As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the meanings
indicated:
ACCESS DRIVE
A nonpublic road, street, alley or cartway with right-of-way connecting
with a public road, street or alley which is used by vehicular traffic as
a means of entrance or egress to the public road, street or alley.
AGRICULTURAL PURPOSES
The use of a tract of land of more than ten (10) acres in size for
the purpose of active cultivation or animal husbandry.
ALLEY
A right-of-way, privately or publicly owned, primarily for service
access to the rear or side of properties otherwise abutting on a street.
APPLICANT
A landowner or developer, as hereinafter defined, who has filed an
application for development, including his heirs, successors and assigns.
APPLICATION FOR DEVELOPMENT
Every application, whether preliminary, tentative or final, required
to be filed and approved prior to the start of construction of a structure
or development, including but not limited to an application for a building
permit or for the approval of a development plan.
AUTHORITY
A body politic and corporate created pursuant to the Act of May 2,
1945 (P.L. 382, No. 164), known as the "Municipality Authorities Act of 1945,"
53 P.S. § 301 et seq.
BLOCK
An area bounded by existing or proposed streets.
BODY OF WATER
A natural or artificial lake, pond, reservoir, swamp, marsh or wetland.
BUILDING
Any structure, or part thereof, affixed to the land.
BUILDING SETBACK LINES
Lines parallel to and set back from a street right-of-way line, or
the lot line if there is no street, which lines delineate the required minimum
distance between a structure and that property line or street right-of-way
line.
CARTWAY
The paved surface of a street or road available for vehicular traffic.
CITY
The City of New Kensington, Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania.
CLEAR-SIGHT TRIANGLE
An area of unobstructed vision at street intersections defined by
lines of sight between points at a given distance from the intersection of
the street center lines.
COMMON OPEN SPACE
A parcel or parcels of land or an area of water, or a combination
of land and water, within a development site and designed and intended for
the use or enjoyment of residents of a development, not including streets,
off-street parking areas and areas set aside for public facilities.
COUNCIL
The Council of the City of New Kensington, Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania.
COUNTY
The County of Westmoreland, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
CROSSWALK
A publicly or privately owned right-of-way for pedestrian use extending
from a street into a block or across a block to another street.
DEVELOPER
Any landowner, agent of such landowner or tenant with the permission
of such landowner who makes or causes to be made a subdivision of land or
a land development or a resubdivision.
DEVELOPMENT PLAN
The provisions for development, including a planned residential development,
a plat of subdivision, all covenants relating to use, location and bulk of
buildings and other structures, intensity of use or density of development,
streets, ways and parking facilities, common open space and public facilities.
The phrase "provisions of the development plan," when used in this chapter,
shall mean the written and graphic materials referred to in this definition.
DWELLING
A building or a portion thereof designed for and used exclusively
for residential occupancy.
A.
DWELLING UNITOne (1) or more rooms having cooking and sanitary facilities and access directly outdoors or through a common entrance hall.
C.
CONVERSION UNITExisting residential structure which has been modified structurally in such a way as to convert it from one (1) dwelling unit to multiple dwelling units.
D.
SEMIDETACHED UNITA residential structure containing two (2) single dwelling units having one (1) common wall.
E.
ATTACHED, ROW OR TOWNHOUSE UNITA residential structure containing three (3) or more dwelling units which are separated from each other by two (2) common walls, except for the end units.
G.
CONDOMINIUMSA given set of dwelling units, each of which is owned by an individual person or persons in fee simple and which is assigned a proportionate interest in all common elements, as set forth in the Unit Property Act of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
EASEMENT
A right-of-way granted for the limited use of land for public or
quasi-public purposes or for the purpose of the transmission or provision
of utility services.
ENGINEER, CITY
A registered professional engineer in Pennsylvania designated by
the municipality to perform the duties of engineer as herein specified.
ENGINEERING SPECIFICATIONS
The engineering specifications of the municipality regulating the
construction and installation of any required improvement or for any facility
installed by any owner subject to public use.
EROSION
The removal of surface materials by the action of natural elements.
EXCAVATION
Any act by which earth, sand, gravel, rock or other similar material
is dug into, cut, carried, uncovered, removed, displaced, relocated or bulldozed.
It shall include the conditions resulting therefrom.
FILL
A.
Any act by which earth, sand, gravel, rock or any other similar material
is placed, pushed, dumped, pulled, transported or moved to a new location
above the natural surface of the ground or on top of the stripped surface.
It shall also include the conditions resulting therefrom.
B.
The difference in elevation between a point on the original ground and
a designated point of higher elevation on the final grade.
C.
The material used to make fill.
