Unless a contrary intention clearly appears, the following words
and phrases shall have, for the purposes of this chapter, the meanings
given in the following clauses:
A.Â
Words used in the present tense include the future.
B.Â
The singular includes the plural.
C.Â
The word "person" includes a corporation, partnership, association
or other legal entity, as well as the individual.
D.Â
The word "lot" includes the words "plot" or "parcel."
E.Â
The term "shall" is mandatory.
F.Â
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."
G.Â
The word "Commission" and the words "Planning Commission" always
mean the Penndel Planning Commission.
Any word or term not defined herein shall be used with a meaning
of standard usage, except that words defined in the Penndel Borough
Zoning Ordinance[1] shall have such definition herein unless a contrary intention
clearly appears.
A building, structure or use which is customarily associated
with and is subordinate and incidental to the principal building,
structure or use, and which is located on the same lot therewith.
An accessory building attached to the principal building shall comply
in all respects with the requirements applicable to the principal
building.
Any person, other than the developer, who, acting for the
developer, submits the subdivision or land development plans for the
purpose of obtaining approval thereof.
A landowner or developer, as hereinafter defined, who has
filed an application for development, including his heirs, successors
and assigns.
Every application, whether preliminary or final, required
to be filed and approved prior to start of construction or development,
including but not limited to an application for a building permit
for the approval of a subdivision plat or plan or for the approval
of a development plan.
[Added 11-2-1987 by Ord. No. 87-4]
A professional architect registered by the Commonwealth of
Pennsylvania.
An area bounded by two or more streets.
Borough of Penndel.
A professional engineer designated by the Borough Council
to perform the duties of a Borough Engineer.
A strip of land established to protect adjacent land uses.
Buffer yards are intended to visually soften the outline of buildings,
to screen glare and noise, and to create a visual barrier between
adjacent land uses.
The total of areas taken on a horizontal plane at the main
grade level of the principal building and all accessory buildings,
exclusive of uncovered porches, terraces and steps.
[Added 11-2-1987 by Ord. No. 87-4]
That percentage of the plot or lot area covered by the building
area.
[Added 11-2-1987 by Ord. No. 87-4]
A vertical distance measured from the front side of the mean
elevation of the proposed finish grade at the street side of the building
to the highest point of the roof for flat roofs, to the decklines
of mansard roofs and to the mean height between eaves and ridge for
gable, hip and gambrel roofs.
[Added 11-2-1987 by Ord. No. 87-4]
A structure having a roof, which is used for the shelter
or enclosure of persons, animals or property. The word "building"
shall include any part thereof.
The rear line of the minimum front yards, as herein designated
for each district, measured from the street line.
[Added 11-2-1987 by Ord. No. 87-4]
Caliper is the maximum thickness or diameter of a tree at
a specified point. For measuring street trees and trees for buffering
and landscaping purposes, caliper measurements shall be taken at a
point on the trunk six inches above natural ground line for trees
up to four inches in caliper and at a point 12 inches above the natural
ground for trees over four inches in caliper. For measuring existing
trees to determine whether they are a forest resource, caliper measurements
shall be taken at a point on the trunk 4Â 1/2 feet above natural
ground line.
The portion of a street right-of-way, paved or unpaved, intended
for vehicular use.
A line midway between and parallel to the two edges of the
cartway, or as otherwise defined by the Borough Engineer.
An area of unobstructed vision at street intersections defined
by lines of sight between points at a given distance from the intersection
of the street.
A planned development of single-family detached, semidetached
or attached dwellings on lots with modified dimensional requirements.
Such developments are subject to the following provisions:
[Added 11-2-1987 by Ord. No. 87-4]
Detached, semidetached or attached single-family dwellings are
permitted uses in the district in which such development is proposed.
An amount of land shall be set aside as permanent usable open
space. Such open space shall:
Either be dedicated to the Borough, if acceptable to it, or
be maintained by a homeowners' association. A homeowners' association
must comply with the provisions of Section 705(d) of the Pennsylvania
Municipalities Planning Code (Act 247 of 1968).
