The construction of a new mobile home park or the alteration of an existing park shall be made only after the plans have been submitted in accordance with this chapter. The plans shall be in sufficient detail so that the following items can be properly examined:
A. 
Complete park layout showing lot sizes and dimensions, open space areas, and all improvements including streets, vehicular parking areas, water supply location, sewer and water lines, service buildings, sewage disposal system, lighting facilities, walkways, refuse storage areas and disposal methods, and recreation facilities;
B. 
Plans for providing adequate management of surface drainage;
C. 
Details of the construction of the sewage disposal system, including soil percolation tests, if soil absorption type system is to be used;
D. 
Details of the construction of the sewerage system, including size, slope, material, manhole and cleanout construction and location;
E. 
Water supply including expected capacity and size of well, pump rating, water storage facilities, methods of sealing well, housing for pump and storage tank, distribution system including size, materials and valve locations;
F. 
Construction of service buildings showing plumbing, heating, ventilation and other sanitary systems which are to be included;
G. 
Lighting facilities and electrical power line installation;
H. 
Anticipated number of parking spaces as would be permitted under available land area; and
I. 
A copy of approved plans that will be kept on file by the reviewing health agency.
A. 
Permits required.
(1) 
It shall be unlawful for any person to construct, alter or extend any mobile home park within the limits of West Brandywine Township unless he holds a valid permit issued by the Chester County Department of Health or Department of Environmental Protection or West Brandywine Municipal Authority, whichever is appropriate, or any other applicable agency in the name of such person for the specific construction, alteration or extension proposed, and also a permit issued by this municipality hereunder.
(2) 
Applications for permits shall be as follows:
(a) 
All applications for permits shall be made by the owner of the mobile home park or his authorized representative in accordance with the Rules and Regulations of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Department of Environmental Protection.
(b) 
Upon receipt of such application, the Township Code Officer shall inspect the applicant's proposed park or alterations to determine compliance with the provisions of this chapter. After such officer is satisfied that all improvements and alterations have been made and is furnished a copy of the permit issued by the Chester County Department of Health or Department of Environmental Protection or West Brandywine Municipal Authority, whichever is appropriate, and other applicable agencies, if any, to applicant, said officer shall issue a mobile home park permit to applicant which shall be valid for a period of one year thereafter upon payment for the required fees. For purposes of this section or any other, a representative of the Township may inspect a mobile home park at reasonable intervals and at reasonable times, to determine compliance with this chapter.
(c) 
Renewal permits for each subsequent year shall be issued by said officer upon furnishing proof by applicant that his park continued to meet the standards prescribed by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection and other regulatory agencies and this chapter.
B. 
Fees. Application for construction and/or alterations of a mobile home park shall be by resolution of the Board of Supervisors.
The following standards shall apply to open space and buffer treatment within a mobile home park:
A. 
Common open areas.
(1) 
Common open space areas shall be located and designed as areas directly accessible to residents and preserving natural features. Common open space areas should include both active recreation areas for all age groups and, where site includes a watercourse or hilly or wooded areas, land which is left in its natural state.
(2) 
When providing the minimum amount of open space as required by this section, no more than half of its land area may be comprised of floodplain and slopes in excess of 25%.
(3) 
A minimum of 25% of the area designed for common open space shall be outside designated floodplain areas as defined by Chapter 200, Zoning, in addition to the required buffer area and shall be suitable for active recreation. No such active recreation open space areas shall be less than 1/2 acre in area.
(4) 
Open space shall contain only those structures relating to the designated purpose for which the land has been preserved.
(5) 
All land set aside for open space shall be deed restricted from further subdivision.
(6) 
Areas to be preserved in open space shall be held either individually or collectively using the methods of ownership outlined in Chapter 200, Zoning, Article XXII, Open Space Design Option, for:
[Amended 12-21-2000 by Ord. No. 2000-04]
(a) 
Homeowners association;
(b) 
Condominium;
(c) 
Fee simple dedication to the Township; or
(d) 
Dedication of easements.
B. 
Buffer treatment.
(1) 
Buffered setbacks shall consist of a visual screen consisting of mixed evergreen and deciduous plant material of varying species. At the time of planting, a sufficient amount of evergreen material to provide complete, year-round visual screening of the property shall be at least five feet in height and the remainder of plantings may be of varying lesser heights. Earthen berms shall be incorporated into the landscaping plan along all public road frontage and along all property lines abutting existing dwellings.
(2) 
Buffer areas shall be designed in accordance with Chapter 200, Zoning, § 200-108.
A safe and convenient vehicular access shall be provided from abutting public streets or roads to each mobile home park. To ensure safe access, the following standards shall apply:
A. 
