Every developer as defined in Chapter
161, Subdivision and Land Development, and every other land owner desiring street lighting may acquire said lighting at the discretion of the Township Supervisors upon submitting detailed plans to the Supervisors as to the location of said illuminating device, the type and size of said illuminating device, the placement of standards upon which said illuminating device will be erected, the location of underground facilities, if any, and such other information as the Township Engineer deems appropriate.
The Township will enter into contracts with the appropriate public utility in order to provide the developers and land owners as contemplated by §
157-16 for the erection of said illuminating device; provided, however, that the developer and/or land owner shall immediately reimburse the Township for the actual cost incurred by the Township.
The developer and/or land owner shall pay an annual assessment for all
costs and expenses incurred by the Township in continuing to provide and maintain
said illuminating device. The assessments for street lighting shall be filed
with the Township Tax Collector, who shall give 30 days' written or printed
notice that the assessments are due and payable, stating the due date to each
party assessed, either by service on the owner of the property or by mailing
such notice to the owner at his last known post office address. The Tax Collector
shall be entitled to the same commission for the collection of such assessments
as he is entitled to by law for the collection of the Township road tax. If
the assessments, or any of them, remain unpaid at the expiration of 90 days,
they shall be placed in the hands of the Township Solicitor for collection.
The Solicitor shall collect the same, together with 5% as attorney's commission,
and interest, from the date of such assessments were due, by a municipal claim
filed against the property of the delinquent owner in like manner as municipal
claims are by law filed and collected. Where an owner has two or more lots
against which there is an assessment for the same year, all such lots shall
be embraced in one claim. All assessments, when collected, shall be paid over
to the Township Treasurer, who shall receive and shall keep the same in a
separate account, and pay out the same only upon orders signed by the Chairman
of the Township Supervisors, attested by the Secretary. The Tax Collector
and the Treasurer shall make a report to the auditors of the Township annually.
The Township Supervisors shall annually assess or cause to be assessed
the cost and expense of the maintenance of said lights by an equal assessment
on all property within 250 feet of such lighting in proportion to the number
of feet the same fronts on the street or highway or portion thereof to be
lighted. The Supervisors may provide for an equitable reduction from the frontage
of lots at intersections or where, from the peculiar or pointed shape of lots,
an assessment of the full frontage would be inequitable. No such assessment
shall be made against any farm land, but vacant lots between built-up sections,
whether tilled or untilled, shall not be deemed to be farm lands; provided,
however, that the assessment per front foot against vacant lots shall be only
25% of the assessment per foot front against property with improvements thereon.
Every developer and/or land owner who secures lighting pursuant to this
article must file at his own expense in the Office of the Recorder of Deeds
of Beaver County, a deed of protective covenant or like instrument which will
give public notice that assessments for lighting will be made.