Township of Kidder, PA Streets and Sidewalks

All applications shall be submitted to the Supervisors in the form of a letter describing the location, length and characteristics of the road proposed for dedication. This letter should be accompanied by the following:

The appropriate fee.

A Township map with the road proposed for dedication identified on the map.

(c)

A drawing of the road cross-section with the subbase, base, and surface course material identified and dimensioned.

The Kidder Township Board of Supervisors shall administer this article. The Board shall request the assistance of the Township Planning Commission to classify roads for dedication or improvement if said roads have not been designated as an arterial, collector or a minor local road in the Township Comprehensive Plan. The Board shall also require assistance from the Township Engineer as needed.

§ 150-2 Definitions.

As used in this article, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:

CARTWAY

The portion of a street right-of-way paved and intended for vehicular use.

RESPONSIBLE PARTY

The term "responsible party" designates the person, persons, partnership, firm, association, corporation or other party officially offering for dedication any road or street to the Township.

SHOULDERS

The portion of a street right-of-way adjacent to the paved cartway, graded and constructed to provide for emergency parking and pavement support.

STREETS AND/OR ROADS

A "road" and/or "street" shall be defined as a strip of land, including the entire right-of-way intended for use as a means of vehicular and pedestrian circulation.

Classes of roads according to use, function and width shall be as designated in the Comprehensive Plan of the Township adopted by the Supervisors.

ARTERIAL ROADThose serving or anticipated to serve in excess of 4,000 vehicles per day.

COLLECTOR ROADThose which intercept minor streets, provide access to abutting properties and/or serve or are anticipated to serve between 750 and 4,000 vehicles daily.

MINOR LOCAL ROADThose used primarily to provide access to abutting property and serve or are anticipated to serve up to 750 vehicles daily.

§ 150-3 Right-of-way, cartway and pavement width requirements.

Right-of-way width. Right-of-way width of all roads shall meet the requirements as set forth in the current Township Subdivision Ordinance,[1] except where previously approved by the Township at a lesser width. However, said roads with a lesser right-of-way width shall not be accepted as a Township road if they are less than 33 feet or the current State Department of Transportation minimum requirement for local roads.

[1]

Editor's Note: See Ch. 153, Subdivision and Land Development.

Cartway width. Cartway width shall meet the requirements as set forth in the current Township Subdivision Ordinance.

Shoulders. Shoulder width shall meet the requirements as set forth in the current Township Subdivision Ordinance.

§ 150-4 Grading requirements.

Plan requirements. All roads shall be graded, surfaced and improved to the grades and dimensions shown on plans, profiles and cross-sections submitted to and approved by the Supervisors.

Slope of banks. All roads shall be graded to a maximum slope of two horizontal to one vertical beyond the cartway line where cut is necessary, and to a maximum slope of three horizontal to one vertical beyond the cartway line where fill is necessary.

Minimum cartway grading. Grading within the cartway of the street proposed for dedication to the Township shall conform to the following:

The entire required right-of-way width of all roads shall be graded to the approved cross-sections.

Stumps, roots and sod shall be removed from said maximum width of the cartway and shoulders to a depth of two feet.

Road fill subbase and base course material shall conform to the standards of the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation's Highway Manual. Topsoil shall not be used as fill in the subgrade.

(4)

Fill material shall be inspected by the Township Engineer. If the Township Engineer reports to the Township Supervisors that the existing fill material is not in conformance with State Department of Transportation standards and not of a performance standard equal to or higher than these standards, then the Township shall not accept said road until the unsuitable materials have been replaced with suitable materials.

(5)

All large rocks or boulders shall be broken off not less than six inches below the surface off the subgrade.

(6)

The subgrade shall be made by excavation or reshaping of the existing surface to the proper line, grade and cross-section as determined by the Township Supervisors.

(7)

The minimum pitch from the crown of the roadway to the side of the roadway shall be 3/8 inch to the foot.

(8)

The slope of the shoulders shall be one inch per foot and shall slope away from the roadway.

(9)

Maximum grade shall meet the requirements as set forth in the current Township Subdivision Ordinance.[1]

[1]

Editor's Note: See Ch. 153, Subdivision and Land Development.

(10)

Subgrade shall be brought to a firm, thoroughly compacted surface by rolling with an approved three-wheel ten-ton roller or equal.

