Ventura Municipal Code Ch. 12.420 Definitions

Unless the provisions or context otherwise requires, the definitions contained in this chapter govern the construction of the words and phrases used in this division. (Ord. No. 2021-001, § 1, 1-11-21)

“Area of special flood-related erosion hazard” means an area within the city that is most likely to be subject to severe flood-related erosion losses. The area may be designated as zone E on the flood insurance rate map. (Ord. No. 2021-001, § 1, 1-11-21)

“Base flood” means a flood that has a one percent chance of being equaled or exceeded in any given year (also called the “100-year flood”). “Base flood” is the term used throughout this division. (Ord. No. 2021-001, § 1, 1-11-21)

“Basement” means any area of the building having its floor subgrade, i.e., below ground level, on all sides. (Ord. No. 2021-001, § 1, 1-11-21)

“Breakaway walls” means any type of walls, whether solid or lattice, and whether constructed of concrete, masonry, wood, metal, plastic or any other suitable building material, that are not part of the structural support of a building and that are designed to break away under abnormally high tides or wave action without causing any damage to the structural integrity of the building on which they are used or any buildings to which they might be carried by floodwaters. A breakaway wall shall have a safe design loading resistance that meets the FEMA standards for breakaway walls. The use of breakaway walls must be stamped and signed as the certification on the approved building plans by the architect/engineer of record. The floodplain administrator reviews the construction along with the city building inspector and city engineer. (Ord. No. 2021-001, § 1, 1-11-21)

“Coastal high hazard area” means an area of special flood hazard extending from offshore to the inland limit of a primary frontal dune along an open coast, and any other area subject to high velocity wave action from storms or seismic sources. It is an area subject to high velocity waters, including coastal and tidal inundation or tsunamis. The area is designated on a flood insurance rate map as zone V1 through V30, VE, or V. (Ord. No. 2021-001, § 1, 1-11-21)

“Development” means any human-made change to improved or unimproved real property, including, but not limited to, buildings or other structures, mining, dredging, filling, grading, paving, excavation, drilling operations or storage of equipment or materials. “Development” does not include flood control improvements constructed by the Ventura County watershed protection district. (Ord. No. 2021-001, § 1, 1-11-21)

“Encroachment” means the advance or infringement of uses, plant growth, fill, excavation, buildings, permanent structures or development into a floodplain that may impede or alter the flow capacity of a floodplain. (Ord. No. 2021-001, § 1, 1-11-21)

“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 September 29, 1986, the effective date of the FIRM. (Ord. No. 2021-001, § 1, 1-11-21)

“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). (Ord. No. 2021-001, § 1, 1-11-21)

“Flood, flooding, or floodwater” means a general and temporary condition of partial or complete inundation of normally dry land areas from the overflow of inland or tidal waters, conditions resulting from flood-related erosion, mudslides, and/or the unusual and rapid accumulation or runoff of surface waters from any source. (Ord. No. 2021-001, § 1, 1-11-21)

“Flood boundary and floodway map (FBFM)” means the official map on which the Federal Emergency Management Agency or Federal Insurance Administration has delineated both the areas of special flood hazards and the floodway. (Ord. No. 2021-001, § 1, 1-11-21)

“Flood hazard boundary map” means the official map on which the Federal Emergency Management Agency or Federal Insurance Administration has delineated the areas of flood hazards. (Ord. No. 2021-001, § 1, 1-11-21)

“Flood insurance rate map” or “FIRM” means the official map on which the Federal Emergency Management Agency or Federal Insurance Administration has delineated both the areas of special flood hazards and the risk premium zones applicable to the community. (Ord. No. 2021-001, § 1, 1-11-21)

“Flood insurance study” means the official report provided by the Federal Insurance Administration that includes flood profiles, the flood insurance rate map, the flood boundary and floodway map, and the water surface elevation of the base flood. (Ord. No. 2021-001, § 1, 1-11-21)

“Floodplain or flood-prone area” means any land area susceptible to being inundated by water from any source. (Ord. No. 2021-001, § 1, 1-11-21)

