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Township of Lower Providence, PA
Montgomery County
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Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Code
New Laws (2) Index
Public Documents
Agendas (1)
[Amended 9-21-2006 by Ord. No. 556; 10-20-2011 by Ord. No. 602; 1-16-2020 by Ord. No. 662]
A. 
In addition to the statement of community development objectives, it is hereby declared to be the specific intent of this article to establish standards of performance and promote the desirable benefits which planned mobile home developments may have upon the community and the residents within them. It is further the intent of this article to ensure the interdependency and compatibility of proposed mobile home developments with essential utilities and surrounding land uses in the Township.
B. 
It shall further be the intent of this district to:
(1) 
Reflect the changes in the technology of home building and land development so that resulting economies may inure to the benefit of those who need homes.
(2) 
Further the general welfare by extending greater opportunities for better and more affordable housing to all present and prospective residents of Lower Providence Township.
(3) 
Provide for better quality and greater variety in type, design, and layout of mobile home developments than has been evident in many mobile home parks in the past by enforcing uniform standards, promoting desirable design criteria, and encouraging innovative site design approaches.
(4) 
Provide for a diversity in housing types and prices throughout the Township.
(5) 
Encourage mobile home developments that are beneficial, rather than detrimental, to property values and the general welfare of the area in which they are proposed.
A mobile home park is allowed only in the MHP District. The uses which are permissible in a mobile home park are as follows:
A. 
Residential uses. A mobile home park may include mobile homes of single width or multiple width, or both, single-family detached modular homes, conventionally built single-family detached homes, or any combination thereof, but shall not include travel trailers or motor homes. No more than 25% of the total number of dwelling units in a mobile home park may be conventionally built or modular single-family detached dwellings. No mobile or modular home may be occupied before furnishing the Township a copy of the Structural Engineering Bulletin(s) indicating approval by the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development of the dwelling or the components of the dwelling.
B. 
Areas for nonresidential uses.
(1) 
No part of any mobile home park shall be used for nonresidential purposes, except such uses that are required for the direct servicing, recreation, and well-being of the residents of the park and/or required for the management and maintenance of the park.
(2) 
A convenience store may be allowed by the Board of Supervisors if no similar use exists or is actively proposed within a one-mile radius of the mobile home park, and the applicant demonstrates to the Board's satisfaction through a market study that such use is justifiable and will be supported primarily by the residents of the mobile home park. No such convenience store shall offer the sale of gasoline nor shall it be opened until at least 50% of the dwelling units in the mobile home park are occupied. Signage requirements, parking requirements, and other requirements generally applicable to convenience stores shall apply. In addition, the maximum number of residential dwelling units permitted within the park shall be reduced by one for each 8,000 square feet of land or a part thereof devoted to the convenience store. The store shall be a single story and not exceed 4,000 square feet of building coverage. The lot for the store shall meet the dimensional requirements for a single-family detached home listed below and shall front a public road. The store shall be located so as to minimize any negative impact upon neighboring residential uses and zoning districts.
(3) 
Nothing in this article shall be deemed as prohibiting the rental, sale, or resale of a mobile home located on a mobile home stand and connected to the pertinent utilities. Similarly, a model or display area is permissible on a temporary basis provided those models are developed in accordance with all applicable regulations of this article and other applicable ordinances, and the use of the models for sales or rental promotion ceases when the mobile home park is fully developed.
C. 
Accessory uses.
(1) 
Accessory uses and structures customarily incidental to the maintenance, servicing, recreation, and well-being of mobile home park residents shall be permitted only as part of an approved development plan for the site. All such accessory uses and structures shall located on a separate lot from other uses within the mobile home park and shall be setback from all other lot lines, buildings, and structures at least 30 feet. Such accessory uses and structures shall include, but not be limited to the following:
(a) 
Maintenance sheds.
(b) 
Common parking areas.
(c) 
Playgrounds or parks for the use of the occupants and guests of the dwellings within the mobile home park.
(d) 
By special exception, semi-public swimming pools for the use of occupants and guests of the dwellings within the mobile home park.
(2) 
The following accessory uses shall be permitted on the individual mobile home lots, so long as all other applicable requirements are met:
(a) 
One household storage shed shall be permitted with a five-foot setback from the rear and/or side yard property lines, provided said shed or said structure shall not exceed 120 square feet in overall size and shall not exceed 12 feet in height, as measured from the lowest point in the grade at the entrance to the structure to the highest peak of the roof ridge.
(b) 
Garage/yard sales.
(c) 
Keeping of pets.
(d) 
No-impact home-based business.
(e) 
Temporary use or structure.
(3) 
Added rooms specifically designed by the mobile home manufacturers for the enlargement of mobile homes and other additions architecturally compatible with the unit may be joined onto a mobile home, provided that all other applicable requirements are met.
A. 
Any new mobile home park or any expansion to an existing park shall be subject to the following standards:
(1) 
The tract of land to be developed shall be under single ownership or shall be the subject of an application filed by the owners of the entire tract.
(2) 
Any tract of land to be used as a mobile home park must have a minimum site area of 15 contiguous acres. At least 50% of the site for a mobile home park must meet the definition of net site area.
(3) 
The maximum building coverage permitted upon the site of the mobile home park shall be 30% of the net site area; and the maximum impervious surface coverage permitted upon the site of the mobile home park shall be 40% of the net site area.
