Individual mobile homes may be erected on any lot where the use is permitted, provided that compliance is made with zoning requirements, §§ 129-43, 129-54A(3), B and C and 129-56 of this article, and all other applicable regulations. Tracts of land may be developed and improved for the purpose of erecting two or more mobile homes, provided that zoning requirements, all requirements of this Township Subdivision and Land Development Ordinance, including those sections referenced above, and other applicable regulations are met. The following regulations of this article apply to mobile home developments, as defined in this section.
The provisions of this article shall be followed in the construction
or alteration of all mobile home parks (as defined in this section)
planned for tracts of land 15 acres or greater in size in accordance
with Article XVI, R-9 Residential District of the Township Zoning
Ordinance. These regulations are in addition to those set forth in
the Township Subdivision and Land Development Ordinance as referenced
herein, and compliance with all regulations of both ordinances is
required.
The uses allowed within a mobile home park shall be specified in § 160-94 of the Township Zoning Ordinance.
Any application to use a tract for a mobile home park shall follow the procedures established in §§ 160-94 through 160-98 of the Township Zoning Ordinance. Unless procedures shall be altered herein, all such applications shall be processed in accordance with the applicable provisions of the Land Development and Subdivision Regulations of Ordinance No. 9, as amended.
A.
The tract, including mobile home stands, patios, other dwellings
and structures and all tract improvements, shall be organized in relation
to topography, the shape of the plot and the shape, size and position
of structures and common facilities. Special attention shall be given
to new mobile home designs and to common appurtenances that are available.
B.
Each mobile home unit or other dwelling or structure shall be fitted
to the terrain with a minimum disturbance of the land and a minimum
elevation difference between the floor level of the unit and the ground
elevation under it. Existing trees and shrubs, rock formations, streams,
floodplains, steep slopes and other natural features of the tract
shall be preserved to the maximum extent practical. Favorable views
shall be emphasized by the plan.
Mobile homes are encouraged to be arranged in a variety of orientations
and are strongly encouraged to have many units with their long sides
facing the street rather than their ends in order to provide variety
and interest. Site layout shall be designed to ensure that mobile
home units are offset to block long uninterrupted vistas between the
units.
A.
Gridiron layouts and street patterns unrelated to the topography
of the site are to be avoided.
B.
Streets.
(1)
Standards. All applicable standards for streets and streets contained
in this section shall be adhered to for all public streets in and
abutting mobile home developments. In those developments wherein the
streets are to be maintained as private internal street, owned and
maintained by the mobile home park operator or owned and maintained
in common by the residents/owners of the individual lots, the standards
shall be as follows:
(a)
Right-of-way. There shall be an equivalent right-of-way (as
defined herein) reserved along those streets which are designed to
function as feeder or collector streets and which connect major exterior
street, form major loops, traverse the development or provide major
or important access to adjacent parcels. No equivalent right-of-way
is required on other streets.
(b)
Pavement. Pavement width of all local streets serving as access
to mobile home lots shall be not less than 26 feet.
(c)
Grades. Gradients on all local streets shall not exceed 7%.
(d)
Cul-de-sac. A paved turnaround area with a minimum radius of
40 feet shall be provided at the closed end of any cul-de-sac street
serving as the sole access to six or more mobile home lots. No permanently
closed cul-de-sac street shall exceed 700 feet in length or serve
as the sole access to more than 20 mobile home lots.
(e)
Other requirements. All other applicable requirements of this
section relating to grades, vertical curves, horizontal curves, tangents
between curves, sight distance, construction specifications, intersection
alignment, intersection radius, interconnection of adjacent parcels
and similar regulations shall be adhered to in all mobile home parks.
(2)
Access limitations. Mobile home lots may have direct access only
onto minor internal streets. Direct access from a mobile home lot
shall not be permitted onto the street(s) from which the mobile home
park gains primary access.
(3)
Conversions. Any street built as a private street and later proposed
for conversion to a public street shall be brought up to the applicable
standards for public streets prior to being ordained as a public way,
unless this requirement is waived by the Board of Supervisors in its
sole discretion.
A.
