Generally. The words set out in this section apply throughout this title. “Council” means the City Council; “Commission” means the Planning Commission of the City. “Shall” is always mandatory; the word “may” is permissive, subject to the judgment of the Planning Commission.

“Accessory dwelling unit” means an additional, subordinate dwelling unit on the same lot which may be attached, detached, or located within the primary residence, for use as a complete, independent dwelling with permanent provisions for living, sleeping, eating, cooking, and sanitation. No mobile home or recreational vehicle shall be an accessory dwelling unit.

“Accessory structure” means a detached, subordinate structure, the use of which is clearly incidental and related to that of the principal structure or use of the land, and which is located on the same lot as the principal structure.

“Accessory use” means a use customarily incidental to and on the same lot as the principal use of a building or operation, and so necessary or commonly to be expected that it cannot be supposed that it was intended to be prohibited.

“Adjacent property” means property which is contiguous or touching at any point. Property which would be contiguous or touching except for the existence of a street, road, or right-of-way will be considered contiguous or touching.

“Adult family home” means a regular family abode of a person or persons providing personal care, special care, room, and board to more than one (1) but not more than six (6) adults who are not related by blood or marriage to the person or persons providing the services.

“Agriculture” means the use of land for agricultural purposes including farming, dairying, pasturage, agriculture, horticulture, floriculture, viticulture, aviaries, and animal and poultry husbandry, and the necessary accessory uses for storing produce; provided the operation of such accessory uses shall be incidental to that of normal agricultural activities.

“Alley” means a public way twenty feet (20') in width between property lines, which affords a secondary means of access to abutting property.

“Auto wrecking yard” means any lot or area used for the dismantling or disassembling of motor vehicles or trailers, or the storage, sale or dumping of four (4) or more dismantled, partially dismantled, obsolete or wrecked vehicles, or their parts.

“Boardinghouse” or “lodging house” means a dwelling or part thereof other than a hotel, motel, or multi-family dwelling where lodging with or without meals is provided, for compensation, for three (3) or more persons.

“Building height” means the vertical distance measured from the average grade to the highest point on the roof, ridge, or parapet wall.

“Building Official” means the officer or other designated authority charged with the administration and enforcement of the State Building Code or his or her duly authorized representative.

“Cargo containers” or “containers” are steel sea- or ocean-going containers marked with the American Bureau of Shipping’s emblem or meeting the International Standard Organization’s standards, which can be detached from a trailer, chassis, or frame, and which were formerly used for transporting sea- or ocean-going cargo.

“Clinic” means a place where group medical services are performed, not including the overnight housing of patients.

“Club” means an association of persons, religious or otherwise, for a common purpose, but not including groups which are organized primarily to render a service carried on as a business for a profit.

“Commercial coach” means a structure transportable in one (1) or more sections that is built on a permanent chassis and designed to be used for commercial purposes with or without a permanent foundation when connected to the required utilities. A commercial coach is labeled with a black insignia in compliance with Washington State Department of Labor and Industries regulations.

“Comprehensive Plan” means the generalized coordinated land use policy statement of the City of Moses Lake adopted pursuant to the Growth Management Act.

“Conditional use” means a use conditionally allowed in one (1) or more zones but which, because of characteristics particular to each such use, size, technological processes, equipment, or because of the exact location with respect to surroundings, streets, existing improvements, or demands upon public facilities, requires a special degree of control to determine if uses can be made compatible with the Comprehensive Plan, adjacent uses, and the character of the vicinity.

“Cryptocurrency mining” means the operation of specialized computer equipment for the primary purpose of mining one (1) or more blockchain based cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin. This activity typically involves the solving of algorithms as part of the development and maintenance of a blockchain which is a type of distributed ledger maintained on a peer-to-peer network. Typical physical characteristics of cryptocurrency mining include specialized computer hardware; high density load (HDL) electricity use; a high energy use intensity (EUI) where the operating square footage as determined by the utility is above two hundred fifty (250) kWh/ft²/year and with a high load factor in addition to the use of equipment to cool the hardware and operating space. For the purposes of the associated regulations, cryptocurrency mining does not include the exchange of cryptocurrency or any other type of virtual currency nor does it encompass the use, creation, or maintenance of all types of peer-to-peer distributed ledgers.

