[Ord. 1851, 11/27/1995, § 101]
This Chapter shall be known as the "Harrison Township Subdivision
and Land Development Ordinance."
[Ord. 1851, 11/27/1995, § 102]
These regulations are adopted for the following purposes:
A. To protect and provide for the public health, safety and general
welfare of the Township.
B. To guide the future growth and development of the Township, in accordance
with the Comprehensive Plan of the Township.
C. To provide for adequate light, air and privacy; to secure safety
from fire, flood and other danger; and to prevent overcrowding of
the land and undue congestion of population.
D. To protect the character and social and economic stability of the
Township and to encourage the orderly and beneficial development of
the Township.
E. To protect and conserve the value of land throughout the Township,
and the value of buildings and improvements upon the land and to minimize
the conflicts among the uses of land and buildings.
F. To guide public and private policy and action in order to provide
adequate and efficient transportation, water supply, sewerage, schools,
parks, playgrounds, recreation and other public requirements and facilities.
G. To provide the most beneficial relationship between the uses of land
and buildings and the circulation of traffic within the Township,
having particular regard to the avoidance of congestion in the streets
and highways, and the pedestrian traffic movements appropriate to
the various uses of land and buildings, and to provide for the proper
location and width of streets and building lines.
H. To establish reasonable standards of design and procedures for subdivision
and resubdivisions, in order to further the orderly layout and use
of land; and to insure proper legal descriptions and monumenting of
subdivided land.
I. To insure that public facilities are available and will have a sufficient
capacity to serve the proposed subdivision.
J. To prevent the pollution of air, streams and ponds; to assure the
adequacy of drainage facilities; to safeguard the water table; and
to encourage the wise use and management of natural resources in order
to preserve the community and value of the land.
K. To preserve the natural beauty and topography of the Township and
to ensure appropriate development with regard to these natural features.
L. To provide for open spaces through efficient design and layout of
the land.
M. And finally, to ensure that documents prepared as part of a land
ownership transfer fully and accurately describe the parcel of land
being subdivided, and the new parcels thus created.
[Ord. 1851, 11/27/1995, § 103]
1. Authority of the Township Planning Commission. The Township Planning
Commission is hereby designated by the Board of Commissioners as the
agency which shall review and approve or disapprove preliminary and
final subdivision and land development plans as required herein.
[Ord. 1851, 11/27/1995, § 104]
1. Subdivision Control. No subdivision, as herein defined, of any lot,
tract or parcel of land shall be effected and no street, alley, sanitary
sewer, storm sewer, water main or other facilities in connection therewith
shall be laid out, constructed, opened or dedicated for public use
or travel, or for the common use of occupants of buildings abutting
or to abut thereon, except in strict accordance with the provisions
of this Chapter. No lot in any subdivision may be sold, and no permit
to erect, alter or repair any building upon land in a subdivision
may be issued; and no building may be erected in a subdivision unless
and until a subdivision plan has been approved and recorded; and until
the improvements required in connection therewith have either been
constructed or guaranteed as herein provided in § 612.
2. Land Development Control.
A. Land development, as herein defined, must comply with the regulations
contained herein. Such compliance shall include, but not be limited
to, the filing of preliminary and final plats, the dedication and
improvement of rights-of-way, streets and roads and the payment of
fees and charges as established by resolution of the Board of Commissioners.
B. Land development plans shall indicate the location of each structure
and clearly define each unit and shall indicate public easements,
common areas and improvements, all easements appurtenant to each unit,
and improvements to public rights-of-way. Developments are subject
to the zoning regulations as they apply to use and density requirements,
setbacks, parking and other features and shall be indicated on the
land development plans.
3. It is stated Township policy to review a development in one proceeding
when possible. Therefore, when Township ordinances require a grading
permit, the applicant for a grading permit (other than for a single
residential lot) shall be a land development application as required
by this Chapter, but limited to, compliance with §§ 402.2AA,
402.2BB — GG, 506, 507, 512 and 513.
[Ord. 1851, 11/27/1995, § 105; as amended by Ord.
1867, 3/24/1997, § 1]
1. Interpretation. In interpreting and applying the provisions of this
Chapter, they shall be held to be minimum requirements for the promotion
of public health, safety, comfort, convenience and general welfare.
2. Conflict with Public and Private Provisions.
A. Public Provisions. Where any provision of this Chapter imposes restrictions
different from those imposed by any other provision of this Chapter
or any other ordinance, rule or regulation, or other provision of
law, whichever provisions are more restrictive or impose higher standards
shall control.