(4) 
At least 30% of the net site area shall be set aside as open space. At least 30% of the provided open space shall be improved as common areas, greens, or for active recreation. No more than 30% of the provided open space shall be located within the perimeter screen buffer yard. All open space shall meet the general requirements for open space set forth in this chapter, including, but not limited to, § 143-28H.
(5) 
A screen buffer at least 25 feet wide shall be provided along the property boundary of a mobile home park. The buffer shall be designed according to the requirements of § 123-50 of Chapter 123, Subdivision and Development of Land, for a multifamily development.
(6) 
No mobile home, single-family detached home, or other principal building shall be located closer than 75 feet to any boundary of the mobile home park it is located in, regardless of whether that boundary abuts a lot, water body, road or other right-of-way. Every mobile home, single-family detached home, and other principal building shall have access to an improved street within the mobile home park in accordance with Chapter 123 (Subdivision and Development of Land).
(7) 
Mobile home parks shall not be located directly abutting conventionally built single-family detached housing, except where extensive natural buffering exists and will be retained or can be created so as to functionally and visually separate the two sites or where compatible units of modular or conventionally built homes will be located in the mobile home park adjacent to the existing residences. The developer shall provide any necessary transition between differing residential structural types and densities within the mobile home park tract.
(8) 
Any site proposed for a mobile home park shall, in the opinion of the Board, be easily accessible to essential community facilities and services, such as employment centers, shopping centers, schools, and police and fire protection.
(9) 
All the dwellings and uses within a mobile home park must be served exclusively by public water and sewer facilities.
(10) 
Any tract intended for a mobile home park must have direct access to a feeder road (or a road of a higher classification), as determined by the adopted ultimate right-of-way map. Plans evidencing the provision for safe and effective ingress and egress to and from the public streets and highways servicing the proposed mobile home park, without causing undue confusion or interference with the normal traffic flow, shall be submitted to the Township and must be approved by the Township Engineer.
(11) 
The applicant shall demonstrate to the satisfaction of the Board compliance with all state and federal regulations applicable to mobile homes, modular homes, industrial housing, and mobile home parks.
(12) 
No mobile home or other principal building shall be located within the Floodplain Conservation District, the Steep Slope Conservation District, or the Riparian Buffer Overlay Zone. No mobile home be placed on land having a natural grade of greater than 8.0% nor shall such land be graded to a lesser-percentage slope for the purpose of accommodating a mobile home.
(13) 
Any and all buildings (principal or accessory) within a mobile home park shall be separated a minimum of 10 feet. No building or structure built, erected, or located within a mobile home park shall exceed a height of two stories or 25 feet.
(14) 
Lots within the mobile home park shall not be rented for periods of less than a month (30 days).
(15) 
Centralized mailboxes shall be provided for all the residences in the mobile home park.
The total number of lots in a mobile home park shall not exceed a maximum density of five lots per acre of net site area. All land not contained within the net site area shall be excluded from density calculations.
A. 
Lots for modular single-family detached homes or conventionally built single-family detached homes located within the mobile home park shall comply with the following dimensional and area standards:
Requirement
Single-family detached
Minimum lot area
8,000 square feet
Minimum lot width
75 feet
Minimum setbacks:
Front yard
30 feet
Side yard
15 feet
Rear yard
25 feet
Maximum building coverage (percent of lot area)
35%
Maximum impervious surface coverage (percent of lot area)
50%
A. 
Mobile home lots located within the mobile home park shall comply with the following dimensional and area standards:
Requirement
Single-wide home
Double-wide home
Minimum lot area*
4,000 square feet
6,500 square feet
Minimum lot width
40 feet
65 feet
Minimum setbacks:
Front (hitch)
8 feet
8 feet
Long sides
10 feet
10 feet
Rear
15 feet
15 feet
From other mobile homes
25 feet
25 feet
Maximum building coverage (percent of lot area)
35%
35%
Maximum impervious surface coverage (percent of lot area)
50%
50%
*
Exclusive of common driveways or parking areas.
B. 
All of the mobile homes located along a street or driveway shall be oriented in the same direction with a front yard setback variance between the homes of no greater than four feet.
C. 
No mobile home lot shall be less than 25 feet in width at the right-of-way line of a public street or the equivalent right-of-way line or the edge of the pavement of a private street or drive, as applicable.
D. 
No more than one mobile home shall be placed on a mobile home lot, and the mobile home shall be occupied by not more than a single family. The stacking of mobile homes on top of each other shall not be permitted.
E. 
Parking requirements for mobile homes shall be the same as a single-family dwelling and shall be provided on the mobile home lot for that mobile home or in common parking areas. Parking areas provided for in common use by the residents shall be located within 150 feet of the most distant mobile home to be served by the parking area and shall be no closer than 25 feet to any mobile home lot.
F. 
The area between the ground level and the perimeter of the mobile home shall be enclosed by means of a suitable skirting.
G. 
Each mobile home shall be placed on a permanent foundation of at least eight poured concrete or masonry pillars set on a concrete base at least eight inches thick. The pillars shall be spaced no more than 10 feet apart with the end piers being no farther than five feet from the ends of the unit. The pillars shall be at least one foot by two feet in size and at least 36 inches below grade. Each pillar shall have installed a tie-down ring to which the mobile home shall be secured.
H. 
Any addition to a mobile homes, including, without limitation, all projections, awnings, roofed porches, and additions, shall be considered to be part of the mobile home to which it is attached and shall meet all setback requirements, except as may be expressly exempted by the terms of this chapter.