The Legislature of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania has, by the passage of the Pennsylvania Flood Plain Management Act of 1978,[1] delegated the responsibility to local governmental units to adopt floodplain management regulations to promote public health, safety, and the general welfare of its citizenry. Therefore, the Borough Council of the Borough of Langhorne enacts and ordains the following.
The intent of this chapter is to:
A.
Promote the general health, welfare, and safety of the community;
B.
Encourage the utilization of appropriate construction practices in order to prevent or minimize flood damage in the future;
C.
Minimize danger to public health by protecting water supply and natural drainage;
D.
Reduce financial burdens imposed on the community, its governmental units, and its residents by preventing excessive development in areas subject to flooding; and
E.
Comply with federal and state floodplain management requirements.
A.
It shall be unlawful for any person, partnership, business or corporation to undertake, or cause to be undertaken, any construction or development anywhere within the Borough of Langhorne unless a permit has been obtained from the Floodplain Administrator or other officer or agent appointed by resolution by Borough Council to enforce this chapter.
B.
A permit shall not be required for minor repairs to existing buildings or structures.
To the extent they cannot be read in pari materia herewith, this chapter supersedes any conflicting ordinances or parts thereof, previously enacted affecting floodplain areas; however, any other ordinance provisions shall remain in full force and effect to the extent that those provisions are more restrictive than what is provided herein. If there is any conflict between any of the provisions of this chapter, the more restrictive shall control.
If any sentence, clause, section, or part of this chapter is for any reason found to be unconstitutional, illegal or invalid, such unconstitutionality, illegality or invalidity shall not affect or impair any of the remaining provisions, sentences, clauses, sections or parts of this chapter. It is declared as the intent of the Borough Council of the Borough of Langhorne that this chapter would have been adopted had such unconstitutional, illegal or invalid sentence, clause, section or part thereof not been included herein.
A.
The degree of flood protection sought by the provisions of this chapter is considered reasonable for regulatory purposes and is based on accepted engineering methods of study. Larger floods may occur or flood heights may be increased by man-made or natural causes, such as ice jams and bridge openings restricted by debris. This chapter does not imply that areas outside any identified floodplain areas or that land uses permitted within such areas will be free from flooding or flood damages.
B.
This chapter shall not create nor be used in support of any claim of liability on the part of the Borough of Langhorne or any Borough officer or employee for any flood damages that result from reliance on this chapter or any lawfully made administrative decision.