Middle Smithfield Township shall keep records
of all driveway permit applications and the actions taken as follows:
A. Board of Supervisors records.
(1) The Board of Supervisors shall keep a record of all
driveway permits and the action taken relative to all applications
that are submitted for review and action.
(2) All such records shall be made available for public
inspection during normal Township office hours, upon request.
The Board of Supervisors may, from time to time,
amend this chapter by action taken at a public hearing on the proposed
amendments subject to the following:
A. Publication, advertisement and availability.
(1) The Board of Supervisors shall publish the full text
of the proposed amendment or the title and a brief summary thereof,
prepared by the Municipal Solicitor, setting forth all the provisions
in reasonable detail, including the time and place of the hearing
at which passage of the amendment is to be considered and a place
within the Township where the amendment may be examined and/or obtained
at cost, one time in a newspaper of general circulation in Middle
Smithfield Township, with said publication not more than 60 days and
not fewer than seven days prior to the date of the hearing.
(2) If the full text is not included, a copy of the full
text of the proposed amendment shall be supplied to the newspaper
at the time the public notice is published.
(3) In the event that substantial amendments are made,
before voting upon enactment, the Board of Supervisors shall, at least
10 days prior to enactment, readvertise a brief summary of the amendments.
All appeals and challenges to this chapter shall
conform to the requirements and procedures as outlined by law.
The Board of Supervisors shall establish, by
resolution, and may revise from time to time as deemed necessary a
schedule of fees to be paid by the applicant at the time of filing
the application for a driveway permit or an extension of the issued
permit.
A. Posting of the fee schedule. The schedule of fees
shall be posted in the municipal building and in such other places
as the Board of Supervisors may designate and shall be available upon
request.
B. Approval of applications. No driveway application
shall be approved and/or issued unless all fees have been paid in
full. In the event that the applicant is required to pay additional
fees, such fees shall be collected by the Township Secretary prior
to approval of the subject driveway.
C. Fee refunds. There shall be no refund or credit of
any portion of the fees or charges.
D. Additional inspection fees. If the Township determines
that the permitted work is of sufficient magnitude or importance to
warrant assignment of one or more employees to inspect the permitted
work on a more than spot inspection basis, the permit will so indicate
and the permittee shall be charged for all salary, overhead and expenses
incurred by the Township for inspection.
Any violation of this chapter or the permit
requirements shall constitute grounds for imposition of any or all
of the following penalties:
A. Notice of violation. Upon receipt of oral or written
notice of a violation from the authorized representative of the Township,
the permittee shall cease to perform any further work in the permitted
area except to restore the area to a safe condition.
(1) No further work shall commence in the permitted area
until the violation has been remedied.
(2) Where the permittee has received oral notice of the
violation, written notice shall be sent to the permittee within 10
days of receipt of the oral notice.
(3) Notice of violation shall include a time limit within
which the violation corrective action shall be undertaken and a time
limit within which said correction or corrections shall be completed.
If the corrective action is not undertaken within the time period
set forth or, if undertaken, is not completed within said time limit,
the Township may institute legal proceedings in a court of proper
jurisdiction for the enforcement of the provisions of this chapter.
(4) A warning notice that a violation does or may exist
at any site in Middle Smithfield Township may be posted on the site
or mailed to the violator by the Township along with instructions
to contact the Roadmaster.
B. Refusal to issue permit. Middle Smithfield Township
may refuse to issue any permit necessary to further improve or develop
any real property which has an unresolved violation or notice of violation
of any applicable ordinance of Middle Smithfield Township.
(1) This authority to deny such a permit or approval shall
apply to any of the following applicants:
(a)
The owner of record at the time of such violation.
(b)
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.
(c)
The current owner of record who acquired the
property subsequent to the time of violation without regard as to
whether such current owner has actual or constructive knowledge of
the violation.
(2) As an additional condition for issuance of a permit
to such owner, current owner, vendee or lessee for the development
of any such real property, Middle Smithfield 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.
C. Penalties. Any violation of this chapter or the permit
requirements shall constitute grounds for imposition of any or all
of the following penalties:
(1) Revocation of the applicant's permit.
(2) The Township may block driveways or sever, remove
or block drainage facilities constructed without a permit or in violation
of this chapter.
(3) Such other action as may be deemed necessary or proper
after consultation with the Township Solicitor.
D. Any person who violates or permits a violation of
this chapter, upon being found liable therefor in a civil enforcement
proceeding, shall pay a fine of not more than $600, plus all court
costs, including reasonable attorney's fees, incurred by the Township
in the enforcement of this chapter. No judgment shall be imposed until
the date of the determination of the violation by the District Justice
and/or Court. 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 a violation exists shall constitute
a separate offense. Further, the appropriate officers or agents of
the Township are hereby authorized to seek equitable relief, including
injunction, to enforce compliance herewith.
[Amended 1-5-1998 by Ord. No. 84]
E. Right to take action. Nothing in this section shall
be construed or interpreted to grant to any person or entity other
than Middle Smithfield Township the right to commence any action for
enforcement pursuant to this section.
When there is a difference between the minimum
standards specified herein and those included in other Township ordinances
and/or regulations, the more stringent requirements shall apply.