The Board of Supervisors shall appoint a Zoning Hearing Board
consisting of three members. The Board of Supervisors shall designate
one such member to serve until the first day of January following
the original effective date of this chapter, one until the first day
of the second January thereafter, and one until the first day of the
third January thereafter; shall reappoint or appoint three successors
on the expiration of their respective terms to serve three years,
and shall fill any vacancy for the unexpired term of any member whose
term becomes vacant.
A. Any Board member may be removed for malfeasance, misfeasance, or
nonfeasance in office or for other just cause by a majority vote of
the Board of Supervisors. The member must be given 15 days' written
notice of the intent to take such a vote. A hearing shall be held
in connection with the vote if the member shall request it in writing.
B. Zoning Hearing Board members may hold no other office in the Township.
C. The word "Board," when used in this article, shall mean the Zoning
Hearing Board.
The Township Board of Supervisors may appoint by resolution
no more than three residents of the Township to serve as alternate
members of the Board. The term of office of an alternate shall be
three years.
A. If by reason of absence or disqualification of a member a quorum
is not reached, the Chairman of the Board shall designate as many
alternate members of the Board to sit on the Board as may be needed
to provide a quorum. An alternate so designated shall be entitled
to participate in all proceedings and discussions of the Board to
the same and full extent as provided by law for Board members, including
specifically the right to cast a vote as a voting member during the
proceedings, and shall have all the powers and duties set forth in
this article and as otherwise provided by law.
B. Any alternate member of the Board shall continue to serve on the
Board in all proceedings involving the matter or case for which the
alternate was initially appointed until the Board has made a final
determination of the matter or case.
C. Designation of an alternate shall be made on a case-by-case basis
in rotation according to declining seniority among all alternates.
D. Alternate members may hold no other office in the Township.
E. Any alternate may participate in any proceeding or discussion of
the Board but may not vote as a member nor be compensated unless designated
as a voting alternate as provided above.
The Zoning Hearing Board shall have exclusive jurisdiction to
hear and render final adjudications in the following matters:
A. Substantive challenges to the validity of any land use ordinance,
except those brought before the Board of Supervisors pursuant to the
curative challenge and amendment process.
B. Challenges to the validity of a land use ordinance raising procedural
questions or alleged defects in the process of enactment or adoption,
which challenges shall be raised by an appeal filed within 30 days
after the effective date of said ordinance.
C. Appeals from the determination of the Building Code Official, including
the granting or denial of any permit, or failure to act on the application
therefor, the issuance of any enforcement notice or the registration
or refusal to register any nonconforming use, structure, or lot.
D. Appeals from a determination by the Township Engineer or the Building
Code Official with reference to the floodplain ordinance or such provisions
within a land use ordinance.
E. Applications for variance from the terms of this chapter.
F. Applications for special exceptions under this chapter or Chapter
136, Floodplain Management.
G. Appeals from the determination of the Building Code Official or Township Engineer in the administration of ordinance provisions for sedimentation and erosion control and stormwater management insofar as the determination does not involve an application pursuant to Chapter
215, Subdivision and Land Development.
When the order, requirement, decision, or determination of a
Township officer is appealed to the Board, the Board shall have the
power to reverse or affirm, in whole or in part, and the decision
of the Board shall be enforced as though it were the decision of the
officer appealed from.
Challenges and appeals may be filed with the Board in writing
by the landowner affected, any officer or agency of the municipality,
or any person aggrieved. Requests for variance or special exception
may be filed by any landowner or any tenant with permission of the
landowner. An appeal or application regarding a matter within the
jurisdiction of the Zoning Hearing Board may be filed with the Township
Secretary on forms provided by the Zoning Hearing Board. The applicant
shall provide five copies of the application and accompanying materials,
and shall include:
A. The name, telephone number, and address of the applicant, and of
the applicant's representative(s) or agent(s), where applicable.
B. The name and address of the record owner of the property that is
the subject of the application or appeal. Where the applicant is not
the record owner of the subject property, a signed statement from
the record owner, authorizing the applicant to pursue the specific
appeal or application.
C. A brief description and location of the subject property, along with
a survey and/or sketch of the property boundaries.
D. A statement of the present zoning classification of the subject property
with the improvements thereon, and the present use thereof.
E. A statement of the section of this chapter under which consideration
by the Board is requested, along with a summary of reasons or arguments
in support of request.
F. A reasonably accurate description of the improvements or changes
intended to be made under the application. In addition, there shall
be attached a plot plan of the property to be affected, indicating
the location and size of the lot, and the size and location of the
existing and proposed improvements or changes.
G. A list of the owners of all land adjacent to the applicant's land,
to be supplied by applicant, who shall obtain the list at his own
cost and expense from the Montgomery County Board of Assessment Appeals,
or from the Tax Collector of Marlborough Township and other municipalities
when the adjacent land is outside the Township, along with:
(1) Pre-stamped and pre-addressed envelopes for all landowners shown
on the aforesaid list.
(2) Payment of any and all fees charged by the U.S. Postal Service for
certified mail with return receipts requested for the aforesaid envelopes.
H. Any and all additional information that may be required by the Zoning
Hearing Board.
