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Township of Radnor, PA
Delaware County
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Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Code
New Laws (4) Index
A. 
This chapter shall be entitled "An Ordinance Establishing Rules, Regulations and Standards Governing the Subdivision of Land Within the Township of Radnor, Delaware County, Pennsylvania, Pursuant to the Authority Set Forth in the Pennsylvania Municipalities Planning Code, Setting Forth the Procedure To Be Followed by the Planning Commission and the Board of Commissioners in Applying and Administering These Rules, Regulations and Standards and Providing Penalties for the Violation Thereof."
B. 
This chapter shall be known and may be cited as the "Subdivision and Land Development Ordinance of the Township of Radnor."
This chapter is established to regulate and control the subdivision and development of land within Radnor Township so as to provide sites suitable for human habitation, commercial and industrial operations and other uses for which land may be developed, thereby creating conditions favorable to the health, safety and welfare of the community and consistent with the goals of the Comprehensive Plan of Radnor Township.
From and after the effective date of this chapter, any subdivision shall be in conformity with this chapter and all standards and specifications adopted as a part of such chapter.
In interpreting and applying the provisions of this chapter, they shall be held to be minimum requirements for the promotion of the public health, safety, comfort, convenience and general welfare. When provisions of this chapter and all standards and specifications adopted under it impose greater restrictions than those of any statute, other ordinance or regulations, the provisions of this chapter and its standards and specifications shall be controlling unless specified to the contrary. The illustrations in this chapter are not a part of the chapter, but are included herein for purposes of explanation and clarification only.
[Amended 10-22-1990 by Ord. No. 90-49; 6-28-1993 by Ord. No. 93-15; 9-18-1995 by Ord. No. 95-21; 5-8-2006 by Ord. No. 2006-12]
Notices shall be sent by the applicant to the owners of properties located within a radius of 1,000 feet from all sides of the tract in question, except within R-5 Zoning Districts, where the distance shall be 500 feet. Notices shall be mailed not less than 10 days prior to the Planning Commission meeting using Radnor Township return address envelopes and labels provided by the Township. Proof of said mailing on United States Postal Service Form 3877 shall be delivered to the Township no less than three days prior to the meeting. Failure by the owner of any neighboring property to receive notice when sent in compliance with this section shall not invalidate any action taken by the Planning Commission.
A. 
Unless a contrary intention clearly appears, the following words and phrases shall have, for the purpose of these regulations, the meanings given in the following clauses.
B. 
For the purpose of this chapter, words and terms used herein shall be interpreted as follows:
(1) 
Words used in the present tense include the future.
(2) 
The singular includes the plural.
(3) 
The word "person" includes a corporation, partnership, association or other legal entity, as well as an individual.
(4) 
The word "lot" includes the word "plot" or "parcel."
(5) 
The term "shall" is mandatory.
(6) 
The word "used" or "occupied," as applied to any land or building, shall be construed to include the words "intended, arranged or designed to be occupied."
(7) 
The word "Commission" and the words "Planning Commission" shall mean the Radnor Township Planning Commission.
(8) 
The word "Commissioners" and the words "Board of Commissioners" shall mean the Radnor Township Board of Commissioners.
C. 
Any word or term not defined herein shall be used with a meaning of standard usage.
D. 
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
ALLEY
A right-of-way which provides only secondary service access for vehicles to the side or rear of abutting properties.
APPLICANT
A subdivider or agent authorized thereby requesting the approval of a proposed subdivision or land development under this chapter.
AVERAGE DAILY TRAFFIC (ADT)
The actual or calculated total vehicular trips that occur or are expected to occur on a specific street within a typical weekday.
BERM
A linear earth mound with a maximum slope of 33% with grass cover or 50% when shrubbery or ground cover is used.
BLOCK
An area bounded by three or more streets.
BUILDING SETBACK LINE
The rear line of the minimum front yards as designated for each zoning district, measured from the street line.
CALIPER
The diameter of the main trunk of a tree. "Caliper" measurement shall be taken at a point on the trunk six inches above the natural ground line for trees up to four inches in "caliper" and at a point 12 inches above the natural ground line for trees over four inches in "caliper."
