[Adopted 12-16-1976 by Ord. No. 76-4]
The Board of Supervisors has determined that the state-mandated
allocation to and reservation by developers of sanitary sewer system
capacity for future use creates an unreasonable and inequitable economic
burden upon the Township and the existing users of the system. Until
such time as subdividers and land developers choose to make use of
such reserved sewer capacity, the Township and ultimately the existing
users of the system are required to amortize the cost of the reserved
facilities. Moreover, such reserved capacity remains unavailable to
other persons who may have immediate need of the same. It is, therefore,
deemed to be in the public interest of the Township, the existing
users of the sanitary sewer system and potential users without reserves
capacity that developers desiring or required to reserve sanitary
sewer system capacity pay a charge designed and calculated to amortize
the cost of that portion of the system allocated to and reserved by
them. The purpose of this article is to provide for the imposition
and collection of such charge to be known as "Reserve Rental Due to
Fixed Charges."
This article shall apply to that portion of the sanitary sewer
system of West Manchester Township from which sewage will be discharged
into and treated at the Dover Township Wastewater Treatment Plant.
As used in this article, the following terms shall have the
meanings indicated:
The Department of Environmental Resources of the Commonwealth
of Pennsylvania or its successor in authority.
The permit which is required by the Department of Environmental
Resources of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania for the construction
of a new sanitary sewer system or the extension of an existing sanitary
sewer system.
Any landowner who makes, causes to be made or proposes to
make (as evidenced by submission) a subdivision of land or a land
development.
Any room, group of rooms, house, trailer or other structure
or enclosure occupied or intended for occupancy as separate living
quarters by a family or persons living together or by persons living
alone. The volume of sanitary sewage generated by one "EDU" is stated
to be 350 gallons per day, average.
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 buildings;
The division or allocation of land or space 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; or
Any other project requiring the approval of the Board of Supervisors
of the Township pursuant to any act or ordinance.
The modules required by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental
Resources under Act 537, the Pennsylvania Sewage Facilities Act.[1]
Any individual or group of individuals, partnership, joint
venture, public or private corporation or any other entity of any
nature.
The charge imposed upon developers to pay for fixed charges
incurred for reservation of sanitary sewer capacity.
The sewage volume capacity allocated to and reserved by a
developer.
A subdivision of land into lots intended for conveyance to
persons for single-family dwelling sites.
All sanitary sewers, all pumping stations, all force mains,
all sewage treatment works and all other sewage facilities owned by
or leased to and operated by the Township for the collection, transportation
and treatment of sanitary sewage and industrial wastes, together with
their appurtenances, and any additions, extensions or improvements
thereto. Said term shall also include sewers within the Township which
serve one or more properties discharging into the public "sanitary
sewage system" even though such sewers may not have been constructed
by the Township and are not owned or maintained by the Township.
The division of a single lot, tract or parcel of land or
part thereof into two or more lots, tracts or parcels of land, including
changes in street lines or lot lines for the purposes, whether immediate
or future, of improvement and development.
The Township of West Manchester, York County, Pennsylvania.
[1]
Editor's Note: See 35 P.S. § 750.1 et seq.
A.
All developers desiring to reserve sewer capacity in the sewage facilities applicable to the developer's property subject to a rental due to fixed charges to reserve sewer capacity as provided in § 109-22.5 shall prepare and submit to the Township with their preliminary development plan, and in no event less than 30 days prior to the date of Township consideration of a plan as the final plan, a written application requesting the allocation to and reservation of sanitary sewer capacity for the development.
B.
The application for the reservation of such sewer capacity shall
be in the form provided by the Township, contain a time schedule for
the development of the subdivision or land development and include
such other information and supporting data as the Township shall determine
is reasonably necessary to estimate a five-year sewage flow from the
development.
C.
The Township shall, in its sole discretion, based upon competent
engineering advice and all other facts or factors and conditions relating
to the sanitary sewage system existing at the time of approval, determine
the sewer capacity to be allocated to and reserved by the applicant
for the development.
D.
In the event that the Department of Environmental Resources shall
cancel, revoke or stay the effectiveness of any permit for any reason,
or should it for any reason impose a ban on connections or extensions
to the sanitary sewer system, the Township shall not as a result thereof
incur any liability of any nature to a developer allocated reserve
capacity.
A.
To the extent that the developer applies for reserve capacity, an
annual rental charge for reserve sewer capacity is hereby imposed
upon the following:
(1)
The developer of all existing subdivisions and land developments
shown on the Township's official comprehensive sewage plan approved
by the Department of Environmental Resources and for which a DER permit
has been issued for public sewage service on the effective date of
this article.