§ 150-5 Street pavement and base course requirements.

The following table contains the minimum paving and base requirements for streets proposed for dedication:

	Residential
	Low	Medium	High	Nonresidential, Business and Industry
Local Street	A-6	A-6	B-6	C-8
Collector Street	B-6	C-8	C-8	D-10
Arterial Street	*

	NOTES:
	A = 3 inch bituminous concrete base course and 1 1/2 inch bituminous concrete wearing course, ID-2.
	B = 4 inch bituminous concrete base course and 1 1/2 inch bituminous concrete wearing course, ID-2.
	C = 5 inch bituminous concrete base course and 1 1/2 inch bituminous concrete wearing course, ID-2.
	D = 7 inch bituminous concrete base course and 1 1/2 inch bituminous concrete wearing course, ID-2.
	6 = 6 inch subbase.
	8 = 8 inch subbase.
	10 = 10 inch subbase.
	* All improvements for arterial streets shall be determined by the Board of Supervisors on a case-by-case basis.

All street construction shall be performed in accordance with the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation Specification Form 408, currently in effect. All construction is subject to inspection by the Township Engineer and/or Supervisors.

§ 150-6 Curb and sidewalk standards.

All curbs and sidewalks located within the right-of-way of a road which is proposed for dedication shall comply with the following or their equivalent.

Curb standards. If curbs are provided along a road proposed for dedication they shall be vertical cement, vertical stone, or rolled curb and gutter cement as follows:

Plain cement concrete curb; six inches at the top, eight inches at the bottom and 18 inches in height with the slope to the street side.

Rolled curb and gutter, 24 inches wide by 12 inches high and acceptable in form to the Township Engineer.

Other gutter requirements shall be in conformance with good engineering practice and subject to the approval of the Engineer.

Sidewalk standards. If sidewalks are provided within the right-of-way of a road proposed for dedication, they shall be three inches in thickness, placed on four-inch cinder or crushed stone base.

Sidewalks shall be located within the street right-of-way and no closer than one foot from the right-of-way line nor closer than three feet from the curbline. A grass planting strip shall be planted between curb and sidewalk.

Minimum widths of sidewalks and curbs shall be four feet. Street crosswalks shall have a minimum width of three feet.

The type of construction permitted is as follows: Sidewalks and crosswalks shall be Portland cement mortar of at least three inches of compacted cinder, gravel, crushed stone. Sidewalks at driveway crossings shall be at least six inches thick underlain by four inches of compacted cinder, gravel and crushed stone.

§ 150-7 Storm drainage.

An adequate storm sewer system consisting of inlets and other underdrainage structures with approved outlets shall be constructed where the runoff of stormwater and the prevention of erosion cannot be accomplished satisfactorily by surface drainage facilities. Outlets shall be approved by the owners of the properties affected, by the Commission and by the Board of Supervisors.

Any drainage structure that requires a permit from the Department of Environmental Protection shall be accompanied by a copy of said permit and proof of compliance.

Where it is necessary, the Township Supervisors shall require of the responsible party a system of understood drainage to carry water away from streets and roads in naturally wet area. Such drainage shall consist of porous pipe or a trench having a minimum depth of 12 inches below bottom of subgrade and a minimum width of six inches filled with 2B stone and graded in such manner as to carry the water away from underneath the road base.

§ 150-8 Installation of improvements.

The responsible party shall be responsible for the proper installation of all improvements required by this article. Said improvements shall be inspected by the Township Engineer and/or the Township Supervisors and shall be determined to be in conformance with the requirements of this article before the street is accepted for dedication. Where new improvements are required to meet the requirements of this article, the installation of such improvement shall be supervised by the Township Engineer and/or Supervisors. In lieu of such installation of improvements, the Township may accept a street offered for dedication if a suitable performance bond had been posted by the responsible party offering the road for dedication, as required in § 150-16.

§ 150-9 Performance and maintenance guarantee.

A performance bond shall be required only in those cases where a street is accepted for dedication by the Township prior to completion of the required improvements by the responsible party and is for the purpose of ensuring the proper completion of all required improvements.

A maintenance bond shall be required for all roads offered for dedication and shall be for the purpose of ensuring adequate construction, maintenance and improvement of improvements offered for a two-year period after dedication.

