Sec. 7-17. - Regulations for the construction, relocation, repair, maintenance, use and…

(a)

Purpose. The purpose of this section is to provide minimum standards to safeguard life or limb, health, property and public welfare by regulating the design, construction, quality of materials, use and occupancy, location and maintenance of all floating homes and floating home moorages within the county of Sonoma.

(b)

Scope. The provisions of this section shall apply to the construction, alteration, repair, demolition, removal, relocation of berthing of any floating home within the county, and to the requirements for floating home sites and floating home moorages together with appurtenant structures and facilities as regulated herein.

(c)

Application to Existing Floating Homes and Moorages. Floating homes and floating home moorages in existence prior to the effective date hereof shall be examined by the building official and health officer and shall comply with the requirements for new floating homes, new floating home sites and new floating home moorages as provided in this part, it being expressly found and determined that the public health and safety require and justify the retrospective application of all the provisions contained in this section; provided, however, that the building official may grant an exception to strict compliance with specifications in the building code if he/she finds and determines a floating home which is in existence prior to the effective date thereof does not by reason of a violation of said code, adversely affect the public health, safety and welfare, and that said floating home otherwise complies with the requirements of this section.

(d)

Application to Moorage Occupancies other than Floating Homes. Moorage structures, floatable or otherwise, and occupied or intended to be occupied for purposes other than as a floating home shall conform with the applicable requirements of this section with respect to flotation, compartmentation, construction sanitation, sewage disposal, plumbing, electrical and other utility systems, open spaces, fire protection, movement or relocation, certificate of occupancy and to the requirements of such uses or occupancies as are administered and enforced by the health officer and building official.

(e)

Definitions. The following definitions apply to the words and phrases of this section, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.

(1)

"Berth" or "moor" means the fixing of a floating home by anchoring or being at an approved floating home site. Berth or moor shall not include intentional grounding, beaching or placement on piles, wharves, docks or other permanently fixed supports except as may be permitted in emergencies or for making required repairs.

(2)

Floating Homes. A "floating home" is any building supported by means of flotation with one hundred percent (100%) flotation occurring at all times, designed to be used without a permanent foundation, used, intended or designed to be built, used, rented, leased, let or hired out to be occupied, or which is occupied for living purposes by one family with facilities for living, sleeping, cooking and eating. Any such building used or intended to be used, as a dwelling for more than one family is prohibited with the county. The term "floating home" shall include "houseboat" or "ark" but shall not include any vessel designed or used primarily for commercial and recreational purposes. Floating homes are not permitted in designated flood hazard zones.

(3)

"Floating home moorage" means a waterfront facility for the moorage of one (1) or more floating homes, and the land and water premises on which such facility is located. Moorage must provide flotation at all times.

(4)

Floating Home Site. A "floating home site" is a part of a floating home moorage located over water and designed to accommodate one (1) floating home.

(5)

"Garbage" means all discarded putrescible waste matter and all discardable rubbish but not including sewage or human or animal excrement.

(6)

"Health officer" means health officer of the county of Sonoma or his authorized representative assigned to the county of Sonoma.

(7)

Nuisance. "Nuisance" includes:

(i)

Any public nuisance known at common law or in equity jurisprudence;

(ii)

Whatever is dangerous to human life or is detrimental to health;

(iii)

Overcrowding a room with occupants;

(iv)

Insufficient ventilation or illumination;

(v)

Inadequate or unsanitary sewage or plumbing facilities;

(vi)

A floating home moored in an area that does not provide flotation at all times;

(vii)

Any of those items with exception to foundations described as a nuisance in Chapter 7 of the code of the county of Sonoma and the Uniform Housing Code.

(8)

Person. The term "person" shall include any person, firm, association, corporation or any members, agents or employees of any of the foregoing.

(9)

Sewage. The term "sewage" means any and all waste substance, liquid or solid, associating with human habitation, whether or not it contains human or animal excreta or excrement, offal or any feculent matter.

(10)

Story. "Story" is the portion of a floating home between the upper surface of the deck or ceiling next above.

(11)

Superstructure. "Superstructure" is that portion of a floating home above the lowest deck or the level of flotation.

(12)

Transient Vessel. The term "transient vessel" shall mean any vessel temporarily moored in the county of Sonoma which is occupied for a period of less than four (4) consecutive days or ten (10) days in any calendar month.

(13)

Vessel. The term "vessel" means any watercraft of any type or size, including but not limited to barges, ferry boats, arks, yachts, houseboats, floating homes and rafts.

(14)

Waterway. The term "waterway" means any water, waterway, lake, river, creek, canal, lagoon, bay, inlet, slough, tributary or arm of the sea situated within or bounding the county of Sonoma.