(2)
The developer of all subdivisions and land developments hereafter
approved by the Township which require DER permits for public sewage
service.
(3)
The developer of all other developments or projects not requiring
a DER permit, but with projected sewage flows of 1,000 gallons or
more per day.
B.
The annual reserve rental charge shall be applicable and continue
in effect until any of the following events occur:
The reserve rental charge for reserved capacity shall be as
follows:
A.
The rental charge shall be paid quarterly as of the first day of
January, April, July and October of each calendar year.
B.
In the case of new subdivisions or land developments, the first quarterly
payment shall be due and payable immediately upon final approval of
the plan by the Board of Supervisors of the Township.
A.
A penalty of 1% per month shall be added 30 days after the date upon
which a quarterly payment is due and remains unpaid.
B.
The Township shall not issue a plumbing permit to or for the use
of a developer of a subdivision or land development for which a quarterly
payment is due and has remained unpaid for 30 days.
D.
If any quarterly payment remains unpaid for 60 days, the Township
shall have the right to cancel and rescind the reserved capacity after
giving 30 days' written notice to developer of its intent to do so.
If, during said thirty-day period, the developer pays all unpaid charges,
plus penalties, the Township's right to cancel and rescind shall not
be exercised.
[Added 5-12-1977 by Ord. No. 77-3]
Quarter-annually, after completion of each quarterly billing
period, a developer who has reserved sewer capacity may apply to the
Township to have the reserve capacity and quarterly rental charges
adjusted to reflect capacity utilized by connection to the sanitary
sewage system during the preceding quarter. Said adjustments shall
be as follows:
A.
Residential subdivisions. For each EDU connected to the system during
such quarter, the developer's reserve capacity shall be reduced by
one EDU, and the quarterly rental charge for the current quarter shall
be reduced to reflect each EDU so connected.
B.
All other subdivisions, land developments and projects. For each
1,000 gallons of average daily flow connected to the system during
such quarter, determined from the last quarter of measured water consumption,
the developer's reserve capacity shall be reduced by 1,000 gallons,
and the quarterly rental charge for the current quarter shall be reduced
to reflect each one-thousand-gallon unit so connected.
A.
In the evens that the reserve capacity of any developer shall be determined to be insufficient for the subdivision or land development during the term of any permit and the developer shall request additional reserve capacity, such request shall be processed as a new application in accordance with the provisions of § 109-22.4.
B.
If after five years from the date of final approval by the Township a subdivision or land development is still in need of all or a portion of the sewer capacity originally reserved, the developer shall make application to the Township for continued reserve capacity, which shall be processed as a new application in accordance with the provisions of § 109-22.4.
A developer may, at any time, upon written application to the
Township, cancel all or any portion of the reserve capacity allocated
to and reserved by him. Such cancellation shall be effective as of
the date of the next billing quarter, provided that the application
shall have been made at least 30 days prior thereto.
A.
Sewer capacity allocated to and reserved by a developer for a specific
subdivision or land development shall apply to and be valid only for
such subdivision or land development.
B.
Reserve capacity shall be in the nature of a covenant running with
the land, and upon the sale or conveyance by any means of any unimproved
lot, parcel, tract or any part of a subdivision or land development,
the reserve capacity applicable to such lot, parcel, tract or part
of the subdivision or land development shall become the property of
the new owner thereof, with or without a formal assignment of such
reserve capacity.
All revenues received by the Township from the quarterly rental
charges imposed by this article shall be segregated by accounting
practices from all other revenues of the Township and shall be deposited
in the Sewer Revenue Fund. Said revenues shall be used for the sanitary
sewer system as authorized in the lease agreement between the Township
and the Shiloh Sewer Authority dated as of July 1, 1973, and amendments
thereto.
To the extent that land was ripe for subdivision or land development
as of January 1, 1977, the rental due to fixed charges to reserve
sewer capacity shall be retroactive to January 1, 1977. It is the
intent of this section that those developers who own land ripe for
subdivision or land development but do not choose immediately to reserve
sewer capacity do not enjoy any financial advantage over those developers
who reserve sewer capacity immediately upon enactment of this article.
The retroactive charges shall not apply to single building lots in
existence on January 1, 1977.
This article shall be effective five days after enactment, except
that the quarterly rental charges shall not commence until the quarter
beginning January 1, 1977; and this article shall apply only to that
portion of the Township's sanitary sewer system where sewage will
be treated at the Dover Township Wastewater Treatment Plant.