The Board of Supervisors may, from time to time, amend, supplement, change, modify or repeal this chapter or any part of this chapter, including the Official Zoning Map. When doing so, the Board of Supervisors shall proceed in the manner prescribed in this Part 13.
A.
General procedure. Proposals for amendment, supplement, change, modification,
or repeal of this chapter may be initiated by the Board of Supervisors,
by the Township Planning Commission, or by petition of one or more
owners of property to be affected by the proposed amendment, subject
to the following provisions:
(1)
Before voting on the enactment of an amendment, the Board of
Supervisors shall hold a public hearing thereon, pursuant to public
notice, and pursuant to mailed notice and electronic notice if applicable
per 53 P.S. § 10109. In addition, if the proposed amendment
involves an Official Zoning Map change, notice of said public hearing
shall be conspicuously posted by the Township at points deemed sufficient
by the Township along the perimeter of the tract to notify potentially
interested citizens. The affected tract or area shall be posted at
least one week prior to the date of the hearing.[1]
(a)
In addition to the requirement that notice be posted under Subsection A(1), where the proposed amendment involves an Official Zoning Map change, notice of the public hearing shall be mailed by the Township at least 30 days prior to the date of the hearing by first-class mail to the addresses to which real estate tax bills are sent for all real property located within the area being rezoned, as evidenced by tax records within the possession of the Township. The notice shall include the location, date and time of the public hearing. A good faith effort and substantial compliance shall satisfy the requirements of this section.
(2)
In the case of an amendment other than that prepared by the
Township Planning Commission, the Board of Supervisors shall submit
each such amendment to the Township Planning Commission at least 30
days prior to the hearing on such proposed amendment to provide the
Township Planning Commission an opportunity to submit recommendations.
(3)
If, after any public hearing held upon an amendment, the proposed
amendment is changed substantially, or is revised, to include land
previously not affected by it, the Board of Supervisors shall hold
another public hearing, pursuant to public notice, and mailed notice
and electronic notice if applicable, before proceeding to vote on
the amendment.[2]
(4)
At least 30 days prior to the public hearing on the amendment
by the Board of Supervisors, the Township shall submit the proposed
amendment to the York County Planning Commission for recommendations.
(5)
Within 30 days after the enactment, a copy of the amendment
to this chapter shall be forwarded to the York County Planning Commission.
B.
Publication and advertisement.
(1)
Proposed zoning ordinances and amendments shall not be enacted
unless notice of proposed enactment is given in the manner set forth
in this section, and shall include the time and place of the meeting
at which passage will be considered, a reference to a place within
the Township where copies of the proposed ordinance or amendment may
be examined without charge or obtained for a charge not greater than
the cost thereof. The Board of Supervisors shall publish the proposed
ordinance or amendment once in one newspaper of general circulation
in the municipality neither more than 60 days nor less than seven
days prior to passage. Publication of the proposed ordinance or amendment
shall include either the full text thereof or the title and a brief
summary, prepared by the Township Solicitor and setting forth all
the provisions in reasonable detail. If the full text is not included:
(a)
A copy thereof shall be supplied to a newspaper of general circulation
in the municipality at the time the public notice is published;
(b)
An attested copy of the proposed ordinance shall be filed in
the County Law Library or other County office designated by the York
County Commissioners, who may impose a fee no greater than that necessary
to cover the actual costs of storing said ordinances.
(3)
Zoning ordinances and amendments may be incorporated into official
ordinance books by reference with the same force and effect as if
duly recorded therein.
C.
Proposal originated by citizen petition. Owners of property in the
Township may, by petition, submit proposals for amendment, supplement,
change, modification or repeal of this chapter, subject to the procedures
outlined in this section.
A curative amendment may be initiated by either a landowner
or by the Board of Supervisors.
A.
Procedure for landowner curative amendments.