CARTWAY
The paved portion of a street right-of-way intended for vehicular use.
CLEAR SIGHT TRIANGLE
An area within a triangle bounded by any two intersecting street lines and a straight line drawn between points on each such line 30 feet from the intersection of said lines or extensions thereof.[1]
CONDOMINIUM
A dwelling unit which is owned and maintained in accordance with the Uniform Condominium Act of July 2, 1980, P.L. 286, No. 82.[2]
[Amended 10-22-1990 by Ord. No. 90-49]
CROSSWALK
A publicly- or privately-owned right-of-way for pedestrian use which crosses a cartway or cuts across a block so as to furnish access for pedestrians to adjacent streets or properties.
CUL-DE-SAC
A street intersecting another street at one end and terminating at the other in a paved vehicular turnaround.
DENSITY
A measure expressed in dwelling units per acre, calculated by dividing the total number of dwelling units by the site area.[3]
DESIGN STANDARDS
Regulations, as stated in Article V, imposing standards in the layout by which a subdivision or land development is governed.
DEVELOPER
See the definition of "subdivider."
DWELLING
A building containing one or more dwelling units.
DWELLING UNIT
Any room or group of rooms located within a residential building and forming a single, habitable unit with facilities used or intended to be used for living, sleeping, cooking and eating by one family exclusively.
ENGINEER
A professional engineer registered by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
FAMILY
One or more persons occupying the same dwelling unit and living and cooking as a single housekeeping unit, said unit consisting only of individuals who are related by blood, marriage or otherwise by law, except that such unit may also consist of foster children and one other individual not related to others in the housekeeping unit. A "family" as herein defined specifically excludes individuals and groups occupying a boarding- or rooming house, lodging house, club, fraternity, dormitory, hotel or other similar living environment.
[Added 7-20-1992 by Ord. No. 92-13]
FLOODPLAIN
The low area adjoining and including any water or drainage course or body of water subject to a one-hundred-year-recurrence-interval flood, as delineated by the Flood Insurance Study for the Township of Radnor, Delaware County, Pennsylvania, as prepared by the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development, Federal Insurance Administration.
FLOODPLAIN SOILS
Soils in areas subject to periodic overflow and listed in the Soil Survey of Chester and Delaware Counties, Pennsylvania, United States Department of Agriculture, Soil Conservation Service, 1959, as amended, as being subject to flooding. "Floodplain soils" include but are not limited to:
(1) 
Bowmansville silt loam.
(2) 
Chewacla silt loam.
(3) 
Congaree silt loam.
(4) 
Lindside silt loam.
(5) 
Melvin silt loam.
(6) 
Rowland silt loam.
(7) 
Wehadkee silt loam.
FOREST
Areas, groves or stands of mature or largely mature trees (i.e. greater than six inches in caliper) covering an area greater than 1/4 acre; or groves of mature trees (greater than 12 inches in caliper) consisting of more than 10 individual trees.
IMPERVIOUS SURFACE
That portion of a tract where, due to surface coverage, the water runoff coefficient is 0.85 or more, as determined by the Township Engineer.[4]
IMPERVIOUS SURFACE RATIO
A measurement calculated by dividing the total area of all impervious surfaces within the site or lot by the site area or lot area respectively.
IMPROVEMENTS SPECIFICATIONS
Regulations, as stated in Article VI, imposing minimum standards for the construction of required improvements, including but not limited to streets, curbs, sidewalks and sewers.
LAKES AND PONDS
Natural or artificial bodies of water which retain water year round. Artificial ponds may be created by dams or result from excavation. The shoreline of such water bodies shall be measured from the spillway crest elevation rather than the permanent pool, if there is any difference. "Lakes" are bodies of water two or more acres in extent. "Ponds" are any water body less than two acres in extent.
LAND DEVELOPMENT
[Amended 5-26-1987 by Ord. No. 87-13; 10-22-1990 by Ord. No. 90-49]
(1) 
The improvements of one lot or two or more contiguous lots, tracts or parcels of land for any purpose involving:
(a) 
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.
(b) 
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, leaseholds, condominiums, building groups or other features.
