"An ordinance providing for the regulation and control of the subdivision of lots and the development of land; the approval of plans, plots, or replots of land laid out in building lots; standards for the design of streets, intersections, lots, easements, blocks and other improvements; certain minimum improvements and construction standards on all streets and required dedications; the administration of this ordinance by the Weisenberg Township Planning Commission and the Weisenberg Township Board of Supervisors; and penalties for the violation of this ordinance."
This chapter shall be known and may be cited as "The Weisenberg Township Subdivision and Land Development Ordinance of 2000" or, when it is clear from the context, the "Township SALDO."
The purpose of these regulations is to create conditions favorable to the health, safety, and general welfare of the citizens by assisting in the orderly and efficient integration of subdivisions; ensuring conformance of subdivision plans with the public improvements plans of the Township; ensuring sites suitable for building purposes and human habitation; facilitating the efficient movement of traffic and avoiding traffic hazards and dangerous intersections and congestion; securing equitable handling of all subdivision plans by providing uniform procedures and standards; improving land records by establishing standards for surveys and plans; safeguarding the interests of the public, the homeowner, the subdivider and all municipalities; preserving natural and historic features; and carrying out the goals and objectives of the Comprehensive Plan and the Municipalities Planning Code (MPC).[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: See 53 P.S. § 10101 et seq.
A. 
No subdivision or land development of any lot, tract, or parcel of land shall be made, and no street, sanitary sewer main, water main or other improvements required in connection with a proposed subdivision or land development shall be laid out, constructed, opened or dedicated for use of the public or the occupants of the proposed subdivision or land development, except in accordance with this chapter.
[Amended 3-11-2002 by Ord. No. 02-02; at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I)]
B. 
A lot or parcel that was not a legal lot of record prior to adoption of this chapter shall not be created, sold or transferred, and no land development may occur on a lot unless and until:
(1) 
The subdivision of the lot and/or the approval of the land development, as applicable, has been granted final plan approval and recorded; and
(2) 
Either of the following occurs:
(a) 
The Township has been assured by means of an improvement agreement and guarantees acceptable to the Board of Supervisors that the improvements with subsequently be installed; or
(b) 
The required improvements in connection therewith have been entirely completed.
C. 
Landowner. No subdivision or land development shall be submitted to the Township for review except by the landowner of such land or his/her specifically authorized agent.
A. 
Agriculture. The subdivision by lease of land for agricultural purposes into parcels of more than 10 acres, not involving any new street or easement of access or residential dwelling, shall be exempt from the provisions of this chapter.
B. 
Revisions to this chapter after approval of a development.
(1) 
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, Chapter 500, 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.
(2) 
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 the governing ordinances or plans as they stood at the time when the application for such approval was duly filed.
(3) 
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 governing body, no change of municipal 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.
(4) 
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 the 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 governing body in its discretion.
(5) 
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 governing body 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 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.
(6) 
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, Chapter 500, Zoning, and other governing ordinance enacted by the municipality subsequent to the date of the initial preliminary plan submission.
A. 
Standards.
(1) 
The provisions of this chapter shall be interpreted and applied as minimum requirements for the promotion of the public health, safety, and general welfare.
(2) 
Where provisions, standards, and specifications of this chapter conflict with those of any state statute, other ordinance or regulations, the more restrictive requirement shall apply, regardless of its source, unless specified to the contrary.
A. 
An applicant seeking a waiver or modification of the minimum standards required by this chapter shall submit to the Township staff along with the application for development a request in writing that states a) the specific chapter section(s) involved and b) the reasons for the request. The staff shall provide the request to the Planning Commission for a recommendation. After the Planning Commission has had an opportunity for review of the waivers or modification request(s), it shall make a written recommendation to the Board of Supervisors. The Board of Supervisors may in writing grant waivers or modifications of the specific requirements of this chapter.
B. 
The applicant must demonstrate to the satisfaction of the Board of Supervisors that with respect to each request for a waiver or modification that literal compliance with the mandatory provisions of this chapter would be:
(1) 
Unreasonable;
(2) 
Cause undue hardship because of peculiar conditions pertaining to the land in question, provided that such that the purpose and intent of this chapter is still observed; or
(3) 
Unnecessary because an alternative standard can be demonstrated to provide equal or better results.
A. 
The Board of Supervisors has established by resolution a schedule of fees and a collection procedure for all applications and other matters pertaining to this chapter.
B. 
The applicant is also required to pay any review fees required by the Lehigh Valley Planning Commission (LVPC) and the County Conservation District and any other applicable agencies.
C. 
Plans shall not be considered filed until all Township fees are paid, the applications are properly signed as required, and the reimbursement and escrow agreement is signed by all record owners and submitted.
D. 
If the expenses of the Township for reviews of a subdivision or land development exceed the total fees that have been paid or placed in escrow by an applicant, such excess expenses shall be paid by the applicant prior to releases of the final plans by the Township for recording.
E. 
If the applicant disputes the fees, the applicant can appeal in accordance with Section 503 of the MPC, as amended.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: See 53 P.S. § 10503.
A. 
Alternate plans. Only one plan concerning any one area of land shall be before the Township for review at one time, unless the Planning Commission specifically permits simultaneous reviews of alternative plans.
B. 
Revisions and resubdivisions.
(1) 
Revised plans:
(a) 
Until a submission is approved or rejected by the Board of Supervisors, the applicant may withdraw the submission entirely or submit a revised plan and then the following submission and review procedures will apply:
[1] 
The revised plan shall be considered a new submittal, and the ninety-day maximum time period for Township review shall restart at the first regular Planning Commission meeting after such submittal of the revised plan or 30 days after the submission of the revised plan if no meeting of the Township Planning Commission has taken place by then.
