§ 12.1. Definition of terms.

Except where specifically defined herein, all words used in this ordinance shall carry their customary dictionary definitions. Words used in the present tense include the future tense. Words used in the singular number include the plural, and words used in the plural include the singular.

"Map" means the "Official Zoning Map, City of Dublin, Georgia."

The word "person" includes a firm, partnership, trust, company, association, organization, individual, co-partnership, or corporation.

The word "lot" includes the word "plot" or "parcel."

The word "building" includes the word "structure."

The word "shall" is always mandatory.

The word "used" or "occupied" as applied to any land or buildings shall be construed to include the words "intended, arranged or designed to be used or occupied."

Accessory, use or structure: A use or structure on the same lot with, and of a nature customarily incidental and subordinate to, the principal use or structure. Accessory structures shall not include living quarters.

Alley: A narrow service way dedicated to public use providing a secondary public means of access to abutting properties and not intended for general traffic circulation.

Alteration of building: Any change in the supporting members of a building (such as bearing walls, columns, girders) except such change as may be required for its safety; any addition to a building; any change in use from that of one district classification to another; or of a building from one location to another.

Animal clinic: An establishment where small animals of the size and species of dogs and cats, and the like, are given short-term medical or surgical treatment with only short-term boarding, as is essential and necessary as to effectuate a cure.

Apartment house: See Multiple-Family Dwelling.

Boarding and breeding kennels: A building or property where dogs and/or other small animals are kept, sheltered or boarded, either for or without compensation.

Boarding, rooming or lodging house: A dwelling other than a hotel having one kitchen and used for the purpose of providing meals or lodging or both for compensation to persons other than members of the family occupying such dwelling.

Buildable area: The portion of a lot remaining after required yards have been provided.

Building: Any structure having a roof and intended for shelter, housing or enclosure of persons, animals or chattels.

Building height: The vertical distance from the mean finished grade to the highest point of the building. The height of a wall is the vertical distance from grade to the mean level of the top of the wall, including any dormers or gables on the wall.

Building, principal: A building in which is conducted the main or principal use of the lot on which said building is situated.

Clinic: A clinic is an establishment where patients, who are not lodged overnight, are admitted for examination and treatment by one person or group of persons practicing any form of healing or health building services to individuals whether such persons be medical doctors, chiropractors, osteopaths, chiropodists, naturopaths, optometrists, dentists or any such profession, the practice of which is lawful.

Club: Buildings and facilities owned and operated by a corporation or association of persons for social or recreational purposes but not operated primarily for profit or to render a service which is customarily conducted as a business.

Drive-in restaurant: Any place or premises used for sale, dispensing or serving of food, refreshments or nonalcoholic beverages in automobiles, including those establishments where customers may serve themselves and may eat or drink the food, refreshments or beverages on the premises.

Dump: A lot or area of land, or part thereof, used primarily for the disposal, by abandonment, dumping, burial or burning of garbage, sewage, trash, refuse, junk, discarded machinery or equipment, vehicles or parts thereof, or of any kind of waste material.

Dwelling: A building or portion thereof, designed or used exclusively for residential occupancy, but not including hotels or motels.

Dwelling unit: Any room or group of rooms located within a dwelling and forming a single habitable unit with facilities which are used or intended to be used for living, sleeping, cooking and eating.

Dwelling, single-family: A building designed for or occupied exclusively by one (1) family; also, Dwelling, one-family.

Dwelling, two-family: A building designed for or occupied exclusively by two (2) families, with separate housekeeping or cooking facilities for each family.

Dwelling, multiple-family: A building designed for or occupied exclusively by three (3) or more families, with separate housekeeping and cooking facilities for each family.

Family: One (1) or more persons living together as a single housekeeping unit, as distinguished from a group occupying a boarding house, lodging house, club, fraternity or hotel.

Filling station: See service station.

Garage apartment: An accessory building, not a part of or attached to the main building, a portion of which contains living quarters and space for at least one (1) automobile.

Garage, private: An accessory building or a portion of the principal building, used for storage of automobiles of the occupants of the principal building; a carport is a private garage.

Garage, public: A garage other than a private garage, available to the public, operated for gain and which is used for storage, repair, rental, greasing, washing, servicing, adjusting or equipping of automobiles or other vehicles.