“Dangerous waste” means those wastes designated by the Revised Code of Washington (RCW) or Washington Administrative Code (WAC) as dangerous or extremely hazardous waste.

“Data center/server farm/cluster” means a network of computer(s) and/or server(s) typically used by organizations for the remote storage, processing, or distribution of large amounts of data.

“Day care facility” means an agency or person regularly providing care for a group of children for periods of less than twenty-four (24) hours.

“Deferral” means a temporary deviation from requirements that allows requirements to be completed at a later date as specified by City Council. Deferrals do not alter the requirements, they merely allow for their completion at a more convenient time for the developer or the City.

“Density” means the number of dwelling units within a given unit of land.

“Development” means the construction or alteration of structures, dredging, dumping, filling, or removal of earth of any temporary or permanent nature.

“Deviation” means a modification to any requirement of the Community Street and Utility Standards or the Moses Lake Municipal Code that has been approved by the City Council or Municipal Services Director or Community Development Director. Such a modification may also be in the form of a deferral or a waiver.

“District” means a zoning district unless otherwise defined.

“Dwelling” means any building or portion thereof designed or used for a residence or sleeping place of one (1) or more persons.

Dwelling, Multi-Family. “Multi-family dwelling” means a building or portion thereof designed or used as a residence by more than two (2) families, and containing more than two (2) dwelling units.

Dwelling, Single-Family. “Single-family dwelling” means a building designed or used for residence by not more than one (1) family and containing only one (1) dwelling unit.

Dwelling, Two (2) Family, or Duplex. “Two (2) family dwelling” or “duplex” means a building designed or used for residential purposes by not more than two (2) families and containing two (2) dwelling units.

“Dwelling unit” means a single unit providing complete, independent living facilities for not more than one (1) family, including permanent provisions for living, sleeping, eating, cooking, and sanitation.

Easement, Municipal. “Municipal easement” means a nonexclusive easement granted to the City for the express use of locating municipal improvements.

Easement, Public Utility. “Public utility easement” means a nonexclusive easement granted to public utility providers for the express use of locating public utilities.

“Factory built housing” means a structure constructed in a factory of factory assembled parts and transported to the building site in whole or in units and which is constructed to the standards of the State Building Code. The completed structure is not a mobile/manufactured home.

“Family” means one (1) person living alone; or two (2) or more persons related by blood, marriage, or legal adoption; or a group not exceeding five (5) persons living as a single housekeeping unit.

“General Plan” means the General Plan of the City as adopted by the City Council (same as Comprehensive Plan).

“Grade (ground level)” means the average of the finished ground level at the center of all walls of a building.

“Gross floor area” means and includes all floor area within the exterior walls of a building, including areas in halls, storage, and partitions.

“Hazardous waste” means and includes all dangerous and extremely hazardous waste as defined in the Revised Code of Washington (RCW) or Washington Administrative Code (WAC).

“Hotel” or “motel” means a facility offering transient lodging accommodations to the general public. The facility may also provide additional services, such as restaurants, meeting rooms, entertainment, and recreation facilities.

“Kennel” means any lot or premises on which four (4) or more dogs over four (4) months of age are kept.

“Landscaped” means an area in lawn, shrubbery, wood chips, rock, or other material that is maintained and kept free of debris and other nuisances.

“Lot” means a parcel of land under one (1) ownership used or capable of being used under the regulations of this title, including both the building site and all required yards and open spaces as defined in this section.

Lot, Corner. “Corner lot” means any lot which is located at the intersection of two (2) or more streets. The shorter street frontage of such a lot shall constitute the front of the lot.

“Lot depth” means the horizontal distance between the front and rear property lines measured in the mean direction of the side property lines.

Lot, Inside. “Inside lot” means a lot other than a corner lot.

Lot, Through. “Through lot” means a lot which has frontage on two (2) parallel or approximately parallel streets, or a lot that has a body of water or other natural barrier at the rear of the property which is parallel to the street.

“Lot width” means the horizontal distance between the side property lines measured at right angles to the depth at a point which is the required minimum building setback line in that zone in which the lot is located.