(b) 
A revision or resubdivision of a recorded final plan shall be considered as a new subdivision and shall comply with all of the requirements of this chapter.
(c) 
If the Township staff determines that a revision meets the "minor subdivision" definition, the plan may be submitted under the provisions of Article VI.
The Township shall maintain written records of the findings and/or action and recommendations of the Planning Commission and decisions, determinations and conditions of approval or denial made or imposed by Board of Supervisors regarding all subdivision and/or land development plans. Such records shall be available to the public for review. The recommendations of the Planning Commission with respect to conditions of approval shall be provided to the Board of Supervisors prior to any meeting of the Board of Supervisors at which the proposed subdivision and/or land development is considered.
A. 
Ordinances. This chapter may, from time to time, be amended by the Board of Supervisors, following the procedures of the MPC, as amended.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: See 53 P.S. § 10101 et seq.
B. 
Commission review. The Township staff shall submit each proposed amendment (other than an amendment prepared by or under the direction of the Planning Commission) to the Planning Commission for recommendations at least 30 days prior to the date set for the Supervisors' public hearing.
C. 
LVPC. The Board of Supervisors shall submit any proposed amendment to the LVPC at least 30 days before the public hearing on such amendments.
D. 
Public notice. The Board of Supervisors shall publish the proposed amendment, as defined in Article II, in accordance with the requirements of the MPC. Publication of the proposed amendment shall include either the full text thereof or the title and a brief summary. If the full text is not included:
(1) 
A copy thereof shall be supplied to the newspaper of general circulation in the Township in which the public notice is published.
(2) 
An attested copy of the proposed amendment shall be filed in the County Law Library.
E. 
Changes. In the event substantial amendments are made in the proposed amendment, before voting upon enactment the Board of Supervisors shall, at least 10 days prior to enactment, readvertise in one newspaper of general circulation in the Township a brief summary setting forth all the provisions in reasonable detail together with a summary of the amendments.
F. 
Ordinance Book. Subdivision and land development amendments may be incorporated into the official Ordinance Book by reference with the same force and effect as if duly recorded therein.
Decisions of the Board of Supervisors may be appealed in accordance with the MPC, as amended.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: See 53 P.S. § 10101 et seq.
A. 
Inspectors. The Board of Supervisors shall authorize one or more persons, which may include the Zoning Officer and the Township Engineer and his/her representatives, to enforce the provisions of this chapter and the accompanying design standards and improvement specifications.
B. 
Inspection. Any action under this chapter is subject to on-site inspection by the Township or its authorized representatives to ensure compliance with this chapter, other Township ordinances, and the approved plans.
C. 
Remedies. Any action inconsistent with the provisions of this chapter shall be subject to a cease-and-desist order and other appropriate measures by the Board of Supervisors or their authorized representatives.
A. 
Any person, partnership or corporation who or which has violated any provisions of this chapter shall, upon being found liable therefore in a civil enforcement proceeding commenced by the Board of Supervisors or their authorized representative, pay a judgment of not more than $500, plus all court costs, including reasonable attorneys' fees incurred by the municipality as a result thereof, unless a higher penalty is established under state law.
B. 
The description by metes and bounds in the instrument of transfer or other document used in the process of selling or transferring shall not exempt the seller or transferor from such penalties or from the remedies herein provided.
C. 
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 this 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 determination of violation by the Magisterial District Judge and thereafter each day that a violation continues shall constitute a separate violation.
D. 
All fines collected for such violations shall be paid over to the Township.
Neither the approval nor the granting of any building permit, site plan review, subdivision approval, land development approval, zoning permit, erosion review, stormwater runoff review, wetland delineation or high water table review, wetland review, floodplain review, steep slope review, or any other review or permit of this chapter, involving any land governed by the provisions of this chapter, by an officer, employee, consultant, or agency of the Township shall constitute a representation, guarantee or warranty of any kind by the Township or its employees, consultants, officials, or agencies of the practicality or safety of any structure, use, or subdivision and shall create no liability upon, nor a cause of action against, any Township body, consultant, official or employee for any personal injury or property personal injury or property damage that may result pursuant thereto.
It is hereby declared to be the legislative intent that:
A. 
If a court of competent jurisdiction declares any provisions of this chapter to be invalid or ineffective in whole or in part, the effect of such decision shall be limited to those provisions which are expressly stated in the decision to be invalid or ineffective, and all other provisions of this chapter shall continue to be separately and fully effective.
B. 
The Board of Supervisors hereby declares that it would have passed this chapter and each section or part thereof irrespective of the fact that any one or more sections or parts thereof be declared invalid.
[Amended 3-11-2002 by Ord. No. 02-02]
All other Township ordinances or parts thereof that were adopted prior to this chapter and are clearly in conflict with this chapter, including the preexisting Weisenberg Township Subdivision and Land Development Ordinance, as amended, except any provisions that are specifically referenced by this chapter, are hereby repealed. However, previously adopted stormwater management ordinances adopted pursuant to Act 167 of 1978, 32 P.S. § 680.1, et seq., as amended, are specifically not repealed and remain in effect.
The provisions of this chapter that only repeat, summarize, or reference provisions of the MPC[1] shall be deemed to be automatically superseded and replaced by any applicable amendments to such provisions of the MPC at the date such amendments become effective as state law.
[1]
Editor's Note: See 53 P.S. § 10101 et seq.
See Article IV regarding the requirements for a land development.
The applicant or his/her duly authorized representative shall attend the Commission and Board of Supervisors's meetings to discuss the filed plans. If the applicant fails to appear at a meeting where the plans will be considered, it may result in tabling or disapproval of the plan if the Township determines that it lacks sufficient information to render a decision.