Borough of Littlestown, PA Article V Planned Developments

§ 500-16 Statement of intent.

A. In addition to the goals listed in the Preamble and the community development objectives, it is the purpose of this article to encourage innovation and to provide for additional flexibility in the development of residential areas, specifically in regard to lot size and dwelling unit type, and to permit, subject to conditions set forth herein, the development of parcels of land as single design units, including a variety of dwelling unit types and including limited neighborhood commercial facilities to serve the residents of the development. In planned developments of 50 acres of more, it is the intent of these regulations to permit offices, research and limited industrial uses which would provide employment opportunities within the development.

B. Minimum requirements are herein established to insure that each dwelling unit has adequate light and air, appropriate access to the major road system, adequate open space, and public utility service.

§ 500-17 Planned residential development.

A. Specific purpose. The purpose of the procedures, standards, controls and regulations of this section is to provide a means whereby parcels of land can be designed and developed without regard to the normal lot size, building bulk and setback requirements of the typical zoning districts. In this innovative type of development, minimum requirements are established to insure that each living unit has proper light and air, appropriate access to public ways and open space, and is properly connected to public utilities.

B. Establishment of controls.

(1) The regulations set by this chapter are minimum regulations within the planned residential development and shall apply uniformly to each classification or kind of lot and structure within the district.

(2) The planned residential developments do not necessarily correspond in minimum lot size, building area, type of dwelling unit, density, lot coverage, or required open space to any other residentially zoned districts in the Borough.

(3) The Planning Commission shall be the agency responsible for administering planned residential development applications and procedures in accordance with this section.

(4) The Planning Commission may, subject to approval of the Borough Council, permit the development of planned residential developments in R-2 and R-3 Residential Districts, provided that all regulations and requirements of this chapter are fully met. The Planning Commission may also, subject to the approval of Borough Council, designate an area of not less that 20 acres for planned residential development prior to a specific request for amendment by a landowner.

C. Procedures.

(1) Any owner of not less than 20 contiguous acres of land zoned as R-2 or R-3 Residential may request in writing, that the Borough Council have the regulations of this section apply to such property.

(2) The Council shall then refer the matter to the Borough Planning Commission for review and recommendations.

D. Use regulations.

(1) Uses by right. In any planned residential development, land, buildings, or premises shall be used by right only for one of the following and no others:

(a) Single-family detached dwellings.

(b) Garden apartments and townhouses.

(c) Churches or similar places or worship, and parish houses.

(d) Public but not private schools.

(e) Public parks, playgrounds, municipal recreation areas and open space reservations.

(f) Private or semiprivate recreation areas when not operated for gain or profit.

(g) Electric substations.

(h) Retail and service commercials uses designed to serve residents of the planned residential development, including and limited to those which follow:

[1] Convenience goods and food store (not to exceed 3,000 square feet).

[2] Drug store (not to exceed 2,000 square feet).

[3] Beauty salon or barber shop.

[4] Laundry and dry-cleaning pickup station.

(i) If the development is 50 acres or more in size, offices, research and limited industrial uses may be included subject to the use and area requirements of § 500-15 of this chapter.

(2) Accessory uses. All accessory uses located on the same lot that are customarily incidental to any of the above permitted uses, including a private garage, shall be permitted:

(a) Swimming pool (subject to § 500-19B of this chapter).

(b) Home occupations shall not be construed to be a permitted use.

E. Area, density, and design standards. The following regulations shall be observed:

(1) Area limitations. Within a planned residential development, the following percentage of the total area shall be devoted to the specific uses:

(a) A maximum of 85% for the residential uses and other uses permitted in Subsection D above, excluding the open space and recreation uses, and the space devoted to streets and parking within and exclusively servicing such open space or recreation use.

(b) A minimum of 15% for common or public open space and recreational use. This area shall include space devoted to streets and parking, provided such facilities are within and service exclusively an open space or recreation area.