Access. The entrance road, or area, connecting the park with a public street or road shall have a minimum pavement width of 36 feet. At least 500 feet must separate roads connecting the park with a public street or road if more than one exist and/or entrance is provided. No entrance to mobile home park shall be beyond 500 feet from an arterial road as defined in the Appendix.
B. 
Internal streets. Surfaced roadways shall be of adequate width to accommodate anticipated traffic, and in any case shall meet the following minimum requirements:
(1) 
All streets or roads shall be paved with a minimum of 2.5 inches of bituminous material in two courses. Base shall be a minimum of eight inches of crushed aggregate base course. All construction shall be in accordance with Pennsylvania Department of Transportation specifications and details.
(2) 
Where parking is permitted on both sides, a minimum width of 36 feet will be required.
(3) 
A minimum road pavement width of 26 feet will be required where off-street parking is provided.
(4) 
Dead-end streets shall be provided at the closed end with a turnaround having an outside roadway diameter of at least 80 feet.
C. 
Required illumination of park street systems. All parks shall be furnished with lighting units so spaced, and equipped with luminaries placed at such mounting heights, as will provide average levels of illumination for the safe movement of pedestrians and vehicles at night.
D. 
Street construction and design standards.
(1) 
Streets. All streets shall be continuously paved and provided with a smooth, hard surface which shall be durable and well drained under normal use and weather conditions. All streets shall connect directly with public streets or highways.
(2) 
Grades. Grades of all streets shall be sufficient to insure adequate surface drainage, but shall be not more than 10%. Short runs with a maximum grade of 12% may be permitted; provided traffic safety is assured by appropriate surfacing and adequate leveling areas. All waterways and drainage ditches shall be paved if they exceed 10%.
(3) 
Intersections. Within 100 feet of an intersection, streets shall be at approximately right angles. A distance of at least 150 feet shall be maintained between centerlines of offset intersecting streets. Intersections of more than two streets at one point shall be avoided.
E. 
Parking areas.
(1) 
Off-street parking areas shall be provided in all mobile home parks for the use of park occupants and guests.
(2) 
Required car parking spaces shall be so located as to provide convenient access to the mobile home, but shall not exceed a distance of 200 feet from the mobile home that it is intended to serve.
(3) 
Parking areas shall be provided to accommodate at least two motor vehicles for each mobile home space. Each single vehicle parking space shall be at least 9.5 feet in width and 20 feet in length.
F. 
Walks.
(1) 
Common walk system. Where pedestrian traffic is concentrated, common walks shall have a minimum width of four feet.
(2) 
Individual walks. All mobile home lots shall be connected to common walks or to streets or to driveways or parking spaces connecting to a paved street. Such individual walks shall have a minimum width of two feet.
A. 
General. An adequate and safe sewerage system shall be provided in all parks for conveying and disposing of sewage from each mobile home, service buildings and other accessory facilities. Such system shall be designed, constructed and maintained in accordance with the Chester County Department of Health or Department of Environmental Protection or West Brandywine Municipal Authority, whichever is appropriate, regulations.
B. 
Individual sewer connections.
(1) 
Each mobile home lot shall be provided with at least a three-inch diameter sewer riser pipe. The sewer riser pipe shall be so located on each stand that the sewer connection to the mobile home drain outlet with approximately a vertical position and shall be concrete aproned at ground level.
(2) 
The sewer connection shall have a nominal inside diameter of not less than three inches, and the slope of any portion thereof shall be at least 1/4 inch per foot. All joints shall be watertight.
(3) 
All materials used for sewer connection shall be semirigid, corrosive resistant, nonabsorbent, and durable. The inner surface shall be smooth.
(4) 
Provision shall be made for plugging the sewer riser pipe when a mobile home does not occupy the lot. Surface drainage shall be diverted away from the riser. The rim of the riser pipe shall extend at least 1/2 inch above ground elevation.
C. 
Sewer lines.
(1) 
All sewer lines shall be located in trenches of sufficient depth to be free of breakage from traffic or other movements and shall be separated from the park water supply system. All sewer lines shall be constructed of materials approved by the Chester County Department of Health or Department of Environmental Protection or West Brandywine Municipal Authority, whichever is appropriate, and other local agencies, and shall have watertight joints.
(2) 
Sewer and water lines shall be laid in separate trenches with a horizontal distance of at least 10 feet from each other, except that these lines may be laid in the trench placing the water pipe on a shelf of undisturbed earth above and to one side of the caulked tight joint sewer line.
D. 
Sewage treatment and/or discharge.
(1) 
Where the sewer lines of the mobile home park are not connected to a public sewer, all proposed sewage disposal facilities shall be approved by the Chester County Department of Health or Department of Environmental Protection or West Brandywine Municipal Authority, whichever is appropriate, as well as other applicable agencies prior to any construction within the mobile home park.
