Spokane Municipal Code

Title 17A Administration

Chapter 17A.020 Definitions

Section 17A.020.120 “L” Definitions

1. Land Surveyor.

An individual licensed as a land surveyor pursuant to chapter 18.43 RCW.

2. Land Use Codes.

Those provisions of this code that relate to:

1. 1. zoning,

1. 2. subdivision,

1. 3. shorelines management,

1. 4. stormwater control,

1. 5. flood zones,

1. 6. critical areas,

1. 7. signs,

1. 8. skywalks, and

include chapter 17D.020 SMC, chapter 17D.050A SMC, chapter 17D.060 SMC, chapter 17D.090 SMC, chapter 17E.010 SMC, chapter 17E.020 SMC, chapter 17E.030 SMC, chapter 17E.040 SMC, chapter 17E.060 SMC, chapter 17E.070 SMC, and chapter 17G.080 SMC.

3. Landscape Plan.

A scale drawing showing site improvements and landscaping required under chapter 17C.200 SMC the following elements:

1. 1. Footprint of all structures.

1. 2. Final site grading.

1. 3. All parking areas and driveways.

1. 4. All sidewalks, pedestrian walkways, and other pedestrian areas.

1. 5. Location, height, and materials for all fences and walls.

1. 6. Common and scientific names of all plant materials used, along with their size at planting and location of all plant materials on the site.

4. Landslide.

Rapid sliding of large masses of rock, soil, or material on steep mountain slopes or from high cliffs.

5. Latah Formation.

Sedimentary layer of claystone to fine-grained sandstone in which very finely laminated siltstone is predominant. The fresh rock ranges in color from various shades of gray to almost white, tan and rust. Much of the finer grained layers contain leaf imprints and other plant debris. Because of its generally poorly consolidated state, the Latah rarely outcrops. It erodes rapidly and therefore is usually covered with later deposits or in steeper terrain hidden under the rubble of overlying basaltic rocks.

6. Launch Ramp.

An inclined slab, set of pads, rails, planks, or graded slope used for launching boats with trailers or by hand.

7. "Ldn" means a day-night average sound level and serves as a basic measure for quantifying noise exposure, namely, the A-weighted sound level averaged over a twenty-four hour time period, with a ten decibel penalty applied to nighttime (ten p.m. to seven a.m.) sound levels.

8. Leak Detection.

A procedure for determining if the material in a primary container has escaped into the outside environment or has invaded an interstitial space in a multiple containment system.

1. Levee.

A natural or artificial embankment on the bank of a stream for the purpose of keeping floodwaters from inundating adjacent land. Some levees have revetments on their sides.

10. Level of Service Standard.

The number of units of capacity per unit of demand. The level of service standards used on concurrency tests are those standards specified in the adopted City of Spokane comprehensive plan.

11. Lighting Methods.

1. Direct.

Exposed lighting or neon tubes on the sign face. Direct lighting also includes signs whose message or image is created by light projected onto a surface.

2. Indirect.

The light source is separate from the sign face or cabinet and is directed to shine onto the sign.

3. Internal.

The light source is concealed within the sign.

12. Lighting Plan.

A general site plan that includes:

1. location of all lighting fixtures on the site;

2. manufacturer’s model identification of each lighting fixture;

3. manufacturer’s performance specifications of each fixture;

4. a photometric plan of the installed fixtures, which demonstrates that all illumination is confined within the boundaries of the site.

13. Limited Industrial.

Establishments primarily engaged in on-site production or assembly of goods by hand manufacturing involving the use of hand tools and small-scale equipment and may have the incidental direct sale to consumers of those goods produced on-site. Typical uses include:

1. on-site production of goods by hand or artistic endeavor;

2. placement of digital or analog information on a physical or electronic medium;

3. manufacture, predominantly from previously prepared materials, of finished products or parts, provided the noise, light, smell, or vibration does not extend beyond the site; and

4. research of an industrial or biotechnical nature.

All activity must be conducted totally within the structure with no outdoor storage.

