Chapter 18.20
DEFINITIONS
Sections:
18.20.010 General.
For the purposes of this code, certain terms or words used herein shall be interpreted as follows:
A. The word “person” includes “firm,” “association,” “organization,” “partnership,” “trust,” “company,” or “corporation” as well as an individual.
B. The present tense includes the future tense, the singular number includes the plural, and the plural number includes the singular.
C. The word “shall” is mandatory, the word “may” is permissive.
D. The word “used” or “occupied” includes the words “intended, designed, or arranged to be used or occupied.”
E. The word “lot” includes the words “plot” and “parcel.” (Ord. O-16-598 § 1(B) (Exh. B); Ord. O-03-235 § 1; Ord. O-02-186 § 1; Ord. O-99-109 § 1).
18.20.020 Definitions.
A. “A” Definitions.
1. “Abandon” means knowing relinquishment of right or claim to the subject property or structure on that property by the owner without any intention of transferring rights to the property to another owner or of resuming the use of the property (such as sale, loss of lease, eviction, etc.).
2. “Accessory dwelling unit” means a second dwelling unit added to or created within a single-family detached dwelling for use as a completely independent unit.
3. “Accessory use or structure” means a use or structure on the same lot with, and of a nature customarily incidental and subordinate to, and smaller than, the principal use or structure.
4. “Adjacent” means directly next to, touching, as in a common property line, or directly across a street.
5. “Adult entertainment” means:
a. Any exhibition, performance or dance of any type conducted in a premises where such exhibition, performance or dance involves a person who is unclothed or in such costume, attire or clothing as to expose any portion of the nipple, the areola, or the lower half of the female breast or any portion of the pubic region, anus, buttocks, vulva or genitals, or wearing any device or covering exposed to view which simulates the appearance of any portion of the nipple, the areola, or the lower half of the female breast or any portion of the pubic region, anus, buttocks, vulva or genitals, or human male genitals in a discernibly turgid state, even if completely and opaquely covered; or
b. Any exhibition, performance or dance of any type conducted in a premises where such exhibition, performance or dance is distinguished or characterized by a predominant emphasis on the depiction, description, simulation or relation to the following specified sexual activities:
i. Human genitals in a state of sexual stimulation or arousal;
ii. Acts of human masturbation, sexual intercourse or sodomy; or
iii. Fondling or other erotic touching of human genitals, pubic region, buttocks or female breast; or
c. Any exhibition, performance or dance intended to sexually stimulate any patron and conducted in a premises where such exhibition, performance or dance is performed for, arranged with or engaged in with fewer than all patrons on the premises at that time, with separate consideration paid, either directly or indirectly, for such performance, exhibition or dance. For purposes of example and not limitation, such exhibitions, performances or dances are commonly referred to as table dancing, couch dancing, taxi dancing, lap dancing, private dancing or straddle dancing.
6. “Adult use facility” means an enterprise predominantly involved in the selling, renting, or presenting for commercial purposes of books, magazines, motion pictures, films, video cassettes, cable television, live entertainment, performance or activity distinguished or characterized by a predominant emphasis on the depiction, simulation or relation to “specified sexual activities” as defined by this chapter for observation by patrons therein. Examples of such establishments include, but are not limited to, adult book or video stores and establishments offering panorams, peep shows or topless or nude dancing.
7. “Agriculture” means the use of land for agriculture purposes, including farming, dairying, pasturage, horticulture, floriculture, viticulture, apiaries, and animal and poultry husbandry, and the necessary accessory uses for storing produce; provided, however, that the operation of any such accessory use shall be incidental to that of normal agriculture activities.
8. “Alley” or “lane” means a public or private way not more than 30 feet wide affording only secondary means of access to abutting property.
9. “Allowable density” means the maximum number of lots or primary residential units allowed, determined by multiplying the gross acreage of the development or designated site by the maximum number of dwelling units allowed by the zoning district or designation.
10. “Animal, large” means cattle, horses, donkeys, sheep, goats, hogs, llamas, emus and any animals comparable in size.
11. “Animal, small” means any domesticated animal not considered to be a “large animal,” including household pets, poultry, bees and other animals of similar size and type.
