[Ord. No. 8-9-2005, 8/9/2005,
§ 1100]
1. The Township may on its own motion or by petition amend, supplement,
change, modify or repeal this chapter, including the Zoning Map, by
proceeding in the following manner. (See Appendix 27-E of this chapter
for an illustration of the amendment procedure.) For curative amendments
See § 609.1, "Procedure For Landowner Curative Amendments,"
under Article VI of the Pennsylvania Municipalities Planning Code,
53 P.S. § 10609.1 et seq.
A. Public Hearing and Notice Requirements.
(1)
The Township Supervisors shall, at a public meeting, establish
a date, time and place for a public hearing on the proposed amendment.
Notice of such hearing shall be published once each week for two successive
weeks in a newspaper of general, local circulation. The first notice
shall be published not more than 30 days and the second publication
should appear no less than seven days prior to the hearing date. The
notice shall state the time and place of the hearing and the general
nature of the proposed amendment in such reasonable detail as will
give adequate notice of its contents and shall name the place(s) where
copies of the proposed amendment may be examined.
(2)
In addition, if the proposed amendment involves a Zoning Map
change, notice of said public hearing shall be conspicuously posted
by the Township at points deemed sufficient by the municipality along
the affected tract at least seven days prior to the date of the hearing.
Further, where a proposed amendment involves a Zoning Map change,
other than a comprehensive municipal rezoning, the Township shall
notify all property owners within the area proposed for rezoning (by
first class mail) of the date, time and location of the hearing at
least 30 days prior to the hearing.
(3)
If, after said public hearing, the proposed amendment is changed
substantially or is revised to include land not previously affected
by it, the Supervisors shall hold another public hearing and give
notice thereof as set forth above, before proceeding to vote on the
amendment.
B. Review by Planning Commissions. Every such proposed amendment or
change, whether initiated by the Township Supervisors or by petition,
shall be referred to the Township Planning Commission and the County
Planning Commission at least 30 days before the public hearing for
report thereon. If the Planning Commission(s) fail to file such a
report before the public hearing it shall be presumed that the Planning
Commission(s) have no comments or concerns regarding the proposed
amendment, supplement or change.
C. Opportunity to be Heard. At the public hearing, any citizen and all
parties in interest shall be given the opportunity to be heard.
D. Notice of Enactment. Prior to taking action on the amendment, the
Township Supervisors shall give notice of proposed enactment by publishing
the entire amendment or the title and a brief summary in a newspaper
of general, local circulation. Such notice shall include the time
and place of the meeting at which passage is to be considered and
shall name the place where copies of the proposed amendment may be
examined. The notice shall be published one time, not more than 60
days nor less than seven days prior to passage. If the full text is
not published, a copy of the amendment shall be supplied to the newspaper
at the time of publication of the notice, and an attested copy of
the proposed amendment shall be filed in the County Law Library or
other County office designated by the County Commissioners.
E. Enactment of Amendments.
(1)
The adoption of an amendment shall be by simple majority vote
of the Township Supervisors. The vote of the Supervisors shall be
within 90 days after the last public hearing on the amendment. If
the Supervisors fail to take action within 90 days, the proposed amendment
shall be deemed to have been denied.
(2)
Within 30 days after enactment, a copy of the amendment shall
be forwarded to the County Planning Commission.
[Ord. No. 8-9-2005, 8/9/2005,
§ 1101]
1. The Township Supervisors may grant conditional use approval for only those uses set forth in Part
3 of this chapter, the "District Regulations," pursuant to the express standards and criteria outlined in Part
4, the "Supplementary Use Regulations." In addition, the Supervisors may attach such reasonable conditions and safeguards as they deem appropriate to protect the public welfare and implement the purposes of this chapter. (See Appendix 27-F of this chapter for a chart illustrating the conditional use procedure.)
A. Application Procedure. Applications for any conditional use permitted
by this chapter shall be made to the Zoning Officer who shall refer
such applications to the Secretary of the Township Supervisors or
Township Manager, as applicable. Upon receipt of a conditional use
application, the Secretary or Manager, as applicable, shall forward
a copy of the application to the Township Planning Commission for
their review and recommendation. The Planning Commission shall conduct
its review and make its recommendations within 45 days of receipt
of such request.
B. Written Statement. All applications for conditional uses shall include
a written statement describing the tract of land and its intended
use. Such statement shall include the following information:
(1)
The location of the tract of land.
(2)
The present use of the tract for which the conditional use is
requested.
(3)
The present use of adjoining tracts.
(4)
The type of conditional use for which the application is made.
(5)
A brief description of the type and extent of the proposed activities.
(6)
An estimate of the total development cost of the conditional
use.
(7)
The names of the applicant, the owner of the tract, the developer
of the conditional use and the person or organization who will operate
the conditional use.
C. Site Plan. All applications for a conditional use shall include a
site plan of the proposed development as set forth below. Such site
plan shall be drawn to a scale sufficient to clearly show the features
of the tract and shall include the following information:
(1)
A title block containing the name of the developer or landowner,
date, scale, north arrow and the name and profession of the preparer
of the plan.
