[HISTORY: Adopted by the Borough Council of the Borough of Lincoln Park 11-12-1991 by Ord. No. 1,032 as Ch. 190 of the 1991 Code. Amendments noted where applicable.]
[Amended 12-9-1991 by Ord. No. 1,040, effective 3-29-1992; 6-16-2008 by Ord. No. 12-08, effective 7-6-2008; 10-7-2019 by Ord. No. 11-19, effective 10-28-2019]
No person shall locate and construct, alter or operate a swimming pool until permits therefor shall have been issued by the Department of Health.
All fees shall be as specifically provided in Chapter 34, Fees, § 34-12, Swimming pools.
Permits issued for the operation of a swimming pool shall expire annually on December 31 of each year, and application for renewal thereof shall be submitted, together with the required fee, prior to March 30 of each year.
A. 
Permits required by this article may be denied or suspended by the Department of Health for failure to comply with this article or the State Sanitary Code.
B. 
The Department of Health shall afford the person whose permit to locate and construct, alter or operate has been denied or suspended an opportunity to be heard in public hearing and, following this, to be informed of the Department's decision.
Persons violating this article shall, upon conviction, be subject to a penalty as provided in § 1-2 of this Code.
[Amended 10-19-1998 by Ord. No. 1,220, effective 11-8-1998; 10-7-2019 by Ord. No. 11-19, effective 10-28-2019; 6-21-2021 by Ord. No. 5-21, effective 9-6-2021]
For the purposes of this article, the following words and phrases shall have the meanings prescribed by this section:
POOL
A water-filled enclosure permanently constructed and having a depth of more than 15 inches or more below the level of the surrounding land or above grade or surface and having a depth of more than 24 inches, either fixed or portable (constructed of canvas, rubber, plastic or other material), and for which a permit is required by § 414-7. The term "pool" shall include "swimming pool," "wading pool," "hot tub" and "ponds" created from preformed plastic (or any other material) forms.
A. 
No person shall install, construct, alter or erect a pool until he shall have obtained a building permit issued by the Construction Official as in the case of any other structure.
B. 
Applications for a permit shall be made, in writing, to the Construction Official, accompanied by two sets of plans drawn to scale.
(1) 
The plans shall include the following:
(a) 
The dimensions of pool, with side and top elevations.
(b) 
A plot plan showing property lines of the land upon which the proposed pool is to be constructed and showing all existing houses and structures, cesspools, tanks or subsurface sewage disposal systems and distances of the pool from property lines and abutting streets.
(c) 
The height and type of fences, walls or enclosures as required in this article.
(2) 
The permit fee(s) for the construction and/or installation of all pools shall be as provided in Chapter 34, Fees, § 34-3. Such fee(s) shall cover the cost of processing the application and inspecting the proposed site. Payment shall be made by check or money order payable to the Borough of Lincoln Park.
C. 
Notwithstanding the above, pools seasonally disassembled and reassembled in the same location are exempt from the requirements of this section, provided that an initial permit or first permit is obtained pursuant to the provisions hereof.
A. 
No pool shall be allowed in any front yard, including through lots or corner lots with two or more street frontages. Any pool permitted by this article shall be constructed, installed and placed:
(1) 
No closer than 10 feet to the rear property line.
(2) 
No closer than 10 feet to any side property line. Where a pool is placed in a side yard, it shall not extend past the front plane of the structure into the front yard.
(3) 
No closer than 10 feet to any primary or accessory structure. These 10 feet shall be measured from the outermost side of the structure.
(4) 
For a lot, other than a corner lot, having frontages on two or more public streets (sometimes known as a "through lot"), the applicant for a pool permit shall apply to the Zoning Board of Adjustment for approval of the placement of a pool, provided that ten-foot setbacks for front, side and rear yards shall still apply.
B. 
No pool shall be constructed, installed or placed on any lot which is not part of a residential lot containing a residential building.
C. 
The provisions of this section shall not apply to pools of a permanent nature which were permitted by application, constructed and in use prior to the date of adoption of this chapter.
A. 
The Borough Council expressly declares that pools which are not properly fenced are detrimental to the health, welfare and safety of the residents of the Borough.
(1) 
Therefore, all pools now existing or hereafter constructed, installed, established or maintained shall be completely enclosed by a permanent fence or wall enclosure of durable material four feet in height and shall be constructed as to not have openings, meshed holes or gaps larger than 2 1/2 inches in dimension and should reasonably prevent any person from gaining access beneath any part of the fence. If a picket fence is erected or maintained, the spaces between the pickets shall not be in excess of two inches. A dwelling house or accessory building may be used as part of such enclosure. All fence openings or points of entry into the pool area enclosure shall be equipped with gates. All gates shall be equipped with self-closing and self-latching devices placed at the top of the gate and made inaccessible to small children. Above-the-surface pools with smooth, unbroken vertical side walls four feet or more in height above the surface of the ground are excluded from the provisions of this section, provided that the provision of this section relating to access ladders or steps set forth below is complied with.
(2) 
Construction of temporary fencing shall be installed at the start of excavation and shall remain in place for a period not to exceed 14 days following completion of pool construction.
B. 
Any access ladder or steps used with any of the above-surface-type swimming pools, whether permanent or portable, shall be removed from the pool when not in use. "Removed" shall be defined as not capable of being used to enter the pool.
C. 
All existing pools shall be fenced, as herein required, within 60 days following June 1, 1968.
Lights used above the surface of the water to illuminate any pool shall be so arranged and shielded that the light will be reflected away from adjoining premises.
A. 
All pools shall be maintained in a clean and sanitary condition, and all equipment shall be maintained in satisfactory operating condition during the periods of time the pool is in use.
B. 
Pools shall be maintained and operated so that the use thereof shall not cause excessive noises which will result in the annoyance, disturbance or discomfort of adjacent neighbors.
C. 
Violations of Subsection A of this section shall fall within the jurisdiction of the Department of Health of the Borough.
Persons violating this article shall, upon conviction, be subject to a penalty as provided in § 1-2 of this Code.