The administration of the financial security shall comply with
the provisions of this article, the Pennsylvania Municipalities Planning
Code, Act 247, as reenacted and amended by Act 170 of 1988, and as
subsequently amended, and other applicable laws of the commonwealth.
A. Submission of financial security. Final plan applications, which
include required improvements that have not been installed, shall
include a financial security and memorandum of understanding. (See
sample memorandum available at the Township Municipal Office.)
(1) Type of financial security. The financial security must comply with
the following and is subject to review by the Township Solicitor and
Board of Supervisors for adequacy:
(a)
Irrevocable letter of credit: a letter provided by the developer
from a federal- or commonwealth-chartered financial institution which
is authorized to conduct such business within the commonwealth.
(b)
Escrow account: a deposit of cash, either with the Township
or in escrow, with a federal- or commonwealth-chartered financial
institution which is authorized to conduct such business within the
commonwealth.
(2) General contents. The terms of any financial security documents shall
be acceptable to the Township Solicitor. In addition to other information
required by the Township, financial securities shall include the following:
(a)
The amount of secured funds.
(b)
In case of failure on the part of the developer to complete
the specified improvements within a time period specified in a written
agreement, the funds shall be paid to the Township immediately and
without further action, upon presentation of a signed draft, in an
amount necessary to finance the completion of those improvements,
up to the limit of the security.
(c)
The security is irrevocable and may not be withdrawn or reduced
in amount by other than the Township until released or partially released
by the Township.
(3) Amount of financial security.
(a)
The amount of financial security shall be equal to 110% of the
cost of completion estimated as of 90 days following the date scheduled
for completion by the developer. Annually, the Township may adjust
the amount of the financial security by comparing the actual cost
of the improvements which have been completed and estimated cost for
the completion of the remaining improvements, as of the expiration
of the 90th day after either the original date scheduled for completion
or a rescheduled date of completion. Subsequent to said adjustment,
the Township may require the developer to post additional security
in order to assure that the financial security equals said 110%. Any
additional security shall be posted by the developer in accordance
with this chapter.
(b)
The amount of financial security required shall be based upon
an estimate of the cost of completion (including quantities and unit
cost) of the required improvements, submitted by a developer and prepared
and certified by an engineer to be a fair and reasonable estimate
of such cost.
(c)
If the party posting the financial security requires more than
one year from the date of posting of the financial security to complete
the required improvements, the amount of financial security may be
increased by an additional 10% for each one-year period beyond the
first anniversary date from posting of the financial security or to
an amount not exceeding 110% of the cost of completing the required
improvements, as reestablished on or about the expiration of the preceding
one-year period, by using the above procedure.
B. Release of financial security.
(1) When all or part of the financially secured improvements are completed,
the developer may notify the Board of Supervisors and request a release
of the financial security. Requests for a reduction of a portion of
the financial security shall be limited to an amount that is at least
a minimum of 20% of the original total financial security, unless
a smaller percentage equals at least $100,000.
(2) All requests for release of financial security shall be in writing, by certified or registered mail, to the Board of Supervisors at the Township Municipal Office, and a copy thereof shall be sent to the Township Engineer. This notice shall include the as-built plan, in accordance with §
135-18, and specifically identify, in writing, the improvements for which a reduction in the financial security is requested.
(3) After receipt of notice for release of financial security, the Board
of Supervisors shall, within 10 days, authorize the Township Engineer
to inspect all of the aforesaid improvements. The Township Engineer
shall, within 30 days of authorization, file a written report with
the Board of Supervisors and shall promptly mail a copy of the same
to the developer by certified or registered mail. The report shall
be detailed and shall indicate approval or rejection of said improvements,
either in whole or in part, and if said improvements, or any portion
thereof, are not approved by the Township Engineer, said report shall
contain a statement of reasons for such rejection.
(4) The Board of Supervisors shall notify the developer, within 15 days
of receipt of the Township Engineer's report in writing, by certified
or registered mail, of the action of the Board of Supervisors with
relation thereto.
(5) If any portion of the said improvements shall not be approved or
shall be rejected by the Board of Supervisors, the developer shall
proceed to complete the same, and, upon completion, the same procedure
of notification, as outlined herein, shall be followed.
(6) A portion of the financial security may be retained as a maintenance guarantee in accordance with §
135-23.
C. Other remedies. If proceeds of the financial security are insufficient
to pay the cost of installing or making repairs or corrections to
all the improvements covered by said security, the Board of Supervisors
may, at its option, install all or part of such improvements and may
institute appropriate legal or equitable action to recover the funds
necessary to complete the remainder of the improvements. All of the
proceeds, whether resulting from the security or from any legal or
equitable action brought against the applicant, or both, shall be
used solely for the installation of the improvements covered by such
security and not for any other municipal purpose.
