Unless the content otherwise requires, the following definitions
shall be used in the interpretation and construction of this chapter.
Words used in the present tense include the future; the singular number
shall include the plural and the plural the singular; the word "structure"
shall include the word "building"; the word "used" shall include "arranged,"
"designed," "constructed," "altered," "converted," "rented," "leased,"
or "intended to be used"; and the word "shall" is mandatory and not
optional.
[Amended 12-9-1996 by Ord. No. 11-1996; 3-16-1998 by Ord. No.
2-1998]
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the
meanings indicated:
The visible or otherwise apparent discontinuance of a nonconforming
use of a building or premises or the removal of the characteristic
equipment or furnishing used in the performance of a nonconforming
use without its replacement by similar equipment or furnishings or
the replacement of the nonconforming use or structure.
A durable, all-weather surface, other than a street, which
provides vehicular access from a street or public road to a lot, e.g.,
a driveway.
A use or structure subordinate to the principal use of a
building on the same lot and serving a purpose customarily incidental
to the use of the principal building.
A store or other commercial use which offers for retail sale,
rent or payment of admission shows, movies, tapes, books, magazines,
literature and objects of an explicitly sexual nature, the purchase
and possession of which is generally restricted to those over 18 as
its main, or predominant, stock-in-trade. This provision shall not
be construed to apply to an establishment when the explicit material
offered for sale constitutes only a small fraction of the inventory
of the establishment.
The use of land for agricultural purposes including farming,
dairying, pasturage, agriculture, horticulture, floriculture, viticulture
and animal and poultry husbandry and the accessory uses for packing,
treating or storing the produce; provided, however, that the operation
of any such accessory uses shall be secondary to that of normal agriculture
activities.
Includes soil preparation services; crop services; large
animal veterinary services; animal services; farm labor management
services; farm product warehousing and storage; refrigerated warehousing
and storage; interior storage of boats, automobiles, motor homes,
airplanes or heavy equipment within barns or accessory farm buildings
which were in existence as of the effective date of this chapter;
seed and related agricultural supply stores; lawn and garden supply
stores and tack shops.
All facilities for the storage, maintenance, takeoff and
landing of the aircraft.
A corridor used for access within a parking lot by motor
vehicles to the parking space.
See "street."
Any change or revision of the text of this chapter or the
Official Zoning Map.
A building used by a veterinarian for the treatment, housing
or boarding of small domestic animals such as dogs, cats, rabbits,
birds and foul.
A group of two or more buildings occupying a lot in single
ownership with each building used by three or more families.
Defined in § 107 of the Pennsylvania Municipalities
Planning Code, 53 P.S. § 10107.
Defined in § 107 of the Pennsylvania Municipalities
Planning Code.
Defined in § 107 of the Pennsylvania Municipalities
Planning Code.
Defined in § 107 of the Pennsylvania Municipalities
Planning Code.
The use of land and structures for the storage, bailing,
packing, sorting, handling, disassembling, purchase or sale of any
material which has been used, salvaged, scrapped or reclaimed but
is capable of being reused in some form, including metals, fiber,
paper, cloth and rags, rubber, rope, bottles, machinery, tools, appliances,
fixtures, utensils, lumber, boxes, crates, pipe and pipe fittings,
tires, motor vehicles which do not have a current and valid inspection
sticker as required by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, and motor
vehicle parts, but not including garbage or other organic wastes.
An open space area, other than a street, used for the display,
sale or rental of new or used motor vehicles which are in operable
condition and where no major repair work is done.
A building or place of business where gasoline, and possibly
oil and greases, batteries, tires and automobile accessories are supplied
and dispersed directly to the motor vehicle trade, at retail, and
where repair service may be rendered. (See also "garage, repair.")
The water surface elevation of the flood level that has a
one-percent or greater chance of occurrence in any given year.
That portion of a building partly underground but having
less than 1/2 of its clear height below the average lot grade. A basement
shall be counted as a story for the purpose of height measurement
if the vertical distance between the ceiling and the average level
of the adjoining ground is more than five feet in height or if is
used for business or dwelling purposes.
A house, or portion thereof, where short-term lodging rooms
and meals are provided. The operator of the inn shall live on the
premises or in adjacent premises.
The Zoning Hearing Board of Potter Township.
