[Adopted 2-6-1967 by Ord. No. 4-67]
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I)]
No person shall in any manner obstruct any sidewalk in the Township of Colebrookdale so as to endanger any person or property or to hinder or delay public travel; Provided, however, that nothing herein contained shall prohibit any person from making use of any sidewalk in the manner provided in § 463-25 of this article, and in strict conformity with the conditions and requirements of such section.
Any person engaged in delivering any goods, wares or merchandise to any property abutting upon any sidewalk, or in removing any personal property, of any nature or character whatever, from such property, may temporarily, for a total period of not more than one hour, place any such goods, wares or merchandise, or other personal property, upon such sidewalk, as close as possible to the curb, to facilitate the loading or unloading of the same. The occupant of such property, or the owner thereof where such property is not occupied, shall be responsible for adhering to the requirements of this section, and any failure to conform to such requirements shall constitute a violation of this article.[1]
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I)]
Every person erecting or repairing any building shall keep the sidewalk adjacent thereto clear and open. Whenever necessary for the protection of the users of such sidewalk during the course of such building construction or repairing, such person shall erect a suitable shed or other protective covering over such sidewalk.
No person shall, hereafter, erect or place any step, platform, passageway, enclosure, bulk, bay or jut window, porch or jamb or any similar obstruction in or upon any sidewalk, provided nothing contained herein shall prohibit the construction or erection of awnings, under the conditions set forth hereinafter, or the planting of trees between the curb and the paved portion of the sidewalk, where such plantings are specifically authorized by ordinance, or the erection of steps extending not more than three feet from the property or building line of such street, leading up to the first floor of any building, or the construction of cellarways as provided in § 463-28 of this article.
No opening, railing or passageway into any cellar shall be permitted to extend more than three feet from the building line into any sidewalk in the Township. Every cellarway opening onto any sidewalk shall be securely covered and protected with iron doors, which shall be constructed so as to close flush with the sidewalk, All such cellar doors shall at all times be kept in good repair and shall be closed at all times except when in actual use for the removal or receipt of goods, wares or merchandise, and when opened, every such cellar door shall be properly guarded for the protection of persons using such sidewalk.
No person shall install, erect or maintain any awning any portion of which shall overhang any sidewalk in the Township, unless the lowest point of such awning shall be not less than seven feet above the level of such sidewalk.[1]
[Added at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I)]
A.
Purpose. This section is provided to allow safe egress and ingress to driveways located within the Township to protect the public health, safety and welfare of the Township.
B.
Scope. No person in Colebrookdale Township shall lay out, open, install, construct, substantially improve, or maintain any driveway or portion thereof unless it shall be in accordance with the following:
(1)
Any driveway which requires the penetration or occupancy of a state highway right-of-way area shall be located only in accordance with a permit issued by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation pursuant to the provisions of Chapter 441 of Title 67 of the Pennsylvania Code. Such driveways shall be installed, constructed or substantially improved in accordance with a permit issued by the Colebrookdale Township Code Enforcement Officer under the provisions of this section, any other applicable ordinances of Colebrookdale Township, and such driveway regulations, provisions and specifications as may be enacted by the Board of Commissioners of Colebrookdale Township, from time to time.
(2)
Any driveway which requires penetration or occupancy of a street right-of-way area, other than a state highway, shall be located, laid out, opened, installed, constructed or substantially improved only in accordance with a permit issued by the Colebrookdale Township Code Enforcement Officer under the provisions of this section, and any other applicable ordinances of Colebrookdale Township, and such driveway regulations, provisions and specifications as may be enacted by the Board of Commissioners of Colebrookdale Township, from time to time.
(3)
Any driveway which causes silt, stone, debris or water to be deposited in a right-of-way area of any street or state highway shall be improved to eliminate said discharge. A permit is required as set forth above if the corrective work is a substantial improvement.
C.
Permit requirements for driveways.
(1)
Any person required to obtain a driveway permit under the terms of this article shall make application for the same on a form approved by the Board of Commissioners and said application shall be accompanied by a fee to be adopted by the Board of Commissioners, from time to time.
(2)
No permit as herein provided for shall be required for normal and customary maintenance and repair of an existing driveway, providing such normal and customary maintenance and repair does not constitute substantial improvements.
