Prior to filing an application for preliminary approval, a developer
may meet with Township staff and may appear before the Planning Commission
and the Environmental Advisory Council for a preapplication conference
to discuss the applicable regulations governing subdivision and/or
development of the property and the feasibility and timing of the
application. The preapplication conference with the Planning Commission
and the Environmental Advisory Council is voluntary, and no formal
application or fee is required. These opportunities are afforded to
the developer to obtain information and guidance before entering into
binding commitments or incurring substantial expenses for plan preparation.
The developer shall notify the Township at least five calendar days
prior to the regular meeting of the Planning Commission or the Environmental
Advisory Council regarding his desire to attend a preapplication conference
with the Planning Commission or the Environmental Advisory Council.
In the event that the preliminary subdivision application has
been determined by the Township Zoning Officer to be complete and
suitable for further consideration, the Zoning Officer shall present
the preliminary subdivision application to the Township Council at
its next regular monthly meeting. At the regular monthly meeting,
Township Council shall accept the completed application for review
and shall formally refer it to the Planning Commission and the Environmental
Advisory Council. The period specified by the Pennsylvania Municipalities
Planning Code (Act 247, as amended) for review of the application,
90 days, shall begin from the date of the Township Council meeting
at which the application is accepted as complete and formally referred
to the Planning Commission and the Environmental Advisory Council
for review.
A. Planning Commission review. At its next regular or special meeting following referral of the application by the Township Council to the Planning Commission, the Planning Commission shall review the application submitted to determine compliance with the requirements of this chapter and shall refer the plans to other Township departments or authorities for review, as warranted. On behalf of the Planning Commission, the Zoning Officer shall submit the plans to the Allegheny County Department of Economic Development for its comments on the proposed plat and to the Allegheny County Conservation District for its review and report on the stormwater management plan required by Chapter
266.
B. Environmental Advisory Council review. At its next regular or special
meeting following referral of the application by the Township Council
to the Environmental Advisory Council, the Environmental Advisory
Council shall review the submitted application to determine compliance
with the requirements of this chapter.
C. Planning Commission recommendation. The Township Engineer shall submit
a report to the Planning Commission which states whether an application
complies with the requirements of this chapter and that report shall
be made a part of the record at the Planning Commission meeting. The
Planning Commission shall not make a recommendation on the application
until the report of the Township Engineer has been received. Within
60 days of the referral of the application, the Planning Commission
shall make a written recommendation to the Township Council for approval,
approval with conditions or disapproval of the preliminary application.
The recommendation of the Planning Commission shall provide reasons
for the recommendation and, in the case of a recommendation for disapproval,
shall cite the specific requirements of this chapter which have not
been met.
D. Environmental Advisory Council recommendation. Within 60 days of
the referral of the application, the Environmental Advisory Council
shall make a written recommendation to the Township Council for approval,
approval with conditions, or disapproval of the preliminary subdivision
application. The recommendation shall provide reasons for the recommendation
and, in the case of a recommendation for disapproval, shall cite the
specific requirements of this chapter which have not been met.
E. Township Council action. Within 90 days of the date of the regular
meeting of the Township Council at which the preliminary subdivision
application is accepted as properly filed and referred to the Planning
Commission and the Environmental Advisory Council, Township Council
shall either approve, approve with conditions, or disapprove the preliminary
subdivision application at a public meeting. The recommendations of
the Planning Commission and the Environmental Advisory Council and
the report of the Township Engineer shall be made a part of the record
at that meeting. Before acting on the preliminary subdivision application,
the Township Council may hold a public hearing regarding the application
after public notice. The public hearing, if appropriate and at the
Township Council's discretion, may be a joint hearing with the
Planning Commission. A letter indicating Township Council approval
or disapproval shall be in writing and shall be communicated to the
applicant personally or sent to the applicant by regular mail within
15 days of the date of the decision. If the preliminary subdivision
application is not approved, the Township Council shall specify the
defects found in the preliminary subdivision application and cite
the requirements of this chapter which have not been met.
F. Failure of the Township Council to render a decision and communicate
it to the applicant within the time and in the manner described herein
shall be deemed an approval of the application in terms as presented
unless the applicant has agreed in writing to an extension of time
or change in the prescribed manner of presentation of communication
of the decision, in which case, failure to meet the extended time
or change in manner of presentation or communication shall have like
effect.
