No plan shall be granted final approval until the applicant either:
A. 
Installs all required improvements in accordance with the terms of approval and the applicable design standards of said improvements.
B. 
Posts a form of financial security, acceptable to the Borough Council, which shall be of sufficient amount to fully cover the costs of all required improvements in accordance with the terms of approval and the applicable design standards of said improvements. The Borough Council shall retain sole discretion in all matters and decisions related to the acceptance and/or approval of the posting of any financial security.
A. 
A financial guarantee which shall be deemed as acceptable financial security for the purposes of this chapter shall include:
(1) 
An unconditional and irrevocable letter of credit with authorization for drawing upon by the Borough in the event of default or failure by the developer or applicant to complete the installation of required improvements.
(2) 
A restrictive escrow account.
(3) 
Other types of financial security which the Borough may approve, which approval shall not be unreasonably withheld.
B. 
Such financial security shall be with a lending institution which is chartered by the federal government or the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania or with a bonding company which is legally authorized to conduct such business within the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
When an applicant proposes to provide a financial security, said financial security shall be submitted to the Borough Council and its Solicitor for review not less than 14 days prior to the public meeting of the Borough Council at which the acceptance and/or approval of proposed financial security will be considered by the Borough Council.
The amount of financial security to be posted for the completion or required improvements shall be equal to 110% of the cost of completion, estimated as of 90 days following the scheduled completion date. The amount of the required financial security shall be based upon a written estimated cost of completion of required improvements submitted by the developer or applicant and prepared by a professional engineer licensed as such by the Commonwealth. Said engineer shall certify, in writing, that his estimated cost for the completion of the required improvements is a fair and reasonable estimate. The Borough Council, upon the recommendation of the Borough Engineer, may, for good cause shown, refuse to accept the developer's estimated cost. In cases where the Borough and the developer or applicant are unable to agree on an estimate, then the estimate shall be recalculated and recertified by another licensed professional engineer mutually accepted by the Borough and the developer or applicant. The estimate certified by the third-party engineer, being presumed fair and reasonable, shall be deemed the final estimate. In the event that the third-party engineer is chosen, the cost of his services shall be paid equally by the Borough and the developer or applicant.
A. 
The financial security shall provide for, and secure to the public, the completion of the required improvements within one year of the date fixed on the final plan for the completion of such improvements.
B. 
If the applicant in posting the financial security requires more than one year from the date of posting the financial security to complete the required improvements, the amount of financial security may be increased by an addition 10% for each one-year period beyond the anniversary date from posting of the financial security or to an amount not exceeding 110% of the cost of completing the required improvements as reestablished on or before the expiration of the preceding one-year period.
In the case where development is projected over a period of years, the Borough Council may authorize the submission of final plans by sections or phases of development, subject to such requirements or guarantees as to improvements in future sections or phases of development as it finds essential for the protection of any finally approved section of the development.
The applicant and/or developer shall provide the Borough and the Borough Engineer with not less than a seventy-two-hour notice prior to the commencement of work at the site.
The Borough Engineer shall make periodic inspections to the site during the construction of improvements to ensure the work is in conformance with the approved plans. The Borough Engineer shall promptly provide the Borough Council with a written report after any such inspection.
A. 
As the work of installing the required improvements proceeds, the party posting financial security may request the Borough Council to release or authorize the release, from time to time, of such portions of the financial security necessary for payment to the contractor or contractors performing the work.
B. 
Any such request shall be in writing addressed to the Borough Council. The Borough Council shall have 45 days from receipt of such request within which to allow the Borough Engineer to certify, in writing, to the Borough Council that such portion of the work upon the improvements has been completed in accordance with the approved plan.
C. 
Upon such certification, the Borough Council shall authorize release by the bonding company or lending institution of an amount as estimated by the Borough Engineer as fair in representing the value of the completed improvements. Failure of the Borough Council to act within the said forty-five-day period shall be deemed an approval of the release of the funds requested.
D. 
The Borough Council may, prior to final release at the time of completion and certification by its Engineer, require retention of 10% of the estimated cost of the aforesaid improvements.
A. 
Where Summit Hill Borough accepts dedication of all or some of the required improvements following completion, it shall require the posting of financial security to secure the structural integrity of said improvements, as well as the functioning of said improvements, in accordance with the design and specifications as shown on the final plan for a term not to exceed 18 months from the date of acceptance of dedication.
B. 
Said financial security shall be of the same type as otherwise required in § 430-48 of this chapter with regard to installation of such improvements, and the amount of the financial security shall not exceed 15% of the actual cost of installation of said improvements.
If water mains or sanitary sewer lines, or both, along with apparatus or facilities related thereto, are to be installed under the jurisdiction and pursuant to the rules and regulations of a public utility or municipal authority separate and distinct from the Borough, financial security to assure proper completion and maintenance thereof shall be posted in accordance with the regulations of the controlling public utility or municipal authority and shall not be included within the financial security as otherwise required by this section. A copy of any such executed financial security shall be provided to the Borough Council not less than 14 days prior to its next regularly scheduled meeting at which the final plan shall be considered.
A. 
If financial security has been provided in lieu of the completion of improvements required as a condition for final approval as set forth in this article, the Borough shall not condition the issuance of zoning, building, grading or other permits relating to the erection or placement improvements, including buildings, upon the lots or land as shown on the final plan upon actual completion of the improvements shown on the approved final plan.