General requirements. All mobile home parks shall provide safe, convenient,
all-season pedestrian walkways of adequate width for intended use,
durable and convenient to maintain, between individual mobile homes,
mobile home development streets, all community facilities provided
for the residents and off-site pedestrian traffic generators, such
as schools, bus stops, commercial centers, etc. These pedestrian walkways
may parallel vehicular street, where they shall only be required on
one side, or they may form a separate but coordinated system away
from streets. Walkways must be provided wherever pedestrian traffic
is concentrated and where school children congregate, but may be waived
elsewhere if the applicant successfully demonstrates a lack of need.
B.
Common walk system. Where a common walk system is provided and maintained
between locations, such common walks shall have a minimum width of
four feet. Where these walks parallel a street, they shall be separated
from the street pavement by a distance of at least two feet.
C.
Individual walks. All dwellings shall be connected to common walks
or to streets or to driveways or parking spaces connecting to a paved
street. Such individual walks shall have a minimum width of two feet.
A.
Spaces required. Two paved off-street parking spaces shall be provided
for each dwelling on the same lot therewith.
B.
Common parking areas.
(1)
Aisle width. Where common parking facilities are to be used, no parking
aisle will be less than 25 feet in width.
(2)
Required green areas. Fifteen percent of all common parking areas
on each tract shall be devoted to green areas consisting mostly of
natural vegetation, which must be interspersed within the paved parking
areas to channel traffic or divide parking areas. The green areas
required by this section shall not constitute a portion of any green
area or common open spaces otherwise required by this section or any
other ordinance or regulation of the Township. The exact design and
location of the green areas required by this section shall be indicated
as part of the subdivision plan submission and shall be permanently
maintained as such.
In addition to the requirements of § 160-211 of the Township Zoning Ordinance, the following regulations shall also apply:
A.
Arrangement. The common space shall be designed as a contiguous area
unless the applicant demonstrates to the satisfaction of the Board
of Supervisors that two or more separate areas would be preferable.
The open space shall also have easily identifiable pedestrian and
visual accessibility to all residents of the mobile home park, although
all units do not have to abut the common open space.
B.
Recreation. Recreation areas and facilities shall be provided to
meet the anticipated needs of the residents of the development. Not
less than 25% of the required open space area, exclusive of lands
within the required buffers, shall be devoted to recreation. Recreation
areas should be of a size, shape and relief that is conducive to active
and passive recreation.
A.
General requirements. Along all exterior property boundary lines, except those which abut another mobile home park, there shall be a permanent buffer at least 15 feet in depth, unless this is waived pursuant to Subsection D or E below. A screen buffer (as defined herein) shall be provided wherever the mobile home park abuts existing residential uses, with the exception of mid-rise or high-rise structures, and where abutting other types of uses when deemed necessary by the Board of Supervisors to provide sufficient buffering and transition. A softening buffer (as defined herein) shall be provided wherever the mobile home development abuts existing mid-rise or high-rise residential uses; existing commercial, office, industrial and institutional uses; any existing street (as modified by Subsection C below), drive or parking area; or open (not wooded) undeveloped land. An open buffer shall be provided wherever the mobile home development abuts wooded undeveloped land or where more extensive buffers are deemed unnecessary by the Board of Supervisors.
B.
Components. The minimum components of each type of buffer shall be
as follows:
(1)
Screen buffer. The primary components of a screen buffer shall be
a row of evergreen trees at a height of not less than 5 1/2 feet
when planted, spaced not more than 10 feet apart on center. These
trees shall be of such a species that each will attain a height at
maturity of not less than 20 feet. As a secondary component of screen
buffer shall be one of the following techniques: mounding, provided
that the slopes shall be no greater than three to one ratio; visually
opaque fencing not greater than six feet in height; or coniferous
shrubbery. Any combination of evergreen trees, coniferous shrubbery,
earth mounds, fencing or other natural vegetation or man-made materials
shall be permitted, provided that a visual screen at a height of 20
feet above the adjacent ground elevation of the mobile home park is
achieved within a reasonable period of growth or time. Whenever vegetation
is chosen as the only method of screen buffering, there shall be no
less than a double row of evergreen trees having a height of not less
than 5 1/2 feet when planted, with the trees in one row offset
five feet from the trees in the other row, and the rows shall be at
least five feet but not greater than 15 feet apart.