The Board of Supervisors of the Township of Potter, Centre
County, Pennsylvania.
A line marking the limit, or border, of a lot or district.
A buffer strip is an open space of ground containing no man-made
structures (except signs as permitted by the sign regulations and
fences) which acts as a barrier to noise and visibility. Buffer strips
shall be assigned to meet specific dimensions provided under the provisions
of this chapter.
That portion of a lot bounded by the required front, side
and rear yards and/or setbacks.
Any structure having a roof supported by columns or walls
used for the shelter, housing or enclosure of persons, animals or
property.
A subordinate building or a portion of the main building
on a lot, the use of which is customarily incidental to that of the
main or principal building.
That percentage of the plot of land area covered by the principal
and accessory buildings (including covered porches, carports and breezeways
but excluding open patios).
The vertical distance measured from the average level of
the ground surrounding the building to a point midway between the
highest and lowest point of the roof but not including chimneys, spires,
towers, tanks and similar projections.
A line parallel to the street line located at a distance
which is equal to the front yard setback requirement for the district
in which the lot is located.[1]
A structure in which the principal use of the site is conducted.
In the residential district, a dwelling shall be deemed to be a principal
building.
The line within a lot defining the required minimum setback
distance between any structure and the adjacent street line.[2]
The use of land and structures by campers for seasonal, recreational
and temporary living purposes in cabins, tents or outdoor recreational
vehicles.
A tract or tracts of land, or any portion thereof, used for
the purpose of providing a space or spaces for trailers or tents or
camping purposes, with or without a fee charged for the renting or
occupancy of such space.
The portion of a street right-of-way designed or intended
for vehicular use.
A story partly underground and having more than 1/2 of its
clear height below the average level of the adjoining ground. A cellar
shall not be considered in determining the permissible number of stories
or in measuring building height.
A line running parallel to and equidistant from both sides
of a street.
The County Conservation District, created under authority
of state law to administer soil and other conservation work within
Centre County, with the technical assistance of state and federal
agencies.
The use of land and structures for supervised day care of
six or more children.
The use of land and structures for religious worship, education
and related activities; includes chapels, cathedrals, temples, synagogues
and the like.
The use of land and structures by a nonprofit group which
is not operated for the purpose of trade or business, no part of the
earnings of which benefit any individual but which is operated for
social and community service activities among group members and their
guests.
A grouping together of lots with a minimum perimeter.
The use of land and structures for the manufacture and processing
of dairy products.
Defined in § 107 of the Pennsylvania Municipalities
Planning Code.[3]
The use of land or structures for social and community service
activities which are charitable, educational or religious in nature
and are for public rather than for private gain including recreational
programs, counseling services and human service agencies and programs.
A use permitted in certain districts, as provided for in, Article III which may only be authorized by the Potter Township Board of Supervisors as set forth in this chapter.
The construction, reconstruction, renovation, repair, extension,
expansion, alteration or relocation of a building or structure including
the placement of manufactured homes.
Small stores permitted in selected rural and residential
districts which retail food and beverages primarily to the immediately
surrounding population.
A one-family detached dwelling unit which is converted into
a two-family dwelling; provided, however, single-family mobile homes
shall not be included in this definition and may not be converted.
Centre County, Pennsylvania.
A curved curb connecting the tangents of two intersecting
curbs of streets or driveways.
A facility regularly used for the care of five or more young
children, whether or not a fee is charged for such care.
The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection.
Any existing or potential well site where such well is to
be used for the provision of potable water supply and which has been
identified by the official water survey, official map or other study
deemed acceptable by the Township Engineer.
Defined in § 107 of the Pennsylvania Municipalities
Planning Code.[4]
Any man-made change to improved or unimproved real estate
including, but not limited to, buildings or other structures, the
placement of mobile homes, mining, dredging, filling, grading, paving,
excavation or drilling operations.
Defined in § 107 of the Pennsylvania Municipalities
Planning Code.[5]
All land and watercourses located within designated boundaries
on the Official Zoning Map; a zoning district.
A temporary structure extending into a stream or other body
of water for the purpose of securing a boat or boats.
The use of land and structures in which goods or services
are dispensed directly to the patron while in a motor vehicle by any
means which eliminates the necessity for the patron to exit the motor
vehicle.
