[Adopted 1-19-1977 by Ord. No. 718; amended in its entirety 6-25-2001 by Ord. No. 914]
[Amended 10-16-2017 by Ord. No. 1018; 9-17-2024 by Ord. No. 1049]
A. 
Adoption. That a certain document, three copies of which are on file in the office of License and Inspections of Lower Southampton, being marked and designated as the 2018 International Property Maintenance Code as published by the International Code Council, Inc., be and is hereby adopted as the Property Maintenance Code of the Borough of Morrisville in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania for the control of buildings and structures as herein provided, and each and all of the regulations, provisions, penalties, conditions and terms of said Property Maintenance Code are hereby referred to, adopted, and made a part hereof as if fully set out in this section, with the additions, insertions, deletions and changes, if any, prescribed in Subsection B of this section.
B. 
Amendments. The following sections are hereby revised as follows:
(1) 
Section 101.1: Borough of Morrisville.
(2) 
Section 103.5: Fee schedule as may be changed by resolution and adopted by the Borough Council from time to time.
(3) 
Section 106.3: Misdemeanor to Summary Offense.
(4) 
Section 112.4: Any person who shall continue any work after having been served with a stop-work order, except such work as that person is directed to perform to remove a violation or unsafe condition, shall be liable to a fine of not less than $500 or more than $1,000.
(5) 
Section 302.4: 8 inches.
(6) 
Section 304.14: April 1 to October 30.
(7) 
Section 602.3: October 30 to April 30.
(8) 
Section 602.4: October 30 to April 30.
A. 
Prior to any change in occupancy or transfer of title of any house, dwelling, dwelling unit or rooming house, which is used, partially used or intended to be used for human occupancy, a certificate of approval shall first have been obtained from the Building Official or other designated officer of the Borough of Morrisville or any agent, officer, or person duly authorized by the Council of the Borough of Morrisville stating that the building and premises comply with the requirements of all ordinances of the Borough of Morrisville.
B. 
Said inspection shall be obtained either by the owner or the owner's agent prior to the award of a certificate of approval and any change in occupancy or transfer of title.
C. 
In the event that said inspection results in the disclosure of any violations, reinspections shall be obtained in the aforesaid manner until all said violations are corrected, and all said violations shall be corrected prior to the award of a certificate of approval and any change in occupancy or transfer of title.
D. 
In the alternative, said violations may be assumed by the potential owner or owners in a change or transfer of title, except in a rental, based on the condition that such violations will be corrected within 30 days therefrom or within any extension of said thirty-day period granted by the Building Official of the Borough of Morrisville by following the aforesaid procedure for the award of a certificate of approval. If such extension is granted, the potential owner or owners shall indemnify and hold harmless the Borough.
E. 
Criteria of inspection. Inspections pursuant to the aforesaid subsection will be conducted using the following criteria:
(1) 
All violations of Borough of Morrisville ordinances will be reflected on the inspection report in order to provide notice to the owner or prospective owner or occupant of said violations.
(2) 
Those violations which are encountered and which pose an actual or potential threat to the health, welfare and safety of any potential occupant will be so designated to the owner, potential owner or occupant, separately on said inspection report, and while they may be assumed by the potential owner, they must be corrected prior to any change in occupancy or transfer of title except as indicated in Subsection D above.
(3) 
A listing of the requirements subject to inspection shall be set forth in writing and made available upon request to the owner or owner's agent. It shall be the responsibility of the owner or owner's agent to obtain information regarding the requirements and have violations corrected prior to requesting the inspection.
(4) 
Said violations that require a reinspection shall be subject to a reinspection fee. Except that in the event an inspection discloses a violation that is not specifically identified on the U&O listing of requirements or a reinspection discloses a violation not included on the inspection report, there shall be no charge for reinspection of that violation.
(5) 
There shall be a fee charged under this section prior to the award of said certificate of approval for each inspection and for each reinspection which shall be set forth in the established Morrisville Borough Fee Schedule for each inspection, and for each reinspection.
(6) 
All fees collected under the provisions of this section shall be paid to the Borough of Morrisville in order to defray the costs of the aforesaid inspection.
(7) 
In the event of the sale or transfer of multifamily dwellings such as apartment houses or apartment complexes, the fee charged shall be established for each category as follows:
(a) 
One to 10 apartment units.
(b) 
Eleven to 25 apartment units.
(c) 
Twenty-six or more units.
Any person, owner, operator, etc., who shall violate any provision of this article shall, upon conviction thereof, be sentenced to pay a fine of not more than $1,000, together with costs of prosecution, or to imprisonment for a term not to exceed 30 days. Every day that a violation of this article continues shall constitute a separate offense.
In all matters that are regulated by the laws of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania or by regulations of departments or agencies of the Commonwealth promulgated by authority of law, such laws or regulations, as the case may be, shall control where the requirements thereof are the same as or in excess of the provision of this article. This article shall control in all cases where the State requirements are not as strict as those contained in this article.