Sadomasochism Center
Any for profit establishment wherein the practice of flagellation, torture or fettering is used or administered to an individual either by an employee of the establishment or a patron of the establishment.

Salvage Yard
Any nonresidential property used for the storage, collection or recycling of any type of equipment, including but not limited to vehicles, appliances and related machinery.

Sediment
Solid particulate matter, both mineral and organic, that has been or is being transported by water, wind, gravity or ice from its point of origin.

Sedimentation
The process by which sediment resulting from accelerated erosion has been or is being transported off a site of the land-disturbing activity or into a lake or watercourse.

Senior Housing
Housing for residents at least 62 years in age. The housing must comply with the Federal Fair Housing Act.

Service Areas
An area used for trash collection, trash compaction, recycling collection or other similar functions.

Shade Tree
An evergreen or deciduous tree whose mature height can be expected to exceed 35 feet and which has an expected crown spread of 30 feet or more or is considered a shade tree in accordance with “American Standards of Nursery Stock”, set forth by the American Association of Nurserymen.

Shopping Center
A planned unified development that contains at least three establishments with commercial or recreational uses and contains at least 25,000 square feet of gross floor area.

Side Yard
The area located between the side line(s) of a building or structure and the side boundary of a lot or an existing or proposed street right-of-way and extending along the entire length of the lot.

Sign
Any temporary or permanent identification, description, animation, illustration, or device, illuminated or non-illuminated, which is visible from any right-of-way, situated indoors or outdoors, and which directs attention to any realty, product, service, place, activity, person, institution, performance, commodity, firm, business or solicitation, or any emblem, painting, banner, poster, bulletin board, pennant, placard or temporary sign designed to identify or convey information. Signs do not include displays located inside buildings, courts, lobbies, stadiums, or other structures that are not positioned in such a manner so as to be intended to be seen from the exterior of the building or structure.

Siltation
The sediment resulting from accelerated erosion which is settleable or removable by properly designed, constructed and maintained control measures and which has been transported from its point of origin within the site of a land-disturbing activity and which has been deposited or is in suspension in water.

Site Plan
A scaled drawing and supporting text showing the relationship between lot lines and the existing or proposed uses, buildings, or structures on the lot. The site plan may include site-specific details such as building areas, building height and floor area, setbacks from lot lines and street rights-of-way, intensities, densities, utility lines and locations, parking, access points, roads, and stormwater control facilities that are depicted to show compliance with all legally required development regulations that are applicable to the project and the site plan review.

Solid Waste Disposal Facility
Any facility involved in the disposal of solid waste, as defined in N.C. Gen. Stat. §130A-290(a)(35).

Special District
The following general use and conditional zoning districts: Conservation Management (CM), Agricultural Productive (AP), Heavy Industrial (IH), Manufactured Home Park (R-MP) and Campus (CMP). 

Special Flood Hazard Area
The maximum area, adjoining a river, stream, watercourse or lake which is likely to be flooded, by the base flood or the future conditions flood. The special flood hazard area includes “floodway” areas, “floodway fringe” areas and future conditions flood hazard areas. These areas are illustrated on flood hazard boundary maps flood hazard soils plus additional distances, recorded flood storage areas required by this UDO and drainage basin study maps.

Start of Construction
The date a building permit was issued, provided the actual “start of construction,” repair, reconstruction, rehabilitation, addition, placement or other improvement was made within 180 days of the permit date. The actual start means either the first placement of permanent construction of a structure on site, such as the pouring of slab or footings, the installation of piles, the construction of columns or any work beyond the stage of excavation, or the placement of a “manufactured home” on a foundation. For a substantial improvement, the actual start of construction is the first alteration of any load-bearing wall, ceiling, floor or other structural part of a building, whether or not that alteration affects the external dimensions of the building.

Stepback
The horizontal distance of a building facade that is recessed on a horizontal plane.

Stormwater Control Devices
The overall design, construction and maintenance of one or more devices, measures and associated drainage easements, conduits, inlets, channels, pipes and ditches, level spreaders, filters, buffers, bioretention areas, sand filters, detention basins, swales, wetlands and ponds or any other City-approved best management practice necessary to collect, convey, store, treat and control stormwater runoff and pollutants.

Stormwater Control Facilities
Off-site stormwater control facilities, on-site stormwater control facilities, regional stormwater control facilities or any combination thereof.

Stormwater Control Master Plan
A conceptual plan approved by the City Council which establishes stormwater control policies and recommendations for an entire watershed or region as an alternative to individual site specific stormwater control plans. 

Storm Drainage Facilities
The man-made system of inlets, conduits, channels, ditches or other such facilities and appurtenances which collect and convey stormwater.

Stormwater Runoff
Runoff of water resulting from precipitation in any form.

Street Furniture
Physical improvements required by approved streetscape plans including but not limited to: benches, bicycle racks, pedestrian lighting, trash receptacles, planters, flower boxes/pots or other objects located outdoors.

Street Protective Yard
A landscaped protective yard adjacent to a street right-of-way.

Structural Flooding
Crawlspace, finished floor, garage and/or basement flooding caused by concentrated stormwater flows and not groundwater infiltration. Structural flooding also occurs in sheds and outbuildings on a permanent, enclosed foundation that cannot be easily moved. Sheds and outbuildings not on permanent, enclosed foundations or that can be easily moved and where moving the structure is the least cost alternative to prevent flood damage to the structure, are not defined as having structural flooding. Structural flooding does not include those portions of residential and commercial structures located in a floodplain area and designed and constructed to flood or a commercial structure that has a City approved floodproofing plan.

Substantial Damage
Damage of any origin sustained by a structure whereby the cost of restoring the structure to its before-damaged condition would equal or exceed the 50% of the estimated market value of the structure before the damage occurred.

Substantial Improvement
Any reconstruction, repair, rehabilitation, addition or other improvement of a structure, the cost of which over a 5 year period singularly or collectively equals or exceeds 50% of the market value of the structure before the “start of construction” of the substantial improvement. This term includes structures which have incurred “substantial damage,” regardless of the actual amount of repair work performed. The term does not include any project for improvement of a structure to correct existing violations of State or local health, sanitary or safety code specifications which have been identified by the local code enforcement official and which are the minimum necessary to assure safe living conditions.

Sustainable Energy Systems
On-site renewable energy generation technologies such as a solar array, solar collection system, wind energy system or geothermal energy system.