[Ord. 2009-01, 4/2/2009, § 201]
Words used in the present tense include the future tense; the
particular controls the general; the singular includes the plural,
and the plural, the singular; the words "person" or "developer" include
a firm, association, partnership, trust, company or corporation as
well as an individual; the masculine includes the feminine; the word
"shall" is mandatory, and the word "may" permissive; the words "used"
or "occupied" include the words "intended, arranged maintained or
designed to be used or occupied," and words used in this chapter and
not otherwise defined in this Part, or the Pennsylvania Municipalities
Planning Code, shall have the same meaning as in a standard dictionary.
[Ord. 2009-01, 4/2/2009, § 202]
The speed, in miles per hour, which is exceeded by only 15%
of the drivers traveling on a section of highway.
The queue exceeded at some point during 5% of the signal
cycles.
A driveway, street, or other means of passage of vehicles
between the highway and abutting property, including acceleration
and deceleration lanes and such drainage structures, as may be necessary
for proper construction and maintenance thereof. (67 Pa. Code, Chapter
441.)
An activity or use that is incidental to and generally found in connection with the principal use on the lot (see § 27-508).
A sign employing actual motion or the illusion of motion.
Animated signs are differentiated from changeable signs as defined
and regulated by this chapter.
A suite of rooms in a building containing at least one other
such dwelling, each intended to be used as an independent housekeeping
unit for one family with separate cooking, food storage, bathing and
toilet facilities and with access directly or by a common hallway
and/or stairs to the outside.
A building not more than three stories high, containing at
least three dwelling units, each unit having access to the outside
via common interior halls and stairways or by individual entrances
and stairs.
A dwelling, attached by common wall or walls, to one or more
other similar dwellings, each independent of the others and each with
direct access from at least two entrances to the outside. Common walls
shall extend from the ground level to the roof without openings. There
shall not be more than eight dwellings in any group of attached dwellings.
Attached dwelling shall mean the same as townhouse.
A facility for the dispensing of gasoline and diesel fuel
and for any or all of the following–automobile inspection, sale
of lubricants, sale of minor auto supplies and travelers' incidental
needs, auto washing and minor repairs.
The portion of the roadway adjoining the through lane that
is used for speed change, turning, storage for turning, deceleration,
acceleration, weaving, and other purposes supplementary to through
traffic movement.
The total volume of traffic during a number of whole days
(more than one day) and less than one-year divided by the signal cycles.
An architectural projection or shelter projecting from and
supported by the exterior wall of a building and composed of a covering
of rigid or non-rigid materials and/or fabric on a supporting framework
that may be either permanent or retractable.
A sign displayed on or attached flat against the surface
or surfaces of an awning. See also "wall or fascia sign."
The entire area of a sign on which copy and/or graphics could
be placed.
An awning where the covering material exhibits the characteristic
of luminosity obtained by means of a source of illumination contained
within its framework.
A flexible substrate on which copy or graphics may be displayed.
A sign utilizing a banner as its display surface.
Any room containing at least 80 square feet of floor area
and an operable window used permanently or occasionally for sleeping
purposes.
The duly elected governing body of Vernon Township with final
approval powers relative to this chapter.
A guarantee held by a third party that certain improvements
required by this chapter as part of a development proposal and/or
agreed upon by the developer and the Board of Supervisors will be
constructed or placed by the developer to specifications, such guarantee
a condition of plan approval that the Board can draw upon to complete
the improvements if the developer fails to do so.
A man-made structure attached to or into the ground enclosing
or covering a volume of space and intended to shelter or contain people,
animals, businesses and activities associated with any of them.
That portion of any exterior elevation of a building extending
vertically from grade to the top of the parapet wall or eaves and
horizontally across the entire width of the building elevation.
A contiguous area of land in one ownership upon which a building
or structure may be erected in accordance with the requirements of
this chapter.
A document issued by the Vernon Township's third party
inspection agency that has been reviewed and approved in accordance
with the Pennsylvania Uniform Construction Code (UCC).
A building whose walls, extending from grade to roof, are
permanent.
A building supported on and tied to a foundation extending
at least three feet into the ground and describing in plan the exterior
walls of the building.
A multi-sided structure or architectural projection supported
by attachment to a building on one or more sides and either cantilevered
from such building or also supported by columns at additional points.
The surface(s) and/or soffit of an attached canopy may be illuminated
by means of internal or external sources of light, and similar to
a marquee sign.
A multi-sided structure supported by columns. The surface(s)
and/or soffit of a freestanding canopy may be illuminated by means
of internal or external sources of light.