(2)
Softening buffer. The primary component of a softening buffer shall
be a row of trees, spaced not more than 25 feet apart on-center, at
least 25% of which shall be evergreens. The evergreen trees shall
be a height of not less than 5 1/2 feet when planted and be of
such a species that each will attain a height at maturity of not less
than 20 feet. Any deciduous trees shall be at least 2 1/2 inches
in caliper when planted and shall be of such a species that each will
attain a height at maturity of not less than 20 feet. These trees
may be interspersed with other allowable components, including any
other type of trees, shrubbery, earth mounding, fencing or similar
natural or man-made materials.
(3)
Open buffer. The open buffer shall as a minimum consist of grass,
ground cover and/or similar vegetative material and may include trees,
shrubs or other natural or man-made landscaping materials, but it
shall be mostly vegetative with minimal paved areas, if any.
C.
Street boundaries. Rather than extensive buffers set forth in § 129-49B, the use of a single row of deciduous trees, at least 2 1/2 inches in caliper and no less than 12 feet in height when planted and of such a species that each will attain a height at maturity of not less than 20 feet, may be provided. The trees shall be planted with a spacing of not more than 40 feet on center along the property lines which abut streets or at other locations as may be approved by the governing body to assure adequate site distances, where existing buffer is adequate or where otherwise determined to protect the welfare and a safety of the community.
D.
Existing buffers. In cases where an edge(s) of a mobile home park
occurs along natural features which function as buffers, including
but not limited to mature vegetation, significant grade changes or
stream valleys, which are likely to be permanently preserved, buffering
may be waived along that edge(s) upon approval of the Board of Supervisors.
E.
Maintenance. All vegetation shall be maintained permanently and in
the event of death or other destruction shall be replaced within six
months by the persons responsible for maintenance when death or destruction
occurred.
F.
Buffer landscape plan. A landscaping plan shall be submitted with
the final plans showing all pertinent information, including the location,
size and species of all individual trees and shrubs to be preserved
or planted, or alternately the general characteristics of existing
vegetation masses which are to be preserved.
The following site drainage requirements shall apply to all
mobile home parks:
A.
Surface water. The ground surface in all parts of the development
shall be graded and equipped to drain all surface water in a safe,
efficient manner. The velocity of runoff during and after development
shall not exceed the values as required by 25 Pa. Code Chapter 102
Erosion and Sediment Control Requirements.
B.
Ponds and retention structures. Surface water collectors and other
bodies of standing water capable of breeding mosquitoes and other
insects shall be eliminated or controlled in a manner approved by
the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection.
C.
Wastewater. Wastewater from any plumbing fixture or sanitary sewer
line shall not be deposited upon the ground surface in any part of
a mobile home development or the surrounding properties.
D.
Erosion and sediment control. All applicable regulations and permit
requirements to prevent accelerated soil erosion and resulting sedimentation
as stipulated by 25 Pa. Code Chapter 102 Erosion and Sediment Control
Requirements.
Exposed ground surfaces in all parts of every mobile home park
shall be paved or covered with stone screenings or other solid material
or protected with a vegetative growth that is capable of preventing
soil erosion and the emanation of dust during dry weather. Impervious
pavement shall be kept to a minimum. All ground surfaces shall be
appropriately maintained.
Lighting facilities shall be provided as needed and arranged
in a manner which will protect the mobile home development residents,
neighboring properties and adjacent highways from direct glare or
hazardous interference of any kind. Lighting facilities shall be required
for the safety and convenience of the mobile home park residents and
shall be installed by the developer.
A.
Ownership. In a mobile home park where lots will be sold, ownership of the common elements shall conform to § 160-211 of the Whitpain Township Zoning Ordinance.
B.
Maintenance. Prior to development plan approval, provisions acceptable
to the Board of Supervisors and the Township Solicitor for the maintenance
of all common elements which will not be owned and maintained by a
governmental agency shall be established.
C.
