proximity to water. The term includes only docking facilities, port facilities that are necessary for the loading and unloading of cargo or passengers, and ship building and ship repair facilities, but does not include long-term storage or related manufacturing facilities.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Garage means a building for private use of the owner or occupant of a principal building (situated on the same lot as the principal building) for the storage of motor vehicles with no facilities for mechanical service or repair of a commercial or public nature.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Group Home means a living option, certified, licensed, or monitored by the state where seven to 15 people with developmental disabilities reside.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Hazard to Air Navigation means an obstruction determined to have a substantial adverse effect on the safe and efficient utilization of the navigable airspace.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Health Department means the State of Louisiana, Department of Health and Hospitals (or name as amended).

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Height means, for the purpose of determining the height limits in all zones set forth in this UDC and shown on the official zoning district map, mean sea level elevation unless otherwise specified.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Highest Adjacent Grade means the highest natural elevation of the ground surface prior to construction next to the proposed walls of a structure.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Highway Department means the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development (or name as amended).

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Historic Structure means any structure that is:

1. 1.
   Listed individually in the National Register of Historic Places (a listing maintained by the department of interior) or preliminarily determined by the secretary of the interior as meeting the requirements for individual listing on the National Register;
2. 2.
   Certified or preliminarily determined by the secretary of the interior as contributing to the historical significance of a registered historic district or a district preliminary determined by the secretary to qualify as registered historic district;
3. 3.
   Individually listed on a state inventory of historic places in states with historic preservation programs which have been approved by the secretary of interior; or
4. 4.
   Individually listed on a local inventory or historic places in communities with historic preservation programs that have been certified either:

   1. a.
      By an approved state program as determined by the secretary of the interior or;
   2. b.
      Directly by the secretary of the interior in states without approved programs.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Horizontal Surface means a horizontal plane 150 feet above the established airport elevation, the perimeter of which, in plan, coincides with the perimeter of the horizontal zone.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Incinerator Waste-Handling Facility means a facility which processes solid waste which has been received, thermally oxidized, and/or decomposed by an incinerator.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Improvements means any streets, roadways, drainage structures, drainage ditches, utilities or other facilities for which the local government or private or public utility companies may ultimately assume the responsibility for maintenance and operation.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Impervious Surfaces means an area that does not allow significant amounts of water to infiltrate into the ground. Examples of impervious surfaces are blacktop and concrete.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Individual Sewerage [Sewer] Disposal System means a septic tank, seepage title sewerage [sewer] disposal system, or any other health department approved individual sewerage treatment device.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Institution means a building occupied by a nonprofit corporation or a nonprofit establishment for public use.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Industrial Districts refer to the "LI" Light Industrial and "GI" General Industrial zoning districts.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Industrial Solid Waste Facility means a facility for the processing, storage, and/or disposal of industrial solid waste.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Land Development Plan means a plan established by the governing body which considers the suitability of property within the Parish for residential and nonresidential uses and addresses the needs of public areas for the overall development of the Parish.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Landfarm means a facility for the disposal of solid wastes in which wastes are applied to the land and/or incorporated into the soil for biological reduction and soil attenuation.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Larger than Utility Runway means a runway that is constructed for and intended to be used by propeller-driven aircraft of greater than 12,500 pounds maximum gross weight and jet-powered aircraft.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Levee means a man-made structure, usually an earthen embankment, designed and constructed in accordance with sound engineering practices to contain, control, or divert the flow of water so as to provide protection from temporary flooding.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Levee System means a flood protection system which consists of a levee, or levees, and associated structures, such as closure and drainage devices, which are constructed and operated in accordance with sound engineering practices.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Limited Highway Access means a freeway, or expressway, providing a trafficway for through traffic, in respect to which owners or occupants of abutting property and other persons have no legal right to access to or from the same, except at such points and in such manner as may be determined by the public authority having jurisdiction over such trafficway.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Local Street means a street designed to serve local traffic circulation and to provide direct land access.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Lot means a lot, tract, or parcel of land designated on a subdivision plat duly filed with St. Mary Parish, or any lot, tract, or parcel of land held in separate ownership and described by metes and bounds upon a deed duly recorded or registered that existed prior to the date of adoption of applicable subdivision regulations of the Parish.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Lot Area means the total horizontal area within the lot lines of a lot.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Lot, Corner is a lot abutting upon two or more streets at their intersection.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Lot, Double Frontage means a lot having a frontage on two non-intersecting streets as distinguished from a corner lot.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Lot Depth means the mean horizontal distance from the front lot line to the rear lot line.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Lot Line means a line bounding the lot as shown on the accepted subdivision plat, or on a plat of an individual lot, tract, plot, or parcel of land.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Lot Line, Front means the line separating the lot from the street right-of-way in the case of an interior lot, and the line separating the narrowest street frontage of the lot from the street right-of-way in the case of a corner lot.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Lot Line, Rear means the lot line which is opposite and most distant from the front lot line and in case of an irregular or triangular-shaped lot, a line 10 feet in length within the lot, parallel to and at the maximum distance from the front lot line.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Lot Line, Side means any lot line not a front lot line or a rear lot line.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Lowest Floor means the lowest floor of the lowest enclosed area including basement. An unfinished or flood resistant enclosure, usable solely for parking of vehicles, building access or storage in an area other than a basement area is not considered a building's lowest floor; provided that such enclosure is not built as to render the structure in violation of the applicable non-elevation design requirement of Section 60.3 of the National Flood Insurance Program regulations.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Major Street Plan means a plan established by the governing body showing the layout of streets, highways, parks and drainage systems.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Manufactured Home. See Section 9.3.1, Residential Uses.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Manufactured Home Park means a parcel of land under single entity ownership which has been platted and approved by the Parish for the purposes of developing two or more manufactured homes to be leased meeting all requirements of this UDC, and all other applicable Parish codes, ordinances, and regulations, and state laws.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Manufactured Home Subdivision means a subdivision of land approved by the Parish under applicable subdivision regulations of the Parish and duly filed with the Parish, containing lots for single-family residential use, and upon each lot not more than one manufactured home may be placed and occupied.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Mean Sea Level means, for the purposes of the National Flood Insurance Program, the National Geodetic Vertical Datum (NGVD) of 1929 or other datum, to which base flood elevations shown on a community's flood insurance rate map are referenced.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Membership Organization refers to buildings or facilities owned or operated by a corporation, association, or persons for a social, educational, or recreational purpose; but not primarily for profit or to render a service customarily carried on as a business.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Mobile Home means a factory-built, residential dwelling unit built to voluntary standards prior to the passage of the National Manufactured Housing Construction and Safety Standards Act of 1974. This term includes and is interchangeable with the term "house trailer," but does not include the term "manufactured home," as only manufactured homes are built to federal construction standards.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Modular Home means a factory-built, residential dwelling unit built to the International Residential Code as adopted by the Louisiana State Uniform Construction Code Council.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