“Floodplain management” means the operation of an overall program of corrective and preventive measures for reducing flood damage and preserving and enhancing, where possible, natural resources in the floodplain, including, but not limited to, emergency preparedness plans, flood control works, floodplain management regulations, and open space plans. (Ord. No. 2021-001, § 1, 1-11-21)

“Floodplain management regulations” means this division and other zoning regulations, subdivision regulations, building codes, health regulations, special purpose ordinances (such as grading and erosion control) and other applications of the police power that control development in flood-prone areas. This term describes federal, state or local regulations and any combination thereof that provide standards for preventing and reducing flood loss and damage. (Ord. No. 2021-001, § 1, 1-11-21)

“Floodproofing” means any combination of structural and nonstructural additions, changes, or adjustments to structures which reduce or eliminate flood damage to real property, improvements to real property, water and sanitary facilities, structures, and their contents (refer to FEMA Technical Bulletins for guidelines on dry and wet floodproofing). (Ord. No. 2021-001, § 1, 1-11-21)

“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. Also referred to as “regulatory floodway.” (Ord. No. 2021-001, § 1, 1-11-21)

“Highest adjacent grade” means the highest natural elevation of the ground surface prior to construction next to the proposed walls of a structure. (Ord. No. 2021-001, § 1, 1-11-21)

An “historic structure” means any structure that is:

A. Listed individually in the National Register of Historic Places 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. Listed individually on the state inventory of historic places; or

D. Designated by the city council as a historical landmark or historic site in the manner provided for in Title 24. (Ord. No. 2021-001, § 1, 1-11-21)

“Levee” means a human-made structure, usually an earthen embankment, designed and constructed in accordance with sound engineering practices to contain, control or divert the flow of water so as to provide protection from temporary flooding. (Ord. No. 2021-001, § 1, 1-11-21)

“Lowest floor” means the lowest floor of the lowest enclosed area, including a basement. However, an unfinished or flood resistant enclosure below the lowest floor that is usable solely for parking of vehicles, building access or storage in an area other than a basement area, is not considered a building’s lowest floor provided it conforms to applicable nonelevation design standards, including but not limited to wet floodproofing standards, anchoring standards, construction materials and methods standards and utility standards set forth in Chapter 12.430. (Ord. No. 2021-001, § 1, 1-11-21)

“Manufactured home” means a structure, transportable in one or more sections, that is built on a permanent chassis and is designed for use with or without a permanent foundation when attached to required utilities. The term “manufactured home” does not include a “recreational vehicle.” (Ord. No. 2021-001, § 1, 1-11-21)

“Manufactured home park or subdivision” means a parcel or contiguous parcels of land divided into two or more manufactured home lots for rent or sale. (Ord. No. 2021-001, § 1, 1-11-21)

“Market value” means the cost to replace the structure in new condition and adjusting that cost figure by the amount of depreciation which has accrued since the structure was constructed. The cost of replacement of the structure shall be based on a square foot cost factor determined by reference to a building cost estimating guide recognized by the building construction industry. The amount of depreciation shall be determined by taking into account the age and physical deterioration of the structure and functional obsolescence as approved by the floodplain administrator, but shall not include economic or other forms of external obsolescence. Use of replacement costs or accrued depreciation factors different from those contained in recognized building cost estimating guides may be considered only if such factors are included in a report prepared by an independent professional appraiser and supported by a written explanation of the differences. (Ord. No. 2021-001, § 1, 1-11-21)

“Mean sea level” means, for purposes of the National Flood Insurance Program, the National Geodetic Vertical Datum (NGVD) of 1929, North American Vertical Datum (NAVO) of 1988 or other datum, to which base flood elevations shown on a community’s flood insurance rate map are referenced. (Ord. No. 2021-001, § 1, 1-11-21)

“New construction” means structures for which the “start of construction” commenced on or after September 29, 1986, the effective date of floodplain regulations adopted by this division, and includes any subsequent improvements to such structures. (Ord. No. 2021-001, § 1, 1-11-21)

“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 the effective date of floodplain regulations adopted September 29, 1986, the effective date of the FIRM. (Ord. No. 2021-001, § 1, 1-11-21)