(f)

Movement or Relocation of Floating Homes. Floating homes proposed to be moved into the county or proposed to be moved from one moorage site to another moorage site within the county shall comply with the requirements of this section pertaining to new floating homes.

No floating home shall be moved or relocated unless relocation permit has been issued by the permit and resource management department.

No floating home shall be moved into or relocated within the county if, after inspection and investigation by the building official, it is found to be dilapidated, unseaworthy or otherwise substandard to such an extent that it would be impractical to repair, improve or rehabilitate said floating home in accordance with the requirements of this section for new floating homes.

The building official shall not issue a permit to move or relocate a floating home until the site plan has received approval from the fire chief, the health officer, the director of permit and resource management department, or their duly authorized staff.

The fee for relocation permit is fifty-three dollars ($53.00) or as set by ordinance by the board of supervisors.

(g)

Requirements For and Location of Moorages.

(1)

Moorage, Register of Ownership of Floating Homes. Every owner or operator of a floating home moorage shall maintain a current register of every floating home moored on the premises under his control, such register to record the name and address of the legal owner of each floating home. A copy of said register shall be available on request to the building official.

(2)

Moorage Location. Floating homes shall be berthed or moored in a marina, harbor or similar facility conforming to the requirements of this section and allocated on privately owned or privately controlled property. Moorages shall be located in any waterway or fairway, or in the public waters of any street or street end.

(3)

Moorage Site Plan. Three (3) copies of a moorage site plan drawn to scale and fully dimensioned shall be submitted by the owner of said moorage to the building official for approval. The moorage plan shall include the following de-tails.

(i)

Name and address of an owner or operator;

(ii)

Address and legal description of the property on which moorage is located;

(iii)

The dimensions of the floating home moorage site;

(iv)

The location of abutting public waterways;

(v)

The location and dimensions of private waterways and land access to the moorage;

(vi)

The location and identification of individual floating home sites;

(vii)

The location and dimension of off-street parking spaces;

(viii)

The location and dimensions of walkways and any accessory structures or facilities;

(ix)

The water service system;

(x)

The fire protection system;

(xi)

The electrical service and lighting system;

(xii)

The complete sewage system including main sewer and side sewers serving each floating homesite.

(h)

Regulations for the Construction, Repair, Maintenance, Use and Occupancy of Floating Homes. The rules and regulations applicable to floating homes shall be all those rules, regulations, procedures and fee schedules as determined by the board of supervisors except as modified herein and/or herein provided.

(i)

Material. All material, such as decking, siding and subflooring which is subjected to moisture or water splash shall be of a type not adversely affected by moisture, or shall be treated.

(j)

Construction. Flooring, wall and flotation shall be designed and constructed by use of diaphragm walls in such a manner that the superstructure acts as an independent unit and is not adversely affected by point reactions under the flotation.

(k)

Ramps or horizontal entrance ways. Ramps shall be not less than thirty-six inches (36″ in width, exclusive of required handrails which shall not reduce the width more than three inches (3″).

Ramps or horizontal exits, other than mooring docks, shall be provided with two handrails or guard railings. Railings and guardrails shall meet the requirements of the California Building Code. Private ramps or horizontal exits shall be capable of carrying a live load in accordance with the following schedule.

Live Load Length of Ramp Between Supports

50 psf 0 to 5 feet

40 psf 5 feet to 10 feet

30 psf OVER 10 feet

Ramp design shall also include dead load. Minimum framing members shall be two inch by four inch (2″ × 4″) if constructed of wood.

All ramps and horizontal exits shall have exit illumination with minimum intensity of one foot candle at floor level of entry or one-tenth (1/10) foot candle on walkways or ramps. Alternate materials and methods of construction may be allowed as provided in the Sonoma County Code.

(l)

Inboard Sewerage Device. A sewage receiving tank and ejector device must be installed aboard every floating home. Said device shall consist of a tank with a liquid capacity not less than thirty (30) gallons, nor more than forty (40) gallons, and shall be equipped with a two inch outlet and a one-half h.p. pump. Said device must connect to the local sewerage lateral system, when the floating home is moored in the waters within, adjoining or encompassed in the county of Sonoma.

(m)

Water Distribution. Water shall not be piped to supply floating homes through flexible hose unless the hose is a high-pressure type terminating in approved connectors and is preceded by an approved backflow prevention device. No hose shall be immersed in water or run exposed on docks, piers, etc. Length of hose shall not be excessive.

(n)

Fuel-Gas Piping. All gas piping installed in floating homes shall be made with approved high-pressure hose and terminate in approved positive disconnect couplings. Gas hoses shall not be immersed in water or run exposed on docks, piers or floating homes. Length of hose shall not be excessive.