(2) 
A subdivision of land.
(3) 
Those activities described in Section 503(1.1) of the Municipalities Planning Code[5] shall not be considered land developments for purposes of this chapter.
LANDSCAPE ARCHITECT
A professional landscape architect registered by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
LEVEL OF SERVICE
Level of service as described in the 1965 Highway Capacity Manual, indicating the quality of traffic movement on a particular street or through a specific intersection.
LOT
A parcel of land used or set aside and available for use as the site of one or more buildings, and any building thereto, or for any other purpose, in single ownership.[6]
(1) 
CORNER LOTA 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 intersect at an angle of less than 135°.
(2) 
INTERIOR LOTA lot containing a narrow projecting segment which is the sole means of access from a street. Said segment shall have a minimum width of 20 feet.
(3) 
THROUGH LOTA lot having frontage on two parallel or approximately parallel streets.
(4) 
REGULAR LOTA lot rectangular in shape, with a depth approximately 1 1/2 to 2 1/2 times its width, the width of which shall front a street.
(5) 
DEPTH OF LOTThe mean distance from the street line of the lot to its opposite rear line measured in the general direction of the side lines of the lot.
(6) 
LOT WIDTHThe distance measured between the side lot lines at the required building setback line. In a case where there is only one side lot line, lot width shall be measured between such side lot line and the opposite rear lot line or street line.
LOT AREA
The area contained within the property lines of a lot shown on a subdivision plan or required by this chapter less the following:
[Amended 7-17-2000 by Ord. No. 2000-20]
(1) 
Seventy-five percent of the calculated one-hundred-year floodplain.
(2) 
Seventy-five percent of the wetlands as defined by § 255-20B(4)(d) of the Code not within the calculated one-hundred-year floodplain.
(3) 
Seventy-five percent of the slopes equal to or in excess of 20% of the area not within the one-hundred-year floodplain and wetlands.
(4) 
The land area within an existing public right-of-way located within any R-1, R-1A, R-2, R-3, R-4, R-5, and R-6 Residential Zoning District.
[Added 5-22-2006 by Ord. No. 2006-15]
LOT CONSOLIDATION
The joining together of two or more contiguous but separately deeded parcels of land.
[Added 5-8-2006 by Ord. No. 2006-10]
MAJOR INTERSECTION
Any intersection of one or more collector or arterial streets.
MARKER
A metal pipe or pin of at least 1/2 inch in diameter and at least 24 inches in length.
MONUMENT
A stone or concrete monument with a flat top of at least four inches square, scored with an X to mark the reference point, at least 30 inches in length, the bottom sides of which are at least two inches greater than the top to minimize movements caused by frost.
MUNICIPALITIES PLANNING CODE
The Pennsylvania Municipalities Planning Code, Act 247 of 1968, as amended and reenacted by Act 170 of 1988, 53 P.S. 10101 et seq., and any subsequent amendments thereto.
[Added 10-22-1990 by Ord. No. 90-49]
OPEN SPACE
A portion of a tract available and accessible for use by the residents of the tract, unless dedicated to the Township, generally undeveloped. "Open space" may include areas of steep slopes, floodplains and other significant features to be preserved. "Open space" shall not include street or street rights-of-way, parking areas, yards and lots of individual dwelling units or other public improvements nor does it include required buffer areas. "Open space" uses may include active and passive recreation.
OPEN SPACE RATIO
The total amount of open space within a site divided by the site area.[7]
PARK
A tract of land for ornament and as a place for the resort of the public for recreation and amusement.
PEAK-HOUR TRAFFIC
The highest number of vehicles found or expected to be found, during the a.m. and p.m. hours, passing over a section of street in 60 consecutive minutes.
PLAN, FINAL
A complete and exact subdivision plan, including all required supplementary data, prepared for official recording as required by statute, defining property rights and proposed streets and other improvements.
PLAN, IMPROVEMENT CONSTRUCTION
A plan or set of plans and supporting documents prepared by an engineer detailing the engineering specifications for streets, sanitary sewers, stormwater drainage facilities and other improvements required by this chapter.