G. In the case of a preliminary subdivision application calling for the installation of improvements beyond the five-year period identified in §
280-15D, a schedule shall be filed by the developer with the preliminary subdivision application delineating all proposed sections as well as deadlines within which applications for final subdivision approval of each section are intended to be filed. Such schedule shall be updated annually by the applicant on or before the anniversary of the preliminary subdivision application approval until final subdivision approval of the final section has been granted, and any modification in the aforesaid schedule shall be subject to approval of the Township Council in its discretion. Each phase in any residential subdivision or land development, except for the last section, shall contain a minimum of 25% of the total number of dwelling units as depicted in the preliminary subdivision application, unless a lesser percentage is approved by the Township Council in its discretion. Provided that the developer has not defaulted with regard to or violated any of the conditions of the preliminary subdivision application approval, including compliance with the developer's aforesaid schedule of submission of final subdivision applications for the various sections, then the protections afforded in §
280-15D by substantially completing the improvements depicted in the final subdivision application within five years shall apply, and for any sections or sections, beyond the initial section, in which the required improvements have not been substantially completed within the five-year period, the protections in §
280-15D shall apply for an additional term or terms of three years from the date of final subdivision approval for each section. Failure of the developer to adhere to the schedule of submission of final subdivision applications for the various sections shall subject any such section to any and all changes in zoning, subdivision and other governing ordinance enacted by the municipality subsequent to the date of the initial preliminary subdivision application submission.
All applications submitted for final subdivision approval shall
meet the following requirements:
A. Form of application. The final subdivision shall be in such form
and on such material as is presently required for recording of subdivision
plans by the Allegheny County Department of Economic Development and
the Recorder of Deeds of Allegheny County. Sizes of the plans and
materials to be used shall for the purposes of this chapter be the
same as those required by the Allegheny County Recorder of Deeds.
B. Certifications. All records, data, indentures, statements, easements,
covenants, affidavits, etc., shall be added to the plan.
C. Title block. The final plan shall contain a title block in the lower
right corner including the following:
(1) Name approved by Planning Commission under which the subdivision
is to be recorded, the plan date and the date of any revisions.
(2) Graphic scale, sheet number, and location of the subdivision.
(3) Name and address of the owner of record and the developer.
(4) Name and address of the firm that prepared the plans, and the name,
seal, and registration number of the surveyor who prepared the plan.
(5) The name and plan book volume and page numbers of the previously
recorded plan, if any.
D. Final plan. All final plans submitted shall be drawn at a scale of
either one inch equals 50 feet or one inch equals 100 feet and shall
include the following:
(1) Perimeter of subdivision.
(a)
Streets and other ways shall be drawn as medium solid lines.
(b)
Property lines of adjacent subdivisions shall be drawn as medium
dashed lines broken with two short dashes.
(c)
Lot lines by light dotted lines.
(d)
Restriction lines, building lines, easements, etc., shall be
drawn as short light dashed lines.
(2) Within subdivision.
(a)
Streets and other ways shall be drawn as heavy solid lines.
(b)
Perimeter property lines of the subdivision shall be drawn as
heavy dashed lines broken with two short dashes.
(c)
Lot lines as light solid lines.
(d)
Restriction or building lines shall be drawn as medium dashed
lines.
(e)
Easements or other reserved areas shall be drawn as light dashed
lines.
(3) North point and site location map.
(4) Accurate distances and directions to the nearest established street
corners or official monument. Reference monument shall be accurately
described on the plan. State whether found, set or to be set.
(5) Tract boundary lines, right-of-way lines of streets, easements and
other rights-of-way and property lines of residential lots and other
sites with accurate dimensions, bearings or deflection angles, radii,
arcs and central angles of all corners. Tract boundaries, right-of-way
lines of streets, easements and other right-of-way lines with accurate
distances to hundredths of a foot and bearings to 1/4 minute. Tract
boundaries shall be determined by field survey only and shall be balanced
and closed.
(6) Approved name and right-of-way width of each street or right-of-way.
(7) Number to identify each lot on site and the area of each lot shall
be shown on the plan.
(8) Any existing public lands and purpose for which sites other than
residential are to be dedicated.
(9) Front, rear and side building setback lines on all lots and sites.
(10)
Property lines of adjacent property (within 200 feet) and names
of owners of record of adjoining unplotted land.
(11)
Certification of registered professional land surveyor as to
the accuracy of survey and plan.
(12)
Statement by the owner dedicating streets, rights-of-way, other
property and sites for public use.
(13)
Protective covenants, if any, in form for recording.
(14)
Such other certificates, affidavits, endorsements or dedications
as may be required in the enforcement of these regulations.
(15)
The existing zoning of land adjacent to the proposed subdivision
within 200 feet of its boundaries.
(16)
If applicable, a notation on the plan that access to a state
highway shall only be authorized by a highway occupancy permit issued
by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation under § 402
of the State Highway Law (P.L. 1242, No. 428, of June 1,1945).
(17)
Tabulation of area data, including lots, parcels, units, areas
dedicated for rights-of-way, etc., and the total acreage of the plan.
(18)
The location, dimensions, limitations and purposes of all proposed
easements and rights-of-way.
(19)
Notation on the plan of any modifications to the provisions of this chapter requested under §
280-64, if applicable.
(20)
Lot and block or tax map parcel numbers.
(21)
Accurate dimensions, acreage, and purpose of any property to
be reserved as public or common open space.
