§ 17-1-101. Definitions.

Unless defined in this article, the Natural Resources Article of the State Code, or COMAR, the definitions of words defined elsewhere in this Code apply in this article. The following words have the meanings indicated:

(1) “ADA accessible” means accessible to persons with disabilities as required by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), 42 U.S.C. §§ 12101, et seq.

(2) “Afforestation” has the meaning stated in Natural Resources Article, § 5-1601, of the State Code, for land outside the critical area, and the meaning stated in COMAR, Title 27 for land inside the critical area.

(3) “Agricultural and resource areas” means undeveloped areas zoned for densities of less than or equal to one dwelling unit per five acres.

(4) “Agricultural preservation subdivision” means a subdivision of land in a State agricultural preservation program for which an agricultural preservation easement has been acquired pursuant to the Agriculture Article, Title 2, Subtitle 5, of the State Code, and a subdivision of land in a County agricultural preservation program for which an agricultural easement has been acquired pursuant to this Code, including a subdivision under an easement that permits subdivision of “family conveyance lots.”

(5) “Bicycle pedestrian and transit infrastructure” means bikeways, shared-use paths, sidewalks, transit stops, transit stations, and other infrastructure that supports bicycle and pedestrian transportation.

(6) “Bikeway” means any road, street, path, or way which in some manner is specifically designated for bicycle travel, regardless of whether such facilities are designated for the exclusive use of bicycles or are to be shared with other transportation modes.

(7) “Board of Education” means the Board of Education of Anne Arundel County.

(8) “Bog protection plan” means a plan that:

(i) delineates the bog, the contributing streams, the 100-foot upland buffer, the limited activity area, and the contributing drainage area;

(ii) identifies natural features and rare, threatened, or endangered species; and

(iii) demonstrates how a proposed development will comply with the requirements of this Code.

(9) “Buffer management plan” means a plan approved by the Office of Planning and Zoning that governs development in the critical area buffer, in accordance with COMAR Title 27, including the re-establishment of a buffer.

(10) “Bulk parcel” means a non-buildable lot remaining after subdivision that has a potential for future development with the density that remains within the subdivision as a whole, on which all environmentally sensitive areas existing at the time of creation of the subdivision have been identified, that was not tested for adequacy of public facilities during subdivision, and that may not be further subdivided or otherwise developed without first passing the tests for adequacy of public facilities and complying with all applicable environmental regulations.

(11) “Bus or rail transit” means regularly operated public transit services using either motor buses under contract to the City of Annapolis, Anne Arundel County, or the State, or operated by the City of Annapolis, Anne Arundel County, or the State, or their successors or assigns, or light rail transit under the auspices of the State.

(12) “Capital Improvement Program” means an annual document prepared by the County indicating County capital projects that have an authorization for the current fiscal year or that are currently planned for the following five-year period.

(13) “Champion tree” has the meaning stated in Natural Resources Article, § 5-1601, of the State Code.

(14) “Clear sight triangle” means an area of unobstructed vision at a road intersection.

(15) “Clearing” is a form of development that means the process of cutting or removing trees, woody vegetation, ground cover, stumps, or roots, and does not include gardening or maintenance of an existing grass lawn or removal of hazardous trees as defined in COMAR, Title 27.

(16) “Commercial or industrial areas” means manufacturing operations, office complexes, shopping centers, and other similar uses and their associated storage areas, yards, and parking areas.

(17) “Condominium” has the meaning stated in Real Property Article, Title 11, of the State Code.

(18) “Contract school” means a school facility operated as a public school under contract with the Board of Education, located in privately owned facilities, and operated by Board of Education staff.

(19) “County” means Anne Arundel County, Maryland.

(20) “County Inventory of Historic Resources” means properties listed on the Maryland Inventory of Historic Properties, the National Register of Historic Places or the National Register of Historic Landmarks. Historic resources consist of properties, buildings, structures, districts, and archaeological sites that represent County history, that are associated with the lives of historically significant persons, that have historically significant architectural value, or that are capable of yielding information important to the County’s history or prehistory.

(21) “County Pedestrian and Bicycle Master Plan” means a plan adopted by the County Council which identifies alignments for pedestrian and bicycle facilities and sidewalks throughout the County.

(22) “County Procedures Manual” has the meaning stated in Article 16 of this Code.