Posting. The Township Engineer and Supervisors shall determine the amount of performance and/or maintenance bond and the responsible party shall file the bond with the Township Secretary before the road is accepted for dedication. It must:

Be a bond, certified check or other satisfactory security;

In the case of cash or its equivalent, be held in an escrow fund;

(c)

Be payable to Kidder Township;

(d)

In the case of a performance bond, be in an amount sufficient to complete any required improvements in compliance with this article and also specify a satisfactory completion date for the improvements;

(e)

In the case of a maintenance bond, it shall be in an amount sufficient to cover any necessary construction or maintenance requirements for not less than a two-year period.

Return. When the improvements have been completed and approved for conformity with this article by the Township Engineer and Supervisors, the performance security must be released and returned. When any portion of the required improvements have been completed and approved as above, a portion of the performance security commensurate with the cost of these improvements may be released and returned. Any unused portion of the maintenance guarantee remaining after the expiration of the required two-year period shall be released and returned.

Default. In the event the responsible party fails to install the required improvements in accordance with the requirements of this article, the performance security is forfeited to Kidder Township to be used for completion of the improvements.

§ 150-10 Roads in existence prior to adoption of regulations.

The responsible party shall be required to make core borings at intervals of not less than 500 feet to determine the depth of pave and subgrade. Depth of pave and subgrade shall be not less than eight inches. In the event depth is less than specified eight inches, the responsible party shall be required to provide the additional pavement to the required depth.

Any pavement that is core bored shall be in compliance with Pennsylvania Department of Transportation specifications. The Township Engineer and Supervisors shall be present when the core borings are made.

Where the drainage pipes are less than 15 inches in diameter, the Township shall not accept such roads.

The responsible party shall provide the Township with a copy of the map showing the metes and bounds of the property line on either side of the road and a description shall be supplied by the responsible party should the Township decide to accept the roads for dedication. The map shall have the seal of a registered engineer or surveyor.

The Township shall be provided with a legal description of drainage easements of and where required, in the various areas of the Township.

§ 150-11 Improvement of streets not officially dedicated.

Where a responsible party is no longer available and where 51% or more of the property owners in a section of the Township petition the Board of Supervisors to have a road improved, the Board, in accordance with any applicable provisions of the Township Code, may improve said road to the standards established herein and assess the properties to be benefited to cover the total costs of said improvement.

§ 150-12 Violations and penalties.

Any person who violates or permits a violation of this article shall, upon being found liable therefor in a civil enforcement proceeding commenced by the Township before a District Justice, pay a fine of not more than $600, plus all court costs, including reasonable attorney's fees, incurred by the Township in the enforcement of this article. No judgment shall be imposed until the date of the determination of the violation by the District Justice. If the defendant neither pays nor timely appeals the judgement, the Township may enforce the judgement pursuant to the applicable Rules of Civil Procedure. Each day a violation exists shall constitute a separate offense. Further, the appropriate officers or agents of the Township are hereby authorized to seek equitable relief, including injunction, to enforce compliance herewith.

§ 150-13 Fees.

A fee of $1 per foot of road proposed for dedication shall accompany the formal request for road dedication submitted to the Township Supervisors.

Article II Street Names and Signs; Building Numbering and Markers

[Adopted 6-19-2014 by Ord. No. 168; amended 6-18-2015 by Ord. No. 172]

§ 150-14 Purpose and intent.

The purpose of this article is to enhance public safety and security, and generally protect the public health, safety and welfare by improving the ability of emergency response personnel to navigate and locate dwellings and other structures in the Township, and enhancing the convenience to the general public.

§ 150-15 Street names.

Street names required. All public and private streets and access streets in the Township which serve two or more principal structures shall be named and posted with a street name sign in accordance with this article.

Street name assignment. The Board of Supervisors shall have the sole authority to provide for, regulate and assign names to all streets, roads and highways in the Township, and to change such names if deemed necessary to achieve the purposes of this article. In the case of new subdivisions and land developments, the street names shall be included on the plans submitted to the Township for review.

Street name duplication. No street, road or highway name sign shall be posted on any public or private street, road, highway, driveway or access street unless the Township has approved such name in order to avoid duplication of names.

§ 150-16 Street addresses.

