In addition to the standard subdivision design options described in this chapter, West Manheim Township has decided to implement the option of utilizing the Conservation Subdivision Overlay District to incorporate the methods that have recently been introduced to the land development industry. The ideas, concepts, regulations and guidelines for the Conservation Subdivision Overlay District are detailed in Part
6 of Chapter
270, Zoning, of the Code of the Township of West Manheim.
A. As stated in Part
6 of Chapter
270, Zoning, the Conservation Subdivision Overlay District requirements shall apply to all tracts of land consisting of 15 acres (gross) upon which new residential subdivisions are created after the effective date of this chapter in the following underlying zoning districts:
B. For all tracts of land consisting of less than 15 acres (gross) upon
which new residential subdivisions are created after the effective
date of this chapter, the conservation subdivision design shall be
optional.
C. The sections of this chapter regarding the plan submission process (Article
III), the plan requirements (Article
IV), and the construction standards (Article
V), will address the conservation subdivision method by listing the additional requirements at the end of each article.
Copies of this chapter shall be available on request for the
use of any person who desires information concerning subdivision and
land development standards and procedures in effect within the Township.
Any prospective applicant may request a meeting with the Township
staff and Planning Commission to discuss and review tentative plans
and/or the provisions of this chapter.
The plan submission process shall be as follows:
A. Applications for approval of preliminary and final plans for all
proposed land developments lying within the Township may be filed
with the Township Secretary on any business day.
(1) However, to be reviewed by the Township that month, plans must be received by the first Thursday of every month. Such submission of plans shall be accompanied by a fee as specified in §
235-108.
(2) The applicant shall submit the following for all preliminary and final plans: two plans drawn on Mylar material; 10 copies of blue or black line paper prints; and two copies of the required supporting data. The plans shall also be submitted electronically on a CD in a form specified by the Township (PowerPoint, CAD, GIS, etc.). Preliminary or final plans shall comply with the requirements of Article
IV.
(3) Any incomplete application submittal shall not be accepted. All applicants
shall complete and submit the application contained in Appendix 1.
(4) The Township agent shall, within seven days from the date of submission of an application, determine if the application is complete in accordance with §
235-11. This determination shall not constitute approval or disapproval of the plan and application but is rather a determination of administrative completeness. If the application is found to be incomplete, the Township agent shall notify the applicant, in writing, that the submitted application is incomplete and does not constitute a formal application and shall note the deficiencies. The formal review period as specified by §§
235-16 and
235-22 and the Pennsylvania Municipalities Planning Code shall not begin until an administratively complete application
has been received by the Township.
B. The applicant is responsible for providing the Township Engineer,
by the first Thursday of every month, with one paper copy of the plan
and all required supporting data. Documentation shall be provided
to the Township which proves that the Engineer has received the plans.
C. The applicant is responsible for providing the York County Planning
Commission, by the first Thursday of every month, with one paper copy
of the plan, one copy of the traffic impact study and all required
supporting data. All fees required by the YCPC, including traffic
impact study fees, shall be paid at this time. Documentation shall
be provided to the Township which proves that the YCPC has received
the plans.
D. The applicant is responsible for providing the following agencies
with plans if required by the West Manheim Township staff:
(1) One copy shall be transmitted to the local office of the Pennsylvania
Department of Environmental Protection for review and comment.
(2) One copy shall be transmitted to the local office of the Pennsylvania
Department of Transportation for review and comment and mapping of
dedicated streets.
(3) One copy shall be transmitted to all affected public utilities that
may be requested to make recommendations as to the suitability of
installing underground services.
(4) One copy shall be transmitted to the Natural Resource Conservation
Service of the United States Department of Agriculture and/or the
York County Conservation District for review and comment.
E. The Township will hold an "in-house" review, at a time scheduled
by the Township, during the month of the plan submission. During this
meeting, the applicant will be able to review its plan with the Township
Zoning Officer, the Township Engineer, the York County Planning Commission,
and any other party that may have input on the layout of the plan.
This review will allow for open conversation about Township comments
and applicant concerns before the plan is to be reviewed by the West
Manheim Township Planning Commission. The applicant or applicant's
engineer must be present for the plan to be reviewed at this time.
F. Following the in-house review, the applicant will be able to revise
its plan and address any comments or concerns that were discussed.