(c) A maximum of 10% for neighborhood retail sales and service facilities, but in no event to exceed three acres. Said maximum shall include the parking and service areas exclusively servicing such facilities.

(d) In planned unit developments of 50 acres or more, a maximum of 20% for office, research and limited industrial uses.

(e) For lots in a planned unit development devoted to residential use, the lot coverage, impervious lot coverage, and green space requirements of § 500-7C shall be applied. For lots in a planned unit development devoted to neighborhood retail sales and service facilities, the lot coverage, impervious lot coverage, and green space requirements of § 500-10C shall be applied. For lots in a planned unit development devoted to office, research, and limited industrial uses, the lot coverage, impervious lot coverage, and green space requirements of § 500-13C(2) shall be applied.

[Added 7-28-1998 by Ord. No. 497]

(2) Density requirements.

(a) The overall density of the land within the planned residential development shall not exceed 7.0 dwelling units per acre based on gross area.

(b) Areas designed for townhouses and/or garden apartments shall be developed at a density not to exceed 12 dwelling units per acre based on net area.

[Amended 4-23-2019 by Ord. No. 692]

(c) At least 25% of the permissible dwelling units for a planned residential development shall be single-family detached dwellings. No more than 50% of the permissible dwelling units shall be townhouses, and no more than 50% of the permissible dwelling units shall be garden apartments.

[Amended 4-23-2019 by Ord. No. 692]

(3) Design standards. The following minimum requirements shall apply:

[Amended 5-24-1994; 3-28-2000 by Ord. No. 519[1]; 4-23-2019 by Ord. No. 692]

Dwelling Type	Area	Minimum Lot Width at Building Line (feet)	Minimum Building Setback (feet)	Minimum Side Yard (feet)	Minimum Rear Yard (feet)	Maximum Building Height
Single-family detached	5,500	50	20	15	20	28
Townhouse	(See density)	20	20	—	30	28
Garden apartment	(See density)	200	50	50	50	28
Neighborhood sales and service	2 acres (minimum)	200	50	50	30	1 Story
Offices, research, limited industrial	See § 500-15	See § 500-15	See § 500-15	See § 500-15	See § 500-15	See § 500-15

[1] Editor's Note: This ordinance provided that it shall take effect 4-8-2000.

(4) Supplemental requirements.

(a) Supplemental requirements that apply to townhouses:

[Amended 3-28-2000 by Ord. No. 519[2]

[1] There shall be no continuous groups of townhouses consisting of more than six dwelling units.

[2] Townhouse buildings shall generally relate in scale and design features to surrounding residential properties within the planned residential development, and to nearby residential areas of the Borough of Littlestown.

[3] Notwithstanding the setback and yard requirements above, no group of townhouses shall be closer than 50 feet to a facing wall and 30 feet to end walls, from any other group of such dwellings, not closer than 60 feet from any boundary line of a designated townhouse area of which the group is a part.

[4] The minimum width of any side yard abutting a street, driveway, or parking area within the townhouse area shall not be less than 30 feet.

[5] Within any townhouse building, no adjacent townhouse units shall have the same front and rear building footprint. The variation in the front and rear building footprint shall be no less than two feet and no more than four feet to create a "staggered" appearance of the individual townhouse units. Further, the roof plane shall vary from townhouse unit to townhouse unit in a consistent fashion with the variation in from and rear building footprint. Walls or roof planes that do not exhibit variation in building footprint or roof design respectively shall not be permitted.

[6] There shall be, within any continuous group of townhouses, at least three different architectural plans having substantially different designs, building materials, and exterior and floor elevations. At a minimum, one out of every three townhouse units shall use brick as the primary external surface building material. Earth-tone colors are strongly encouraged.

[Amended 4-23-2019 by Ord. No. 692]

[7] All townhouse units shall comply with the following architectural requirements.

[Amended 4-23-2019 by Ord. No. 692]

[a] Windows shall be oriented in a vertical fashion. The ratio between window height and window width shall be no less than two to one, nor greater than three to one.