A sign affixed to the visible surface(s) of an attached or
freestanding canopy. May be internally or externally illuminated,
and similar to a marquee sign.
A sign with the capability of content change by means of
manual or remote input. Includes the following types:
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ELECTRICALLY ACTIVATED — Changeable sign whose message
copy or content can be changed by means of remote electrically energized
on-off switching combinations of alphabetic or pictographic components
arranged on a display surface. Illumination may be integral to the
components, such as characterized by lamps or other light-emitting
devices; or it may be from an external light source designed to reflect
off the changeable component display. See also "electronic message
sign or center."
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MANUALLY ACTIVATED — Changeable sign whose message copy
or content can be changed manually on a display surface.
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An establishment operated for social, recreational or educational
purposes by a nonprofit organization, open only to members and their
guests and not to the public. It shall not include any commercial
or for-profit enterprise.
A plan of lots for single-family detached dwellings when the site presents environmental obstacles or opportunities and dimensional requirements for the lots are reduced in exchange for keeping the environmentally sensitive areas permanently undeveloped (see § 22-601, Township Subdivision and land Development Ordinance [Chapter 22]).
A land area or areas within a plan intended for, and the
responsibility of all the residents of the plan for their common use
and/or protection, such areas recorded as separate land parcels and
transferred to an organization of all property owners in the plan
to administer (see also "homeowners association").
Any device used for the transmission or reception of radio,
television, wireless telephone, pager, commercial mobile radio service
or any other wireless communications signals, including, without limitation,
omnidirectional or whip antennas and directional or panel antennas,
owned or operated by any person or entity licensed by the Federal
Communications Commission (FCC) to operate such device. This definition
shall not include private residence mounted satellite dishes or television
antennas or amateur radio equipment including without limitation ham
or citizen band radio antennas.
An unmanned building or cabinet containing communications
equipment required for the operation of communications antennas and
covering an area on the ground not greater than 375 square feet.
A structure other than a building, such as a monopole, self-supporting
or guyed tower, designed and used to support communications antennas.
A document based on an analysis of past trends and current
conditions in a municipality, projecting growth and change in population,
economic conditions and land use and recommending measures to improve
streets, utilities and community facilities and allocate land to cope
with such growth and change.
A use that may be permitted on a particular lot upon approval
of the Board of Supervisors after they first received recommendations
from the Planning Commission and after public hearing. Conditional
uses are listed for each zone district in this chapter. The Board's
judgment is based on the lot's location and the potential impact
of the use on surrounding development, both existing and projected,
as well as the specific criteria listed in this chapter.
A sign that follows the design criteria as set forth by Figure
S-1 and is suggested (required?) as a common identifier for primary
signage along the Conneaut Corridor District.
An apartment created from part of an existing dwelling with
each dwelling unit entirely independent of the other.
The graphic content or message of a sign.
The actual area of the sign copy as applied to any background.
Copy area on any individual background may be expressed as the sum
of the geometrically computed area(s) encompassing separate individual
letters, words, or graphic elements on that background.
A lot which abuts two or more streets which intersect at
one or more corners of the lot with the minimum front yard setback
applying along each street relative to construction on the lot.
The percentage of the area of a lot that may be covered by
the principal building or buildings within the total lot area.
An amendment proposed by a property owner challenging the validity of zoning regulations as they apply to property in which he/she has an interest and requiring municipal action on his petition or a municipal curative amendment in which the Board of Supervisors declares a moratorium on specific parts of this chapter in order to cure alleged defects (see § 27-905, Subsection 8).
This use is separated into three categories by this chapter.
All categories must meet appropriate state regulations. They are defined
as follows:
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DAY CARE CENTER — An establishment licensed by the Commonwealth
of Pennsylvania, which provides supervised care for seven or more
children, unrelated to the operator.
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FAMILY CHILD DAY CARE HOME — A home other than a child's
own home, operated for profit or not-for-profit, in which child day
care is provided at any one time to four, five, or six children unrelated
to the operator.
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GROUP CHILD DAY CARE HOME — The premises in which care
if provided at one time for more than six but fewer than 13 children
of another age level who are unrelated to the operator. The term includes
a facility located in a residence.
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The measure of the number of dwelling units per acre of land
area or the number of square feet of lot area for each dwelling unit.
The maximum safe speed that can be maintained over a section
of roadway when conditions are so favorable that the design features
of the road govern.
A single-family dwelling unit surrounded by open space on
its lot, sharing the lot with no other dwellings and designed to be
occupied by one family only.
An individual landowner, agent of such landowner or tenant
with the landowner's permission, who or which causes development
to occur upon a lot and who is responsible for compliance of such
development with the terms of this chapter and other municipal regulations.