New Construction means, for the purpose of determining insurance rates, structures for which the "start of construction" commenced on or after the effective date of an initial FIRM or after December 31, 1974, whichever is later, and includes any subsequent improvements to such structures. For floodplain management purposes, "new construction" means structures for which the "start of construction" commenced on or after the effective date of a floodplain management regulation adopted by a community and includes any subsequent improvements to such structures.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

New Manufactured Home Park or Subdivision means a manufactured home or subdivision for which the construction of facilities for servicing the lots on which the manufactured homes are to be affixed (including at 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 floodplain management regulations adopted by a community.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Nonconforming Structure means a building or structure lawfully existing at the time the provisions of this UDC became effective and any portion of which does not comply with the provisions of this UDC for the zoning district in which it is located.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Nonconforming Use shall mean a use lawfully occupying a building, structure or land at the time the provisions of this UDC became effective and which does not conform to the use regulations of the zoning district in which it is located.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Nonprecision Instrument Runway or Heliport means a runway or heliport having an instrument approach procedure utilizing air navigation facilities with only horizontal guidance or area type navigation equipment, for which a straight-in nonprecision instrument approach procedure has been approved or planned.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Nonresidential Subdivision means a subdivision whose intended use is other than residential, such as commercial or industrial.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Obstruction means any structure, growth, or other object, including a mobile object, which exceeds a limiting height set forth in Section 1.5.3, Height Limitations.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Official Zoning District Map means the zoning map adopted by this UDC, as amended, which defines zoning districts and designations in accordance with the zoning district classifications established within this UDC.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Operator means a person who assumes operational responsibility for a development.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Outdoor Sales means the display outside of a permanent structure, for the purpose of purchase by consumers, whether immediately or by placing of orders, of any merchandise, services, products, or goods irrespective of whether payment for such is made outdoors or in a permanent structure.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Owner shall mean, as to a particular property, any person, agent, firm, association, or corporation having a legal or equitable interest therein.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Parking Area means any portion of a lot used for parking or storage of operable motor vehicles on a temporary (less than 24 hours) basis which is connected with a street or alley by a paved driveway which affords ingress and egress for motor vehicles.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Parking Space means the off-street space available within the property boundary lines for the parking of a motor vehicle.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Patio Home means a single-family detached dwelling unit, which may have a zero building setback requirement on one side while maintaining the normal required setback on the other. Patio homes are often constructed on smaller lots and have a higher building coverage ratio than the traditional single-family dwelling.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Planning and Zoning Commission means the body, appointed by the Parish Council, which is responsible for administering portions of this UDC. The Planning and Zoning Commission may also be referred to as the Planning Commission or Commission.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Ponds means any man-made body of water, including lakes, ponds, lagoons and reservoirs (excluding tank-type reservoirs which are fully enclosed and contained), that are filled or refilled with water and used for recreational, scenic, fishing, or boating purposes. The term does not include swimming pools, or pre-manufactured landscape ornamental tubs or other artificial water containers planted with aquatic plants.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Precision Instrument Runway or Heliport means a runway or heliport having an instrument approach procedure utilizing an instrument landing system (ILS) or a precision approach radar (PAR). Also, a runway or heliport for which a precision approach system is planned and is so indicated on an approved airport layout plan or any other planning document.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Primary Arterial means a road intended to move through traffic to and from such major attractors as central business districts, regional shopping centers, colleges and/or universities, military installations, major industrial areas, and similar traffic generators within the governmental unit and/or as a route for traffic between communities or large areas.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

