Chapter 16.08 — DEFINITIONS

As used in this title, the following words shall have the meanings set forth in this chapter. "Advisory agency" means the Planning Commission, with respect to tentative maps relating to subdivisions of five or more lots, who shall have all powers and duties with respect to said maps and the procedures relating thereto which are specified by laws and by this title. The Zoning Administrator elects to refer the maps to the Planning Commission for consideration, approval, conditional approval or disapproval. The Zoning Administrator is designated as the advisory agency with respect to tentative maps relating to subdivisions of four or less lots and shall have all powers and duties with respect to said maps and the procedure relating thereto as specified by law and this title. The Community Development Department is designated as the advisory agency for purposes of reviewing and approving a tentative map pursuant to Chapter 16.20 of this title. "Arterial street" is any street or road passing adjacent to or through the subdivision, which carries the major flow of traffic, and for which the major traffic may ultimately be in excess of two thousand four hundred (2,400) vehicles per day. "Block" means the length of the frontage along the property line between consecutive street intersecting the frontage; and may also mean that area bounded on all sides by the adjacent streets, rights-of-way, railroads, public areas, or subdivision boundary, and include one or more lots or parcels. "Building Inspection Department" means the agency which serves in an advisory capacity to appropriate advisory agencies and the City Council concerning topography and soil conditions and their effect on the design and development of the subdivision. "Civil engineer" means a professional engineer in the branch of civil engineering holding a valid certificate of registration issued by the state of California.

"Collector street" is any street within a subdivision or adjacent thereto which, because of its location with reference to other streets or other sources of traffic, carries or will carry traffic from minor street to the major system of arterial streets; and includes the principal entrance streets for residential development and streets for circulation of traffic within such developments and serves, or will serve, twenty-four (24) or more dwelling units. "Community Development Department" is the technical staff of the Planning Commission and is one of the divisions of city government. "Community Development Department" shall also be the clerk of the advisory agency for purposes of receiving tentative maps and clerk of the Appeals Board and Legislative Body for purposes of filing appeals as provided in the Subdivision Map Act. The "Contra Costa County water conservation and flood control district," hereinafter referred to as the "flood control district," serves in an advisory capacity to appropriate advisory agencies and the county Board of Supervisors relating to drainage and flood control matters. "County" means the county of Contra Costa, State of California, of which the governing body is the board of supervisors. "Critically expansive soils" or other soil problems are soil conditions which can cause damage to improvements, including streets, structures and buildings. They shall be tested by acceptable procedures to provide data suitable for making adequate designs for the improvements. "Cul-de-sac" is a street which connects to another street only at one end, and serves sixteen (16) dwelling units or less, with a maximum length of seven hundred (700) feet. "Dwelling unit" is a building or a portion thereof, or a mobilehome, designed for residential occupation by one person or a group of two or more persons living together as a domestic unit. "Engineering geologist" means a professional geologist in the branch of engineering geology holding a valid certificate of registration as an engineering geologist in the state. "Final map" is a map prepared in accordance with the provisions of this title and the Subdivision Map Act, which map is designed to be filed in the office of the Recorder of Contra Costa County. "Flood hazard" is possible occurrence of overflow stormwater causing flooding of lands or improvements, or having sufficient velocity to transport or deposit debris, to scour the surface soil, to dislodge or damage buildings, or to cause erosion of the banks of channels. "Freeways" are those highways which are defined in Section 23.5 of the Streets and Highways Code of the state, and which, because of their design and location with reference to the county highway system and state highway system, are or will be used primarily for fast, heavy or dense traffic and for which right of access from abutting property or streets along the right-of-way boundaries will be prohibited or limited. "Frontage" is the width of the lot or block measured along the property line adjacent to the street. "Frontage improvements" consist of curb, longitudinal drainage, sidewalks, street lighting, planting and paving, or any combination thereof.