12. “Apartment” means a dwelling unit in a multifamily building.
13. “Apartment house” (also see “Dwelling, multiple-family”) means any building, or portion thereof, which is designed, built, rented, leased, let or hired out to be occupied, or which is occupied, as the home or residence of three or more families living independently of each other and doing their own cooking in the said building, and shall include flats and apartments.
14. “Assisted living facility” means any home or institution that provides housing, assists with activities of daily living and is responsible for the safety and well-being of the residents. Assisted living shall not include independent senior housing, independent living units in continuing care retirement communities, or other similar living situations including those subsidized by the Department of Housing and Urban Development.
15. “Automobile wrecking or motor vehicle wrecking” means the dismantling or disassembling of motor vehicles or the storage, sale or dumping of dismantled, partially dismantled, obsolete or wrecked motor vehicles or their parts.
16. Awning. See “Canopy.”
B. “B” Definitions.
1. “Basement” means that portion of a story partly underground and having at least one-half, or more than five feet, below the adjacent finish grade.
2. “Bed and breakfast” means any single-family dwelling in use as a residence and also containing no more than three guest rooms in which travelers are lodged for no more than two consecutive weeks and for which compensation of any kind is paid. (For the purpose of this definition, a bed and breakfast is not a hotel, inn, motel, or boarding or lodging home.)
3. “Boarding or lodging home” means a building with not more than five guest rooms (with or without meals) which are provided for compensation for not more than 10 persons. Guest rooms numbering six or more shall constitute a hotel.
4. “Buffer” means a landscaped strip that may be required to be of a frequency, width, length, location, density and height of planting, as specified by regulations, conditions and/or recommendations of City staff.
5. “Building” means any structure having a roof supported by columns or walls used or intended to be used for the shelter or enclosure of persons, animals or property of any kind.
6. “Building height” means the vertical distance from the “grade” to the highest point of the coping of a flat roof or to the deck line of a mansard roof or to the average height of the highest gable of a pitched or hip roof; provided, that driveway entrances to underground parking shall be excluded from the elevation used to calculate “grade.”
7. “Building, principal or main” means a building devoted to the principal use of the lot on which it is situated.
8. “Business activity” means any activity carried out for the purpose of financial gain for an individual or organization, whether profit or nonprofit.
9. “Business or commerce” means the purchase, sale, or other transaction involving the handling or disposition of any article, service, substance, or commodity for the livelihood or profit; or the management of office buildings, offices, recreational or amusement enterprises; or the maintenance and use of buildings, offices, structures, and premises by professions and trades rendering services.
C. “C” Definitions.
1. “Canopy” means a roof-like projection.
2. “Car wash” means a structure with machine-operated or hand-operated facilities used principally for the cleaning, washing, polishing, or waxing of motor vehicles.
3. “Clinic” means a facility designed for use by medical or dental professionals for outpatient diagnosis and treatment.
4. “Commercial zone” means any nonresidential zone, including Neighborhood Business, Community Business, and Town Center.
5. “Comprehensive plan” means the plans, map, and reports that have been adopted by the City Council in accordance with applicable State law.
6. “Conditional use” means a use permitted in a zoning district only after review and approval by the City. Conditional uses are such that they may be compatible only under certain conditions in specific locations in a zoning district, or if the site is regulated in a certain manner.
7. “Conditional Use Permit” means a land use application granted by the Hearing Examiner to locate a conditional use at a specific location.
8. “Correctional facility” means a State-operated facility for the incarceration and/or rehabilitation of adult or juvenile inmates.
9. “Court” means, for building code purposes, a space, open and unobstructed to the sky, located at or above grade level on a lot and bounded on three or more sides by walls of a building.
D. “D” Definitions.
1. “Day care center, adult” means a State-licensed facility which provides supervision and care for a group of elderly or disabled adults who cannot safely be left alone, for a period of less than 24 hours per day.
2. “Day care center, child” means a facility, licensed by the State, which regularly provides care for a group of children for a period less than 24 hours per day. The term shall include, but is not limited to, facilities commonly known as “day care facilities,” “day care centers,” and “preschools.” See “Family child care home” for child care located in a residence.
