[Adopted 4-13-1993 by Ord. No. 1993-03]
For the purpose of this article, the following terms shall have the meanings ascribed thereto, except where the context thereof clearly indicates another meaning:
BOARD
The Board of Supervisors of Conestoga Township, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, or its designated representative.
CARTWAY
The traveled portion of any road.
CONTRACTOR
The party, person, firm, partnership and/or corporation who or which installs a driveway, including all agents, officers or employees of said party, person, firm, partnership and/or corporation.
DRIVEWAY
Any lane, path or other area of land used by the owner or occupant of property within the Township as a means of access to and from the cartway of a public road.
A. 
MINIMUM USEA driveway that will generate up to 25 trips per day.
B. 
LOW VOLUMEA driveway that will generate from 26 trips to 750 trips per day.
C. 
MEDIUM VOLUMEA driveway that will generate from 751 trips to 1,500 trips per day.
D. 
HIGH VOLUMEA driveway that will generate more than 1,500 trips per day.
OWNER
The owner, his heirs and assigns of the land upon which the driveway is located.
PennDOT
The Department of Transportation of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and any successor agency.
PERSON
An individual, group of individuals, partnership, corporation or association, whether incorporated, unincorporated or otherwise.
RIGHT-OF-WAY
The total width, including the cartway, of a road.
ROAD
Any road, street, alley, or other thoroughfare, paved or unpaved, owned or maintained by the Township as part of its public road system or offered for dedication to the Township.
TOWNSHIP
The Township of Conestoga, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania.
A. 
No person, owner and/or contractor shall hereafter install a driveway, or any portion thereof, without first obtaining a permit from the Board.
B. 
No person, owner and/or contractor shall hereafter reconstruct, or resurface (excluding adding stone to an existing unpaved driveway or application of liquid sealer to an existing paved driveway) a driveway or portion thereof on or within any Township right-of-way without first obtaining a permit from the Township.
A. 
All driveways shall be constructed in a manner that will not impede or divert the normal flow of surface drainage. The grade and construction of all driveways shall be in accordance with the standards and specification which are attached hereto, marked Exhibit "A" and incorporated herein by reference thereto.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: Said exhibit is on file in the Township offices.
B. 
Where the grade of a driveway to be constructed exceeds 12% within 40 feet of the right-of-way line, a level area of sufficient size to provide one off-street parking spaces shall be provided adjacent to the roadway to allow safe ingress and egress during wet and/or slippery driving conditions.
C. 
The sight distance for driveways requiring permits pursuant to § 225-2 of this article shall comply with the requirements for state highways prescribed by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation as codified at 67 Pa. Code § 441.8, and any amendments and addenda thereto (hereinafter referred to as "PennDOT sight distance standards"), as follows:
(1) 
New driveways permitted pursuant to § 225-2A shall comply with PennDOT sight distance standards.
(2) 
If existing driveways permitted pursuant to § 225-2B do not comply with PennDOT sight distance standards, then reasonable measures may be required, as a condition of permit issuance, to improve the sight distance as may be directed by the Board or its designee.
D. 
The Township will only permit the use of drainage pipes under a driveway if all of the following conditions are met:
(1) 
It is impossible or impractical to maintain drainage flow without a pipe.
(2) 
Calculations are submitted with an application showing that the proposed pipe will have a capacity equal to or greater than the existing gutter, or that such pipe will pass a ten-year storm from the drainage area without flooding the roadway. Runoff calculations shall be based upon the United States Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service Soil-Cover-Complex Method, the Rational Formula of Q = CIA, or any other method acceptable to the Township Engineer.
(3) 
The owner agrees, in writing, to maintain the pipe in good condition free of debris and siltation.
(4) 
The owner agrees, in writing, to relocate and/or replace the pipe if at some future date the Township improves or widens the public road requiring such relocation and/or replacement.
E. 
As part of the driveway construction, the owner shall provide bituminous or concrete paving extending for a minimum distance of eight feet from the edge of the paved cartway. The paving shall consist of a minimum of an eight-inch stone base course and a two-and-one-half-inch bituminous course or equal paving approved by the Township. The swale should be maintained or the pipe should be located four feet from the edge of the cartway, or as directed by the Board or the Board's designee.
A. 
Any person, owner and/or contractor shall, prior to obtaining a driveway permit, file an application, on an application form supplied and approved by the Board, reflecting and showing the location of the driveway relative to the premises and designating the course, grade, structure, materials and drainage facilities, if any, involved in the construction of the driveway.
B. 
The application shall be reviewed by the Board or the Board's designee who shall determine if the proposed method of constructing or making said connection, as reflected on the application, is such that it will i) minimize the adverse impact of stormwater runoff or surface drainage resulting from said connection, ii) not cause damage to the road to which the driveway is to be connected, and iii) not create or increase hazardous driving conditions for those persons using the road to which the driveway is to be connected. If found satisfactory by the Board or the Board's designee, the applicant will be so advised, and the Board will issue, or cause to be issued, the permit.
C. 