(23) “Declaration of intent” means a document required under COMAR, Title 08, that is a notarized statement signed by a landowner certifying that the activity on the landowner’s property is exempted from and does not conflict with the forest conservation provisions of this article and does not conflict with the purposes of any other declaration of intent.

(24) “Dedicate” or “dedication” as used in this article means a grant of real property by its owner to the County for a public use.

(25) “Design Manual” has the meaning stated in Article 16 of this Code.

(26) “Developable area” means the area of a lot in which the principal and accessory structures may be located.

(27) “Developed woodlands” has the meaning stated in COMAR, Title 27.

(28) “Developer” means a person who engages in development.

(29) “Development” means the subdivision of property or any activity other than farming, gardening, or yard maintenance that results in a change in existing site conditions, including the establishment of a use; the change of a use; the improvement of property through construction, alteration, or relocation of a structure; the provision of stormwater management or roads; grading; and clearing.

(30) “Disturbance” is a form of development that means cutting or removing vegetation or grading or filling activities, including any alteration or change to the land, including any amount of clearing, grading, or construction activity, but not including gardening or maintenance of an existing grass lawn.

(31) “DPW Design Manual” has the meaning stated in Article 16 of this Code.

(32) “Easement” means a non-possessory interest in land that creates the right to use the property of another for a specific purpose or that imposes limitations upon use or obligations to preserve or maintain all or a specified portion of the property.

(33) “Environmental site design (ESD)” means:

(i) using small-scale stormwater management practices, nonstructural techniques, and better site planning to mimic natural hydrologic runoff characteristics and minimize the impact of land development on water resources; and

(ii) using design methods specified in the State Stormwater Management Design Manual.

(34) “Environmentally sensitive areas” means the area of a site which contains tidal and nontidal wetlands, bogs, 100-year floodplains, streams, steep slopes, and all associated buffers, and, in the critical area, also includes habitat protection areas. These areas may also include future overlay zones designated by the County Council as environmentally sensitive areas.

(35) “Facade” means the exterior walls on an enclosed or covered portion of a structure.

(36) “Final plan” means the application and materials submitted with an application for final plan review.

(37) “Flag lot” means a lot with two distinct parts: the flag, which is the portion of the lot that is buildable, and the pole, which connects the flag to the road.

(38) “Floodplain” has the meaning stated in Article 16 of this Code.

(39) “Forest” has the meaning stated in Natural Resources Article, § 5-1601, of the State Code.

(40) “Forest conservation” has the meaning stated in Natural Resources Article, § 5-1601, of the State Code.

(41) “Forest conservation plan” means a document prepared by a qualified professional under COMAR, Title 08, that demonstrates a priority for the retention of existing onsite forest and that provides for any required afforestation and reforestation.

(42) “Forest management” means the protection, manipulation, and utilization of the forest to provide multiple benefits, including timber harvesting, water transpiration, and wildlife habitat.

(43) “Forest management plan” means a document prepared by a registered professional forester that gives direction for the management of forests for purposes of sustainability, recreation, wildlife enhancement, planting and regeneration, or regeneration or disturbance activities, such as harvesting, thinning, or cutting of a forest.

(44) “Forest stand delineation” has the meaning stated in Natural Resources Article, § 5-1601, of the State Code.

(45) “Forestation agreement” means a contract that requires the property owner and developer to plant, replant, reforest, or afforest in accordance with an approved forest conservation plan, buffer management plan, or bog protection plan and to maintain the planting, replanting, reforestation, or afforestation for a period of two years.

(46) “Frontage” means that portion of a lot that adjoins a road and provides access to the lot, except on waterfront lots where it is that portion of a lot abutting the mean high-water line, or abutting platted land owned by a homeowner’s association or the County that abuts the mean high-water line.

(47) “General Development Plan” means the plan adopted by the County Council in accordance with Article 18 of this Code.

(48) “Geographical attendance area” has the meaning stated in Education Article, § 4-109, of the State Code.

(49) “Growing season” means the period of time during which consecutive frost-free days occur.