3. “Density” means the number of dwelling units or lots within a specified area calculated by dividing the number of dwelling units or lots by the gross acres (see “gross acreage”).
4. “Department” means the City of Maple Valley Community Development Department.
5. “Development” means any manmade change to improved or unimproved real property, including, but not limited to, buildings or other structures, placement of manufactured homes/mobile homes, mining, dredging, clearing, filling, grading, paving, excavation, drilling or the subdivision of property.
6. “Development Permit” means any document granting, or granting with conditions, an application for a land use designation or redesignation, zoning or rezoning, subdivision, site plan, Building Permit, variance or any other official action of the City having the effect of authorizing the development of land.
7. “Development plan” means a plan drawn to scale, indicating the proposed use, the actual dimensions and shape of the lot to be built upon, the exact sizes and locations on the lot of buildings already existing, if any, and the location on the lot of the proposed building or alteration, yards, setbacks, landscaping, off-street parking, ingress and egress, and signs.
8. “Development standards” means regulations including but not limited to setbacks, landscaping, screening, building height, site coverage, signs, building layout, parking and site design and related features of land use.
9. “Director” means the Director of the Community Development Department or designee.
10. “Discretionary Land Use Permit” means a document granted by official action of the City which authorizes the development or use of land pursuant to the final development plan approval.
11. “District” means an area designated by the Maple Valley Development Code and zoning map with specific boundaries in which lie specific zones that are described in the Development Code.
12. “Dripline” means the maximum circumference of the existing tree crown as located on site.
13. “Drive-through windows/facilities” means any portion of a building or structure from which business is transacted directly with customers located in a motor vehicle during such business transactions. This definition shall not include retail fueling stations and car washes.
14. “Dwelling” means a building or portion thereof designed exclusively for human habitation, including single-family, two-family and multiple-family dwellings, accessory dwelling units, modular homes, manufactured homes and mobile homes, but not including hotels or motels.
15. “Dwelling, multiple-family” means a residential building designed for occupancy by three or more families, with the number of families in residence not exceeding the number of dwelling units provided.
16. “Dwelling, single-family” means a detached residential dwelling unit designed for and occupied by one family only, except where approval has been granted for an accessory dwelling unit.
17. “Dwelling, two-family” means a detached residential building containing two dwelling units, designed for occupancy by not more than two families, but not including a single-family dwelling with an approved accessory dwelling unit.
18. “Dwelling unit” means one room, or rooms connected together, constituting a separate, independent housekeeping establishment for owner occupancy, rental or lease on a monthly or longer basis, and physically separated from any other rooms or dwelling units which may be in the same structure or on the same property and containing independent cooking and sleeping facilities.
E. “E” Definitions.
1. “Examiner” means the City of Maple Valley Hearing Examiner.
F. “F” Definitions.
1. “Factory-built home” means manufactured home, mobile home or modular home.
2. “Family” means an individual; or two or more persons related by blood or marriage, or adoption; or a group of not more than six persons who are not related by blood, marriage, or adoption, living and cooking together as a single housekeeping unit. For the purposes of this definition, any number of persons of only one group (i.e., family) who are related by blood, marriage, or adoption shall be counted as one person and all other individuals shall be counted as single individuals.
3. “Family child care home” means a facility meeting the requirements of Chapter 388-155 WAC and providing care for 12 or fewer children in the family residence of the licensed provider.
4. “Farmers market” means the temporary, seasonal or occasional sale of fresh agricultural products, arts and crafts, and food and beverages directly to the consumer at an open-air market not to exceed 104 days per year. A farmers market is generally recognized as a community activity that does not charge entry admission fees for public attendance and the operations are managed by a not-for-profit organization.
5. “Fence, sight-obscuring” means a fence designed to provide a solid sight barrier between incompatible land uses. The minimum for a sight-obscuring fence is a chain-link fence with woven slats in every row or available space of the fence.
6. “Frontage, building or occupancy” means the length of that portion of a building or ground floor occupancy which abuts a street, publicly used parking area, or mall appurtenant to said building or occupancy expressed in lineal feet and fractions thereof.
