Article 1 — Statutory Authorization, Findings of Fact, Purpose, and Methods

The Legislature of the State, in Sections 65302, 65560, and65800 of the Government Code of the State, has conferred upon local government units authority to adopt regulations designed to promote the public health, safety, and general welfare of their citizenry. Therefore, the City does hereby adopt the following floodplain management regulations.

(§ 1, Ord. 655, eff. May 19, 1988, as amended by § 2, Ord. 914, eff. March 24, 2021)

• (a) The flood hazard areas of the City are subject to periodic inundation which results in loss of life and property, health and safety hazards, the disruption of commerce and governmental services, extraordinary public expenditures for flood protection and relief, and impairment of the tax base, all of which adversely affect the public health, safety, and general welfare.

• (b) Such flood losses are caused by the cumulative effect of obstructions in areas of special flood hazard which increase flood heights and velocities and, when inadequately anchored, damage uses in other areas. Uses which are inadequately floodproofed, elevated, or otherwise protected from flood damage also contribute to flood losses.

• (§ 1, Ord. 655, eff. May 19, 1988)

It is the purpose of this chapter to promote the public health, safety, and general welfare and to minimize public and private losses due to flood conditions in specific areas by provisions designed:

• (a) To protect human life and health;

• (b) To minimize expenditures of public moneys for costly flood control projects;

• (c) To minimize the need for rescue and relief efforts associated with flooding and generally undertaken at the expense of the general public;

• (d) To minimize prolonged business interruptions;

• (e) To minimize damages to public facilities and utilities, such as water and gas mains, electric, telephone, and sewer lines, streets, and bridges located in areas of special flood hazard;

• (f) To help maintain a stable tax base by providing for the reuse and development of areas of special flood hazard so as to minimize future flood blight areas;

• (g) To ensure that potential buyers are notified that property is in an area of special flood hazard; and

• (h) To ensure that those who occupy the areas of special flood hazard assume responsibility for their actions.

• (§ 1, Ord. 655, eff. May 19, 1988, as amended by § 2, Ord. 914, eff. March 24, 2021)

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City of Ojai, CA

BUILDING REGULATIONS

§ 9-9.104

§ 9-9.104

In order to accomplish its purposes, this chapter includes methods and provisions for:

• (a) Restricting or prohibiting uses which are dangerous to health, safety, and property due to water or erosion hazards or which result in damaging increases in erosion or flood heights or velocities;

• (b) Requiring that uses vulnerable to floods, including facilities which serve such uses, be protected against flood damages at the time of initial construction;

• (c) Controlling the alteration of natural floodplains, stream channels, and natural protective barriers which help accommodate or channel floodwaters;

• (d) Controlling filling, grading, dredging, and other development which may increase flood damages; and

• (e) Preventing or regulating the construction of flood barriers which will unnaturally divert floodwaters or which may increase flood hazards in other areas.

• (§ 1, Ord. 655, eff. May 19, 1988)

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City of Ojai, CA § 9-9.200

BUILDING REGULATIONS

§ 9-9.204

Article 2 Definitions

For the purposes of this chapter, unless otherwise apparent from the context, certain words and phrases used in this chapter are defined as set forth in this article. (§ 1, Ord. 655, eff. May 19, 1988)

"Alluvial fan" shall mean a geomorphologic feature characterized by a cone or fan-shaped deposit of boulders, gravel, and fine sediments that have been eroded from mountain slopes, transported by flood flows, and then deposited on the valley floors, and which is subject to flash flooding, high velocity flows, debris flows, erosion, sediment movement and deposition, and channel migration.

(§ 2, Ord. 914, eff. March 24, 2021)

"Apex" shall mean 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. (§ 2, Ord. 914, eff. March 24, 2021)

"Appeal" shall mean a request for a review of the Floodplain Administrator's interpretation of any provision of this chapter or a request for a variance. (§ 1, Ord. 655, eff. May 19, 1988)

"Area of shallow flooding" shall mean a designated AO or AH Zone on the Flood Insurance Rate Map (FIRM). The base flood depths range from one to three feet; a clearly defined channel does not exist; the path of flooding is unpredictable and indeterminate; and velocity flow may be evident.