A corridor which provides motor vehicle access from a street
into or across a lot.
Any building, structure or other shelter designed for or
used exclusively as the residence or sleeping place of one or more
persons as provided hereafter:
DWELLING, ONE-FAMILY DETACHEDA detached building designed for or occupied exclusively by one family and shall include a mobile home.
[Amended 3-12-2001 by Ord. No. 2-2001]
DWELLING, TWO-FAMILY ATTACHEDAn attached or semidetached building where not more than two individual family or dwelling units are entirely separated by vertical walls or horizontal floors, unpierced except for access to the outside or to a common cellar.
DWELLING, MOBILE HOMEA transportable, single-family dwelling intended for permanent occupancy, office or place of assembly contained in one unit or in two units designed to be joined into one 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 is constructed so that it may be used without a permanent foundation.
DWELLING, MULTIFAMILYA building designed for occupancy by three or more families living independently of each other and containing three or more dwelling units. A multifamily housing development shall consist of more than one multifamily dwelling or structure.
DWELLING, TOWNHOUSEA single-family dwelling designed for or occupied by not more than one family and which as a portion of one or both of its side walls in common with adjoining dwellings (single-family attached structures). Townhouse buildings or dwellings shall be designed to appear in groups containing no less than three dwelling units. For purposes of this chapter, the provisions in § 220-57, Multifamily dwellings, shall apply where more than one townhouse dwelling is proposed.
Facilities for the distribution, but not the production,
of utility services, including gas, electric, steam, water, sewerage,
telephone and similar services. Local distribution lines that provide
retail essential services to individual retail customers that do not
require any additional rights-of-way or property of their own are
exempted.
[Amended 9-14-2020 by Ord. No. 01-2020]
One or more persons, related by blood, adoption or marriage,
living and cooking together as a single housekeeping unit, or a number
of persons living and cooking together as a single housekeeping unit
though not related by blood, adoption or marriage.[6]
The provision of care in accord with regulations of the appropriate
State agency(ies) for up to three mentally ill, retarded or disabled
children or adults or elderly persons in a dwelling unit by a provider
who resides in that unit.
The use of land and structures for one or more of the following:
the tilling of the land, the raising of crops, fruits and vegetables
and the raising and keeping of animals and plants; horticultural uses
related to the raising, propagating and selling of trees, shrubs,
flowers and other plant materials; forestry uses related to the harvesting
of lumber products.
Any establishment whose principal business is the sale of
food or beverages with rapid turnover to customers in a ready-to-consume
state for consumption either within the building or for carry-out
off the premises and whose design or principal method of operation
includes the following: foods and beverages are usually served in
disposable or edible containers; it is self-service, with customers
expected to clean up after themselves; and menus are posted.
A relatively flat or low land area adjoining a river, stream
or watercourse which is subject to partial or complete inundation.
Such flooding has a one-percent chance of occurring each year (i.e.,
is likely to occur once every 100 years).
An area subject to the unusual and rapid accumulation or runoff of surface waters from any source. (See also the Potter Township Floodplain Ordinance [Chapter 96].)
The designated area of a floodplain a shown on the community's flood boundary and floodway map required to carry and discharge flood waters of a one-hundred-year flood without cumulatively raising the flood elevation more than one foot at any point. (See also the Potter Township Floodplain Ordinance [Chapter 96].)
The sum of the gross usable area of all floors of a building
measured from the face of the exterior walls. Retail and service floor
area is that portion of the total floor area relegated to use by the
customer and employees to consummate retail sales and services including
display areas for goods but not including office space or storage
areas.
The portion of a lot boundary abutting a street.
An accessory building designed or used for the storage of
not more than four vehicles owned and used by the occupants of the
building to which it is accessory.
A building used primarily for making major repairs to motor
vehicles including overhauling, body work, refinishing and upholstering
as well as incidental servicing.
Defined in § 107 of the Pennsylvania Municipalities
Planning Code.[7]
The act of excavating and/or filling land for the purpose
of changing natural slope.
A partially or fully enclosed structure, permanent or temporary,
which is used for the growth of plants.
A dwelling unit in which care and residence are provided
in accord with regulations of the appropriate state agency(ies) for
more than three and not more than eight nonadjudicated clients who
are dependent children or elderly, mentally ill, retarded or disabled
adults.