7. “Fueling station, commercial” means a building or lot having pumps and storage tanks where fuels, oils or accessories for motor vehicles are dispensed, sold or offered for sale on a wholesale or membership basis, principally although not exclusively for commercial vehicles.
8. “Fueling station, retail” means a building or lot having pumps and storage tanks where fuels, oils or accessories for motor vehicles are dispensed, sold or offered for sale at retail only, principally for cars, light trucks, and other passenger vehicles; repair service is incidental; and no long-term storage or parking space is offered for rent.
G. “G” Definitions.
1. “Garage or carport, private” means a building or a portion of a building principally for vehicular equipment such as automobiles, watercraft, etc., in which only motor vehicles used by the tenants of the building or buildings on the premises are stored or kept.
2. “Grade” is the median of the finished ground elevations of a building measured at one-foot intervals along the base of all exterior building walls greater than four feet wide.
3. “Gross acreage” means the total area before the area for required public improvements such as street rights-of-way, open space, parks, and stormwater facilities have been subtracted.
4. “Gross floor area” means the area included within the surrounding exterior walls of a building expressed in square feet and fractions thereof. The floor area of a building not provided with surrounding exterior walls shall be the usable area under the horizontal projections of the roof or floor above.
5. “Group home” means living quarters for handicapped persons within the meaning of 42 U.S.C. 3602(h), or children with familial status within the meaning of 42 U.S.C. 3602(k), meeting applicable federal and State standards, that function as a single housekeeping unit and provide supportive services, including but not limited to counseling, rehabilitation, and medical supervision, excluding drug and alcohol detoxification facilities.
H. “H” Definitions.
1. “Hazardous substance” means a substance as defined in RCW 70.105.010.
2. “Height.” See “Building height.”
3. “Home-based day care, adult” means a State-licensed facility, located in a dwelling unit, that regularly provides care for a period of less than 24 hours per day for no more than 12 elderly or disabled adults who cannot safely be left alone.
4. “Home occupations” must meet the requirements of MVMC 18.30.030(B)(7).
5. “Homeowners’ association” means an incorporated, nonprofit organization operating under recorded land agreements through which:
a. Each lot owner is automatically a member; and
b. Each member is subject to the requirements of conditions, covenants and restrictions as adopted by the association.
6. “Hospital” means a building or group of buildings designed and used for a full range of medical and surgical diagnosis and treatment, and where patients remain in residence for observation and recuperation.
7. “Hotel” means a site which does not qualify as a bed and breakfast or a boarding or lodging home on which there are any number of guest rooms where lodging with or without meals is provided for compensation.
8. “Household pets” means any small animals that are kept within a dwelling unit.
I. “I” Definitions.
1. “Impervious surfaces” means that hard surface area which either prevents or retards the entry of water into the soil mantle as it entered under natural conditions preexistent to development, and/or that hard surface area which causes water to run off the surface in greater quantities or at an increased rate of flow from that present under natural conditions preexistent to development. Common impervious surfaces include, but are not limited to, roof tops, concrete or asphalt paving, paved walkways, patios, driveways, parking lots or storage areas, and oiled, macadam or other surfaces which similarly impede the natural infiltration of surface water.
J. “J” Definitions.
1. “Jail” means a municipal holding facility located in conjunction with police offices.
2. “Junk yard” means a place where waste, discarded or salvaged materials are bought, sold, exchanged, stored, baled, cleaned, packed, disassembled, or handled, including auto and motor vehicle wrecking yards, house wrecking yards, used-lumber yards and yards for use of salvaged house wrecking and structural steel materials and equipment.
K. “K” Definitions.
1. “Kennel” means any premises on which domestic animals are kept on a temporary basis for compensation, or on which small animals exceeding the number allowed as an accessory use are kept.
L. “L” Definitions.
1. “Lot,” for the purposes of this code, is a parcel of land of at least sufficient size to meet minimum zoning requirements for use, coverage and area and to provide such setbacks and other open spaces as are herein required. Such lot shall have frontage on an improved public street, or on an approved private street or easement, and may consist of:
a. A single lot of record;
b. A portion of a lot of record;
c. A combination of complete lots of record, and portions of lots of record;
d. A parcel of land described by metes and bounds;
Provided, that in no case of division or combination shall any residual lot or parcel be created which does not meet the requirements of this code.