(22)
All required municipal certifications, which shall include the
Township Engineer.
(23)
All other certifications, dedications, and acknowledgements,
as required by this chapter and the Allegheny County Office of the
Recorder of Deeds.
E. Construction plans for public improvements. The final plan shall
be accompanied by construction plans for public improvements prepared
by a registered engineer drawn on sheets measuring 24 inches by 36
inches at a scale of one inch equals 50 feet which show the following:
(1) Conformity with the design standards specified in Article
VI of this chapter and the Township Construction Standards.
(2) Plans in profile of each street in the plan and at least 200 feet
beyond the limits of the plan.
(3) Street cross sections at intervals not to exceed 100 feet and extending
25 feet outside of the street right-of-way.
(4) All drainage easements over private property.
(5) The location of all necessary sewers, manholes and catch basins.
(6) The top and invert elevation of each inlet and manhole, together
with the grade of each sewer line.
(7) The grade line, distance, type, and pipe size of each line in the
storm drainage system within the plan and any storm drainage system
immediately adjacent thereto.
(8) All pipe sizes shown by plan and profile.
(9) The location of each wye as proposed for installation, including
a station for that wye, measured from the downstream manhole.
F. Supplementary information. An engineer's report bearing his
Pennsylvania seal shall likewise be submitted, testifying to the following:
(1) Feasibility of sewage disposal system in terms of connection to existing
public system and remaining line and plant capacity.
(2) Feasibility of storm drainage plan in terms of impact upon adjacent
downstream properties and proposals to control soil erosion and stream
pollution during and after construction. Also, a letter from the Natural
Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) stating that the erosion control
measures proposed are adequate.
(3) Feasibility of solutions to problems related to soil, mineral or
water conditions, if any, underlying the property.
(4) Feasibility of proposed grading and justification for slopes in excess of those permitted in the Township Grading Regulations in Chapter
161, Grading and Excavating, if such grading is proposed. Any proposed deviation from the grading regulations will require documentation from a registered soil engineer stating that the proposed earthwork will not adversely impact the subject or surrounding properties.
(5) Submission of all items required by Chapter
266, Stormwater Management.
(6) If a homeowners' association is proposed, a copy of the homeowners'
association documents.
Approval of final subdivisions by the Township Council shall
not be binding if county, state or federal agencies find just cause
to disapprove the development. It shall be the developer's responsibility
to obtain all necessary approvals from county, state or federal agencies.
From and after the effective date hereof, any submission (subdivision
plan, plat, site plan or other land development submission) made by
a developer of land to the Township for approval, which submission
has previously obtained the approval of the Township Council (after
having been processed for review to and through the applicable agencies
of the Township, such as the Planning Commission and the Environmental
Advisory Council, the Township Engineer and the Township Solicitor,
as well as the county planning agency) and which development has not
been constructed, implemented or acted upon by the developer or such
developer's assignees and/or which development plans have not
been recorded in the offices of the Recorder of Deeds, as required
by the Municipalities Planning Code, or which plat, subdivision plan,
site plan or such other submission has not been appropriately recorded
in any other office as required, may, if the time limits for continuance
of the same or completion of the same have expired, be resubmitted
directly to the Township Council for action to obtain the necessary
reapprovals (without the necessity of resubmitting the same or recording
of the same to the Planning Commission, Environmental Advisory Council,
the county planning agency or any other applicable agency, or require
any additional hearings upon the same), provided that such submission
or application for reapproval shall be submitted to the Township Engineer
for his review and approval shall:
A. Have been filed within one year from the date that the original submission
would or did expire.
B. The subdivision plan, site plan, or resubmission shall not have changed
in any respect, and that all of the lots, sites, structures, easements
and other required data shown on such plan shall remain exactly the
same as the original submission.
C. No amendment has been made to this chapter, Chapter
310, Zoning, or other applicable ordinance of the Township which would be applicable to the submission or development in question (unless the submission or application shall be protected by the provisions of § 508 of the Municipalities Planning Code of Pennsylvania, Act 247 of 1968, as amended, or any other section of the Municipalities Planning Act which may be applicable thereto), and the developer or applicant seeking reapproval shall not be in default or shall not have breached any developer's agreement entered into between the developer or applicant, and the Township.
D. No application or submission has been made to the Township of Hampton
for a different activity or type of development involving the same
land, since the date of the original approval for the land involved.
E. The developer or landowner submitting the application for reapproval
is able to demonstrate good cause why the approval had not been recorded
or acted upon by the developer or landowner within the appropriate
time period. The Township Council may, in its discretion, after having
reviewed such submission for reapproval, approve the application or
submission and establish a new expiration date within which the reapproved
application must be recorded or acted upon, or the Township Council
may deny the application for reapproval and require the developer
or landowner to proceed anew following the entire review process required
for an original application.
Upon recording of the final plan in the office of the County
Recorder of Deeds, the developer shall deliver to the Township three
paper prints of the plan as recorded.