"Frontage road" is a street or road adjacent to an arterial, thoroughfare or freeway, which provides access to abutting properties and protection from the through traffic on the more heavily travelled street. "Geologic hazard" or "potentially hazardous soil conditions" includes but is not limited to conditions such as slope stability, groundwater seepage, erosion hazards, expansive soil, fault-related hazards, and liquefaction potential. The "Health Department" of the city, acting through the Health Officer or his or her representative, serves in an advisory capacity to appropriate advisory agencies and the City Council concerning matters of sanitation and public health. "Improvement plan" is a plan prepared under the direction of a civil engineer, registered by the state, showing the location and construction details of all improvements required for the subdivision. "Improvements" refers to such street work, drainage facilities, utilities, and other facilities required to be installed by the subdivider on the land to be used for public or private streets, highways, ways and easements as a condition precedent to the approval and acceptance of a final or parcel map thereof. "Improvements" also refers to such other specific improvements or types of improvements, the installation of which, either by the subdivider, by public agencies, by private utilities, by any other entity approved by the local agency or by a combination thereof, is necessary or convenient to insure conformity to or implementation of the general plan or any specific plan adopted pursuant to Division 1 of Title 7 of the Government Code. "Industrial street" is a street serving traffic within an industrial development. "Inundation" is used to indicate ponded stormwater or stormwater in motion of sufficient depth to damage property due to the mere presence of water or the deposition of silt. "Lot" means that portion of a parcel of land which is delineated or described as a single integral unit on the subdivision map. "Major drainage channels or conduits" are those channels or conduit which serve a drainage area of four square miles or more. "Marginal strip" is the area between the edge of the traveled roadway or curbline, and the adjacent property line. "Median" is the area separating two roadways within the right-of-way. "Minor drainage channels or conduits" are those channels or conduits which serve a drainage area of one square mile or less. "Minor street" is any street which serves traffic for not more than twenty-four (24) dwelling units. "Minor subdivision" refers to a subdivision of four or less lots. "Ordinance specifications" refers to the ordinance specifications as approved by resolution of the City Council, in effect at the time of filing the parcel map of final map of the subdivision, three copies of which are filed with the Clerk of the City Council.

"Parcel" is all land which is contiguous and under one ownership. "Parcel map" is a map prepared in accordance with the provisions of this title and the Subdivision Map Act. "Path" is a right-of-way designated for use only by pedestrians and not intended for use as a way for motor-driven vehicles. Public paths are rights-of-way offered for dedication by a final or parcel map or deeded to and accepted by the governing body of the city. Private paths are for the benefit of the owners of lots designated on the final or parcel map. "Ponding of local stormwater" is standing stormwater in local depressions. As distinguished from sheet overflow water, this water originates on or in the vicinity of the subdivision, and due to the condition of the ground surface, does not reach a drainage channel or conduit. "Preliminary soil report" means a report prepared by a soil engineer based upon adequate test borings or excavations in accordance with the provisions of this title and the Subdivision Map Act. "Private road" means any parcel of land or nonexclusive easement not owned by the county, cities, or the state, which is used or intended to be used for access to a lot or parcel. "Public street" is a street for which the fee title or right-of-way is owned by the city, or offered for dedication to the public and accepted by the city. The "Public Works Department" is the department which serves in an advisory capacity to appropriate advisory agencies and the City Council concerning streets, drainage, engineering, and matters related to the office of Surveyor. The Public Works Department is designated as the Clerk of the City Council for purposes of receiving final or parcel maps. "Secondary drainage channels or conduits" are those channels or conduits which serve a drainage area less than four square miles and more than one square mile. "Sheet overflow" indicates water of minor depths either quiescent or flowing at velocities less than those necessary to produce serious scour. "Soil engineer" is a civil engineer who is experienced in soil mechanics, who investigates and reports on the stability of existing or proposed slopes, who controls the installation and compaction of fills, who recommends soil bearing values, and who provides design criteria and calculations for special earth structures such as buttress fills. "Street" is a way, excluding a path or alley, for pedestrian and vehicular traffic. "Subdivider" means a person, firm, corporation, partnership or association who proposes to divide, divides or causes to be divided real property into a subdivision for himself or for others. "Subdivision" means the division by any subdivider of any unit or units of improved or unimproved land, or any portion thereof, shown on the latest equalized county assessment roll as a unit or as contiguous units, for the purpose of sale, lease or financing, whether immediate or future. Property shall be considered as contiguous units, even if it is separated by roads, streets, utility easement, or railroad rights-of-way. "Subdivision" includes a condominium project as defined in subdivision (f) of Section 1351 of the Civil Code, a community apartment project, as defined in subdivision (d) of Section 1351 of the Civil Code, or

the conversion of five or more existing dwelling units to a stock cooperative, as defined in subdivision (m) of Section 1351 of the Civil Code. "Tentative map" refers to a map for the purpose of showing the design of a proposed subdivision and the existing conditions on and around the proposed subdivision. "Thoroughfares" are those roads of general county importance which are designated as county thoroughfares, either existing or proposed, on the county general plan of roads. (Ord. 98-1 § 35; CCCC §§ 92-4.002 — 92-4.094)