A.
No plan of a subdivision or land development proposed
in the Township shall be recorded in any public office unless or until
that plan shall bear the certified approval of the Board of Commissioners.
B.
It shall be unlawful for any person to sell, trade
or otherwise convey or offer to sell, trade or otherwise convey any
lot or parcel of land as part of or in conformity with any plan, plat
or replat of any subdivision or land development unless and until
said plan, plat or replat shall have been first recorded in the office
of the County Recorder of Deeds.
A.
In addition to other remedies, the Township may institute
and maintain appropriate actions by law or in equity to restrain,
correct or abate violations, to prevent unlawful construction, to
recover damages and to prevent illegal occupancy of a building, structure
or premises. The description by metes and bounds in the instrument
of transfer or other documents used in the process of selling or transferring
shall not exempt the seller or transferor from such penalties or from
the remedies herein provided.
B.
The Township may refuse to issue any permit or grant
any approval necessary to further improve or develop any real property
which has been developed or which has resulted from a subdivision
of real property in violation of this chapter. The authority to deny
such a permit or approval shall apply to any of the following applicants:
(1)
The owner of record at the time of such violation.
(2)
The vendee or lessee of the owner of record at the
time of such violation, without regard as to whether such vendee or
lessee had actual or constructive knowledge of the violation.
(3)
The current owner of record who acquired the property
subsequent to the time of violation, without regard as to whether
such current owner had actual or constructive knowledge of the violation.
(4)
The vendee or lessee of the current owner of record
who acquired the property subsequent to the time of violation, without
regard as to whether such vendee or lessee had actual or constructive
knowledge of the violation.
C.
As an additional condition for issuance of a permit
or the granting of an approval to any such owner, current owner, vendee
or lessee for the development of any such real property, the Township
may require compliance with the conditions that would have been applicable
to the property at the time the applicant acquired an interest in
such real property.
A.
Any person, partnership or corporation who or which
has violated the provisions of this chapter shall, upon being found
liable therefor in a civil enforcement proceeding commenced by the
Township, pay a judgment of not more than $500 plus all court costs,
including reasonable attorney fees incurred by the Township as a result
thereof. No judgment shall commence or be imposed, levied or be payable
until the date of the determination of a violation by the District
Justice. If the defendant neither pays nor timely appeals the judgment,
the Township may enforce the judgment pursuant to the applicable rules
of civil procedure. Each day that a violation continues shall constitute
a separate violation, unless the District Justice determining that
there has been a violation further determines that there was a good-faith
basis for the person, partnership or corporation violating this chapter
to have believed that there was no such violation, in which event
there shall be deemed to have been only one such violation, until
the fifth day following the date of the determination of a violation
by the District Justice, and thereafter each day that a violation
continues shall constitute a separate violation.
B.
The Court of Common Pleas, upon petition, may grant
an order of stay, upon cause shown, tolling the per diem judgment
pending a final adjudication of the violation and judgment.
C.
Nothing contained in this section shall be construed
or interpreted to grant to any person or entity other than the Township
the right to commence any action for enforcement pursuant to this
section.
A.
The Zoning Officer or his authorized representative
shall be responsible for the administration and enforcement of this
chapter and shall have all the powers and duties conferred upon zoning
officers by the Pennsylvania Municipalities Planning Code (53 P.S.
§ 10101 et seq.).
B.
The Zoning Officer or his authorized representative
shall review proposals for subdivision and land development plans
upon request of the Planning Commission or Board of Commissioners;
shall issue or revoke permits; shall enter upon, at his discretion,
subdivision and land development plans in the process of construction
to evaluate compliance with the terms of approved applications; shall
notify the developer, in writing, regarding any aspect of the development
not in compliance and demand remedial action to guarantee compliance
and avoid revocation of the permit; and shall otherwise act as the
Township's agent in the enforcement of these regulations.
C.