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; when the runway has no specially prepared hard surface or planned hard surface, the primary surface ends at each end of that runway. The width of the primary surface is set forth in Section 1.5.2, Zone Types. The elevation of any point on the primary surface is the same as the elevation of the nearest point on the runway centerline. For helicopters, the area of the primary surface coincides in size and shape with the designated takeoff and landing area of a heliport. This surface is a horizontal plane at the elevation of the established heliport elevation.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Primary Frontal Dune means a continuous or nearly continuous mound or ridge of sand with relatively steep seaward and landward slopes immediately landward and adjacent to the beach and subject to erosion and overtopping from high tides and waves during major coastal storms. The inland limit of the primary frontal dune occurs at the point where there is a distinct change from a relatively steep slope to a relatively mild slope.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Principal Building means a building in which the primary use of the lot on which the building is located is conducted.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Principal Use means the primary use and chief purpose of a lot or structure.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Recreational Vehicle means a vehicular-type unit, excluding manufactured homes and mobile homes, built on or for use on a chassis and designed primarily as living quarters for recreational, camping, vacation, or travel use and which has its own motive power or is mounted or drawn by another vehicle. A recreational vehicle includes, but is not limited to, travel trailers, campers, pick up coaches, and motor homes.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Recreational Vehicle Campground means any parcel or tract of land under the control of any person, organization, or governmental entity wherein sites are offered for the use of the public for the establishment of temporary living sites for two or more recreational vehicles or camping units.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Recreational Vehicle Park means a use that provides for the parking and use of more than one recreational vehicles on a temporary basis, which provides hookups for water, sewer, and electricity.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Refuse-Derived Fuel Facility means a solid waste facility where fuel is processed from combustible solid waste.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Repetitive Loss means flood-related damage sustained by a structure on two separate occasions during a 10-year period for which the cost of repairs at the time of each such flood event, on the average, equals or exceeds 25 percent of the market value of the structure before the damage occurred.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Residential Districts means zoning districts "SR" Single-family Residential, "HR" High Density Residential, "EN" Existing Neighborhood and "MH" Manufactured Home.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Responsible Person, Bunkhouse means a person or persons designated by the owner or operator of a bunkhouse who shall be a supervisor of the bunkhouse.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Retirement Home, Center, or Hospice refers to a facility for the transitional residency of elderly and disabled persons, progressing from independent living in single-family units to congregate apartment living where residents share common meals and culminating in a full health and continuing care nursing home facility.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Runway means a defined area on the airport prepared for landing and takeoff of aircraft along its length.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Sand Dunes mean naturally occurring accumulations of sand in ridges or mounds landward of the beach.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

School, Private means an institution of learning whose primary purpose is to provide a general education, owned and operated by a an entity other than a governmental agency.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