The erection, expansion or alteration of a building or structure;
the altering of the land surface to receive construction; the subdividing
of land in anticipation of its receiving construction or the offering
of land for such purpose; or any man-made change to improved or unimproved
property within a flood hazard area including, but not limited to,
paving, placing of utilities, filling, grading, excavating, dredging,
or drilling.
The written and graphic provisions describing a proposed
development in sufficient detail so that its compliance with the requirements
of this chapter may be conclusively judged.
Any sign that is designed and erected for the purpose of
providing direction and/or orientation for pedestrian or vehicular
traffic.
Birds, cats, dogs, hamsters, and similar creatures normally
kept within a dwelling or residential yard area.
A sign with two faces, commonly back to back.
Every entrance or exit used by vehicular traffic to or from
properties abutting a highway. The term includes proposed streets,
lanes, alleys, courts, and ways. (67 Pa. Code, Chapter 441)
A group of connected rooms in a building for the exclusive
residential use of one family containing its own private cooking,
food storage, bathing, and toilet facilities and connected either
directly or by a common hall and/or stairs to the outside.
One of a group of similar dwellings in a building or group
of buildings.
A passage across or intrusion upon private property granted
and guaranteed by the property owner for utilities, storm drainage
or other purpose allowing the grantee access for maintenance but not
permitting access by the general public and curtailing the owner's
opportunity to develop within the granted area.
The exit of vehicular traffic from abutting properties to
a street.
The erection, construction, alteration or maintenance, by
public utilities or municipal or other governmental agencies, of underground
or overhead gas, electrical, steam or water transmission or distribution
systems, collection, communication, supply or disposal systems and
their essential buildings, excluding communications towers and communications
antennas, as defined herein.
Any sign placed outside a building.
An individual or two or more persons related by blood, marriage,
adoption or foster placement or not more than two unrelated persons
occupying an efficiency or one-bedroom apartment, or one-bedroom attached
dwelling or not more than four unrelated persons occupying any other
dwelling.
See "wall sign."
Land and buildings owned and operated by a governmental entity
for public use, public protection or to provide public services when
such facility is located so as to operate most effectively and efficiently.
Acknowledgment by the Board of Supervisors that all plan
reviews required prior to acceptance of a planned residential development
proposal have been successfully completed and that zoning permits
may be issued for the initial construction in the plan.
The encroachment of stormwater runoff or snow melt over normally
dry land abutting one or both sides of a stream or drainageway.
The total floor area of a unit such as a dwelling measured
between the inside faces of walls describing the outer edges of the
unit and including interior partitions, hallways and utility areas.
Unit of light density incident on a plane (assumed to be
horizontal unless otherwise specified), and measurable with a luminance
meter, a.k.a., light meter.
A sign principally supported by one or more columns, poles,
or braces placed in or upon the ground.
A line extending across a lot between side lot lines and
set back from the front lot line the minimum distance required for
the front yard depth in the zone district containing the lot.
The line describing the edge of the lot abutting the street
to which the lot has access and is oriented for purposes of development
except that where a property extends to the center of a street the
front lot line shall be considered as being a minimum of 20 feet inside
the property and parallel to the street.
The wall facing the street to which the lot containing the
building has its principal access.
The area of a lot between the front lot line and the front
building line and extending to the side lot lines.
The distance across the front of a lot between side lot lines
where they intersect the street to which the lot has its principal
access and following the street right-of-way line.
Attribute of a lighting fixture from which no light is emitted
at or above a horizontal plane drawn through the bottom of the fixture
and no more than 10% of the lamp's intensity is emitted at or
above an angle 10° below that horizontal plane, at all lateral
angles around the fixture.
Attribute of a lighting fixture provided with internal and/or
external shields and louvers to prevent brightness from lamps, reflectors,
refractors and lenses from causing glare at normal viewing angles.
The area beyond the physical intersection of two controlled
access facilities that comprises decision and maneuver distance, and
the required vehicle storage lengths.
An accessory building on a residential lot attached to or
detached from the dwelling or a room within the dwelling intended
for the storage and maintenance of vehicles and equipment owned and
operated by the residents of the dwelling and for no other purpose.
See "apartment building, garden."
Excessive brightness in the field of view that is sufficiently
greater than the brightness to which the eyes are adapted, to cause
annoyance or loss in visual performance and visibility, so as to jeopardize
health, safety or welfare.
See "freestanding sign."
