No regulated earth disturbance activities within the Township
shall commence until approval by the Township of the BMP operations
and maintenance plan which describes how the permanent (e.g., post-construction)
stormwater BMPs will be properly operated and maintained.
The maintenance responsibilities for permanent stormwater runoff
control facilities shall be determined based upon the type of ownership
of the property which is controlled by the facilities.
A. Single entity ownership. In all cases where the permanent stormwater
runoff control facilities are designed to manage runoff from property
in a single entity ownership as defined below, the maintenance responsibility
for the stormwater control facilities shall be with the single entity
owner. The single entity owner shall enter into an agreement with
the Township which specifies that the owner will properly maintain
the facilities consistent with accepted practice as determined by
the Township Engineer. The agreement shall provide for regular inspections
by the Township, shall contain such provisions as are necessary to
ensure timely correction of any maintenance deficiencies by the single
entity owner, and shall be recorded in the miscellaneous docket in
the office of the Recorder of Deeds of Northampton County, Pennsylvania.
For the purposes of this chapter, the term "single entity" shall be
defined as an individual, association, public or private corporation,
partnership firm, trust, estate, or any other legal entity empowered
to own real estate.
B. Multiple ownership. In cases where the property controlled by the permanent stormwater control facilities shall be in multiple ownership (i.e., many individual owners of various portions of the property), the developer shall dedicate the permanent stormwater control facilities to the Township for maintenance unless, in the opinion of the Board of Commissioners, another ownership and maintenance alternative, as permitted in Subsection
C, below, will better serve the public interest. The developer shall pay a fee to the Township corresponding to the present worth of maintenance of the facilities in perpetuity. The estimated annual maintenance cost for the facilities shall be based on a fee schedule provided by the Township Engineer and adopted by the Township Board of Commissioners. The fee schedule must be reasonable.
C. In certain multiple ownership situations, the public may benefit
should the Township require that maintenance responsibilities be borne
by an individual or other legal entity. In these instances, the Township
and the responsible individual or entity shall, at the Township's
opinion, enter into a formal agreement regarding such maintenance
obligation.
D. The following BMP maintenance responsibility statements shall be
provided on the plans to be recorded above a comprehensive list of
all BMPs by location (as may be part of the project's NPDES permit):
(1) An annual report shall be submitted by the entity having maintenance
responsibilities to the Township Public Works Department each March
1 indicating all operations and maintenance that have been performed
for each BMP listed below upon its installation;
(2) The PCSM plan, BMP inspection reports, and BMP monitoring records
shall be made available by the entity having maintenance responsibilities
for review by DEP, NCCD, and the Township upon request;
(3) The entity having maintenance responsibilities is responsible to
provide an annual report to the Township, and for recordkeeping of
monitoring the listed BMPs in perpetuity; and
(4) Access to the site via agreements and/or easements satisfactory to
the Township shall be provided for Township stormwater inspection
and maintenance.
It shall be unlawful to alter or remove any permanent stormwater
BMP required by an approved BMP operations and maintenance plan or
to allow the property to remain in a condition which does not conform
to an approved BMP operations and maintenance plan unless an exception
is granted in writing by the Township.
Stormwater management easements shall be provided by the property owner if necessary for access for inspections and maintenance or for preservation of stormwater conveyance, infiltration, detention areas, and other BMPs by persons other than the property owner. The purpose of the easement shall be specified in any agreement under §
220-58.