A.
To permit, within specific conditions, creative, functional
and well-designed residential development as an alternative to conventional
lot layouts.
B.
The applicant shall have the burden of proof to prove
that the conditions of this article are met, to the satisfaction of
the Board of Commissioners.
C.
This article seeks to encourage affordable housing
by reduction in the costs of development by permitting layouts using
less street length and less length of curb, sidewalk and utility lines
and less grading.
D.
This article seeks to preserve environmentally sensitive
areas and hard-to-develop areas in open space.
E.
This article provides a method to allow usable recreation
land to be provided in a tract without reducing the amount of homes
that a developer can build.
B.
Minimum lot area reduction. If a single-family cluster
development under this article is duly approved, the following reductions
shall be allowed in the minimum lot area (measured in square feet)
for lots for single-family detached houses:
(1)
For lots served by both public water and public
sewer service:
|
Zoning District
|
Minimum Lot Area Under Conventional District
Regulations
(square feet)
|
Minimum Lot Area Under this Article
(square feet)
|
Minimum Percentage of the Tract in Common
Open Space Under this Article
| |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
CR
|
87,120
|
20,000
|
70%
| |
|
AG
|
43,560
|
20,000
|
30%
| |
|
RR
|
21,000
|
15,000
|
20%
| |
|
RR
|
21,000
|
See Subsection B(2)
| ||
|
LDR
|
15,000
|
12,000
|
15%
| |
|
MDR
|
10,000
|
9,000
|
10%
| |
|
MHDR
|
8,000
|
7,000
|
10%
|
(2)
For lots served by either public water or public
sewer service:
|
Zoning District
|
Minimum Lot Area Under Conventional District
Regulations
(square feet)
|
Minimum Lot Area Under this Article
(square feet)
|
Minimum Percentage of the Tract in Common
Open Space Under this Article
| |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
CR
|
87,120
|
43,560
|
50%
| |
|
AG
|
65,340
|
40,000
|
25%
| |
|
RR, LDR, MDR, MHDR
|
43,560
|
39,000 with public water service; 30,000 with
public sewage service
|
20%
|
(3)
For lots not served by either public water or
public sewer service:
|
Zoning District
|
Minimum Lot Area Under Conventional District
Regulations
|
Minimum Lot Area Under this Article
|
Minimum Percentage of the Tract in Common
Open Space Under this Article
| |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
CR
|
87,120
|
43,560
|
60%
| |
|
AG
|
87,120
|
43,560
|
35%
| |
|
RR, LDR, MDR, MHDR
|
43,560
|
39,000
|
10%
|
(4)
Additional option in RR District:
(a)
In the RR District, if a tract in common ownership
includes a minimum of 60 acres, then cluster development meeting the
following standards shall be permitted as a conditional use:
[1]
Single-family detached, single-family semidetached
(twin) dwellings and/or townhouses shall be permitted, provided each
dwelling unit is served by both public water and public sewage service.
[2]
A minimum of 85% of the total area of the tract
shall be permanently preserved in open space. A golf course may be
used to meet this open space requirement, provided that a total maximum
of 5% of the golf course is covered by impervious surfaces.
[3]
The maximum net density of all housing shall
be eight units per acre.
C.
Minimum lot width reduction. The minimum lot width
shall be reduced by the same percentage that the minimum lot area
was reduced.
D.
Other requirements. All requirements of this chapter
that are not specifically reduced by this article shall remain in
full effect.
E.
Permitted uses. A single-family cluster development
may only include single-family detached houses and their customary
and incidental accessory uses, unless otherwise specifically stated.
No single-family cluster development shall be
approved unless the applicant proves in the determination of the Board
of Commissioners, considering the advice of the Planning Commission,
that the cluster development would be superior to what would occur
in a conventional development under the existing zoning, based upon
one or more of the following standards:
A.
The cluster option would result in the permanent preservation
in common open space of land along a creek, river or lake or land
that is densely wooded or that is steeply sloped, or that would be
highly suitable for additions to existing public parkland, such as
passive parkland along the Monocacy Creek, Lehigh Canal and/or the
Lehigh River.
B.
The cluster option would allow the permanent preservation
in common open space of land clearly suitable for active recreation,
considering review by the Township Park and Recreation Commission.
C.