14. Listed Species.

A fish or wildlife species on a state or federal species of concern list. Possible designations could include endangered, threatened and sensitive.

15. Littoral Drift.

The natural movement of sediment, particularly sand and gravel, along shorelines by wave action in response to prevailing winds or by stream currents.

16. Living groundcover (or “living ground cover”).

Living plant species which reach a height of less than three feet at maturity, planted in such a manner so as to form a continuous cover over the ground. Areas that meet Spokanescape guidelines with drought tolerant plants covering at least half of the project area at maturity and bark or rock mulch covering all exposed soil are considered to meet this definition.

17. Local Access Street.

A street that provides access from individual properties to collector and minor arterials.

18. Lot.

1. “Lot” is a parcel or tract of land so designated on a recorded plat or assessors plat, or:

1. 1. in an unplatted area, a tract having frontage on a public street or private street within a planned unit development or binding site plan and having the minimum size and dimensions required for a building site by the zoning code; or

1. 2. a building site designated as such on an approved planned development plan; or

1. 3. an unplatted area, legally created, and having the minimum size and dimensions required for a building site by the zoning code, but that does not have frontage on a public street.

2. A tract consisting of more than one contiguous lot may be considered as one lot for development purposes, subject to interpretation of the location of the front and rear yards.

3. A “corner lot” is a lot bounded on two adjacent sides by intersecting public streets.

4. An “inside lot” is a lot other than a corner lot.

5. A “through lot” is a lot bounded on opposite sides by parallel or approximately parallel public streets.

19. Lot Depth.

The depth of a lot is the horizontal distance between the front lot line and the rear lot line measured in the mean direction of the side lot lines.

20. Lot Lines.

The property lines along the edge of a lot or site.

1. 1. “Front lot line” means a lot line, or segment of a lot line, that abuts a street.

1. 1. 1. On a corner lot, the front lot line is the shortest of the lot lines that abut a street. If two or more street lot lines are of equal length, then the applicant or property owner can choose which lot line is to be the front.

1. 1. 2. However, a through lot has two front lot lines regardless of whether the street lot lines are of equal or unequal length.

1. 2. “Rear lot line” means a lot line that is opposite a front lot line.

1. 1. 1. A triangular lot has two side lot lines but no rear lot line.

1. 1. 2. For other irregularly shaped lots, the rear lot line is all lot lines that are most nearly opposite the front lot line.

1. 3. “Side lot line” means a lot line that is neither a front nor rear lot line.

1. 1. 1. On a corner lot, the longer lot line, which abuts a street, is a side lot line.

1. 4. “Side street lot line” means a lot line that is both a side lot line and a street lot line.

1. 5. “Street lot line” means a lot line, or segment of a lot line, that abuts a street.

1. 1. 1. “Street lot line” does not include lot lines that abut an alley.

1. 1. 2. On a corner lot, there are two (or more) street lot lines.

1. 1. 3. Street lot lines can include front lot lines and side lot lines.

21. Lot Width.

The width of a lot is the horizontal distance between the side lot lines measured on a line intersecting at right angles the line of the lot depth thirty feet from the front lot line.

5. Low Impact Development (LID).

1. LID is a stormwater and land use management strategy that strives to mimic pre-disturbance hydrologic processes of infiltration, filtration, storage, evaporation and transpiration by emphasizing conservation, use of on-site natural features, site planning, and distributed stormwater management practices that are integrated into a project design.

23. Low Visual Impact Facility.

For the purposes of administration of this code, a low visual impact facility includes a small diameter (three feet or less) antenna or antenna array located on top of an existing pole or on a replacement pole. (See also SMC 17A.020.010, Alternative Tower Structure.)

10. Lowest Floor.

The lowest floor of the lowest enclosed area (including the basement). An unfinished or flood resistant enclosure, usable solely for parking of vehicles, building access, or storage, in an area other than a basement area, is not considered a building’s lowest floor, provided that such enclosure is not built so as to render the structure in violation of SMC 17E.030.140.

Date Passed: Monday, November 20, 2023

Effective Date: Monday, January 1, 2024

ORD C36459 Section 6