FLOOD
A general and temporary inundation of normally dry land areas from
the overflow of inland waters or the unusual and rapid accumulation or runoff
of surface waters from any source or mudslides which are proximately caused
or precipitated by accumulations of water on or under the ground.
FLOOD-PRONE AREA
A relatively flat or low land area adjoining a stream, river or watercourse
which is subject to partial or complete inundation or any area subject to
partial or complete inundation or any area subject to the unusual, rapid accumulation
or runoff of surface waters from any source.
FLOODWAY
The channel of a river or other watercourse and the adjacent land
areas required to carry and discharge a flood of the one-hundred-year magnitude.
IMPROVEMENTS
Physical additions and changes to the land that may be necessary
to produce usable and desirable lots or development.
LAND DEVELOPMENT
Any of the following activities:
A.
The improvement of one (1) lot or two (2) or more contiguous lots, tracts
or parcels of land for any purpose involving:
(1)
A group of two (2) or more residential or nonresidential buildings,
whether proposed initially or cumulatively, or a single nonresidential building
on a lot or lots regardless of the number of occupants or tenure; or
(2)
The division or allocation of land or space, whether proposed initially
or cumulatively, between or among two (2) or more existing or prospective
occupants by means of, or for the purpose of, streets, common areas, leaseholds,
condominiums, building groups or other features.
C.
Development in accordance with 53 P.S. § 10503(1.1) of the
Pennsylvania Municipalities Planning Code.
LANDOWNER
The legal or beneficial owner or owners of land, including the holder
of an option or contract to purchase (whether or not such option or contract
is subject to any conditions), a lessee if he is authorized under the lease
to exercise the rights of the landowner or other person having proprietary
interest in the land.
LOT
A designated parcel, tract or area of land established by a plat
or otherwise as permitted by law and to be used, developed or built upon as
a unit.
LOT AREA
The area contained within the property lines of a lot as shown on
a subdivision plan, excluding space within any street right-of-way but including
the area of any other easement.
LOT, REVERSE-FRONTAGE
A lot extending between and having frontage on an arterial street
and a minor street and with vehicular access solely from the latter.
MEDIATION
A voluntary negotiating process in which parties in a dispute mutually
select a neutral mediator to assist them in jointly exploring and settling
their differences, culminating in a written agreement which the parties themselves
create and consider acceptable.
MOBILE HOME
A transportable, single-family dwelling designed for permanent occupancy,
contained in one (1) unit or in two (2) or more units designed to be joined
into one (1) integral unit capable of again being separated for repeated towing,
which arrives at a site complete and ready for occupancy except for minor
and incidental unpacking and assembly operations and constructed so that it
may be used without a permanent foundation.
MOBILE HOME LOT
A parcel of land in a mobile home park improved with the necessary
utility connections and other appurtenances necessary for the erection thereon
of a single mobile home.
MOBILE HOME PARK
A parcel or contiguous parcels of land which have been so designated
and improved that they contain two (2) or more mobile home lots for the placement
thereon of mobile homes.
MUNICIPAL AUTHORITY
A body politic and corporate created pursuant to the Act of May 2,
1945 (P.L. 382, No. 164), known as the "Municipality Authorities Act of 1945."
MUNICIPAL ENGINEER
A professional engineer licensed as such in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania,
duly appointed as the engineer for a municipality, planning agency or joint
planning commission.
PLAN
The map or plan of a subdivision or land development, whether preliminary
or final.
A.
PLAN, FINALA complete and exact subdivision or land development plan prepared for official recording as required by statute.
B.
PLAN, PRELIMINARYA tentative subdivision or land development plan, in lesser detail than the final plan, indicating the approximate proposed layouts of a subdivision or land development as a basis for consideration prior to preparation of the final plan.
C.
PLAN, SKETCHAn informal plan, not necessarily to exact scale, indicating existing features of a tract, its surroundings and the general layout of a proposed subdivision or land development.
PLANNED RESIDENTIAL DEVELOPMENT
An area of land, controlled by a landowner, to be developed as a single entity for a number of dwelling units or combination of residential and nonresidential uses, the development plan for which does not correspond in lot size, bulk, type of dwelling or use, density or intensity, lot coverage and required open space to the regulations established in any one (1) district created, from time to time, under the provisions of Chapter
236, Zoning.
PUBLIC GROUNDS
Includes:
A.
Parks, playgrounds, trails, paths and other recreational areas and other
public areas.
B.
Sites for schools, sewage treatment, refuse disposal and other publicly
owned or operated facilities.
C.
Publicly owned or operated scenic historic sites.
PUBLIC HEARING
A formal meeting held pursuant to public notice by the governing
body or planning agency intended to inform and obtain public comment prior
to taking action in accordance with this chapter.
