In accordance with the Neighborhood Improvement District Act ("BID Act"),[1] the Lincoln Highway Lancaster Business Improvement District ("LHL BID") is established for the purpose of providing business improvement and administrative services to benefit the LHL BID located in the Township of East Lampeter, which is defined in the final plan (Exhibit B of this article) as the service area, map and list of properties shown on Exhibits A, B and C, respectively, of the final plan.[2]
[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Supervisors of the Township of East Lampeter as indicated in article histories. Amendments noted where applicable.]
[Adopted 8-4-2025 by Ord. No. 381]
The annual fiscal year of the LHL BID shall begin on the first day of January and end on the 31st day of December of each year.
The managing authority of the LHL BID established herein, with all the rights and powers of a neighborhood improvement management association as defined under the aforementioned BID Act, shall be the BID Authority.
The BID Authority is empowered to impose the assessment annually, subject to the following limitations:
A.
The assessment shall not be imposed on owner-occupied residential property.
B.
The assessment shall not be imposed on tax-exempt property, but tax-exempt property owners are permitted and may be encouraged to provide in-kind services and/or financial contributions to the BID Authority.
C.
The assessment shall be calculated by the taxable assessed value as of January 1 of the fiscal year times the established assessment millage rate.
D.
The assessment millage rate levied for any fiscal year shall not exceed the estimated cost of the programs, improvements and services for the same fiscal year as established in an annual budget adopted by the BID Authority.
E.
The assessment millage rate levied for any fiscal year shall not exceed 50% of the Township real estate tax millage rate for the same fiscal year.
F.
Notice of the annual assessment shall be issued and delivered to the property owner on or about the same time as notice of the annual Township real estate tax notice.
G.
Property owners subject to the payment of assessment shall be entitled to a discount from the amount of such assessment upon making payment of the whole amount thereof within two months after the date of the assessment notice of the same per centum as established by the Township for payment of the annual Township real estate tax within the same time period.
H.
Property owners who shall fail to make payment of any the assessment for four months after the date of the assessment notice shall be charged a penalty of the same per centum as established by the Township for payment of the annual Township real estate tax for four months after the date of the tax notice, which penalty shall be added to the assessment for collection purposes.
A.
The BID Authority shall be responsible for the collection of the annual assessment, unless the BID Authority requests that those responsibilities be handled by the Township. Any necessary liens for nonpayment of property assessment fees shall be imposed as set forth in the BID Act.
B.
In the event the Township undertakes the responsibility for the collection of annual assessment pursuant to Subsection A above, the Board of Supervisors may appoint a tax collector, who may be different from the tax collector responsible for Township real estate tax, to manage the collection of the assessment and to enter into an agreement with the LHL BID, in the form approved by the Township Solicitor, which agreement shall include the following:
(1)
A description of the respective duties and responsibilities of the Township and the BID Authority with respect to the LHL BID as provided in the final plan approved under § 10-3 of this article.
(2)
An agreement that the Township will maintain within the LHL BID the same level of municipal programs and services that were provided within the LHL BID before establishment.
(3)
The tax collector of the assessment will be responsible for the collection of all assessments levied within the LHL BID and disbursing the funds to the BID Authority.
(4)
An assessment which is in default shall be charged interest and penalties in the same manner and amount as a default in the payment of the Township real estate tax.
(5)
Liens for nonpayment of assessments and related interest and penalties shall be filed in the same manner as liens are filed for nonpayment of the Township real estate tax.
The LHL BID shall terminate on December 31, 2029. The LHL BID may be continued beyond that date if the Township reenacts this article following a review of the LHL BID and the programs and services provided by the BID Authority within the LHL BID.
The proper officers of the Township are hereby severally authorized and empowered on behalf of the Township to execute any and all papers and documents and to do or cause to be done any and all acts and things necessary or appropriate for the implementation of this article and the establishment of the LHL BID in accordance with the BID Act.
If any sentence, clause, section, article or part of this article is found to be invalid, unconstitutional or illegal, for any reason, such invalidity, unconstitutionality or illegality shall not affect or impair any of the remaining sections, articles, clauses, parts or provisions of this article. The article shall be interpreted and applied as if said invalid, unconstitutional or illegal provision had not been part of the same and it is the intent of the Board of Supervisors that this article would have been adopted without such invalid, unconstitutional or illegal provision or clause or part thereof.
This article shall become effective five days after enacted.