Amendments to this chapter shall become effective
only after a public hearing held pursuant to public notice as defined,
and in accordance with the Pennsylvania Municipalities Planning Code,
Act 247, as amended.
A. From the time an application for approval of a plan,
whether preliminary or final, is duly filed as provided in this chapter,
and while such application is pending approval or disapproval, no
change or amendment of this chapter, zoning or other governing ordinance
or plan shall affect the decision on such application adversely to
the applicant and the applicant shall be entitled to a decision in
accordance with the provisions of the governing ordinances or plans
as they stood at the time the application was duly approved.
B. The applicant shall be entitled to final approval
in accordance with the terms of the approved preliminary application
as hereinafter provided. However, if an application is properly and
finally denied, any subsequent application shall be subject to the
intervening change in governing regulation.
C. When an application for approval of a plan, whether
preliminary or final, has been approved without conditions or approved
by the applicant's acceptance of conditions, no subsequent change
or amendment in this chapter, zoning or other governing ordinance
or plan shall be applied to affect adversely the right of the applicant
to commence and to complete any aspect of the approved development
in accordance with the terms of such approval within five years from
such approval.
D. Where final approval is preceded by preliminary approval,
the aforesaid five-year period shall be counted from the date of the
preliminary approval. In the case of any doubt as to the terms of
a preliminary approval, the terms shall be construed in the light
of the provisions of this chapter or the governing ordinance or plans
as they stood at the time when the application for such approval was
duly filed.
E. Where the applicant has substantially completed the
required improvements as depicted upon the final plan within the aforesaid
five-year limit, or any extension thereof as may be granted by the
Board of Supervisors, no change of any ordinance or plan enacted subsequent
to the date of filing of the preliminary plan shall modify or revoke
any aspect of the approved final plan pertaining to zoning classification
or density, lot, building, street or utility location.
F. In case of a preliminary plan calling for the installation
of improvements beyond the five-year period, a schedule shall be filed
by the applicant with the preliminary plan delineating all proposed
sections as well as deadlines within which applications for final
plan approval of each section are intended to be filed. Such schedule
shall be updated annually by the applicant on or before the anniversary
of the preliminary plan approval, until final plan approval of the
final section has been granted and any modification in the aforesaid
schedule shall be subject to approval of the Board of Supervisors
in its discretion.
G. Each section in any residential subdivision or land
development, except for the last section, shall contain a minimum
of 25% of the total number of dwelling units as depicted on the preliminary
plan, unless a lesser percentage is approved by the Board of Supervisors
in its discretion.
H. Provided that the applicant has not defaulted with
regard to or violated any of the conditions of the preliminary plan
approval, including compliance with the applicant's aforesaid schedule
of submission of final plans for the various sections, then the aforesaid
protections afforded by substantially completing the improvements
depicted upon the final plan within five years shall apply, and for
any section or sections, beyond the initial section, in which the
required improvements have not been substantially completed within
said five-year period, the aforesaid protections shall apply for an
additional term or terms of three years from the date of final plan
approval for each section.
I. Failure of the applicant to adhere to the aforesaid
schedule of submission of final plans for the various sections shall
subject any such section to any and all changes in this chapter, zoning
and other governing ordinance enacted by the Township subsequent to
the date of the initial preliminary plan submission.