This procedure is available for the installation of required
improvements in lieu of placing financial security with the Township:
A. Authorization for construction.
(1) The applicant may receive approval to construct only the improvements
required as part of this chapter upon receipt of conditional final
plan approval, with the only outstanding condition being the guarantee
of public improvements and the recording of the plan. However, the
approvals/permits from other agencies with jurisdiction shall be obtained.
(2) The construction of improvements is limited to streets, street signs,
street trees, sidewalks, curbs, survey monuments and markers, landscaping
required by this chapter, storm drainage for dedication or which affects
adjacent properties or streets, sanitary sewer facilities for multiple
use, water supply facilities for multiple use, fire hydrants, and
other such improvements.
(3) The application (See Appendix No. 8.) shall be submitted to the Township Manager, or designate,
at the Township Municipal Office on any business day. The Township
Manager, or designate, shall review the application and notify the
applicant, in writing, if all conditions are met and the construction
of public improvements is authorized.
B. Completion of public improvement.
(1) When all or part of the required improvements are complete, the developer shall notify the Board of Supervisors. Except for mandatory inspection during construction, notification of completion of a portion of the required improvements is only necessary should the developer elect to financially secure the remaining improvements in accordance with §
135-20.
(2) Notification of completion of improvements shall be in writing, by certified or registered mail, and a copy thereof shall be sent to the Township Engineer. This notice shall include the as-built plan, in accordance with §
135-18.
(3) After receipt of notice that improvements are completed, the Board
of Supervisors, within 10 days, shall authorize the Township Engineer
to inspect all of the previously mentioned improvements. The Township
Engineer, within 30 days of authorization, shall file a report, in
writing, with the Board of Supervisors and shall promptly mail a copy
of the same to the developer, by certified or registered mail. The
report shall be detailed and shall indicate approval or rejection
of said improvements, either in whole or in part, and if said improvements,
or any portion thereof, are not approved by the Township Engineer,
said report shall contain a statement of reasons for such rejection.
(4) The Board of Supervisors shall notify the developer, within 15 days
of receipt of the Township Engineer's report in writing, by certified
or registered mail, of the action of the Board of Supervisors with
relation thereto.
(5) If any portion of the said improvements shall not be approved by
the Board of Supervisors, the developer shall proceed to complete
the same, and, upon completion, the same procedure of notification,
as outlined herein, shall be followed.
(6) Nothing herein, however, shall be construed in limitation of the
developer's right to contest or question, by legal proceedings or
otherwise, any determination of the Board of Supervisors or the Township
Engineer.
All improvements shall be deemed to be private improvements
and only for the benefit of the specific project, until such time
as the same have been offered for dedication and formally accepted
by the Board of Supervisors. No responsibility of any kind with respect
to improvements shown on the plan shall be transferred until the improvements
have been formally accepted. All requests for dedication shall be
made in accordance with Township rules and regulations, shall include
all information required by the Township for processing such a request,
and shall be accompanied by a required filing fee.
The Board of Supervisors may, at its discretion, require the developer to submit a maintenance guarantee, or other approved guarantee as specified herein, guaranteeing the structural integrity, as as function, of any improvement shown on the final plan for a term not to exceed 18 months from the date of acceptance of dedication by the Board of Supervisors. Said guarantee shall be 15% of the actual cost of installation of said improvements and be of the same type of financial security as required in this article. The maintenance guarantee shall not start until as-built plans are approved by the Township. (See §
135-25.)
[Amended 7-16-2012 by Ord. No. 2012-J]
A. Upon completion of all required improvements, and prior to final observation of improvements, the developer shall submit an as-built plan, according to the specification of §
135-18, showing the actual location, dimension and elevation of all existing improvements. The as-built plan submission shall also include, when necessary, a revised deed for all lands that are fully improved and offered for dedication. The as-built plan shall include a plan note that specifically identifies all deviations from the previously approved drawings. The applicant's engineer shall certify that the construction of all facilities was completed in accordance with the as-built plan. Three paper copies of the plan, one electronic PDF file, all relevant electronic CAD files, and three copies of the application (See Appendix No. 5) shall be submitted to the Township Manager, or designate,
at the Township office. The Township Manager, or designate, shall
distribute the plan to the Township Engineer, engineer for the Municipal
Authority and retain a copy for the Township files.
B. The digital CAD files shall be in .dwg format or other Township-approved
digital format. The feature layers that are stored in each .dwg file
shall be assigned a name that clearly identifies the feature. Minimum
required features are sanitary pipes, manholes, water pipes, valves,
hydrants, drainage inlets, pipes, and facilities, edge of pavement,
building footprints, wetlands, property lines, and easements. Legends
shall also be included. All data shall be defined by the horizontal
datum of the Pennsylvania State Plane Coordinate System (NAD83) in
units of feet, and the National American Vertical Datum of 1988 (NAVD)
in units of feet.