This chapter and attached map shall be known
as and may be cited as the "Adams Township Zoning Ordinance of 2000,"
in accordance with and exercising the authority of the Pennsylvania
Municipalities Planning Code to:
A. Regulate the location and use of buildings, structures
and land for residence, agriculture, commerce, industry and other
purpose;
B. Control the height, number of stories, size and placement
of buildings and other structures;
C. Divide the Township into districts of such size, shape
and area as may be deemed best suited to serve the needs of all the
residents and property owners; and
D. Establish procedures for the administration, enforcement
and amendment of this chapter.
The regulations and restrictions of this chapter
are deemed necessary in order to:
A. Promote the public health, safety, morals and general
welfare;
B. Secure safety from fire, flood, mudslide, panic and
other dangers, and to provide adequate open spaces for light, air
and amenity;
C. Conserve and stabilize property values through the
most appropriate uses of land in relation to one another;
D. Preserve and protect agricultural lands for agricultural
use;
E. Preserve forests, agricultural lands, floodplain areas,
stream corridors, recreation lands, and other sensitive environmental
lands from conflict with urban development;
F. Facilitate the economic provision of adequate transportation,
water supply, sewage disposal, public schools, parks and other public
requirements;
G. Prevent overcrowding or improper development of land,
blighting conditions, and congestion in travel and transportation;
H. Preserve and protect the rural and agricultural character
of the community by directing new development to appropriate locations
and minimizing the visual, traffic, and other impacts of such development;
I. Encourage innovative residential development so that
the growing demand for housing may be met by greater variety in type,
design, and layout of dwellings, and by conservation and more efficient
use of open space ancillary to such dwellings;
J. Encourage nonresidential development that preserves
and protects the rural character of the community, and that minimizes
objectionable noise, glare, odor, traffic and other impacts of such
development, especially when adjacent to residential uses; and
K. Manage overall community growth, including population
and employment growth, to benefit the community and to encourage orderly
development.
In addition to the general purpose supporting adoption of this chapter as noted in §
192-2, the following specific community development objectives, as identified and discussed in the Township's Comprehensive Plan, relative to land use, density of population and location and function of streets and other community facilities and utilities have been considered in developing the regulations and controls of this chapter:
A. Adams Township is essentially a residential/agricultural
community with growth potential and opportunities for future limited
commercial and industrial development.
B. Future development shall result in a compatible blending
of residential, commercial, and industrial activities in which conditions
created by commercial and industrial growth do not prohibit residential
or potentially residential growth.
C. Future development shall occur such that residential
and nonresidential activities, and the conditions or impacts created
by such activities, do not prevent or hinder viable agricultural pursuits
in the community.
D. Large-scale residential development shall be channeled
into areas where public sewage disposal and water supply systems either
exist or where extension of service is scheduled pursuant to the Township's
Comprehensive Plan, or the utility extension program of the municipal
authority with jurisdiction, and should occur where access to arterial
highways is available or in close proximity. Residential developments
should also be encouraged that provide a variety of housing choices
and mix of dwelling types.
E. As identified in the Comprehensive Plan, commercial
and industrial growth shall be concentrated at selected locations
along the Township's two major roadway corridors (the Route 228 and
the Callery-Mars-Valencia corridors) rather than in a sprawling linear
pattern. Adequate parking and safe ingress and egress shall be required
to maintain the safety and capacity of the highways; by requiring
access roads rather than permitting permanent direct access from major
arterials.
F. A variety of neighborhood and Township scaled commercial
uses shall be available through an optional overlay zoning procedure
established in order to mitigate the impact of increased traffic volumes
generated by developing areas in the State Route 228 Corridor, and
to maintain the Township's rural character.
G. All future development in the community shall be sited
and developed in such ways as to maximize preservation and protection
of the Township's rural and agricultural character and its natural
and scenic resources, including, but not limited to, floodplains,
stream corridors, wetlands, open fields, meadows and other open space,
existing trees and vegetation, historic structures and existing farm
buildings.
H. Areas susceptible to flooding and high water table
conditions shall be left undeveloped, graded to minimize flooding
problems without constricting stream flow, or developed with uses
that suffer minimum damage and cause minimum downstream damage if
inundated.
I. Development of steep slopes shall be discouraged and
every effort shall be made to prevent erosion and pollution of water
resources as the result of development. Township approval of any development
activity within areas subject to flooding or with problems related
to underlying soils or slopes should be given only after consent from
the State Department of Environmental Protection and/or other appropriate
county, state or federal review agencies.