Health club, gym or exercise facility-a business that assists
its customers in the maintenance of good health by offering planned
programs prepared by qualified employees for diet improvement, exercise,
muscle and skin toning, massage and similar activities but not including
medical practice or prescriptions or any activity that could be construed
as having an erotic purpose.
A linear arrangement of conifer plants so that they grow
together to present, when viewed in elevation, a surface at least
50% opaque from ground to the top of the hedge.
The vertical distance measured from the ground level to the
highest point on a communications tower, including antennas mounted
on the tower.
The location for lighting of a sign or other object on a
property so that the lighting source is not visible from anywhere
outside the property.
A driveway used or expected to be used by more than 1,500
vehicles per day. (67 Pa. Code, Chapter 441)
Any highways, roads, or streets identified on the legally
adopted municipal street or highway plan or the official map that
carry vehicular traffic, together with all necessary appurtenances,
including bridges, rights-of-way and traffic control improvements.
The term shall not include the interstate highway system.
A service type small business conducted within a single-family detached dwelling by the residents involving no exterior manifestation of the business or expansion of the dwelling to accommodate it and not creating nuisance or congestion conditions in the neighborhood where it is located (see § 27-603, Subsection 6).
An organization formed to manage the common open space and
common facilities within a development plan that are not be publicly
maintained. Membership in and financial support of such organization
is mandatory for all owners of property in the plan.
Quantity of light, measured in foot-candles.
A sign characterized by the use of artificial light, either
projecting through its surface(s) (internally illuminated); or reflecting
off its surface(s) (externally illuminated).
The entrance of vehicular traffic to abutting properties
from a street.
A grade-separated system of access to and from highways that
includes directional ramps for access to and from the crossroads.
Any sign placed within a building, but not including window
signs, as defined by this chapter. Interior signs, with the exception
of window signs, as defined, are not regulated by this chapter.
Site-generated trips that occur between two or more land
uses on the subject site without exiting onto the intersecting street.
A facility designed to provide enclosed shelter and care
for domestic pets on a permanent or temporary basis as a business
or as an accessory use on a residential lot for no commercial purpose.
The activity or activities for which a lot or property and
the buildings or structures on it are devoted.
The combination of grading, planting of desirable materials
and arrangement of outdoor areas on a lot to enhance the setting and
utility of buildings and minimize the effect of undesirable off-site
conditions.
A qualitative measure describing the operational conditions
within a section of roadway or at an intersection that includes factors
such as speed, travel time, ability to maneuver, traffic interruptions,
delay, and driver comfort. Level of service is described as a letter
grade system (similar to a school grading system) where delay (in
seconds) is equivalent to a certain letter grade from A through F.
A use engaged in the manufacture, predominantly from previously
prepared materials, of finished products or parts, including processing,
fabrication, assembly, treatment, business-related incidental storage,
sales and distribution of such products, but excluding basic industrial
processing.
Light emitted by a lighting fixture or installation, which
is cast beyond the boundaries of the property on which the lighting
installation is sited.
An area of a lot where goods are received and/or from which
they are shipped and where adequate space is available to permit maneuvering
of vehicles entirely on the lot.
Every public highway other than a state highway. The term
includes existing streets, lanes, alleys, courts, and ways. (67 Pa.
Code, Chapter 441)
An area of contiguous land surface which abuts a street whose
ownership and legal description are of record in the office of the
County Recorder of Deeds and which is intended to contain one principal
use. A lot implies one of a number of similarly sized properties in
a plan buy may include any property, tract or parcel of land regardless
of size or configuration for the purposes of this chapter.
See "coverage."
Any of the lines describing the perimeter of a lot.
A lot of properly duly recorded in the office of the Crawford
County Recorder of Deeds.
The area of the total surface of a lot expressed in acres
or square feet based on deed description or registered surveyor's
survey. One acre equals 43,560 square feet.
The distance across a lot measured along the front building
line between the side lot lines.
A driveway used or expected to be used by more than 25 but
less than 750 vehicles per day. (67 Pa. Code, Chapter 441)
As used in context of this chapter, the light-output rating
of a lamp (light bulb).
A store operated by a company which does the bulk of its
business by mail order, displaying selected items for retail sale
and encouraging the use of company catalogs on the premises for order
of items not available in the store.
A transportable, single-family dwelling intended for permanent
occupancy, contained in one unit, or two or more units designed to
be joined into one integral unit capable of again being separated
for repeated towing, which arrives at a site complete and ready for
occupancy except for minor and incidental unpacking and assembly operations,
and constructed so that it may be used without a permanent foundation.
A parcel or contiguous parcels of land which has been so
designated and improved that it contains two or more manufactured
home lots for the placement thereon of manufactured homes.