Service building. The structure or structures containing the management
office and other common facilities shall be conveniently located for
the use intended. Consolidation of recreation, management and other
common facilities in a single building and location is encouraged,
if the single location will adequately serve all mobile home lots.
A.
Water supply.
(1)
General requirements. An adequate supply of domestic, auxiliary and
firefighting water shall be provided for all uses included in the
mobile home park, including service buildings and accessory facilities.
(2)
Water distribution system. All water piping, fixtures and other equipment
shall be constructed and maintained in accordance with state and local
regulations, as well as those of the servicing utility. Applicable
sections of Standard for the Installation of Mobile Homes (ANSUI/
FPA Publication No. 501A, 1977) shall be adhered to.
(3)
Fire protection. All mobile home parks shall be provided with fire
hydrants to meet the specifications of the Middle States Department
Association of Fire Underwriters. In addition, those hydrants shall
be in sufficient numbers to be within 600 feet of all existing and
proposed mobile homes and other dwellings and structures, measured
by way of accessible streets or common areas. Additional fire protection
measures are to be provided as deemed necessary by the Township Fire
Commission.
C.
Utility lines and storage.
(1)
All electric, natural gas, telephone and any other utility lines
shall be placed underground in all mobile home parks, and each shall
have the necessary shutoff valves and other safety requirements normally
associated with safe operation. All utility connections shall be appropriately
capped for safety purposes whenever a mobile home stand is not occupied.
(2)
Fuel supply systems. Applicable sections of Standard for the Installation
of Mobile Homes (ANSI/NFPA Publication No. 501A, 1977) shall be adhered
to.
A.
A. Permits required.
(1)
Occupancy permit. No mobile home or other structure shall be occupied
until a valid occupancy permit has been issued by Whitpain Township,
after inspection.
(2)
Lots for sale. In those mobile home parks wherein some or all of
the mobile home lots will be sold individually (whether totally fee
simple, fee simple with a homeowners' association, condominium
or cooperate) no lot to be conveyed shall be developed or a mobile
home or other structure placed or constructed thereon until the subdivision
and/or land development plan has been properly approved and the proper
building and construction permits have been issued for that lot in
accordance with standard procedures for any building activity in Whitpain
Township.
(3)
Lots for lease. In those mobile home parks wherein some or all of
the mobile home lots will be leased, the following regulations shall
apply to the entire development, exclusive of the lots being sold
individually:
(a)
Initial permits. It shall be unlawful for any person or group
to construct, alter, extend or operate a mobile home park unless and
until that person or group obtains:
[1]
A valid permit issued by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental
Protection, in the name of the operator, for a specified construction,
alteration or extension proposed; and
[2]
Valid permit(s) authorizing construction and initial occupancy
issued by the Building Code Official in the name of the operator,
which shall not be issued until a copy of the Department of Environmental
Protection permit has been furnished, all permits for water supply
and sewage systems shall have been obtained and all other requirements
contained herein have been complied with and final approval of the
application has been granted by the Board of Supervisors.
B.
Fees. Fees for the initial application and preliminary and final
approvals of any mobile home park shall be prescribed by regulations
of the Board of Supervisors of Whitpain Township.
C.
Inspection. Upon notification to the licensee, manager or person
in charge of a mobile home park, the Building Inspector, Zoning Officer
or Code Enforcement Officer of Whitpain Township may inspect a mobile
home park after due notice to determine compliance with this article.
A.
Footings and anchoring. Each mobile home shall be installed and anchored
according to the applicable standards of Standard for the Installation
of Mobile Homes (ANSI/NFPA Publication No. 501A, 1977) prior to the
unit being occupied or used in any other way.
B.
Stability. All mobile homes placed within a mobile home park shall,
prior to occupancy or other use, be affixed to their mobile home stands
in such a way so as to prevent tilting of the unit. No mobile home
shall permanently rest on the wheels used to transport the unit.
C.
Skirts. All mobile homes placed within a mobile home park shall,
prior to occupancy or other use, have skirts installed which are designed
to complement the appearance of the mobile home and are coordinated
throughout the park.
D.
Hitch. The hitch or tow bar attached to a mobile home for transport
purposes shall be removed and remain removed from the mobile home
when it is placed on its mobile home stand.