B. Private Provisions. This Chapter is not intended to abrogate any
easement, covenant or any other private agreement or restriction;
provided, that where the provisions of this Chapter are more restrictive
or impose higher standards or regulations than such easement, covenant
or other private agreement or restriction, the requirements of this
Chapter shall govern. Where the provisions of the easement, covenant
or private agreement or restriction impose duties and obligations
more restrictive, or higher standards than the requirements of these
regulations, or the determinations of the Planning Commission and/or
Board of Commissioners in approving a subdivision or in enforcing
this Chapter, and such private provisions are not inconsistent with
this Chapter or determinations thereunder, then such private provisions
shall be operative and supplemental to these regulations and determinations
made thereunder.
[Ord. 1851, 11/27/1995, § 106; as amended by Ord.
1867, 3/24/1997, § 1]
1. The Planning Commission may grant a modification of the requirements
of one or more provisions of this Chapter if the literal enforcement
will exact undue hardship because of peculiar conditions pertaining to the land in question, provided that such modification
will not be contrary to the public interest and that the purpose and
intent of this Chapter is observed.
2. All requests for modification shall be in writing and shall accompany
and be part of the application for development. The request shall
state in full the grounds and facts of unreasonableness or hardship
on which the request is based, the provision or provisions of this
Chapter involved and the minimum modification necessary.
3. The request for modification shall be referred to the Planning Commission
for review and decision.
4. The Planning Commission shall keep a written record of all action
on all requests for modifications.
5. No modification shall be granted except after a public hearing by
the Planning Commission. Notice of this public hearing shall be sent
by certified mail or given by personal service to all owners of property
located within 100 feet of the subdivision, and posted in conspicuous
places.
6. The decision to approve or deny a variance will be made within 90
days after a written request for a variance is filed.
7. Any grant of a variance shall be noted on the final plan.
[Ord. 1851, 11/27/1995, § 107]
1. In addition to other remedies, the Township may institute and maintain
appropriate actions by law or in equity to restrain, correct or abate
violations, to prevent unlawful construction, to recover damages and
to prevent illegal occupancy of a building, structure or premises.
The description by metes and bounds in the instrument of transfer
or other documents used in the process of selling or transferring
shall not exempt the seller or transferror from such penalties or
from the remedies herein provided.
2. The Township may refuse to issue any permit or grant any approval
necessary to further improve or develop any real property which has
been developed or which has resulted from a subdivision of real property
in violation of this Chapter. This authority to deny such a permit
or approval shall apply to any of the following applicants:
A. The owner of record at the time of such violation.
B. The vendee or lessee of the owner of record at the time of such violation
without regard as to whether such vendee or lessee had actual or constructive
knowledge of the violation.
C. The current owner of record who acquired the property subsequent
to the time of violation without regard as to whether such current
owner had actual or constructive knowledge of the violation.
3. As an additional condition for issuance of a permit or the granting
of an approval to any such owner, current owners, vendee or lessee
for the development of any such real property, the Township may require
compliance with the conditions that would have been applicable to
the property at the time the applicant acquired an interest in such
real property.
[Ord. 1851, 11/27/1995, § 108]
1. Any person, partnership or corporation who or which has violated
the provisions of this Chapter shall, upon being found liable therefor
in a civil enforcement proceeding commenced by the Township, pay a
judgment of not more than $500 plus all court costs, including reasonable
attorney fees incurred by the Township as a result thereof. No judgment
shall commence or be imposed, levied or payable until the date of
the determination of a violation by the district justice. If the defendant
neither pays nor timely appeals the judgment, the Township may enforce
the judgment pursuant to the applicable rules of civil procedure.
Each day that a violation continues shall constitute a separate violation,
unless the district justice, determining that there has been a violation,
further determines that there was a good faith basis for the person,
partnership or corporation violating this Chapter to have believed
that there was no such violation, in which event, there shall be deemed
to have been only one such violation until the fifth day following
the date of the determination of a violation by the district justice
and thereafter each day that a violation continues shall constitute
a separate violation.
2. The court of common pleas, upon petition, may grant an order of stay,
upon cause shown, tolling the per diem judgment pending the final
adjudication of the violation and judgment.
3. Nothing contained in this Section shall be construed or interpreted
to grant to any person or entity other than the Township the right
to commence any action for enforcement pursuant to this Section.
4. District justices shall have initial jurisdiction in proceedings
brought under this Section.