(3)
In addition to submitting to the Code Enforcement Officer the application and the application fee, the application shall be accompanied by the following information:
(a)
A statement giving the location, purpose and description of all work to be done.
(b)
A driveway sketch and driveway profile plan showing the area to be affected, existing improvements presently erected or constructed thereon, proposed improvements and all property boundary lines within 100 feet of the proposed driveway.
(c)
If the discharge or passage of surface water drainage onto or within the right-of-way area of a local street or state highway will be affected, stormwater runoff calculations indicating runoff prior to and after the proposed work and a remediation plan, when such calculations and plan are requested by the Zoning Officer.
(d)
Information, design and mode of construction of all driveways, and drainage and means of sediment and erosion control during and after the proposed work, when requested by the Code Enforcement Officer.
(4)
The location, design and mode of construction of all driveways, and drainage facilities is subject to the approval of the Code Enforcement Officer. The Code Enforcement Officer may require that the plans filed with the applications shall be altered to reflect any changes or modifications which the Code Enforcement Officer shall deem necessary to meet the requirements of this section.
(5)
All work shall be in strict compliance with the plans and specifications for which the Code Enforcement Officer issued a permit.
(6)
The Code Enforcement Officer shall not issue a permit for any work to be performed under the terms and conditions of this section until such time as the Code Enforcement Officer shall receive from the applicant all required information and until such time as the Code Enforcement Officer has had an adequate opportunity to investigate and research the said application. The Code Enforcement Officer shall either approve or reject an application for a permit within 30 days after the Code Enforcement Officer has received from the applicant all information and documentation required by this section and that required by the Code Enforcement Officer in accordance with the terms and conditions of this section.
(7)
A driveway permit issued pursuant to the terms and provisions of this section shall be valid for a period of one year from the date of issuance shown on the said permit.
(8)
It shall be the joint responsibility of the owner, lessee, if any, and the contractor to determine that any permit required by this section has been obtained before performing any work. It shall be unlawful for any contractor or subcontractor to perform any work for which a permit is required unless a permit is obtained.
D.
Standards for driveways.
(1)
All driveways and related improvements shall be constructed and located in such a manner as not to impair drainage or maintenance within any street right-of-way area, alter the stability of a roadway subgrade, materially change the drainage of adjacent areas, interfere with the traveling public, present a hazard to the free movement of normal street traffic, or create areas of undue traffic congestion on the highway. All surface water shall be retained on the applicant's lot whenever possible, and in no case shall the applicant channel surface water and direct it or allow it to flow in force into lower land.
(2)
All work for which a permit is required under the provisions of this section shall be done in accordance with these design standards and any driveway regulations, provisions and specifications adopted by the Board of Commissioners, from time to time.
(3)
Driveway entrances to an existing state highway shall be located in accordance with a permit issued by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation pursuant to the provisions of Chapter 441 of Title 67 of the Pennsylvania Code. Driveway entrances to any other existing street shall be so located as to provide reasonable and safe sight distance to the operator of a vehicle departing from a driveway into a street. The location of all driveways is subject to approval by the Code Enforcement Officer. Clear sight triangles shall be free of any vegetative obstructions. Within such triangles, no vision obstructing objects other than utility poles, streetlights, street signs or traffic signs, or mail boxes shall be permitted which obscures vision above the height of 30 inches and below 10 feet measured from the center line grade of the intersecting driveway and the street.
(4)
A safe stopping sight distance shall be available for all permitted turning movements at all driveway intersections and shall conform to the minimum driveway intersection safe sight distance requirements of PennDOT Publication 441 and 282. Safe stopping sight distances shall be determined as provided in Exhibit 4.
(5)
Any repairs to a driveway for which a permit has been issued under this article of original design and specifications for the driveway, unless the new design and specifications are first submitted to the Code Enforcement Officer for approval. There may be a required payment of a filing fee, as established by the Board of Commissioners, when, in the determination of the Code Enforcement Officer as per this section, shall be done in such a manner that the repairs shall not change the substantial improvement or change is made.