PLANNING MODULE FOR LAND DEVELOPMENT
An application required by the Pennsylvania Sewage Facilities Act, Section 71.15(b) and (c) of Chapter 71, Administration of the Sewage Facilities Program, as amended.[8]
PLAN, PRELIMINARY
A tentative, formal subdivision plan, including all required supplementary data, showing proposed street and lot layout as a basis for consideration prior to preparation of the final plan.
PLAN, RECORD
The copy of the final plan which contains the original required endorsements of the Township and which is intended to be recorded with the Delaware County Recorder of Deeds.
PLAN, SKETCH
An informal plan indicating salient existing features of a tract and its surroundings and the general layout of a proposed subdivision.
PLAT
The map or plan of a subdivision or land development, whether preliminary or final.
PUBLIC NOTICE
Notice published once each week for two successive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation in the Township. Such "notice" shall state the time and place of any hearing or meeting and the particular nature of the matter to be considered at the hearing or meeting. The first publication shall not be more than 30 days and the second publication shall not be less than seven days prior to the date of the hearing or meeting.
[Added 10-22-1990 by Ord. No. 90-49]
PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION
Transportation service for the general public provided by a common carrier of passengers, generally on a regular route basis.
RESUBDIVISION
Any replatting or new division of land. Replattings shall be considered as constituting a new subdivision of land. See the definition of "subdivision."
REVIEW
An examination of the sketch plan, preliminary plan or final plan to determine compliance with Chapter 280, Zoning, this chapter and other pertinent requirements.
RIGHT-OF-WAY
Land set aside for passage, such as a utility, street, alley or other means of travel.
(1) 
EXISTING RIGHT-OF-WAYThe legal right-of-way as established by the commonwealth or other appropriate governing authority and currently in existence.
(2) 
ULTIMATE RIGHT-OF-WAYThe right-of-way deemed necessary by the Radnor Township Comprehensive Plan as appropriate to provide adequate width for future street improvements.
SEWER
A public or private sanitary sewer system.
(1) 
PUBLIC SEWER SYSTEMAny system, approved by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Resources and Radnor Township, which collects sewage and/or industrial wastes of a liquid nature from two or more lots and treats and/or disposes such sewage and/or industrial wastes at a common plant on another site.
(2) 
PRIVATE SEWER SYSTEMA system of piping, tanks or other facilities serving a single lot which collects or disposes of sewage, in whole or in part, into the soil on the same lot.
SIGHT DISTANCE
The length of roadway visible to the driver of a passenger vehicle at any given point on the roadway when the view is unobstructed by traffic. Sight distance measurement shall be made from a point 3.75 feet above the center line of the road surface to a point 0.5 feet above the center line of road surface.[9]
SITE
A parcel or contiguous parcels of land intended to have one or more buildings or intended to be subdivided into two or more lots.
SITE AMENITY
A public space improvement, including but not limited to landscaping, sidewalks, street lighting and parking.
[Added 10-26-2009 by Ord. No. 2009-27]
SITE AREA
All land area within the site, calculated from an actual site survey rather than from a deed description.
SOLICITOR
The solicitor of Radnor Township, Delaware County, Pennsylvania.
STEEP SLOPES
Areas subject to regulations by § 280-112 of the Code of the Township of Radnor, as amended.
STREET
A public or private thoroughfare used or intended to be used for passage or travel by motor vehicles. Streets are further classified according to the functions they perform.
(1) 
EXPRESSWAYSLimited access highways, with full grade separation, serving a large volume of high-speed through traffic designed for an operating speed of 70 miles per hour.
(2) 
ARTERIALSMajor regional highways, with full or partial access control, designed for a large volume of through traffic. An ADT count of 10,000 trips or greater and an intended operating speed of 60 miles per hour is expected.
(3) 
MAJOR COLLECTORSStreets designed to provide access between local and minor collector streets and arterials and expressways. Access is controlled by limiting curb cuts. An ADT count of 3,501 to 10,000 trips and an intended operating speed of 50 miles per hour is expected.