Be suitable for use as a park, playground, pedestrian accessway,
school or other similar public purpose or, because of its topography,
vegetation or other natural character, be left open with no particular
use assigned to it.[2]
Be suitable for the construction of single-family homes under
normal subdivision procedure. If a portion of such development is
unusable, either because of periodic flooding or for any other reason,
then the portion of such development declared to be unusable shall
be excluded from any calculation for permissible density and usable
open space.
Comprise at least 25% of the total development.
The minimum lot area required in an R-3 District is four acres.
Refer to § 405-31 (in the Zoning chapter) for residential performance standard subdivision regulations.
The maximum density shall be five units per acre.
Penndel Borough Council.
A publicly or privately owned right-of-way for pedestrian
use which crosses a cartway or driveway.
A street which intersects another street at one end and terminates
at the other in a vehicular turnaround.
Any landowner, agent of such landowner or tenant with the
permission of such landowner, who makes or causes to be made a subdivision
of land or a land development.
See "land development."
The provisions for development of a planned residential development,
including a plat of subdivision, all covenants related to use, location
and bulk of buildings and other structures, intensity of use or density
of development, streets, ways and parking facilities, common open
space and public facilities. The phrase "provisions of the development
plan," when used in this chapter, shall mean the written and graphic
materials referred to in this definition.
[Added 11-2-1987 by Ord. No. 87-4]
Any room or group of rooms located within a residential building
and forming a single habitable unit, with facilities which are used,
or intended to be used, for living, sleeping, cooking, and eating
by one family.
[Added 11-2-1987 by Ord. No. 87-4]
A grant of the specified use of a parcel of land to the public,
a corporation or person.
A professional engineer licensed as such in the Commonwealth
of Pennsylvania, duly appointed as the Engineer for a municipality,
planning agency, or joint planning commission.
The process by which soil and bedrock are worn away by the
action of wind, water or climate or chemical action.
The vertical elevation of ground surface, above or below
sea level, prior to earthmoving or filling.
The final vertical elevation, above or below sea level, of
the ground surface after development.
The sum of the areas of the several floors of a building
structure, including areas used for human occupancy and basements,
attics and penthouses, as measured from the exterior faces of the
walls. It does not include cellars, unenclosed porches, attics not
used for human occupancy or any floor space in an accessory building
or in the main building intended and designed for the parking of motor
vehicles in order to meet the parking requirements of this chapter
or any such floor space intended and designed for accessory heating
and ventilating equipment.
[Added 11-2-1987 by Ord. No. 87-4]
A measure of intensity of site use. It shall be calculated
by dividing the total floor area on the site by the gross site area.
[Added 11-2-1987 by Ord. No. 87-4]
Areas, groves or stands of mature trees (i.e., greater than
eight-inch caliper) consisting of 10 or more individual trees covering
an area of 1/4 acre or more.
All buildings, parking areas, driveways, roads, sidewalks
and other areas in concrete on asphalt. Additional areas may be determined
by the Borough Engineer to be impervious within the meaning of this
definition.
[Amended 11-2-1987 by Ord. No. 87-4]
The impervious surface ratio is a measure of the intensity
of use of a piece of land. It is measured by dividing the total area
of all impervious surfaces within the site by the gross site area.
[Amended 11-2-1987 by Ord. No. 87-4]
Include, but are not limited to, walkways, curbs, gutters,
streetlights, traffic control signs, fire hydrants, shade trees, water
mains, sanitary sewers, storm drains, drainage facilities, streets
and roads and all other improvements or facilities which service or
benefit more than one lot, unit or structure.
Any of the following activities:
[Amended 7-1-1991 by Ord. No. 91-3]
The improvement of one lot or two or more contiguous lots, tracts
or parcels of land for any purpose involving:
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; or
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.
