Worcester County Unincorporated
City Zoning Code

The use of land, buildings and structures for forestry, dairying, pasturage, crop growth, horticulture, floriculture, viticulture, the raising of livestock and poultry for sale and including other conventional agriculture uses and structures such as farm offices, commercial and noncommercial greenhouses and nurseries, noncommercial fertilizer storage, noncommercial maintenance, storage and repair facilities, farm ponds, noncommercial grain dryers, barns, poultry and hog houses and the storage and application of manure produced by farm animals or poultry. The term "agriculture" shall not include commercial grain dryers or dwellings and shall not include the storage or application of sewage sludge. See definition of "farm."

A right-of-way over land affording a secondary means of access to abutting properties.

Any person who submits subdivision plans to the Planning Commission for the purpose of obtaining approval thereof.

A naturally vegetated area or vegetated area established or managed to protect aquatic, wetland shoreline and terrestrial environments from man-made disturbances.

Any structure which is designed, built or occupied as a shelter for persons, animals or property. The term "building" shall include tents, roadside stands, mobile homes, recreational trailers, vehicles and other similar objects when used as a permanent shelter and shall also include any part thereof.

See "lot area, buildable."

A written statement issued by the Department authorizing the erection, expansion or alteration of a building or structure.

Those lines which describe the required front, rear, side and other setbacks as prescribed in the district regulations contained in Title 1, Worcester County Zoning Ordinance. See § ZS 1-305 hereof.

An area protected and maintained generally in its natural condition in which disruption from development (other than for trails) and/or active recreational activities is prohibited. Areas in which vegetation is reestablished following disruption and otherwise meeting the previous conditions are also considered conservation areas.

The County Commissioners of Worcester County, Maryland.

The circular terminus of a public road or approved private road.

The County department designated by the County Commissioners to administer and enforce this Title. See § ZS 1-111 hereof.

The Maryland Department of the Environment, including the local official having delegated authority.

A minor watercourse that is defined either by the presence of intermittent or perennial streams or topography that indicates a swale where surface sheet flows join, including the land, except where areas are designated as floodplain, on either side of and within fifty feet of the center line of any intermittent or perennial stream shown on the United States Geological Service's seven-and-one-half-minute quadrangle sheets covering the unincorporated areas of the County.

A building containing three or more dwellings designed for or used exclusively for residential purposes. For purposes of this Title, a townhouse shall not be considered a multi-family dwelling.

Any building or portion thereof occupied or intended to be occupied for residential purposes by a single family or housekeeping unit, but not including a watercraft, tent, seasonal cabin, recreational vehicle or trailer, mobile home, assisted living unit or a room in a hotel, motel or boardinghouse, and having at least five hundred square feet of livable gross floor area.

A detached dwelling unit designed for use or used exclusively for residential purposes by one family or housekeeping unit, having at least five hundred square feet of livable gross floor area and, except where specifically permitted by the primary district regulations, only one single-family dwelling may be located on an individual lot or parcel.

A detached building containing two dwelling units and used exclusively for residential purposes by not more than two families or housekeeping units, each of which shall have at least five hundred square feet of livable gross floor area. The terms "two-family dwelling" and "duplex" are synonymous.

The right to use a specifically identified portion of a lot for a specifically identified purpose without having title to the land.

That division of the Department that is delegated by the Maryland Department of the Environment with certain duties, powers and functions as provided in the State Environmental Article for the administration and enforcement of certain environmental laws, including but not limited to on-site wastewater treatment and disposal and potable water.

Trees existing on the site that are six inches in caliper (diameter) or greater measured at four and one-half feet above existing grade.

A lot served by a bulb-shaped court protruding from a higher order street, or those lots served by a loop street not meeting the requirements of § ZS 2-502(c)(8).

A lot or parcel of five or more acres which is conscientiously and consistently managed for bona fide agricultural purposes.

A polygonal-shaped lot that has the appearance of a flag with staff or panhandle in which the handle or staff provides the required minimum road frontage and which may be used as the point of access to a street or road. The terms "flag lot" and "panhandle lot" are synonymous.

A relatively flat or low land area adjoining a river, stream or watercourse which is subject to partial or complete inundation, or any area subject to the unusual and rapid accumulation or runoff of surface waters from tidal action or from any source, and specifically including those areas subject to flooding by the waters of the one-hundred-year flood as shown on the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development, Federal Insurance Administration, Flood Insurance Rate Maps for the County.

The designated area of a floodplain required to carry and discharge floodwaters of the one-hundred-year flood as defined in the definition of "floodplain" herein.