[b] Windows and doors shall constitute a minimum of 30% of the total area of every external wall.

[c] Roof pitch shall be consistent with that of surrounding established neighborhoods in the Borough of Littlestown. Documentation shall be submitted demonstrating that the proposed roof pitch is consistent with that found in surrounding residential neighborhoods.

[d] An architectural feature, such as, but not limited to, vertical bands, shall be used to delineate the individual townhouse units of a townhouse building. In no event shall the building façade transition from one dwelling unit to another without a distinct visual or architectural break between the two units.

[8] On any townhouse building, all individual townhouse units shall share a common roof shingle material and color.[3]

[3] Editor’s Note: Former Subsection E(4)(a)[9], regarding additional architectural details, which immediately followed this subsection, was repealed 4-23-2019 by Ord. No. 692.

[2] Editor's Note: This ordinance provided that it shall take effect 4-8-2000.

(b) Additional requirements that apply to apartment houses.

[Amended 4-23-2019 by Ord. No. 692]

[1] No garden apartment building shall be closer than 50 feet from any other garden apartment building.

[2] Individual garden apartment buildings shall be limited to a maximum of 12 dwelling units.

(c) Additional requirements that apply to neighborhood retail sales and service facilities.

[1] No more than 15% of the lot area may be occupied by buildings.

[2] Off-street parking areas will be provided at a ratio of 2:1 (two square feet of parking area will be provided for each square foot of building area).

[3] No building or parking and loading area will be located within the yard requirements.

[4] Not more than two access points to off street parking areas shall be permitted.

[5] A minimum twenty-foot-wide buffer of planting shall be placed in the side and rear yards when such yards are adjacent to residential areas. Such planting shall be specimens no younger than three years in age and shall consist of evergreens or similar trees or shrubs which shall afford year-round screening.

[6] A reasonable amount of landscaping, ground cover, and a distribution of plants, shrubs, and trees shall be required in the front yard.

[7] No sign will be permitted within the yard requirements. All signs shall be subject to the approval of Borough Council.

[8] No open storage of goods, materials or supplies shall be permitted outside a building. All refuse shall be stored in verminproof containers.

F. Off-street parking requirements. Off-street parking shall be provided or required in § 500-19I of this chapter.

G. Protection of open spaces. All recreation areas designated on the development plan shall be improved and equipped initially by the developer in accordance with plans approved by the Borough Council and shall be protected by adequate covenants running with the land or by conveniences or dedications of same to the Borough of Littlestown as the Borough Council shall determine.

H. Development plan processing. Subject to the requirements of the Pennsylvania Municipalities Planning Code,[4] any developer and landowner applying for approval of a planned unit development shall do so in accordance with the following procedures:

(1) Preliminary development plan.

(a) Five copies of a development plan for a planned residential development prepared by a registered landscape architect, registered architect, or engineer shall be filed by the developer and landowner with the Borough Secretary for submission to the Borough Council, the Borough Planning Commission, the Borough Engineer, and the County Planning Commission. A processing fee shall be paid and an escrow fund shall be established at the time of submission in accordance with the fee schedule determined by Borough Council. Such fund shall be used to pay the fees and costs of any professional personnel employed to process, review and make recommendations on the preliminary plan and submission pertinent thereto.

(b) The plan shall be drawn to a scale of one inch equal 100 feet.

(c) The original drawing, and all submitted prints thereof, shall be made on sheets either:

[1] Eighteen inches by 24 inches;

[2] Twenty-four inches by 36 inches; or

[3] Thirty-six inches by 42 inches.

(d) If the preliminary plan requires more than one sheet, a key diagram showing relative location of the several sections shall be drawn on each sheet.

(e) The plan shall include the following information:

[1] The location, size and topography of the site in relation to the landowner's interest in the land proposed to be developed with information showing all legal and equitable ownership of land. The scale of the plan shall not be smaller than one inch equals 50 feet, with contours at five-foot intervals reflecting ground survey or aerial survey.

