[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Board of the
Town of Clarence 9-24-1997 by L.L. No. 6-1997.[1] Amendments noted where applicable.]
It is the purpose of this chapter to promote
the health, safety and general welfare of the inhabitants of the Town
of Clarence through the more efficient siting and regulation of manufactured
housing and manufactured home parks.
As used in this chapter, the following terms
shall have the meanings indicated:
The person appointed by the Town Board to carry out the regulations
of this chapter.
Any lot under single ownership on which 50 or more manufactured
homes are located regardless of whether or not rent is charged for
such lot accommodations.
Manufactured housing built on a chassis bearing a seal issued
by the Federal Department of Housing and Urban Development. A manufactured
home shall be construed to remain a manufactured home, subject to
all regulations applying thereto, whether or not wheels, axles, hitch
or other appurtenances of mobility are removed and regardless of the
nature of the foundation provided. All manufactured homes shall have
a minimum of 720 square feet of interior floor area. This definition
shall include single-wide and double-wide manufactured homes.
Shall include motor homes, truck campers and camping trailers
less than 48 feet in length, and/or less than 720 square feet of interior
floor area.
See "mobile home."
See "recreational vehicle."
A.
No manufactured home shall be located within the Town
except in a designated manufactured home park.
B.
A manufactured home park cannot be established or
created except upon a tract of land used or intended to be used for
the parking of at least 50 manufactured homes together with the necessary
improvements and facilities upon the land. No lot or berth shall be
rented or leased for residential uses of a manufactured home unless
it meets the requirements of applicable local codes and ordinances
and the state code for construction and installation of manufactured
homes. In general, manufactured home parks shall:
(1)
Be located where orderly development of a manufactured
home park can be undertaken in harmony with development of the surrounding
area in terms of traffic generation, ease and safety of vehicular
access to and circulation within the park, safety of pedestrian movement,
location of structures, adequacy of off-street parking, placement
and sizing of sewage treatment and water supply systems and other
utilities, safety or fuel storage and supply, provision of open space,
recreation facilities or areas, delivery of services and adequacy
of landscaping and buffering.
(2)
Have generally level to gently rolling topography
over an area of sufficient size to allow development of the manufactured
home park without significant alterations or disturbance of existing
natural amenities or features such as stands of mature trees, stream
courses, shorelines, wetlands or bedrock outcroppings.
(3)
Be essentially free from adverse, unsafe or unhealthful
conditions including but not limited to flooding, ponding, poor drainage,
erosion, slumping or other soil instability, breeding areas for insects
or rodents, smoke, noise, odors, heat, glare or toxic or volatile
substances.
C.
Existing manufactured home parks.
(1)
Existing manufactured home parks designed and constructed
prior to adoption of the present standards shall be permitted to remain.
(2)
Any enlargement to a manufactured home park must meet
all current standards, as herein described, at the time of its enlargement.
(3)
If existing areas of a manufactured home park are
redesigned, or more than 15% of the mobile home sites are redesigned,
the existing portion of the manufactured home park must be modified
to meet current standards.
D.
Restrictions on occupancy. All manufactured homes
shall meet the following requirements:
(1)
No manufactured home shall be allowed unless it bears
a date plate and a manufacturer's label, affixed in the manufacturing
facility, which certifies that it is in compliance with the Federal
Department of Housing and Urban Development manufactured home construction
and safety standards in force at the time of manufacture.
(2)
Every manufactured home shall be installed according
to and in conformity with the New York State Uniform Fire Prevention
and Building Code.
E.
Park standards. The following standards shall be applicable
in all manufactured home parks.
(1)
Each manufactured home park shall be divided (exclusive
of internal roads, open space or common areas) and marked off into
mobile home sites, the number being conspicuously posted on each lot
with such number to correspond to the lot shown on the site plan submitted.
(2)
Each manufactured home site shall satisfy the following
requirements:
(a)
Minimum site size shall be 7,500 square feet.
In special cases, where innovative park design provides clustering
and allows for wide roads or a greater amount of usable recreation
area or open space, exceptions may be granted. In no case, however,
shall the site area be reduced below 5,000 square feet.
(b)
Minimum site width shall be 75 feet. Where exceptions have been made as provided in Subsection E(2)(a), minimum site width shall be 50 feet.
