[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Supervisors
of the Township of Hilltown 12-30-1985 by Ord. No. 85-8. Amendments noted where
applicable.]
As used in this chapter, terms shall have the
meanings indicated, unless a different meaning clearly appears from
the context:
As defined in the Pennsylvania Vehicle Code, 75 Pa.C.S.A.
§ 7702, as adopted and amended.
[Added 7-26-2010 by Ord.
No. 2010-3]
Any domestic animal or fowl, any wild animal or any household
pet.
A lot or parcel of land in the Township of Hilltown which
is part of an approved subdivision, the plan or map of which has been
recorded with the Bucks County Recorder of Deeds, or lawful lot or
parcel of land described by metes and bounds, the deed of which has
been recorded with the Bucks County Recorder of Deeds office, or one
for which the Township has granted a waiver from planning.
[Added 7-26-2010 by Ord.
No. 2010-3]
A motorized two-wheeled vehicle or motorcycle being capable
of cross-country travel on natural terrain without benefit of a road
or trail. This definition shall include any motorized vehicle designed,
modified or otherwise used for the same purpose.
[Added 7-26-2010 by Ord.
No. 2010-3]
Any condition, structure, or improvement which shall constitute
a threat or potential threat to the health, safety or welfare of the
citizens of Hilltown Township.
For the purpose of this chapter, any motor vehicle designed,
modified, adopted or otherwise used for the same purpose as an ATV,
motorized dirt bike or snowmobile.
[Added 7-26-2010 by Ord.
No. 2010-3]
Any individual, partnership, association or corporation who
alone or jointly or severally with others shall have:
Legal title to any premises, dwelling or dwelling
unit with or without accompanying actual possession thereof; or
Charge, care or control of any premises, dwelling
or dwelling unit, as owner or agent of the owner, or an executor,
administrator, trustee or guardian of the estate of the owner. Any
such person thus representing the actual owner shall be bound to comply
with the provisions of this chapter and of the rules and regulations
adopted pursuant to, to the same extent as if he were the owner. A
lessee of the premises, dwelling, or dwelling unit shall, together
with the owner or owners, be bound to comply with the provisions of
this chapter.
All solid waste, except human body waste, including handling
of refuse.
Glass, metal, paper, plant growth, wood, or nonputrescible
solid waste.
As defined in the Pennsylvania Vehicle Code, 75 Pa.C.S.A.
§ 7702, as adopted and amended.
[Added 7-26-2010 by Ord.
No. 2010-3]
All vehicles delineated in this section, and regulated by
this chapter.
[Added 7-26-2010 by Ord.
No. 2010-3]
A rodent or insect capable of transmitting a disease or infection,
including but not limited to rats, mosquitoes, cockroaches, fleas
and ticks.
[Amended 5-24-2004 by Ord. No. 2004-4]
It shall be illegal within Hilltown Township
for any person or persons to own, possess, harbor or control any animal
or bird which makes noise continuously and/or incessantly for a period
of 30 minutes or makes such noise intermittently for an hour or more
to the disturbance of any person of reasonable sensibilities any time
of the day or night regardless of whether the animal is physically
situated on or in private property, said noise being a nuisance; provided
that, at the time the animal or bird is making such noise, no person
is trespassing or threatening to trespass upon private property in
or upon which the animal or bird is situated nor is there any other
legitimate cause which justifiably provoked the animal or bird; provided
further that this chapter shall not be deemed to prohibit or otherwise
declare unlawful any agricultural operations protected from the nuisance
suits by Pennsylvania law.
Any person having possession, custody or control
of a dog or any other animal shall dispose of the feces and urine
in a manner approved by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental
Protection, the Pennsylvania Department of Agricultural, and/or the
Bucks County Board of Health.
It shall be illegal within Hilltown Township
for any person to allow any animal to wander from the property boundaries
of the owner unless the animal or animals are leashed or under the
voice control of the owner.
The following regulations shall apply to the
housing or quartering of animals:
A.