(2)
Tract boundaries showing bearings and distances.
(3)
Existing significant natural or man-made features of the site.
(4)
Existing and proposed streets, rights-of-way, easements, means
of access and setback lines.
(5)
Existing buildings, sewers, water mains, culverts, transmission
lines, and fire hydrants on or adjacent to the site.
(6)
Existing contours at vertical intervals of five feet or less
and the datum to which the elevations refer.
(7)
A proposed grading and drainage plan.
(8)
A proposed plan of any landscaping of the tract showing all
paved and planted areas, screens or fences and erosion control measures.
(9)
Plans of any proposed sanitary sewer or storm sewer systems
and water supply systems.
(10)
The location, size and floor plan of all proposed buildings
or structures and proposed use of all buildings or structures and
open or unenclosed areas of the tract.
In cases where little site improvement or development is required
or proposed for a conditional use, the Township Supervisors, upon
recommendation of the Township Planning Commission, may waive the
requirement for submittal of certain information that they deem unnecessary
for their review of the application. In all cases however, the information
submitted shall be adequate for review of the conditional use request.
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D. Hearing Requirements. Within 60 days of the date of receipt of an applicant's application for a conditional use, the Supervisors shall select a date, advertise (pursuant to the definition of "public notice"), and hold the first public hearing on the proposal. Hearings shall be conducted in accordance with the procedures set forth in §
27-1003, Subsection
6, of this chapter for Zoning Hearing Board hearings. The burden of presentation of the conditional use request at the hearing shall rest with the applicant.
E. Criteria for Review of Conditional Uses. The Supervisors shall, in
making decisions on each application for a conditional use, consider
the following general criteria, in addition to the special criteria
established elsewhere in this chapter:
(1)
The purpose of the zone in which the requested conditional use
is to be located and the compatibility of the requested conditional
use with existing and potential land uses on adjacent tracts of ground.
(2)
Whether the specific site is an appropriate location for the
use, structure or condition.
(3)
Whether the use developed will adversely affect the neighborhood.
(4)
Whether the use will create undue nuisance or serious hazard
to vehicles or pedestrians.
(5)
Whether adequate and appropriate facilities and services will
be provided to ensure the proper operation of the proposed use.
(6)
The economic, noise, glare or odor effects of the conditional
use on adjoining properties and properties generally in the district.
(7)
Whether satisfactory provision and arrangement has been made
concerning the following:
(a)
Ingress and egress to the property and structure thereon with
particular reference to automotive and pedestrian safety and convenience,
traffic flow, control and access in case of fire or other emergency.
(b)
Off-street parking and loading areas.
(c)
Waste collection, storage and disposal.
(d)
Utilities, with reference to location, availability and compatibility.
(e)
Screening and buffering with reference to type, dimensions and
character.
(f)
Signs, if any, and proposed exterior lighting with reference
to glare, traffic safety, economic effect and compatibility and harmony
with properties in the district.
(g)
Required yards and open spaces.
F. Decisions.
(1)
The Supervisors shall render a decision or, when no decision
is called for, make written findings on the conditional use application
within 45 days after their last hearing on the proposal. Where the
application is contested or denied, each decision shall be accompanied
by findings of fact or conclusions based thereon, together with any
reasons therefor. Conclusions based on any provisions of the Pennsylvania
Municipalities Planning Code, 53 P.S. § 10101 et seq., this
chapter, or other ordnance, rule or regulation shall contain a reference
to the provision relied upon and the reasons why the conclusion is
deemed appropriate in light of the facts found.
(2)
A copy of the final decision or, where no decision is called
for, the findings shall be delivered to the applicant personally or
mailed to him no later than the day following its date.
G. Failure to Hold Required Hearing or Render Decision. Where the Supervisors
fail to commence, conduct, or complete the required hearing or fail
to render a decision within the prescribed time periods (except for
challenges filed under § 916.1 of the Pennsylvania Municipalities
Planning Code, 53 P.S. § 10916.1), the decision shall be
deemed to have been rendered in favor of the applicant, unless the
applicant has agreed in writing or on the record to an extension of
time. When a decision has been rendered in favor of the applicant
because of a violation of the prescribed time periods, the Township
Supervisors shall give public notice (in the same manner as is done
for the public hearing) of the decision within 10 days from the last
day they could have met to render a timely decision. If the Supervisors
fail to provide such notice, the applicant may do so.
H. Expiration of Decision. Unless otherwise specified by the Supervisors
at the time of their action, a conditional use authorization shall
expire if the applicant fails to obtain any necessary zoning and/or
building permit(s) and start construction, or fails to comply with
the conditions of said authorization, within 24 months from the date
of said authorization.
[Amended by Ord. No. 03-09-2021, 3/9/2021]
I. Appeals. Nothing in this section shall prejudice the right of any
party opposing the application to appeal the decision to a court of
competent jurisdiction.