[2] The density of land use to be allocated to parts of the site.

[3] The location and size of open space and recreation areas and the form of organization proposed to own land and maintain said areas.

[4] The use and approximate height, bulk and location of buildings and other structures.

[5] Proposals for disposing of sanitary waste and stormwater and for providing public water facilitates with preliminary feasibility studies all prepared by a registered professional engineer.

[6] The required modifications in the municipal land use regulations otherwise applicable to the subject property.

[7] The location and width of proposed streets, walkways, and off-street parking facilities for the various buildings and uses.

[8] Where development plans call for development over a period of years, a schedule showing the proposed times within which applications for final approval of all sections of the planned residential development are intended to be filed and this schedule must be updated annually, on the anniversary date of its approval, until the development is completed and accepted.

[9] Statement of the proposed financing of the plan.

[10] Statement of the developer and landowner giving reasons why a planned residential development would be in the public interest and consistent with the Comprehensive Plan for the Borough of Littlestown.

(f) Upon receipt of the Plan, the Borough Secretary shall submit:

[1] One copy to the County Planning Commission.

[2] One copy to the Borough Council.

[3] One copy to the Borough Planning Commission.

[4] One copy to the Borough Engineer.

(g) The Borough Secretary shall retain one copy of the Plan.

(h) Review by the County Planning Commission:

[1] The County Planning Commission shall review the preliminary plan and make a written report of its findings within the following 30 days to:

[a] The applicant.

[b] The Borough Council.

[c] The Borough Planning Commission.

[d] The Engineer.

[e] The Borough Secretary.

(i) The Borough Engineer shall review the aspects of the plan within his competence within 10 days of its receipt of the plan. He shall then submit a written report of his findings to:

[1] The applicant.

[2] The Borough Council.

[3] The Borough Planning Commission.

(j) Review by the Borough Planning Commission. Within 40 days of receipt of the plan, the Borough Planning Commission shall evaluate the plan and the written reports of the County Planning Commission and the Borough Engineer and shall prepare a written report to the Borough Council including recommendations for any necessary modifications of the plan.

(k) Public hearing.

[1] Within 60 days after the filing of the application for preliminary approval, the Borough Council shall hold a public hearing pursuant to public notice on said application and plan.

[2] A verbatim record of the hearing must be available upon request of any party in the proceedings. They, in turn, must bear the cost of such record.

(l) As a result of the hearing or hearings held on the application and taking into consideration the recommendations of the Planning Commission, Borough Council shall render a written decision on the plan within 30 days following the conclusion of the public hearing provided for in this chapter. The written decision shall:

[1] Grant tentative approval of the development plan as submitted;

[2] Grant tentative approval subject to specified conditions not included in the Development Plan as submitted; or

[3] Deny tentative approval of the development plan.

(m) The written communication of the Council's action to the applicant shall include not only the Council's conclusions but also findings of fact and reasons relating to:

[1] Consistency of the plan with the Borough Comprehensive Plan.

[2] The extent to which the plan departs from zoning and subdivision regulations otherwise applicable to the subject property.

[3] The adequacy or inadequacy of the amount or purpose of proposed common open space and the reliability of proposals for maintenance of such open space.

[4] The adequacy of the physical; design to make provision for vehicular traffic.

[5] The beneficial or adverse relationships of the development to the surrounding neighborhood.

[6] The sufficiency of terms and conditions intended to protect the interest of the public and the residents of the Borough and the proposed development.

(n) The written notice of the Council's decision to the applicant shall set forth a time within which the applicant shall submit his application for the final development plan or each part thereof if to be developed over a period of years, of the planned residential development.

(o) Except upon consent of the applicant, such period shall not be less than three months, and in the case of developments over a period of years, shall not be less than 12 months as to each part of the plan.