(50) “Habitat protection area” means an area that is designated for protection under Natural Resources Article, § 8-1806, of the State Code, or by the Secretary of Natural Resources. “Habitat protection area” includes:

(i) the buffer as defined in COMAR, Title 27;

(ii) a nontidal wetland as defined in COMAR, Title 26;

(iii) a habitat of a threatened species as defined in COMAR, Title 27;

(iv) a habitat of an endangered species as defined in COMAR, Title 27;

(v) a habitat of a species in need of conservation as defined in COMAR, Title 27;

(vi) a plant habitat as defined in COMAR, Title 27;

(vii) a wildlife habitat as defined in COMAR, Title 27; and

(viii) anadromous fish propagation waters as defined in COMAR, Title 27.

(51) “High density residential areas” means areas zoned for densities greater than one dwelling unit per acre, including both existing and planned development and their associated infrastructure, such as roads, utilities, and waster and sewer service.

(52) “Highly erodible soils” means those soils with a K value greater than .35 and with slopes greater than 5%, and for land within the critical area, slopes greater than 15%.

(53) “Highway traffic sound level” means the peak-notice-hour average sound level for the road with level of service (“LOS”) D traffic in the current roadway configuration or with approved future improvements.

(54) “Historic waterfowl staging and concentration area” has the meaning stated in COMAR, Title 27.

(55) “Hydric soil” means soils that are wet frequently enough to periodically produce anaerobic conditions, thereby influencing the species composition or growth, or both, of plants on those soils.

(56) “Hydrophytic vegetation” has the meaning stated in COMAR, Title 27.

(57) “In-kind replacement” means the removal of a permanent structure and the construction of another permanent structure in the same location that is smaller than or identical to the original structure in use, footprint, area, height, width and length.

(58) “Institutional development areas” means schools, colleges, universities, military installations, transportation facilities, utility and sewer projects, government offices and facilities, golf courses, recreation areas, parks, and cemeteries.

(59) “K value” means the soil erodibility factor in the universal soil loss equation.

(60) “Landscape Manual” means the Anne Arundel County Landscape Manual.

(61) “Linear project” has the meaning stated in Natural Resources Article, § 5-1601, of the State Code.

(62) “Lot” means land depicted and shown on a recorded plat that was approved in accordance with the subdivision laws in effect at the time of plat recordation, land described in a recorded deed that was subdivided in accordance with the subdivision laws in effect at the time of deed recordation, land located entirely outside the critical area that is described in a deed that was recorded in the land records before September 7, 2004, and land for which a court order has established a new boundary line or lines. This definition does not include land platted as a road that is owned pursuant to Real Property Article, § 2-114, of the State Code.

(63) “Lot coverage” has the meaning stated in Natural Resources Article, § 8-1802, of the State Code.

(64) “Medium density residential areas” means areas zoned for densities greater than one dwelling unit per five acres and less than or equal to one dwelling unit per acre, including both existing and planned development and either associated infrastructure, such as roads, utilities, and water and sewer service.

(65) “Minor subdivision” means:

(i) an agricultural preservation subdivision; or

(ii) a subdivision not previously shown on a record plat approved by the County and involving no more than five lots for single-family detached dwellings for which the extension of public roads, water, or sewer is not required.

(66) “Mixed use development areas” means single, relatively high density development projects, usually commercial in nature, which include one or more types of uses.

(67) “Multi-modal transportation” means any mode of public or private mobility, including motorized transportation, bicycling, walking, or any combination thereof.

(68) “Multi-modal transportation infrastructure” means roads, bicycle, pedestrian, and transit infrastructure, and other infrastructure that supports multi-modal transportation.

(69) “Natural features” means floodplains, slopes of 15% or greater, soil types, streams, tidal and nontidal wetlands, and vegetation.

(70) “Natural runoff conveyance system” means a system that is designed to provide (i) shallow aquatic pools, riffle grade controls, and native vegetation in order to restore the natural stream characteristics of a conveyance channel such as a regenerative step pool storm conveyance (SPSC) system, and (ii) the minimization of impacts to or enhancements of the conveyance channel buffer or any associated wetlands to ensure certain flood conveyance and attenuation.

(71) “Nontidal wetland” has the meaning stated in COMAR, Title 26.

(72) “Office” means the Office of Planning and Zoning.

(73) “Open area” means that portion of a lot that protects natural features and provides for recreational activities and that is required only when an open space lot is not created under § 17-6-111.

(74) “Open space” means a separate lot that serves to protect natural features and provide for recreational activities.

