[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Supervisors of the Township
of Towamencin 10-19-1955 by Ord. No. 4. Amendments noted where
applicable.]
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the
meanings indicated:
A trailer coach which does not have a toilet or a bath or
shower.
A park space which is designed to accommodate a dependent
mobile home and does not have sewer and water connections to accommodate
the toilet and the bath or shower in a mobile home.
A trailer coach that has a toilet and a bath or shower.
A park space which has sewer and water connections designed
to accommodate the toilet and bath or shower contained in an independent
mobile home.
Any portable structure or vehicle so constructed and designed
as to permit occupancy thereof for dwelling or sleeping purposes.
Any plot of ground upon which two or more mobile homes occupied
for dwelling or sleeping purposes are located regardless of whether
or not a charge is made for such accommodation.
Mobile home park.
Any natural individual, copartnership, association or corporation.
A building housing toilet facilities with slop water closet
and laundry facilities and with separate bath and shower accommodations.
A.
Two or more inhabited mobile homes shall be located only in licensed
mobile home parks.
B.
It shall be unlawful for any person to maintain or operate within
the limits of the Township of Towamencin, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania,
any mobile home park containing two or more mobile homes unless such
person shall first obtain a license therefor. All mobile home parks
in existence upon the effective date of this chapter shall, within
six months thereafter, obtain such license and in all other respects
comply fully with the requirements of this chapter.
C.
Licenses shall not be transferable without the consent of the licensing
authority.
The annual license fee for each mobile home park shall be $50.
A.
Applications for a mobile home license shall be filed with and issued
by the Supervisors. Applications shall be in writing, signed by the
applicant, and shall contain the following:
(1)
The name and address of the applicant.
(2)
The location and legal description of the mobile home park.
(3)
A complete plan of the park showing compliance with § 100-6, including plans for sewerage and water facilities.
(4)
Plans and specifications of all buildings and other improvements
so drawn as to enable the issuing head to determine if the proposed
park will comply with legal requirements.
B.
The application and all accompanying plans and specifications shall
be filed in triplicate. The Supervisors shall investigate the applicant
and inspect the proposed plans and specifications. If the applicant
if found to be of good moral character and the proposed mobile home
park will be in compliance with all provisions of this chapter and
all other applicable ordinances or statutes, the Supervisors shall
approve the application and, upon completion of the park according
to the plans, shall issue the license.
Mobile homes shall not be parked on any public thoroughfare,
street, alley or public place in the Township of Towamencin, Montgomery
County, Pennsylvania, for longer than three hours when no emergency
repairs are required.
The mobile home park shall conform to the following requirements:
A.
The park shall be located on a well-drained site, properly graded
to ensure rapid drainage and freedom from stagnant pools of water.
Walks, driveways and retaining walls shall be so constructed as not
to interfere with drainage. Drainage shall be away from the mobile
home spaces, service buildings and recreational areas. Stormwater
shall not drain into sanitary sewers.
B.
Mobile home spaces shall be provided consisting of a minimum of 3,600
square feet for each space, which shall be at least 45 feet wide and
clearly defined. Mobile homes shall be so parked on each space that
there shall be at least a twenty-five-foot clearance between mobile
homes. No mobile home shall be located closer than 50 feet to a dwelling
and closer than 10 feet to any property line bounding the park nor
closer than 50 feet to any street or highway right-of-way line.
C.
Safety and convenience shall be major considerations in the layout
of driveways, walks and parking areas within the mobile home park,
and driveways shall be continuous insofar as possible. Adequate culs-de-sac
or turnaround areas shall be provided where continuous driveways are
impractical.
D.
All mobile home spaces shall abut upon a surfaced macadam driveway.
Where such driveways provide for continuous circulation in only one
direction, the roadway shall be of a twelve-foot minimum width, with
an additional seven-foot width if on-street parking is permitted.
Where driveways are to carry traffic in two directions, the roadway
shall be of a twenty-four-foot minimum width, with an additional seven-foot
width if on-street parking is permitted on but one side of the street
and an additional fourteen-foot width if on-street parking is permitted
on both sides of the street. Where culs-de-sac or turnarounds are
necessary, they shall have a minimum radius of 50 feet.
E.
Each park shall provide service buildings to house toilet facilities,
bathing facilities, laundry facilities and other sanitary facilities
as hereinafter more particularly prescribed.
F.
The number of parking spaces shall equal the number of coach spaces.
These may be provided either as on-street parking or in special parking
areas.
A.
Every mobile home park shall be provided with electric power. An
electric outlet supplying 110/115 volts must be provided for every
mobile home space. The outlets shall be weatherproof and in easy reach
of parked mobile homes. In no instance shall any power line across
the mobile home park area be less than 18 feet above the ground. All
electric wiring in the mobile home park shall be in accordance with
Towamencin Township and Pennsylvania codes, or in the absence of local
codes, then in accordance with the National Electrical Code. Adequate
overcurrent protection shall be provided on all circuits. Service
drops to each mobile home space shall be weatherproof, insulated and
not smaller than two No. 8 wires.