(§ 1, Ord. 655, eff. May 19, 1988)

"Base flood" shall mean the flood having a one percent chance of being equaled or exceeded in any given year (also called the "100-year flood"). (§ 1, Ord. 655, eff. May 19, 1988)

"Base flood elevation (BFE)" shall mean the elevation shown on the Flood Insurance Rate Map for Zones AE, AH, A1-30, VE and V1-V30 that indicates the water surface elevation resulting from a flood that has a one-percent or greater chance of being equaled or exceeded in any given year.

(§ 2, Ord. 914, eff. March 24, 2021)

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City of Ojai, CA

BUILDING REGULATIONS

§ 9-9.204

§ 9-9.207

"Basement" shall mean any area of a building having its floor subgrade (below the ground level) on all sides.

(§ 1, Ord. 655, eff. May 19, 1988)

"Breakaway wall" shall mean any type of wall, whether solid or lattice, and whether constructed of concrete, masonry, wood, metal, plastic, or any other suitable building material, which wall is not part of the structural support of the building, and which is designed to break away under abnormally high tides or wave action without causing any damage to the structural integrity of the building on which it is used or any building to which it might be carried by floodwaters. A breakaway wall shall have a safe design loading resistance of not less than 10 and no more than 20 pounds per square foot. The use of breakaway walls shall be certified by a registered engineer or architect and shall meet the following conditions:

• (a) Breakaway wall collapse shall result from a water load less than that which would occur during the base flood; and

• (b) The elevated portion of the building shall not incur any structural damage due to the effects of wind and water loads acting simultaneously in the event of the base flood.

• (§ 1, Ord. 655, eff. May 19, 1988)

"Development" shall mean any man-made change to improved or unimproved real estate, including, but not limited to, buildings or other structures or mining, dredging, filling, grading, paving, excavation, or drilling operations or storage of equipment or materials.

(§ 1, Ord. 655, eff. May 19, 1988, as amended by § 2, Ord. 914, eff. March 24, 2021)

"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 January 11, 1979.

(§ 1, Ord. 844, eff. September 12, 2014)

"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). (§ 2, Ord. 844, eff. September 12, 2014)

"Flood" or "flooding" shall mean a general and temporary condition of partial or complete inundation of normally dry land areas from: (1) the overflow of flood waters; (2) the unusual

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City of Ojai, CA § 9-9.207

OJAI CODE

§ 9-9.213

and rapid accumulation or runoff of surface waters from any source; and/or (3) the collapse or subsidence of land along the shore of a lake or other body of water as a result of erosion or undermining caused by waves or currents of water exceeding anticipated cyclical levels or suddenly caused by an unusually high water level in a natural body of water, accompanied by a severe storm, or by an unanticipated force of nature, such as a flash flood or abnormal tidal surge, or by some similarly unusual and unforeseeable event which results in flooding as defined in this section.

(§ 1, Ord. 655, eff. May 19, 1988)

"Flood Boundary and Floodway Map" shall mean the official map on which the Federal Emergency Management Agency or Federal Insurance Administration has delineated both the areas of flood hazard and the floodway.

(§ 1, Ord. 655, eff. May 19, 1988)

"Flood Insurance Rate Map (FIRM)" shall mean the official map on which the Federal Emergency Management Agency or Federal Insurance Administration has delineated both the special flood hazard areas and the risk premium zones applicable to the community. (§ 1, Ord. 655, eff. May 19, 1988)

"Flood Insurance Study" shall mean the official report provided by the Federal Insurance Administration which includes flood profiles, the FIRM, the Flood Boundary and Floodway Map, and the water surface elevation of the base flood. (§ 1, Ord. 655, eff. May 19, 1988)

"Floodplain or flood-prone area" shall mean any land area susceptible to being inundated by water from any source (see "Flooding," Section 9-9.207 of this article). (§ 1, Ord. 655, eff. May 19, 1988)

"Floodplain management" shall mean the operation of an overall program of corrective and preventative measures for reducing flood damages, including, but not limited to, emergency preparedness plans, flood control works, and floodplain management regulations. (§ 1, Ord. 655, eff. May 19, 1988)

"Floodplain management regulations" shall mean the zoning provisions, subdivision regulations, building codes, health regulations, special purpose regulations (such as floodplain regulations, grading regulations, and erosion control regulations), and other applications of police powers. "Floodplain management regulations" describes such State or local regulations, in any combination thereof, which provide standards for the purpose of flood damage prevention and reduction.