“Maintain” means to preserve and care for a structure, improvement, or area to such an extent that it remains attractive, safe, and presentable and carries out the purpose for which it was installed or constructed.

“Manufactured home” means a single-family dwelling required to be built in accordance with regulations adopted under the National Manufactured Housing Construction and Safety Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. 5401 et seq.). A commercial coach, recreational vehicle, or motor home is not a manufactured home.

“Marijuana retailer” means a person licensed by the Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board to sell useable marijuana and marijuana-infused products in a retail outlet. A state licensed marijuana retailer is classified as a commercial land use and is subject to the standards for a commercial use.

“Mobile home” means a factory built residential structure constructed prior to June 15, 1976, and not in compliance with the National Manufactured Housing Construction and Safety Standards Act of 1974 (HUD Code).

Motel. For a definition of motel, see the definition of “hotel.”

“Nonconforming structure” means a structure conforming with respect to use, but does not conform with respect to height, setback, coverage, or other requirements of this title regulating structures.

“Nonconforming use” means the use of any land or building which does not conform to the use regulations of this title for the zone in which it is located.

“Parking lot” means any area of land, a yard or other open space area, used for or designated for the parking of motor vehicles.

“Parking space” means an off-street space with a minimum of nine feet (9') in width and twenty feet (20') in length used for or designated for the parking of motor vehicles, together with the area required to provide reasonable access to and from each space.

“Paved” means a hard surfaced area of Portland cement or asphaltic concrete with a base approved by the City Engineer.

“Private street” means a way that is privately built and maintained which affords the primary means of access to a planned development district, manufactured or mobile home park, or recreational vehicle park.

Property Line, Front. “Front property line” means the line separating the street from the front of the lot as shown on the official recorded plat of the property, and as modified by any subsequent vacation, condemnation, or conveyance for public purposes. In the case of unplatted property, a front line shall be designated by the Building Official before issuance of a building permit. A through lot shall be considered to have a front property line on each of the opposite streets upon which the lot abuts.

Property Line, Rear. “Rear property line” means the lot line opposite and most distant from the front lot line. In the case of triangular or otherwise irregularly shaped lots, a line ten feet (10') in length entirely within the lot, parallel to and at a maximum distance from the front lot line.

Property Line, Side. “Side property line” means any lot line other than a front or rear lot line.

“Recreational vehicle” means a vehicular type unit primarily designed for recreational camping or travel use that either has its own motive power or is mounted on, or towed by, another vehicle. Recreational vehicles include camping trailers, fifth-wheel trailers, motor homes, travel trailers, and truck campers.

“Retail” means establishments engaged in selling merchandise for personal or household consumption and rendering services incidental to the sale of the goods. Retail establishments generally buy goods for resale and are engaged in activities to attract the general public to buy. The establishment may process or manufacture some of its products (such as a jeweler or bakery), but such processing or manufacturing is incidental or subordinate to the selling activities.

“School, elementary and secondary” means public or private institutions of learning having a curriculum below the college level as required by the common school provisions of the State of Washington.

“Service area” means any area devoted to garbage or refuse containers, incinerators, the shipping and receiving of commodities, or the parking of trucks or other large vehicles used in the operation of an enterprise.

“Service station” means a retail business establishment supplying gasoline, oil, accessories and minor service for automobiles.

“Setback” means the distance between the property line and permitted building line as required in this title.

“Sign” means any sign as defined in Chapter 18.58.

“Site” means either: (1) a parcel of unplatted land, a parcel in a binding site plan, a tract, or a lot in a subdivision; or (2) two (2) or more contiguous parcels, tracts, or lots under one (1) ownership without intervening right-of-way and identified or delineated as one (1) development site; or (3) two (2) or more contiguous parcels, tracts, or lots under different ownership, without intervening right-of-way, and identified or delineated as one (1) development site.

“Sleeping shelter” means a structure not exceeding nintey-six (96) square feet in area without utilities that is used for the purpose of sleeping by indigent persons on a temporary basis.

“Storage” means the keeping of a quantity of goods, merchandise, or other materials in a manner or location which will require them to be rearranged or relocated before use or retail sales of the goods, merchandise, or other materials.

