[Amended 7-9-2002 by Ord. No. 2002-5]
From and after the effective date of this chapter no subdivision or development of any lot, tract, or parcel of land within the Township shall be made, and no street, sanitary sewer, storm sewer, water main or other facility 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 strict accordance with the provisions of this chapter. No lot in a subdivision or land development may be sold, no permit to erect, alter or repair any building upon land in a subdivision or land development be issued, no building may be erected, and no changes may be made in the contour of the land, no grading, excavating, removal or destruction of the topsoil, trees or other vegetative cover of the land may be commenced in a subdivision or land development unless and until a plan for the subdivision or land development has been approved by the Board of Supervisors and recorded, and until the improvements required by the Board of Supervisors in connection therewith have either been constructed in strict accordance with the standards and specifications of the Township or guaranteed as provided in § 85-20 of this chapter. Said standards and specifications, particularly as presented in Article X of this chapter are declared to be a minimum guaranty that all streets shown on any proposed plan are of sufficient width and proper grade and so located as to accommodate the probable volume of traffic thereon, afford adequate light and air, facilitate fire protection, provide access for fire fighting equipment to buildings and provide a coordinated system of streets conforming to the Township's Official Plan of streets; and further, that the land whereon buildings are to be constructed is of such character that it can be used for building purposes without danger to health or peril from fire, flood or other hazard and that all necessary or required erosion and sedimentation facilities be installed prior to or during the initial phase of construction of the subdivision or land development. Where, owing to special conditions, a literal enforcement of the provisions of this chapter would result in unnecessary hardship, the Board of Supervisors may, on the basis of an approved preliminary plan, make such reasonable exception thereto as will not be contrary to the public interest and may permit the issuance of a permit for erection of a building, subject to conditions necessary to assure adequate streets and other public improvements.
If a tract or parcel of land is planned and designed for separate developments or uses, although said tract or parcel remains under single ownership, each such development or use shall contain the minimum lot area, setback, and yard requirements as stipulated in Chapter 105, Zoning. In the event the ownership of a particular development or use is to be subdivided for transfer or sale, such subdivision shall contain the minimum area, setback, yard and be subject to all other requirements of the Township.
Upon approval of a final subdivision or land development plan, the developer shall within 90 days of such final approval record such plan in the office of the Recorder of Deeds of the county, and the streets, parks, erosion and sedimentation and water management control facilities and other public improvements shown thereon shall then be considered to be a part of the Official Plan of the Township. Offers of dedication of such public improvements to the Township shall be submitted on a written, recordable document setting forth by metes and bounds the offer; or the owner may note on the plan that such improvements have not been offered for dedication to the Township. Every street, park, erosion and sediment facility or other public improvement shown on a recorded subdivision or land development plan shall be deemed to be a private street, park, or improvement until such time as the same has been accepted by ordinance or resolution.
A. 
From the time an application is made for approval, whether preliminary or final, is duly filed as provided in this chapter, and while the application is pending action, no change or amendment of zoning, subdivision and land development ordinances or comprehensive plan shall affect the decision on such application adversely and the applicant shall be entitled to the governing regulations at the time the application was filed. In addition, when preliminary application has been duly approved, the applicant shall be entitled to final approval in accordance with terms of the approved preliminary application for a period of five years from the date of such preliminary approval. However, if an application is properly and finally denied, any subsequent application shall be subject to any intervening change in governing regulations. When an application is approved or approved subject to conditions acceptable to the applicant, no subsequent change or amendment in zoning, subdivision and land development ordinances or comprehensive plan shall be applied adversely to affect any aspect of the approved plan for a five-year period from such approval, which shall be counted from the date of preliminary approval, or in case of any doubt when the application for such approval was duly filed. Furthermore, where the applicant (owner/developer) has substantially completed the required improvements as depicted upon the plat plan within the five-year limit, or any extension granted by the Greene Township Board of Supervisors, no change of zoning, subdivision and land development ordinances or comprehensive plan enacted subsequent to the date of filing of the preliminary application shall modify or revoke any aspect of approved final plans pertaining to zoning district, density, lot, building, street or utility location.
B. 
In the case of a preliminary plan requiring the installation of improvements beyond the five-year period, a schedule shall be filed by the applicant with the preliminary plan delineating all proposed sections as well as deadlines within which applications for final plat approval of each section are intended to be filed. Such schedule shall be updated annually by the applicant on or before the anniversary of the preliminary plat approval, until final plan approval of the final section has been granted and any modification in the aforesaid schedule shall be subject to approval of the Greene Township Board of Supervisors in its discretion. Each section in any residential subdivision or land development, except for the last section, shall contain a minimum of 25% of the total number of dwelling units as depicted on the preliminary plan, unless a lesser percentage is approved by the Greene Township Board of Supervisors in its discretion. Provided the applicant has not defaulted with regard to or violated any of the conditions of the preliminary plan approval, including compliance with the aforesaid schedule of submission of final plans for the various sections, then the foregoing protections afforded by substantially completing the improvements shown upon the final plans within five years shall apply and for any section or sections, beyond the initial section, in which the required improvements have not been substantially completed within said five-year period these protections shall apply for an additional term or terms constituting three years from the date of final plan approval for each section. Failure of applicant to adhere to the aforesaid schedule of submission of final plans for the various sections shall subject any such section to any and all changes in zoning, subdivision and land development ordinances enacted by Greene Township subsequent to the date of the initial preliminary application.