These regulations shall be known as and referred to as the "Township
of Potter Public and Private Improvements Code."
The general purposes of these regulations are to:
A.
Establish construction standards and specifications governing the
construction of public and private improvements in the Township that
fall under the jurisdiction of the Potter Township Subdivision and
Land Development Ordinance[1] or other Township ordinances or regulations.
B.
Control the construction and installation of public and private improvements
in the Township by developers and public utility companies.
C.
Control the acceptance of public improvements.
D.
Control the satisfactory completion of private improvements.
The Township shall be responsible for the administration, enforcement
and interpretation of this code.
These regulations shall be applicable to the construction of
all public and private improvements in the Township.
Public and private improvements constructed by any person or
entity, including a developer, shall be constructed in accordance
with this code.
All construction of public and private improvements in the Township
by or on behalf of any developer shall be conducted in accordance
with the following general provisions:
A.
Notice prior to start of work. In order that the Township may provide
proper inspection and emergency services during construction, the
developer shall file with the Township a notice of commencement not
less than two days prior to start of work and shall also submit the
following:
B.
Supervision and superintendence.
(1)
The developer shall supervise and direct the work and be solely responsible
to see that the work is done in accordance with the construction standards
and specifications.
(2)
The developer shall have available at all times while construction
is continuing a competent superintendent, who may be contacted during
an emergency. The superintendent will be the developer's representative
at the site and shall have authority to act on behalf of the developer.
All communications given to the superintendent shall be as binding
as if given to the developer. If the superintendent is replaced, the
developer shall give written notice thereof to the Township immediately.
(3)
The developer shall be fully responsible for the acts and omissions
of the contractors, subcontractors, persons and organizations directly
or indirectly in his employ.
C.
Site appearance. The developer shall keep the site free from accumulation
of waste materials, rubbish and other debris resulting from the work.
At the completion of the work, the developer shall remove all waste
materials, rubbish and debris from and about the site as well as all
tools, construction equipment and machinery, and surplus materials
and shall leave the site clean.
D.
Parking. No construction vehicles, vehicles of construction employees,
equipment, materials or supplies shall encroach onto a public street.
In the case where there is a private street or proposed public street,
not yet accepted by the Township, the developer shall maintain an
eighteen-foot unobstructed clear path on such street for emergency
vehicle purposes.
E.
Hours of construction. The operation of heavy construction or excavation
machinery, including, but not limited to, bulldozers, high-lifts,
backhoes, trucks, power shovels, pumps and jackhammers, and the operation
of equipment such as saws and drills or any other type of machinery
in conjunction with the construction of public and private improvements,
which causes noise sufficient to disturb the peace and general tranquility
of the general public, shall be prohibited in the entire Township
between the hours of 9:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m., Monday through Saturday,
and all day Sunday.
F.
Dust control. The developer shall maintain the site so as to control
the dust. The developer shall employ measures necessary to control
dust. At the Township's direction, the Township may require routine
maintenance of the site for dust control if, in the opinion of the
Township, the developer is not maintaining the site in a reasonable
manner.
G.
Responsibility for compliance. The developer shall have the sole
responsibility to comply with all federal, commonwealth, and local
laws, and the Township disclaims any duty to enforce any violation
of such laws or inform the developer of noncompliance.
A Township road occupancy permit and financial security, as
deemed necessary, are required for the installation of any utilities
within an existing public street in accordance with the procedures
and requirements set forth in this code.
A.
It shall be unlawful for any developer or public utility company
to construct public or private improvements regulated by this code,
or cause the same to be done, in conflict with or in violation of
any of the provisions of this code or any other law or ordinance of
Potter Township.
B.
Notice of violation. The Township shall serve a notice of violation
or order on the developer or utility company responsible for the violation
of the provisions of this code or of the plans approved hereunder.
Such order shall direct the discontinuance of the illegal action or
condition and the abatement of the violation.
C.
Any person who shall violate a provision of this code or who shall
fail to comply with any requirement thereof, upon conviction thereof
in an action brought before a District Judge in the manner provided
for the enforcement of summary offenses, shall be sentenced to pay
a fine of not more than $500 plus costs. Each day that a violation
of this article continues or each section of this article which shall
be found to have been violated shall constitute a separate offense.
D.
Abatement of violation. The imposition of the penalties herein prescribed
shall not preclude the Township from instituting appropriate action
to prevent unlawful construction or to restrain, correct or abate
a violation or to otherwise stop an illegal act.
A.
Notice to stop work. Upon notice from the Township that work on the
installation of public or private improvements is being performed
contrary to the provisions of this code, such work shall be immediately
stopped. The stop-work order shall be in writing and shall be given
to the developer or to the person doing the work. The stop-work order
shall state the conditions under which the work may be resumed.
B.
Unlawful continuance. Any person who shall continue any work in or
about a work site after having been served with a stop-work order,
except such work as that person is directed to perform to remove a
violation or unsafe conditions, shall be liable to the Township for
violations and penalties set forth herein.
The procedure for acceptance of public improvements shall be
in accordance with the Potter Township Subdivision and Land Development
Ordinance.[1]
This code may be amended by action of the Supervisors in accordance with this code; however, the construction standards in Article IV of this code as they pertain to any particular public improvement may be amended from time to time by resolution of the Supervisors upon recommendation of the Township Engineer.
A.
Should there arise any dispute between any developer and the Township
with regard to any provisions of this code, the developer and Township
may elect to use the provisions of this section to mediate such dispute.
Participation in mediation shall be wholly voluntary. The appropriateness
of mediation shall be determined by the particulars of each case and
the willingness of the parties to negotiate.
B.
Parties agreeing to enter into mediation shall first enter into a
written mediation agreement containing at least the following minimum
provisions:
(1)
Identification of the selected mediator who, at a minimum, shall
have a working knowledge of municipal zoning and subdivision procedures
and engineering practices. The mediator shall have demonstrated experience
and skills in mediation.
(2)
The time frame in which the mediation will be conducted and completed.
(3)
Provisions for suspension of time limits if necessary, for applications
subject to the same in regards to subdivision, land development, PRD
or other application or procedures pursuant to the Pennsylvania Municipalities
Planning Code, 53 P.S. § 10101 et seq.
(4)
Identification of all parties, affording them the opportunity to
participate.
(5)
Subject to legal restraints determining whether the mediation sessions
or parts thereof shall be open to the public.
(6)
Identification as to whether the results of such mediation shall
be binding upon the parties.
C.
Funding for mediation shall be borne solely by the developer.
D.
Mediated solutions shall be in writing and signed by the parties
and become subject to review and approval by the appropriate decisionmaking
body when necessary.
E.
No offers or statements made in the mediation sessions, excluding
the final written mediated agreement, shall be admissible as evidence
in any subsequent judicial or administrative proceedings.
In addition to the foregoing, the Board of Supervisors shall
have authority to grant modifications of the requirements of this
code in connection with the development of a large-scale industrial
facility occupying more than 100 acres if the modifications are not
contrary to the public interest and the Board of Supervisors attaches
such reasonable conditions and safeguards to such modifications as
it may deem necessary to implement the purpose and intent of this
code.