[Amended 1-2-2001 by Ord. No. 2001-03]
(4) 
MINOR COLLECTORSStreets which primarily serve to connect local streets with major collectors and arterials. An ADT count of 651 to 3,500 trips and an intended operating speed of 40 miles per hour is expected.
(5) 
LOCAL STREETSStreets used primarily to provide access to more heavily traveled streets for abutting properties in internally developed areas. An ADT count of up to 650 trips and an intended operating speed of 30 miles per hour is expected.
(6) 
COURTSLocal non-through residential streets which are typically designed as culs-de-sac or loops. An ADT count of less than 100 trips and an intended design speed of 20 miles per hour is expected.[10]
STREET LINE
The existing or proposed right-of-way line.
STUDY AREA
An area extending 1/2 mile along a street adjacent to the site in both directions from all proposed or existing access points or to and including a major intersection with a collector or arterial, whichever area is greater.
SUBDIVIDER
Any individual, partnership, copartnership or corporation, or agent authorized thereby, which undertakes the development or subdivision of land as defined by this chapter as the owner, or agent authorized thereby, of the land being developed or subdivided.
SUBDIVISION
The division or redivision 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 of any residential dwelling, shall be exempted.
[Amended 10-22-1990 by Ord. No. 90-49]
SUBDIVISION, MAJOR
The division of a lot or tract of land or part thereof into two or more lots or tracts for the purpose, whether immediate or future, of transfer of ownership or of building development not defined as a minor subdivision.
SUBDIVISION, MINOR
The division of a lot or tract of land into five or less lots for the purpose, whether immediate or future, of transfer of ownership or of building development of less than three acres, provided that the proposed lots thereby created have frontage on an improved street or streets, and provided further that there is not created by the subdivision any new street or the extension of an existing street.
SURVEYOR
A surveyor registered by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
TOWNSHIP ENGINEER
A registered engineer designated by the Board of Commissioners to perform the duties of engineer as herein specified.
TRACT
A lot or parcel of land; an area of real estate.
TRIP GENERATION RATES
The total count of trips expected to and from a particular land use.
VOLUME/CAPACITY ANALYSIS
A procedure, as described in the 1965 Highway Capacity Manual, Highway Research Board Special Report 87, which compares the volume of a street or intersection approach to its capacity (maximum number of vehicles that can pass a given point during a given time period).
WARRANTS FOR TRAFFIC SIGNAL INSTALLATION
A series of justifications which detail the minimum traffic or pedestrian volumes or other criteria necessary for the installation of a traffic signal. These warrants are contained in the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices for Streets and Highways, United States Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration, 1971, Sections 4C-1 through 4C-10.
WATER SUPPLY, CENTRAL
Any municipal water supply system or any private system franchised to serve the public. Such systems shall include any existing private franchise area and the entire system or a water supply capable of supporting the entire development or a standpipe or water-storage system meeting Township specifications.
WATER SUPPLY, PRIVATE
A system for supplying and distributing water to a single dwelling or other building from a source located on the same lot.
WETLANDS
Those areas that are inundated and saturated by surface or ground water at a frequency or 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; or as further defined by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Resources.
[Amended 6-26-1989 by Ord. No. 89-28; 10-22-1990 by Ord. No. 90-49; 10-15-1991 by Ord. No. 91-41]
[1]
Editor's Note: A diagram illustrating a clear sight triangle is included at the end of the chapter.
[2]
Editor's Note: See 68 Pa.C.S.A. § 3101 et seq.
[3]
Editor's Note: A diagram illustrating density is included at the end of this chapter.
[4]
Editor's Note: A diagram illustrating an impervious surface is located at the end of this chapter.
[5]
Editor's Note: See 53 P.S. § 10503(1.1).
[6]
Editor's Note: A diagram illustrating various kinds of lots is included at the end of this chapter.
[7]
Editor's Note: A diagram illustrating the open space ratio is included at the end of this chapter.
[8]
Editor's Note: See 35 P.S. § 750.1 et seq.
[9]
Editor's Note: Diagrams illustrating sight distance are included at the end of this chapter.
[10]
Editor's Note: Former Subsection (7), marginal access streets, was repealed 1-2-2001 by Ord. No. 2001-03.