Pursuant to the Pennsylvania Municipalities
Planning Code, Act 247 of 1968, as amended,[1] this chapter shall hereafter be known, cited and referred
to as the "Riverside Borough Subdivision and Land Development Ordinance."
[1]
Editor's Note: See 53 P.S. § 10101 et seq.
A.
It is hereby declared to be the policy of the Borough
to consider the subdivision of land and the development of land as
subject to the control of the Borough pursuant to the Comprehensive
Plan of Riverside Borough for the orderly, planned, efficient, and
economical development of the municipality.
B.
Land to be subdivided or developed shall be of such
character that it can be used safely for building purposes without
danger to health or peril from fire, flood, or other menace, and land
shall not be subdivided or developed until available public, central,
or on-lot facilities and improvements exist and proper provision has
been made for drainage, water, sewerage, recreation facilities, and
transportation facilities.
C.
The existing and proposed public improvements shall
conform to and be properly related to the proposals shown in the Comprehensive
Plan, including the Capital Improvements Program, and it is intended
that these regulations shall supplement and facilitate the enforcement
of the provisions and standards contained in building and housing
codes,[1] Chapter 285, Zoning, of the Code of the Borough of Riverside, the Comprehensive Plan, and the Capital Improvements Program of the municipality.
These regulations are adopted for the following
purposes:
A.
To protect and provide for the public health, safety,
and general welfare of the residents.
B.
To guide the future growth and development of the
community in accordance with the Comprehensive Plan.
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 the social and economic
stability of all parts of the Borough and to encourage the orderly
and beneficial development of all parts of the Borough.
E.
To protect and conserve the value of land throughout
the Borough 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, sewerage,
schools, parks, playgrounds, recreation, and public improvements and
facilities.
G.
To provide the most beneficial relationship between
uses of land and buildings and the circulation of traffic throughout
the municipality, having particular regard for 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 subdivisions, resubdivisions, and land developments 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
or development.
J.
To prevent the pollution of air, streams, river, 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 throughout the municipality in order to retain the integrity,
stability, and beauty of the municipality and the value of the land.
K.
To retain the natural beauty and topography of the
Borough, and to insure appropriate development with regard to these
natural features.
B.
The Council hereby designates the Borough Planning
Commission as the official agency for review and recommendation of
approval and disapproval of all subdivision and land development as
set forth in this chapter. However, it is further provided that the
Council shall retain for itself all decisions on preliminary and final
plans for subdivision and land development.
A.
No subdivision or land development of any lot, tract
or parcel of land shall be made and no street, sanitary sewer, storm
sewer, water main or other improvements 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 thereon,
except in accordance with the provisions of this chapter of Riverside
Borough.
B.
The following types of land development shall be excluded
from the definition of "land development" only when such land development
involves:
(1)
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;
(2)
The addition of an accessory building, including farm
buildings, on a lot or lots subordinate to an existing principal building;
or
(3)
The addition or conversion of buildings or rides within
the confines of an enterprise which would be considered an amusement
park. For the purposes of this subsection, an "amusement park" is
defined as a track 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 proper authorities.
C.
No land shall be subdivided or developed within the
corporate boundaries of the Borough until the subdivider, developer,
or his agent shall:
(1)
Submit a preliminary or final plan of the parcel to
the Borough Planning Commission through its Administrator for review
and recommendation;
(2)
Obtain approval of the preliminary and final plans
by the Borough Council; and
(3)
File the approved final plan with the Northumberland
County Recorder of Deeds.
D.
No zoning permit or certificate of zoning compliance
shall be issued for any parcel or plat of land which was created by
subdivision or land development after the effective date of, and not
in conformity with, the provisions of this chapter, and no excavation
of land or construction of any public or private improvements shall
take place or be commenced except in conformity with these regulations.
A.
Interpretation. In their interpretation and application,
the provisions of this chapter shall be held to be the minimum requirements
for the promotion of the public safety, health, convenience, comfort,
morals, prosperity and general welfare of the residents of the Borough.
B.
Conflict with public and private provisions.
(1)
Public provisions. These regulations are not intended
to interfere with, abrogate, or annul any other ordinance, rule or
regulation, statute, or other provision of law. Where any provision
of these regulations imposes restrictions different from those imposed
by any other provision of these regulations or any other ordinance,
rule or regulation, or other provision of law, whichever provisions
are more restrictive or impose higher standards shall control.
(2)
Private provisions. These regulations are not intended
to abrogate any easement, covenant or any other private agreement
or restriction, provided that where the provisions of these regulations
are more restrictive or impose higher standards or regulations than
such easement, covenant, or other private agreement or restriction,
the requirements of these regulations 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 in approving a subdivision or land development
or in enforcing these regulations, and such private provisions are
not inconsistent with these regulations or determinations thereunder,
then such private provisions shall be operative and supplemental to
these regulations and determinations made thereunder.
The grant of a permit or approval of a subdivision
or land development plan shall not constitute a representation, guarantee,
or warranty of any kind by the municipality or by an official or employee
thereof of the practicability or safety of the proposed use and shall
create no liability upon the Borough, its officials or employees.
These regulations shall not be construed as
abating any action now pending under, or by virtue of, prior existing
subdivision regulations, or as discontinuing, abating, modifying,
or altering any penalty accruing or about to accrue, or as affecting
the liability of any person, firm, or corporation, or as waiving any
right of the Borough under any section or provision existing at the
time of adoption of these regulations, or as vacating or annulling
any rights obtained by any person, firm or corporation, by lawful
action of the Borough except as shall be expressly provided for in
these regulations.
The enactment of this chapter shall act as a
repeal of the Riverside Borough Subdivision and Land Development Ordinance
of 1981, as amended. A certified copy of this chapter shall be filed
with the County Planning Commission and with the County Law Library.
All applications for subdivision and land development
submitted to the Borough shall be forwarded upon receipt to the County
Planning Commission for review and report. The Borough shall not approve
such application until the county report is received or until the
expiration of 30 days from the date the application was forwarded
to the county.
In order that land may be subdivided and developed
in accordance with these purposes and policies, this chapter shall
become effective from and after the date of its approval and adoption
as provided by law.