A subdivision of land.
The following shall not be considered a land development:
The conversion of an existing single-family detached dwelling
or single-family semidetached dwelling into not more than three residential
units, unless such units are intended to be a condominium;
The addition of an accessory building, including farm buildings,
on a lot or lots subordinate to an existing principal building; or
The addition or conversion of buildings or rides within the
confines of an enterprise which would be considered an amusement park.
For purposes of this exemption, an amusement park is defined as a
tract or area used principally as a location for permanent amusement
structures or rides. This exclusion shall not apply to newly acquired
acreage by an amusement park until the initial plans for the expanded
area have been approved by the municipality.
The legal or beneficial owner or owners of land, including
the holder of an option or contract to purchase (whether or not such
option or contract is subject to any conditions), a lessee if he is
authorized under the lease to exercise the rights of the landowner,
or other persons having a proprietary interest in land.
A loop street is a street which has two points of intersection
with the same road. In its simplest form, a loop street enters a tract,
follows a course through it and returns to the same road at some distance
from the other intersection.
The area of land within designated property lines, including
the area of any easement, used or set aside and available for use
as a site of one or more buildings and any buildings accessory thereto
or for any other purpose, in one ownership and not divided by a street,
nor including any land within the right-of-way of a public or private
street upon which said lot abuts even if the ownership to such right-of-way
is in the owner of the lot. A "lot," for the purpose of this chapter,
may or may not coincide with the lot of record.
The area contained within the property lines of individual
parcels of land shown on a subdivision plan, excluding any area within
a street right-of-way, existing or proposed, but excluding the area
of any easement.
[Added 11-2-1987 by Ord. No. 87-4]
Any boundary line of a lot.
[Added 11-2-1987 by Ord. No. 87-4]
Any lot line which is parallel to or within 45° of being
parallel to a street line, except for a lot line that is itself a
street line, and except that, in the case of a corner lot, the owner
shall have the option of choosing which of the two lot lines that
are not street lines is to be considered a rear lot line. In the case
of a lot having no street frontage or a lot of an odd shape, only
the one lot line farthest from any street shall be considered a rear
lot line.
[Added 11-2-1987 by Ord. No. 87-4]
Any lot line which is not a street line or a rear lot line.
[Added 11-2-1987 by Ord. No. 87-4]
A dwelling unit manufactured in one or more sections for
repeated mobility; designed for long-term occupancy; containing sleeping
accommodations, a flush toilet, a tub or shower, bath and kitchen
facilities, with plumbing and electric connections provided for attachment
to outside systems; and designed to be transported after fabrication
on its own wheels or on flatbed or other trailers; arriving at the
site where it is to be occupied as a dwelling complete, including
major appliances and furniture, and ready for occupancy except for
a minor incidental unpacking and assembly operations. For purposes
of this chapter, travel trailers are not considered as mobile homes.
[Amended 11-2-1987 by Ord. No. 87-4]
A parcel of land in a mobile home park, improved with the
necessary utility connections and other appurtenances necessary for
the erection thereon of a single mobile home, which is leased by the
park owner to the occupants of the mobile home erected on the lot.
[Added 11-2-1987 by Ord. No. 87-4]
A parcel of land under single ownership which has been planned
and improved for the placement of mobile homes for nontransient use,
consisting of two or more mobile home lots.
[Added 11-2-1987 by Ord. No. 87-4]
A fixed marker in a boundary of land; a stone or other permanent
mark serving to indicate an angle or boundary.
[Amended 11-2-1987 by Ord. No. 87-4]
A dwelling having three or more dwelling units which are
completely separated by party walls but share outside access.
[Added 11-2-1987 by Ord. No. 87-4]
Open space is land used for recreation, resource protection,
amenity or buffers and is freely accessible to all residents. It is
regulated by the provisions of this chapter and the Penndel Borough
Zoning Ordinance to ensure that it remains in such uses. Open space
does not include land occupied by buildings, roads or rights-of-way;
the yards or lots of single-family or multifamily dwelling units,
or parking areas as required by the provisions of the Penndel Borough
Zoning Ordinance. Open space may be left in a natural state except
in the case of recreation uses, which may contain impervious spaces.