[Amended 3-12-2004 by Ord. No. 2-2001]
Any floor area within a dwelling unit that is usable for
living purposes including area for working, sleeping, eating, cooking
and recreation or a combination thereof. Living space shall not include
floor area used for storage such as closet, attic or unimproved basement
space.
A residence or community center in which social and community
service activities in accord with regulations of the appropriate state
agency(ies) are provided for no more than eight resident and an unlimited
number of nonresident alcoholics, drug addicts, emotionally disturbed
adults, former convicts or other adjudicated individuals.
A manufacturing or industrial operation that produces a substantial
amount of noise, smoke, odor, dust, vibration or glare or combination
thereof as a result of the operation of the activity. In many instances,
these emissions can be annoying or noxious to the general public,
even though they are within the limits set by the Department of Environmental
Protection.
The vertical distance of a structure measured from the mean
level of the ground surrounding the structure to its highest point,
regardless of roof design.[8]
A business or nonprofit establishment for the diagnosis,
treatment and other care of the general public through an organized
medical staff which is primarily engaged in providing in-patient care.
The establishment shall be licensed by the Pennsylvania Department
of Health and have as its mission the provision of acute care medical
and nursing services to injured, disabled, pregnant, diseased, sick
or mentally ill persons and/or the provision of rehabilitation services
for such persons and to provide further services which promote good
health and well-being of people.
A building used for seasonal and temporary living purposes
by persons engaged in hunting, fishing and similar recreational purposes.
Also called a "seasonal cottage" or "seasonal dwelling" or "summer
cottage."
An area planned for the integrated design of two or more
primary industrial uses and structures on a lot held in single ownership.
That portion of the national system of interstate highways
located with the commonwealth as officially designated or as may be
hereafter designated by the State and/or Federal Departments of Transportation.
Any used or discarded material including, but not limited
to, wastepaper, rags, metal, glass, building materials, house furnishings,
machinery, vehicles or parts thereof, with or without the dismantling,
processing, salvaging, sale or other use or disposition of the same.
An area of land, with or without buildings, utilized for
the collection, storage, warehousing and/or sale of used and discarded
materials which shall include, but not be limited to, wastepaper,
rags, scrap metal, glass, building materials, house furnishings or
for the collecting, dismantling, storage and salvaging of machinery
or vehicles not in running condition and/or for the sale or parts
thereof. A junkyard may exist with or without the actual dismantling,
processing salvage, sale or other use or disposition of the above-mentioned
items. A junkyard, a defined herein, may also include an automotive
dismantling and recycling facility.
Defined in § 107 of the Pennsylvania Municipalities
Planning Code.[9]
Defined in § 107 of the Pennsylvania Municipalities
Planning Code.[10]
A manufacturing or industrial operation that produces a negligible
amount of noise, smoke, odor, dust vibration or glare as a result
of operation of the activity.
The portion of the floor area of a dwelling relegated to
use for residential purposes but excluding crawl spaces, garages,
carports, breezeways, attics or portions thereof with clear ceiling
heights of less than five feet, open porches, balconies, terraces
and accessory structures.
A tract or parcel of land intended for transfer of ownership,
use or improvement; land which is shown as a separate parcel on records
of Centre County.[11]
LOT AREAThe computed area contained within the lot lines.
LOT CORNERA lot abutting upon two or more streets at their intersection or upon two parts of the same street forming an interior angle of less than 135°.
LOT, DEPTHThe mean horizontal distance between the front and rear lot lines.
LOT LINESThe property lines bounding the lot.
LOT LINE, FRONTThe line separating the lot from a street.
LOT LINE, REARThe lot line opposite and most distant from the front lot line.
LOT LINE, SIDEAny lot line other than a front or rear lot line, a side lot line separating a lot from a street is called a side street lot line.
LOT LINE, STREETA lot line separating the lot line from street.
Any lot which individually or as part of a subdivision has
been recorded in the office of the Centre County Recorder or Deeds.
A workshop, manufacturing plant or industrial facility where
work is machined, repaired or rebuilt. For the purposes of this chapter,
machine shops shall include, but not be limited to the following types
of operations: automotive engine rebuilding, tool and die making and
similar activities.
