[Ord. 6-98, 9/1/1998, § 201]
Unless otherwise expressly stated, the following words shall,
for the purpose of this chapter, have the meaning herein indicated.
The present tense shall include the future; the singular number shall
include the plural; words used in the masculine gender shall include
the feminine and the neuter; the word "shall" is always mandatory;
the word "may" is always permissive.
[Ord. 6-98, 9/1/1998, § 202]
The removal of the surface of the land through the combined
action of man's activities and natural processes at a rate greater
than would occur because of the natural process alone.
Approval, conditional approval, denial or a request for a
modification for additional study, field inspection or documentation.
The person delegated authority to administer and enforce
this chapter by Richmond Township.
A legislative decision by Richmond Township as provided for
in Act 247, as amended, the Pennsylvania Municipalities Planning Code,
53 P.S. § 10101 et seq.
A public or private right-of-way having a right-of-way width
of 20 feet or less, which affords secondary mean of access to the
rear or side of abutting property and is not intended for general
traffic circulation. Regardless of whether an alley is given a street
name, no main building shall have its frontage on an alley. An alley
may also be known as a court, place or lane.
A land owner, or developer, as hereinafter defined, who has
filed an application for development including his heirs, successors
and assigns.
Every application, whether preliminary, tentative or final,
required to be filed and approved prior to start of construction or
development including, but not limited to, an application for a building
permit, for the approval of a subdivision plat or plan or for the
approval of a development plan.
A tract of land bounded by streets, or by a combination of
streets and public parks, cemeteries, railroad rights-of-way, shorelines
or waterways.
Any structure having a roof supported by columns or walls
and intended for the shelter, housing or enclosure of persons, animals
or chattels and including covered porches or bay windows and chimneys.
Included shall be all manufactured homes and trailers to be used for
human habitation.
A line within a lot so designated on the plan of the proposed
subdivision, between which line and any street line upon which the
lot abuts the erection of a building is prohibited.
Any park, tourist park, tourist court, camp, campsite, court,
site, lot, parcel or tract of land which one or more camps, cottages
or cabins are located or where the land is maintained to accommodate
tents, trailers or trailer coaches and where the land is maintained
for the accommodation of transients by the day, week or month whether
a charge is made or not. The campground shall include all buildings
used or intended for use as part of the equipment thereof, whether
a charge is made for the use of the campground and its facilities
or not.
See "campground."
The portion of a street right-of-way designed or intended
for vehicular use.
A triangular area of unobstructed vision at street intersections,
having as its sides two perpendicular street lines and a line established
between a point on each street line a given distance from the intersection.
The Richmond Township Planning Commission.
A parcel of land or an area of water, or a combination of
land and water within a development site and designed and intended
for the use or enjoyment of residents of a development, not including
streets, off-street parking areas and areas set aside for public facilities.
A space which will remain totally dry during flooding; the
structure is designed and constructed to prevent the passage of water
and water vapor.
Any development plan or policies, also called a master plan,
which have been adopted by the Township, including plan or policies
for future land uses, parks, transportation, urban redevelopment and
public facilities. Devices for the implementation of these plans,
such as zoning ordinances, official maps, land divisions, building
line ordinances and capital improvements programs shall also be considered
part of the comprehensive plan.
A method of ownership which, when applied to a multifamily
dwelling, provides for separate ownership for each unit, title of
which shall consist of ownership of the unit together with an undivided
interest in the common element.
The conservation district serving Tioga County.
The construction, reconstruction, renovation, repair, extension,
expansion, alteration or relocation of a building or structure, including
the placement of manufactured homes.
The County of Tioga, Pennsylvania.
The Planning Commission of the County of Tioga.
A strip of land dedicated to public use which is reserved
across a block to provide pedestrian access to adjacent areas.
An excavation. The difference between a point on the original
ground and designated point of lower elevation on the final grade.
Also, the material removed in excavation.
The deliberate appropriation of land by its owner for any
general and public use.
The Department of Community Affairs of the Commonwealth.