B. 
If a financial security has been provided, certificates of zoning compliance or occupancy permits for any building or buildings to be erected shall not be withheld following:
(1) 
The improvement of the streets providing access to and from existing public roads to such building or buildings to a mud-free or otherwise permanently passable condition; and
(2) 
The completion of all other improvements as shown on the approved final plan, either upon the lot or lots beyond the lot or lots in question, if such improvements are deemed necessary for the reasonable use of or occupancy of the building or buildings.
A. 
When the applicant has completed all of the necessary and required improvements, the applicant shall notify the Borough Council, in writing, by certified or registered mail, of the completion of the aforesaid improvements and shall send a copy thereof to the Borough Engineer.
B. 
The Borough Council shall, within 10 days after receipt of such notice, direct and authorize the Borough Engineer to inspect all the aforesaid improvements. The Borough Engineer shall thereupon file a report, in writing, with the Borough Council and shall promptly mail a copy of the same to the developer. The report by the Borough Engineer shall be made and mailed within 30 days from the aforesaid authorization from the Borough Council.
C. 
The report shall be detailed and shall indicate approval or rejection of said improvements, either in whole or in part. If said improvements, or any portion thereof be rejected, said report shall contain a statement of the reasons for such rejection.
D. 
The Borough Council shall notify the developer, in writing, within 15 days of receipt of the Borough Engineer's report, by certified or registered mail, of the action of the Borough Council with relation thereto.
E. 
If the Borough Council or the Borough Engineer fails to comply with the time limitation provisions contained herein, all improvements will be deemed to have been approved and the applicant shall be released from all liability, pursuant to its performance guarantee bond or other security agreements.
Nothing herein, however, shall be construed in limitation of the applicant's right to contest or question by legal proceedings or otherwise any determination of the Borough Council or Borough Engineer.
A. 
In the event that any improvements which may be required have not been installed as provided in this chapter or in accordance with the approved final plan, the Borough can enforce any corporate bond or other security by appropriate legal and equitable remedies.
B. 
If the proceeds of such bond or other security are insufficient to pay the cost of installing or making repairs or corrections to all the improvements covered by said security, the Borough may, at its option, install part of such improvements in all or part of the subdivision or land development or may institute appropriate legal or equitable action to recover the moneys necessary to complete the remainder of the improvements.
C. 
All of the proceeds, whether resulting from the security or from any legal or equitable action, or from both, brought against the applicant, shall be used solely for the installation of the improvements covered by such security, and not for any other municipal purpose.
In addition to the fees noted in § 430-11 of this chapter, the developer shall be responsible for payment of all engineering fees which the Borough may incur as related to §§ 430-50, 430-51, 430-54, 430-55, 430-56 and 430-59 of this chapter. The developer shall be required to fully reimburse the Borough for said engineering fees. The developer shall also be required to fully reimburse the Borough for any engineering and/or other consulting fees which the Borough may incur for the review of any required studies and/or reports within the context of an impact analysis as so defined in Article II of this chapter. Upon notification by the Borough of such costs, the developer shall provide a certified check or money order to the Borough to fully reimburse the Borough for said engineering fees within 30 days from the billing date from Summit Hill Borough. An approved plan shall not be signed by the Borough Council nor shall any permits related to the development of the site be issued until all fees are paid in full.
A. 
An applicant may contest the amount to be reimbursed to the Borough for consulting fees. The applicant shall notify the Borough, in writing, within 10 working days of the billing date as to which consulting fees are disputed as being unreasonable and/or unnecessary. The applicant shall forfeit any right to contest the amount to be reimbursed to the Borough for consulting fees, if written notification is not submitted within the prescribed 10 working days of the date of the billing.
B. 
In such cases, the Borough Council shall not delay or disapprove a subdivision or land development application or any permit related to development due to the applicant's written request to contest certain consulting expenses.
C. 
If, within 20 days from the date of billing, the Borough and the applicant cannot agree on the amount of consulting expenses which are reasonable and necessary, then the applicant and the Borough Council shall jointly, by mutual agreement, appoint another professional engineer, licensed as such in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, to review the said expenses and make a determination as to the amount thereof which is reasonable and necessary.
D. 
The professional engineer so appointed shall hear such evidence and review such documentation as the professional engineer in his or her sole opinion deems necessary and render a decision within 50 days of the billing date. The applicant shall be required to pay the entire amount determined in the decision immediately.
E. 
In the event that the Borough Council and applicant cannot agree upon a professional engineer to be appointed within 20 days of the billing date, then upon application of either party, the President Judge of the Carbon County Court of Common Pleas (or if at the time there be no President Judge, the senior active judge then sitting) shall appoint such engineer, who shall be neither the Borough Engineer nor any professional engineer who has been retained by, or performed services for, the Borough or the applicant within the preceding five years.
F. 
The fee of the appointed professional engineer for determining the reasonable and necessary consulting expenses shall be paid by the applicant if the amount of the payment required in the decision is equal to or greater than the original bill. If the amount of payment required in the decision is less than the original bill by $1,000 or more, the Borough shall pay the fee of the professional engineer. If neither of the aforementioned cases apply, the Borough and the applicant shall each pay 1/2 of the fee of the appointed professional engineer.