Chapter 16.02
DEFINITIONS
Sections:
16.02.010 General.
For the purpose of this title, certain words and terms are defined. When consistent with the context, words used in the present tense shall include the future; the singular term shall indicate the plural and the plural the singular; the word “shall” is always mandatory and the word “may” denotes a use of discretion. If the definition of a word in this title cannot be found, other City regulations, zoning or development regulations will apply. (Ord. C-1076 § 1, 2025; Ord. C-1023 § 1, 2024; Ord. C-656 § 23, 2007)
16.02.020 Definitions.
“Alley” means a public or private way designed or intended to provide rear access to properties having frontage on a public street. Alleys are generally not intended for through vehicle movements.
“Alteration” means the modification of a previously recorded plat or short plat or any portion thereof, the addition of new lots or more land, deletion of existing lots or the removal of plat or lot restrictions or dedications.
“Applicant” means any individual or entity who applies for any approval under this chapter.
“Arterial (minor)” means roadways intended to move higher traffic volumes through and within the City. They are limited access roadways with wider and frequently higher numbers of travel lanes and typically have sidewalk or pathways, curbs, and gutters. Posted speeds range from 30 to 45 mph.
“Arterial (principal or major)” means regionally significant roadways that tend to support the highest traffic volumes in Airway Heights. These wide, multilane facilities promote access between the City with other urban centers and significant rural centers. They have the highest degree of access control with separated sidewalk or pathways, curbs, and gutter. Transit mobility and accessibility are a priority on these higher speed roads, posted 35 to 55 mph.
“Auditor” means the Spokane County auditor.
“Binding site plan” means a drawing to scale which:
1. Identifies and shows the areas and locations of all streets, roads, improvements, utilities, open spaces, critical areas, parking areas, landscaped areas, surveyed topography, water bodies, drainage features and any other matters specified in this chapter;
2. Contains inscriptions or attachments setting forth such appropriate limitations and conditions for the use of the land as are established by the Director; and
3. Contains provisions making any development be in conformity with the site plan.
“Block” means a group of lots, tracts, or parcels within well-defined and fixed boundaries.
“Bond” means a satisfactory security to insure performance and/or warranty.
“Boundary line adjustment” means adjusting the boundary line between platted or unplatted lots or both, which does not create any additional lot, tract, parcel, site, or division nor create any lot, tract, parcel, site, or division which contains insufficient area and dimension to meet minimum requirements for width and area for a building site.
“Building setback” means the minimum distance a building may be located from any property line as determined by AHMC Title 17.
“Certificate of exemption” means a document issued by the Director which formally exempts a division of land from full compliance with certain state and local land development laws and regulations as identified in the exemption provisions of this title.
“Certificate of title” means a title report prepared by a title company for the property contained in a proposed subdivision, short subdivision, or binding site plan, to include, as a minimum, all owners of record, easements, and encumbrances affecting said property.
“City Council” means the City Council of the City of Airway Heights, Washington.
“City Manager” means the Manager of all City departments including Police, Fire, Public Works, Finance and Community Development.
“Collector street” means a street that supports mobility between arterials and provides access to high trip generators such as residential neighborhoods, commercial centers, industrial/business parks, and public facilities. Direct access to individual homes and small trip generators is managed. Active transportation is a priority with bike lanes, pathways, and sidewalk, established in a context sensitive framework. Collectors tend to have lessor lane widths; support fewer travel lanes; and have curbs and gutter. Some transit mobility and accessibility are promoted in busier areas. Posted speeds range from 25 and 35 mph.
“Commercial uses” means activities within land areas that are predominately connected to the sale, rental, and distribution of products or performance of services.
“Comprehensive Plan” means the plan adopted by the City pursuant to Chapter 36.70A RCW.
“Covenants and restrictions” means written standards prepared by private individuals or corporations, in which the City has no authority, that are in addition to the existing standards imposed by the City.
“Critical areas” means any of the following areas or ecosystems: aquifer recharge areas, fish and wildlife habitat conservation areas, geologically hazardous areas, frequently flooded areas, and wetlands, as defined in Chapter 36.70A RCW.
“Dedication” means the deliberate appropriation of land by an owner for any general and public uses, reserving to himself or herself no other rights than such as are compatible with the full exercise and enjoyment of the public uses to which the property has been devoted. The intention to dedicate shall be evidenced by the owner by the presentment for filing of a final plat or short plat showing the dedication thereon; and, the acceptance by the public shall be evidenced by the approval of such plat for filing by the appropriate governmental unit. A dedication of an area of less than two acres for use as a public park may include a designation of a name for the park, in honor of a deceased individual of good character.
“Director” means the person identified by the City as the head of any division or department devoted to the current or long-range planning activities of the City or their designee. In the absence of any such designation, the City Manager shall serve in this capacity.
“Easement” means an agreement by a property owner to allow specific people or the public to use land for a specific purpose or purposes (e.g., maintain water/sewer systems or phone lines on lands).
“Engineer” means a civil engineer licensed by the state of Washington.
“Final plat” means the final drawing of the subdivision and dedication prepared for filing for record with the auditor and containing all elements and requirements set forth in this title and in local regulations adopted under this title.
“Improvement” means any structure or work constructed, including but not necessarily limited to roads, alleys, street trees, sidewalks, storm drainage systems and ditches and dikes, sanitary sewage facilities or main lines, storm drainage containment facilities, and all other subgrade utility services such as phone, gas, and water.
“Industrial uses” means the activities predominantly connected with manufacturing, assembly, processing, or storage of products.
