[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Supervisors of Jackson
Township as indicated in part histories. Amendments noted where applicable.]
[Adopted 11-20-2014 by Ord. No. 14-07]
This Part 1 shall be known and may be cited as the "Official Map Ordinance" and is adopted pursuant to Article IV of the Municipalities Planning Code, 53 P.S. § 10401 et seq., as amended.
This Part 1 is established for the following purposes:
A.
To serve and promote the public health, safety, welfare and convenience.
B.
To facilitate orderly development and the adequate provision of public
streets and other public facilities.
C.
To improve traffic circulation.
D.
To protect and enhance water resources and sewer facilities.
E.
To facilitate the subdivision and development of land.
F.
To facilitate the use of land and watercourses.
For the purposes of this Part 1, the following terms shall have the meanings set forth below, unless a different meaning clearly appears from the context. Terms that are used in this Part 1 but not specifically defined herein shall have the meanings set forth in Section 107 of the Municipalities Planning Code, 53 P.S. § 10107, as amended.
The Comprehensive Plan of the Township as most recently adopted
by the Board of Supervisors.
The Municipalities Planning Code, 53 P.S. § 10101
et seq., as amended.
A limited geographic area within a municipality, in which
a special assessment is levied on all designated property, other than
tax-exempt property, for the purpose of promoting the economic and
general welfare of the district and the municipality, pursuant to
the Neighborhood Improvement District Act, 73 P.S. § 831
et seq., as amended. Such district shall be referred to generally
as the "Neighborhood Improvement District (NID)" and specifically
as "Business Improvement District (BID)," "Residential Improvement
District (RID)," "Industrial Improvement District (BD)," "Institutional
Improvement District (INID)" or "Mixed-Use Improvement District (MID),"
depending on the type of district established.
The Official Map of the Township as adopted by this Part
1, as amended.
Any existing or proposed public land and facility, including,
but not limited to:
A public street, road, right-of-way, watercourse and public
ground, including widenings, narrowings, extensions, diminutions,
openings or closings of the same.
A public park, playground, recreation field and open space reservation.
A pedestrianway, trail, sidewalk and easement.
A railroad and transit right-of-way and easement.
A flood-control basin, floodway and floodplain, stormwater management
area and drainage easement.
A waterline, sewer line, pumping station and related facilities.
A Township and/or school district building, structure, athletic
field and related facilities.
A support facility, easement and other property held by public
bodies undertaking the elements described in Section 301 of the MPC,
53 P.S. § 10301.
Any other land, property, facility, building and/or structure
to be utilized for or related to a public purpose or authorized by
Article IV of the MPC, 53 P.S. § 10401 et seq.
An area reserved for a proposed or future public facility
as designated on the Official Map.
Includes:
A public street at its ultimate right-of-way width as shown
on the Official Map.
A report prepared at the sole expense of an applicant for a subdivision and/or land development under the Subdivision and Land Development Ordinance (Chapter 22), requesting the relocation or elimination of a road identified as a public facility reserved area on the Official Map as part of the proposed subdivision and/or land development.
The Seneca Valley School District, a body corporate and politic established pursuant to the Public School Code, 24 P.S. § 1-101 et seq.
A permit for construction in a public facility reserved area issued pursuant to the requirements and procedures of § 14-108 hereof.
A transportation partnership district created pursuant to
the Transportation Partnership Act, 53 P.S. § 1621 et seq.
B.
The adoption of a public facility as part of the Official Map shall
not, in and of itself, constitute or be deemed to constitute the opening
or establishment of any street nor the taking or acceptance of any
land by the Township, nor shall it obligate the Township to improve
or maintain any such street, land or public facility.
A.
The following maps, charts and documents, incorporated herein by
reference, shall be used as guides to interpreting the Official Map.
Copies of these maps, charts and documents shall be available for
public review at the Township Building.
(1)
The Jackson Township Transportation Capital Improvements Plan, as
adopted and amended by the Jackson Township Supervisors pursuant to
Article V-A of the MPC, 53 P.S. § 10501-A et seq., as amended.
B.
Unless otherwise specified on the Official Map, where an existing
road is located in a public facility reserved area, the center line
of the reserved road shall follow the center line of the existing
road.