(c)
One of the lot lines must have a minimum length
of 100 feet; this may be either the depth or width of the site, depending
upon the approved design and layout.
[Amended 5-23-2001 by L.L. No. 2-2001]
(3)
Setbacks and spacing.
(a)
All manufactured homes, including expansions,
extensions or other additions thereto, patios, porches or garages
and all other structures in a manufactured home park; shall satisfy
the following setback requirements. A detached structure accessory
to and located on the same site with an individual manufactured home
shall be considered part of the manufactured home for the purpose
of spacing requirements.
[1]
A minimum of 150 feet from the road line of
any public road.
[2]
A minimum of 30 feet from the center line of
any roadway internal to the manufactured home park.
[3]
A minimum of 25 feet spacing between adjacent
manufactured homes and any other structures in the mobile home park.
[4]
A minimum of 10 feet from the rear site lines.
(b)
When individual home site size reduction is
employed to preserve open space within the park, the following setback
requirements shall be met. All manufactured homes, including expansions,
extensions or other additions thereto, patios, porches or garages
shall satisfy the following setback requirements:
[Amended 5-23-2001 by L.L. No. 2-2001]
[1]
Minimum of 150 feet from the road line of any
public road.
[2]
Minimum of 30 feet from the center line of any
internal roadway. A four-foot-wide landing area may extend into the
required setback area, provided that the maximum square footage of
such landing shall not exceed 24 square feet.
[3]
A minimum of twenty-five-foot spacing between
adjacent manufactured homes. A four-foot-wide landing area may extend
into required setback, provided that the maximum square footage of
such landing shall not exceed 24 square feet.
[4]
Minimum of 10 feet from the rear site lines.
(c)
No internal roadway, parking lot or storage
facility for fuels, supplies or equipment shall be located within
50 feet of a property line in common with adjoining property external
to the manufactured home park and abutting a public roadway.
[Added 5-23-2001 by L.L. No. 2-2001]
[1]
A manufactured home park shall be surrounded
by a landscaped greenbelt of at least 50 feet from each property line.
The required greenbelt shall not be included in the yard requirements
for the individual manufactured home lot berth.
(4)
Commercial component. A minimum of 50% of the property shall be committed
to commercial uses.
[Added 8-22-2018 by L.L. No. 6-2018]
(a)
Part or all of the required commercial component may be preserved
as open space for later commercial development. Upon recommendation
of the Planning Board, the Town Board will designate the area of the
development that is to be reserved for commercial use as open space
at the time of the approval.
(b)
The land dedicated to the commercial component shall front the
public right-of-way, and where appropriate, connectivity and integration
shall be provided between the commercial and residential component.
(c)
All manufactured housing parks shall have pedestrian connectivity
integrating the site with its surrounding environment. Where appropriate,
sidewalks or recreational trails shall be created, extended and connected
to existing or planned off-site sidewalks or trails.
F.
Park design requirements.
(1)
Access. Each manufactured home park shall provide
for safe, legal means of access from one or more public roads as follows:
(a)
Access roads shall meet the public roads at
right angles and at compatible grades.
(b)
Entrances shall be located directly opposite
or at least 200 feet from the nearest intersection of public roads,
if any, and at least 150 feet from any other entrances to the manufactured
home park, if any.
(c)
Entrances shall have sufficient width to allow
reasonable turning movements of vehicles with manufactured homes attached
and of service or delivery vehicles.
(d)
Entrances shall be located to allow safe line-of-sight
distances to and from their points of intersection with public roads.
(e)
At least two independent entrances and access
roads shall be required to serve all manufactured home parks.
(f)
Access roads connecting manufactured home park
interior roads to public roads shall meet Town road standards as approved
by the Town Highway Superintendent.
(2)
Internal roads.
(a)
Internal roads shall be privately owned and
maintained and shall provide for the safe and convenient movement
of vehicles, with or without manufactured homes attached.
(b)
All manufactured home sites shall face on and
be serviced by such internal roads.
(c)
All roads shall be paved and shall be designed,
graded and leveled as to permit the safe passage of emergency and
other vehicles at a speed of 10 miles per hour.
(d)
Straight, uniform gridiron road patterns should
be avoided. Manufactured home clustering, landscaping and an open
space system is recommended where feasible.