The cluster option would result in landscaped open
space providing a substantial buffer to reduce conflicts between dwellings
and existing or potential nuisance-generating uses (such as an adjacent
industrial district) or an existing or planned expressway or arterial
highway (such as Routes 22 and 33).
D.
The cluster option would result in the permanent preservation
of a tract of agricultural land that is economical in configuration
and characteristics. Such agricultural land may include crop land,
plant nurseries (with on-site retail sales limited to plants primarily
grown on the premises), Christmas tree farms or hayfields, but shall
not include new intense indoor livestock operations.
A.
Ownership and management alternatives. The required minimum percentage of a tract in open space of § 275-198 shall be met by permanently dedicating land as open space, within one of the following procedures:
(1)
Public ownership. The open space required under
this section may be accepted by the Township, the county, the state
or the school district for recreation or other clearly valid public
purposes. No government entity is under no obligation to accept ownership
or maintenance of the open space.
(2)
Home owners association ownership. This process
for maintenance of the commonly owned land shall meet the requirements
of § 705(d) of the Municipalities Planning Code.[1] All such agreements shall be reviewed by the Township
Solicitor and require the approval of the Board of Commissioners prior
to recording of deeds to ensure that adequate provisions are included
for the perpetual maintenance of such land.
[1]
Editor's Note: See 53 P.S. § 10705(d).
(3)
Larger lots. In exceptional circumstances where
it is the only reasonable procedure for ensuring proper maintenance
of land, the required open space may be added to become parts of lots.
All lots shall meet the minimum lot size requirements and other requirements
of this article and chapter prior to addition of the open space.
(4)
Dedication of noncontiguous land. In place of
open space dedication within the tract, the Board of Commissioners
may allow an applicant to dedicate land to the Township or the County
that is noncontiguous to the tract and that is located within the
CR District. The amount of such a dedication shall be twice the land
area that would be required to be dedicated if the dedication were
within the same tract as is proposed for housing development.
(5)
Rental development. The required open space
may be owned and maintained as part of a clearly primarily rental
development, provided that the open space is clearly integrated throughout
the rental development. No such rental units shall then be sold as
condominium units unless the Board of Commissioners accept use of
an alternative process for maintenance and ownership under this section.
B.
Decision. The Board of Commissioners, after considering
the advice of the Planning Commission and the Township Recreation
Commission, shall decide which of the procedures for ownership and
management of the open space in this section shall be used in each
individual case, if a single-family cluster development is to be approved.
C.
Size. Required common open spaces shall have a minimum
lot area that is contiguous of greater than 25,000 square feet and
have a minimum width of 50 feet, which may include adjacent existing
public parkland.
D.
Nearby schools. If the proposed tract would be within
800 feet of an existing public school property, the school district
should be given an opportunity to comment on the proposed open space.
E.
Open space improvements. The application shall include
a detailed and legally binding, if approved, description of the improvements
the applicant proposes to complete to the common open spaces to make
them suitable for passive and/or active recreation. No application
shall be approved if the common open space would not be clearly suitable
for active and/or passive recreation.
(1)
Suitability for passive recreation shall include
improvements that are clearly within the character of the following
examples:
(2)
Suitability for active recreation shall include
improvements that are clearly within the character of the following
examples:
(3)
Suitability for use as a buffer shall include
substantial planting of trees and shrubs on the land, and the preservation
of existing wooded areas, in such a manner as will eventually result
in the reforestation of the land.
(4)
All common open spaces shall be improved by
the developer in such a manner so as to be usable for the intended
function. All such areas shall be clear of rocks that did not exist
on the open space areas prior to any development and free of all construction
debris.
F.
Unacceptable lands. The following land areas shall
not be used to meet the minimum required amount of open space under
this section:
(1)
Wetlands required to remain largely undisturbed
under federal or state regulations.
(2)
Any land area that would be required to be set aside as open space or recreational land under other provisions of this chapter or Chapter 230, Subdivision and Land Development, as amended.
(3)
Lands that would serve no valid purpose for
active or passive recreation or the preservation of environmentally
sensitive areas.
(4)
Any stormwater detention areas, except for portions
that the applicant may prove to the satisfaction of the Township would
be suitable and reasonably safe for recreation during the vast majority
of times of the year.