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City of Ojai, CA

BUILDING REGULATIONS

§ 9-9.213

§ 9-9.218

(§ 1, Ord. 655, eff. May 19, 1988)

"Floodproofing" shall mean any combination of structural or nonstructural additions, changes, or adjustments to structures which reduce or eliminate flood damages to real estate or improved real property, water and sanitary facilities, or structures and their contents. (§ 1, Ord. 655, eff. May 19, 1988)

"Floodway" shall mean the channel of a river or other watercourse and the adjacent land areas which must be reserved in order to discharge the base flood without cumulatively increasing the water surface elevation more than one foot, also referred to as "regulatory floodway." (§ 1, Ord. 655, eff. May 19, 1988)

"Functionally dependent use" shall mean a use which cannot perform its intended purpose unless it is located or carried out in close proximity to water. (§ 1, Ord. 655, eff. May 19, 1988)

"Highest adjacent grade" shall mean the highest natural elevation of the ground surface prior to construction next to the proposed walls of a structure. (§ 1, Ord. 655, eff. May 19, 1988)

"Historic structure" means any structure that is:

• (a) 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;

• (b) Certified or preliminarily determined by the Secretary of the Interior as contributing to the historical significance of a registered historic district or a district preliminarily determined by the Secretary to qualify as a registered historic district;

• (c) Individually listed on the State of California inventory of historic places; or

• (d) Individually listed as a landmark under Title 4, Chapter 8 of the Ojai Municipal Code. (§ 3, Ord. 844, eff. September 12, 2014)

"Lowest floor" shall mean the lowest floor of the lowest enclosed area (including the basement). An unfinished or flood resistant enclosure, usable solely for the parking of vehicles, building access, or storage in an area other than a basement area, is not considered a building's lowest floor provided such enclosure is not built so as to render the structure in violation of the applicable non-elevation design requirements of this chapter.

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City of Ojai, CA

OJAI CODE

§ 9-9.218

§ 9-9.224

(§ 1, Ord. 655, eff. May 19, 1988)

"Manufactured home" shall mean a structure, transportable in one or more sections, which is built on a permanent chassis and is designed for use with or without a permanent foundation when connected to the required utilities. For floodplain management purposes, "manufactured home" shall also include park trailers, travel trailers, and other similar vehicles placed on a site for more than 180 consecutive days, but does not include a "recreational vehicle." (§ 1, Ord. 655, eff. May 19, 1988, as amended by § 2, Ord. 914, eff. March 24, 2021)

"Manufactured home park or subdivision" shall mean a parcel (or contiguous parcels) of land divided into two or more manufactured home lots for sale or rent. (§ 1, Ord. 655, eff. May 19, 1988)

"Mean sea level" shall mean, for the purposes of the National Flood Insurance Program, the National Geodetic Vertical Datum (NGVD) of 1929, North American Vertical Datum (NAVD) of 1988, or other datum, to which the base flood elevations shown on a community's Flood Insurance Rate Map are referenced.

(§ 1, Ord. 655, eff. May 19, 1988, as amended by § 2, Ord. 914, eff. March 24, 2021)

"New construction" shall mean, for floodplain management purposes, structures for which the "start of construction" commenced on or after January 11, 1979.

(§ 1, Ord. 655, eff. May 19, 1988, as amended by § 2, Ord. 914, eff. March 24, 2021)

"New 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 on or after January 11, 1979.

(§ 4, Ord. 844, eff. September 12, 2014)

"One hundred-year flood" or "100-year flood" shall mean a flood which has a one percent annual probability of being equaled or exceeded. "One hundred-year flood" is identical to the "base flood," which will be the term used in this chapter. (§ 1, Ord. 655, eff. May 19, 1988)

"Person" shall mean an individual, or his or her agent, firm, partnership, association, or corporation, or agent of such, or the State or its agencies or political subdivisions.

