Title 18 - Unified Development Ordinance

100-year Flood see "base flood."

Effective on: 1/1/1901

Accessory structure means a structure that is on the same parcel of property as the principle structure to be insured and the use of which is incidental to the use of the principal structure.

Effective on: 1/1/1901

Agricultural structure means a structure used solely for agricultural purposes in which the use is exclusively in connection with the production, harvesting, storage, drying, or raising of agricultural commodities, including the raising of livestock, and includes no provisions for human habitation or occupancy, the structure is a single wall design, and there is no permanent retail, wholesale, or manufacturing use in the structure.

Effective on: 1/1/1901

Administrator means the Federal Insurance Administrator.

Effective on: 1/1/1901

Agency means the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).

Effective on: 1/1/1901

Appeal means a request for review of the Floodplain Administrator's interpretation of any provision of this Chapter or a request for a floodplain management variance.

Effective on: 1/1/1901

Area of shallow flooding means a designated AO or AH zone on a City's Flood Insurance Rate Map (FIRM) with a one percent or greater annual chance of flooding to an average depth of one (1) to three (3) 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.

Effective on: 1/1/1901

Base flood means the flood having a one percent chance of being equaled or exceeded in any given year.

Effective on: 1/1/1901

Base flood elevation means elevation indicated in the Flood Insurance Study (FIS) or approved by the Floodplain Administrator as the water surface elevation of the base flood.

Effective on: 1/1/1901

Basement means any area of the structure having its floor subgrade (below ground level) on all sides.

Effective on: 1/1/1901

Building see "structure."

Effective on: 1/1/1901

City means the City of Overland Park, Kansas.

Effective on: 1/1/1901

Chief Engineer means the Chief Engineer of the Division of Water Resources, Kansas Department of Agriculture.

Effective on: 1/1/1901

Chief Executive Officer or Chief Elected Official means the official of the community who is charge with the authority to implement and administer laws, ordinances and regulations for that community.

Effective on: 1/1/1901

Community means any State or area or political subdivision thereof, which has authority to adopt and enforce floodplain management regulations for the areas within its jurisdiction.

Effective on: 1/1/1901

Critical Facilities means structures which the City identifies as essential to the health or welfare of the population and that are especially important following a disaster.

Effective on: 1/1/1901

Development means any man-made change to improved or unimproved real estate, including but not limited to buildings or other structures, levees, levee systems, mining, dredging, filling, grading, paving, excavation or drilling operations, stream channelization, bank stabilization, or storage of equipment or materials.

Effective on: 1/1/1901

Elevated Building means for insurance purposes, a non-basement building which has its lowest elevated floor raised above ground level by foundation walls, shear walls, posts, piers, pilings, or columns.

Effective on: 1/1/1901

Eligible Community or Participating Community means a community for which the Federal Insurance Administrator has authorized the sale of flood insurance under the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP).

Effective on: 1/1/1901

Existing construction means for the purposes of determining rates, structures for which the "start of construction" commenced before the effective date of the City’s FIRM which was September 30, 1977. "Existing structures" may also be referred to as "existing construction."

Effective on: 1/1/1901

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 the effective date of the floodplain management regulations adopted by the City.

Effective on: 1/1/1901

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).

Effective on: 1/1/1901

Federal Insurance Administrator means the position established in FEMA by 42 U.S. Code Section 412.

Effective on: 1/1/1901

FEMA means the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

Effective on: 1/1/1901

Flood or Flooding means a general and temporary condition of partial or complete inundation of normally dry land areas from: (1) the overflow of inland waters; (2) the unusual and rapid accumulation or runoff of surface waters from any source; and (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 flash flood, or by some similarly unusual and unforeseeable event which results in flooding as defined above in item (1).

Effective on: 1/1/1901

Flood elevation study means an examination, evaluation and determination of flood hazards and if appropriate, corresponding water surface elevations.

Effective on: 1/1/1901

Flood fringe means that part of the Special Flood Hazard Area outside the floodway encroachment lines, but still subject to inundation by the base flood.

Effective on: 1/1/1901

Flood Insurance Rate Map (FIRM) means an official map of the City, on which the Administrator has delineated both the Special Flood Hazard Areas and the risk premium zones applicable to the City.

Effective on: 1/1/1901

Flood Insurance Study (FIS) means an examination, evaluation and determination of flood hazards and, if appropriate, corresponding water surface elevations.

Effective on: 1/1/1901

Floodplain or 100-year floodplain means that land area susceptible to being inundated by water (see "flooding") or more specifically the 100-year floodplain has a one percent chance of being inundated by water in any given year. For this Chapter the “Base Flood” is the 100-year floodplain, which includes the Special Flood Hazard Areas.