The revised plan will be able to be reviewed by the Planning Commission
the month following the in-house review or the first month after the
applicant has addressed all of the comments to the satisfaction of
the Township Engineer. In order to be on the agenda for the Planning
Commission meeting, the revised plan shall be due to the Township
by the first Thursday of that month.
G. The Planning Commission will conduct its review of the plan at its
regularly scheduled meeting. The applicant or applicant's engineer
must be present for the plan to be reviewed at this time.
H. The West Manheim Board of Supervisors will have the plan on the agenda
for the first meeting following review and official recommendation
of the plan by the Planning Commission. If all comments have been
satisfactorily addressed at this time, the Township Board of Supervisors
will take action on the plan.
The following supporting data shall be submitted with the preliminary
plan:
A. A feasibility report for sewer and water supply and facilities for the proposed land development as described in §
235-35, along with the recommendations of the local office of the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection.
B. A hydrogeologic and groundwater assessment report as described in §
235-36.
C. An erosion and sedimentation control plan as described in §
235-37.
D. A traffic impact study as described in §
235-39.
E. An environmental impact assessment report as described in §
235-40.
F. A stormwater drainage report as described in §
235-41.
The Township Manager shall distribute copies of the preliminary
plan and supporting data to other official public agencies for review
and recommendation as follows:
A. One copy shall be transmitted to the Township Planning Commission
for review and comment. This copy shall be retained by the Secretary
of the Planning Commission for record.
B. One copy shall be transmitted to the Emergency Management Committee
for review and comment.
All preliminary plans shall be subject to a recommendation for
approval, modification or rejection by the Planning Commission prior
to final action by the Board of Supervisors. Upon receipt of data
required by this chapter, the Planning Commission shall, alone or
jointly with the Board of Supervisors, review the preliminary plan
with reference to the following:
A. The standards and requirements of this chapter.
B. Information received pursuant to plan referrals under §
235-13.
C. The requirements of Chapter
270, Zoning, the Official Map and other applicable ordinances.
D. Any proposals contained in the Township Comprehensive Plan, public
improvements plans or other adopted plans.
E. Site suitability for the particular type of development proposed.
F. The availability of necessary services and public facilities.
G. Review comments by the Township Engineer, the York County Planning
Commission, and the Emergency Management Committee.
The Township Manager shall distribute copies of the final plan
and supporting data to other official public agencies for review and
recommendation as follows:
A. One copy shall be transmitted to the Township Planning Commission
for review and comment. This copy shall be retained by the Secretary
of the Planning Commission for record.
B. One copy shall be transmitted to the Emergency Management Committee
for review and comment.
The Planning Commission shall, alone or jointly with the Board
of Supervisors, review the final plan with reference to the following:
A. The standards and requirements of this chapter.
B. Other pertinent data, including engineering plans, maps, profiles,
documents and specifications and conditions which were agreed upon
at the time of the preliminary plan review.
C. Any proposals contained in the West Manheim Township Comprehensive
Plan, public improvement plans or other adopted plans.
D. Review comments by the Township Engineer, the York County Planning
Commission, and the Emergency Management Committee.
[Amended 8-6-2015 by Ord.
No. 3-2015]
The Township Board of Supervisors shall set fees, payable in
advance, for review of plans.
A. Such review fees may include reasonable and necessary charges by
the Township's professional consultants for review and report
thereon to the Township.
B. Such review fees shall be reasonable and in accordance with the ordinary
and customary for similar service in the community, but in no event
shall the fees exceed the rate or cost charged by the professional
consultant for comparable services to the municipality for services
which are not reimbursed or otherwise imposed on applicants.
C. Such fees shall be based upon a schedule adopted by resolution of
the Township Board of Supervisors upon enactment of this chapter,
or as such schedule may be amended. A copy of said fee schedule shall
be available for review at the Township office.
D. Fees charged to the Township relating to any appeal of a decision
on an application shall not be considered review fees and may not
be charged to an applicant.
[Amended 8-6-2015 by Ord.
No. 3-2015]
A. In the event the applicant disputes the amount of any such review
fees, the applicant shall, no later than 100 days after the date of
transmittal of the bill to the applicant, notify the Township and
the Township's professional consultant of such fees that are disputed
and shall explain the basis of their objections to the fees charged,
in which case the Township shall not delay or disapprove a subdivision
or land development application due to the applicant’s dispute
over fees. Failure of the applicant to dispute a bill within 100 days
shall be a waiver of the applicant's right to arbitration of that
bill under 53 P.S. § 10510(g).