Such impervious surfaces shall be included in the calculation of the
impervious surface ratio. Parks shall be considered open space.
A measure of the intensity of land use. It is arrived at
by dividing the total amount of open space within the site by the
site area.
[Added 11-2-1987 by Ord. No. 87-4]
An area on a lot used for parking a vehicle, to which there
is access from a street or private drive.
A continuous way designated for pedestrians and separated
from the through lanes for bicycles or motor vehicles by space or
other barrier.
A complete and exact subdivision or land development plan,
including all required supplementary data, prepared for official recording
as required by statute, to define property rights and proposed streets
and other improvements.
A formal subdivision or land development plan (and including
all required supplementary data), showing proposed street and lot
layout as a basis for consideration prior to preparation of a final
plan.
The copy of the final plan which bears the signed and dated
approval of the Borough Engineer, Borough Planning Commission and
Borough Council.
An informal plan, indicating salient existing features of
a tract and its surroundings and the general layout of a proposed
subdivision or land development.
The Planning Commission of Penndel Borough, Bucks County,
Pennsylvania, consisting of three members of Council appointed by
the Borough Council President.[3]
The map or plan of a subdivision or land development, whether
preliminary or final.
[Added 11-2-1987 by Ord. No. 87-4]
A building in which is conducted or intended to be conducted
the principal use of the lot on which it is located.
Includes:
The legal and beneficial owner or owners of land whose interests
appear of record in the office for the recording of deeds in and for
Bucks County.
A reserve strip is a parcel of land which is parallel to
and between a street right-of-way and a tract of land.
An impoundment for stormwater runoff, made by constructing
a dam or embankment or by excavating a pit, for the purpose of retaining
runoff water and releasing it slowly into the ground or into a natural
watercourse at a controlled rate.
Any change of lot lines within a previously approved subdivision.
See also "subdivision."
An examination of the preliminary plan or the final plan
by the Planning Commission or the Borough Council.
Land set aside for use as a street or other means of access.
EXISTING RIGHT-OF-WAYThe legal right-of-way as established by the commonwealth or other appropriate governing authority currently in existence.
FUTURE RIGHT-OF-WAYThe right-of-way deemed necessary to provide adequate width for future street improvements.
See "cartway."
The surface water discharge or rate of discharge of a given
watershed after a fall of rain or snow that does not enter the soil
but runs off the surface of the land.
The process by which mineral or organic matter is accumulated
or deposited by wind, water or gravity. Once this matter is deposited
(or remains suspended in water), it is usually referred to as "sediment."
PUBLIC SEWERAny municipally or privately owned sewer system in which sewage is collected from buildings from more than one lot and/or dwelling unit and piped to an approved sewage disposal system. It may also be referred to as "off-lot" or "off-site" sewer. This shall include capped sewers.
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.
A dwelling having only one dwelling unit from ground to roof,
independent outside access and not more than two walls in common with
adjoining dwellings.
[Added 11-2-1987 by Ord. No. 87-4]
A dwelling having only one dwelling unit from ground to roof,
independent outside access and open space on all sides.
[Added 11-2-1987 by Ord. No. 87-4]
A dwelling having only one dwelling unit from ground to roof,
independent outside access and not more than one wall in common with
an adjoining dwelling.
[Added 11-2-1987 by Ord. No. 87-4]
The total land area to be proposed for subdivision or land
development.
All land area within the site, as defined in the deed or
deeds and as corroborated by a current site survey.
The total or gross area of a site, including all parcels
of land to be subdivided or used for multiple uses, less any land
lying within proposed street rights-of-way.