The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection,
its bureaus, divisions, departments and/or agencies, as may from time
to time be established or such department or departments as may in
the future succeed it.
A relatively flat or low land area adjoining a river, stream or watercourse which is subject to partial or complete inundation in a one-hundred-year flood as designated in the Richmond Township Zoning Ordinance, as amended [Chapter 27]
An area in which surface water runoff is temporarily stored
pending its release at a controlled rate.
Any landowner, agent of such landowner or tenant with the
permission of such landowner, who makes or causes to be made a subdivision
of land or a land development.
Any man-made change to improved or unimproved real estate
including, but not limited to, the construction or placement of buildings
or other structures, mobile homes, streets and other paving, utilities,
mining, dredging, filling, grading, excavation or drilling operations,
and the subdivision of land.
The provisions for development including a planned residential
development, a plat of subdivision, all covenants relating to use,
location and bulk of buildings and other structures, intensity of
use or density of development, streets, ways and parking facilities,
common open space and public facilities. The phrase "provisions of
development plan," when used in this chapter, shall mean the written
and graphic materials referred to in this definition.
The removal of surface water or groundwater from land by
drains, grading or other means, and includes control of runoff to
minimize erosion and sedimentation during and after construction or
development.
Any ditch, gutter, culvert, storm sewer or other structure
designed, intended or constructed for the purpose of carrying, diverting
or controlling surface water or groundwater.
The lands required for the installation of stormwater sewers
or drainage ditches, or required along a natural stream or watercourse
for preserving the channel and providing for the flow of water therein
to safeguard the public against flood damage.
A private vehicular passageway providing access between a
street and a private parking area or private garage.
A structure or portion thereof which is used exclusively
for human habitation.
A grant for the use of a parcel of land by the public, a
corporation or a person, for a specified purpose.
A registered professional engineer in Pennsylvania designated
by Richmond Township.
The engineering criteria of Richmond Township regulating
the installation of any improvement or facility.
The process by which the land surface and/or subsurface is
worn away by the action of natural elements.
A space which will remain dry during flooding, except for
the passage of some water vapor or minor seepage; the structure is
substantially impermeable to the passage of water.
Any act by which earth, sand, gravel, rock or any other similar
material is dug into, cut, quarried, uncovered, removed, displaced,
relocated or bulldozed. It shall include the conditions resulting
therefrom.
Any act by which earth, sand, gravel, rock or any other material
is placed, pushed, dumped, pulled, transported or moved to a new location
above the natural surface of the ground or on top of the stripped
surface. It shall include the conditions resulting therefrom; the
difference in elevation between a point on the original ground and
a designated point of higher elevation of the final grade. The material
used to make fill.
A temporary inundation of normally dry land areas.
A relatively flat or low land area which is subject to partial
or complete inundation from an adjoining or nearby stream, river or
watercourse; and/or, any area subject to the unusual and rapid accumulation
of surface waters from any source.
Any combination of structural and nonstructural additions,
changes or adjustments to structures which reduce or eliminate flood
damage to real estate or improved real property, water and sanitary
facilities, structures and their contents.
The designated area of a floodplain required to carry and
discharge flood waters of a given magnitude. For purposes of this
chapter, the floodway shall be capable of accommodating a flood of
the one-hundred-year magnitude.
The Board of Supervisors of Richmond Township, Tioga County,
Pennsylvania.
A plan showing all existing ground features and proposed
grading, including existing and proposed surface and subsurface drainage
facilities, described by grades, contours and topography.
The floodplain area specifically identified in this chapter
as being inundated by the one-hundred-year flood. Included would be
areas identified as Floodway (FW), Flood-Fringe (FF) and General Floodplain
(FA).
A surface which prevents the penetration of water into the
ground.
Those physical additions, installations and changes required
to render land suitable for the use intended including, but not limited
to, grading, paving, curbing, street lights and signs, fire hydrants,
water mains, electric service, gas service, sanitary sewers, storm
drains, side walks, cross-walks, driveway, culverts and street shade
trees.
