[Amended 5-10-2022 by Ord. No. 237]
Where, owing to special conditions, a literal enforcement of
this chapter would result in unnecessary hardship, the Board of Township
Supervisors may make such reasonable exception thereto as will not
be contrary to the public interest and may permit the sale of a lot,
issuance of a permit or erection of a building, subject to conditions
necessary to assure adequate streets and other public improvements.
Upon the filing of an application for preliminary and final
approval of a subdivision and/or land development plan, the landowner
or developer shall pay to the Township Secretary to the use of the
Township such fees as the Board of Supervisors shall from time to
time provide by ordinance or resolution.
A.
The landowner or developer shall pay to the use of the Township,
and upon invoice rendered by the Township, such charges as shall be
made by the Township Engineer or other Township inspector for the
field inspection of improvements in the subdivision or land development;
but in the event, owing to special or unusual conditions, specialized
or expert inspections, analyses or tests of improvements shall be
required, such inspections, analyses or tests shall be performed by
persons or firms selected by the Board of Supervisors, and the fees
and costs of such inspections, analyses or tests shall be paid by
the landowner or developer to the use of the Township, upon invoice
rendered by the Township, in an amount equivalent to the actual cost
thereof to the Township.
B.
All invoices shall be due upon presentation.
C.
Any landowner or developer who is delinquent in the payment of invoices
shall be denied issuance of any further approvals or permits by the
Township, whether such approvals or permits pertain to the development
for which said invoice was rendered or any other land or development
within the Township.
D.
The Township Building Inspector or Township Secretary shall revoke
all permits issued to landowners or developers who are delinquent
in the payment of any invoice.
E.
A landowner or developer who disputes an invoice as billed within
10 days shall state such objection to the Township Secretary, in writing,
upon receipt, via certified mail, return receipt requested.
F.
Reimbursement by the applicant to the Township shall be based upon
a schedule established by ordinance or resolution. Such expense shall
be reasonable and in accordance with the ordinary and customary fees
charged by the Township Engineer or consultant for work performed
for similar service in the community, but in no event shall the fees
exceed the rate or cost charged by the Engineer or consultant to the
Township when fees are not reimbursed or otherwise imposed on applicants.
(1)
In the event the applicant disputes the amount of any such expense
in connection with the inspection of improvements, the applicant shall,
within 10 working days of the date of billing, notify the Township
that such expenses are disputed as unreasonable or unnecessary, in
which case the Township shall not delay or disapprove a subdivision
and/or land development application or any approval or permit related
to development due to the applicant's request over disputed engineer
expenses.
(2)
If, within 20 days from the date of billing, the Township and the
applicant cannot agree on the amount of the expenses which are reasonable
and necessary, then the applicant and Township shall jointly, by mutual
agreement, appoint another professional engineer licensed as such
in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania to review the said expenses and
make a determination as to the amount thereof which is reasonable
and necessary.
(3)
The professional engineer so appointed shall hear such evidence and
review such documentation as the professional engineer, in his or
her sole opinion, deems necessary and render a decision within 50
days of the billing date. The applicant shall be required to pay the
entire amount determined in the decision immediately.
(4)
In the event that the Township and applicant cannot agree upon the
professional engineer to be appointed within 20 days of the billing
date, then, upon application of either party, the President Judge
of the Court of Common Pleas (or if at the time there be no President
Judge, then the senior active judge then sitting) shall appoint such
engineer who, in that case, shall be neither the Township Engineer
nor any professional engineer who has been retained by, or performed
service for, the Township or the applicant within the preceding five
years.
(5)
The fee of the appointed professional engineer for determining the
reasonable and necessary expenses shall be paid by the applicant if
the amount of payment required in the decision is equal to or greater
than the original bill. If the amount of payment required in the decision
is less than the original bill by $1,000 or more, the Township shall
pay the fee of the professional engineer, but otherwise the Township
and the applicant shall each pay 1/2 of the fee of the appointed professional
engineer.
A.
The landowner or developer shall pay to the use of the Township,
and upon invoice rendered by the Township, the actual cost of all
fees incurred by the Township in the review of all subdivision and/or
land development plans by the Township Engineer, planning consultant,
Township Solicitor and such other professionals as are engaged by
the Township to review and evaluate subdivision and land development
plans. The need for such professionals, and the selection thereof,
shall be determined solely by the Board of Supervisors.