(1)
A landowner who desires to challenge on substantive grounds the validity of a zoning ordinance or map or any provision thereof, which prohibits or restricts the use or development of land in which he has an interest may submit a curative amendment to the Board of Supervisors with a written request that his challenge and proposed amendment be heard and decided as provided in this Part 13 and § 270-231.
(2)
The Board of Supervisors shall commence a hearing thereon within 60 days of the request as provided in this Part 13 and § 270-231. The curative amendment and challenge shall be referred to the Township and County Planning Commissions as provided in § 270-240A and notice of the hearing thereon shall be given as provided in §§ 270-231 and 270-240B.[1]
(3)
The hearing shall be conducted in accordance with § 270-229, and all references therein to the Zoning Hearing Board shall, for the purposes of this section, be referred to the Board of Supervisors. If the Board of Supervisors does not accept a landowner's curative amendment brought in accordance with this section and a court subsequently rules that the challenge has merit, the court's decision shall not result in a declaration of invalidity for this entire chapter and map, but only for those provisions which specifically relate to the landowner's curative amendment and challenge.
(4)
If the Board of Supervisors determines that a validity challenge
has merit, the Board of Supervisors may accept a landowner's curative
amendment, with or without revision, or may adopt an alternative amendment
that will cure the alleged defects. The Board of Supervisors shall
consider the curative amendments, plans and explanatory material submitted
by the landowner and shall also consider:
(a)
The impact of the proposal upon roads, sewer facilities, water
supplies, schools and other public service facilities.
(b)
If the proposal is for a residential use, the impact of the
proposal upon regional housing needs and the effectiveness of the
proposal in providing housing units of a type actually available to
and affordable by classes of persons otherwise unlawfully excluded
by the challenged provisions of the ordinance or map.
(c)
The suitability of the site for the intensity of use proposed
by the site's soils, slopes, woodlands, wetlands, floodplains, aquifers,
natural resources and other natural features.
(d)
The impact of the proposed use on the site's soils, slopes,
woodlands, wetlands, floodplains, natural resources and natural features,
the degree to which these are protected or destroyed, the tolerance
of the resources to development and any adverse environmental impacts.
(e)
The impact of the proposal on the preservation of agriculture
and other land uses which are essential to public health and welfare.
B.
Procedure for municipal curative amendments.
(1)
If the Board of Supervisors determines that this chapter or
any portion thereof is substantially invalid, the Board of Supervisors
shall declare, by formal action, this chapter or portions hereof substantively
invalid and propose to prepare a curative amendment to overcome such
invalidity. Within 30 days following such declaration and proposal,
the Board of Supervisors shall:
(2)
Within 180 days from the date of the declaration and proposal,
the Board of Supervisors shall enact a curative amendment to validate,
or reaffirm the validity of this chapter.
(3)
Upon initiation of the procedures as set forth in Subsection B(1), the Board of Supervisors shall not be required to entertain or consider any landowner's curative amendment filed under Subsection A, nor shall the Zoning Hearing Board be required to give a report requested under § 270-231 subsequent to the declaration and proposal based upon the grounds identical to or substantially similar to those specified in the resolution required by Subsection B(1)(a). Upon completion of the procedures as set forth in Subsection B(1) and (2), no rights to a cure shall, from the date of declaration and proposal, accrue to any landowner on the basis of the substantive invalidity of the unamended zoning ordinance for which there has been a curative amendment pursuant to this Part 13.
(4)
The Board of Supervisors having utilized the procedures as set forth in Subsection B(1) and (2) may not again utilize said procedure for a thirty-six-month period following the date of the enactment of a curative amendment, or reaffirmation of the validity of this chapter, pursuant to Subsection B(2); provided, however, if after the date of declaration and proposal there is a substantially new duty or obligation imposed upon the Township by virtue of a change in statute or by virtue of a Pennsylvania Appellate Court decision, the Township may utilize the provisions of this subsection to prepare a curative amendment to this chapter to fulfill said duty or obligation.