A right-of-way or easement for pedestrian use, extending
from a street into a block or across a block to another street.
Any of the following activities:
The improvement of one lot or two or more contiguous lots, tracts
or parcels of land for any purpose involving:
A group of two or more residential or nonresidential buildings,
whether proposed initially or cumulatively, or a single nonresidential
building on a lot or lots regardless of the number of occupants or
tenure.
The division or allocation of land or space, whether initially
or cumulatively, between or among two or more existing or prospective
occupants by means of, or for the purpose of streets, common areas,
leasehold, condominiums, building groups or other features.
A subdivision of land.
Land development does not include development which involves:
The conversion of an existing single family detached dwelling
or single family semidetached dwelling into not more than three residential
units, unless such units are intended to be a condominium.
The addition of an accessory building, including farm building,
on a lot or lots subordinate to an existing principal building.
The addition or conversion of buildings or rides within the
confines of an enterprise which would be considered an amusement park.
For the purpose of this subsection, an amusement park is defined as
a tract or area used principally as a location for permanent amusement
structures or rides. This exclusion shall not apply to newly acquired
acreage by an amusement park until initial plans for the expanded
area have been approved by the proper authorities.
Any activity involving grading, tilling, digging or filling
of ground, or stripping of vegetation or any other activity which
causes land to be exposed to the danger of erosion.
A designated parcel, tract or area of land established by
a plat or otherwise as permitted by law and to be used, developed
or built upon as a unit.
The area of a horizontal plane bounded by the front, rear
and side lines.
That boundary of a lot which is along an existing or proposed
center line of a street. In the case of corner lots, the line having
the least dimension along the center line of a street shall be designated
as the front lot line.
That boundary of a lot which is most distant from and most
nearly parallel to the front lot line.
Boundary of a lot which is not a front or rear lot line.
A lot which has been recorded in the Office of the Recorder
of Deeds.
The average horizontal distance between the side lot lines,
measured parallel to the front lot line.
A lot which has an interior angle of less than 135° at
the intersection of two street lines. A lot abutting upon a curved
street or streets shall be considered a corner lot if the tangent
to the curve at the points beginning within the lot or at the points
of intersection of the side lot lines with the street lines intersects
at an angle of less than 135°.
The average horizontal distance between the front lot line
and the rear lot line.
A lot, the side lot lines of which do not abut on a street.
The minimum lot width at the building setback line.
A lot, the area or dimension of which was lawful prior to
the adoption or amendment of this chapter, but which fails to conform
to the requirements of the zoning district in which it is located
by reason of such adoption or amendment.
A lot which abuts upon both a street and either an arterial
or a collector street, with vehicular access solely from the former.
An interior lot having frontage on two parallel or approximately
parallel streets.
A lot having three lot lines but which does not qualify as
a corner lot.
Any security, other than cash, which may be accepted by Richmond
Township for the maintenance of any improvements required by this
chapter.
Any subdivision not classified as a minor subdivision.
A wood or metal stake placed to designate the boundaries
and corners of lots in the subdivision of land for the purpose of
reference in land and property survey and to facilitate the sale of
lots.
The replacement of existing work with equivalent materials
for the purpose of its routine maintenance and upkeep, but not including
the cutting away of any wall, partition or portion thereof, the removal
or cutting of any structural beam or bearing support or the removal
or change of any required means of egress or rearrangement of parts
of a structure affecting the exitway requirements; nor shall minor
repairs include addition to, alteration of, replacement or relocation
of any standpipe, water supply, sewer, drainage, drain leader, gas,
soil, waste, vent or similar piping, electric wiring or mechanical
or other work affecting public health or general safety.
The subdivision of land into not more than two parcels located on an existing improved street that does not involve in installation of improvements as required by this chapter; extension of utilities; frontage on an arterial or collector street; adverse effect to the development of the remaining parcel; adverse effect to adjoining properties; and conflict with Richmond Township's comprehensive plan, Zoning Ordinance [Chapter 27], any portion of this chapter or other state, county or Township ordinances, laws or regulations.