I. Payment to the Township in accordance with a fee schedule recommended
by the Zoning Hearing Board and adopted by the Township Board of Supervisors,
as amended.
(1) Fees for hearings may include compensation for the secretary and
members of the Board, notice and advertising costs, and necessary
administrative overhead connected with the hearing.
(2) The costs may not include legal expenses of the Board, expenses for
engineering, architectural, or other technical consultants, or expert
witness costs.
(3) Stenographic costs shall be borne in accordance with §
275-34F herein.
Upon receipt of an application, the Zoning Hearing Board Chairman
shall fix a reasonable time and place for a public hearing on the
application. Said hearing shall occur no more than 60 days after the
application is made to the Secretary, unless the applicant has agreed
in writing to an extension of time.
The Board shall schedule a public hearing and shall give public
notice as follows:
A. By publishing a notice once a week for two successive weeks in a
newspaper of general circulation in the Township. Such notice shall
state the time and place of the hearing, the particular nature of
the matter to be considered at the hearing and the specific ordinance
provisions that permit consideration by the Zoning Hearing Board.
The first publication shall not be more than 30 days and the second
not less than seven days from the date of the hearing.
B. By mailing or serving written notice to the record owner, applicant,
and applicant's representative.
C. By conspicuously posting written notice of hearing on the affected
tract of land at least one week prior to the meeting.
D. By mailing or serving the notice to adjacent landowners by utilization of the envelopes provided by the applicant pursuant to §
275-31G of this chapter.
E. By mailing or serving notice thereof to the Zoning Hearing Board
members, Board of Supervisors, and Planning Commission Chairman.
F. By mailing a notice to any and all parties in interest who have entered
their appearance, and to any person registered for that purpose.
Decisions on appeals and applications to the Board, other than
variances and special exceptions, shall be considered in accordance
with the following:
A. Time limitations on appeals.
(1) All appeals from determinations adverse to a landowner shall be filed
by the landowner within 30 days after notice of the determination
is issued.
(2) Appeals designed to secure reversal or limit the approval of any
application for development, preliminary or final, shall be filed
with the Board no later than 30 days after the application is approved
by an appropriate Township officer or agency, unless the person filing
proves that he had no notice, knowledge, or reason to believe that
such approval had been given. If such person succeeded to his interest
after such approval, he shall be bound by the knowledge of his predecessor
in interest.
B. Effect of filing. Upon filing of any proceeding before the Board,
and during its pendency, all land development pursuant to any challenged
ordinance, order or approval of the Building Code Official or of any
agency or body, and all official action thereunder, shall be stayed
unless the Building Code Official, agency, or body certifies to the
Board facts indicating imminent peril to life or property, in which
case the development or official action shall not be stayed other
than by a restraining order granted by the Board or by the court having
jurisdiction of zoning appeals.
C. Substantive validity challenge. A landowner who desires to challenge,
on substantive grounds, the validity of a map or ordinance provision
which prohibits or restricts the use or development of land in which
he has an interest, may submit the challenge either to the Zoning
Hearing Board or, with a request for curative amendment, to the Township
Board of Supervisors.
(1) The written application to the Zoning Hearing Board shall contain
the reasons for the challenge.
(2) Public notice of the hearing shall include notice that the validity
of the ordinance or map is in question, and shall specify the place
and time where a copy of the request and its accompanying materials
may be examined by the public.
(3) Based upon the testimony at the hearing(s), the Board shall determine
whether the challenged ordinance or map is defective, as alleged.
If the challenge is found to have merit, the decision of the Board
shall include recommended amendments to the challenged ordinance which
will cure the defects found.
(4) In reaching its decision, the Board shall consider the plans and
explanatory material submitted by the landowner, and shall also consider:
(a)
The impact of the proposal upon roads, sewer facilities, water
supplies, schools and other public service facilities;
(b)
If the proposal is for residential use, the impact of the proposal
upon regional housing needs and the effectiveness of the proposal
in providing housing units of a type actually available to and affordable
by classes of persons otherwise unlawfully excluded by the challenged
provisions of the ordinance or map;
(c)
The suitability of the site for the intensity of use proposed
by the site's soils, slopes, woodland, wetlands, floodplains, aquifers,
natural resources and other natural features;
(d)
The impact of the proposed use on the site's soils, slopes,
woodland, wetlands, floodplains, aquifers, natural resources and other
natural features, the degree to which these are protected or destroyed,
the tolerance of the resources to development, and any adverse environmental
impacts; and
(e)
The impact of the proposal on the preservation of agriculture
and other land uses which are essential to public health and welfare.
(5) If the Board fails to act on the request within 45 days of the last
hearing, a denial of the request is deemed to have occurred.
Unless otherwise specified by the Board, a special exception
or variance shall expire if the applicant fails to obtain any and
all permits within one year of the date of the decision. The applicant
may apply to the Board for postponement of the expiration, providing
in writing an explanation of the reasons why permits were not obtained
and a request for a postponement to a specific date. All parties who
originally received notification of the Board's decision in the matter
shall be notified of the postponement of expiration, at the applicant's
expense.
Any persons aggrieved by the decision of the Board may within
30 days thereafter appeal to the Court of Common Pleas of Montgomery
County by petition in such form as may be prescribed or authorized
by law.