“Obstruction” includes, but is not limited to, any dam, wall, wharf, embankment, levee, dike, pile, abutment, protection, excavation, channelization, bridge, conduit, culvert, building, wire, fence, rock, gravel, refuse, fill, structure, vegetation or other material in, along, across or projecting into any watercourse which may alter, impede, retard or change the direction and/or velocity of the flow of water, or, due to its location, its propensity to snare or collect debris carried by the flow of water or its likelihood of being carried downstream. (Ord. No. 2021-001, § 1, 1-11-21)

“One-hundred-year flood” or “100-year flood” means the “base flood,” as defined in this chapter. (Ord. No. 2021-001, § 1, 1-11-21)

“Primary frontal dune” means a continuous or nearly continuous mound or ridge of sand with relatively steep seaward and landward slopes immediately landward and adjacent to the beach and subject to erosion and overtopping from high tides and waves during major coastal storms. The inland limit of the primary frontal dune occurs at the point where there is a distinct change from a relatively mild slope. (Ord. No. 2021-001, § 1, 1-11-21)

“Recreational vehicle” means a vehicle that 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. (Ord. No. 2021-001, § 1, 1-11-21)

“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. (Ord. No. 2021-001, § 1, 1-11-21)

“Riverine” means relating to, formed by, or resembling a river (including tributaries), stream, brook, etc. (Ord. No. 2021-001, § 1, 1-11-21)

“Special flood hazard area” is an area identified by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) as an area with a special flood or mudflow, and/or flood-related erosion hazard, as shown on a flood hazard boundary map or flood insurance rate map. Areas within the special flood hazard area are designated on the flood insurance rate map as zone A, AO, A1 through A30, AE, A99, AH, AR, AR/A, AR/AE, AR/AH, AR/AO, AR/A1 through A30, V1 through V30 or V.

Land areas that are at high risk for flooding or subject to a one percent or greater chance of flooding in any given year are called special flood hazard areas. (Ord. No. 2021-001, § 1, 1-11-21)

“Structure” means a walled and roofed building that is principally above ground; this includes a gas or liquid storage tank or a manufactured home. (Ord. No. 2021-001, § 1, 1-11-21)

“Substantial damage” means:

A. 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 percent of the market value of the structure before the damage occurred; or

B. Flood-related damages sustained by a structure on two separate occasions during a 10-year period for which the cost of repairs at the time of each such event, on the average, equals or exceeds 25 percent of the market value of the structure before the damage occurred. The damages described in this subsection B are also known as “repetitive losses.” (Ord. No. 2021-001, § 1, 1-11-21)

“Substantial improvement” shall mean any combination of repairs, reconstruction, rehabilitation, addition, or other improvement of a structure that occurs within a 10-year period, the cost of which equals or exceeds 50 percent of the market value of the structure before the “start of construction” of the improvement. For each structure, the 10-year period begins on the date of the first improvement or repair of that structure subsequent to the date of this regulation. When the combined total of all improvements or repairs made after the adoption of this regulation equals or exceeds 50 percent of a structure’s market value, that structure is considered to be substantially improved. This term includes structures which have incurred “substantial damage,” regardless of the actual repair work performed. The term does not, however, include either:

A. Any project for improvement of a structure to correct existing violations or state or local health, sanitary, or safety code specifications which have been identified by the building official and which are the minimum necessary to assure safe living conditions; or

B. Any alteration of a “historic structure”; provided, that the alteration will not preclude the structure’s continued designation as a “historic structure.” (Ord. No. 2021-001, § 1, 1-11-21)

“Water surface elevation” means the height, in relation to the North American Vertical Datum (NAVD) of 1988 (or other datum, where specified), of floods of various magnitudes and frequencies in the floodplains of coastal or riverine areas. (Ord. No. 2021-001, § 1, 1-11-21)

“Watercourse” means a lake, river, creek, stream, wash, arroyo, channel or other topographic feature on or over which waters flow at least periodically. Watercourse includes specifically designated areas in which substantial flood damage may occur. (Ord. No. 2021-001, § 1, 1-11-21)