2. “Lot, corner” means a lot abutting upon two or more public streets at their intersection, or upon two parts of the same street, such streets or parts of the same street forming an interior angle of less than 135 degrees within the lot lines.
3. “Lot coverage” means that portion of a lot covered by buildings or structures.
4. “Lot frontage” means the portion of a lot abutting a public right-of-way.
5. “Lot line” means a line of record bounding a lot that divides one lot from another lot or from a public right-of-way or private street or any other public space.
6. Lot Measurements.
a. Depth of a lot shall be considered to be the mean or average distance from the front lot line to the rear lot line.
b. Width of a lot shall be considered to be the mean or average distance between the side lines connecting front and rear lot lines; provided, however, that width between side lot lines at their foremost points (where they intersect with the street line) shall not be less than 80 percent of the required lot width except in the case of lots on the turning circle of cul-de-sacs, where the 80 percent requirement shall not apply.
7. “Lot of record” means a lot which is part of a subdivision recorded in the office of the County Assessor, or a lot or parcel described by metes and bounds and/or bearings, the description of which has been so recorded.
8. “Lot, pipestem” means a lot which gains street right-of-way access by way of a driveway easement or lot extension which is less than 80 percent of the minimum lot width. When a pipestem-shaped lot abuts two or more street rights-of-way, it shall not be considered a pipestem lot. Lot width and setback requirements shall be exclusive of the access stem.
9. “Lot, through” means a lot that has both ends abutting on a street. Either end may be considered the front.
M. “M” Definitions.
1. “Manufactured home” means a factory-assembled structure intended solely for human habitation, which has sleeping, eating and plumbing facilities, that is being used for residential purposes, that was constructed in accordance with the HUD Federal Manufactured Housing Construction and Safety Standards Act in effect at the time of construction, and that is constructed in a way suitable for movement along public highways.
2. “Mobile home” means a factory-constructed residential unit with its own independent sanitary facilities, that is intended for year-round occupancy, and is composed of one or more major components which are mobile in that they can be supported by wheels attached to their own integral frame or structure and towed by an attachment to that frame or structure over the public highway under trailer license or by special permit.
3. “Modular home” means a dwelling that is designed for human habitation and is either entirely or substantially prefabricated or assembled at a place other than a building site and meets all of the requirements of Chapter 296-150A WAC. Modular homes are also commonly referred to as factory-built housing, and for purposes of this title a modular home is considered single- and two-family housing.
4. “Motel” means a group of attached or detached buildings containing individual sleeping units where a majority of such units open individually and directly to the outside, and where a garage is attached to or a parking space is conveniently located to each unit, all for the temporary use by tourists or transients, and not including bed and breakfasts or boarding or lodging homes.
N. “N” Definitions.
1. “Net acreage” means the buildable area after the area for required public improvements such as street rights-of-way, open space, parks, and stormwater facilities has been subtracted.
2. “Nonconforming development site” means a site developed, operated and maintained as a single entity accommodating commercial, business park or multifamily uses, or a combination of such uses, with common areas, accessory uses, or site improvements which were legal when established but which do not now conform to the current parking, loading, access, landscaping, screening, open space, impervious surface, or design requirements of this code.
3. “Nonconforming lot of record” means any validly recorded lot which at the time it was recorded fully complied with the applicable laws and ordinances but which does not fully comply with the lot requirements of this code.
4. “Nonconforming structure” means a building or structure which conformed to applicable dimensional standards in effect when the structure was built, including height, setback, density, and lot coverage, but which no longer complies because of changes in applicable regulations. For structures not conforming to building code requirements, see MVMC Title 15.
5. “Nonconforming use” means the use of land or a structure which conformed to applicable codes in effect on the date of creation or inception of the use, but which no longer complies because of changes in applicable regulations.