A biological community dominated by trees and other woody plants covering a land area of ten thousand square feet or more. This also includes forests that have been cut but not cleared.

The dimension of a lot measured at the front lot line along a public or approved private road or, if the front lot line is curved, along the chord of the arc.

The County Health Department.

Those waters designated as either Category 4 or Category 5 on the Maryland Integrated Report of Surface Water Quality as required by the United States Environmental Protection Agency pursuant to the Federal Clean Water Act.

Those physical additions, installations and changes such as roads, curbs, sidewalks, water mains, wastewater collection systems, drainage facilities, public utilities and other appropriate items required to render land suitable for the use proposed.

Those sensitive areas as defined herein that are found on a particular site.

A relatively short street providing access from dwelling units to a higher order street only and generally having intersections with the higher order street in close proximity to one another.

A plot or parcel of land having at least the minimum area required by this Title for a lot in the district in which such lot is situated and having its principal frontage on a public road, approved private road, or right-of-way or access easement for lots approved as a rural cluster subdivision. Parcels in single ownership separated by a road shall be considered as separate parcels. A lot of record shall be considered a lot. See § ZS 1-305 hereof for other lot definitions and methods of measurement.

That portion of the net lot area remaining for building purposes once adjusted to subtract out the area of all easements, required yard setbacks, septic disposal areas, private wetlands and nontidal wetlands and their buffers. Every lot must have a buildable area of not less than two thousand five hundred square feet of contiguous area with usable access.

The gross area of a lot, parcel or other piece of land shall be calculated as the area bounded by the property lines.

The net area of a lot, parcel or other piece of land shall be calculated as the area bounded by the property lines, except that the public and private rights-of-way, state wetlands and the area of the strip connecting to the road in the case of a panhandle or flag lot shall not be included as part of the net lot area unless specifically permitted for the structure or use involved. Easements other than required road widening strips may be included in net lot area and private wetlands and easements may be included as part of any yard setback unless otherwise prohibited.

A plot or parcel of land delineated upon the land records of Worcester County as of July 27, 1965, or any validly recorded platted lot of a subdivision or parcel of land which, at the time of its recording, complied with all applicable laws, ordinances and regulations.

Land intended for active or passive recreation, the growing of trees, vegetable, field or nursery crops or for purposes of conservation of natural resources and free of residential, service, business or industrial structures and uses.

A parcel of land which is included in a plat and which is designated for public or private open space or recreational areas, rights-of-way, utilities, stormwater management facilities, or other similar purposes.

See "flag lot."

A surfaced area of one or more parking spaces designed or used for the parking of self-propelled vehicles and available to the public, whether for a fee or as an accommodation to customers or clients.

The Worcester County Planning Commission.

Any land or structure not owned and operated by a public or quasi-public jurisdiction or organization.

The boundary of a lot or group of lots used in combination.

Any land or structure owned and operated by a public or quasi-public jurisdiction or agency for the public benefit.

A person or firm who, by reason of training and/or experience, is qualified, as determined by the Department, to perform the function required.

Recreational uses, areas or activities oriented toward potential competition and involving special equipment. Playgrounds, sports fields and courts, swimming pools and golf courses are examples of active recreation uses.

Recreational uses, areas or activities oriented to noncompetitive activities which typically require no special equipment. Trails and areas for hiking, picnicking and bird watching are examples of passive recreation uses.

Any further division or modification of an existing recorded subdivision.

A land or water area legally separated from abutting properties and used for travel, access, utility location or other purpose. The usage of the term "right-of-way" for land platting purposes in the County shall mean that every right-of-way hereafter established and shown on a final plat is to be separate and distinct from lots or parcels adjoining such rights-of-way and not included within the dimensions or areas of such lots or parcels.

Includes street, avenue, drive, circle, square, court, lane, highway, cul-de-sac or other term of general usage describing a right-of-way intended for vehicular use.

A road providing a single point or limited points of connection to a higher-order road and intended to provide for direct ingress and egress to adjacent properties or developments fronting thereon.

A road which meets the right-of-way requirements of a public road, is approved by the County Commissioners, provides a means of private access to abutting properties and is privately owned and maintained.

A road which collects traffic from minor roads and distributes it to the arterial road system. Although it may provide access to abutting properties, a collector road serves primarily a through traffic function.

The existing or proposed right-of-way line of any road.

Any road which does not serve a collector or arterial function and is lightly traveled. The primary function of a minor road is to provide access to and between abutting properties.

A public right-of-way listed in the inventory of public roads of Worcester County which provides a means of public access to abutting properties.

A road generally aligned parallel to a higher-order road with limited access to such higher-order road and intended to provide for direct ingress and egress to adjacent properties or developments fronting thereon.