A parcel of land in a mobile home park, improved with the
necessary utility connections and other appurtenances necessary for
the erection thereon of a single mobile or manufactured home.
A structure, transportable in one or more sections, which
is built on a permanent chassis and is designed for use with or without
permanent foundation when connected to the required utilities. The
term includes park trailers, travel trailers, recreational and other
similar vehicles placed on a site for more than 180 consecutive days.
A parcel (or contiguous parcels) of land which has been planned
and improved for the placement of two or more mobile or manufactured
homes.
A concrete, stone or other permanent object placed to designate
boundary lines, corners of property, and right-of-way of streets and
utilities, for the purpose of reference in land and property survey.
A body politic and corporate created pursuant to the Act
of May 2, 1945 (P.L. 382, No 164), known as the Municipalities Authority
Act of 1945.
Act of Assembly of July 31, 1968, P.L. 805, as amended.
The Township of Richmond, Tioga County, Pennsylvania.
The highest point of the bank of a normal stage channel at
which the water level has been for a sufficient period of time to
leave a definite mark or where the natural vegetation changes from
predominately aquatic to predominately terrestrial.
The adopted plan of the Township filed with and approved
by the Department of Environmental Protection.
A flood that, on the average, is likely to occur once every
100 years (i.e. that has one-percent chance of occurring each year,
although the flood may occur in any year).
All improvements constructed on the applicant's property or the improvements constructed on the property abutting the applicant's property necessary for the ingress or egress to the applicant's property, and required to be constructed by the applicant pursuant to any municipal ordinance including, but not limited to, the Township building code, Subdivision and Land Development Ordinance [Chapter 22], PRD regulations and Zoning Ordinance [Chapter 27].
The legal or beneficial owner or owners of land, including
the holder of an option or contract to purchase (whether or not such
option or contract is subject to any conditions), a lease if he is
authorized under the lease to exercise the rights of the owner, or
other persons having a proprietary interest in the land, shall be
deemed to be an owner for the purpose of this chapter.
An area of land 10 acres or larger resulting from the division
of a tract of land.
Stabilized material of sufficient quantity and quality as
approved by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation to withstand
continued use by motor vehicles.
Those soil absorption tests conducted in order to determine
the potential effectiveness of a subsurface disposal system.
Any security which may be in lieu of a requirement that certain
improvements be made before the Board of Supervisors approves a final
subdivision or land development plan, including performance bonds,
escrow agreements and other similar collateral or surety agreements.
An individual, partnership, public or private association
or corporation, firm, trust, estate, municipality, governmental unit,
public utility or any other legal entity whatsoever which is recognized
by law as the subject of rights and duties.
A complete and exact subdivision plan or land development
plan, prepared for official recording as required by statute, to define
property rights and proposed streets and other improvements.
A tentative subdivision plan or land development plan, in
lesser detail than a final plan, showing approximate proposed street
and lot layout as a basis for consideration prior to preparation of
a final plan.
An exact signed copy of the approved final plan prepared
as for official recording to define property rights and proposed streets
and other improvements.
An informal plan, subdivision or land development plan, not
necessarily to scale, indicating salient existing features of a tract
and its surroundings and the general layout of the proposed subdivision.
A plan for controlling erosion and sediment during construction
which shall provide all steps, including scheduling, to assure erosion
and sediment control during all phases of construction, including
final stabilization.
The Planning Commission of Richmond Township.
A map, plan or layout, whether preliminary or final, showing
the subdivision of land into lots, blocks, streets or other information
in compliance with Act 247, as amended, the Pennsylvania Municipalities
Planning Code, 53 P.S. § 10101 et seq.
An individual on-lot sewerage system (i.e. individual package
plant or septic system).
An individual on-lot water supply system.
A person registered and licensed to practice engineering
within the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
Includes:
A formal meeting held pursuant to public notice by the Board
of Supervisors or Planning Commission, intended to inform and obtain
public comment, prior to taking action in accordance with this chapter.