6. “Nursing home” means a medically staffed facility intended for the long-term residential care of individuals not related by blood or marriage to the operator of the facility who are incapable of independent living, because of age or medical condition. This definition shall also include care of mentally incompetent and community-based care but shall exclude hospitals and assisted living facilities. “Nursing home” shall also include “nursing facility,” “skilled nursing facility” or “long-term care facility.”
O. “O” Definitions.
1. “Occupancy” means the purpose for which a building is used or intended to be used. The term shall also include the building or room housing such use.
2. “Official map” means maps showing the designation, location and boundaries of the various districts that have been adopted and made part of this code.
3. “Open space” means land that is reserved for recreational purposes or for the preservation of particular vegetative or topographic features.
4. “Outside storage” means all or part of a lot that is used for the keeping of materials or products in an open, uncovered yard or in an unwalled building. Such materials shall include, but not be limited to, tractors, backhoes, heavy equipment, construction materials and other similar items.
P. “P” Definitions.
1. “Park” means a tract of land designated and used by the public for active and passive recreation as defined within the City of Maple Valley Parks, Recreation, Cultural and Human Services Plan.
2. “Parking space or parking stall” means any off-street space intended for the use of vehicular parking with ingress or egress to the space easily identifiable.
3. “Police station” means a protection/law enforcement center operated by a governmental agency including administrative offices, storage of equipment, temporary detention facilities, and the parking of vehicles; excluding correctional institutions.
4. “Professional office” means an office used as a place of business by licensed professionals, or persons in other generally recognized professions, which primarily use training or knowledge of a technical, scientific or other academic discipline rather than manual skills, and which does not involve outside storage or fabrication, or on-site sale or transfer of merchandise as a primary activity.
5. “Public sanitary sewer” means any sewer facility other than a side sewer, either owned or operated by, or within the jurisdiction of, the City.
6. “Public transit facilities” means transit centers, park and ride lots, and other major facilities related to public transportation; does not include bus stops, which are permitted in all zones.
Q. “Q” Definitions. Reserved.
R. “R” Definitions.
1. “Recreation instruction” means programmed instruction for indoor or outdoor sports or arts-related activities including but not limited to dance studios, martial arts schools, pottery or ceramics studios, and tennis or soccer clubs.
2. “Recreational use” means interior or exterior areas dedicated for public or private active or passive recreational use, or amenity, including sports and recreational services and activities. A recreational use may be operated as a nonprofit or for-profit entity, and may include recreation clubs restricting use to members and their guests (i.e., country, golf, tennis, and amateur sports and recreation clubs), recreational amusement uses, trails, special purpose recreation facilities such as ice arenas, equestrian centers, swimming pools, golf courses or live performance theaters, and recreational uses not elsewhere classified. Subject to code restrictions, accessory uses may be allowed in conjunction with a primary recreational use that includes: temporary housing, residential uses, eating and drinking establishments, small conference facilities, and associated retail, i.e., pro shops.
3. “Recreation space” means interior or exterior areas located and designed for common use by residents of a development. Exterior areas include lands unoccupied by buildings, roads or parking areas, such as woodlands, fields, gardens, courtyards, landscaped areas, lawns and trails, as well as swimming pools, tennis courts, and picnic areas.
4. “Recreational vehicles” means motorized vehicles that include a cabin for living accommodations and are commonly used for recreational travel and touring. Vehicles included in this category come in several forms: travel trailers, tent trailers and camping trailers, all of which must be towed by an automobile or truck; and truck campers, motor homes and camper vans, all of which have the motor within the body of the vehicle.
5. “Religious institution” means a facility operated for worship, prayer, meditation or similar activity by an organization granted tax-exempt status by the Federal Internal Revenue Service.
6. “Replacement value” means the cost to rebuild or replace a structure, minus deferred maintenance. The Director of Community Development shall provide rules and determine which valuation service to use for determining replacement value.
7. “Retail vehicle sales/rentals – motor vehicle, boat, and recreational vehicle, retail” means an establishment engaged in the retail sale of new and/or used automobiles, boats, recreational vehicles, and other motorized passenger vehicles.
8. “Retirement community – continuing care” means a single facility that provides a range of services by one organization which includes independent living services, or boarding home or assisted living services and skilled nursing services. The number of licensed nursing home beds must be 60 percent or less of the total number of beds available in the entire continuing care retirement community.