PUBLIC MEETING
A forum held pursuant to notice under the Act of July 3, 1986 (P.L.
388, No. 84), known as the "Sunshine Act."
PUBLIC NOTICE
Notice published once each week for two (2) successive weeks in a
newspaper of general circulation in the municipality. Such notice shall state
the time and place of the hearing and the particular nature of the matter
to be considered at the hearing. The first publication shall not be more than
thirty (30) days and the second publication shall not be less than seven (7)
days from the date of the hearing.
RESUBDIVISION
Any replatting or resubdivision of land limited to a change in lot
lines on an approved final plan or recorded plan.
RIGHT-OF-WAY, STREET
A public thoroughfare for vehicular traffic and/or pedestrian traffic,
whether designated as a street, highway, thoroughfare, parkway, road, avenue,
boulevard, lane or alley or however designated.
RUNOFF
The surface water discharge or rate of discharge of a given watershed
after a fall of rain or snow that does not enter the soil but runs off of
the surface of the land.
SEDIMENTATION
The process by which mineral or organic matter is accumulated or
deposited by moving wind, water or gravity. Once this matter is deposited
(or remains suspended in water), it is usually referred to as "sediment."
SIGHT DISTANCE
The length of roadway visible to the driver of a passenger vehicle
at any given point on the roadway when the view is unobstructed by traffic.
SLOPE
The face of an embankment or cut section; any ground whose surface
makes an angle with the line of the horizon. "Slopes" are usually expressed
in a percentage based upon vertical difference in feet per one hundred (100)
feet of horizontal distance.
STREET
Includes a public or private street, avenue, boulevard, road, highway,
freeway, parkway, lane, alley, viaduct and any other ways used or intended
to be used by vehicular traffic or pedestrians.
A.
ARTERIAL STREETA major street or highway with fast or heavy traffic volumes of considerable continuity and used primarily as a traffic artery for travel between high-density living areas over long distances.
B.
COLLECTOR STREETA street or highway which carries traffic from minor streets to arterial streets, including the principal entrance streets of a residential development and streets for circulation within such a development.
C.
MINOR STREETA street used primarily for access to abutting properties.
D.
CUL-DE-SACA street intersecting another street at one (1) end and terminating at the other in a vehicular turnaround.
E.
MARGINAL ACCESS STREETA minor street which is parallel and adjacent to limited access highways or arterial streets and which provides access to abutting properties and protection from traffic.
STRUCTURE
Any man-made object having an ascertainable stationary location on
or in land or water, whether or not affixed to the land.
SUBDIVISION
The division or redivision of a lot, tract or parcel of land by any
means into two (2) or more lots, tracts, parcels or other divisions of land,
including changes in existing lot lines for the purpose, whether immediate
or future, of lease, partition by the court for distribution to heirs or devisees,
transfer of ownership or building or lot development; provided, however, that
the subdivision by lease of land for agricultural purposes into parcels of
more than ten (10) acres, not involving any new street or easement of access
or any residential dwelling, shall be exempted.
A.
MINOR SUBDIVISIONThe subdivision of a lot, tract or parcel of land into two (2) or three (3) lots, tracts or parcels and containing not more than six (6) acres of total land area.
B.
MAJOR SUBDIVISIONThe subdivision of a lot, tract or parcel of land into more than three (3) lots, tracts or parcels or containing more than six (6) acres of total land area.
SUBSTANTIALLY COMPLETED
Where, in the judgment of the Municipal Engineer, at least ninety percent (90%), based on the cost of the required improvement for which financial security was posted pursuant to §
185-40, of those improvements required as a condition for final approval have been completed in accordance with the approved plan, so that the project will be able to be used, occupied or operated for its intended use.
SURFACE DRAINAGE PLAN
A plan showing all present and proposed grades and facilities for
stormwater drainage.
TOPSOIL
Surface soils and subsurface soils which presumably are fertile soils
and soil material ordinarily rich in organic matter or humus debris. "Topsoil"
is usually found in the uppermost soil layer, called the "A Horizon."
UNDERDEVELOPED LAND
Any lot, tract or parcel of land which has not been graded or in
any other manner improved or prepared for subdivision or land development
or for construction of any kind.
WATERCOURSE
A stream of water, river, brook, creek or a channel of a perceptible
extent, with definite bed and banks to confine and conduct continuously or
periodically flowing water.
WETLANDS
Those areas that are inundated or saturated by surface or ground
water at a frequency and duration sufficient to support, and that under normal
circumstances do support, a prevalence of vegetation typically adapted for
life in saturated soil conditions.