All street addresses in the Township shall conform to the street addressing system established by Kidder Township for the 911 emergency call system, and all occupied structures shall have a building number sign/address marker conforming to the requirements of this article.

§ 150-17 Street name signs.

Street sign standards. The sign and pole on which the sign is mounted shall be made of a material and installed in a manner approved by the Township and shall meet the approved current Township, Pennsylvania Department of Transportation and/or federal standards and specifications for street and/or road signs as set forth within the current edition of the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices, as amended (MUTCD).

The sign face shall be eight inches tall with reflective white lettering on a reflective green background. The lettering should be composed of initial uppercase letters at least six inches in height and lowercase letters at least 4.5 inches in height and spaced in a manner so it is identifiable and legible from both directions.

The sign shall be mounted on a ten-foot pole installed two feet in the ground.

Responsibility for street name signs installation. Responsibility for the installation, maintenance, or replacement of street name signs on private roads that do not intersect with a Township or state road is with the private owner of the roadway. With respect to private roads that do intersect with a Township or state road, the Township shall make a one-time installation of the street name sign. Subsequent to the initial installation of the street name signs on private roads that intersect with a Township or state road, the private owner of the roadway shall be responsible to install, maintain or replace such street name signs.

§ 150-18 Building number/address marker signs.

Sign/marker standards.

Building number/address marker shall be depicted in Arabic numerals in four-inch-tall reflective white lettering on a reflective green background.

All building number signs/address marker plates shall be six inches by 12 inches; six inches by 14 inches in size; or six inches by 18 inches in size.

The property owner shall remove all obstructions (including snow and plant growth) to permit the building number sign/address marker to be visible in both directions from the street, road or highway on which it fronts, for a distance of not less than 50 feet from the building number sign/address marker.

(4)

Building number signs/address markers shall be mounted:

On a stand-alone post or pole or other comparable type of mounting device at a location where the driveway intersects the private and/or Township and/or state roadway right-of-way in a manner acceptable to the Township as set forth herein.

Horizontally or vertically;

(c)

To display the building number/address marker and no other information; and

(d)

So that the top of the building number sign/address marker is located between four feet and six feet above the ground elevation where the sign/marker is mounted. The bottom of the sign shall not be lower than four feet from the existing grade level.

(5)

Building number signs/address markers for grouped dwellings and nonresidential facilities:

Apartments, townhouses, cluster dwellings, shopping centers, resorts and other similar structure groupings where only one building number/address marker is assigned, shall display such sign/marker where the main entrance to the property intersects with the street, road or highway on which it fronts.

Building number/address marker for individual units or establishments within a complex shall be displayed on, above or immediately to the side of the main doorway of each unit or establishment.

Responsibility for building number/address marker installation.

All principal structures in the Township shall have a building number sign/address marker containing the address assigned by Kidder Township for the 911 emergency call system.

Each property owner shall purchase for their property a building number sign/address marker that conforms to the requirements of this article.

All inaccurate, obsolete or nonconforming building numbers shall be removed from any property when a new number is assigned.

§ 150-19 Implementation.

All street name signs installed, placed, replaced, modified or maintained after the effective date of the article shall conform to the requirements of this article.

All building number signs shall be installed/or replaced in compliance with this article not more than 60 days after the effective date of this article or an address is assigned, whichever is later.

The property owner shall promptly repair and/or replace any damaged or missing building number sign/address marker.

§ 150-20 Modification of requirements.

The Board of Supervisors may grant a modification of the requirements of one or more provisions of this article if literal compliance will result in undue hardship or be unreasonable as it is applied to a particular property, or if the property owner establishes to the satisfaction of the Board of Supervisors that an alternative proposal will allow for equal or better results, provided such modification will not be contrary to the public interest and fulfills the purpose and intent of this article. The Board of Supervisors may request that the Chairman of the Fire Commission make a recommendation as to the modification being requested. In granting any requested modification, the Board of Supervisors may impose such conditions as will, in its judgment, secure substantially the objectives of the standards and requirements of this article.

All requests for modification shall be made in writing, shall be signed by the property owner requesting the same, and shall include:

The specific provision(s) of this article with respect to which a modification is requested.

The specific modification/proposed alternative desired, including a depiction of the proposed alternative.