A. Buffer. “Buffer” means an area of land landscaped, using trees, berms, or walls to visually shield or obscure one abutting or nearby structure or use from another.

B. Caliper Size. “Caliper size” means the thickness of a tree trunk measured in inches from six inches above grade.

C. Critical Root Zone. “Critical root zone,” sometimes also called the root protection zone (RPZ), means a circle on the ground corresponding to the drip line of the tree.

D. Diameter at Breast Height (DBH). “Diameter at breast height” has the same meaning as in LMC 17.15.040, as now existing or as amended hereafter.

E. General Site Area. “General site area” means all areas of a site not devoted to other landscaping requirements of this chapter or hard surfaces such as parking lot pavement, pedestrian walkways, or driveways and structures or other structural site improvements.

F. Groundcover. “Groundcover” is grass or other low-growing, spreading plants that hug the ground.

G. Hedge. “Hedge” means a fence or boundary formed by closely growing shrubs.

H. Invasive Species. “Invasive species” means a species of plant that is nonnative to the ecosystem under consideration and whose introduction causes or is likely to cause economic or environmental harm or harm to human health. Most, but not all, invasive species are listed by the Washington State Noxious Weed Control Board in their Noxious Weed List or subsequent document.

I. Multi-Aisle, Parking Lot. “Multi-aisle” means a parking lot that has more than one drive aisle to access parking spaces that are either parallel, perpendicular, or angled parking spaces.

J. Naturally Vegetated Area. “Naturally vegetated area” means an area of land without formal landscaping, comprised of a group of trees including a mix of tree, shrub, and groundcover species and ages.

K. Nonliving Groundcover. “Nonliving groundcover” means any material not living such as rock or gravel, driftwood, bark, wood chips, but not including paving such as installed or broken up concrete or asphalt.

L. Outdoor Display Area. “Outdoor display area” means merchandise viewing areas commonly walkable by customers. Examples include plant nurseries, lumberyards, landscaping centers, ceramic pot sales, or garden supplies. This definition does not include auto dealerships.

M. Parking Lot. “Parking lot,” also known as a vehicle use area, means an off-street facility for temporary parking or storage of motor vehicles that includes paved parking spaces, drives, and aisles for maneuvering, and providing access for ingress and egress of automobiles. This definition excludes access drives not containing parking spaces.

N. Parking Structure. “Parking structure” means a structure or portion thereof composed of one or more levels or floors used exclusively for the parking or storage of motor vehicles. A parking structure may be totally below grade (as in an underground parking garage) or either partially or totally above grade with those levels being either open or enclosed.

O. Qualified Landscape Professional. A “qualified landscape professional” means a horticultural specialist, an International Society of Arboriculture (ISA) certified arborist, ISA certified arborist with tree risk assessment qualification (TRAQ), or Washington State licensed landscape architect.

P. Recommended Tree. “Recommended tree” means a tree species listed under the Tree List section in the Tree Preservation and Protection Guidelines for the City of Lynnwood and that is not a tree species listed in the subsection Trees Not Recommended in those Guidelines.

Q. Service Yards. “Service yards” are areas used or intended for routine maintenance or repair of equipment, machinery, or vehicles not in service.

R. Shade Tree. “Shade tree” means a tree that is large at maturity and grown primarily to produce shade such as oak, planetree, elm, maple, beech, and tulip trees.

S. Shrub. “Shrub” means a woody plant less than eight feet in height that produces multiple shoots or stems arising near the ground or narrow trunk. For example, arbor vitae is a shrub and not groundcover or a tree.

T. Significant Tree. “Significant tree” has the same meaning as in LMC 17.15.080, as now existing or as amended hereafter.

U. Single-Aisle Double-Loaded, Parking Lot. “Single-aisle double-loaded” parking lots means a parking lot with one drive aisle to access parking spaces and parking spaces on both sides of the drive aisle; either parallel, perpendicular, or angled parking spaces.

V. Storage Yards. “Storage yards” means areas used or intended for the storage of materials, goods, vehicles, or equipment not in service.

W. Tree. “Tree” has the same meaning as in LMC 17.15.040, as now existing or as amended hereafter.

X. Vision-Obscuring Fence. “Vision-obscuring fence” means a solid one-inch-thick board (nominal dimensional standards) fence. One made of brick, rock or masonry materials may be substituted for a board fence. (Ord. 3326 § 2, 2019)