(75) “Outdoor activity area” means outdoor areas for common and extended human use that is more than transient in nature. Outdoor activity areas include patios, decks, balconies, swimming pools, gazebos, playgrounds, and related outdoor amenities. Outdoor activity area does not include front and side yards of single-family detached dwellings and all yards of multifamily dwelling units that are not occupied by an approved patio, deck, or balcony.

(76) “Owner” means a person who holds fee simple title.

(77) “Pervious manmade surface” means any surface or lot coverage that does not meet the definition of “impervious surface” as defined in Article 16 of this Code and is installed in accordance with manufacturer’s specifications.

(78) “Planned unit development areas” means developments comprising a combination of land uses or varying intensities of the same land use in accordance with an integrated plan that provides flexibility in land use design approved by the local jurisdiction with at least 20% of the land permanently dedicated to open space.

(79) “Preliminary plan” means the application and materials submitted with an application for preliminary plan review.

(80) “Public works agreement” means a contract between a developer and the County that requires the developer to install public improvements, including public improvements relating to roads, storm drains, water, and sewer.

(81) “Reforestation” has the meaning stated in Natural Resources Article, § 5-1601, of the State Code, for land outside the critical area and, for land in the critical area means the establishment of a forest through artificial reproduction or natural regeneration.

(82) “Reservation” means the identification and setting aside of an area of land in a subdivision for future acquisition for public use that subjects the land reserved to use limitations for a specified period of time and that may be designated on the General Development Plan or in the County or State Capital Improvement Program or the State highway needs inventory.

(83) “Reviewing agencies” means an advisory group of federal, State, or County agencies designated by the Office of Planning and Zoning to provide comments on applications.

(84) “Scenic or historic road” means a road shown on the official map entitled “Scenic and Historic Roads, 2006 adopted by the County Council.

(85) “Scheduled completion year” means three years after approval of the first sketch, final, preliminary, or site development plan that has been approved for adequacy of public facilities.

(86) “School year” means the one-year period of time beginning on September 30th and ending on September 29th of the following calendar year.

(87) “Shared-use path” means a bikeway that can also be a trail, which is physically separated from motor vehicle traffic by an open space or barrier, and is either within the public right-of-way or easement. Shared-use paths may also be used by pedestrians, skaters, wheelchair users, joggers, and other non-motorized users, and motorized users only as permitted in this Code and in State Code, and may be designed for two-way travel.

(88) “Sketch plan” means the application and materials submitted with an application for sketch plan review.

(89) “Slope” means a natural incline for land outside the critical area. For land inside the critical area, “slope” means any incline whether natural or manmade.

(90) “Soil conservation and water quality plan” means a farm plan approved by a local soil conservation district to minimize soil erosion, and to minimize the movement of sediment, animal waste, nutrients, or agricultural chemicals into the waters of the State.

(91) “Steep slope” means a 25% or greater slope that has an onsite and offsite contiguous area that is greater than 5,000 square feet over 10 feet vertical as measured before development. In the critical area, “steep slope” means a 15% or greater slope that is over six feet vertically as measured before development.

(92) “Subdivision” means the division of land so as to create two or more lots, the revision of a record plat previously approved by the County, or the establishment of a record plat for land not shown on a record plat previously approved by the County.

(93) “Targeted growth area” means an area targeted for economic growth and depicted as such in the current Anne Arundel County General Development Plan.

(94) “Tidal wetlands” means “private wetlands” or “State wetlands” as defined in the Environment Article, § 16-101, of the State Code.

(95) “Tree” has the meaning stated in Natural Resources Article, § 5-1601, of the State Code.

(96) “Tree of significant size” means a tree that, in accordance with Natural Resources Article, Title 5, of the State Code, has a diameter measured at 4.5 feet above the ground of 30 inches or more or that is 75% or more of the diameter of the current State champion tree of that species.

(97) “Tributary stream” has the meaning stated in Natural Resources Article, § 8-1802, of the State Code.

(98) “Waterfowl” has the meaning stated in COMAR, Title 27.

(99) “Whip” has the meaning stated in Natural Resources Article, § 5-1601, of the State Code.

(100) “Wildlife corridor” has the meaning stated in COMAR, Title 27.

(Bill No. 3-05; Bill No. 77-05; Bill No. 4-06; Bill No. 21-06; Bill No. 59-10; Bill No. 47-12; Bill No. 93-12; Bill No. 76-13; Bill No. 3-17; Bill No. 78-18; Bill No. 68-19)