§ 202. DEFINITIONS

Abandonment: The legal process by which land dedicated to public use may revert to private use.

Addition: See Subdivision.

Administrative Officers: Any office referred to in this Ordinance by title, e.g., Building Official, City Secretary, City Attorney, City Engineer, Director of Public Works, Planning Director, etc., shall be the person so retained in this position by the City or their duly authorized representative.

Alley: A minor public right-of-way not intended to provide the primary means of access to abutting lots which is used primarily for vehicular service access to the back or sides of properties otherwise abutting on a street.

Base Flood: The flood having a one (1) percent chance of being equaled or exceeded in any given year, determination based upon Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) guidelines and as shown in the current effective Flood Insurance Study.

Block: A tract or parcel of land bounded by streets or by a combination of streets and public parks, cemeteries, railroad right-of-ways [rights-of-way], highway, stream or corporate boundary lines.

Building: Any structure built for support, shelter or enclosure of persons, animals or movable property of any kind.

Building Official: The building inspector charged with the responsibility for issuing building permits and enforcing the Building Code of the City of Decatur Texas.

Building Permit: An official certificate issued by the City through the Building Official that indicates that the subdivision has been approved, the plat has been recorded and that construction may begin.

Building Setback Line: The line within a property defining the minimum horizontal distance between a building or other structure and the adjacent street line or property line.

Certificate of Occupancy: An official certificate issued by the City through the Building Official which indicates conformance with City standards, regulations and conditions of zoning variances, if applicable, and that authorizes legal use of the premises.

City: The City of Decatur, Texas, together with all its governing and operating bodies.

City Council: The duly elected governing body of the City of Decatur, Texas.

City Engineer: "City Engineer" shall apply only to such licensed professional engineer or firm of licensed professional engineers that has been specifically designated as such by resolution of the City Council or the person so retained in this position by the City or their duly authorized representative.

Commission: See Planning and Zoning Commission.

Comprehensive Master Plan: The plan adopted by the City Council as the official policy regarding the guidance and coordination of the development of private and public land in the City of Decatur, Texas.

Construction Plans: See Engineering Plans.

County: Wise County, Texas.

Cul-de-sac: A street having but one outlet to another street and terminated on the opposite end by a vehicular turnaround.

Dead-End Street: A street, other than a cul-de-sac, with only one outlet.

Design Standards: The Design Criteria and Construction Standards adopted as a part of this Ordinance.

Developer: See Subdivider.

Easement: An area for restricted use on private property upon which any public utility shall have the right to remove and keep removed all or part of any buildings, fences, trees, shrubs or other improvements or growths which in any way endanger or interfere with the construction, maintenance or efficiency of its respective systems on any of these easements. Any public utility shall at all times have the right of ingress and egress to and from and upon the said easements for the purpose of constructing, reconstructing, inspecting, patrolling, maintaining and adding to or removing all or part of its respective systems without the necessity at any time of procuring the permission of anyone.

Engineer: A person duly authorized under the provisions of the Texas Engineering Practice Act, as heretofore or hereafter amended, to practice the profession of engineering and who is specifically qualified to design and prepare construction plans and specifications for subdivision development.

Engineering Plans: A set of drawings and/or specifications, including paving, water, wastewater, drainage or other required plans, submitted to the City for review in conjunction with a subdivision or a development.

Extraterritorial Jurisdiction: The unincorporated area of the County that is contiguous to the corporate boundaries of a municipality, more specifically described in Section 42.021 of the Local Government Code, as may exist or be amended in the future.

Fee Schedule: The officially adopted Fee Schedule on file in the office of the City Secretary.

Final Acceptance: Acceptance by the City of Decatur of all infrastructure improvements constructed by the Developer in conjunction with the development of land.

Final Plat: (Also known as Record or Filing Plat) The one official and authentic map of any given subdivision of land prepared from actual field measurement and staking of all identifiable points by a Surveyor or Engineer with the subdivision location referenced to a survey corner and all boundaries, corners and curves of the land division sufficiently described so that they can be reproduced without additional references.

Angular measurements and bearings shall be accurate to the nearest minute. Distances shall be accurate to the nearest tenth of a foot. The final Plat of any lot, tract or parcel of land shall be recorded in the Records of Wise County, Texas.

Flood Hazard Boundary Map (FHBM): An official map issued by the Federal Insurance Administration (FIA) where the areas of special flood hazards have been designated.

Flood Insurance Rate Map (FIRM): An official map on which the FIA has delineated both the areas of special flood hazards and the risk premium zones applicable to flood insurance.

Flood Insurance Study: The official report provided by the FIA containing flood profiles, the water surface elevation of the base flood and the flood hazard boundary map.

Floodplain: The area subject to be inundated by water from the base flood.