Effective on: 1/1/1901

Floodplain Administrator refers to the person designated in Section 18.360.440 B. to administer and implement the provisions of this Chapter for the City.

Effective on: 1/1/1901

Floodplain development permit means a signed document from the Floodplain Administrator or designee, authorizing development in a floodplain, including all necessary supporting documentation such as: (1) the site plan; (2) an elevation certificate; and (3) any other necessary or applicable approvals or authorizations from local, state or federal authorities.

Effective on: 1/1/1901

Floodplain management means the operation of an overall program of corrective and preventive measures for reducing flood damage, including but not limited to emergency preparedness plans, flood control works, and floodplain management regulations.

Effective on: 1/1/1901

Floodplain management regulations means zoning ordinances, subdivision regulations, building codes, health regulations, special purpose ordinances (such as floodplain and grading ordinances) and other applications of police power. The term describes such state or local regulations, in any combination thereof, that provide standards for the purpose of flood damage prevention and reduction.

Effective on: 1/1/1901

Floodplain Variance means a grant of relief by the City from a specific requirement in this Chapter applicable to a specific piece of property. A "floodplain variance" from this Chapter’s floodplain management requirements does not apply to flood insurance requirements which remain in place for any varied use or structure and cannot be varied by the City.

Effective on: 1/1/1901

Floodproofing means any combination of structural and nonstructural additions, changes, or adjustments to structures that reduce or eliminate flood damage to real estate or improved real property, water and sanitary facilities, or structures and their contents.

Effective on: 1/1/1901

Floodway or Regulatory floodway means that part of the Special Flood Hazard Area consisting of a river channel 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 (1) foot at any point.

Effective on: 1/1/1901

Floodway encroachment lines means the lines marking the limits of floodways on federal, state and local floodplain maps.

Effective on: 1/1/1901

Freeboard means a factor of safety usually expressed in feet above a flood level for purposes of floodplain management. "Freeboard" tends to compensate for the many unknown factors that could contribute to flood heights greater than the height calculated for a selected size flood and floodway conditions, such as bridge openings and the hydrological effect of urbanization of the watershed.

Effective on: 1/1/1901

Highest adjacent grade means the highest natural elevation of the ground surface prior to construction next to the proposed walls of a structure.

Effective on: 1/1/1901

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 a state inventory of historic places in states with historic preservation programs which have been approved by the Secretary of the Interior; or (d) individually listed on a local inventory of historic places in communities with historic preservation programs that have been certified either (1) by an approved state program as determined by the Secretary of the Interior; or (2) directly by the Secretary of the Interior in states without approved programs.

Effective on: 1/1/1901

Letter of Map Changes (LOMCs) are documents issued by FEMA that revise or amend the flood hazard information shown on the FIRM without requiring the FIRM to be physically revised and republished. LOMCs include documents such as Letter of Map Amendments (LOMAs), Letter of Map Revisions (LOMRs), Letter of Map Revisions based on fill (LOMR-F) and the conditional status of each document.

Effective on: 1/1/1901

Lowest adjacent grade means the lowest elevation of the ground surface next to the walls of an existing or proposed structure.

Effective on: 1/1/1901

Lowest floor means the lowest floor of the lowest enclosed area, including basement. An unfinished or flood-resistant enclosure, 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 that such enclosure is not built so as to render the structure in violation of the applicable floodproofing design requirements of this Chapter.

Effective on: 1/1/1901

Manufactured home means a structure which is subject to the federal manufactured home construction and safety standards established pursuant to 42 U.S.C. Section 5403. It is transportable in one or more sections built on a permanent chassis and designed for use with or without a permanent foundation when attached to the required utilities. The term "manufactured home" does not include a "recreational vehicle."

Effective on: 1/1/1901

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.

Effective on: 1/1/1901

Market value or Fair market value means an estimate of what is fair, economic, just and equitable value under normal local market conditions.

Effective on: 1/1/1901

Mean sea level means, for purposes of the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), the National Geodetic Vertical Datum (NGVD) of 1929 or other datum, to which base flood elevations shown on the City's Flood Insurance Rate Map (FIRM) are referenced.

Effective on: 1/1/1901

New construction means, for the purposes of determining insurance rates, structures for which the "start of construction" commenced on or after the effective date of an initial FIRM or after December 31, 1974, whichever is later, and includes any subsequent improvements to such structures. For floodplain management purposes, "new construction" means structures for which the "start of construction" commenced on or after the effective date of the floodplain management regulations adopted by the City and includes any subsequent improvements to such structures.

