The provisions of this Chapter 640 are intended to achieve the following:
A. 
To encourage new development that is well-designed, of high quality, and suited to the natural conditions of the site.
B. 
To encourage the coordinated growth of neighborhoods in compact, efficient, and economically sustainable development patterns and to avoid excessive public costs because of inefficient patterns of development.
C. 
To prevent development which may be hazardous because of the physical character of the land, to protect and preserve valued features of the natural and human environments, and ensure all new lots are provided adequate access to the public street and utility system.
D. 
To ensure the provision of coordinated public improvements which are necessary and appropriate for the development.
E. 
To provide flexibility in standards and requirements so that the design of development can be fitted to the character of its site and to the community in which it is located.
F. 
To reflect and implement the policies and goals set forth in the Altoona Comprehensive Plan and support, as much as possible, the overall goals and policies set forth by the Blair County Planning Commission.
G. 
To provide standards for the uniform preparation and recording of plans so that the property records of Altoona are accurate and complete.
The Altoona City Planning Commission was created and established in 1916 by Ordinance No. 338. There shall be seven voting members on the Commission. All members shall be full-time residents of the City, and a voting member of the Altoona City Planning Commission may not concurrently hold a seat as Mayor, or on the City Council, or on the Zoning Hearing Board, nor be employed by the City or any of its authorities. The Altoona City Planning Commission shall function as required by the Pennsylvania Municipalities Planning Code (Act of 1968, P.L. 805, No. 247, 53 P.S. § 10101, as reenacted and amended) and in accordance with this chapter.
Subdivisions and land development shall be designed to achieve the general goals and outcomes as described in this section.
A. 
All subdivisions and site plans shall be designed to minimize environmental damage to the maximum extent possible by carefully fitting the proposal to the existing conditions of the site.
(1) 
Grading. Roads, building sites, and lots should be laid out in a manner that will minimize disturbance of the land. Newly proposed road layouts should generally minimize cut-and-fill activity. Naturally level areas should be given high consideration for building sites. Clustering of development on less steep areas of the site is strongly encouraged as an alternative to mass grading.
(2) 
Steep slopes. Altoona is located at the foot of the Allegheny Front along the western fringe of the ridge-and-valley region of Pennsylvania. Steep slopes are a predominate part of this topography. Creating stable slopes is critically important to the safety and welfare of the community. Development must demonstrate the methods proposed to keep slopes stabilized with vegetation and/or other engineered features.
(3) 
Water resources. Watercourses are the City's natural drainage system for runoff and floodwaters. Much of the City's natural stormwater drainage has been incorporated into a combined sewer system, providing a challenge to regain the natural system and its natural flow patterns. It is therefore critical that the remaining open streams and the land immediately adjacent be preserved to carry out this natural drainage function as well as to provide visual amenity to the citizenry.
(4) 
Vegetation. Vegetation is an important element of the cityscape. It maintains stable slopes, cleans the air, mitigates runoff, and provides visual character to the City and its neighborhoods. Efforts shall be made to preserve mature trees and base vegetation on slopes whenever possible. Trees located within the street right-of-way fall under the jurisdiction of the Altoona Shade Tree Commission.
(5) 
Identified natural resources. Care must be taken in the design and construction of subdivisions to protect habitats which include rare or endangered plants or animals or are found to be ecologically important.
(6) 
The human environment. Sites containing structures of historic or architectural significance should be designed to preserve, enhance, or reuse such structures as often as possible. Buildings beyond rehabilitation should be demolished.
(7) 
Air and water resources. All subdivisions shall comply fully with all applicable laws and regulations concerning air and water pollution. Transit-oriented development is encouraged to minimize dependency on the automobile.
B. 
Where hazardous or potentially hazardous features are present on proposed development sites, the design of subdivisions shall consider such features. Appropriate precautions shall be taken to ensure that development will be safe, and the public health and welfare will be protected. Development may not be approved unless safety is assured.