(p) Copies of the Borough Council's written decision shall be sent to:

[1] The applicant.

[2] The County Planning Commission.

[3] The Borough Planning Commission.

[4] The Borough Engineer.

[5] The Borough Secretary.

(2) Final development plan.

(a) Within the period specified in the written notice and communication giving the decision on the preliminary development plan, the developer shall submit a detailed final development plan to the Borough Secretary for submission to the Borough Council, the Borough Engineer, the County Planning Commission, and the Borough Planning Commission. A processing fee will be paid and an escrow fund established in accordance with a fee schedule determined by Borough Council.

[1] Off-site improvements shall include sidewalks, curbs, open spaces, utilities and any other improvements set forth in this chapter or as a condition of tentative approval.

[2] Any excess of funds in the escrow account at the time of final acceptance of the improvements will be returned to the applicant.

(b) The final plan shall include evidence that detailed provisions have been made to comply with the following specific conditions:

[1] The location, dimensions and arrangement of all lot lines; the areas of open space; all buildings (other than single-family detached dwellings) with required off-street parking; curbing and walkways; and such other information necessary to provide for safe and efficient vehicular and pedestrian traffic flow; to and from the public streets which abut and serve the development.

[2] A completed stormwater drainage system, showing culverts, ditches and if curbs and gutters are required, all inlets, manholes, and pipes for stormwater drainage shall be shown; this shall be accompanied by computation prepared by a registered professional engineer to the satisfaction of the Borough Council and the Borough Engineer that the stormwater drainage system will be adequate for the development.

[3] Detailed improvement plans for the open space, including grading as may be required, planting plans, location and dimensions of equipment and apparatus for recreation as approved by the Borough Council, including brief specifications to convey type and quality.

[4] Detailed plans for sanitary sewerage system, together with necessary provisions made for placing all utilities underground.

[5] The final plan shall include the necessary information and exhibits for processing in accordance with the subdivision regulations, including plat for recording and performance bond or plan for escrowing monies for all required improvements.

[6] The applicant shall comply with all other conditions of the written notice and communication concerning the approval of the preliminary plan.

[7] After submission of the final plan and prior to approval thereof, the applicant shall execute a development agreement to be prepared by the Borough Solicitor containing various requirements consistent with this chapter and with all other ordinances and regulations of the Borough of Littlestown, which the Solicitor deems necessary.

[8] Upon submission of the final plan to the Borough, the Borough Secretary shall submit one copy to the Zoning Officer and one copy to the Borough Engineer, and one copy to the Borough Planning Commission for recommendations as to changes, alterations and modifications, if any. These recommendations shall be submitted in writing to the Borough Council within 21 days after receipt of the final plan.

[9] The Borough Council shall render its decision on the final plan within 30 days after the plan has been submitted for approval. The decision shall be rendered in writing to the applicant and if the plan is rejected the reasons therefore shall be given in the written notice of decision.

[10] Upon filing of record of the development plan, the zoning and subdivision regulations otherwise applicable to the land included in such plan shall cease to apply thereto.

[4] Editor's Note: See 53 P.S. § 10101 et seq.

I. Issuance of building permits and time limit for connecting construction.

(1) The Borough Council's approval of the final development plan shall become null and void, and the Council may amend the Zoning Map, in the event of any of the following:

(a) If at least 50% of the construction of the approved streets, buildings or other improvements shall not have been undertaken within a period of 18 months after approval of the final development plan, or within such additional time as may be authorized by the Borough Council upon written request of the developer.

(b) If there shall be a failure to complete or comply with any condition imposed by this chapter or by an conditions contained in the preliminary and final approval communications.

(c) If, as a result of voluntary sale or conveyance or any other transfer of title of ownership whatever prior to construction, the development shall cease to be owned by the applicant.

(2) Two final development plans shall be recorded and all conditions required in the development agreement prepared by the Borough Solicitor shall be complied with before any building permits are issued pursuant to the approval of the final development plan.