If any such animal shall be kept in a dwelling owned
or occupied by the animal’s owner, such animal owner shall be
required to follow such procedures and practices as to the number
of such pets to be kept there, and as to the sanitation, to insure
that no public nuisance shall be created or maintained and no threat
to the house of persons living elsewhere than in such dwelling shall
be created.
No owner of any building or structure shall
fail to take steps and perform such maintenance thereto as may be
required from time to time to insure the property is safe, sound,
sanitary and secure and does not present a health and/or safety hazard
to surrounding properties and to the general populace.
No owner of any unoccupied building or structure
shall fail to take such steps as may be required to ensure that these
are securely closed so as to prohibit and deter entry thereto and
ensure that no health and/or safety hazard or threat is precipitated
due to a lack of maintenance or due to neglect.
Owners of any and all unoccupied buildings and/or
structures which, through neglect, have deteriorated to the point
of being classified unoccupied hazards, and therefore constitute a
severe health and/or safety hazard, shall, upon direct action of the
Hilltown Township Board of Supervisors, remove or cause the removal
of the building and/or accessories.
No person shall permit:
A.
Fences and/or minor structures to be constructed and
maintained so as to present a safety or health hazard to persons and/or
properties.
B.
The development of accumulations of hazards, rodent
or vector harborage and/or infestation upon yards, courts and/or lots.
C.
Objectionable materials to accumulate and to be blown
off the property and about the surrounding neighborhood.
D.
Wells, cesspools, or cisterns to remain open without
adequate fencing or barricades to prevent access thereto by the general
public.
E.
The accumulation of heavy undergrowth and/or vegetation
which would impair the health and/or safety of the neighborhood, nor
shall they permit any trees, plants or shrubbery, or any portion thereof,
to grow on their property and which constitutes a safety hazard to
pedestrian and/or vehicular traffic.
A.
Grounds, buildings and structures shall be maintained
free of insect, vermin and rodent harborage infestation.
B.
Adequate sanitary facilities and methods shall be
used for the collection, storage, handling and disposal of garbage
and refuse.
C.
Where there exists rodent and vermin infestation,
corrective measures shall be undertaken by the property owner and/or
occupant to alleviate the existing problem(s), to include screening,
extermination and/or garbage and refuse control. Methods employed
for extermination shall conform with generally accepted practices.
No person shall permit:
A.
Roof, surface and/or sanitary drainage to create a
safety and/or health hazard to persons and/or property by reason of
inadequate and/or improper construction, or maintenance or manner
of discharge.
B.
Roof gutters, drains, or any other system designed
and constructed to transport stormwater, to be discharged into any
sanitary sewage system and/or any part thereof.
C.
Any refrigerator, freezer and/or other similar storage
chest to be discarded, abandoned or stored in any place or location
which is accessible to the general public without first completely
removing any and all locking devices and/or doors.
[Added 7-26-2010 by Ord.
No. 2010-3[1]]
No person shall operate or permit anyone to operate a motorized
dirt bike, mini bike, all-terrain vehicle, go-cart, snowmobiles or
any other vehicle modified, adopted, designed or otherwise used and
operated for recreational fashion:
A.
All specified motor vehicles shall be operated with a federally approved
spark arrestor, the noise may not exceed 99 decibels at a distance
of 20 inches at idle, and mufflers may not be removed or altered to
increase motor noise, or have a cutout bypass or similar device.
B.
No more than three specified motor vehicles shall be operated on
a lot at the same time.
C.
The operation of specified motor vehicles for recreation use shall
be permitted between the hours of 9:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m., prevailing
time, on Monday through Saturday. The operation of specified motor
vehicles for recreational use on Sundays shall be between the hours
of 11:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m., prevailing time. Specified motor vehicles
may be operated on a lot for no longer than two hours at a time; and
there shall be a one-hour rest period between each two-hour time period
of specified motor vehicle operation.
D.
No person shall make or cause to be made any noise which is offensive
to the ordinary sensibilities of the residents of Hilltown Township,
which noise renders the enjoyment of life or property uncomfortable
or interferes with public peace and comfort.