B. In the event that the Township’s professional consultant and
the applicant cannot agree on the amount of review fees which are
reasonable and necessary, then the applicant and the Township shall
follow the procedure for dispute resolution as set forth in 53 P.S.
§ 10510(g), provided that the arbitrator resolving such
dispute shall be of the same profession or discipline as the professional
consultant whose fees are being disputed.
Before acting on any land development plan, the Board of Supervisors
may hold a public hearing thereon pursuant to public notice.
For any replatting or resubdivision of land, the same procedures
and regulations apply as prescribed for an original land development.
The plan shall indicate by title that any change is a "revised final
plan" and refer to the original final plan number and date of original
approval.
In addition to the plan submission requirements described in Article
III above, the following requirements shall be met when submitting a land development plan for a conservation subdivision as defined in §
235-7.
A. A diagrammatic sketch plan is strongly encouraged for all proposed subdivisions utilizing the Conservation Subdivision Overlay. (See Part
6, Article
XII, of Chapter
270, Zoning.) The procedures for submission of a diagrammatic sketch plan are described in Subsection
F, below, and may be altered only at the discretion of the Township.
B. A preapplication meeting is encouraged between the applicant, the
site designer, and the Planning Commission (and/or its planning consultant),
to introduce the applicant to the Township's zoning and subdivision
regulations and procedures, to discuss the applicant's objectives,
and to schedule site inspections, meetings and plan submissions as
described below. Applicants are also encouraged to present the existing
resources and site analysis plan at this meeting.
C. Applicants shall submit an existing resources and site analysis plan, in its context, prepared in accordance with the requirements contained in §
235-38C(2). The purpose of this key submission is to familiarize officials with existing conditions on the applicant's tract and within its immediate vicinity, and to provide a complete and factual reference for them in making a site inspection. This plan shall be provided prior to or at the site inspection, and shall form the basis for the development design as shown on the diagrammatic sketch plan (or on the preliminary plan, if the optional sketch plan is not submitted).
D. After preparing the existing resources and site analysis plan, applicants
may arrange for a site inspection of the property by the Planning
Commission and other municipal officials, and shall distribute copies
of said site analysis plan at that on-site meeting. Applicants, their
site designers, and the landowner are encouraged to accompany the
Planning Commission.
(1) The purpose of the visit is to familiarize local officials with the
property's existing conditions and special features, to identify
potential site design issues, and to provide an informal opportunity
to discuss site design concepts, including the general layout of designated
greenway lands (if applicable), and potential locations for proposed
buildings and street alignments. Comments made by municipal officials
or their staff and consultants shall be interpreted as being only
suggestive. It shall be understood by all parties that no formal recommendations
can be offered, and no official decisions can be made at the site
inspection.
E. Following the site inspection and prior to the submission of a diagrammatic sketch plan, the applicant shall meet with the Planning Commission to discuss the findings of the site inspection and to develop a mutual understanding on the general approach for subdividing and/or developing the tract in accordance with the four-step design procedure described in §§
235-38D and
235-67B of this chapter, where applicable. At the discretion of the Commission, this conference may be combined with the site inspection.
F. The sketch plan shall be submitted in accordance with the requirements set forth in §
235-32 and based closely upon the information contained in the existing resources and site analysis plan. The sketch plan shall also be designed in accordance with the four-step design process described in §
235-38D and Article
V.
G. The preliminary plan shall be submitted in accordance with the requirements set forth in §
235-11. The preliminary plan shall include all information listed in §
235-33, specifically including the existing resources and site analysis plan.
H. The existing resources and site analysis plan shall be presented at the preapplication meeting, and distributed to those municipal officials who attend the site inspection described in §
235-31D (which shall occur at the preliminary plan stage if it has not already occurred at the sketch plan stage).
I. A detailed final plan shall be submitted in accordance with §
235-18. The detailed final plan shall conform to the requirements set forth in §
235-34. It shall also conform to the conceptual preliminary plan as previously reviewed by the Planning Commission and the Board, and shall incorporate all conditions set by the municipality in its approval of the conceptual preliminary plan.