A structure, transportable in one or more sections, which
is built on a permanent chassis and is designed for use with or without
a permanent foundation when connected to the required utilities. The
term includes park trailers, travel trailers, recreational and other
similar vehicles placed on a site for more than 180 consecutive days.
A parcel (or contiguous parcels) if land which has been planned
and improved for the placement of two or more manufactured homes.
The act of producing or preparing finished products or goods
from raw materials through the repetitious use of an established or
set process.
The fair market price of a structure or property as determined
by an appraiser or insurance adjuster; the price at which both buyer
and seller are willing to do business.
Defined in § 107 of the Pennsylvania Municipalities
Planning Code.[13]
Includes, but is not limited to, anthracite and bituminous
coal, lignite, limestone and dolomite, sand, gravel, rock stone, earth,
slag, ore, vermiculite, clay and other mineral resources.
The extraction of mineral from the earth or waste or stockpiles
of from pits or banks including, but not limited to, strip, drift,
auger and open pit mining, dredging, quarrying, leaching, mountaintop
removal, box cutting and activities related thereto.
The use of land for the purpose of extracting rocks and minerals
for sale, exclusive of grading a lot preparatory to the construction
of a structure for which a zoning permit has been issued.
A transportable, single-family dwelling intended for permanent
occupancy, office or place of assembly contained in one unit or in
two unit designed to be joined into one 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 is constructed so that it may be used
without a permanent foundation.
A parcel of land under single ownership which has been planned
for the placement of two or more mobile homes, appurtenant structures
or additions.
A series of attached or semiattached dwelling structures
which are designed to provide sleeping accommodations for automobile
transients or overnight guests.
Defined in § 107 of the Pennsylvania Municipalities
Planning Code.[14]
Potter Township, Centre County, Pennsylvania.
The construction, reconstruction, renovation, repair, extension,
expansion, alteration, location or relocation of a building (including
mobile homes), structure and/or improvements (such as street utilities,
etc.).
A business or commercial activity administered or conducted
as an accessory use which is clearly secondary to the use as a residential
dwelling and which involves no customer, client or patient traffic,
whether vehicular or pedestrian, pickup, delivery or removal functions
to or from the premises, in excess of those normally associated with
residential use. The business or commercial activity must satisfy
the following requirements:[15]
The business activity shall be compatible with the residential
use of the property and surrounding residential uses.
The business shall employ no employees other than family members
residing in the dwelling.
There shall be no display or sale of retail goods and no stockpiling
or inventory of a substantial nature.
There shall be no outside appearance of a business use, including,
but not limited to, parking, signs or lights.
The business activity may not use any equipment or process which
creates noise, vibration, glare, fumes, odors or electrical or electronic
interference, including interference with radio or television reception,
which is detectable in the neighborhood.
The business activity may not generate any solid waste or sewage
discharge in volume or type which is not normally associated with
residential use in the neighborhood.
The business activity shall be conducted only within the dwelling
and may not occupy more than 25% of the habitable floor area.
The business may not involve any illegal activity.
Defined in § 107 of the Pennsylvania Municipalities
Planning Code.[16]
Defined in § 107 of the Pennsylvania Municipalities
Planning Code.[17]
Defined in § 107 of the Pennsylvania Municipalities
Planning Code.[18]
Any premises with sleeping rooms where elderly or otherwise
infirm persons are lodged and furnished with meals and/or nursing
care.
Any dam, wharf, embankment, levee, dike, pile, abutment,
projection, excavation, channel, rectification, bridge, conduit, culvert,
building, wire fence, rock gravel, refuse, fill, structure or matter
in, along, across or projecting into any channel, watercourse, floodplain
or regulatory flood hazard area which may impeded, retard or change
the direction of the flow of water or that is placed where the flow
of water might carry the same downstream to the damage of life or
property.
Defined in § 107 of the Pennsylvania Municipalities
Planning Code.[19]
The map setting forth the boundaries of the zoning districts
of this chapter and adopted by the Board of Supervisors of the Township.
A sanitary sewage collection system in which sewage is carried
from individual lots by a system of pipes to a central treatment and
disposal plant.
A space not located within any street right-of-way used by
motor vehicles for the temporary storage of trucks and other commercial
vehicles while loading and unloading merchandise or materials.