(6)
Every driveway which requires the penetration of occupancy of a paved street shall be paved from the pavement/cartway edge for a distance of 15 feet or to the right-of-way line, whichever is greater. Driveway paving shall consist of at least two inches of compacted HMA (hot mix asphalt) Super Pave wearing course on at least six inches of PennDOT 2A stone.
(7)
All driveways shall have a width of at least 12 feet and must flare to a minimum of 18 feet at the cartway. All driveways shall be located at least five feet from the lot line of any adjacent lot. The entrance shall be rounded at a minimum radius of five feet. The entire driveway entrance, including radii, shall be located within the road frontage of the property which is to be served by the driveway. No driveway shall be closer than five feet from a property boundary line.
(8)
Private driveways on corner lots shall be located at least 40 feet from the point of intersection of the nearest street right-of-way lines.
(9)
No single lot or parcel of land shall have more than one driveway; however, a second driveway may be permitted if the owner of a parcel with at least 400 feet of frontage can demonstrate to the satisfaction of the Code Enforcement Officer that an additional driveway is necessary, the Code Enforcement Officer may issue a permit for a second driveway, provided that such driveway complies with all other provisions of this section. Ingress points separated from egress points and common accesses for two or more lots, buildings or uses shall be encouraged to minimize the conflicts between turning movements of entering, exiting and through traffic.
(10)
All driveways shall have a leveling area not to exceed a grade of 4% within 20 feet of the intersection with the cartway of any local street or state highway.
(11)
The maximum grade of a driveway shall not exceed 12%. Driveways with a grade of greater than 7% shall be paved. Driveway paving shall consist of at least two inches of compacted HMA (hot mix asphalt) Super Pave wearing course on at least six inches of PennDOT 2A stone.
(12)
The intersection of all driveways with the pavement/cartway edge shall be constructed by use of a paved drainage swale if deemed necessary by the Code Enforcement Officer. Otherwise, a stabilized vegetative cover may be used. The drainage swale shall slope down from the cartway at a grade of 6% for a maximum depth of four inches and a minimum width of six feet from the pavement/cartway edge. A pipe may be used only when approved by the Township Code Enforcement Officer. If a pipe is used, it shall have a minimum diameter of 15 inches and shall be sized according to drainage runoff calculations based upon a twenty-five-year-storm frequency. The pipe shall be placed far enough from the edge of the cartway to allow for a four-foot shoulder slopes not greater than 2:1 to the swale or ditch. The distance shall be at least six feet from the edge of the cartway. Drainage pipes shall be a length considered sufficient by the Township Code Enforcement Officer.
(13)
Where driveways are placed in relation to curb areas, the curb depression shall be two feet wider than the drive. The curb shall be depressed to 1 1/2 inches from the gutter line.
(14)
All drives shall have a cross section slope of 3/8 inch per foot (3.125%) incorporated as a crown or continuous slope from the edge to edge of pavement or such other cross slope as may be approved by the Code Enforcement Officer upon satisfactory demonstration by the applicant that the proposed cross slope is appropriate.
(15)
The angle of a driveway as it intersects a street shall be such that a vehicle entering the driveway may do so in an orderly and safe manner with a minimum of interference to other street traffic and such that a vehicle leaving the driveway may enter safely into the lane of traffic moving in the desired direction. Driveways shall intersect streets as nearly as possible at right angles, and in no case at an angle of less than 70° or more than 110°.
(16)
A minimum of two parking spaces shall be provided outside of the road right-of-way but within 50 feet of the right-of-way where the center line grade of the driveway exceeds 10%.
E.
Maintenance. All driveways shall be maintained, including drainage pipes and swales, by the property owner in such a manner as not to interfere with the design, maintenance, and drainage, of local streets, or the safe and convenient passage of traffic upon the streets.
F.
Inspection.
(1)
No paving of a driveway for which a driveway permit has been issued pursuant to the terms of this section shall be commenced until the Code Enforcement Officer shall have inspected the site and approved the work performed up to the date of the site inspection. The applicant shall give the Code Enforcement Officer the opportunity to perform the site inspection.
(2)
Within 48 hours after completion of the work for which a permit was issued, the party to whom the permit was issued shall notify the Code Enforcement Officer of the completion of the work so that the Code Enforcement Officer may inspect the same. If the work was not performed in accordance with the plans and specifications approved by the Code Enforcement Officer, the holder of the permit shall be directed by the Code Enforcement Officer in writing to take immediate steps at the permit holder's own expense toward placing the work in such condition as to conform to the approved plans and specifications.
G.
Requirements for subdivision and land development applicants.
(1)
The Board of Commissioners may require an applicant to submit with his subdivision and/or land development plans evidence that the standards for driveway construction established in this section can be met for each lot within the subdivision and/or land development. The Board of Commissioners may further require subdivision and/or land development plans to show a typical treatment of the construction of driveways and the handling of storm drainage and erosion and sediment control along driveways.
(2)
Subdivision and land development plans shall be designed to minimize the number of driveway intersections with existing streets. Wherever deemed feasible by the Township and required by the Township to minimize driveway intersections with existing streets, thus lessening interruptions to traffic flow and accident hazards, and to minimize erosion, sedimentation and runoff problems into existing streets, subdivisions shall be provided with internal streets on which proposed lots will front and to which the lots will have driveway access.
H.
Indemnification of Township. Any person, firm, corporation, or other entity applying for any permit under this section agrees by making said application to indemnify and save the Township harmless from and against all liabilities of whatever nature arising during the design of the work, performance of the work or as a result of the work for which a permit is granted, whether or not the liability arises as a result of the negligence of the person, firm, corporation or other entity to whom the permit was issued. The application for a permit shall contain appropriate language acknowledging that the applicant agrees to indemnify and save the Township harmless as required by this section.
I.
Waiver; appeal.
(1)
Any person who alleges that the application of any of the terms or conditions imposed by this section creates an impractical result or a financial hardship for him given the scope of his project, may request that the Board of Commissioners approve a waiver of the particular term or condition to the project of the applicant.
(2)
Any person upon whom a penalty is imposed as a result of a violation of any of the terms or conditions of this section, may within 30 days of his receipt of notice of the imposition of the penalty, appeal the penalty to the Board of Commissioners. Should the Commissioners find that the penalty was improperly imposed, or is unreasonably burdensome to the appellant, the Commissioners may rescind or modify the penalty.
J.
Repealer. Ordinance Number 6-2006 is hereby specifically repealed. In addition, all other ordinances or parts of ordinances which are inconsistent herewith are hereby repealed.
Any construction or installation hereafter made or maintained in violation of any of the provisions of §§ 463-27, 463-28, 463-29 or 463-30 of this article shall constitute an unlawful obstruction to the convenient use of the sidewalk. Within 10 days after notice to that effect from the Board of Commissioners, the owner of any property abutting such sidewalk shall remove such obstruction, either by removal of the construction or installation constituting such obstruction, or by making such alterations as may be necessary to conform strictly to the applicable requirements of §§ 463-27, 463-28, 463-29 or 463-30 of this article. In case the owner of such property shall neglect, refuse or fail to remove such obstruction within such time limit, the Board of Commissioners may cause the same to be done at the expense of the Township, and the Township shall collect such expense, and any additional penalty authorized by law, from the owner of such property.
[Amended 4-2-1990 by Ord. No. 5-90; at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I)]
Any person who shall violate any of the provisions of this article shall, upon conviction thereof, be sentenced to pay a fine of not more than $600, plus court costs and reasonable attorneys' fees incurred by the Township in the enforcement proceedings. If the penalty is not paid, the Township shall initiate a civil action for collection in accordance with the Pennsylvania Rules of Civil Procedure. Each day a violation exists shall constitute a separate offense, and each section of this chapter that is violated shall also constitute a separate offense. In addition to or in lieu of enforcement under this section, the Township may enforce this chapter in equity in the Court of Common Pleas of Berks County. The penalty imposed under this section may be in addition to any expenses and penalties in connection therewith authorized to be collected under the preceding section of this article.
The provisions of this article shall be severable, and if any provision thereof shall be declared unconstitutional, illegal or invalid, such decision shall not affect the validity of any of the remaining provisions of this article. It is hereby declared as a legislative intent of the Township that this article would have been enacted had such unconstitutional, illegal or invalid provision not be included herein.
All ordinances or parts of ordinances inconsistent herewith are hereby repealed.