If the plan is found deficient, or if in the opinion of the Board or the Board's designee the plan could be modified so as to i) minimize the adverse effect of stormwater runoff, ii) lessen drainage to the public road to which the driveway is to be connected or iii) lessen hazardous driving conditions on the road to which the driveway is to be connected, by written communication shall be notified of the changes to be made. The applicant shall immediately make such changes and return to revised plan to the Township. When such plan is in acceptable form, the Board shall approve the plan or cause the same to be approved and the permit issued. If the applicant refuses to make such changes, the application shall be deemed denied for the reasons set forth in the written communication, and the date of the written communication shall be the date of the denial of the application.
D. 
The applicant may appeal a denial of an application to the Board. The appeal shall be made within 10 days to the Board by filing written notice of the appeal with the Secretary of the Township. The Board shall thereafter hold a hearing and render a decision on the refusal to issue a permit pursuant to the provisions of the Local Agency Law, Section 5, 2 Pa.C.S.A. § 551 et seq.
The application shall be accompanied by such fee or fees as the Board shall prescribe from time to time by resolution or ordinance not exceeding the approximate reasonable cost of processing and reviewing the application and making any necessary inspections.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I)]
A permit under this article shall be applied for and obtained prior to the application for a permit to commence the excavation for or the construction or erection of any building under Article XVI of Chapter 320, Zoning, of the Code of Conestoga Township, as amended.
A. 
All construction in any way incidental to the installation of the driveway or for the repair of a driveway for which a permit is required under this article shall be performed in strict conformance with the approved plans. After the proposed driveway has been stoned in, but before the driveway has received final surfacing, the person to whom the permit has been issued shall notify the Township. The driveway shall not be final surfaced until the stoned-in area has been inspected and approved by the Board or the Board's designee. In the event the person to whom the permit has been issued fails to notify the Township prior to placing the final surface, the Township may direct the owner and/or contractor to remove the final surface in order that the inspection may be completed. Such removal shall be at no expense to the Township. After the driveway has received final surfacing, the person to whom the permit has been issued shall notify the Township to request a final inspection.
B. 
The contractor shall utilize procedures and/or traffic control devices as necessary for the maintenance and protection of traffic in strict accordance with PennDOT Publication 203 "Work Zone Traffic Control."
The provisions of this article relating to driveways are intended as a minimum standard for the protection of the public health, safety and welfare. If the literal compliance with any mandatory provision of this article relating to driveways is shown by the applicant, to the satisfaction of the Board of Supervisors, to be unreasonable or to cause undue hardship as it applies to a particular property, or if the applicant shows that an alternative proposal will allow for equal or better results, the Board of Supervisors may grant a waiver from such mandatory provision so that substantial justice may be done and the public interest secured while permitting the reasonable utilization of the property. However, the granting of a waiver shall not have the effect of making null and void the intent and purpose of this article. In granting waivers, the Board of Supervisors may impose such conditions as will, in its judgment, secure substantially the objectives of the standards and requirements of this article.
The grant of a permit under this article shall not constitute a representation, guarantee or warranty of any kind by the Township or by an official or employee thereof of the practicability or safety of the proposed driveway and shall create no liability upon the Township, its officials, or employees.
A permit issued under this article shall be valid for 12 months from the date of issuance. The Board or the Board's designee may in its discretion grant one extension of the permit for up to three months upon written application of the person to whom the permit was issued prior to the expiration of the permit. The application for extension must indicate good cause for the failure to complete work within the twelve-month time period.
The permit granted under this article shall be posted at the right-of-way line so as to be visible from the roadway. The permit shall remain posted until final approval of the work has been given by the Board or the Board's designee.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I)]
Any person who violates or permits a violation of this article shall, upon conviction in a summary proceeding brought before a Magisterial District Judge under the Pennsylvania Rules of Criminal Procedure, be guilty of a summary offense and shall be punishable by a fine of not more than $1,000, plus costs of prosecution. In default of payment thereof, the defendant may be sentenced to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 90 days. Each day or portion thereof that such violation continues or is permitted to continue shall constitute a separate offense, and each section of this article that is violated shall also constitute a separate offense.
In addition to or in lieu of the penalties provided in § 225-13, violation of this article may be abated by the Township proceeding against the violator in a court of equity to obtain injunctive relief.
If any section, subsection, provision, regulation, limitation, restriction, sentence, clause, phrase or word in this article is declared for any reason to be illegal, unconstitutional or invalid by any court of competent jurisdiction, such decision shall not affect or impair the validity of this article as a whole, or any other section, subsection, provision, regulation, limitation, restriction, sentence, clause, phrase, word or remaining portion of this article. The Board of Township Supervisors hereby declares that it would have enacted this article and each section, subsection, provision, regulation, limitation, restriction, sentence, clause, phrase and word thereof, irrespective of the fact that any one or more of the sections, subsections, provisions, regulations, limitations, restrictions, sentences, clauses, phrases or words may be declared illegal, unconstitutional or invalid.
Ordinance No. 1991-01 and all ordinances or parts of ordinances inconsistent or in conflict with this article are hereby repealed to the extent of such conflict or inconsistency.
Nothing in this article shall be construed to affect any suit or proceeding pending in any court, or any rights acquired or liability incurred, or any permit issued, or any cause or causes of action existing prior to the enactment of this article.
This article shall become effective five days after enactment by the Board of Supervisors of Conestoga Township.