“Land surveyor” means any person who is registered with the state of Washington as a licensed land surveyor.
“Local road” means roadways that primarily provide access directly to properties and homes. They are characterized by narrow streets and have curb, gutter, and sidewalk with context sensitive designs. The roadways have a posted or statutory speed limit of 25 mph.
“Lot” means a fractional part of divided lands, having fixed boundaries, being of sufficient area and dimension to meet minimum zoning requirements for width and area. The term shall include tracts or parcels.
“Lot, parent” means a lot which is subdivided into unit lots through the unit lot subdivision process.
“Lot, unit” means a subdivided lot, also known as a child lot, that allows up to one dwelling unit, created from a parent lot and approved through the unit lot subdivision process.
“Middle housing” means buildings that are compatible in scale, form, and character with single-family houses and contain two or more attached, stacked, or clustered homes including duplexes, triplexes, fourplexes, townhouses, stacked flats, courtyard apartments, and cottage housing.
“Minimum improvements” means those improvements and/or bonding required by Chapter 16.08 AHMC as a condition for filing the final plat, final short plat, or final binding site plan.
“Owner(s)” means any person, partnership, corporation, association, incorporated organization, trust, or any other legal commercial entity having sufficient proprietary interest to seek development of land.
“Ownership interest” means having property rights as a fee owner, contract purchaser, mortgagee, or deed of trust beneficiary or grantor.
“Party of record” means a person who has provided written comments regarding a development proposal during the comment period for preliminary plats, short plats, or binding site plan proposals.
“Phasing” means a plan that guarantees project improvements, including the timing for construction and proposed methods to occur with all subsequent project phases.
“Planning Commission” means that commission established by the City Council as provided in Chapter 44, Laws of 1935, as thereafter amended, for the state of Washington.
“Plat” means a map or representation of a subdivision, showing thereon the division of a tract or parcel of land into lots, blocks, streets and alleys or the divisions and dedications.
“Preliminary approval” means the official favorable action taken on the proposed subdivision, short subdivision or binding site plan.
“Preliminary plat” means a neat and approximate drawing of a proposed subdivision showing the general layout of streets and alleys, lots, blocks and other elements of a subdivision consistent with the requirements of this title. The preliminary plat shall be the basis for the approval or disapproval of the general layout of a subdivision.
“Public highways” means the free and public roads, ways, alleys, and streets which every person has the right to use and shall include community arterials, neighborhood streets and residential streets, some of which may or may not be portions of the primary or secondary highway system of the state of Washington.
“Public purpose segregation” means a division made for the purpose of creating a portion of property to be deeded to the county, the City, or any taxing district, governmental body, utility company, or nonprofit community organization or foundation (whose articles or bylaws allow it to hold land for public use and benefit) for a designated use, provided the remaining portion of property has sufficient lot area and dimensions, and meets all other criteria to comply with the applicable City regulations, for the intended purpose of segregation. Public purpose segregations may include deeded paths, trails, and rights-of-way for public access purposes; if a deeded path, trail, or right-of-way traverses a parcel, such path shall be considered an exception to the underlying parcel and shall not be considered a division of the underlying parcel nor subtract from the parcel size for density purposes.
“Public Works Director” means the person responsible for managing the Public Works Department to include transportation, water, sewer systems and park facilities.
“Short plat” means the map or representation of a short subdivision.
“Short subdivision” means the division or redivision of land into nine or fewer lots, tracts, parcels, sites, or divisions for the purpose of sale, lease, or transfer of ownership. However, the legislative authority of any city or town may by local ordinance increase the number of lots, tracts, or parcels to be regulated as short subdivisions to a maximum of nine. The legislative authority of any county planning under RCW 36.70A.040 that has adopted a comprehensive plan and development regulations in compliance with Chapter 36.70A RCW may by ordinance increase the number of lots, tracts, or parcels to be regulated as short subdivisions to a maximum of nine in any urban growth area.
“Sidewalk” means all hard-surfaced (concrete) walkways located between the curb or developed edge of the public highway and the adjacent property.
“State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA)” means as defined by Chapter 43.21 RCW as it now exists or is hereafter amended.
“Street (road), private” means a recorded easement for ingress and egress or a platted street designated as a private thoroughfare for access of abutting property but for which the City assumes no responsibility or ownership or maintenance.
“Street (road), public” means a public thoroughfare which has been dedicated or deeded to the public to be used for street purposes and which has been improved, established, and is maintained by the City or for which reasonable assurances have been provided to the City to guarantee the street will be improved to City standards. Also included in this definition are county roads, state highways, and other state-controlled roadways.
“Subdivision” means the division or redivision of land into 10 or more lots, tracts, parcels, sites or divisions for the purpose of sale, lease or transfer of ownership; except as may be exempt under this title.
“Tax statement” means a certificate from the Spokane County treasurer indicating that all taxes and assessments on said property included in the final plat, short plat or binding site plan have been paid according to the provisions of RCW 58.08.030 and 58.08.040, as amended.
“Title notice” means a written notice attached to the title of a parcel of land by the City with a recording of said notice with auditor for the purpose of notifying the property owner or future property owner of particular circumstances related to said parcel such as a warning statement(s), limitation(s), restriction(s) or other.
“Unit lot subdivision” means the division of a parent lot into two or more unit lots within a development and approved through the unit lot subdivision process.
“Zoning/zoning code” means AHMC Title 17. (Ord. C-1076 § 1, 2025; Ord. C-1023 § 1, 2024; Ord. C-945 § 1, 2020; Ord. C-656 § 24, 2007)