Storage – Dangerous Waste. “Storage” means the holding of dangerous waste for a temporary period. Accumulation of dangerous waste by the generator on the site of generation is not storage as long as the generator complies with the applicable requirements of WAC 173-303-200 and 173-303-201.

“Story” means that portion of a building included between the surface of any floor and the surface of the floor next above it, or, if there is no floor above it, then the space between such floor and the ceiling next above it. Any portion of a building exceeding fourteen feet (14') in height shall be considered as an additional story for each fourteen feet (14') or major fraction thereof. If the finished floor level directly above the basement or cellar is more than six feet (6') above grade such basement or cellar shall be considered a story.

“Street” means a public right-of-way which provides the primary means of access to the abutting property.

“Structural alteration” means any change in the supporting members of a building such as bearing walls, columns, beams, girders, floor joints, ceiling joists, or roof rafters.

“Structure” means that which is built or constructed; edifice or building of any kind or any piece of work artificially built up or composed of parts joined together in some definite manner, which requires location on the ground or attached to something located in the ground, including swimming and wading pools, and covered patios, excepting outdoor areas such as paved areas, walks, tennis courts, and similar recreation areas.

Treatment. Treatment of dangerous waste shall be as defined in state law.

“Utilities, local” means facilities and infrastructure provided by a public agency, utility district, or franchise which convey essential services throughout a neighborhood area or within the community. These facilities include but are not limited to local water and wastewater lines and pump stations, electrical distribution lines and substations, natural gas distribution pipelines, local telecommunication facilities, and stormwater retention and conveyance systems.

“Utilities, regional” means facilities and infrastructure provided by a public agency, utility, or franchise which convey essential services throughout the area beyond but including Moses Lake. These facilities include but are not limited to regional water storage tanks, reservoirs, and booster stations; wastewater interceptors, pump stations, and treatment facilities; electrical transmission substations and lines one hundred fifteen (115) kV and greater, regional natural gas pipelines and gate stations, and regional telecommunication facilities.

“Variance” means official permission to be relieved from specific development code requirements that cause an unusual or unreasonable hardship due to the physical characteristics of the site or existing improvements.

“Waiver” means a permanent deviation that allows alterations to the requirements of the Community Street and Utility Standards or the Moses Lake Municipal Code.

“Warehousing” means the use of a building primarily for the long-term storage of goods and materials.

“Wholesale” means establishments primarily engaged in selling merchandise to retailers; to industrial, commercial, institutional, farm, construction contractors, or professional business users; or to other wholesalers; or acting as agents or brokers in buying merchandise for or selling merchandise to such persons or companies.

Yard, Front. “Front yard” means the required open space adjoining the front property line and extending across the full width of the lot to a depth equal to the minimum permitted horizontal distance between the front property line and any part of a building on the lot save as elsewhere excepted in this title.

Yard, Rear. “Rear yard” means the required open space adjoining the rear property line and extending across the full width of the lot on inside lots, and from the side yard flanking a public street to the opposite side property line on corner lots and having a depth equal to the minimum permitted horizontal distance between the rear property line and any part of the main building on the lot, save as elsewhere excepted in this title.

Yard, Side. “Side yard” means the required open space adjoining the side property line and extending from the required front yard to the required rear yard on inside lots, and to the rear property line on corner lots along the side flanking a public street, or in the absence of such required yards to the front or rear property lines, and having a width equal to the minimum permitted horizontal distance between the side property line and any part of the main building on the lot line.

“Zoning Administrator” means the Community Development Director or designee charged with the administration and enforcement of this title.

“Zoning Ordinance” means the Zoning Ordinance of the City as codified in this title. (Ord. 2969, 2/23/21; Ord. 2929, 8/13/19; Ord. 2746, 1/13/15; Ord. 2692, 11/12/13; Ord. 2454, 5/12/09; Ord. 2144, 12/9/03; Ord. 1819, 10/27/98; Ord. 1559, 1993; Ord. 1517, 1992; Ord. 1324, 1988; Ord. 1243, 1986; Ord. 1201, 1986; Ord. 1125, 1983; Ord. 786, 1976. Formerly 18.06)