The properly authorized official of the Borough shall administer
the provisions of this chapter and enforce the decisions of the Borough
Council made hereunder and report any violations thereof to the Council.
[Amended 3-16-1999 by Ord. No. 1094]
A.
Fees.
(1)
The Borough Council shall establish, by resolution, a collection
procedure and schedule of fees to be paid by the subdivider at the
time of filing a preliminary plan. Said resolution shall also establish
a fee for public hearings.
(2)
Said schedule of fees shall be posted in the Borough offices.
(3)
No final plan shall be approved unless all fees and charges are paid
in full.
B.
Review fees.
(1)
Review fees shall include the reasonable and necessary charges by
the Borough's professional consultants or Engineer for review
and report to the Borough and shall be set by resolution. Such review
fees shall be reasonable and in accordance with the ordinary and customary
charges by the Borough Engineer or consultant for similar service
in the community, but in no event shall the fees exceed the rate or
cost charged by the Engineer or consultant to the Borough when fees
are not reimbursed or otherwise imposed on applicants.
(2)
In the event the applicant disputes the amount of any such review
fees, the applicant shall, within 10 days of the billing date, notify
the Borough that such fees are disputed, in which case the Borough
shall not delay or disapprove a subdivision or land development application
due to the applicant's request over disputed fees.
(3)
In the event that the Borough and the applicant cannot agree on the
amount of review fees which are reasonable and necessary, then the
fees shall be recalculated and recertified by another professional
engineer licensed as such in this commonwealth and chosen mutually
by the Borough and the applicant or developer. The estimate certified
by the third engineer shall be presumed fair and reasonable and shall
be the final estimate. In the event that a third engineer is so chosen,
fees for the services of said engineer shall be paid equally by the
Borough and the applicant or developer.
C.
Permits.
(1)
No lot in a subdivision shall be sold, no permit to erect, alter or repair any building upon land in a subdivision or development shall be issued, and no building shall be erected in a subdivision or development until a final plan of such subdivision or land development has been approved and properly recorded and until improvements have been either constructed or guaranteed in accordance with § 250-18 of this chapter.
(2)
No person shall connect to any waterline, storm, drainage or sanitary
sewer without first obtaining the required permit and paying the proper
connection charge.
(3)
No person shall dig, make any cuts or changes whatsoever in the cartway,
gutters or rights-of-way without first obtaining a permit therefor
and paying the proper fee.
D.
Liability for damages to Borough roads. Where any Borough road, including
the paved area, gutters, utilities and the right-of-way, is hereafter
damaged in any manner whatsoever, the person or persons directly responsible
for said damage, the subcontractor and/or general contractor for whom
said person or his superiors work, or with whom they have contracted,
shall be jointly liable for any and all damage to said Borough roads
and shall repair said damage within 90 days of any written demand
by the Borough. All repairs shall meet Borough standards and shall
be subject to Borough inspection.
E.
Penalties.
(1)
Preventive remedies.
(a)
In addition to other remedies, the Borough may institute and
maintain appropriate actions by law or in equity to restrain, correct
or abate violations, to prevent unlawful construction, to recover
damages and to prevent illegal occupancy of a building, structure
or premises. The description by metes and bounds in the instrument
of transfer or other documents used in the process of selling or transferring
shall not exempt the seller or transferor from such penalties or from
the remedies herein provided.
(b)
The Borough may refuse to issue any permit or grant any approval
necessary to further improve or develop any real property which has
been developed or which has resulted from a subdivision of real property
in violation of this chapter. This authority to deny such a permit
or approval shall apply to any of the following applicants:
[1]
The owner of record at the time of such violation.
[2]
The vendee or lessee of the owner of record at the time of such
violation, without regard as to whether such vendee or lessee had
actual or constructive knowledge of the violation.
[3]
The current owner of record who acquired the property subsequent
to the time of violation, without regard as to whether such current
owner had actual or constructive knowledge of the violation.
[4]
The vendee or lessee of the current owner of record who acquired
the property subsequent to the time of violation, without regard as
to whether such vendee or lessee had actual or constructive knowledge
of the violation.
(c)
As an additional condition for issuance of a permit or the granting
of an approval to any such owner, current owner, vendee or lessee
for the development of any such real property, the Borough may require
compliance with the conditions that would have been applicable to
the property at the time the applicant acquired an interest in such
real property.
(2)
Enforcement remedies.
(a)
Any person, partnership or corporation who or which has violated
the provisions of this chapter shall, upon being found liable therefor
in a civil enforcement proceeding commenced by the Borough, pay a
judgment of not more than $500, plus all court costs, including reasonable
attorney fees incurred by the Borough as a result thereof. No judgment
shall commence or be imposed, levied or payable until the date of
the determination of a violation by the Magisterial District Judge.