A forum held pursuant to notice under the Act of July 3,
1986 (P.L. 388, No 84), known as the "Sunshine Act," 53 P.S. §§ 271
et seq.
Notice published once each week for two successive weeks
in a newspaper of general circulation in Richmond Township. Such notice
shall state the time and place of the hearing and the particular nature
of the matter to be considered at the hearing. The first publication
shall not be more than thirty-day and the second publication shall
not be less than seven days from the date of the hearing.
Used in terms of being available to the lots within the subdivision
on a joint basis from off-lot sources.
Used in terms of being available to the lots within the subdivision
on a joint basis from off-lot sources.
The one-hundred-year flood elevation plus a freeboard safety
factor of 1 1/2 feet.
A narrow parcel of ground having inadequate area for building
purposes, separating a street or a proposed street from other adjacent
properties.
Any individual maintaining a voting address in Richmond Township,
within 1,000 feet of the proposed subdivision, owning real estate
in his own or joint names.
Any subdivision or transfer of land, laid out on a plan which
has been approved by the Board of Supervisors which changes or proposes
to change property lines and/or public rights-of-way not in strict
accordance with the approved plan.
A corridor of land set aside for use, in whole or in part,
by a street.
The surface water discharge or rate of discharge of a given
watershed after a fall of rain or snow that does not enter the soil
but runs off the surface of the land; that part of precipitation which
flows over the land.
Solid material, both mineral and organic, that is in suspension,
is being transported, or has been moved from its site of origin by
water.
The process by which mineral or organic matter is accumulated
or deposited by the movement of wind and water, or by gravity. Once
this matter is deposited, or remains suspended in water, it is usually
referred to as "sediment."
A water-tight tank in which raw sewage is broken down into
solid, liquid and gaseous phases to facilitate further treatment and
final disposal.
The minimum distance that a building must be held back from
an adjacent lot line depending on the zoning district in which the
lot is located.
A system, whether publicly or privately owned, for the collection
of sewage or industrial wastes of a liquid nature from two or more
lots, and for the treatment or disposal of the sewage or industrial
waste on one or more of the lots or at any other site.
A system of piping, tanks or other facilities serving a single
lot and collecting and disposing of sewage in whole or in yard into
the soil or into waters of the Commonwealth or by means of conveyance
to another site for final disposal.
The portion of a roadway (cartway) between the curb or gutter
and the travelway intended for emergency and parking use.
The unimpeded view a vehicle operator has along the street
he is traveling or the street he is entering or crossing, such distance
related to driver reaction time and posted speed limits and assuming
the operator's eye level is between two feet, six inches and
eight feet at above the pavement.
The face of an embankment or cut section any ground whose
surface makes an angle with the plane of the horizon. Slopes are usually
expressed in a percentage based upon vertical difference in feet per
100 feet of horizontal distance.
A field test conducted to determine the absorption capacity
of soil to a specified depth in a given location for the purpose of
determining suitability of soil for on-site sewage disposal.
A special approval which is required for hospitals nursing
homes, jails, and new manufactured home parks and subdivisions and
substantial improvements to such existing parks, when such development
is located in all or a designated portion of a floodplain.
The plan for managing stormwater runoff adopted by Tioga
County as required by the Act of October 4, 1978, P.L. 864, (Act 167),
and known as the "Stormwater Management Act."
Includes street, avenue, boulevard, road, highway, freeway,
parkway, lane, alley, viaduct or any other ways used or intended to
be used by vehicular traffic or pedestrians whether public or private
which are identified on the legally adopted Township street or highway
plan or the official map together with all necessary appurtenances,
including bridges, rights-of-way and traffic control improvements.
The term shall not include the interstate highway system.
Local access streets are those used primarily to provide access
to abutting properties.
Collector streets are streets which give minimal emphasis to
travel mobility, which is characterized by low travel speeds, full
land access, neighborhood penetration, and which serves minor traffic
generators such as local elementary schools, small individual industrial
plants, offices, commercial facilities and warehouses not served by
principle or minor arterial streets.