See "canopy (attached)." Definition is similar.
See "canopy sign." Definition is similar.
A driveway used or expected to be used by more than 750 but
less than 1,500 vehicles per day. (67 Pa. Code. Chapter 441)
A residential or other driveway that is used or expected
to be used by not more than 25 vehicles per day. (67 Pa. Code. Chapter
441)
A building containing at least three apartments or a connected
group of attached single-family dwellings.
A sign containing three or more faces.
A business or commercial activity administered or conducted
as an accessory use which is clearly secondary to the use as a residential
dwelling and which involves no customer, client or patient traffic,
whether vehicular or pedestrian, pickup, delivery or removal functions
to or from the premises, in excess of those normally associated with
residential use the business or commercial activity must satisfy the
following requirements:
The business activity shall be compatible with the residential
use of the property and surrounding residential uses.
The business shall employ no employees other than family members
residing in the dwelling.
There shall be no display or sale of retail goods and no stockpiling
or inventory of a substantial nature.
There shall be no outside appearance of a business use, including,
but not limited to, parking, signs or lights.
The business activity may not use any equipment or process which
creates noise, vibration, glare, fumes, odors, or electrical interference,
including interferences with radio or television reception, which
is detectable in the neighborhood.
The business activity may not generate any solid waste discharge,
in volume or type, which is not normally associated with residential
use in the neighborhood.
The business activity shall be conducted only within the dwelling
and may not occupy more than 25% of the habitable floor area.
The business may not involve any illegal activity.
A lot the area or dimension of which was lawful prior to
the adoption or amendment of this chapter, but which fails to conform
to the requirements of the zoning district in which it is located
by reasons of such adoption or amendment.
A structure or part of a structure manifestly not designed
to comply with the applicable use or extent of use provisions in this
chapter or amendment heretofore or hereafter enacted, where such structure
lawfully existed prior to the enactment of such ordinance or amendment
or prior to the application of such ordinance or amendment to its
location by reason of annexation. Such nonconforming structures include,
but are not limited to, nonconforming signs.
A use, whether of land or of structure, which does not comply
with the applicable use provisions in a zoning ordinance or amendment
theretofore or hereafter enacted, where such use was lawfully in existence
prior to the enactment of such ordinance or amendment, or prior to
the application of such ordinance or amendment to its location by
reason of annexation.
A certificate issued by the Zoning Officer attesting to the fact that the proposed use or reuse of premises is in accordance with the requirements of this chapter or with a previously issued zoning permit and may be legally occupied (see § 27-902).
Those public capital improvements that are not on-site improvements
and that serve the needs of more than one development.
Area set aside on a lot for parking of at least five vehicles
entirely outside of a street right-of-way.
All improvements constructed on the applicant's property,
or the improvements constructed on the property abutting the applicant's
property necessary for ingress and egress to the applicant's
property, and required to be constructed by the applicant pursuant
to any municipal ordinance, including, but not limited to, the municipal
code, subdivision and land development ordinance, planned residential
development regulations, and zoning ordinance.
A building or structure containing or supporting an accessory
use.
A lot that is adjacent to the roadway that interrupts the
frontage of another lot.
A recreational facility or open space that is not owned,
operated or supported by a public agency and access to which may be
restricted by the owners or their agents.
A surfaced outdoor area level with the surrounding land surface
or no more than three feet above or below the surface at any point
and without a permanent covering.
A surface, not part of a building that does not allow the
passage of water through it.
Any lightweight plastic, fabric, or other material, whether
or not containing a message of any kind, suspended from a rope, wire,
or string, usually in series, designed to move in the wind.
Legislation adopted by the state in 1968 and amended on several
occasions since, most recently by Act 170 of 1988, which provides
a uniform procedure enabling municipalities to implement regulations,
such as this chapter, to control the development and use of land.
A use allowed by right under the terms of this chapter to
occur on a lot because of the lot's location in a particular
zoning district. Principal permitted uses are listed for each zone
district and imply that all other activity on the lot is or will be
secondary to the principal use. Such uses may be approved directly
by the Zoning Officer without reference to other review bodies.
A development of a property as a single entity for predominantly residential purposes when the zoning regulations that would normally apply are superseded by controls that allow a more sensitive and more economical arrangement of buildings and streets on the site and where development is spaced over a period of years in a predetermined program (see § 27-604).
The Pennsylvania Municipalities Planning Code, as enacted,
amended, and reenacted.
The body duly appointed by the Board of Supervisors from
residents of Vernon Township with specific duties in connection with
this chapter.
See "freestanding sign."