(1) 
Landslide-prone areas. In areas where soils or underlying geology may be unstable, a geotechnical investigation should be undertaken to ascertain the appropriate design standards for the site and ensure the long-term safety of any occupants of the subdivision.
(2) 
Undermined and cavernous areas. In areas where mining has occurred or is occurring, or areas known to contain cavernous pockets, subsidence risk assessments may be required to establish that the proposal will be safe.
(3) 
Flood-prone areas. New construction in the undeveloped 100-year floodplain or other areas of known frequent flooding shall be avoided wherever possible. Where such construction has already occurred or is unavoidable, the development shall proceed in full compliance with Ch. 362 (Floodplain Regulations), and any other applicable requirements at the state and federal levels.
(4) 
Hazardous waste and other contaminated sites. To protect the public health, no subdivision shall be approved in areas which may have been contaminated by prior uses or contain hazardous waste, unless it is determined during the review that the site is now safe for development. Development of such sites shall be limited to uses which do not pose health risks for site occupants.
(5) 
Noise-prone sites. Subdivisions proposed in areas of unusual noise shall ensure that the safety and health of the occupants of the site are not harmed by the presence of such noise. In the event a noise-prone site is being proposed, the developer bears the responsibility to mitigate the noise so that occupants of surrounding properties are not unduly exposed to unnecessary noise.
(6) 
Air traffic. No subdivision proposal shall include features which inhibit the flow of air traffic or present a hazard to air vehicles. In most areas, compliance with zoning will ensure this.
C. 
The general layout of subdivisions and land developments should respect the natural resources of the site, the character of the surrounding area, and be suitable for intended uses. The design of blocks and lots shall allow compliance with the zoning provisions found in this Code and provide suitable space for buildings. The design of subdivisions and land developments shall consider the topography, natural features, traffic circulation which includes bicycles and pedestrians, and the surrounding neighborhood. Subdivisions and land developments should further the goals of the Comprehensive Plan.
D. 
Subdivisions and land development shall include landscaping which is designed to improve community appearance, contribute positively to environmental quality and the livability of new areas, and to mitigate any negative impacts on the existing areas surrounding it. Uses and structures should be sited to minimize adverse impact from or upon abutting uses. Landscaping, buffers, and screening should be designed to reduce unavoidable impacts and to augment the natural features of the site.
E. 
Proposals must provide a full range of improvements throughout the subdivision and land development as required to ensure public health, safety and welfare as well as the creation of desirable neighborhoods for living, working, and recreation.
(1) 
Water supply. All new subdivisions and land development shall provide direct connections to the public water system. New development shall not degrade the quality of potable water supplies, including, but not limited to, the public system and the groundwater. Private wells for any purpose are discouraged.
(2) 
Sanitary sewage disposal. All new subdivisions and land developments shall provide direct connections to the public sanitary sewer system. Except for required and approved nonresidential pretreatment facilities, no new on-site sewerage disposal or treatment systems are permitted. No new sanitary sewer shall be connected to the storm sewer.
(3) 
Storm drainage. Every subdivision and land development shall manage stormwater flows in accordance with this Code. All development located within watersheds for which stormwater management plans have been adopted shall comply with the requirements of the plan as well. No new storm drain system shall be connected to the sanitary sewer system.
(4) 
Public utilities. New subdivisions and land development shall be served by other public utilities, including electricity, natural gas, and communications. The use of alternative energy sources shall be accommodated in the approval of plans.
(5) 
Community services. All new subdivision and land development shall have access to the full range of public services and facilities, such as public safety and emergency response, recreation, schools, and libraries.
(6) 
Transportation facilities. New subdivisions and land developments shall provide a full range of transportation facilities for access to all lots, buildings, and open space areas intended for use by people. Transportation facilities designed within subdivisions shall be designed as elements of the larger transportation system serving the public. No private or gated streets should be permitted. Transportation facilities shall include public transportation, walkways, sidewalks, bicycle facilities, cartways, parking facilities, and multipurpose trails.