E.
The following are exemptions from regulation of this chapter:
(1)
Any specified motor vehicle used by the Township or other governmental
agency conducting official business.
(2)
Any specified motor vehicle actively being used for agricultural
purposes.
(3)
Any specified motor vehicle actively being used for snow and/or ice
removal purposes or maintenance of real property.
(4)
Any specified motor vehicle being operated in accordance with a duly
declared state of emergency by the Governor of this commonwealth for
an actual emergency purpose.
(5)
Any medically certified physically handicapped or disabled or mentally
impaired person (per the Americans with Disabilities Act) requiring
assistance accessing the property and the use of a specified motor
vehicle is the only means to gain such access.
Upon failure to comply with any terms or conditions
of this chapter, the owner and/or occupant shall be notified by the
Hilltown Township Board of Supervisors or its authorized representative,
by certified mail, or through personal service, of said violation
or violations. Such notification shall be in writing and shall identify
the premises and shall cite the specific violation or violations;
shall direct the owner and/or occupant to commence correction of the
deficiency and/or deficiencies within five days of receiving notice,
and come into full compliance with this chapter within 30 days from
the receipt of such notice and shall inform the owner and/or occupant
of the fines and penalties which would accrue for the failure to comply.
The notice shall also advise that, in lieu of or in addition to fines
and penalties, and subsequent to the five-day period for commencement
of correction and thirty-day period for complete compliance, the Hilltown
Township may itself correct the deficiencies or contract for the correction
thereof and assess the cost thereof as a lien against the premises
and/or recover the expenses so incurred in a manner as prescribed
by law. In the event the owner and/or occupant cannot be ascertained
or is not able to be located, a notice, containing the above required
information in summary form, shall be published once in each of two
consecutive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation in the Hilltown
Township, advising of the existence of the violation and requiring
correction thereof, in accordance with the terms and conditions herein
established; detailed notice thereof shall be posted on the subject
premises and at the Hilltown Township Building.
The owner and/or occupant shall have five days
from the receipt of a notice of violation or, alternatively, from
the date of the second appearance of the published notice of violation,
to commence correction of any and all stipulated deficiencies. The
deficiency must be eliminated, and the owner and/or occupant must
be in complete compliance with this chapter within 30 days of the
receipt of notice of violation or the date of the second appearance
of the published notice of violation (in the event that the owner
cannot be located). Extensions to the five-day period and thirty-day
period described above may be granted by Hilltown Township upon demonstration
by the owner and/or occupant that such an extension thereto is warranted
and justified. Failure to comply shall constitute a violation of this
chapter. A conviction of an owner and/or occupant shall not ban further
prosecutions for noncompliance with this chapter subsequent to such
conviction.
The remedies provided herein for the enforcement
of this chapter or any remedy provided by law shall not be deemed
mutually exclusive; rather, they may be employed simultaneously or
consecutively at the option of the governing body.
Any person who violates or permits a violation
of this chapter shall, upon conviction in a summary proceeding brought
before a District Justice under the Pennsylvania Rules of Criminal
Procedure, be guilty of a summary offense and shall be punishable
by a fine of not more than $1,000, plus costs of prosecution. In default
of payment thereof, the defendant may be sentenced to imprisonment
for a term not exceeding 90 days. Each day or portion thereof that
such violation continues or is permitted to continue shall constitute
a separate offense, and each section of this chapter that is violated
shall also constitute a separate offense.
If the premises are owned by more than one owner,
each shall severally be subject to prosecution of the violation of
this chapter.
The Hilltown Township Board of Supervisors may,
or may cause, through an authorized representative of the Hilltown
Township, entry onto premises for the purpose of inspection of any
and all premises, properties, buildings and/or structures located
within the Hilltown Township for ascertaining the existence of violations.
In those matters where the nature of an alleged violation is such
that an inspection of the interior of a building or structure is necessitated,
prior arrangements must be made with the owner, or his agent, to secure
access thereof.
