A.
Administration.
(1)
Zoning Officer. The provisions of this chapter shall be enforced by an agent to be appointed by Borough Council, who shall be known as the "Zoning Officer." The Zoning Officer shall meet qualifications established by Borough Council and shall be able to demonstrate to the satisfaction of Borough Council a working knowledge of municipal zoning. The Zoning Officer shall administer this chapter in accordance with its literal terms and shall not have the power to permit any construction or any use or change of use which does not conform to this chapter. The Zoning Officer shall be appointed at the first meeting of Borough Council in January to serve until the first day of January next following and shall thereafter be appointed annually to serve for a term of one year and/or until his/her/its successor is appointed. The Zoning Officer may succeed himself/herself/itself. The Zoning Officer shall receive such fees or compensation as Borough Council may, by resolution, provide. The Zoning Officer shall not hold any elective office within the Borough. The Zoning Officer may designate an employee of the Borough as the Zoning Officer's Deputy, subject to the approval of Borough Council, who shall exercise all of the powers of the Zoning Officer during the temporary absence or disability of the Zoning Officer.
(2)
Duties. The duties of the Zoning Officer shall be:
(a)
To receive, examine and process all applications as provided by the terms of this chapter.
(b)
To record and file all applications for permits or certificates of use and occupancy, and accompanying plans and documents, and keep them for public record.
(c)
To inspect properties to determine compliance with all provisions of this chapter, as well as conditions attached to the approval of variances, special exceptions, conditional uses and curative amendments. The Zoning Officer shall have the right to enter upon private land at any reasonable hour in order to gain permission to enter any building or structure or other lands in the course of the Zoning Officer's duty.
(d)
To keep a record of all properties which have been determined to be nonconforming uses and structures, together with the reasons why the Zoning Officer has identified them as nonconformities, as a public record and to examine them periodically to determine the current status. The record shall be modified upon such date that the property becomes in compliance with the provisions of this chapter.
(e)
Upon the request of Borough Council or the Zoning Hearing Board, present to such bodies facts, records and any similar information on specific requests to assist such bodies in reaching their decisions.
(f)
Keep an official record of all business and activities, including complaints of a violation of any of the provisions of this chapter and the subsequent action taken on each such complaint. All such records shall be open to public inspection. File copies of all applications received, permits issued, and reports and inspections made in connection with any structure, building, sign and/or land shall be retained as long as the structures, etc., remain in existence.
(g)
Issue certificates of use and occupancy and stop orders in accordance with the terms of this chapter.
(h)
To be responsible for keeping this chapter and the Official Zoning Map up to date, including any amendments thereto.
(i)
To render a preliminary opinion regarding a proposed land use in accordance with § 916.2 of the Act.
B.
Enforcement. This chapter shall be enforced by the Zoning Officer of the Borough. No permit or certificate of use and occupancy shall be granted by the Zoning Officer for any purpose except in compliance with the literal provisions of this chapter. The Zoning Officer may be authorized by Borough Council to institute civil enforcement proceedings as a means of enforcement when acting within the Zoning Officer's scope of employment.
C.
Violations.
(1)
Failure to secure a permit prior to a change in use of land or structure, or the demolition, erection, construction or alteration of any structure, or portion thereof, shall be a violation of this chapter. It shall also be a violation of this chapter to undertake other deliberate actions which are contrary to the terms of this chapter and any conditions placed upon the approval of special exceptions, variances and conditional uses. Each day that a violation is continued shall constitute a separate offense.
(2)
If it appears to the Borough that a violation of this chapter enacted under the Act or prior enabling laws has occurred, the Borough shall initiate enforcement proceedings by sending an enforcement notice, as provided in the following:
(a)
The enforcement notice shall be sent to the owner of record of the parcel on which the violation has occurred, to any person who has filed a written request to receive enforcement notices regarding that parcel, and to any other person requested in writing by the owner of record.
(b)
An enforcement notice shall state at least the following:
[1]
The name of the owner of record and any other person against whom the Borough intends to take action.
[2]
The location of the property in violation.
[3]
The specific violation with a description of the requirements which have not been met, citing in each instance the applicable provisions of the chapter.
[4]
The date before which the steps for compliance must be commenced and the date before which the steps must be completed.
[5]
That the recipient of the notice has the right to appeal to the Zoning Hearing Board within a prescribed period of time in accordance with procedures set forth in this chapter.
[6]
That failure to comply with the notice within the time specified, unless extended by appeal to the Zoning Hearing Board, constitutes a violation, with possible sanctions clearly described.
D.
Enforcement remedies. Any person, partnership, corporation, limited liability company or other entity who or which has violated or permitted the violation of the provisions of this chapter enacted under the Act or prior enabling laws shall, upon being found liable therefor in a civil enforcement proceeding commenced by the Borough, pay a judgment of not more than $500 plus all court costs, including but not limited to reasonable attorneys' fees and costs, incurred by the Borough as a result thereof. No judgment shall commence or be imposed, levied or payable until the date of the determination of a violation by the Magisterial District Judge. If the defendant neither pays nor timely appeals the judgment, the Borough 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, corporation, limited liability company or other entity 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 the determination of a violation by the Magisterial District Judge, and thereafter each day that a violation continues shall constitute a separate violation. All judgments, costs and reasonable attorneys' fees and costs collected for the violation of this chapter shall be paid to the Borough by such person, partnership, corporation, limited liability or other entity.
E.
Causes of action. In case any building, structure, landscaping or land is, or is proposed to be, erected, constructed, reconstructed, altered, converted, maintained or used in violation of any ordinance enacted under the Act or prior enabling laws, Borough Council or, with the approval of Borough Council, an officer of the Borough or any aggrieved owner or tenant of real property who shows that his/her/its/their property or person will be substantially affected by the alleged violation, in addition to other remedies, may institute any appropriate action or proceeding to prevent, restrain, correct or abate such building, structure, landscaping or land, or to prevent, in or about such premises, any act, conduct, business or use constituting a violation. When any such action is instituted by a landowner or tenant, notice of that action shall be served upon the Borough at least 30 days prior to the time the action is begun by serving a copy of the complaint on Borough Council. No such action may be maintained until such notice has been given.