(o)

A wiring system shall be nominally rated 115-230 volts, 3 wire AC, with a grounded neutral supplemented with a No. 6 minimum (or the equivalent) equipment ground conductor as an integral part of a cable assembly connected to a grounding electrode on the shore facilities while providing a minimum of one hundred (100) amperes to the houseboat, shall be provided for in all floating homes.

(p)

Power Supply. Service equipment shall be located adjacent to the floating home and may not be mounted in or on the floating home.

The power supply to the floating home shall be comprised of feeder circuits consisting of not more than two floating home supply cords, each rated fifty (50) amperes minimum. Larger cords or permanently installed circuits may be used if desired.

(q)

Supply Cord. Each floating home supply cord shall be approved and have four conductors, one of which shall be identified by a continuous green color with a yellow stripe. The attachment plug, connectors and mating receptacles shall be 3-pole, 4-wire grounding types covered by American Standard C-73 attachment plug and receptacles. The power supply cord shall be permanently attached to the distribution panel. A suitable clamp or equivalent shall be provided at the distribution panel to afford strain relief for the cord in order to prevent strain at the terminals. The length of power supply cord shall not be excessive.

(r)

Second Supply Cord. Where a second fifty (50)-ampere floating home supply cord is installed, the two (2) cords shall not be interconnected on either the line side or the load side except that the grounding circuits and grounding means shall be electrically interconnected.

(s)

Disconnection Means. Disconnecting means shall be provided in each floating home by approved service entrance equipment, consisting of circuit breakers, or a switch and fuses, and their accessories installed in a readily accessible location near the point the supply cord or conductors enter the floating home. This equipment shall contain a solderless type of grounding connector or bar with sufficient terminals for all grounding conductors. The neutral bar termination of the grounded circuit conductors shall be insulated. The disconnecting equipment shall have a rating suitable for the connected load.

Where two (2) power supply cords are installed disconnecting means shall be provided for each cord but may be combined in single equipment without electrical interconnections other than for grounding purposes. Branch circuit equipment may be combined with the disconnecting means as a single assembly, and designed as a distribution panel. Plug fuses and fuse holders shall be tamper-resistant, type "S," enclosed in dead front panels.

(t)

Wiring Exposed to Weather. If outdoor wiring is exposed to moisture or physical damage, it shall be protected by rigid metal conduit, rigid nonmetallic conduit or liquid-tight flexible metal conduit.

(u)

Grounding. Grounding of electrical and nonelectrical metal parts in a floating home shall be effected through connection to a grounding bus in the floating home distribution panel. The grounding bus shall be grounded through the green con-ductor in the supply cord or the feeder wiring to the service ground in the service entrance equipment.

(v)

Overall Stability. The floating home shall be stable with both dead load and live load included.

(1)

Metacentric Height. The metacentric height (MG) shall be equal to +1.0 foot or more according to the following equation:

(MG) equals Wsty/W - L

Where:

Ws equals unit weight of sea water

W equals total weight of floating home including dead load and live load (L.L. equals 20 pounds per square foot of first floor area and 10 pounds per square foot of second floor, habitable attic or loft.)

ty equals moment of inertia of the area encompassed by the waterline around the hull or flotation (fully loaded boat) as taken about the longitudinal axis of the houseboat.

L equals the distance between the center of the gravity and the center of buoyancy of the fully loaded boat.

(2)

Freeboard. The freeboard as measured from the waterline to the top of the first floor or deck of the completed houseboat, including dead load but not live load, shall be at least 1.3 feet (with list angle equals 0.0).

(3)

Stability with off-center loading; or wind loading. The floating home when subjected to either off-center loading or wind loading shall not exceed the limitations on hull immersions and angle of list set forth as follows:

(i)

The maximum angle of list shall not exceed forty (40) degrees.

(ii)

The freeboard shall be measured from the waterline to the top of the first floor or deck at side of the vessel at a point where said freeboard has its least dimension.

The allowable immersion shall not be more than two-thirds (⅔) of this freeboard. The off-center loading shall be considered as applicable to the completed houseboat, including dead load, and shall consist of a live load of one hundred (100) pounds, or five (5) pounds per foot of width, whichever is greater per lineal foot (first floor) and fifty (50) pounds, or two and one-half ((½) pounds per foot of width, whichever is greater, per lineal foot (second floor, habitable attic, or loft). The uniform live load is to be applied halfway between the center of gravity and the outside edge of deck, to one side of the floating home at a time. The dividing line is the longitudinal axis of the vessel, and the overturning moment resulting from the off-center loading shall be taken about the computed center of gravity. Stability with the off-center loading applied shall be tested on both sides of the longitudinal axis.

Wind loading shall be applied to the completed houseboat, including dead load and live load, but not off-center loading. The moment due to the wind loading shall be computed at:

Mw equals P×A×H

Where:

Mw equals wind heeling moment, in foot pounds.

P equals wind pressure factor, in pounds per square foot in accordance with the following: