A. 
This article establishes an equitable method for the preservation of designated areas and resources in the Township of West Vincent through the establishment of a transferable development rights (TDR) program. The TDR program provides an opportunity to landowners in designated areas to preserve land through the option of selling some or all of the development rights associated with their land in lieu of development and an opportunity to certain other landowners in areas of the municipality designated suitable for development with the option of increasing the density of development of their land with the acquisition of such development rights.
B. 
It is the specific purpose of the Township of West Vincent to implement the provisions of the Municipalities Planning Code, Section 604,[1] to:
(1) 
Manage growth by providing incentives to designated portions of the Township for concentrated development through the establishment of receiving zones where development rights purchased through the TDR program may supplement development rights established by the base zoning;
(2) 
Permanently preserve resources considered important to the Township, including agricultural lands, prime agricultural soils, environmentally sensitive resources, open lands, and visual resources, through the establishment of designated sending zones by which development rights may be sold in lieu of development;
(3) 
Provide an equitable method to compensate landowners in the designated sending zones who voluntarily forbear from developing land in the Township;
(4) 
Maintain the historical community character and land use pattern of the Township; and
(5) 
Effectively achieve the goals and objectives identified in the Township Comprehensive Plan and the Township Greenway Land and Recreation Plan.
[1]
Editor's Note: See 53 P.S. § 10604.
A. 
Authority. The transferable development rights program is established in accordance with Section 605(4) of the Pennsylvania Municipalities Planning Code, Act 1968, P.L. 805, Act 247, as reenacted and amended.[1] By authority of this Act, development rights shall be a separate estate in land and declared severable and separately conveyable from the estate in fee simple.
[1]
Editor's Note: See 53 P.S. § 10605(4).
B. 
Concept recognition. The Township Board of Supervisors hereby recognizes the severability and transferability of development rights from certain lands within the Township to be transferred and used in accordance with the provision herein. The TDR program is recognized as a voluntary agreement under the terms of this article between a willing buyer and a willing seller and shall be governed by the following principles:
(1) 
Lands designated for preservation shall be designated as "sending zones." The seller receives compensation from the sale of his development rights in exchange for retaining the land in agriculture or greenway land through a permanent deed restriction.
(2) 
Lands designated for additional, compacted development shall be designated as "receiving zones." The buyer is permitted to use transferable development rights to increase the density of his development within receiving zones.
(3) 
The number of development rights shall be established by this article.
(4) 
The price of development rights will be determined by the willing buyer and the willing seller under fair market conditions.
A. 
Eligibility. transferable development rights are recognized and established for any tract of land within the Township.
B. 
Net TDR tract area calculation. The net TDR tract area from which development rights are determined shall be defined as the adjusted tract acreage and subtracting the following additional areas:
(1) 
All land or portion thereof owned by or subject to easement against development and in favor of government agencies, utilities and nonprofit conservancies and corporations. Portions of land not subject to such easements may be included in the development rights calculation.
(2) 
Existing dwellings shall be deducted from the total tract area by subtracting the lot size for each dwelling as established by the lot density within the Tier IV design option of the applicable zoning district.
(3) 
To account for lands which would otherwise be devoted to roads and infrastructure improvements had the tract been developed, the net tract area as defined in Subsections B(1) and (2) above shall be multiplied by 0.85 to determine the net TDR tract area.
C. 
Number of rights. The number of transferable development rights to be assigned to an eligible tract of land shall be established by the following procedure:
(1) 
Divide the "net TDR tract area" calculation as established in Subsection B above by the lot density within the Tier IV design option for the applicable base zoning district.
(2) 
In order to promote and encourage the TDR program, the following development rights bonus and maximum TDR capacity (i.e., base density plus density bonus) shall be assigned to each designated sending zone:
Base District
Base District Allowable Density
+
Density Bonus Under TDR
=
Max. TDR's Capacity
RC
0.36 DU/AC
0.12 DU/AC
0.48 DU/AC
R-3
0.36 DU/AC
0.15 DU/AC
0.51 DU/AC
R-2
0.44 DU/AC
0.18 DU/AC
0.62 DU/AC
RM
5.00 DU/AC
1.25 DU/AC
6.25 DU/AC
KV
2.18 DU/AC
0.55 DU/AC
2.73 DU/AC
BV
1.45 DU/AC
0.36 DU/AC
1.81 DU/AC
PC/LI
1.00 DU/AC
0.25 DU/AC
1.25 DU/AC
LVCC
1.45 DU/AC
0.36 DU/AC
1.81 DU/AC
PRD
3.00 DU/AC
0.75 DU/AC
3.75 DU/AC
(3) 
When the computation to determine the total number of development rights in Subsection C(2) above results in a fractional number, any fraction of 0.50 or higher shall be equal to one right.
D. 
Monitoring of rights.
(1) 
All subdivision and land development plans within the sending zone received subsequent to the adoption of this chapter shall include a notation of the total number of development rights held and the number of rights remaining on each parcel after said subdivision and land development.
(2) 
The Township shall maintain an accurate record of development rights established and transferred for each tract of land within sending zones through an appropriate indexing system and map, based on recorded plans. Such system shall key the information to the original tax parcel.
(3) 
The Township shall participate in the transfer process as prescribed in § 390-199.
E. 
Right to develop. The owner of a tract of land eligible for the transfer of development rights who has not sold such rights has the right to utilize and develop such tract in accordance with all applicable provisions of this chapter; Chapter 316, Subdivision and Land Development, of the Code; and all other applicable Township regulations.
A. 
Sale of rights. Development rights, as calculated in § 390-198 above, may be conveyed to any person or legal entity or equitable owner of tracts of land within any designated receiving zone, held for future sale or conveyance, or sold or donated to the Township, the county, a conservancy or land trust.
B. 
Deed of transfer of development rights. The development rights conveyed shall be described in a deed or agreement in recordable form, designating the owner of the tract of land in the sending zone as the "sender" and the owner or equitable owner in the receiving zone as the "receiver." The agreement(s) necessary to effectuate such conveyance shall be subject to the approval and endorsement of the Township Board of Supervisors, and further shall be recorded with the Chester County Recorder of Deeds. The receiver shall obtain a sample deed or agreement of transfer of development rights from the Township. Said deed or agreement must be endorsed by the Board of Supervisors prior to recording. Prior to approval of any transfer of development rights, the Township Engineer shall certify that the net acreage so restricted is sufficient to meet the requirements of the number of development rights conveyed, as well as that the number of development rights being transferred comports with the requirements of this chapter.
C. 
Title report. The deed or agreement shall be accompanied by a title report and plan, showing such detail as may be required by the Township to demonstrate that such lands are free of restrictions prescribed in § 390-198.
D. 
Restrictive covenant agreement. Upon the sale, reservation or banking of development rights, the sender shall enter into a restrictive covenant agreement with the Township, which shall be recorded with the Chester County Recorder of Deeds. The covenant agreement shall:
(1) 
Permanently restrict the land from future development of nonagricultural uses, except for conservation, passive or low-intensity recreation, and similar greenway land uses.
(2) 
Be subject to the approval of the Board of Supervisors, in consultation with the Township Solicitor.
(3) 
Designate the Township as the beneficiary of said agreement, having the ability to enforce the restrictions against present and future owners of the tract or any portion thereof.
(4) 
Require that areas subject to restrictive covenants may not be used in the calculation of lot area or yard requirements under the base zoning district.
(5) 
Permanently establish any development rights which have been retained and which may be utilized by the sending property and further provide that such development rights may not be either increased or decreased despite changes in future zoning for the sending property. The covenant agreement shall contain language evidencing a permanent restriction upon the sending property from future development except in accordance with the specific number of retained development rights established at the time of the execution of the covenant agreement and related deed of transfer.
(6) 
The Township and landowner shall identify by mutual consent the building envelope locations for any retained development rights.
A. 
Eligibility. Transferable development rights may be applied to tracts of land within receiving zones, in addition to rights established under the base zoning district. The following eligibility criteria shall apply to receiving zones as defined by this article:
(1) 
The tract of land shall be no less than the following minimum area:
District
Minimum Tract/Lot Area
Residential Mix (RM)
10 acres
Planned Residential Development (PRD)
50 acres
Planned Commercial/Limited Industrial (PC/LI)
1 acre
R-3 Residential
10 acres
R-2 Residential
10 acres
Ludwigs Village Center Commercial (LVCC)
25,000 square feet
Ludwigs Village Center Residential (VCR)
10 acres
(2) 
The tract(s) shall be located within the following zoning districts as indicated on the Transferable Development Rights Overlay District map:
Residential Mix (RM)
Planned Residential Development (PRD)
Planned Commercial/Limited Industrial (PC/LI)
R-3 Residential
R-2 Residential
Village Center Commercial (LVCC)
Village Center Residential (VCR)
B. 
Transfer of rights. Landowners in receiving zones have the right to build the following for each development right purchased, up to the maximum development capacity of the receiving zone:
(1) 
Residential uses.
Number of Dwelling Units for Each Development Right Purchased in the Following Sending Zones
Receiving Zone District
RC
R-3
R-2
KV
PRD
RM
BV
MHP
VCR
RM
2.5
1.75
1.25
1
1
1
1
1
1
PRD
2.5
1.75
1.25
1
1
1
1
1
1
R-3
2.5
1.75
1.25
1
1
1
1
1
1
R-2
2.5
1.75
1.25
1
1
1
1
1
1
VCR
2.5
1.75
1.25
1
1
1
1
1
1
(2) 
Nonresidential uses.
Additional Floor Area or Maximum Lot Coverage Per Acre, Whichever Is Less
District
Additional Square Feet of Floor Area
Maximum Lot Coverage
Planned Commercial/Limited Industrial
5,000
75% per acre
Village Center Commercial (LVCC)
5,000
75% per acre
Allowable Use of Second-Floor Area in Lieu of Residential Use
Use
Square Feet of Floor Area in Lieu of Residential
Ludwigs Village Center Commercial (LVCC)
Office
10,000
Retail
5,000
(3) 
When the computation to determine the total number of development rights in Subsection B(1) above results in a fractional number, any fraction of 0.50 or higher shall be equal to one right.
C. 
Maximum development capacity. The maximum development capacity when the developer purchases additional rights in accordance with provisions of this article shall be as follows:
District
Maximum Gross Density
Maximum Building Coverage
Maximum Lot Coverage
Residential Mix (RM)
6 du/ac
N/A
N/A
Planned Residential Development (PRD)
5 du/ac
N/A
N/A
Planned Commercial/Limited Industrial
N/A
60%
75%
R-3 Residential
0.5 du/ac
N/A
N/A
R-2 Residential
0.625 du/ac
N/A
N/A
Ludwigs Village Center Commercial (LVCC)
N/A
60%
75%
Village Center Residential (VCR)
6 du/ac
N/A
N/A
D. 
Applicable area and bulk requirements. Applicants using transferable development rights in the R-3 and R-2 Residential Districts may reduce the amount of required greenway land up to 10%, reduce the minimum lot area and bulk requirements by up to 10%, or by a combination of these approaches, at the discretion of the Board of Supervisors.
When a landowner wishes to transfer or reserve for future transfer less than the total number of development rights established for his tract of land as identified by a single tax parcel, the landowner may do so, provided that:
A. 
No residual parcel for which development rights remain shall be created unless in conformance with the applicable base zoning district or "default setting" lot size and dimensional requirements.
B. 
All subdivision plans for the residual parcel shall include the remaining number of development rights assigned to the unencumbered parcel based on the required base zoning district or "default setting" lot size and dimensional requirements. The subdivision plan for the residual parcel is not required to be a fully engineered preliminary and/or final plan, as defined by Chapter 315, Subdivision and Land Development, of the Township's Code, and may be in the form of a sketch plan only.
C. 
Resources covered by restrictive covenant agreement.
(1) 
In determining which resources or portions of a tract of land should be included in the area covered by the restrictive covenant agreement, the landowner shall adhere to the following priorities, in descending order of importance:
(a) 
Prime agricultural soils.
(b) 
Lands devoted to agricultural uses.
(c) 
Historic, cultural, and scenic resources.
(d) 
One-hundred-year floodplain.
(e) 
Alluvial or hydric soil areas, including wetlands.
(f) 
Woodlands and slopes in excess of 15%.
(2) 
In areas where more than one resource exists, the areas of multiple resources may, at the sole discretion of the Board of Supervisors, result in a higher priority than areas with a single resource.
D. 
The Township and landowner shall identify by mutual consent the building envelope locations for any retained development rights.
Transferable development rights shall be considered real property. Upon sale and transfer, the restrictive covenant agreement and accompanying deed of or agreement respecting transfer of development rights shall be recorded in the Chester County Recorder of Deeds office to effect notification to the Chester County Board of Assessment so that proper reassessment may occur.
the Township of West Vincent may purchase development rights and may accept ownership of development rights through transfer by donation. All such development rights shall be either retired or extinguished by the Township or held in a TDR account for future sale to receiving area properties. Any such purchase or donation shall be accompanied by an agreement or deed of transfer of development rights, as prescribed in § 390-199.