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City of Ojai, CA

BUILDING REGULATIONS

§ 9-9.224

§ 9-9.228

(§ 1, Ord. 655, eff. May 19, 1988)

"Recreational vehicle" means a vehicle which is:

• (a) Built on a single chassis;

• (b) Four hundred square feet or less when measured at the largest horizontal projection;

• (c) Designed to be self propelled or permanently towable by a light duty truck; and

• (d) Designed primarily not for use as a permanent dwelling but as temporary living quarters for recreational, camping, travel, or seasonal use.

• (§ 5, Ord. 844, eff. September 12, 2014)

"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 one foot.

(§ 2, Ord. 914, eff. March 24, 2021)

"Remedy a violation" shall mean to bring the structure, or other development, into compliance with State or local floodplain management regulations or, if such is not possible, to reduce the impacts of its noncompliance. Ways impacts may be reduced include protecting the structure or other affected development from flood damages, implementing the enforcement provisions of this chapter or otherwise deterring future similar violations, or reducing Federal financial exposure with regard to the structure or other development. (§ 1, Ord. 655, eff. May 19, 1988)

"Riverine" shall mean relating to, formed by, or resembling a river (including its tributaries), stream, brook, or the like. (§ 1, Ord. 655, eff. May 19, 1988)

"Special flood hazard area (SFHA)" shall mean an area having special flood or flood-related erosion hazards and shown on an FHBM or FIRM as Zone A, AO, A1-30, AE, A99, or AH. (§ 1, Ord. 655, eff. May 19, 1988)

"Start of construction" shall mean and include substantial improvement and shall mean the date the building permit was issued, provided the actual start of construction, repair, reconstruction, placement, or other improvement was within 180 days of the permit date. "Actual start" shall mean either the first placement of the permanent construction of a structure on a site, such as the pouring of slabs or footings, the installation of piles, the construction of columns, any work

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City of Ojai, CA § 9-9.228

OJAI CODE

§ 9-9.232

beyond the stage of excavation, or the placement of a manufactured home on a foundation. "Permanent construction" shall not include land preparation, such as clearing, grading, and filling; nor shall it include excavations for basements, footings, piers, or foundations for the erection of temporary forms; nor shall it include the installation on the property of accessory buildings, such as garages or sheds, not occupied as dwelling units or not a 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.

(§ 1, Ord. 655, eff. May 19, 1988, as amended by § 2, Ord. 914, eff. March 24, 2021)

"Structure" shall mean a walled and roofed building, including a gas or liquid storage tank, which is principally above the ground, as well as a manufactured home. (§ 1, Ord. 655, eff. May 19, 1988)

"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% of the market value of the structure before the damage occurred.

(§ 6, Ord. 844, eff. September 12, 2014)

"Substantial improvement" shall mean any repair, reconstruction, or improvement of a structure, the cost of which equals or exceeds 50% of the market value of the structure either:

• (a) Before the improvement or repair is started; or

• (b) If the structure has been damaged and is being restored, before the damage occurred.

For the purposes of this definition, "substantial improvement" shall be considered to occur when the first alteration of any wall, ceiling, floor, or other structural part of the building commences, whether or not such alteration affects the external dimensions of the structure. "Substantial improvement" shall not include, however, either:

• (a) Any project for the improvement of a structure to comply with existing State or local health, sanitary, or safety code specifications which are solely necessary to assure safe living conditions; or

• (b) Any alteration of a structure listed on the National Register of Historic Places or a State Inventory of Historic Places.

(§ 1, Ord. 655, eff. May 19, 1988)

"Variance" shall mean a grant of relief from the requirements of this chapter which variance permits construction in a manner which would otherwise be prohibited by this chapter. (§ 1, Ord. 655, eff. May 19, 1988)

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City of Ojai, CA

BUILDING REGULATIONS

§ 9-9.232

§ 9-9.232

"Violation" shall mean the failure of a structure or other development to be fully compliant with the City's floodplain management regulations. A structure or other development without the elevation certificate, other certifications, or other evidence of compliance required by this chapter shall be presumed to be in violation until such time as such documentation is provided. (§ 1, Ord. 655, eff. May 19, 1988)

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City of Ojai, CA

BUILDING REGULATIONS

§ 9-9.301

§ 9-9.306