(2) 
Where public sewerage systems are accessible, connection shall be made to such system.
(3) 
Storm water drainage must be provided, unless provisions have been made for joint usage (sanitary-storm) of the sewer system.
[1]
Editor's Note: See also Ch. 148, Sewers.
A. 
General. An adequate supply of water shall be provided for mobile homes, service buildings, and other accessory facilities as required by this chapter. Where a public water supply system of satisfactory quantity, quality and pressure is available, connection shall be made hereto and its supply shall be used exclusively. Where a satisfactory public water supply system is not available, the development of a private water supply system shall be approved by the Chester County Department of Health or Department of Environmental Protection or West Brandywine Municipal Authority, whichever is appropriate, or other authorities having jurisdiction.
B. 
Source of supply.
(1) 
The water supply shall be capable of supplying a minimum of 350 gallons per day per mobile home.
(2) 
The well or suction line of the water supply system shall be located and constructed in such a manner that neither underground nor surface contamination will reach the water supply from any source.
(3) 
Wells shall be located a safe distance from sources of contaminations. The minimum distance from cast iron sewer lines with permanent water tight joints is 20 feet. All other sewer lines and septic tanks shall be separated from wells by at least 50 feet. Absorption field, seepage pits and absorption beds shall be located at least 100 feet from a well.
(4) 
No well casings, pumps, pumping machinery, suction pipes, or other appurtenances which are necessary for proper functioning of a water system, shall be placed in any pit, room or space extending below ground level, nor in any room or space above ground which is walled in or otherwise enclosed, unless such rooms, whether above or below ground, have free drainage by gravity to the surface of the ground.
The casing of a well shall extend at least six inches above platform level, and for additional protection, the platform shall be sloped away from the casing.
(5) 
Water supply treatment, if necessary, shall be in accordance with the requirements of the Chester County Department of Health or Department of Environmental Protection or West Brandywine Municipal Authority, whichever is appropriate, or other applicable agency.
(6) 
If drinking fountains are provided, they shall be of an approved type of angle jet nozzle with guard.
C. 
Water storage facilities. All water storage reservoirs shall be covered, water tight and constructed of impervious material. Overflows and vents of such reservoirs shall be effectively screened. Manholes shall be constructed with water tight covers, so as to prevent the entrance of contaminated material. Reservoir overflow pipes shall discharge through an acceptable air gap.
D. 
Water distribution system.
(1) 
All water piping, fixtures and other equipment shall be constructed and maintained in accordance with state and local regulations.
(2) 
The water piping system shall not be connected with nonpotable or questionable water supplies and shall be protected against the hazards of backflow or backsiphonage.
(3) 
The system shall be so designed and maintained as to provide a pressure of not less than 20 pounds per square inch, under normal operating conditions, of service buildings, each mobile home, and other locations requiring potable water supply.
E. 
Individual water-riser pipes and connections.
(1) 
Individual water-riser pipes shall be located within the confined area of the mobile home stand at a point where the water connection will approximate a vertical position, thereby insuring the shortest water connection possible and decreasing susceptibility to water pipe freezing.
(2) 
The water-riser pipe shall have a minimum inside diameter of 1/2 inches and terminate at least four inches above the ground surface. The water outlet shall be provided with a cap when a mobile home does not occupy the lot.
(3) 
Adequate provisions shall be made to prevent freezing of service lines, valves and riser pipes and to protect risers from heaving and thawing actions of ground during freezing weather. Surface drainage shall be diverted from the location of the riser pipe.
(4) 
A shut-off valve below the frost line shall be provided near the water-riser pipe on each mobile home lot. Underground stop-and-waste-valves are prohibited unless their type of manufacture and their method of installation are approved.
A. 
General requirements. Every park shall contain an electrical wiring system consisting of wiring, fixtures, equipment and appurtenances which shall be installed and maintained in accordance with local electric power company's specifications regulating such systems and other local codes.
B. 
Power distribution lines.
(1) 
Multi-power lines not located underground shall be suspended at least 18 feet above the ground. There shall be a minimum horizontal clearance of three feet between overhead wiring and any mobile home, service building or other structure. No wiring shall be allowed to lay on the surface of the ground.
(2) 
All direct burial conductors or cable shall be buried at least 18 inches below the ground surface and shall be insulated and specifically designed for the purpose. Such conductors shall be located not less than 18 inches radial distance from water, sewer, gas or communications lines.
C. 
Individual electric connections. All exposed non-current-carrying metal parts of mobile homes and all other equipment shall be grounded by means of an approved grounding conductor run with branch circuit conductors or other approved method of grounded metallic wiring. The neutral conductor shall not be used as an equipment ground for mobile homes or other equipment.
