A. 
The provisions of this chapter are the minimum standards for the protection of the public welfare. The Township reserves the right to modify or extend them as may be necessary in the public interest.
B. 
If any mandatory provisions of this chapter are shown by the applicant to be unreasonable and cause unique and undue hardship as they apply to the proposed subdivision or land development, Council may grant a modification in writing to such applicant from such mandatory provisions so that substantial justice may be done and the public interest secured, provided such modifications will not have the effect of nullifying the intent and purpose of this chapter.
C. 
All requests for modification shall be in writing, signed by the applicant, and shall accompany and be a part of the application for development. The request shall state in full the grounds and facts of unreasonableness or hardship on which the request is based, the provision or provisions of the ordinance involved, and the minimum modification necessary. The request for modification may be referred to the Planning Commission for advisory comments.
D. 
In granting modifications, Council may impose such conditions as will, in its judgment, substantially secure the objectives of the standards or requirements so modified.
E. 
The Township shall keep a written record of all actions on all requests for modifications.
F. 
If a modification is granted, it shall be referenced in the conditions of approval of the plan, and shall apply only to that plan.
A. 
No application for preliminary or final approval shall be deemed to have been submitted until the application fee and escrow deposit, as set forth below, shall have been paid.
B. 
A subdivision or land development application fee (nonrefundable) and an escrow deposit shall be submitted with any application for preliminary or final plan approval to cover the costs of plan review and processing. Amounts of the application fee and escrow deposit shall be fixed through adoption of a resolution by Council. The escrowed funds shall be used to reimburse the Township for actual expenditures incident to these processes, including but not limited to fees of the Township Engineer and legal fees. Any costs incurred by the Township in excess of the amount held in escrow shall be fully reimbursed by the applicant prior to the issuance of any permits. Any unexpended balance in the escrow deposit shall become part of the second deposit required in § 177-96C below.
C. 
As a condition of final plan approval and recording and following the establishment of any required performance guaranty, a second escrow deposit shall be established to cover the cost of inspections of improvements construction and materials or site testing, prior to the acceptance of improvements by the Township. Any costs incurred by the Township in excess of the amount held in escrow shall be fully reimbursed by the applicant. Any unexpected balance in the escrow deposit following acceptance of dedication of improvements by the Township shall be returned to the applicant. The amount of the escrow deposit shall be fixed by resolution of Council.
A. 
Three days prior to the commencement of any operation in the construction or installation of streets, curbs, sidewalks, drainage facilities, street signs, fire hydrants, streetlights, water and sewer improvements, monuments and capped sewers, the developer shall notify the Township Engineer who shall inspect the work, materials, construction and installation to ensure that the same are in accordance with Township requirements.
B. 
The Township Engineer shall be authorized to have such tests of materials made as are provided in the Bristol Township Specifications and Design Standards for Roads and Streets, in order to have proper control of materials. The developer shall pay to the Township the cost of each test plus an administrative fee to reimburse the Township for the collection of such fees and disbursement of same to the Township Engineer.
A. 
The Township shall keep a record of the findings, decisions and recommendations of Council and the Planning Commission relative to all subdivision and land development plans filed with it for review or approval.
B. 
All records shall be public records.
Council may, from time to time, amend, supplement, change, modify or repeal this chapter. When doing so, Council shall proceed in the manner prescribed in Sections 304, 505, and 506 of Article V of the Pennsylvania Municipalities Planning Code (PAMPC), as amended.[1] The pertinent provisions of these sections are summarized below.
A. 
Except for an amendment proposed by the Planning Commission, Council shall submit any proposed amendment to the Planning Commission for review and recommendation.
B. 
At least 45 days prior to the hearing on the proposed amendment, Council shall submit any proposed amendment to the Bucks County Planning Commission for review and recommendation. Council shall take no action to approve or deny any proposed amendment until it has received a report on the proposed amendment from the Bucks County Planning Commission, or until 45 days have been allowed for the receipt of such a report.
C. 
Notice of the date, time, and place of the public hearing on the proposed amendment, and the content of such notice, shall be in accordance with § 177-38 of the PAMPC.
D. 
In the event substantial amendments are made in the proposed ordinance or amendment, before voting on enactment, Council, at least 10 days prior to enactment, shall readvertise a brief summary setting forth all the provisions in reasonable detail, together with a summary of the amendments.
E. 
Within 30 days following adoption, the Township shall forward a certified copy of any amendment to this chapter to the Bucks County Planning Commission.
[1]
Editor's Note: See 53 P.S. §§ 10304, 10505 and 10506, respectively.
Appeals from the actions of Council with respect to any application for subdivision or land development approval shall be governed by the provisions of the Pennsylvania Municipalities Planning Code[1] as they may be amended from time to time, or any successor legislation thereto.
[1]
Editor's Note: See 53 P.S. § 10101 et seq.
The existing subdivision and land development ordinance adopted September 20, 1978, and entitled "Chapter XXII, Subdivision and Land Development," and all supplements and amendments thereto, are hereby repealed; provided, however, that if the present ordinance is held to be ineffective or invalid by reason of some irregularity in or impediment to its passage, this repealer shall also be ineffective as aforesaid. Then and in that event, the Subdivision and Land Development Ordinance of Bristol Township, together with its supplements and amendments, would necessarily remain in full force and effect.