[Ord. No. 82-1, 8/15/1982; as amended by Ord. No. 1988-2, 12/13/1988; Ord. No. 2006-1, 6/20/2006]
1. 
Developers of land within Forward Township desiring approval of a subdivision of land or land development are recommended to submit the following information and plans to the Secretary of Forward Township at least five days prior to the regularly scheduled Planning Commission meeting, at which such submission will be considered, and shall be present or be represented at the meeting to answer questions raised by the Commission:
A. 
General information, to include name or names of owner or owners of record of property as contained in county assessment records, legal description of property boundaries, utilities serving the property, easements across the property by width, ownership and use, nature of the proposed development as to type and density of uses, relationship of proposed development of the property to existing adjacent development and to development in the vicinity, and proposed covenants or restrictions, if any, to be placed by the developer on the sale of lots.
B. 
Sketch plan showing on a topographic base map the general conception of the proposed development, indicating preliminary lot layout, approximate typical lot sizes, location of roads and main utility lines, densities in multiple-family areas, if any, expressed in dwelling units per acre, and location of recreation areas and of other uses within the property.
2. 
The purpose of the preapplication meeting is to acquaint the Planning Commission with the proposed development, to indicate to the developer the constraints upon development contained in this Part and other ordinances of Forward Township that may bear upon his proposal, and to discuss the impact of the proposal upon the Township Comprehensive Plan.
[Ord. No. 82-1, 8/15/1982; as amended by Ord. No. 1988-2, 12/13/1988; Ord. No. 2006-1, 6/20/2006]
1. 
Application Procedure.
A. 
Having completed the preapplication procedure, any developer of land within the municipality desiring approval of a subdivision of land or land development shall submit, in not less than four copies, the documentation required in § 22-305 above to the Secretary of Forward Township at least five days prior to the regularly scheduled Commission meeting, at which such submission will be considered, and shall be present or be represented at the meeting to answer questions raised by the Commission relative to the application. At the option of the Planning Commission after request by the developer, the preliminary plan application procedures may be waived, and the developer may proceed with final plan application, provided the plan presented as a final plan includes the entire property to be ultimately developed.
B. 
The developer shall submit, in not less than four copies, the documentation required in § 22-305 above to the Secretary of Forward Township at least five days prior to the regularly scheduled Planning Commission meeting, at which such submission will be considered, and shall be present or be represented at the meeting to answer questions raised by the Planning Commission relative to the application.
2. 
Action of the Planning Commission. The Planning Commission shall review the submitted documents as to conformance with the requirements of this Part and other applicable municipal regulations upon development. If the Commission is satisfied that all requirements have been met in the plan, it will submit one copy of the documentation to the Township Engineer for his review, one copy to the Board of Supervisors for its review, and one copy to the county agency for review and report, together with a fee sufficient to cover the cost of the review and report, which fee shall be paid by the applicant. If the Planning Commission is not satisfied that all requirements have been met in the plan, it will indicate the specific discrepancies to the developer, note the same in the official minutes of the meeting, a copy of which shall be sent to the developer, and request the developer to correct the documents to conform before again starting the final plan approval procedure.
3. 
Action by the Board of Supervisors. The Board of Supervisors shall render a decision of approval or disapproval of the proposed development plan, whether preliminary or final, not later than 90 days after the date of the meeting at which the final plan was considered and not subsequently denied. The decision shall be based upon the Board's own review, including, if needed, a field visit to the property and the review comments submitted by the Township Engineer, the Township Planning Commission, and the County Planning Commission. The official decision shall be transmitted, in writing, to the developer at his address of record not later than five days after the decision is reached, indicating specifically, if the approval is denied, the reasons for denial, citing the appropriate ordinance section and the steps needed to gain approval. The Board of Supervisors may overrule the decision of the Planning Commission, but a final decision shall be made within the ninety-day period mentioned above.
4. 
Public Hearing. The Planning Commission may call and hold a public hearing to gather testimony relative to the development proposal, but such a hearing shall be concluded within the ninety-day period for preliminary plan consideration. Public notice of such a hearing shall be advertised in the legal notices of a newspaper of general circulation in the Township for two consecutive weeks, the first notice to appear not less than 14 days nor more than 30 days prior to the hearing.
5. 
Failure to Render a Decision. Failure of the Board of Supervisors to render a decision and/or to communicate it to the developer within the time and in the manner required above shall be deemed an approval of the application as presented, unless the developer has agreed, in writing, to an extension of time or change in the prescribed manner of presentation of the decision, in which case failure to meet the extended time or change in manner of presentation or communication shall have the same effect.
6. 
Amendment of Ordinances Affecting Applications.
A. 
From the time an application for approval of a subdivision or development is duly filed with the Secretary of the Township and while such application is pending approval or disapproval, no change or amendment of this chapter or other ordinances affecting development in the Township shall influence the decision on such application adversely to the developer, and the developer shall be entitled to a decision in accordance with the provisions of this Part and other ordinances affecting development in the Township as they stood at the time the application was duly filed. However, if an application is properly and finally denied or withdrawn, any subsequent application shall be subject to any intervening changes in this chapter or other ordinances.
B. 
When an application has been approved or approved subject to conditions acceptable to the developer, no subsequent change or amendment to this chapter or other ordinances affecting development in the municipality shall be applied to influence adversely the right of the developer to commence and to complete any aspect of the approved development in accordance with the terms of such approval within five years from the date of such preliminary approval.
7. 
Guarantee That Improvements Will Be Completed. As a condition of final plan approval, the developer shall:
A. 
Deposit with Forward Township a corporate bond or other security acceptable to the Board of Supervisors after bond review by the Township Solicitor, to be held in escrow and equal to 110% of estimated cost, as determined by the developer's engineer and approved by the Township Engineer, of all improvements to be constructed to serve the approved final plan (and not to be guaranteed by requirements of other authorities) and in accordance with § 22-307, Subsection 1J, above.