9. “Retirement home” means a building or group of buildings designed for the occupancy of three or more families, living semi-independently from each other, and containing private sleeping units with some common kitchen, dining, and recreation facilities; provided, a retirement home may contain one or more dwelling units utilized solely by resident staff.
10. “Revegetation” means the planting of vegetation to cover any land areas which have been disturbed during construction.
11. “Right-of-way” means land which is occupied or dedicated to be occupied by a public street or railroad, together with public property reserved for utilities, transmission lines and extensions, walkways, sidewalks, bikeways, equestrian trails, and other similar uses.
S. “S” Definitions.
1. “Self-storage” means a facility designed for the temporary off-site storage of property, accessible by the user.
2. “Senior assisted housing” means dwellings exclusively designed for and occupied by families each of which have at least one person of age 62 or older, and as may be modified by the requirements of State or federal programs or regulations to include individuals who are classified as head-of-household and are disabled or handicapped regardless of age. Senior assisted housing may include support services, including but not limited to:
a. Food preparation and dining areas;
b. Group activity areas;
c. Medical supervision; and
d. Similar activities.
3. “Services, on-site” means establishments primarily engaged in providing individual or professional services within the place of business, such as beauty salons and barber shops, retail laundry and dry cleaning including coin-operated, garment alterations and repair, photo studios, shoe repair, pet grooming, photography and photo reproduction, entertainment media rental or other indoor rental services, repair of personal items or household items, and nonmotorized vehicle repair. This definition excludes automotive repair or automotive service and miscellaneous repair.
4. “Setback” means the minimum required distance between any structure and a specified line such as a lot line, public right-of-way, private road, easement or buffer line that is required to remain free of structures unless otherwise provided herein.
5. “Setback, front” means space abutting a street right-of-way, access easement or private road either from which the lot is addressed or from which the lot gains primary access and extending the full width of the lot. For pipestem lots, the front setback shall be located in the area of the lot nearest the street or private road, exclusive of the pipestem area. On a corner lot, the front setback shall be provided on the narrowest part of the lot that abuts a street, except in Commercial zones, in which cases the Director shall determine the location of the front setback.
6. “Setback, interior” means the setback from interior property lines, i.e., those property lines not abutting a public street, access easement or private road, a side setback or rear setback.
7. “Setback, rear” means space abutting a property line and opposite to the front setback or as nearly so as the lot shape permits, and extending the full width of the lot. If more than one rear setback is possible, the setback furthest from the front lot line shall be the required rear setback.
8. Setback, Side. Any setback not defined as a front or rear setback shall be treated as a side setback; provided, that on corner lots the setback abutting the street not designated as the front shall be a “side street setback” and shall require a setback of twice the distance for an interior or side setback.
9. “Sewage system, on-site” means any system of piping, treatment devices, or other facilities that convey, store, treat, or dispose of sewage on the property where it originates or on adjacent or nearby property under control of the user where the system is not connected to a public or approved private sewer system.
10. “Shopping center” means more than three commercial establishments that are planned, owned or managed as a single entity with on-site parking provided.
11. “Sign” Definitions. See MVMC 18.50.010, Signs, for definitions related to signs and signage.
12. “Sleeping unit” means a room or area within a building specifically designed for sleeping only, which contains no cooking or sanitary facilities.
13. “Special purpose recreation facility” means an area operated and devoted to facilities and equipment for recreational purposes, including swimming pools, tennis courts, playgrounds, ice arenas, golf courses and other similar uses whether the use of such area is limited to private membership or whether open to the public upon the payment of a fee.
14. “Specified sexual activities” means human genitalia in a state of sexual stimulation or arousal; acts of human masturbation, sexual intercourse or sodomy; or erotic fondling, touching or display of human genitalia, pubic region, buttock, or female breast.
15. “Stable” means a structure or facility in which horses or other livestock are kept for the purpose of boarding, training, riding lessons, breeding, rental or personal use.