A space not located within any street right-of-way used by
motor vehicles for the temporary storage of one motor vehicle.
A sanitary sewage disposal system in which sewage is treated
and discharged on the same lot at the use which it serves.
A flood that, on the average, is likely to occur every 100
years (i.e., that has a one-percent chance of occurring each year,
although the flood may occur in any year).
A space not occupied by a structure, open to the sky and
on the same lot with the building or structure.
A row of parking spaces abutting one another along the length
of each space.
A facility providing off-street parking for five or more
motor vehicles.
A comprehensive inventory of existing facilities, services,
land uses, etc., for Potter Township and a detailed analysis of the
community's future needs and its projected goals and objectives.[20]
Act of 1968, July 31, P.L. 805, as amended and reenacted,
Act of 1988, December 21, P.L. 1329 (53 P.S. § 10101 et
seq.).
Any premises in which food, shelter and personal assistance
or supervision are provided for a period exceeding 24 consecutive
hours for four to eight adults 55 years of age or older who are not
relatives of the operator and who require assistance or supervision
in such matters as dressing, bathing, diet or medication prescribed
for self-administration but do not require hospitalization or care
in a skilled nursing or intermediate care facility. Such personal
care boarding home shall be licensed by the Department of Public Welfare
of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
An area of land, controlled by a landowner(s), to be developed
as a single entity for a number of retail businesses, the development
plan for which does not necessarily correspond in lot size, bulk or
type of commercial establishment, density, lot coverage and required
open space to the regulations established in the general commercial
district.
A group of industries planned and developed specifically
for the site upon which they are to be built and owned as a unit.
The development plan for this type of activity will not necessarily
correspond to the lot, yard or open space requirements established
for their uses in the industrial district.
Defined in § 107 of the Pennsylvania Municipalities
Planning Code.[21]
Defined in § 107 of the Pennsylvania Municipalities
Planning Code.[22]
The Planning Commission of Potter Township.
For purposes of this chapter, a pond shall be defined as
a water embankment made by construction of a dam or embankment or
by excavating a pit or dugout. This definition does not include retention
and detention basins/ponds which are governed by soil conservation
and for the purpose of stormwater management.
[Amended 3-12-2001 by Ord. No. 2-2001]
Any lot and any structure constructed thereon.
That portion of connected main highways located within the
commonwealth as officially designated or as may be hereafter so designated
by the state and/or Federal Departments of Transportation.
At least 51% of the actual cash value of the structure is
above ground.
Not publicly owned, operated or controlled.
A park which provides outdoor recreational enjoyment and
activity for members of the organization which owns the facility or
to the general public or a fee basis. A private park may also include
buildings and accessory structures.
Owned, operated or controlled by a governmental unit or a
governmental agency.
Defined in § 107 of the Pennsylvania Municipalities
Planning Code.[23]
Notice published once each week for two consecutive weeks
in a newspaper of general circulation in the Township. Such notice
shall state the date, time and place of the hearing and the particular
nature of the matter to be considered. The first publication shall
be not more than 30 days nor less than 14 days from the date of the
hearing and the second publication shall be not less than seven days
prior to the hearing date.
A system designed to treat the sewage wastes of more than
one structure and which discharges the resultant outflow into a stream
or other body of water. Such a system must be designed in accordance
with DEP standards and by permitted by the Bureau of Water Quality
of the Department of Environmental Protection. These systems shall
include Township treatment facilities as well as package treatment
plants installed by private developer.
For the purpose of this chapter, electric substations, automatic
telephone exchanges, micro-relay stations and the like (but excluding
public sewer and water facilities and radio and television transmitters
and towers) and any other public utility corporation when exempted
from the provisions of this chapter by state law.
A commercial establishment for the racing of animals or motor
vehicles.
These facilities shall include outdoor activities such as
golf courses and country clubs, riding academies and commercial stables,
parks, tennis courts, skiing facilities, primitive tent camp sites
and other similar uses.
A vehicle which is:
Built on a single chassis;
Four hundred square feet or less when measured at the largest
horizontal projections;
Designed to be self-propelled or permanently towable by a light-duty
truck; and
Designed primarily not for use as a permanent dwelling but as
temporary living quarters for recreation, camping, travel or seasonal
use.