The Board of Supervisors may fix the time for which public facilities
on the Official Map shall be deemed reserved for future taking or
acquisition for public use. However, a reservation for public grounds
shall lapse and become void one year after an owner of property subject
to the reservation has submitted a written notice to the Board of
Supervisors announcing his intentions to build, subdivide, or otherwise
develop the subject property, or has made formal application for an
official permit to build a building or structure for private use,
unless the governing body shall have acquired the subject property
or commenced condemnation proceedings to acquire the subject property
before the end of such one-year period.
A.
The Township Manager shall be responsible for negotiating with the
owners of land under the following circumstances:
B.
Any releases or agreements, when properly executed by the Board of
Supervisors and the owner and recorded with the Butler County Recorder
of Deeds, shall be binding upon any successor in title.
A.
No permit shall be issued for any building in, over, or upon any
public facility reserved area designated on the Official Map.
B.
No curb cuts or other access shall be permitted on roads designated as limited access in either the Comprehensive Plan or the Official Map, except in the location shown on the Official Map, unless the curb cut or other access is approved by the Board of Supervisors pursuant to the special encroachment permit provisions of this section; the road relocation or elimination provisions of § 14-109 hereof; or an amendment to the Official Map pursuant to § 14-112 hereof.
C.
No permit or other approval shall be issued by the Township for any
development, construction or improvement activity within a public
facility reserved area, unless a special encroachment permit is obtained
pursuant to this section. No person shall recover any damages for
the taking for public use of any building, structure or improvements
constructed within a public facility reserved area after the same
shall have been included on the Official Map, and any such building,
structure or improvement shall be removed at the expense of the owner
of the subject property.
D.
Special encroachment permit. When property subject to a public facility
reserved area cannot yield a reasonable return to the owner unless
a Township permit is granted, the owner of the subject property may
apply to the Board of Supervisors for the grant of a special encroachment
permit to build on the subject property.
(1)
Application procedure.
(a)
All applications for a special encroachment permit shall demonstrate
compliance with the applicable criteria of this subsection and any
other applicable requirements of the Code of Jackson Township, Butler
County, Pennsylvania.
(b)
All applications for a special encroachment permit shall be
submitted to the Planning Director, in the form prescribed from time
to time by the Planning Director, along with the following information
and documentation:
[1]
Two copies of the application for a special encroachment permit.
[2]
Two full-scale copies, eight half-scale copies with a minimum scale of one inch equals 200 feet and one electronic file of all plans, maps and drawings required for a preliminary land development application under the Subdivision and Land Development Ordinance (Chapter 22). The electronic file shall be in a Township-compatible format.
(2)
Review procedure.
(a)
A special encroachment permit application shall not be considered
to be administratively complete until all items required by this Part
1, including the relevant application and filing fees, have been received
by the Township. The Planning Director shall review the application
to determine whether all materials required by this Part 1 have been
submitted by the applicant. If all such materials have not been submitted,
the Planning Director shall reject the application as being administratively
incomplete and shall notify the applicant, in writing, citing the
specific deficiencies and the specific requirements of this Part 1
that have not been met.
(b)
Within five calendar days of receipt of an administratively
complete application, the Planning Director shall submit one copy
of the application to each member of the Planning Commission and the
Township Engineer.
(c)
The Planning Commission shall review the application and forward
its recommendation to the Board of Supervisors within 30 days of the
date of the Planning Commission's receipt of the same.
(d)
The Board of Supervisors shall hold a public hearing, pursuant
to public notice, within 45 days of the date of filing of an administratively
complete application. All parties in interest shall have an opportunity
to be heard during this public hearing. The Board of Supervisors shall
make a decision on the special encroachment permit application within
45 days of the last public hearing.
(e)
The decision of the Board of Supervisors to approve a special
encroachment permit shall be based upon a determination that:
[1]
The property subject to a public facility reserved area cannot
yield a reasonable return to the owner unless a Township permit is
granted.
(f)
A refusal by the Board of Supervisors to grant a special encroachment
permit may be appealed by the applicant to the Zoning Hearing Board
in the same manner, and within the same time limitations, as is provided
in Article IX of the MPC, 53 P.S. § 10901 et seq.
(3)
The grant or issuance of a special encroachment permit shall not
be in lieu of or replace any other permit or regulation of the Township
and shall not excuse the applicant from compliance with any and all
applicable regulations of the Code of Jackson Township, Butler County,
Pennsylvania, or any other federal, state, county or Township ordinances,
laws and regulations.
(4)
The grant or issuance of a special encroachment permit shall not
in any way amend the Official Map or impact the designation of a public
facility reserved area on the subject property. A property owner that
obtains a special encroachment permit does so with the understanding
of the Township's rights and interests in a public facility reserved
area on the subject property. Any building or improvement constructed
pursuant to the grant of a special encroachment permit must be removed
at the expense of the owner upon the determination of the Board of
Supervisors to exercise the Township's rights and interests in
a public facility reserved area.
A road, including, without limitation, rights-of-way or access points, identified as a public facility reserved area may be relocated or eliminated by any applicant on his or her property as part of an approved land development or subdivision plan under the Subdivision and Land Development Ordinance (Chapter 22), in accordance with the provisions of this section.
A.
If an applicant desires to relocate or eliminate a road identified as a public facility reserved area as part of a proposed subdivision and/or land development application filed pursuant to the Subdivision and Land Development Ordinance (Chapter 22), then the applicant shall prepare a road relocation report containing an analysis showing that the relocation or elimination proposed on the subdivision or land development plan meets the following criteria, as appropriate:
(1)
If relocation to another parcel is requested, the proposed location
on another parcel along with an assignable binding option agreement
for the purchase of the necessary land or interest required for the
road.
(2)
If elimination of the road is proposed, an analysis as to why the
road is no longer needed.
(3)
The applicant demonstrates that the relocated or eliminated road is as safe or safer in terms of vertical or horizontal alignment; has as much or more capacity to carry vehicular traffic; presents no extraordinary maintenance problems; is substantially the same length or size; functions equally well with the overall Township-wide road network; does not foreclose future road connections with adjoining properties and does not require the relocation of roads on adjoining properties; if constructed as part of a TPAD or NID improvement, that it is no more expensive to construct than the TPAD or NID improvement previously designated and that it is no more expensive to obtain the property or the right-of-way shown on the Official Map; provided, however, an applicant may propose to contribute funds equal to 110% of the increase in costs associated with the road relocation or elimination as determined by the Township Traffic Engineer and/or the Township Engineer, and after such contribution shall be deemed to have satisfied this requirement. Should the relocation or elimination request be approved, the contribution need not be made until the time the TPAD or NID improvement is constructed, provided that the applicant shall post financial security for the contribution as if it were an improvement in accordance with the requirements of the Subdivision and Land Development Ordinance (Chapter 22).
B.
For relocations entirely within the applicant's parcel, the
relocation of a proposed road shall be accomplished by showing the
new location of the road on the approved subdivision and land development
plan with the following indenture included thereon, duly signed by
the Chairperson of the Board of Supervisors, which shall state in
substantially the form hereof: "The road described hereunder (insert
description) is hereby substituted for the road shown on the Official
Map of Jackson Township recorded in the office of the Recorder Deeds
of Butler County at Book Volume Page(s) insofar as the same affects
the property contained within this plan. Through the approval of this
plan, the Official Map of Jackson Township is amended consistent with
the relocation of the above-referenced road."
C.
For elimination of a road, a release of damage claim shall be recorded
in the Recorder of Deeds of Butler County in accordance with Section
407 of the MPC, 53 P.S. § 10407.
D.
Review of the road relocation report.
(1)
The Planning Commission shall review the road relocation report and
make its recommendations on the road relocation or elimination request
to the Board of Supervisors at the same time as it makes a recommendation
on the underlying subdivision and/or land development application.
(2)
The Board of Supervisors shall act upon the road relocation or elimination
request at the same time it acts on the underlying subdivision and/or
land development application.
(3)
In the event of a denial of a road relocation or elimination request by the Board of Supervisors, the underlying subdivision and/or land development application shall proceed in its normal course pursuant to the Subdivision and Land Development Ordinance (Chapter 22) and the MPC, 53 P.S. § 10101 et seq.
The Township Manager is hereby authorized and directed to adopt
such written regulations that may be necessary for the administration
and enforcement of this Part 1. Any regulations adopted by the Township
Manager shall become effective upon approval of the Board of Supervisors
through a duly adopted resolution.
In order to coordinate the goals and objectives of this Part 1 with the responsibilities of other governmental entities, the Township Manager is authorized to negotiate proposed intergovernmental cooperation agreements with such entities. All such proposed agreements shall be in a form acceptable to the Township Solicitor and approved by the Township Police Chief if the same requires regulation by traffic control devices or enforcement by the police. Any such intergovernmental cooperation agreement shall only become effective upon enactment of an ordinance by the Board of Supervisors in accordance with Section 1507 of the Second Class Township Code, 53 P.S. § 66507, as amended, and the Intergovernmental Cooperation Law, 53 Pa.C.S.A. § 2301 et seq., as amended.