(e)
Culs-de-sac shall be provided in lieu of closed-end
roads with a turnaround having an outside roadway character of at
least 90 feet.
(f)
All internal roads shall have a minimum thirty-foot
right-of-way, 20 feet of which must be paved.
(3)
Parking.
(a)
Each manufactured home shall be provided with
at least two off-street parking spaces adjacent to the manufactured
home.
(b)
At least one additional off-street parking space
for each three manufactured homes in the manufactured home park shall
be provided to accommodate guest parking, service or delivery vehicles,
boat or camp trailer storage or other parking or storage demand. Such
spaces shall be in centrally located parking areas without interfering
with the traffic circulation of internal roads.
(c)
Each parking space shall measure at least eight
feet by 20 feet.
(d)
Parking spaces or areas shall have at least
eight inches of crushed stone base or two inches of pavement over
four inches of crushed stone base.
(4)
Recreational areas and open space. Easily accessible
and usable open spaces shall be provided in all manufactured home
parks. Such open space shall have a total area equal to at least 15%
of the gross land area of the park and shall be fully maintained by
the park owner. Part or all of such space shall be in the form of
developed recreation areas to be usable for active recreation purposes.
(5)
Walkways. A four-foot-wide hard surfaced pedestrian
walkway may be provided along and at least five feet from each access
road between the entrance to the public highway and either:
(6)
Water supply. An adequate supply of water shall be
provided for all manufactured homes and service buildings. Where public
water is available, connection shall be used exclusively, unless local
authorities deem otherwise. If a public water system is not available,
the development of a private water supply system shall be approved
by the Erie County Health Department. Fire hydrants shall be located
at least within 500 feet of all manufactured homes, service buildings
or accessory structures.
(7)
Sewage. Manufactured housing parks will only be allowed on properties
with public sewer access as approved by the Town Board.
[Amended 8-22-2018 by L.L. No.
6-2018]
(8)
Garbage and refuse. Garbage and refuse must be properly
disposed of in a timely manner. It shall be the responsibility of
the park owner to ensure that garbage and rubbish shall be collected
and properly disposed of outside of the manufactured home park. Exterior
property areas shall be maintained free from organic and inorganic
material that might become a health, accident or fire hazard.
(9)
Fuel supply and storage.
(a)
In general, all fuel oil supply systems provided
for mobile homes, service buildings and other structures shall be
installed and maintained in conformity with the rules and regulations
of the authority having jurisdiction.
(b)
Specific requirements:
[1]
Fuel oil.
[a]
All fuel oil tanks shall be placed
at the rear of manufactured homes and not located less than five feet
from an exit.
[b]
It is recommended that all fuel
oil tanks be buried.
[c]
It is recommended that a central
fuel supply system be provided.
[d]
Supports or standards for fuel
storage tanks are to be of a noncombustible material.
[2]
Natural gas.
[a]
Natural gas piping systems installed
in manufactured home parks shall be maintained in conformity with
accepted engineering practices.
[b]
Each manufactured home lot provided
with piped natural gas shall have an approved shutoff valve and cap
to prevent accidental discharge of gas.
[c]
Gas piping systems shall be installed
and maintained in accordance with the local gas supply companies'
specifications and regulations.
[3]
Liquefied gas.
[a]
Such systems shall be provided
with safety devices to relieve excessive pressures and shall be arranged
so that the discharge terminates at a safe location.
[b]
Systems shall have at least one
accessible means for shutting off gas. This means it shall be located
outside of the individual manufactured homes.
[c]
All liquid propane gas piping shall
be well supported and protected against mechanical injury.
[d]
Storage tanks shall not be less
than 100 pounds and must be located at the rear of manufactured homes
and no closer than five feet from any exit.
[e]
It is recommended that a central
underground gas storage system be furnished.
(10)
Electrical service.
(a)
Every manufactured home park shall contain an
electrical wiring system consisting of wiring, fixtures, equipment
and appurtenances which shall be installed and maintained in accordance
with local electrical power companies' specifications and regulations.
All wiring fixtures must have the New York Board of Fire Underwriters'
approval or other authority as designated by the Town.
(b)
Each manufactured home stand shall be supplied
with not less than 100 ampere service.