A temporary sign intended to advance a political statement,
cause, or candidate for office.
An attachment to a building covered by a permanent roof but
without side walls floor to ceiling and considered part of the building
for purposes of setback from lot lines.
Permitted driveways in place at the time of the adoption
of this chapter that does not conform to the standards herein.
The building or structure containing the principal permitted
use on the lot, such use possibly occurring in more than one building
or structure.
Land and improvements owned and operated by an organization
made up of members which elect a board of directors formed for the
purpose of providing certain recreational opportunities for the benefit
of the members and their guests and not intended as a profit-making
venture, to be open to the public or receive public support, or to
be construed to include a recreational vehicle campground or any permanent
or temporary overnight accommodations except for the residence of
a manager or caretaker.
A strip of land improved for passage of vehicles and/or pedestrians
but not accepted for maintenance by Vernon Township.
An individual duly registered to practice civil engineering
in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
A sign other than a wall sign that is attached to or projects
more than 18 inches from a building face or wall or from a structure
whose primary purpose is other than the support of a sign.
See "lot."
See "lot line."
A formal meeting held pursuant to public notice by the governing
body or planning agency, intended to inform and obtain public comment,
prior to taking action in accordance with this chapter.
Notice published once each week for two successive weeks
in a newspaper of general circulation in the municipality. Such notice
shall state the time and place of the hearing and the particular nature
of the mater to be considered at the hearing. The first publication
shall not be more than 30 days and the second publication shall not
be less than seven days from the date of the hearing.
A right-of-way intended to be used for travel by the public,
improved for such purpose and accepted by Vernon Township for perpetual
maintenance.
A system providing distribution of water, gas, electric,
telephone or cable TV services or the collection and disposal of wastewater,
such system operating as a municipal authority or under the rules
and regulations of the state Public Utility Commission.
A structure, owned and operated by a public utility electric
company regulated by the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission, designed
and used to support overhead electricity transmission lines.
Convenience retail sales of day-to-day domestic needs often
available during time periods when other outlets are not open and
providing customers fast service.
A temporary sign advertising the sale, lease, or rental of
the property or premises upon which it is located.
Children's play equipment, picnic facilities, swimming
pool, and/or paved court areas on a lot for the use of the residents
of the lot or the members of the organization owning the lot but not
available to the public.
A facility in one ownership intended to receive self-propelled
or towed vehicles containing their own toilet, bathing, cooking, food
storage, and sleeping accommodations, such facility providing sewer
and water connections to each vehicle at a prepared site for its exclusive
use and also offering clothes washing, recreational and other traveler
services within the facility; provided, all vehicles remain on their
wheels while in the facility and stay for a limited time period.
A facility to receive and/or sort, package, store and ship
discarded materials that can be reused to create marketable products,
such facilities may occur in the Business and Manufacturing Zone District
or on any Township-owned property at the discretion of the Township.
The minimum number of parking spaces required to be provided
in connection with the particular use of a lot as specified by this
chapter.
An agreement between a developer and purchasers of lots or
units in a plan restricting the use of the lots or units applying
uniformly to all lots, recorded with the plan, effective for a specified
time period, capable of being modified only upon approval of the agreement
signers and not enforceable by the Township.
A strip of land dedicated to and/or improved for vehicular
and/or pedestrian travel by the public.
The acquisition of an area of land, through dedication or
easement, needed to accommodate the future widening of the roadway.
The construction, enlargement, expansion, or improvement
of public highways, roads, or streets.
A temporary structure for purposes of displaying and selling
produce grown on the same property where the stand is located, such
stand to be removed annually when the produce is no longer available.
The uppermost line of the roof of a building or, in the case
of an extended facade or parapet, the uppermost point of said facade
or parapet.
A sign mounted on the main roof portion of a building or
on the topmost edge of a parapet wall of a building and which is wholly
or partially supported by such building. Roof signs are not permitted.
The list of charges adopted by resolution of the Board of
Supervisors and not a part of this chapter to cover the costs of administering
the review, decision and/or appeal processes required for a development
proposal, such costs to be borne by the developer, paid in advance
and subject to periodic revision by the Board.
A planted or built buffer intended to protect residential
properties from abutting commercial or other activity that might deteriorate
the enjoyment or virtue of the residential property.
The minimum distance a building or structure must be removed
from an adjacent lot line as required by this chapter in the various
zone districts. Distance between lot line and building shall be measured
along a line at right angles to the lot line.
An imaginary line within a lot describing the limits within
which building construction can occur or any part of such line as
established by the front, side and rear yard depths for each zone
district.