If the defendant neither pays nor timely appeals the judgment, the
Borough may enforce the judgment pursuant to the applicable rules
of civil procedure. Each day that a violation continues shall constitute
a separate violation, unless the Magisterial District Judge determining
that there has been a violation further determines that there was
a good faith basis for the person, partnership, or corporation violating
this chapter to have believed that there was no such violation, in
which event there shall be deemed to have been only one such violation
until the fifth day following the date of the determination of a violation
by the Magisterial District Judge, and thereafter, each day that a
violation continues shall constitute a separate violation.
(b)
The Court of Common Pleas, upon petition, may grant an order
of stay, upon cause shown, tolling the per diem judgment pending a
final adjudication of the violation and judgment.
(c)
Nothing contained in this section shall be construed or interpreted
to grant to any person or entity other than the Borough the right
to commence any action for enforcement pursuant to this section.
(d)
Magisterial District Judges shall have initial jurisdiction
in proceedings brought under this section.
[Amended 3-16-1999 by Ord. No. 1094]
A.
Reconsideration. Any subdivider or land developer aggrieved by a
finding, decision or other action of the Borough Planning Commission
or Borough Council regarding this chapter may request and shall receive
an opportunity to appear before the Planning Commission or Council
to present additional relevant information and request, in writing,
reconsideration of the original finding, decision, or action.
B.
Exemptions. The following are exempt or partially exempt from the
provisions of this chapter:
(1)
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;
(2)
The addition of an accessory building, including farm buildings,
on a lot or lots subordinate to an existing principal building; or
(3)
The addition or conversion of buildings or rides within the confines
of an enterprise which would be considered an amusement park. For
the purposes of this subsection, 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 initial plans for the expanded
area have been approved by proper authorities.
C.
Modifications.
(1)
The Borough Council may grant a modification of the requirements
of one or more provisions of this chapter if the literal enforcement
will exact undue hardship because of peculiar conditions pertaining
to the land in question, provided that such modification will not
be contrary to the public interest and that the purpose and intent
of this chapter is observed.
(2)
All requests for a modification shall be in writing and shall accompany
and be a part of the application for development. The request shall
state in full the grounds and facts of unreasonableness or hardship
on which the request is based, the provision or provisions of this
chapter involved and the minimum modification necessary.
(3)
The request for modification shall be referred to the Planning Commission
for advisory comments.
(4)
The Borough Council shall keep a written record of all action on
all requests for modifications.
D.
Appeals from decisions, findings or actions.
(1)
Appeals from decisions, findings or actions of the Borough Council
and Planning Commission denying approval under a subdivision or planned
residential development ordinance by the landowner shall be in accordance
with the procedure specified in the Municipalities Planning Code or
amendments thereto.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: See 53 P.S. § 10101 et seq.
(2)
Appeals from decisions, findings or actions of the Borough Council
or Borough Planning Commission by persons aggrieved shall be in accordance
with the procedure specified in the Municipalities Planning Code or
amendments thereto.
[Amended 3-16-1999 by Ord. No. 1094]
A.
Amendments to this chapter shall become effective only after a public
hearing held pursuant to public notice. A brief summary setting forth
the principal provisions of the proposed amendment and a reference
to the place within the Borough where copies of the proposed amendment
may be secured or examined shall be incorporated in the public notice.
Unless the proposed amendment shall have been prepared by the Planning
Commission, the Borough Council shall submit the amendment to the
Planning Commission at least 30 days prior to the hearing on such
amendment to provide the Planning Commission an opportunity to submit
recommendations. In addition, at least 30 days prior to the public
hearing on the amendment, the Borough shall submit the proposed amendment
to the County Planning Agency for recommendations.
B.
Within 30 days after adoption, the Borough Council shall forward
a certified copy of the amendment to the County Planning Agency.
C.
Proposed amendments shall not be enacted unless notice of proposed
enactment is given in the manner set forth in this section and shall
include the time and place of the meeting at which passage will be
considered and a reference to a place within the Borough where copies
of the proposed amendment may be examined without charge or obtained
for a charge not greater than the cost thereof. The Borough Council
shall publish the proposed amendment once in a newspaper of general
circulation in the Borough not more than 60 days nor less than seven
days prior to passage. Publication of the proposed amendment shall
include either the full text thereof or the title and a brief summary,
prepared by the Borough Solicitor and setting forth all the provisions
in reasonable detail. If the full text is not included:
D.
In the event substantial amendments are made in the proposed amendment,
before voting upon enactment, the Borough Council shall, at least
10 days prior to enactment, readvertise, in one newspaper of general
circulation in the Borough, a brief summary setting forth all the
provisions in reasonable detail, together with a summary of the amendments.
[Amended 3-16-1999 by Ord. No. 1094]
The Borough Council of the Borough of West Mifflin, by the authority granted pursuant to Article V, Pennsylvania Municipalities Planning Code, Act No. 247,[1] as amended, has adopted this chapter governing the subdivision
and development of land within the Borough limits.
[1]
Editor's Note: See 53 P.S. § 10101 et seq.
