[Adopted 3-15-2006 by Ord. No. 06-02]
A.
It shall henceforth be unlawful for any person or
other legal entity selling real estate located as defined by this
article that is located within Independence Township on which a building
or improvement exists that is connected to the Independence –
Cross Creek Joint Sewer Authority (hereinafter "Authority") sewer
line without first delivering to the purchaser a document of certification
or a temporary document of certification issued by the Authority.
B.
Any person selling real estate located as defined in § 323-26 of this article that is located within Independence Township (hereinafter referred to as "applicant") shall make application on a form furnished by the Authority at least 21 days before the date of closing the sale. The applicant shall then cause to have performed a dye test or other tests deemed appropriate by the Authority on the property to be sold. All tests shall be performed by an inspector appointed by the Authority (hereinafter referred to as "inspector").
C.
The inspection fee shall be in an amount set by resolution
of the Authority. The inspection fee shall be paid to the Authority
at the time of making the application referred to in this section.
D.
Such inspector shall complete the appropriate portions
on the form and certify that the property has been tested and certify
the results of such test. In the event there are no illegal stormwater
or surface water connections, the Authority shall issue a document
of certification upon payment of such fee as set by resolution of
the Authority. When an illegal stormwater or surface water connection
is discovered by means of the above-mentioned tests, no document of
certification will be issued until the illegal connections are removed
and certification of such removal by an inspector is received. An
additional inspection fee shall be paid by the applicant for each
inspection subsequent to the first inspection.
E.
The Board of Supervisors hereby authorizes the Independence
– Cross Creek Township Joint Sewer Authority and/or its employees
to enter upon private property at all reasonable times for the purpose
of conducting inspections and investigations to assure compliance
with the rules and regulations of the Authority and this article.
A document of certification shall be valid for
a period of one year from the date of issuance. Real estate may be
sold during the one-year effective life of such document without further
testing or certification.
A document of certification shall not be required
in the following instances:
A.
When property is refinanced but no conveyance take
place.
B.
Individual apartment-type units within a single condominium
building may be sold without individual certification, provided that
the building in which the units are located has been certified no
longer than one year previous to the date of the sale of the individual
condominium unit.
C.
When the real estate is such that tap-in to the sanitary
sewer system is not required by law or ordinance.
A temporary document of certification may be
issued by the Authority, at its sole discretion, when either:
A.
The applicant proves that weather conditions or other
circumstances would pose an undue hardship. In that event, the applicant
shall provide a signed, written acknowledgement from the purchaser
agreeing to correct, at purchaser's sole cost and expense, any violations
that may be discovered as a result of subsequent tests. Nothing in
this subsection shall prohibit any purchaser from requiring the applicant
to reimburse purchaser for any costs incurred; provided, however,
that primary liability shall run with the land, and no such agreement
shall affect the Authority's enforcement powers or excuse the current
owner from compliance with this part; or
B.
When an illegal stormwater or surface water connection
is discovered and the necessary remedial activities to correct such
connection would require a length of time such as to create a practical
hardship for the applicant, the applicant may apply to the Authority
for a temporary document of certification, which may only be issued
when the applicant provides the Authority with all of the following:
(1)
A bona fide, executed contract between the applicant
and a contractor to complete the necessary remedial work, with the
Authority listed herein as a third-party beneficiary;
(2)
Cash security in the amount of said contract is posted
with the Authority; and
(3)
A written agreement by the purchaser to be responsible
for all cost overruns and extras related to the remedial work, together
with a written license to enter upon the property to complete work
in case of default of the contractor referred to above. The Authority's
Manager or other individual authorized by the Authority's Board of
Directors shall determine when such temporary document of certification
shall expire. Upon expiration, the security shall be forfeited, and
the Authority may use the security to have the necessary remedial
work completed.
The Authority is hereby empowered to undertake
the duties imposed by this article, including but not limited to:
The Authority may, by resolution, change from
time to time the fees authorized in this article.
Nothing in this article shall limit in any fashion
whatsoever the Authority's or Township's right to enforce its ordinances
or the laws of the commonwealth. Nothing in this article shall be
a defense to any citation issued by any municipal corporation or the
commonwealth pursuant to any other law or ordinance.
A.
Any person who violates or permits a violation of
this article shall, upon conviction in a summary proceeding brought
before a Magisterial District Judge under the Pennsylvania Rules of
Criminal Procedure, be guilty of a summary offense and shall be punishable
by a fine of not more than $1,000, plus all costs of prosecution,
including, but not limited to, attorneys' fees, and, in default of
payment thereof, shall be imprisoned for a term not to exceed 90 days.
Each day or portion thereof that such violation continues or is permitted
to continue shall constitute a separate offense, and each section
of this article that is violated shall also constitute a separate
offense. All fines and penalties collected for the violation of this
article shall be paid to the Township Treasurer.[1]
B.
Whenever any person violating any of the provisions
of the article is notified of such violation in writing by the Authority,
each day or portion thereof a violation occurs or continues to occur
shall constitute a separate violation.
C.
In addition to and not in lieu of the foregoing, the
Township and/or Authority may seek equitable and legal relief to compel
compliance with this article.