A. 
The mobile home operator shall be responsible for the proper storage, collection and disposal of refuse.
B. 
The storage, collection and disposal of refuse in the mobile home park shall be so conducted as to create no health hazard, rodent harborage, insect breeding areas, accident or fire hazard, or air pollution and shall comply with the Chester County Department of Health or Department of Environmental Protection or West Brandywine Municipal Authority, whichever is appropriate, regulations or other applicable agencies, governing mobile home parks.
C. 
The park area shall be kept free of litter, rubbish and inflammable material at all times.
D. 
Refuse shall be stored in fly-tight, rodent proof and water-tight containers, and the containers shall be kept in good repair and maintained in a clean condition.
E. 
Collection and disposal of refuse shall be scheduled to avoid overflowing of containers. Containers shall be distributed about the park in adequate numbers, readily accessible to the trailer space in use.
[1]
Editor's Note: See also Ch. 155, Solid Waste.
A. 
Natural gas system.
(1) 
Natural gas piping system, when installed in mobile home parks shall be maintained in conformity with accepted engineering practices.
(2) 
Each mobile home lot provided with piped gas shall have an approved shut-off valve, installed upstream of the gas outlet. The outlet shall be equipped with an approved cap to prevent accidental discharge of gas when the outlet is not in use.
B. 
Liquefied petroleum gas systems (LPG).
(1) 
Systems shall be provided with safety devices to relieve excess pressures and shall be arranged so that the discharge terminates at a safe location.
(2) 
Systems shall have at least one accessible means for shutting off gas. Such means shall be located outside the mobile home and shall be maintained in effective operating conditions.
(3) 
All LPG piping outside of the mobile homes shall be well supported and protected against mechanical injury. Undiluted liquefied petroleum gas in liquid form shall not be conveyed through piping equipment and systems in mobile homes.
(4) 
Vessels of more than 12 and less than 60 U.S. gallons' gross capacity may be installed on a mobile home lot and shall be securely but not permanently fastened to prevent accidental overturning.
(5) 
No LPG vessel shall be stored or located inside or beneath any storage cabinet, carport, mobile home, or any other structures unless such installations are specially approved by the authority having jurisdiction.
(6) 
No cylinder containing liquefied petroleum gas, bottled gas or fuel oil shall be located in a mobile home; nor within 10 feet of a door thereof.
C. 
Fuel oil supply systems.
(1) 
All fuel oil supply systems provided for mobile homes, service buildings and other structures shall be installed and maintained in conformity with the rules and regulations of the authority having jurisdiction when provided.
(2) 
All piping from outside fuel storage tanks or cylinders to mobile homes shall be securely, but not permanently fastened in place.
(3) 
All fuel oil supply systems provided for mobile homes, service buildings and other structures shall have shutoff valves located within five inches of storage tanks.
(4) 
No fuel combustion unit shall be used in any mobile home without being vented to the outside of the trailer.
(5) 
Storage tanks located in areas subject to traffic shall be protected against physical damage.
A. 
The mobile home park area shall be subject to the rules and regulations of the applicable fire prevention authority where provided.
B. 
Mobile home park areas shall be kept free of litter, rubbish and other flammable materials.
C. 
Portable fire extinguishers of a type approved by the fire prevention authority shall be kept in public service buildings under park control.
D. 
Fire extinguishers of a type approved by the Fire Underwriter Laboratories (a B-C Classification type) bearing the Underwriters label shall be readily accessible within 300 feet of each trailer. It is recommended that trailer park owners or operators require each trailer unit to be equipped with a fire extinguisher.
E. 
Wherever a public or community water system is provided, fire hydrants shall be installed within 600 feet of all existing and proposed structures and/or mobile homes, measured by way of accessible streets (as specified by the Middle Department Association of Fire Underwriters.)
F. 
Fire hydrants shall be installed if their water supply source is capable to serve them in accordance with the following requirements:
(1) 
The water supply source shall permit the operation of a minimum of two one-and-one-half-inch hose streams.
(2) 
Each of two nozzles, held four feet above the ground, shall deliver at least 75 gallons of water per minute at a flowing pressure of at least 30 pounds per square inch at the highest point of the park.
[1]
Editor's Note: See also Ch. 85, Fire Prevention.
A. 
Where a community building is provided, it must contain a toilet and lavatory for each sex. In addition, the mobile home park may provide laundry facilities, storage facilities for use of occupants, management office, and indoor recreational facilities for park residents and guests only.
B. 
Construction of all city buildings shall be in compliance with all applicable codes and shall be maintained in a clean, sanitary and structurally safe condition.
C. 
Ownership and maintenance of all community buildings shall be defined in the application for a mobile home park.