Floodway: A drainage area designated on a plat to accommodate the design flood for existing creeks and open drainage ways.

Floodway Easement: A drainage area dedicated to the city for control and maintenance of a floodplain.

Home-Owners Association: (Also known as Property Owners Association) A formal nonprofit organization operating under recorded land agreements through which (a) each lot and/or homeowner in a specific residential area is automatically a member and (b) each lot or property interest is automatically subject to a charge for a proportionate share of the expense for the organization's activities, such as the maintenance of common property, and (c) the charge if unpaid, becomes a lien against the nonpaying member's property.

Infrastructure: All streets, alleys, sidewalks, storm drainage, water and wastewater facilities, utilities, lighting, transportation and other facilities as required by the City of Decatur.

Land Planner: Persons other than Surveyors or Engineers who also possess and can demonstrate a valid proficiency in the planning of residential, commercial, industrial and other related developments, such proficiency often having been acquired by education in the field of landscape architecture or other specialized planning curriculum and/or by actual experience and practice in the field of land planning and shall be a member of the A.I.C.P.

Lot: An undivided tract or parcel of land having frontage on a public street and which is, or in the future may be, offered for sale, conveyance, transfer or improvement which is designated as a distinct and separate tract and which is identified by a tract or lot number or symbol in a duly approved subdivision plat which has been properly filed of record.

Master Plan: See Comprehensive Master Plan.

Off-site: Located outside the boundary of a development.

On-site: Located within the boundary of a development.

Pavement Width: The portion of a street available for vehicular traffic. Where curbs are laid, it is the portion between the faces of the curbs. Otherwise, it is the portion between the edges of the pavement.

Planning and Zoning Commission: The regulatory body that is responsible for managing the growth and development of the city and for recommending zoning district boundaries and appropriate regulations.

Planning Director: The administrative official charged with enforcing zoning ordinances, development criteria and floodplain administration, or the Planning Director's duly authorized representative.

Preliminary Plat: The graphic expression of the proposed overall plan for subdividing, improving and developing a tract shown by superimposing a scaled drawing of the proposed land division on a topographic map and showing in plan existing and proposed drainage features and facilities, street layout and direction of curb flow and other pertinent features with notations sufficient to substantially identify the general scope and detail of proposed development.

Pre-application Plan: A sketch drawing of initial development ideas superimposed on a topographic map to indicate generally the plan of development and to serve as a working base for noting and incorporating suggestions of the City Administrator, Planning and Zoning Commission, City Engineer or others who are consulted prior to the preparation of the Preliminary Plat.

Property Owners Association: See Home-Owners Association.

Record Plat: See Final Plat.

Replatting: The re-subdivision of any part or all of any block or blocks of a previously platted subdivision, addition, lot or tract.

Resubdivision: See Subdivision.

Right-of-Way: That portion of the subdivision dedicated for public streets with the adjacent lot lines being the boundaries of the right-of-way.

Street: A public right-of-way, however designated, which provides vehicular traffic access to adjacent lands.

Subdivider: Any person or any agent thereof dividing or proposing to divide land so as to constitute a subdivision as that term is defined herein. In any event, the term "subdivider" shall be restricted to include only the owner, equitable owner or authorized agent of such owner or equitable owner of land to be divided.

Subdivision: (Includes Resubdivision and Additions) Subdivision, Resubdivision or Addition of land, as used in this Ordinance, shall be held and construed to include all of the following new uses or utilizations of a particular tract of land within the City of Decatur, Texas, or its extraterritorial jurisdiction:

1.

Any division of an existing tract of land in two or more parts (by lots, by metes and bounds or by any other method of subdivision or conveyance) for the purpose of thereby creating separate lots for ownership, usage or building purposes, and

2.

Any division of an existing tract of land in two or more parts for laying out any suburban lots or building lots, or any lots, streets, alleys or parks, or

3.

Other portions intended for public use, or the use of purchasers or owners of lots fronting thereon or adjacent thereto, and

4.

Any division of a lot or tract of land formerly in single ownership (that is, ownership by one person or more than one person who own undivided interests in the whole of such tract or lot) in two or more parts for separate or different ownership of the divided parts, whether accomplished by conveyance, partition or in any other manner, and

5.

Any lot not recorded as a part of a subdivision of the City, or a lot and a fractional part of any adjoining lot, or the fractional part of two adjoining lots, on which the owner or any person makes application for a building permit for any structure on such unrecorded lot or combined lots or parts thereof, and

6.

Any other subdivision or resubdivision of land contemplated by the provisions of Article 974a, Texas Revised Civil Statutes.

Surveyor: A Licensed State Land Surveyor or a Registered Professional Land Surveyor as authorized by the Texas State statutes to practice the profession of surveying.

Utility Easement: See Easement.

(Ord. No. 00-5-8, 5-8-00)