(c)
Adequate lights shall be provided to illuminate
streets, driveways and walkways for safe movement of vehicles and
pedestrians at night. A minimum lighting level of 0.3 footcandles
shall be provided.
(d)
All electrical distribution lines shall be placed
underground.
(11)
Telephone service. When telephone service is
provided to manufactured home sites, the distribution system shall
be placed underground.
(12)
Park office and storage facilities. The owner
or manager of a park shall maintain office and storage facilities
in the immediate vicinity of the park.
(13)
Storage facilities. Each manufactured home park
shall provide a maximum one-hundred-twenty-square-foot storage shed
per housing site. Such facilities shall be located so as to meet a
five-foot setback from side and rear site property lines on individual
housing sites.
[Amended 5-23-2001 by L.L. No. 2-2001]
(14)
Service buildings.
(a)
Shall provide bathroom facilities in accordance
with new State Building Codes based on size and occupancy of the service
building.
[Amended 5-23-2001 by L.L. No. 2-2001]
(b)
All service buildings and grounds of the manufactured
home park shall be well lighted and maintained in a clean, sightly
condition and kept free of any condition that will menace the health
of any occupant or the public or constitute a nuisance.
(15)
Fire protection and control. Every manufactured
home park shall be equipped at all times with fire extinguishing equipment
in good working order, of such type, size and number so located within
the park as to satisfy applicable regulations of the fire district
within which the manufactured home park is located.
(16)
Soil and ground cover requirement. Exposed ground
surfaces in all parts of every manufactured home park shall be paved
or covered with stone screenings or other solid material, or protected
with a vegetative growth that is capable of preventing soil erosion
and of eliminating objectionable dust.
A.
It shall be unlawful for any person to construct,
alter or extend any manufactured home park unless he holds a valid
permit issued by the Town Board in the name of the person for which
the specific construction, alteration or extension is proposed. This
section does not apply to the replacement of manufactured homes in
a manufactured home park already in existence at the time of adoption
of this chapter.
B.
All applications for permits shall be made to the
Town Board and shall contain the following:
(1)
The name and address of the applicant.
(2)
Interest of the applicant in the manufactured home
park.
(3)
The location and legal description of the manufactured
home park, including a map showing the physical characteristics of
the property (i.e., topography, vegetation and wetlands).
(4)
Complete plans and specifications of the proposed
park showing:
(a)
The area and dimensions of the tract of land.
(b)
The number, location and size of all manufactured
home lots.
(c)
The locations and size of service buildings
and other proposed structures.
(d)
The location and width of roadways and walkways.
(e)
The location and size of water and sewer lines
and riser pipes.
(f)
Plans and specifications for all buildings constructed
within the manufactured home park.
(g)
Plans and specifications of the water supply,
refuse disposal and sewer disposal facilities.
(h)
Proposed lighting and electrical systems.
(i)
The phasing of the development, if any.
(j)
Any and all information as may be required by
the Town Board, Planning Board and Engineer.
C.
All applications shall be accompanied by a fee as
set by the Town Board. The Town Board, upon review by the Planning
Board and Town Engineer, whose fee shall be paid by the developer,
shall approve, approve with modifications or disapprove such application
and shall report its reasoned decision to the applicant. When, upon
review of the application, the Town Board and Building Inspector are
satisfied that the proposed plan meets the requirements of this chapter,
a permit shall be issued.
D.
Public improvements. No improvements shall be installed or constructed until a public improvement permit therefor has been obtained per Chapter 121, Public and Private Improvements, of the Code of the Town of Clarence.
E.
Stop-work order. A stop-work order may be issued by
the Building Inspector, requiring that all construction stop immediately,
if construction of improvements is not as approved in the permit process.
Any person, partnership, association or corporation
being the owner or occupant of any land within the Town of Clarence
shall not use or allow the use of such land for a manufactured home
park unless a license has been obtained as herein provided.
A.
Issuance of license. The Town Clerk of the Town of
Clarence shall issue a license to be effective from the day of issuance
to and including December 31 of that same year. This license will
be issued upon approval of the Town Board only after receipt of the
following items:
(1)
A written application, verified by the applicant,
identifying the owner or owners of the manufactured home park and
a contact person.
(2)
Approval of the Erie County Health Department for
the manufactured home park operation.
(3)
The required fee as established by the Town Board.