An individual certified by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
and retained by the Township to evaluate the ability of a lot proposed
for development but lacking public sewer connections to absorb sewage
effluent and to decide on the appropriate type of disposal system,
under the circumstances, to serve the lot.
An integrated grouping of several or many retail sales and
service outlets with access to a common pedestrian circulation way
and with shared off-street parking and servicing areas.
The area of a lot between the side lot line and side building
line extending from the front yard to the rear yard and comprising
two such areas on a lot. The side lot lines on each side of a lot
connect the front and rear lot lines.
The minimum distance the driver of a vehicle can see unencumbered
by intervening buildings, structures, land forms or vegetation, to
safely negotiate an intersection of streets or a curve in the road
measured between 3 1/2 feet and eight feet above the road surface.
Any device visible from a public place whose essential purpose
and design is to convey either commercial or noncommercial messages
by means of graphic presentation of alphabetic or pictorial symbols
or representations. Noncommercial flags or any flags displayed from
flagpoles or staffs will not be considered to be signs.
All the surface of a sign panel or, if no defined panel,
all the contiguous area enclosed within the outer edges of the components
of the message but not including the supports of the sign.
A sign which communicates the message of a government agency
or of a nonprofit organization providing essential information and
not in support of a commercial product or service.
Any structure designed for the support of a sign.
A sign that relies on flashing lights or movement of some
element or all of the sign to reinforce its message.
Electronic signs are identified by their subtype, including
electronic changeable copy signs, electronic graphic display signs,
multi-vision signs, or video display signs.
A sign or portion thereof that displays electronic, non-pictorial,
text information in which each alphanumeric character, graphic, or
symbol is defined by a small number of matrix elements using different
combinations of light emitting diodes (LEDs), fiber optics, light
bulbs, or other illumination devices within the display area. Electronic
changeable copy signs include computer programmable, microprocessor-controlled
electronic displays. Electronic changeable copy signs do not include
official or time and temperature signs. Electronic changeable copy
signs include projected images or messages with these characteristics
onto buildings or other objects.
A sign or portion thereof that displays electronic, static
images, static graphics or static pictures, with or without text information,
defined by a small number of matrix elements using different combinations
of light emitting diodes, fiber optics, light bulbs, or other illumination
devices within the display area where the message change sequence
is accomplished immediately or by means of fade, repixalization, or
dissolve modes. Electronic graphic display signs include computer
programmable, microprocessor-controlled electronic or digital displays.
Electronic graphic display signs include projected images or message
with these characteristics onto buildings or other objects.
A sign completely supported on its own structure attached
to the ground.
Any sign composed in whole or in part of a series of vertical
or horizontal slats or cylinders that are capable of being rotated
at intervals so that partial rotation of the group of slats or cylinders
produces a different image and when properly functioning allows on
a single sign structure the display at any given time one of two or
more images.
A sign on a carriage capable of being towed between locations
for temporary use.
A sign extending at an angle from the wall of a building
and attached thereto by a bracket or directly to the wall along one
or more edges of the sign.
A sign intended to remain in place for a specific short period
of time, at the end of which it must be removed by the person erecting
it.
A sign that changes its message or background in a manner
or method of display characterized by motion or pictorial imagery,
which may or may not include text and depicts action or a special
effect to imitate movement, the presentation of pictorials or graphics
displayed in a progression of frames which give the illusion of motion
including, but not limited to, the illusion of moving objects, moving
patterns, or bands of light, or expanding or contracting shapes, not
including electronic changeable copy signs. Video display signs include
projected images or message with these characteristics onto buildings
or other objects.
A sign with one face applied flat to the wall of a building
and projecting therefrom not more than one foot.
The timing of a series of traffic signals to provide a progressive
movement of traffic at a planned rate of speed through the signalized
intersections without stopping.
See "detached dwelling."
The improvement of a lot in accordance with an approved site
plan including construction of buildings, structures and paved surfaces
and the rearrangement of the land surface.
The proposed layout of a lot showing all elements of the
site development as well as utility and drainage lines and existing
buildings and structures to remain.
Any sign of any material that is attached in any way to a
utility pole, tree, or any object located in the public right-of-way.
A use permitted in a particular zoning district pursuant
to the provisions of Articles VI and IX of the Pennsylvania Municipalities
Planning Code.
A verbatim transcription of testimony taken at a public hearing
by a professional stenographer.
The distance required by a driver traveling at a given speed
to stop the vehicle after an object on the roadway becomes visible
to the driver.
Lane footage needed for a right or left turn lane to store
the maximum number of vehicles likely to accumulate during a peak
period of travel.