A.
Amendment by ordinance.
(1)
Prior to the adoption of an ordinance amending this Part 1, the Board
of Supervisors shall refer the proposed ordinance to the Planning
Commission and the Butler County Planning Commission for review and
comment. The Planning Commission and the Butler County Planning Commission
shall report their recommendations on the proposed ordinance within
45 days of the date of the referral unless an extension of time is
agreed to by the Board of Supervisors. If, however, either the Planning
Commission or the Butler County Planning Commission fails to act within
this forty-five-day period, then the Board of Supervisors may proceed
without the recommendations.
(2)
If the Township proposes an amendment to the Official Map that shows
any street or public lands intended to lead into any adjacent municipality,
a copy of said amendment shall be forwarded to such adjacent municipality
for review and comment by the governing body and planning agency of
the adjacent municipality. The comments of the adjacent municipality
shall be made to the Board of Supervisors within 45 days, and the
proposed action shall not be taken until such comments are received.
If, however, the adjacent municipality fails to act within this forty-five-day
period, then the Board of Supervisors may proceed without its comments.
B.
Effect of approved plats on Official Map.
(1)
After adoption of the Official Map, or an amendment thereto, all public facilities referenced on final, recorded plats which have been approved by the Board of Supervisors as provided in the MPC, 53 P.S. § 10101 et seq., and pursuant to the Subdivision and Land Development Ordinance (Chapter 22), shall be deemed amendments to the Official Map. No public hearing need be held or notice given if the amendment of the Official Map is a result of the addition of a plat which has been so approved. The Planning Director shall be responsible for tracking all amendments of the Official Map that result from the approval of a plat.
(2)
Any approved plat that revises the Official Map shall contain a notation which substantially complies with the following format: "This plat amends the Jackson Township Official Map adopted pursuant to Chapter 14, Official Map, Part 1, of the Code of Jackson Township, Butler County, Pennsylvania, recorded in the Recorder of Deeds of Butler County as Instrument No. _____.
A.
The Board of Supervisors shall establish, by resolution adopted from
time to time, fees and charges for all permits, applications and reviews
required by this Part 1. This schedule, along with an explanation
of the collection procedure, shall be available in the offices of
the Township Manager.
B.
The Township, at its discretion, may require the application materials
and subsequent construction to be reviewed by the Township Engineer
or other consultants, as deemed necessary by the Township Manager,
or his designee, with the applicant being responsible for all costs
of said review as billed to the Township. The applicant shall also
be responsible for all other fees and costs incurred by the Township
in relation to the application, including but not limited to legal
fees, legal advertising, public notices, certified mailings, court
reporter appearance fees, transcription of testimony and any other
related costs.
A.
Any person, partnership or corporation who has violated any provision of this Part 1 shall, upon being found liable therefor in a civil enforcement proceeding commenced by the Township, pay a judgment of not more than $500, plus all costs, including reasonable attorneys' fees incurred by the Township as a result thereof. No judgment shall commence or be imposed, levied or payable until the date of determination of a violation by the Magisterial District Judge. If the defendant neither pays nor timely appeals the judgment, the Township may enforce the judgment pursuant to the applicable Rules of Civil Procedure. A separate offense shall arise for each day or portion thereof in which a violation is found to exist and for each section of this Part 1 found to have been violated. In addition to any other remedy available under the law, the Township may enforce this Part 1 through an action in equity. The initial determination of a violation of this Part 1 is hereby delegated to the Township Manager, the Planning Director, the Code Official, the authorized designee of the Township Manager, and to any other officer or agent that the Township Manager or Board of Supervisors shall deem appropriate.
B.
In the event that the property owner or other person responsible
for the property fails to take any actions necessary to correct the
violations of this Part 1, the Township shall have the power and authority
to correct any said violations, with the property owner being responsible
for any such costs of remedial activities by the Township.
C.
The costs of remedial activities and civil judgments mentioned above
may be entered by the Township as a lien against subject property
in accordance with existing provisions of law.
Unless otherwise specifically provided in this Part 1, any appeal from a decision or action of the Board of Supervisors or of any Township officer or agency of matters pertaining to this Part 1 shall be made in the same manner and with the same time limitation as is provided for zoning appeals under Article X-A of the MPC, 53 P.S. § 11001-A.