Areas comprised of but not limited to tidal and nontidal wetlands and their buffers, the one-hundred-year floodplain, forested areas, existing significant trees, greenways, areas of critical or special habitat, threatened and endangered species habitat, source water and aquifer recharge protection areas, the Chesapeake or Atlantic Coastal Bays Critical Area, stream beds, creeks, rivers, estuaries, bays, and water bodies on the state's impaired waters list or having an established total maximum daily load requirement.

Anything constructed or erected with a fixed location on the ground, attached to something having a fixed location on the ground or a building as defined herein. Structures include walls, fences and signs.

The division of a lot, tract or parcel of land into two or more lots, plats, sites or other divisions of land for the purpose, whether immediate or future, of sale or of building development, including resubdivision. Development which constitutes a division of land into separate lots, sites, parcels or other types of division, regardless of ownership, shall constitute a subdivision except as otherwise exempted. When appropriate to the context, the term "subdivision" or "resubdivision" shall relate to the process of subdividing or resubdividing land as well as to the land or territory subdivided. The creation of a condominium under the Maryland Condominium Act (Title 11 of the Real Property Article of the Annotated Code of Maryland, as from time to time amended), where land is divided into parcels or lots or the condominium units constitute parcels or lots, either actually or constructively, other than the division of only a building or buildings into units, shall constitute a subdivision. A lease or creation of a term of years where land is divided into parcels or lots for a period of twelve years or more, including renewals, shall constitute a subdivision, except for leases for individual units or parcels within a unified commercial or industrial development. The widening of a public road or the creation of a widening strip for a public road shall not constitute a subdivision. The creation of a lot, tract or parcel which, at the time of its creation, is transferred in perpetuity to the County Commissioners of Worcester County, the State of Maryland or the United States of America, where the residue meets the definition of a lot, shall not constitute a subdivision. Any undeveloped lot transferred at any time to a bona fide conservation entity for the purpose of perpetual protection, as determined by the Department, shall not be counted as a lot when determining the number of subdivisions of a property.

Any subdivision of land which creates six or more lots in total, regardless of size, out of what was a single parcel as of July 25, 1967. A series of separate subdivisions out of the same original parcel shall be considered a major subdivision when the cumulative effect of such separate subdivisions meet the criteria of a major subdivision. For the purposes of this Article a rural cluster subdivision as defined in § ZS 1-103 hereof shall not be considered a major subdivision. Any undeveloped lot transferred at any time to a bona fide conservation entity for the purpose of perpetual protection, as determined by the Department, shall not be counted as a lot when determining the number of subdivisions of a property.

Any subdivision which is not a major subdivision as herein defined and which creates up to but not more than five lots out of what was a single parcel of land as of July 25, 1967. For the purposes of this Article a rural cluster subdivision as defined in § ZS 1-103 hereof shall be considered a minor subdivision. Any undeveloped lot transferred at any time to a bona fide conservation entity for the purpose of perpetual protection, as determined by the Department, shall not be counted as a lot when determining the number of subdivisions of a property.

An established amount of a pollutant, plus a margin of safety, that a waterbody can assimilate and still attain water quality standards.

An area that is inundated or saturated by surface water or groundwater at a frequency and duration sufficient to support, and that under normal circumstances does support, a prevalence of vegetation typically adapted for life in saturated soil conditions, commonly known as "hydrophytic vegetation." Nontidal wetlands are identified by the most recent federal definition and guidelines for identifying and delineating jurisdictional wetlands.

Any land not considered state wetland, bordering on or lying beneath tidal waters, which is subject to regular or periodic tidal action and supports aquatic growth. This includes wetlands transferred by the state by a valid grant, lease, patent or grant confirmed by Article 5 of the Declaration of Rights of the Constitution, to the extent of the interest transferred.

Any land under the navigable waters of the state below the mean high tide affected by the regular rise and fall of the tide. Wetlands of this category which have been transferred by the state by valid grant, lease, patent or grant confirmed by Article 5 of the Declaration of Rights of the Constitution shall be considered private wetland to the extent of the interest transferred.

Includes all private and state wetlands as defined herein.

November 3, 2009.

Issuance of building permit, site plan approval, preliminary plat approval, final plat approval, record plat approval, residential planned community Step I approval, residential planned community Step II approval or any other plan approval which is determined by the Department to be one of such similar nature so that the purpose and intent of this section is fulfilled.

Any proposed subdivision, development or redevelopment of land or buildings within the County.

Any regulation, law, requirement, criteria, standard or other regulatory imposition.