A plan to govern the collection, retention and release of
stormwater in a manner to minimize damage of downstream property.
A device constructed to receive and hold stormwater for release
at a controlled rate. Such devices may include graded depressions
in the ground, parking lots with concave surfaces, roof tops or buried
tanks or pipes.
The area in a building between a floor and the floor next
above or below or, if no floor is above, the ceiling above.
An improved vehicular passage within a right-of-way which
affords the primary means of access to abutting lots.
The edge of a street right-of-way where it abuts private
property.
Revisions to a building or structure that change the dimensions
of the exterior envelope or that change the interior components that
support the building or structure.
Any man-made construction in, on or over the ground and attached
thereto. The term "structure" includes buildings.
The widening of the roadway to allow the redirection or transition
of vehicles into or around an auxiliary lane.
A sign intended to display either commercial or noncommercial
messages of a transitory or temporary nature. Portable signs or any
sign not permanently embedded in the ground, or not permanently affixed
to a building or sign structure that is permanently embedded in the
ground, are considered temporary signs.
Acknowledgment by the Board of Supervisors that all documents
needed to evaluate a planned residential development proposal have
been reviewed and approved and that the developer may proceed to the
final plan stage but may not be issued any zoning permits for construction.
See "attached dwelling."
An outbuilding for the accessory use of temporary storage
of discarded materials accumulating in the principal use of the property
such storage to be secured and removed on a regular basis by a refuse
hauler.
A one-directional vehicle trip to or from a site.
The total number of vehicular trips going to and from a particular
land use on a specific site during a specific time period.
An area of land beyond the legal or dedicated right-of-way
needed to accommodate future widening of the roadway, measured from
the center line.
A sign attached to the underside of a canopy or marquee.
A use listed as a principal permitted use and which requires
only review and approval by the Zoning Officer prior to the issuance
of a building or occupancy permit. See also "permitted use, principal."
A grant by the Zoning Hearing Board permitting an owner to
use a lot not wholly in accordance with the provisions of this chapter
because the Board finds that strict conformance would be an unusual
hardship not created by the owner but depriving him/her of reasonable
use of the lot. Such a grant specifies a minimum deviation or deviations
from the regulations intended to cure the hardship but not create
detrimental conditions affecting abutting property owners or the public
at large.
A sign that is in any manner affixed to any exterior wall
of a building or structure and that projects not more than 18 inches
from the building or structure wall. Also includes signs affixed to
architectural projections that project from a building provided the
copy area of such signs remains on a parallel plane to the face of
the building facade or to the face or faces of the architectural projection
to which it is affixed.
A wall designed by a registered engineer to hold an earth embankment from slipping. A retaining wall shall be at least four feet high above grade on its exposed side. Any other wall of lesser height or supporting only itself shall be considered a decorative wall (see § 27-507, Subsection 1F).
A stream, creek, run or any continuous depression in the
land surface connecting to a stream, creek or run capable of draining
stormwater or snow melt and intended to be kept open and unrestricted
for the purpose of moving water.
A wind energy conversation system that converts wind energy
into electricity through the use of a wind turbine generator, and
includes the nacelle, rotor, tower and pad transformer, if any.
A sign affixed to the surface of a window with its message
intended to be visible to the exterior environment.
The front, side or rear area of a lot between the lot line
and the setback line, the depth of which is specified for each type
of yard within each zoning district by this chapter. Development within
yard areas is restricted.
The distance between the lot line and the adjacent parallel
setback line on a lot, such distance varying for front, side and rear
yards and from one zoning district to another.
The controls imposed by this chapter that define the uses
of land and buildings and the intensity of such uses that may occur
within a zoning district, such controls to be applied uniformly throughout
the district.
A contiguous area of land on all parts of which the same
uniform opportunities for development apply.
The perimeter line completely enclosing a zoning district.
A body appointed by the Board of Supervisors to examine and
decide appeals for variances or from decisions of the Zoning Officer
and to hear testimony regarding the validity of municipal regulations
upon development.
The official plan of zoning districts in Vernon Township, a part of this chapter, showing precisely the boundaries and title of each district (see § 27-301).
A person retained by and responsible to the Board of Supervisors
to enforce the regulations of this chapter with power to issue building
and occupancy permits, to halt illegal construction and to interpret
literally the meaning of the various sections of this chapter, subject
to appeal before the Zoning Hearing Board.
A body of legislation adopted by a municipality establishing
districts throughout the municipality within each of which uniform
land use regulations apply.
A document attesting that a proposal for development has
been reviewed and approved in accordance with the requirements of
this chapter.