Defined in § 107 of the Pennsylvania Municipalities
Planning Code.[24]
An establishment where horses are kept for riding or driving
or are stabled for compensation as part of a club, association, ranch
or similar establishment.
A corridor of land set aside for use, in whole or in part,
by a street.
See "bed-and-breakfast."
[Amended 3-12-2001 by Ord. No. 2-2001]
The surface water discharge or rate of discharge of a given
watershed after a fall of rain, snow or other form of precipitation
that does not enter the soil but runs off the surface of the land.
Any place offering instruction in any branch of knowledge
under the supervision of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania or lawfully
constituted ecclesiastical governing body, person, partnership or
corporation meeting the requirements of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
The provision of a barrier to visibility, glare and noise between adjacent properties composed of plant materials such as trees or shrubs which shall be of such species as will produce within three years a visual screen at least six feet in height. However, such plantings shall adhere to § 220-30 and shall be broken at points or vehicular or pedestrian access or utility easements.
A single-family detached dwelling used for seasonal and temporary
living purposes during any season by persons engaged in recreational
pursuits. Also called a summer cottage or hunting and fishing cabin.
Any structure designed and used for the purpose of renting
or leasing storage space to occupants who are to have access to such
for the purpose of storing and removing said property.
A group of two or more primary uses or structures used for
retail sales and service occupying a lot in single ownership.
Any surface, fabric, device or structure bearing lettering
or pictorial or sculpture matter designed for visual communication
or information and used for the purpose of bringing the subject thereof
to the attention of the public, not including any flag, badge or insignia
of a government.[25]
A facility for the care and treatment of household pets and
other small animals and which is climate controlled, served by public
sewer and water and which has no exterior or outside kennels or runs.
A facility for the production and distribution of electricity
involving the conversion of energy from sunlight into electricity.
[Added 9-14-2020 by Ord. No. 01-2020]
Land whose slope (surfaces at an angle to the plane of the
horizon) is 25% or more (a vertical difference of 25 feet or more
per 100 feet of horizontal difference).
A designed device, constructed or manufactured, used in a
soil or water conservation or management system to retain, regulate
or control the flow of water.
Defined in § 107 of the Pennsylvania Municipalities
Planning Code, 53 P.S. § 10107. The following terms used
therein are further defined for the purpose of this chapter as follows:
ALLEYA street, usually located to the rear or side of properties otherwise abutting a street used primarily for vehicular service access.
ARTERIAL STREETA major street with fast or heavy traffic of considerable continuity used primarily as a traffic artery connecting two or more neighborhoods or areas.
COLLECTOR STREETA major street which carries traffic from local streets to arterial streets.
LOCAL STREETAny street which is not defined herein as either an arterial or collector street.
The dividing line between a street and the lot; includes
right-of-way line and front lot line.
Any man-made object having an ascertainable stationary location
or in land or water which may or may not be affixed to the land.[26]
Defined in § 107 of the Pennsylvania Municipalities
Planning Code.[27]
Any repair, reconstruction or improvement of a structure,
the cost of which equals or exceeds 50% of the market value of the
structure either: before the improvement or repair is started; or
if the structure has been damaged and is being restored, before the
damage occurred. For purposes of this definition, "substantial improvement"
is considered to occur when the first alteration of any wall, ceiling,
floor or other structural part of the building commences, whether
or not that alteration affects the external dimensions of the structure.
The term does not include either: any project for improvement of a
structure to comply with existing state or local health, sanitary
or safety code specifications which are solely necessary to assure
safe living conditions; or any alteration of a structure listed on
the National Register of Historic Places or a state inventory of historic
places.
Defined in § 107 of the Pennsylvania Municipalities
Planning Code.[28]
See "mineral extraction operation."
A single-family detached dwelling used for seasonal and temporary
living purposes during any season by persons engaged in recreational
pursuits. Also known as "seasonal cottage," "seasonal dwelling" or
"hunting and fishing cabin."
A use or structure permitted for a fixed period of time with
the obligation and intent to discontinue the use, or dismantle the
structure, at the end of such time. Such uses do not involve the construction
or alteration of any permanent structure.