No developer, owner or agent or employee of them shall
block entrance of the Zoning Officer or his authorized representative
to any subdivision, land development or mobile home park plan in the
process of development.
A.
Filing fees.
(1)
In order to defray a part of the cost incurred by
the Township in processing plans, filing fees shall accompany the
filing of each preliminary and final application. Checks shall be
made payable to the Township.
(2)
The Board of Commissioners shall establish, from time
to time, a schedule of filing fees by resolution. The schedule of
fees shall be available to the public in the office of the Township
Manager.
(3)
In the event that the developer submits a revised
application, the revised application shall be accompanied by the filing
fee required for an original application. This fee shall apply only
to revisions initiated by the applicant, but shall not apply to revisions
required to complete an application or revisions requested by the
Planning Commission which are not required to complete an application.
B.
Application review fees.
(1)
Application review fees shall include reasonable and
necessary charges by the Township's professional consultants or the
Township Engineer for review and report on the application to the
Township. Such review fees shall be based upon a schedule established
by resolution by the Board of Commissioners. Such review fees shall
be reasonable and in accordance with the ordinary and customary charges
by the Township Engineer or other consultants for similar service
in the community, but on no event shall the fees exceed the rate or
cost charged by the Township Engineer or other consultants to the
Township when fees are not reimbursed or otherwise imposed on applicants.
(2)
In the event that the applicant disputes the amount
of any such review fees, the applicant shall, within 10 days of the
billing date, notify the Township Manager that such fees are disputed,
in which case the Township shall not delay or disapprove a subdivision
or land development application due to the applicant's request over
disputed fees.
C.
Inspection fees.
(1)
The Township may prescribe that the applicant shall
reimburse the Township for the reasonable and necessary expense incurred
for the inspection of improvements. Such reimbursement shall be based
upon a schedule established by ordinance or resolution. Such expense
shall be reasonable and in accordance with the ordinary and customary
fees charged by the Township Engineer or consultant for work performed
for similar services in the community, but in no event shall the fees
exceed the rate or cost charged by the engineer or consultant to the
Township when fees are not reimbursed or otherwise imposed on applicants.
(2)
In the event that the applicant disputes the amount
of any such expense in connection with the inspection of improvements,
the applicant shall, within 10 working days of the date of billing,
notify the Township that such expenses are disputed as unreasonable
or unnecessary, in which case the Township shall not delay or disapprove
a subdivision or land development application or any approval or permit
related to development due to the applicant's request over disputed
engineer expenses.
(3)
If, within 20 days from the date of billing, the Township
and the applicant cannot agree on the amount of expenses which are
reasonable and necessary, then the applicant and Township shall jointly,
by mutual agreement, appoint another professional engineer licensed
as such in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania to review said expenses
and make a determination as to the amount thereof which is reasonable
and necessary.
(4)
The professional engineer so appointed shall hear
such evidence and review such documentation as the professional engineer
in his or her sole opinion deems necessary and render a decision within
50 days of the billing date. The applicant shall be required to pay
the entire amount determined in the decision immediately.
(5)
In the event that the Township and applicant cannot
agree upon the professional engineer to be appointed within 20 days
of the billing date, then upon application of either party, the President
Judge of the Court of Common Pleas of the judicial district in which
the Township is located, or, if at the time there be no President
Judge, then the senior active judge then sitting, shall appoint such
engineer, who, in that case, shall be neither the Township Engineer
nor any professional engineer who has been retained by, or performed
services for, the Township or the applicant within the preceding five
years.
(6)
The fees of the appointed professional engineer for
determining the reasonable and necessary expenses shall be paid by
the applicant if the amount of payment required in the decision is
equal to or greater than the original bill. If the amount of payment
required in the decision is less than the original bill by $1,000
or more, the Township shall pay the fee of the professional engineer,
but otherwise the Township and the applicant shall each pay 1/2 of
the fee of the appointed professional engineer.
