Chapter 2: Land Use Control Regulations

Vocabulary terms and definitions related to land use controls, zoning classifications, environmental hazards, and property liabilities.

Police Power

The government authority at any level to do what it can to ensure the health, safety, and welfare of its citizens, including zoning and building codes.

Taxation

A governmental police power that permits the funding of public works through a stable source of income shared among citizens.

Ad valorem taxes

Taxes that are based on the value of the real estate.

Special assessment taxes

Taxes imposed only on properties that benefit from a specific improvement, such as the installation of a sewer line or city water line.

Eminent domain

The government's power to take private land for public use, provided the government fairly compensates the private owners.

Taking

Governmental appropriation of property, which may involve physical occupation or substantial interference with an owner's rights to use the land.

Condemnation action

The process of taking title and physical possession of private property using the government's power of eminent domain.

Inverse condemnation

A situation where the government takes private property but fails to compensate the owner, forcing the owner to file a lawsuit.

Escheat

The state's power to take property of a descendant who dies without a will, heirs, or creditors.

Zoning

A police power exercised by state, county, city, and town governments that classifies land based on its current or intended usage.

Zoning ordinances

Local laws or regulations that implement the comprehensive plan by regulating things like lot size, building height, and permitted use.

Incentive zoning

A system that allows otherwise prohibited development in return for the developer providing a community benefit.

Bulk zoning

Regulations that control the density of a given area by requiring certain building height limitations and lot width setback requirements.

Aesthetic zoning

A method used to ensure the visual and architectural consistency of a specific area.

Down zoning

The process of assigning a lower density use zone to an area that previously allowed higher density.

Density zoning

Refers to the number of units permitted per unit of area, such as houses per acre.

Spot zoning

The rezoning of a specific property for use that differs from the surrounding zoning area.

Nonconforming use

A property use that deviates from current zoning but is grandfathered in because it existed before the current zoning was established.

Moratorium

A temporary halt placed on new property development.

Special use permit

Also known as a conditional use permit, this allows a use not normally permitted but considered allowable within the zoning, such as a church in a residential area.

Variance

A permitted deviation from zoning ordinance requirements, typically granted when the zone creates a hardship or burden on the owner.

Sunshine laws

Regulations requiring that meetings held by planning and zoning boards be open to the public; part of the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA).

Plat map

A map of a subdivision that represents a tract of land showing boundaries, individual properties, streets, and easements.

Building codes

Standards specifying construction methods, materials, safety, and sanitary standards for building projects.

Wetlands

Areas saturated by water in an amount sufficient to support vegetation that grows in saturated soil, regulated by the Clean Water Act.

Floodplains

Low-lying areas of property susceptible to flooding due to their proximity to a water source.

100-year flood plan

An area where there is a $1\%$ chance of a flood occurring in any given year.

500-year flood plan

An area where there is a $0.2\%$ chance of a flooding in any given year.

Endangered Species Act

Legislation seeking to protect species and their habitats, administered by the US Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Marine Fisheries Service.

Conservation easement

A recorded restriction that runs with the land to protect specific areas and may prevent destructive uses or development.

Asbestos

A fibrous material used for its fire-retardant qualities before the 1970s; it is dangerous when it becomes friable and is inhaled.

Radon

A naturally occurring gas found in soil and well water, measured in picocuries; mitigation is recommended at levels at or above $4\,pCi/L$.

Carbon monoxide

An odorless, colorless gas formed whenever fuel is burned, such as in gas furnaces or fireplaces.

Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs)

Organic compounds linked to ozone depletion; the primary concern in real estate is Freon used in older refrigeration systems.

Formaldehyde

A colorless chemical with a strong odor emitted as a gas (VOC), often found in pressed wood products and laminate furniture.

Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs)

Man-made chemical carcinogens banned in 1979; previously used in caulking compounds and transformers.

CERCLA

The Comprehensive Environmental Response Compensation and Liability Act, established to clean up closed or abandoned hazardous waste sites.

SARA

The Superfunds Amendment and Reauthorization Act, which added an 'innocent landowner defense' to CERCLA.

Strict liability

A type of liability where the property owner is responsible for cleanup regardless of who is at fault.

Joint and several liability

Liability where each of the responsible parties is personally responsible for the total damages.

Brownfields

Former industrial or manufacturing sites suspected to contain environmental hazardous waste from previous usage.

CCNRs

Covenants, conditions, and restrictions; rules established by developers or HOAs to govern properties and maintain subdivision standards.