School, Public means an institution of learning owned and operated by a governmental agency, including an independent school district.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Seaway means a defined area on the airport specially designed for landing and takeoff of aircraft equipped with flotation devices for operations on water. For purposes of this UDC, all imaginary surfaces and zones are calculated as though the seaway were a utility runway.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Secondary Arterial means a road intended to collect and distribute traffic in a manner similar to primary arterials, except that these roads service minor traffic-generating areas such as community-commercial areas, primary and secondary educational facilities, hospitals, major recreational areas, churches, and offices, and/or designated to carry traffic from collector streets to the system of primary arterials. Secondary arterials may also be defined as minor arterials, as indicated on the latest version of the Parish Thoroughfare Plan.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Service Building means a permanent building housing toilet, lavatory, laundry and such other facilities as may be provided in a manufactured home park.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Servitude means a strip reserved for public or private utilities, drainage and other purposes, the title of which shall remain with the property owner, subject to the right of use designated in the reservation of the servitude.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Setback refers to the required minimum horizontal distance between the building line and the front, side, corner, or rear property line.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Sexually Oriented Business includes such adult uses as (See also Section 9.3.5, Recreational and Amusement Uses):

1. 1.
   A sex parlor, nude studio, modeling studio, love parlor, adult video arcade, adult movie arcade, adult cabaret, or similar enterprise, which engages in the business of offering a service or selling, renting, or exhibiting devices or any other item designed or intended to provide sexual stimulation or sexual gratification to the customer;
2. 2.
   Any business enterprise whose business includes exhibiting live performances that are intended to provide sexual stimulation or gratification to the consumer, regardless of whether exhibiting such performances is its primary business; or
3. 3.
   An adult bookstore, adult movie theater, adult theater, adult video store, adult motel, or other enterprise, the primary business of which is offering of a service or the selling, renting, or exhibiting of devices or any other items designed or intended to provide sexual stimulation or sexual gratification to the customer.

The term "sexually oriented business" shall not be construed to include:

1. 1.
   A business operated by or employing a licensed psychologist, licensed physical therapist, licensed athletic trainer, licensed cosmetologist, or licensed barber engaged in performing functions authorized under the license held; or
2. 2.
   A business operated by or employing a licensed physician or licensed chiropractor engaged in practicing the healing arts.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Start of Construction (for other than new construction or substantial improvements under the Coastal Barrier Resources Act (Pub. L. 97-348)), includes substantial improvement and means the date the building permit was issued, provided the actual start of construction, repair, reconstruction, rehabilitation, addition, placement, or other improvement was within 180 days of the permit date. The actual start means either the first placement of permanent construction of structure on a site, such as the pouring of slab or footings, the installation of piles, the construction of columns, or any work beyond the stage of excavation; or the placement of a manufactured home on a foundation. Permanent construction does not include land preparation, such as clearing, grading and filling; nor does it include the installation of streets and/or walkways; nor does it include excavation for basement, footings, piers or foundations or the erection of temporary forms; nor does it include the installation on the property of accessory buildings, such as the garages or sheds not occupied as dwelling units or not part of the main structure. For a substantial improvement, the actual start of construction means the first alteration of any wall, ceiling, floor, or other structural part of a building, whether or not that alteration affects the external dimensions of the building.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Storage Facility refers to a building consisting of individual, self-contained and fully enclosed units, which the contents contained therein are not viewable from outside the unit, and are leased or owned for the storage of business and household goods or contractors' supplies.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Story shall mean that portion of a building included between the upper surface of a floor and the upper surface of the floor or roof next above.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Street, Private shall mean any private roadway right-of-way, which has not been dedicated for public use and which affords interior circulation and /or access to abutting property. A private driveway, which provides only secondary vehicular access to a lot or to an accessory parking or loading facility, or to allow vehicles to take on or discharge passengers at the entrance of a building, shall not be considered a private street.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Street, Public shall mean any public roadway right-of-way, which has been dedicated to the public for public use and which affords primary access to abutting property.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Structure shall mean anything constructed or erected below, at, or above grade, which requires location on the ground or is attached to something having a permanent location on the ground, and which, out of necessity or precaution, includes support, bracing, tying, anchoring, or other protection against the pressure of the elements. This includes, but is not limited to a gas or liquid storage tank that is principally above ground, buildings, towers, smokestacks, earth formations, overhead transmission lines, as well as a manufactured home.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Subdivider means any person, firm, corporation or any agent thereof, who divides or proposes to divide land so as to constitute a subdivision, which land is either owned, optioned or otherwise under his control.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Subdivision means land which is divided or proposed to be divided into two or more lots, parcels, sites, units, or plots for use as residential, single or multiple-family, commercial, industrial, manufactured homes, townhomes, unit developments or cluster developments in which there will be a transfer of title and/or streets or passageways dedicated to public use.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Substantial Damage means damage of any origin sustained by a structure whereby the cost of restoring the structure to its before damaged condition would equal or exceed 50 percent of the market value of the structure before the damage occurred. Also means flood related damages sustained by a structure on two separate occasions during a ten-year period for which the cost of repairs at the time of each such flood event, on the average equals or exceeds 25 percent of the market value of the structure before the damage occurred.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Substantial Improvement means any reconstruction, rehabilitation, addition, or other improvement of a structure, the cost of which equals or exceeds 50 percent of the market value of the structure before the "start of construction" of the improvement. This term includes structures that have incurred "repetitive loss" or "substantial damage" regardless of the actual repair work performed. The term does not, however, include either:

1. 1.
   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 officials and which are the minimum necessary conditions or
2. 2.
   Any alteration of a "historic structure," provided that the alteration will not preclude the structure's continued designation as a "historic structure."

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Surface Impoundment means a facility consisting of a natural topographic depression, manmade excavation, or diked area formed primarily of earthen materials (although it may be lined with man-made materials), designed to hold an accumulation of liquid waste and/or sludge, that is not an injection well, landfarm, landfill or tank. Runoff and containment areas (ROCAs) of landfarms are considered to be surface impoundments.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Thoroughfare means a primary or secondary arterial road.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Transitional Surfaces means, for aircraft, surfaces which extend outward at 90-degree angles to the runway centerline and the runway centerline extended at a slope of seven feet horizontally for each foot vertically from the sides of the primary and approach surfaces to where they intersect the horizontal and conical surfaces. Transitional surfaces, for those portions of the precision approach surfaces which project through and beyond the limits of the conical surface, extend a distance of 5,000 feet measured horizontally from the edge of the approach surface and at 90 degrees to the extended runway centerline. For helicopters, these surfaces extend outward and upward from the lateral boundaries of the heliport primary surface and up from the approach surfaces at a slope of 2 to 1 for a distance of 250 feet, measured horizontally from the centerline of the primary and approach surfaces.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Transfer Station means a solid waste processing facility where solid waste is transferred from collection vehicles and placed in other vehicles for transportation.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Tree means any object of natural growth.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Townhome means a structure on an individual lot, which is one of a series of dwelling units designated for single-family occupancy, which dwelling units are structurally connected or immediately adjacent to and abutting each other, without side yards between individual dwelling units.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Use means the purpose or activity for which the land, or building is designed, arranged or intended, or for which it is occupied or maintained.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Utility Runway means a runway that is constructed for and intended to be used by propeller-driven aircraft of 12,500 pounds maximum gross weight and less.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Variance means a departure from any provision of the zoning regulations for a specific parcel of property, except use, without changing this UDC or the underlying zoning of the parcel of property.

A floodplain variance is a grant of relief to a person from the requirements of the floodzone regulations when specific enforcement would result in unnecessary hardship. A variance, therefore, permits construction or development in a manner otherwise prohibited by the floodzone regulations. (For full requirements see Section 60.6 of the National Flood Insurance Program regulations.)

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Vehicle shall mean an instrument of conveyance, such as an automobile, bus, truck, or motor driven cycle, for carrying or transporting persons or goods on land. The term shall also include, for the purposes of regulating parking herein provided, camper trailers, travel trailers, truck campers, water craft trailers, and utility trailers.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Violation means the failure of a structure or other development to be fully compliant with the Parish's floodplain management regulations. A structure or other development without the elevation certificate, other certifications, or other evidence of compliance required in Section 60.3 (b) (5), (c) (4), (c) (10), (d) (3), (e) (2), (e) (4), or (e) (5) of the National Flood Insurance Program regulations, is presumed to be in violation until such time as that documentation is provided.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Visibility Triangle means all of that portion of land lying within a triangular shaped area on each street corner, beginning at the corner of the intersection point of the curb or edge of pavement of each of the two streets forming said corner, and extending a distance of 20 feet along each such curb line or pavement edge from the intersection point, and the third side being determined by drawing a straight line from the ends of the 20 foot extensions, regardless of whether the land is publicly or privately owned.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Visual Runway means a runway intended solely for the operation of aircraft using visual approach procedures.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Water Surface Elevation means the height, in relation to the National Geodetic Vertical Datum (NGVD) of 1929 (or other datum, where specified), of floods of various magnitudes and frequencies in the floodplains of coastal or riverine areas.

Effective on: 11/1/2013

Yard means an open space at grade between a building and adjoining lot lines, unoccupied and unobstructed by any portion of a structure from the ground upward, except as otherwise provided. In measuring a yard for the purpose of determining the width of a side yard or depth of a front or rear yard, the least horizontal distance between a lot line and the building shall be used.

Effective on: 11/1/2013