Effective on: 1/1/1901

New manufactured home park or subdivision means a manufactured home park or subdivision for which the construction of facilities for servicing the lot 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 management regulations adopted by the City.

Effective on: 1/1/1901

NFIP means the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP).

Effective on: 1/1/1901

Person includes any individual or group of individuals, corporation, partnership, association, or any other entity, including federal, state, and local governments and agencies.

Effective on: 1/1/1901

Principally above ground means that at least 51 percent of the actual cash value of the structure, less land value, is above ground.

Effective on: 1/1/1901

Reasonably safe from flooding refers to the standard of construction established by the City which is based on FEMA’s Technical Bulletin 10-01 dated May 2001, as amended, the City’s adopted edition of the International Building Code (IBC), and/or written construction standards adopted by the Floodplain Administrator to bring the City into compliance current FEMA requirements.

Effective on: 1/1/1901

Recreational vehicle means a vehicle which is: (a) built on a single chassis; (b) 400 square feet or less when measured at the largest horizontal projections; (c) designed to be self-propelled or permanently able to be towed 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.

Effective on: 1/1/1901

Remedy a violation means to bring the structure or other development into compliance with federal, state, or local floodplain management regulations; or, if this is not possible, to reduce the impacts of its noncompliance.

Effective on: 1/1/1901

Residential construction for the purposes of this Chapter means a building or portion thereof regulated by the City’s adopted edition of the International Residential Code (IRC) which includes single family dwellings and duplexes but does not include apartment complexes. It also includes the site work or grading associated with the building construction activity.

Effective on: 1/1/1901

Special Flood Hazard Area (SFHA) is the land in the floodplain within the City subject to a one percent or greater chance of flooding in any given year and shown on a FIRM as zones (unnumbered or numbered) A, AO, AE, or AH.

Effective on: 1/1/1901

Start of construction includes substantial-improvements, and means the date the building permit was issued, provided the actual start of construction, repair, reconstruction, rehabilitation, addition placement, or other improvements were within 180 days of the permit date. The actual start means either the first placement of 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 beyond the stage of excavation, or the placement of a manufactured home on a foundation. Permanent construction does not include land preparation, such as clearing, grading and filling, the installation of streets and/or walkways, excavation for a basement, footings, piers, foundations, the erection of temporary forms, nor installation on the property of accessory structures, such as garages or sheds not occupied as dwelling units or not 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.

Effective on: 1/1/1901

State Coordinating Agency means the Division of Water Resources, Kansas Department of Agriculture, or other office designated by the governor of the Kansas or by state statute at the request of the Federal Insurance Administrator to assist in the implementation of the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) in that state.

Effective on: 1/1/1901

Structure means, for floodplain management purposes, a walled and roofed building, including a gas or liquid storage tank, that is principally above ground, as well as a manufactured home. "Structure" for insurance purposes, means a walled and roofed building, other than a gas or liquid storage tank that is principally above ground and affixed to a permanent site, as well as a manufactured home on a permanent foundation, or a travel trailer without wheels on a permanent foundation. For the latter purpose, the term includes a building while in the course of construction, alteration or repair, but does not include building materials or supplies intended for use in such construction, alteration or repair, unless such materials or supplies are within an enclosed building on the premises.

Effective on: 1/1/1901

Substantial-damage means damage of any origin sustained by a structure whereby the cost of restoring the structure to pre-damaged condition would equal or exceed 50 percent of the market value of the structure before the damage occurred.

Effective on: 1/1/1901

Substantial-improvement means any reconstruction, rehabilitation, addition, or other improvement of a structure, the cost of which equals or exceeds 50 percent of the market value of the structure before "start of construction" of the improvement. This term includes structures, which have incurred "substantial-damage," regardless of the actual repair work performed. The term does not, however, include either: (1) any project for improvement of a structure to correct existing violations of state or local health, sanitary, or safety code specifications that have been identified by the local code enforcement official and which are the minimum necessary to assure safe living conditions; or (2) any alteration of a "historic structure," provided that the alteration will not preclude the structure's continued designation as a "historic structure."

Effective on: 1/1/1901

Violation means 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 is presumed to be in violation until such time as that documentation is provided.

Effective on: 1/1/1901

Water surface elevation means the height, in relation to the National Geodetic Vertical Datum (NGVD) of 1929 (or other datum where specified) of floods of various magnitudes and frequencies in the floodplain riverine areas.

(History: Ord. ZRR-3250 §3, 2019; Ord. ZRR-2812 §7, 2009; ZRR-2450 §2, 2003)

Effective on: 1/1/1901