Changes in this chapter shall affect plans as follows:
A. From the time an application for approval of a plan, whether
preliminary or final, is duly filed as provided in this chapter, and
while such application is pending approval or disapproval, no change
or amendment of this chapter, zoning or other governing ordinance
or plan shall affect the decision on such application adversely to
the applicant, and the applicant shall be entitled to a decision in
accordance with the provisions of the governing ordinances or plans
as they stood at the time the application was duly filed. The applicant
shall be entitled to final approval in accordance with the terms of
the approved preliminary application as hereinafter provided. However,
if an application is properly and finally denied, any subsequent application
shall be subject to the intervening change in governing regulations.
B. When an application for approval of a plan, whether preliminary
or final, has been approved without conditions or approved by the
applicant's acceptance of conditions, no subsequent change or
amendment in this chapter, zoning or other governing ordinance or
plan shall be applied to affect adversely the right of the applicant
to commence and to complete any aspect of the approved development
in accordance with the terms of such approval within five years from
such approval.
C. Where final approval is preceded by preliminary approval,
the aforesaid five-year period shall be counted from the date of the
preliminary approval. In the case of any doubt as to the terms of
a preliminary approval, the terms shall be construed in the light
of the provisions of this chapter or the governing ordinance or plans
as they stood at the time when the application for such approval was
duly filed.
D. Where the landowner has substantially completed the required
improvements as depicted upon the final plan within the aforesaid
five-year limit, or any extension thereof as may be granted by the
Board of Supervisors, no change of any ordinance or plan enacted subsequent
to the date of filing of the preliminary plan shall modify or revoke
any aspect of the approved final plan pertaining to zoning classification
or density, lot, building, street or utility location.
E. In the case of a preliminary plan calling for the installation
of improvements beyond the five-year period, a schedule shall be filed
by the landowner with the preliminary plan delineating all proposed
sections as well as deadlines within which applications for final
plan approval of each section are intended to be filed. Such schedule
shall be updated annually by the applicant on or before the anniversary
of the preliminary plan approval, until final plan approval of the
final section has been granted and any modification in the aforesaid
schedule shall be subject to approval of the Board of Supervisors
in its discretion.
F. Each section in any residential subdivision or land development,
except for the last section, shall contain a minimum of 25% of the
total number of dwelling units as depicted on the preliminary plan,
unless a lesser percentage is approved by the Board of Supervisors
in its discretion. Provided the landowner has not defaulted with regard
to or violated any of the conditions of the preliminary plan approval,
including compliance with landowner's aforesaid schedule of submission
of final plans for the various sections, then the aforesaid protections
afforded by substantially completing the improvements depicted upon
the final plan within five years shall apply and for any section or
sections, beyond the initial section, in which the required improvements
have not been substantially completed within said five-year period
the aforesaid protections shall apply for an additional term or terms
of three years from the date of final plan approval for each section.
G. Failure of landowner to adhere to the aforesaid schedule
of submission of final plans for the various sections shall subject
any such section to any and all changes in this chapter, zoning, and
other governing ordinance enacted by the Township subsequent to the
date of the initial preliminary plan submission.
Should any section, subsection or provision of this chapter
be declared by a court of competent jurisdiction to be invalid, such
decision shall not affect the validity of this chapter as a whole
or any other part thereof.
After a plan has been approved and recorded as provided herein,
all streets and public grounds on such plan shall be and become a
part of the Official Map of Lower Paxton Township without public hearing.