B.
In the event the applicant disputes the amount of any such review
fees, the applicant shall, within 10 days of the billing date, notify
the Township that such fees are disputed, in which case the Township
shall not delay or disapprove a subdivision or land development application
due to the applicant's request over disputed fees.
The landowner or developer shall pay to the use of the Township,
and upon invoice rendered by the Township, the cost of performing
all material tests determined by the Board of Supervisors to be necessary
or desirable in connection with the inspection or approval of all
subdivision and/or land development plans or improvements.
The landowner or developer shall pay to the use of the Township,
and upon invoice rendered by the Township, all fees incurred by the
Township in the preparation of the subdivision and land development
agreements, improvement and maintenance bonds, escrow agreements and
other instruments deemed necessary or desirable by the Board of Supervisors
in connection with subdivisions or land developments.
The Township Manager shall, upon receipt of an application under this Chapter 395, require a deposit by the applicant in an amount to be determined in consultation with the Township Engineer to assure payment by the applicant of all fees and costs set forth in this article. All deposit moneys remaining upon approval, denial, withdrawal or other termination of an application shall be returned to the applicant upon the payment of all outstanding fees and costs set forth in this article.
A.
Preventive remedies.
(1)
In addition to other remedies, the Township may institute and maintain
appropriate actions by law or in equity to restrain, correct or abate
violations, to prevent unlawful construction, to recover damages and
to prevent illegal occupancy of a building, structure or premises.
The description by metes and bounds in the instrument of transfer
or other documents used in the process of selling or transferring
shall not exempt the seller or transferor from such penalties or from
the remedies herein provided.
(2)
The Township may refuse to issue any permit or grant any approval
necessary to further improve or develop any real property which has
been developed or which has resulted from a subdivision of real property
in violation of any chapter provisions. This authority to deny such
a permit or approval shall apply to any of the following applicants:
(a)
The owner of record at the time of such violation.
(b)
The vendee or lessee of the owner of record at the time of such
violation without regard as to whether such vendee or lessee had actual
or constructive knowledge of the violation.
(c)
The current owner of record who acquired the property subsequent
to the time of violation without regard as to whether such current
owner had actual or constructive knowledge of the violation.
(d)
The vendee or lessee of the current owner of record who acquired
the property subsequent to the time of violation without regard as
to whether such vendee or lessee had actual or constructive knowledge
of the violation.
(3)
As an additional condition for issuance of a permit or the granting
of an approval to any such owner, current owner, vendee or lessee
for the development of any such real property, the Township may require
compliance with the conditions that would have been applicable to
the property at the time the applicant acquired an interest an such
real property.
B.
Jurisdiction. Magisterial District Judges shall have initial jurisdiction
in proceedings brought under this section.
C.
Enforcement remedies.
(1)
Any person, partnership or corporation who or which has violated
the provisions of this chapter shall, upon being found liable therefor
in a civil enforcement proceeding commenced by the Township, pay a
judgment of not more than $500 plus all court costs, including reasonable
attorney fees incurred by the Township as a result thereof. No judgment
shall commence or be imposed, levied or be payable until the date
of the determination of a violation by the Magisterial District Judge.
If the defendant neither pays nor timely appeals the judgment, the
Township may enforce the judgment pursuant to the applicable Rules
of Civil Procedure. Each day that a violation continues shall constitute
a separate violation, unless the Magisterial District Judge determining
that there has been a violation further determines that there was
a good faith basis for the person, partnership or corporation violating
the chapter to have believed that there was no such violation, in
which event there shall be deemed to have been only one such violation
until the fifth day following the date of the determination of a violation
by the Magisterial District Judge and thereafter each day that a violation
continues shall constitute a separate violation.
(2)
The Court of Common Pleas, upon petition, may grant an order of stay,
upon cause shown, tolling the per-diem judgment pending a final adjudication
of the violation and judgment.
(3)
Nothing contained in this section shall be construed or interpreted
to grant to any person or entity other than the Township the right
to commence any action for enforcement pursuant to this section.
All fines collected for violations of this chapter, as provided in § 395-78 herein, shall be paid over to the Township.