B.
Street and yard lights sufficient in number and intensity to permit
the safe movement of vehicles and pedestrians shall be provided. Lights
shall be at least 25 watts spaced at intervals of at least 100 feet
and located approximately 15 feet from the ground and shall be effectively
related to buildings, walks, trees, steps and ramps. Lights shall
be kept burning from sunset to sunrise.
Mobile home parks shall be located only in areas approved by
the Supervisors or as required by the Zoning Ordinance.[1]
A.
All mobile home parks shall be connected with an approved public
water supply where available, supplied to each mobile home space by
pipe.
B.
Where a public water supply is not available, a suitable private
water supply shall be developed that meets standards prescribed by
the Pennsylvania Department of Health as safe for drinking purposes.
Water shall be piped to each mobile home space.
C.
Water distribution and storage facilities shall be adequate to supply
a continuous year-round frost-free water supply of 150 gallons per
day per mobile home space, at a rate of six gallons per minute, with
a residual pressure of 20 pounds per square inch. Wells shall be constructed
in accordance with regulations of the Pennsylvania Department of Health.
Water shall be tested for bacteria content every two months.
D.
Dependent mobile home spaces shall be provided with sanitary facilities in service buildings not less than 25 nor more than 150 feet from any dependent mobile home, as outlined in § 100-10 below. Such service buildings shall provide abundant hot-water supply at all times for bathing, washing and laundry facilities.
A.
Each park shall be provided with toilets, baths or showers, slop
sinks and other sanitation facilities which shall conform to the following
requirements:
(1)
Toilet facilities of men and women shall either be in separate buildings
at least 20 feet apart or if in the same building, be separated by
a soundproof wall.
(2)
Flush toilets shall be placed in conveniently located buildings not
more than a maximum distance of 150 feet from any dependent mobile
home. The building shall be well-lighted at all times, ventilated
with screened openings and constructed of moistureproof materials
permitting satisfactory cleaning. The floors shall be concrete or
similar materials, slightly pitched to a floor drain. Toilets shall
be enclosed in separate compartments with doors and having a minimum
width of two feet eight inches. Toilet facilities for women shall
consist of not less than one flush toilet for every five dependent
mobile home spaces, shower or bathtub for every five dependent mobile
home spaces and one lavatory with hot and cold running water for every
five dependent mobile home spaces. Each toilet and bathtub shall be
in a private compartment.
(3)
Toilet facilities for men shall consist of not less than one flush
toilet for every five dependent mobile home spaces, one shower or
bathtub for every five dependent mobile home spaces and one lavatory
with hot and cold running water for every five dependent mobile home
spaces. Each toilet, shower and bathtub shall be in a private compartment.
D.
Service buildings housing the toilet facilities shall be permanent
structures complying with all applicable ordinances and statutes regulating
buildings, electrical installations and plumbing and sanitation systems[1] and shall be located not closer than 25 feet and not farther
than 150 feet from any dependent mobile home space.
E.
Each service building shall contain at least one slop sink located
in a separate compartment.
F.
The service buildings shall be well lighted at all times of the day
and night, shall be well ventilated with screened openings, shall
be constructed of such moistureproof material, including painted woodwork,
as shall permit repeated cleaning and washing, and shall be maintained
at a temperature of at least 68° F. during the period from October
1 to May 1. The floors of the service building shall be of water-impervious
material and shall slope to a floor drain connected with the sewerage
system.
G.
All service buildings, mobile homes, mobile home spaces and the grounds
of the park shall be maintained in a clean, sightly condition and
kept free of any conditions that will menace the health of any occupant
or of the public or constitute a nuisance.
A.
The laundry facilities shall be provided in the ratio of one standard
washer and/or one automatic washer and dryer for every 10 mobile home
spaces. Drying spaces shall be provided sufficient to accommodate
the laundry of the park occupants. The service building housing the
laundry facilities shall be a permanent structure complying with all
applicable ordinances and statutes regulating buildings, electrical
installations and plumbing and sanitation systems.[1] Hot water should be provided for clothes-washing equipment.
B.
Outside drying space adjacent to the service building or other clothes-drying
facility shall be provided. A minimum of 50 square feet per mobile
home space shall be provided in the area used for outside clothes
drying.
A.