16. “Story” means that portion of a building included between the upper surface of any floor and the upper surface of the floor next above, except that the topmost story shall be that portion of a building included between the upper surface of the topmost floor and the ceiling or roof above. If the finished floor level directly above a basement, cellar or unused underfloor space is more than six feet above grade as defined herein for more than 50 percent of the total perimeter or is more than 12 feet above grade as defined herein at any point, such basement, cellar or unused underfloor space shall be considered a story.
17. “Street” means a public or recorded private thoroughfare providing pedestrian and vehicular access through neighborhoods and communities and to abutting property.
18. “Structure” means that which is built or constructed, an edifice or building of any kind or any piece of work composed of parts joined together in some definite manner and includes posts for fences and signs, but does not include mounds of earth or debris.
T. “T” Definitions.
1. “Townhouse” means single-family attached dwelling units that occupy space from the ground to the roof and share a common wall with one or more adjacent dwelling unit(s), having open space on at least two sides, but not necessarily having a side yard.
2. “Tract” means any parcel of land, lot, building site, or contiguous combination thereof devoted to or intended to be devoted to a principal use and any other uses customarily accessory thereto.
3. “Trade, retail” means the sale or rental of goods and merchandise for final use or consumption.
U. “U” Definitions.
1. “Use” means an activity for which land or premises or a building thereon is designed, arranged, intended, or for which it is occupied or maintained, let or leased.
2. “Use, change of” occurs when it is found that the building code occupancy changes or when a new use would require more parking spaces according to the requirements of this code than the previous use, or when a new use generates more than 120 percent of the vehicle trips of the former use.
3. “Use, permitted” means any use allowed in a zoning classification and subject to the restrictions applicable to the specific use.
4. “Use, temporary” means any activity and/or structure permitted under the provisions of this code which is intended to exist or operate for a limited period of time and which does not comply with the development standards and requirements as specified for the zoning district in which it is located.
5. “Utility” means a public or private agency which provides a service that is utilized or available to the general public (or a locationally specific population thereof). Such services may include, but are not limited to, stormwater detention and management, sewer, water, telecommunications, cable, electricity and natural gas.
6. “Utility infrastructure, major or regional” means above- or below-grade facilities for the transmission, distribution or provision of services to a wide area, often greater than the Maple Valley City limits, including but not limited to:
a. Pump stations;
b. Electrical substations;
c. Electrical transmission lines;
d. Lift stations;
e. Water reservoirs;
f. Treatment plants.
7. “Utility infrastructure, minor or local” means above- or below-grade facilities for the distribution or provision of services to a local area, including but not limited to:
a. Distribution lines;
b. Grinder pumps;
c. Storm drainage facilities;
d. Storm drainage culverts.
V. “V” Definitions.
1. “Variance” means a modification of dimensional standards of this code when authorized pursuant to MVMC 18.110.040.
2. “Vehicle repair, major” means servicing, repairing, or restoring of vehicles including but not limited to engine work, auto body work, or any other work that typically requires more than a day to accomplish, and including vehicle towing and impound lots.
3. “Vehicle repair, minor” means servicing and repairing vehicles including but not limited to oil changes, mini-lube facilities, tire changes, replacing headlights and windshield wipers, detail shops, and auto-related work that typically can be completed within one day.
4. “Veterinary clinic” means any premises to which animals are brought or where they are temporarily kept, solely for the purpose of diagnosis or treatment of any illness or injury.
W. “W” Definitions.
1. “Watercraft” means any recreational or commercial craft or device designed for use in or on a body of water.
X. “X” Definitions. Reserved.
Y. “Y” Definitions.
1. “Youth mental health services” means a counseling or therapy service provided by a nonprofit or governmental organization.
Z. “Z” Definitions. Reserved. (Ord. O-23-774 § 1 (Exh. A); Ord. O-18-639 § 1; Ord. O-16-598 § 1(B) (Exh. B); Ord. O-13-545 § 1; Ord. O-12-499 § 2; Ord. O-12-490 § 2; Ord. O-10-415 § 1; Ord. O-07-351 § 4; Ord. O-06-333 § 1; Ord. O-05-304 § 1; Ord. O-03-235 § 1; Ord. O-02-186 § 1; Ord. O-99-109 § 1).