Garage, storage: A building or operation thereof designed or used exclusively for the storage or parking of automobiles. Services other than storage at such storage garage shall be limited to refueling, washing, waxing and polishing.

Home occupation: An occupation for gain or support conducted only by members of a family residing on the premises, and conducted entirely within the dwelling, provided that no article is sold or offered for sale except such as may be produced by members of the immediate family residing on the premises.

Hotel, or motor hotel: A building or other structure kept, used or maintained and advertised as or held out to the public to be a place where sleeping accommodations are supplied for pay, catering primarily to transient guests, in which ten or more rooms are furnished for the accommodation of such guests, and having or not having one or more dining rooms, restaurants or cafes where meals are served to transient or other guests; such sleeping accommodations and dining rooms, restaurants and cafes, if existing, being conducted in the same building or accessory buildings in connection therewith.

Junk yard: An open area where waste, used or second hand materials are bought, sold, exchanged, salvaged, stored, baled, packed, disassembled or handled, including but not limited to scrap iron and other metals, cloth, paper, rags, bags, plumbing or electrical fixtures or appliances, tires, batteries, bottles, glass, automobiles and auto parts. (This does not include Used Car Lots, or the temporary storage of wrecked vehicles awaiting insurance adjustment.)

Laundromat, (self-service laundry): A business rendering a retail service by renting to the individual customer the temporary use of stationary equipment for the self-service of washing, drying and otherwise processing of laundry and dry-cleaning with such equipment to be serviced and its use and operation supervised by the management.

Lot: A parcel of land occupied or capable of being occupied, or designed to be occupied by one principal building or use and the accessory buildings or uses customarily incident to it, including such open spaces as required by this ordinance.

Lot, corner: A parcel of land at the junction of, and abutting on two (2) or more intersecting streets.

Lot, depth: The depth of a lot is the distance measured in the direction of the side lines of the lot from mid-point of the opposite rear line of the lot.

Lot, front: That portion of a lot abutting a street right-of-way. On corner lots the front shall be that portion of the lot having the least horizontal distance as measured along each of the abutting street rights-of-way. Through lots shall be considered as having two (2) fronts.

Lot, interior: A lot other than a corner lot.

Lot, lines: The lines outlining the boundaries of a lot or parcel of land.

Lot, rear: That portion of a lot lying at the opposite end to the front of a lot.

Lot, through: An interior lot having frontage on two (2) streets.

Lot, width: The horizontal distance between the side lot lines measured at the front "set-back" line.

Lot of record: A lot which is part of a subdivision, the plat of which has been recorded in the office of the Clerk of the Circuit Court of Laurens County, Georgia; or a parcel of land, the Deed of which has been recorded in the office of said Clerk in Laurens County, Georgia.

Major recreational equipment: Boats and boat trailers, travel trailers, pick-up campers or coaches (designed to be mounted on automotive vehicles), motorized dwellings, tent trailers, and the like, and cases or boxes used for transporting recreational equipment, whether occupied by such equipment or not.

Manufactured home: A structure, transportable in one (1) or more sections, which, in the traveling mode, is eight (8) body feet or more in width or forty (40) body feet or more in length, when erected on site, is three hundred twenty (320) or more square feet in floor area, and which is built on a permanent chassis and designed to be used as a dwelling with or without a permanent foundation when connected to utilities, and includes the plumbing, heating, and electrical systems contained therein; or a structure that otherwise comes within the definition of a "manufactured home" under the National Manufactured Housing Construction and Safety Standards Act of 1974, as amended (42 U.S.C. 5401-5445).

Manufactured home park: A parcel of land or any portion thereof which has been designed, planned, or improved for the placement of two (2) or more manufactured homes for residential use, including land, buildings, and facilities used by the occupants of manufactured homes on such property.

Mobile Home: A structure, transportable in one (1) or more sections, which, in the traveling mode, is eight (8) body feet or more in width or forty (40) body feet or more in length, when erected on site, is three hundred twenty (320) or more square feet in floor area, and which is built on a permanent chassis and designed to be used as a dwelling with or without a permanent foundation when connected to the required utilities, and includes the plumbing, heating, air-conditioning, and electrical systems contained therein; and which has not been inspected and approved as meeting the requirements of the National Manufactured Housing Construction and Safety Standards Act of 1974, as amended (42 U.S.C. 5401-5445). A mobile home is distinguished from a manufactured home as defined herein.