[Added 11-2-1987 by Ord. No. 87-4]
Areas of at least 1/4 acre in size where the average slope
exceeds 15%.
The proper placing, grading and/or covering of soil, rock
or earth to ensure its resistance to erosion, sliding or other movement.
Includes street, avenue, boulevard, road, highway, freeway,
parkway, land, alley, viaduct and any other ways used or intended
to be used by vehicular traffic or pedestrians, whether public or
private.
The dividing line between the street and the lot. The street
line shall be the same as the legal right-of-way, provided that, where
a proposed right-of-way width for a road or street has been established,
that width shall determine the location of the street line.
[Amended 11-2-1987 by Ord. No. 87-4]
Any man-made object having an ascertainable stationary location
on or in land or water, whether or not affixed to the land.
See "developer."
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, 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 or residential
dwellings, shall be exempted.
Any subdivision not classified as a "minor subdivision."
The division of a single lot into two lots or the transfer
of land from one lot to an adjacent lot without creating a greater
number of lots.
Where, in the judgment of the Engineer, at least 90% (based on the costs of the required improvements for which financial security was posted pursuant to § 355-18E) or those improvements required as a condition for final approval have been completed in accordance with the approved plan, so that the project will be able to be used, occupied or operated for its intended use.[4]
[Added 11-2-1987 by Ord. No. 87-4]
A professional land surveyor registered by the Commonwealth
of Pennsylvania.
Any activity, occupation, business or operation carried on
or intended to be carried on in a building or other structure or on
a tract of land.
[Added 11-2-1987 by Ord. No. 87-4]
A use located on the same lot with a principal use and clearly
incidental or subordinate to and customary in connection with the
principal use.
[Added 11-2-1987 by Ord. No. 87-4]
The main use of a lot.
[Added 11-2-1987 by Ord. No. 87-4]
Those services customarily rendered by public utility corporations,
municipalities or municipal authorities, in the nature of electricity,
gas, telephone, water and sewerage, including the appurtenances used
in connection with the supplying of such services (buildings, wires,
pipes, poles, transformers, and the like). For purposes of this chapter,
cable television transmission equipment shall be included.
The area from the edge of the cartway to the edge of the
sidewalk used for street trees, utilities and landscaping.
[Added 2-7-2005 by Ord. No. 2005-2]
Any natural or artificial swale, stream or structure in which
water flows continuously or intermittently.
Any waterworks, water supply works, water distribution system
or part thereof designed, intended or constructed to provide or distribute
potable water.
[Amended 11-2-1987 by Ord. No. 87-4]
Public water. Water brought from off the lot in pipes from a
central water source. It may be municipally or privately owned and
may supply either a subdivision, development or large area of the
Borough.
Private water. Water supplied to a building from an individual
well on the lot on which the building is located.
Areas known as marshes, swamps or wetlands, including all
areas greater than 1/4 acre, where standing water is retained naturally
for a portion of the year and unique vegetation has adapted to the
area.
[Amended 11-2-1987 by Ord. No. 87-4]
An open space unobstructed from the ground up, on the same
lot with a structure, extending along a lot line or street line and
inward to the structure. The size of a required yard shall be measured
at the shortest distance between the structure and the lot line or
street line.
[Amended 11-2-1987 by Ord. No. 87-4]
A yard between a structure and a street line and extending
the entire length of the street line. In the case of a corner lot,
the yards extending along all streets are front yards. In the case
of a lot other than that fronts on more than one street, the yards
extending along all streets are front yards.
[Added 11-2-1987 by Ord. No. 87-4]
A yard between the principal structure and a rear lot line
and extending the entire length of the rear lot line.
[Added 11-2-1987 by Ord. No. 87-4]
A yard between a structure and a side lot line, extending
from the front yard to the rear yard. In the case of a lot having
no street frontage or a lot of odd shape, any yard that is not a front
yard or a rear yard shall be considered a side yard.
[Added 11-2-1987 by Ord. No. 87-4]