Arterial streets are those serving large volumes of comparatively
high speed and long distance traffic, and include facilities classified
as main and secondary highways by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation.
Marginal access streets are minor streets, parallel and adjacent
to arterial streets, providing access to abutting properties and control
of intersections with the arterial street.
Half or partial streets are streets generally parallel and adjacent
to a property line having a lesser right-of-way width than normally
required for satisfactory improvement and use of the streets.
Culs-de-sac are minor streets interacting another street at
one end and terminated at the other by a vehicular turnaround.
Any man-made object having an ascertainable stationary location
on or in land or water, whether or not affixed to the land.
The division or re-division of a lot, tract or parcel of
land by any means into two or more lots, tracts, parcels or other
divisions of land including changes in existing lot lines for the
purpose, whether immediate or future, of lease, partition by the court
for distribution to heirs or devisees, transfer of ownership or building
or lot development; provided, however, that the subdivision by lease
of land for agricultural purposes into parcels of more than 10 acres,
not involving any new street or easement of access or any residential
dwelling, shall be exempted.
Any repair, reconstruction, or improvement of a structure,
the cost of which equals or exceeds 50% of the market value of the
structure either, (a) before the improvement or the repair is started,
or (b) if the structure has been damaged and is being restored, before
the damage occurred.
Where, in the judgment of the Township Engineer, at least
90% (based on the cost of the required improvements for which financial
security was posted pursuant to the requirements of this chapter)
of those improvements required as a condition for final approval have
been completed in accordance with the approved plan, so that the project
will be able to be used, occupied or operated for its intended use.
A licensed surveyor registered by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
A low lying stretch of land characterized as a depression
used to carry surface water runoff.
Surface soils and subsurface soils which normally are fertile
soils and soil material, ordinarily rich in organic matter or humus
debris. Top soil is usually found in the uppermost soil layer called
the A Horizon.
An area of land identified as a single plot having its own
separate deed description on record at the Tioga County Register and
Recorder's Office.
Any vehicle or structure designed and constructed in such
manner as will permit occupancy thereof as sleeping quarters for one
or more person or the conduct of any business or profession, occupation
or trade (or use as selling or advertising devices) and so designated
that it is or may be mounted on wheels and used as conveyance on highways,
roads and streets propelled or drawn by its own or their motive power,
excepting a device used exclusively upon stationary rails or track.
See "trailer."
See "trailer."
Any park, trailer park, trailer court, court, camp site,
lot, parcel or tract of land designed, maintained or intended for
the purpose of supplying a location or accommodations for any trailer
coach or trailer coaches and upon which any trailer coach or trailer
coaches are parked and shall include all buildings used or intended
for use as part of the equipment thereof, whether a charge is made
for the use of the travel trailer park and its facilities or not.
Travel trailer park shall not include automobile or trailer sales
lot on which unoccupied trailers are parked for the purpose of inspection
and sales.
Any lot, tract or parcel of land which has not been graded
or in any other manner improved.
A part of the property, structure or building designed or
intended for any type of independent use, which has direct exit to
a public street or way, or to an easement or right-of-way leading
to a public street or way, and includes a proportionate undivided
interest in the common elements, which is assigned to the property,
structure or building.
Any water work, water supply works, water distribution system
or part thereof, designed, intended or constructed to provide or distribute
potable water.
An inventory of the source, quantity, yield and use of groundwater
and surface-water resources within Richmond Township.
A stream of water, river, brook, creek; a channel or ditch
for water, whether natural or man-made.
Those areas that are inundated or saturated by surface or
ground water at a frequency and duration sufficient to support, and
that under normal circumstances do support, a prevalence of vegetation
typically adapted for life in saturated soil conditions, including
swamps, marshes, bogs and similar areas. The term includes, but is
not limited to, wetland areas listed in the State Water Plan, the
United States Forest Service Wetlands Inventory of Pennsylvania, the
Pennsylvania Coastal Zone Management Plan and a wetland area designated
by a river basin commission.