Modular home: Any structure or component thereof, designed primarily for residential occupancy which is wholly or in substantial part made, fabricated, formed, or assembled in manufacturing facilities for installation, or assembly and installation, on the building site, and which is designed and constructed to conform to the local building code rather than a national housing or construction code. For purpose of this ordinance, a modular home that meets the local building code shall be considered the same as a detached, single-family dwelling and permitted under the same zoning districts as a detached, single-family dwelling.

Motel, (motor court): A building or group of buildings, whether detached or in connected units, used as individual sleeping or dwelling units designed primarily for transient automobile travelers, providing for accessory off-street parking facilities and having individual unit entrances, opening to the outside. The term "motel" includes buildings designated as auto courts, tourist courts, motor lodges and similar appellations.

Nonconforming use: The Use of a building, structure or land existing at the time of enactment of this ordinance, and which does not conform to the Use regulations of the district in which it is situated.

Nursing (convalescent) home: A home for the aged, chronically ill or incurable persons in which three or more persons not of the immediate family are received, kept or provided for with food and shelter or care for compensation; but not including hospitals, clinics or similar institutions devoted primarily to the diagnosis and treatment of the sick or injured.

Parking space, off-street: For the purposes of this ordinance, an off-street parking space shall consist of a space adequate for parking an automobile with room for opening doors on both sides, together with properly related access to a public street or alley and maneuvering room. Required off-street parking areas for three (3) or more automobiles shall have individual spaces marked, and shall be so designed, maintained and regulated that no parking or maneuvering incidental to parking shall be on any public street, walk or alley, and so that any automobile may be parked and unparked without moving another.

For purposes of rough computation, an off-street parking space and necessary access and maneuvering room may be estimated at three hundred (300) square feet, but off-street parking requirements will be considered to be met only when actual spaces meeting the requirements above are provided and maintained, improved in a manner appropriate to the circumstances of the case and in accordance with all ordinances and regulations of the city.

Recreational vehicle: A vehicular type unit primarily designed as temporary living quarters for recreational, camping or travel use, which either has its own motive power or is mounted or drawn by another vehicle. This term includes motorized homes, motorized campers, pick-up campers, travel trailers, camping trailers, and tent trailers, among others.

Service station: Any building, structure or land used for dispensing, sale or offering for sale at retail of any automobile fuels, oils or accessories and in connection with which is performed general automotive servicing as distinguished from automotive repairs.

Street: A public thoroughfare which affords the principal means of access to abutting property. This includes avenue, road, lane, drive or other means of ingress or egress regardless of the term used for designation.

Structure: Anything constructed or erected, the use of which requires more or less permanent location on the ground or which is attached to something having more or less permanent location on the ground.

Structural alterations: Any change, except for repair or replacement, in the supporting members of a building, such as bearing walls, partitions, columns, beams, girders, joists, rafters, etc.

Temporary housing: Any tent, trailer or other structure used for human shelter which is designed to be transportable, and which is not attached to the ground, to another structure or to any utilities systems on the same premises for more than thirty (30) consecutive days.

Use: The purpose for which land or a building is designed, arranged or intended or for which it may be occupied or maintained.

Yard: A required open space on the same lot with a building, unoccupied and unobstructed by any structure or portion of a structure from ground level upward, except as otherwise provided herein.

Yard, front: (Front set-back line) A yard extending across the front of a lot between the side lot lines and being the minimum horizontal distance between the front lot line and the nearest wall or column line of the building.

Yard, rear: (Rear set-back line) A yard extending across the rear of a lot between the side lot lines and being the minimum horizontal distance between the rear lot line and the nearest wall or column line of the building.

Yard, side: (Side set-back line) A yard extending along the side or a lot between the front yard and the rear yard and being the minimum horizontal distance between the side lot line and the nearest wall or column line of the building.

(Ord. No. 78-28, § 3, 11-20-78; Ord. No. 78-29, § 2, 11-20-78; Ord. No. 79-22, § 1, 8-6-79; Ord. No. 94-7, 9-15-94; Ord. No.06-15, § 2, 10-19-2006; Ord. No. 08-16, § 3C., 9-18-2008)