The use of land and structures which may contain an assembly
hall and studios with or without stage, which may be equipped with
curtains and permanent stage scenery or with mechanical equipment
adaptable, but not limited to, the showing of plays, operas, performances,
spectacles and similar forms of live or audio visual entertainment
and for instruction in the performing arts.
A single-family dwelling in which overnight accommodations
are provided as offered for transient guests for compensation and
where the provider of accommodations resides in the dwelling.
See "recreational vehicle."
A structure or group of structures owned and/or operated
by trucking firm(s) intended to be used for loading, unloading, storage
and/or transfer of truck-transported goods including truck maintenance
and fueling facilities.
The Board of Supervisors of Potter Township.
The specific purpose for which land or a building is designed,
arranged, intended or for which it is or may be occupied or maintained.
The term "permitted use" shall not be deemed to include any nonconforming
use. The term "primary use" is the principal use of a lot or structure.
The term "accessory use" is the use of land which is: customarily
incidental; and inferior, secondary and subordinate to the primary
use and located on the same lot with such unless specifically permitted
elsewhere herein.[29]
A modification of the literal provisions of this chapter
which the Zoning Hearing Board is permitted, but is not obligated
to grant when strict enforcement would cause undue hardship to an
individual property owner. (See 53 P.S. § 10910.2 for additional
details and criteria to be utilized when a variance is requested.)[30]
The use of the land and structure or part thereof which is
open to the general public and designed for the dissemination of information.
Such information may include, but shall not be limited to, exhibits,
maps, brochures, pamphlets and similar items.
Those areas that are inundated or saturated by surface or
groundwater 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. Wetlands
generally include swamps, marshes, bogs and similar acres.
An establishment or facility providing outdoor recreation
during the winter such as skiing, sledding and skating.
An open space which lies between the principal building or
group of buildings and the nearest lot line and is unoccupied and
unobstructed from the ground upward except as herein permitted. (Reasonable
plantings shall not be considered an obstruction hereunder.)
YARD, FRONTAn open space which lies between the principal building or group of buildings and the front lot lines, unoccupied and unobstructed from the ground upward.
YARD, REARAn open space extending the full width of the lot between a principal building and the rear lot line, unoccupied and unobstructed from the ground upward.
YARD, SIDEAn open space extending from the front yard to the rear yard between a principal building and the nearest side lot line, unoccupied and unobstructed from the ground upward.
The Zoning Hearing Board of Potter Township.
The Official Zoning Map of Potter Township, together with all references, notations and amendments which may subsequently be adopted. Said map is made a part of this chapter in § 220-10A.
The administrative officer charged with the duty of enforcing
the provisions of this chapter.
A permit stating that the purpose for which a building or
land is to be used is in conformity with the uses permitted and all
other requirements of this chapter for the district in which it is
to be located.
[1]
Editor's Note: Appendix E, Lot Diagrams, is included at the end of this chapter.
[2]
Editor's Note: Appendix E, Lot Diagrams, is included at the end of this chapter.
[3]
Editor's Note: See 53 P.S. § 10107.
[4]
Editor's Note: See 53 P.S. § 10107.
[5]
Editor's Note: See 53 P.S. § 10107.
[7]
Editor's Note: See 53 P.S. § 10107.
[8]
Editor's Note: The former definition of "home occupation,"
which immediately followed this definition, was repealed 3-1-2021 by Ord. No. 01-2021.
[9]
Editor's Note: See 53 P.S. § 10107.
[10]
Editor's Note: See 53 P.S. § 10107.
[11]
Editor's Note: Appendix E, Lot Diagrams, is included at the end of this chapter.
[13]
Editor's Note: See 53 P.S. § 10107.
[14]
Editor's Note: See 53 P.S. § 10107.
[16]
Editor's Note: See 53 P.S. § 10107.
[17]
Editor's Note: See 53 P.S. § 10107.
[18]
Editor's Note: See 53 P.S. § 10107.
[19]
Editor's Note: See 53 P.S. § 10107.
[21]
Editor's Note: See 53 P.S. § 10107.
[22]
Editor's Note: See 53 P.S. § 10107.
[23]
Editor's Note: See 53 P.S. § 10107.
[24]
Editor's Note: See 53 P.S. § 10107.
[27]
Editor's Note: See 53 P.S. § 10107.
[28]
Editor's Note: See 53 P.S. § 10107.
