APPEAL A request for a review of the Zoning Officer's interpretation of any provision of this chapter or a request for a variance.
AREA OF SHALLOW FLOODING A designated AO, AH, or VO Zone on a community's Digital Flood Insurance Rate Map (DFIRM) with an annual one-percent or greater chance of flooding to an average depth of one to three feet where a clearly defined channel does not exist, where the path of flooding is unpredictable and where velocity flow may be evident. Such flooding is characterized by ponding or sheet flow.
AREA OF SPECIAL FLOOD HAZARD The land in the floodplain within a community subject to a one-percent or greater chance of flooding in any given year.
AREAS OF SPECIAL FLOOD-RELATED EROSION HAZARD The land within a community which is most likely to be subject to severe flood-related erosion losses. After a detailed evaluation, the special flood-related erosion hazard area will be designated as Zone E on the Flood Insurance Rate Map.
BASE FLOOD The flood having a one-percent chance of being equaled or exceeded in any given year.
BASEMENT Any area of the building having its floor subgrade (below ground level) on all sides.
BREAKAWAY WALL A wall that is not part of the structural support of the building and is intended through its design and construction to collapse under specific lateral loading forces without causing damage to the elevated portion of the building or supporting foundation system.
DEVELOPMENT Any man-made change to improved or unimproved real estate, including but not limited to buildings or other structures, mining, dredging, filling, grading, paving, excavation or drilling operations, or storage of equipment or materials located within the area of special flood hazard.
DIGITAL FLOOD INSURANCE RATE MAP (DFIRM) The official map on which the Federal Insurance Administration has delineated both the areas of special flood hazards and the risk premium zones applicable to the community.
ELEVATED BUILDING A nonbasement building built, in the case of a building in an area of special flood hazard, to have the top of the elevated floor or, in the case of a building in a coastal high hazard area, to have the bottom of the lowest horizontal structural member of the elevated floor elevated above the ground level by means of piling, columns (posts and piers), or shear walls parallel to the flow of the water and adequately anchored so as not to impair the structural integrity of the building during a flood up to the magnitude of the base flood. In an area of special flood hazard, "elevated building" also includes a building elevated by means of fill or solid foundation perimeter walls with openings sufficient to facilitate the unimpeded movement of floodwaters. In areas of coastal high hazard, "elevated buildings" also includes a building otherwise meeting the definition of "elevated building" even though the lower area is enclosed by means of breakaway walls.
EROSION The process of the gradual wearing away of land masses.