A system of sanitary sewerage shall be provided in mobile home parks,
and all waste and soil lines discharging from buildings and mobile
homes should be connected thereto. Each mobile home space shall be
provided with a trapped sewer below frost lines at least four inches
in diameter and sloped so as to provide a minimum flow velocity of
not less than two feet per second when flowing half full. The sewer
connection shall be provided with suitable fittings so that a water-
and gastight connection can be made between the mobile home drain
and the sewer connection. Such individual mobile home connections
shall be so constructed that they can be closed when not linked to
a mobile home and shall be trapped in such a manner as to maintain
them in an odor-free condition. Sufficient cleanouts, handholes and
manholes shall be installed in sewer systems so as to maintain serviceable
conditions. Sewer lines shall be located in a separate trench from
water mains.
B.
All sewers shall discharge into a public sewer system where possible.
In the absence of a public sewerage system, adequate private sewage
disposal and treatment facilities shall be installed to treat a minimum
average of 150 gallons per day per coach space of ultimate capacity
of the mobile home. The treatment facility shall be located so that
it shall not create a health or odor nuisance to the mobile home park
or adjacent property occupants or discharge untreated effluents into
any commonwealth body of water.
C.
All sewerage systems shall meet applicable local plumbing and sanitary
requirements and shall meet the standards of the Pennsylvania Department
of Health.
A.
A flytight and watertight metal garbage can shall be provided for
each mobile home adequate to permit disposal of all garbage and rubbish.
Garbage shall be collected at least twice a week.
B.
Racks and holders shall be provided for all refuse containers. Such
container racks shall be designed so as to prevent containers from
being tipped, to minimize spillage and container deterioration and
to facilitate cleaning around them.
C.
Where collection service is not available, the mobile home park operator
shall dispose of the refuse by incineration, burial or transporting
to an approved disposal site.
D.
Buried garbage shall be covered with at least 12 inches of compacted
earth, but shall not be buried within 300 feet of any mobile home,
permanent dwelling, structure or recreation area.
A.
Insect- and rodent-control measures to safeguard public health, as
recommended by the Health Officer or other authority, shall be applied
in the mobile home park.
B.
Effective larvicidal solution may be recommended by the Health Officer
for fly- or mosquito-breeding areas which cannot be controlled by
other, more permanent measures.
C.
Suitable measures as recommended by the Health Officer shall be taken
by the mobile home park operator to control other insects and obnoxious
weeds.
D.
Accumulations of debris which may provide harborage for rodents shall
not be permitted in the mobile home park.
E.
When rats or other rodents are known to be in or near the mobile
home park, the operator shall take definite action, under direction
by appropriate health authority, to exterminate them.
A.
Fire alarms and instructions.
(1)
Provision shall be made for giving a general alarm in case of fire.
A bell, iron hoop or a similar manually operated device may be used
for this purpose. It shall be the duty of the mobile home park operator
or owner to instruct all tenants in the means of summoning fire-fighting
apparatus, police, medical help and in the proper operation of fire
extinguishers.
(2)
A public telephone shall be available at all times to summon fire,
police and other protective services. Up-to-date lists of telephone
numbers of emergency services shall be permanently displayed near
the telephone.
B.
Fire extinguishers.
(1)
Every mobile home in the park shall be equipped with at least one
approved hand-operated fire extinguisher of a type suitable for use
on oil fires, preferably the foam type. The extinguisher shall be
installed on the inside of the mobile home in a fixed location, preferably
near a door, but in no case in close proximity to the cooking or heating
stove.
(2)
In the absence of a system of yard hydrants and hose, a complement
of approved fire extinguishers on wheels for every 20 mobile home
spaces shall be provided, located not farther than 200 feet from any
mobile home. Each complement of extinguishers shall contain one foam-type
extinguisher (with antifreeze) of two-and-one-half-gallon rated capacity
for Class A-type fires and at least one approved carbon dioxide dry
chemical or vaporizing liquid extinguisher of at least 25 pounds'
capacity for Class B oil-type fires. All extinguishers shall be kept
in good operating condition and checked at intervals by an appropriate
authority.
C.
Mobile home park areas shall be kept free of litter, rubbish and
other flammable material.
D.
Means of egress. Two doors, one located at each end of the mobile
home, shall be provided on the right side of the body. Doors and screen
doors shall be of the hinged type, opening outwardly from the inside.
Locks, when provided, shall be of the type that permits opening from
the inside by the simple operation of a knob or lever or by pressure
against the door.
A.
Oil-burning cooking and heating stoves shall be of an approved type
and shall be provided with flue connections to the outside of the
mobile home. Flues shall penetrate the roof of the mobile home through
a weathertight sheet metal shield or roof jack which shall provide
a clearance of at least two inches between the flue and combustible
roof material if approved outlet flues are provided. A clearance of
at least six inches shall be provided if metal flues are used. Downdraft
diverters shall be provided on all vents from oil-burning stoves.
B.
Oil-burning stoves for heating purposes may provide for attachment
to fuel tanks located outside and separate from the mobile home. Auxiliary
oil storage tanks, when provided, shall be so located as to require
filling and drainage on the outside of the mobile home and shall be
securely fastened in position in a place readily available for inspection.