(4)
Approval by the Town Building Inspector and/or Town
Planning and Zoning Office.
B.
Original license. In addition to the above requirements, applications for original licenses shall contain the location and legal description of the manufactured home park; and a site plan showing all manufactured home lots, structures, roads, walkways and other service facilities per § 135-4 of this chapter.
C.
License renewal. An application for the renewal of
any manufactured home park license issued in accordance with the provisions
of this chapter must be filed with the Town Clerk on or before December
1 preceding the expiration of the license. The renewal application
need not be accompanied by a plan of the park unless changes have
been made to it.
D.
Revocation of license.
(1)
Whenever the Building Inspector finds a violation of any provision of this chapter, a written notice shall be issued. Such notice shall state the violation and specify a time period within which corrections must be made. Procedures as described in § 135-8 shall be followed for all suspected violations.
(2)
Any manufactured home park operator found guilty of
a violation at the manufactured home park may have his/her operating
license revoked.
E.
Relicensing. If the owner or operator of a manufactured home park whose license has been revoked under § 135-5D shall thereafter correct such conditions and bring the manufactured home park into compliance with this chapter, such owner may then apply for the issuance of a new license under § 135-5A of this chapter. If the application is approved by the Town Board and a license granted, the applicant shall pay to the Town Clerk the required fee without any credit for the fee paid for the license which was revoked.
The Building Inspector shall make any inspections
that are necessary to determine satisfactory compliance with this
chapter and regulations issued hereunder and any other applicable
laws. The Building Inspector shall have authority to inspect the register
containing a record of all residents of the manufactured home park.
A.
Responsibilities of park management.
(1)
The manufactured home park licensee shall operate
the park in compliance with this chapter and regulations issued hereunder
and shall provide adequate supervision to maintain the park, its facilities
and equipment in good repair and in a clean and sanitary condition.
(a)
Any applicable state laws must be adhered to
and uniformly applied concerning management and operation of the manufactured
home park.
(b)
All service and out buildings shall be maintained
so as to meet applicable building codes as well as maintained in good
repair and in a clean and sanitary condition.
(c)
All abandoned homes shall be boarded up and
secured in a manner acceptable to the Building Inspector or removed
from the site.
(2)
It shall be the licensee's responsibility to notify
park occupants of all applicable provisions of this chapter and inform
them of their duties and responsibilities under this chapter and regulations
issued hereunder.
(3)
The licensee shall supervise the placement of each
manufactured home on its manufactured home stand which includes installing
all utility connections.
B.
Responsibilities of park occupancy.
(1)
The park occupant shall comply with all applicable
requirements of this chapter and regulations issued hereunder and
shall maintain his/her manufactured home lot, its facilities and equipment
in good repair and in a clean and sanitary condition.
(2)
The park occupant shall be responsible for proper
placement of his/her manufactured home on its stand and proper installation
of all utility connections in accordance with the instructions of
the park management.
C.
Restrictions on occupancy. A manufactured home shall
not be occupied for dwelling purposes unless it is properly placed
on a manufactured home support system and connected to water, sewage
and electrical facilities and receives a certificate of occupancy
from the Building Inspector for each new connection.
A.
Violation remedy procedures per Town Prosecution Manual.
(1)
Initiating a complaint. Whenever a violation of this
chapter occurs, the Building Inspector, a Town officer or an aggrieved
citizen may initiate a complaint.
(2)
Recording the complaint. The Building Inspector shall
proceed to properly record, file and investigate the complaint.
(3)
The Building Inspector shall obtain a verbal promise
by the violator to correct the violation within a specific time period.
(4)
Notice of violation. If the violation persists, the
violator shall be notified by certified mail as to the manner in which
he/she is in violation. The violator will have 10 days from the mailing
date to rectify the violation or remedy the situation.
(5)
Filing/service of appearance ticket. If the violation
persists, an appearance ticket shall be served to appear in local
court.
B.
Assessment of costs and expenses. The Town shall assess
all costs and expenses incurred by it in connection with securing
or repairing any unsafe conditions, which were reported and not remedied,
against the violator.
C.
Penalties. Any person, firm, partnership or corporation
convicted of a violation of this chapter shall be subject to a fine
not exceeding $250 for each day of said violation, if continuous.
