Amendments to this chapter shall become effective only after
a public hearing held pursuant to public notice as defined, and in
accordance with the Pennsylvania Municipalities Planning Code, Act
247, as amended.
A. From the time an application for approval of a plan, whether preliminary
or final, is duly filed as provided in this chapter, and while such
application is pending approval or disapproval, no change or amendment
of this chapter, zoning or other governing ordinance or plan shall
affect the decision on such application adversely to the applicant
and the applicant shall be entitled to a decision in accordance with
the provisions of the governing ordinances or plans as they stood
at the time the application was duly approved.
B. The applicant shall be entitled to final approval in accordance with
the terms of the approved preliminary application as hereinafter provided.
However, if an application is properly and finally denied, any subsequent
application shall be subject to the intervening change in governing
regulation.
C. When an applicant for approval of a plan, whether preliminary or
final, has been approved without conditions or approved by the applicant's
acceptance of conditions, no subsequent change or amendment in this
chapter, zoning or other governing ordinance or plan shall be applied
to affect adversely the right of the applicant to commence and to
complete any aspect of the approved development in accordance with
the terms of such approval within five years from such approval.
D. Where final approval is preceded by preliminary approval, the aforesaid
five-year period shall be counted from the date of the preliminary
approval. In the case of any doubt as to the terms of a preliminary
approval, the terms shall be construed in the light of the provisions
of this chapter or the governing ordinance or plans as they stood
at the time when the application for such approval was duly filed.