When installed in closed compartment outside of the mobile home, such
compartment shall be ventilated at the bottom.
C.
No gasoline or portable stove equipment shall be permitted. Fires
shall be made only in approved stoves, incinerators and other equipment
intended for such purposes.
Cylinders containing liquefied petroleum gas or oils to be used
as fuel by mobile home occupants shall be connected to the stoves
or heaters of the mobile home by copper tubing, to provide leakproof
connections. The cylinders should be securely fastened in place not
less than five feet from any mobile home exit. State and local codes
applicable shall be followed.
No owner or person in charge of any dog, cat or other pet animal
shall permit it to run at large.
A.
No permanent additions of any kind shall be built onto nor become
part of any mobile home. Skirting of mobile homes is permissible,
but such skirting shall not attach the mobile home permanently to
the ground, create a fire hazard or provide a harborage for rodents.
B.
The wheels of the mobile home shall not be removed, except temporarily
when necessary for repairs. Jacks or stabilizers may be placed under
the frame of the mobile home to prevent movement on the springs while
the mobile home is parked and occupied.
At least 100 square feet per mobile home space shall be made
available in one or more areas for recreational uses. These areas
shall be located so as to be free of traffic hazards.
A.
It shall be the duty of the licensee to keep a register containing
a record of all mobile home owners and occupants located within the
park.
B.
The register shall contain the following information:
(1)
Name, address and age (if under 21) of each occupant.
(2)
The make, model and year of all vehicles and mobile homes.
(3)
License number and owner of each mobile home and of the vehicle by
which it is towed.
(4)
The state issuing such license.
(5)
The dates of arrival and departure of each mobile home.
(6)
Place of previous residence.
C.
The park operator shall keep the register available for inspection
at all times, including inspection by Township officials. The register
records shall not be destroyed for a period of three years following
the date of registration.
A responsible attendant, caretaker, owner or operator shall
be in charge at all times to keep the mobile home park, its facilities
and equipment in a clean, orderly and sanitary condition, and he shall
be answerable with the licensee for any violation of the provisions
of this chapter.
It shall be the duty of each park owner or operator to report
promptly to the Health Officer or other officials all cases of persons
and animals affected or suspected of being affected with a communicable
disease.
The designated authority or Health Officer shall make inspections
of the park to assure compliance with this chapter, and parks shall
be open for such inspections at all reasonable hours. in case of noncompliance
with any provisions of this chapter, the designated authority shall
serve warning to the licensee. Thereafter, upon failure of the licensee
to remove said violation, the Supervisors shall hold hearings on the
matter and, upon determination of noncompliance, revoke said license.
The license may be reissued if the circumstances leading to the revocation
have been remedied and the park can be maintained and operated in
full compliance with the law.
The license certificate and a copy of this chapter shall be
conspicuously posted in the office or on the premises of the mobile
home park at all times.
A.
For any and every violation of the provisions of this chapter, the
persons maintaining and operating a mobile home park of any of the
classes covered by this chapter where such violation has been committed
or shall exist, and the general agent, architect, builder, contractor
or any other person who knowingly commits or takes part in or assists
in any such violation, shall, upon conviction thereof, be punishable
for each offense by a fine of not more than $300 and costs of prosecution
or, upon default in payment of the fine and costs, by imprisonment
in the Montgomery County Prison for not more than 30 days, and whenever
such person shall have been notified by the Secretary of the Zoning
Hearing Board, or by service of summons in a prosecution or in any
other way that such person has committed such violation of said chapter,
each day that such person shall continue said violation after such
notification shall constitute a separate offense, punishable by a
like fine or penalty. Such fines or penalties shall be collected as
like fines or penalties are now collected by law.
[Amended 12-28-1988 by Ord. No. 88-15]
B.
In case any mobile home park of the classification specified in this
chapter is not maintained or operated in conformity with this chapter
or any land is used in connection therewith in violation of this chapter
or any amendments hereof, in addition to other remedies provided by
law, any appropriate action or proceeding, whether by legal or equitable
process or otherwise, may be instituted or taken by any public officer
or by any resident, property owner or tenant in the Township or other
party in interest to prevent such unlawful maintenance, operation,
erection, construction, reconstruction, alteration, repair, conversion
or use, to restrain, correct or abate such violation, to prevent the
maintenance and operation of said mobile home park or land in connection
therewith or to prevent any illegal act, conduct or use in or about
said premises in violation of the provisions of this chapter or any
amendments hereof.
In case a provision of this chapter is found to be in conflict
with a provision of any zoning, building, fire, safety or health ordinance
of this Township or any state law or regulations existing on the effective
date of this chapter, the provision which establishes the higher standard
for the promotion and protection of the health and safety of the people
shall prevail.
