Prior to approval by the Township, the applicant shall provide
a financial guarantee to the Township for the timely installation
and proper construction of all stormwater management BMPs as required
by this chapter equal to the full construction cost of the required
BMPs. Construction costs shall be reviewed and approved by the Township
Engineer prior to approval of project plan.
A.
The project plan required under § 280-14 shall contain an operation and maintenance plan prepared by the applicant and approved by the Township and the Westmoreland County Conservation District. The operation and maintenance plan shall outline required routine maintenance actions and schedules necessary to insure proper operation of the BMPs.
B.
The project plan for the development site shall establish responsibilities
for the continuing operating and maintenance of all proposed stormwater
BMPs, consistent with the following principals:
(1)
If a development consists of structures or lots which are to be separately
owned and in which streets, sewers and other public improvements are
to be dedicated to the Township, stormwater BMPs may also be dedicated
to and maintained by the Township, if the Township so desires.
(2)
If a development project is to be maintained in a single ownership
or if sewers and other public improvements are to be privately owned
and maintained, then the ownership and maintenance of stormwater BMPs
shall be the responsibility of the owner or private management entity.
C.
The Township, upon recommendation of the Township Engineer, shall
make the final determination on the continuing maintenance responsibilities
prior to final approval of the project plan. The Township reserves
the right to accept, or reject, the ownership and operating responsibility
for any or all of the stormwater management controls.
A.
Prior to final approval of the project plan, the applicant shall
sign a maintenance agreement covering all stormwater BMPs that are
to be privately owned. The agreement shall be in a form acceptable
to the Township and shall stipulate that:
(1)
The owner, successor and assigns shall maintain all facilities in
accordance with the approved maintenance schedule and shall keep all
facilities maintained in a safe and attractive manner.
(2)
The owner shall convey to the Township easements and/or rights-of-way,
as required, to assure access for periodic inspections by the Township
and maintenance, if required.
(3)
The owner shall keep on file with the Township the name, address
and telephone number of the person, association or company responsible
for maintenance activities; in the event of a change, new information
shall be submitted to the Township within 10 days of the change.
(4)
If the owner, successor or assign fails to maintain any stormwater
control BMP following due notice by the Township to correct the problem(s),
the Township may perform the necessary maintenance or corrective work
and shall take appropriate action to file a municipal claim pursuant
to the Pennsylvania Municipal Claims and Tax Liens Act, Act of May
16, 1923, P.L. 207, as amended and supplemented,[1] as a lien against the real property upon which the work
was performed.
[1]
Editor's Note: See 53 P.S. § 7101 et seq.
(5)
All stormwater BMPs that are to be privately owned shall have a description
of the facility and the terms of the required maintenance incorporated
as part of the deed to the property on any subsequent transfer, and
recorded with the County Recorder of Deeds.
B.
Other items may be included in the agreement where determined necessary
to guarantee the satisfactory maintenance of all stormwater BMPs.
The maintenance agreement shall be subject to the review and approval
of the Township Solicitor. A sample Maintenance Agreement has been
included in Appendix B.[2]
[2]
Editor's Note: Appendix B is included at the end of this chapter.
A.
Stormwater management easements shall be provided by the property
owner if necessary for: access for facility inspections and maintenance;
or preservation of stormwater runoff conveyance, infiltration, and
detention areas and facilities, including flood routes for the one-hundred-year
storm event. The purpose of the easement shall be specified in the
maintenance agreement signed by the property owner. Easements shall
include a description and ownership and maintenance program, in a
recordable form, that clearly sets forth maintenance responsibilities
for all temporary and permanent stormwater management facilities.
B.
Stormwater management easements are required for all areas used for
off-site stormwater control, unless a waiver is granted by the Township
Engineer.
C.
Access easements, a minimum of 20 feet wide, are required around
all stormwater BMPs that would provide ingress to and egress from
a public right-of-way.
D.
Easements shall be set forth on the plans for recording and recorded
with the County Recorder of Deeds prior to issuance of a building
permit or land development approval by the Township.
E.
All easements shall have a minimum width of 20 feet and shall be
adequately designed to provide sufficient area for:
A.
If stormwater BMPs are accepted by the Township for dedication, persons
installing stormwater storage BMPs shall be required to pay a specified
amount to the Township Stormwater Maintenance Fund to help defray
costs of periodic inspections and maintenance expenses. The amount
of the deposit shall be determined as follows:
(1)
If the BMP is to be owned and maintained by the Township, the deposit
shall cover the estimated costs for maintenance and inspections for
10 years. The Township Engineer will establish the estimated costs
utilizing information submitted by the applicant.
(2)
The amount of the deposit to the fund shall be converted to present
worth of the annual series values. The Township Engineer shall determine
the present worth equivalents, which shall be subject to the approval
of the Board of Supervisors.
B.
If a BMP is proposed that also serves as a recreation facility (e.g.,
ball field, lake), the Township may reduce or waive the amount of
the maintenance fund deposit based upon the value of the land for
public recreation purpose.
C.
If at some future time a BMP (whether publicly or privately owned)
is eliminated due to the installation of storm sewers or another BMP,
the unused portion of the maintenance fund deposit will be applied
to the cost of abandoning the facility and connecting to the storm
sewer system or other facility. Any amount of the deposit remaining
after the costs of abandonment are paid will be returned to the depositor.
