Township of Brecknock, PA Supplemental Requirements, Tests, and Studies

Abbreviated traffic impact study. Whenever a proposed project will propose five lots or more or any nonresidential land development generating greater than 50 new vehicle trips in the peak direction (inbound or outbound) during the site peak traffic hour, the applicant shall perform an abbreviated traffic impact study. Based on this study, certain improvements may be identified as necessary to provide safe and efficient access to the development. The abbreviated traffic impact study shall include:

A capacity analysis report prepared under the supervision of a qualified and experienced transportation engineer.

The study area for the capacity analysis report shall only include all proposed intersections.

Comprehensive traffic impact study.

Whenever a proposed project proposes 10 or more lots or any nonresidential land development that will generate 100 or more new vehicle trips in the peak direction (inbound or outbound) during the site peak traffic hour, the applicant shall perform a comprehensive traffic impact study. Based on this study, certain improvements may be identified as necessary to provide safe and efficient access to the development.

Transportation demand management measures, such as staggered start and end work times, telecommuting, utilization of transit, greenway or trail linkages, park-and-ride lots, etc., may be used to reduce trip generation for the proposed development. If such measures will reduce the new vehicle trips in the peak direction during the peak traffic hour to less than 100, than an abbreviated traffic impact study may be performed in lieu of a comprehensive study. When such trip-reduction measures are used to justify performance of an abbreviated study as permitted by this section, a developer and successors shall be bound by a recorded agreement to implement such measures. The terms and form of agreement shall be as mutually agreed upon by Brecknock Township and the developers.

In addition, a comprehensive traffic impact study shall be prepared at the discretion of Brecknock Township whenever either of the following conditions exists within the impact study area:

Current traffic problems exist in the local area, such as a high crash location, confusing intersection, or a congested intersection that directly affects access to the development.

The ability of the existing roadway system to handle increased traffic or the feasibility of improving the roadway system to handle increased traffic is limited.

Traffic impact study requirements.

Area of traffic impact study. The traffic impact study area shall be based on the characteristics of the surrounding area. The intersections to be included in the study shall be adjacent to the site or have direct impact upon the access to the site. The intersections shall be mutually agreed upon by Brecknock Township and the transportation engineer preparing the study.

Preparation by transportation engineer required. Traffic impact studies shall be prepared by or under the supervision of qualified and experienced transportation engineers with specific training in traffic and transportation engineering and at least two years of experience related to preparing traffic studies for existing or proposed developments.

Horizon year. The traffic forecasts shall be prepared for the anticipated opening year of the development, assuming full build-out and occupancy. This year shall be referred to as the "horizon year."

(4)

Nonsite traffic estimates. Estimates of nonsite traffic shall be made and will consist of motorized and nonmotorized through traffic and motorized and nonmotorized traffic generated by all other developments within the study area for which preliminary or final plans have been approved. Nonsite traffic may be estimated using any one of the following three methods: "build-up" technique, area transportation plan data or modeled volumes, and trends or growth rates.

(5)

Trip generation rates required. The traffic impact study shall include a table showing the land use categories and quantities, with the corresponding trip generation rates or equations (with justification for selection of one or the other), and resulting number of trips. The trip generation rates used shall be either from the latest edition of Trip Generation by ITE or from a local study of corresponding land uses and quantities. All sources shall be referenced in the study.

(6)

Consideration of pass-by or shared trips. If pass-by trips or shared trips are a major consideration for the land use in question, studies shall be referenced and interviews shall be conducted and documented at similar land uses.

(7)

Rate sums. Any significant difference between the sums of single-use rates and proposed mixed-use estimates shall be justified and explained in the study.

(8)

Explanations required. The reasoning and data used in developing a trip generation rate for special/unusual generators shall be justified and explained in the report.

(9)

Definition of influence area.

Prior to trip distribution of site-generated trips, an influence area shall be defined which contains 80% or more of the trip ends that will be attracted to the development. A market study can be used to establish the limits of an influence area, if available. If no market study is available, an influence area shall be estimated based on a reasonable documented estimate. The influence area can also be based on a reasonable maximum convenient travel time to the site, or delineating area boundaries based on locations of competing developments.

Other methods, such as using trip data from an existing development with similar characteristics or using an existing origin-destination survey of trips within the area, can be used in place of the influence area to delineate the boundaries of the impact.

(10)

Estimates of trip distribution required.

Trip distribution can be estimated using any one of the following three methods:

Analogy.

Trip distribution model.

Surrogate data.

Whichever method is used, trip distribution shall be estimated and analyzed for the horizon year. A mixed-use development may require more than one distribution and coinciding assignment for each phase (for example, residential and retail phases on the same site). Consideration shall also be given to whether inbound and outbound trips will have similar distributions.

(11)

Trip assignments.

Assignments shall be made considering logical routings, available roadway capacities, left turns at critical intersections, and projected (and perceived) minimum travel times. In addition, multiple paths shall often be assigned between origins and destinations to achieve realistic estimates rather than assigning all of the trips to the route with the shortest travel time. The assignments shall be carried through the external site access points and in large projects (those producing 500 or more additional peak direction trips to or from the site during the development's peak hour) through the internal roadways. When the site has more than one access driveway, logical routing and possible multiple paths shall be used to obtain realistic driveway volumes. The assignment shall reflect conditions at the time of the analysis. Assignments can be accomplished either manually or with applicable computer models.

If a thorough analysis is required to account for shared trips, the following procedure shall be used:

Determine the percentage of shared trips in the total trips generated.

Estimate a trip distribution for the shared trips.

Perform two separate trip assignments, based on the new and shared trip distributions.

[4]

Combine the shared and new trip assignment.

Upon completion of the initial site traffic assignment, the results shall be reviewed to see if the volumes appear logical given characteristics of the road system and trip distribution. Adjustments shall be made if the initial results do not appear to be logical or reasonable.

(12)

Total traffic impacts. Motorized and nonmotorized traffic estimates for any site with current traffic activity shall reflect not only new traffic associated with the site's redevelopment but also the trips subtracted from the traffic stream because of the removal of a land use. The traffic impact study shall clearly depict the total traffic estimate and its components.

(13)

Capacity analysis.

Capacity analysis shall be performed at each of the major street and project site access intersection locations (signalized and unsignalized) within the study area. In addition, analyses shall be completed for roadway segments deemed sensitive to site traffic within the study area as determined by Brecknock Township. These may include such segments as weaving sections, ramps, internal site roadways, parking facility access points, and reservoirs for vehicles queuing on site and off site. Other locations may be deemed appropriate by Brecknock Township, depending on the situation.

The recommended level-of-service analysis procedures detailed in the most-recent edition of the Highway Capacity Manual shall be followed.

The operational analyses in the Highway Capacity Manual shall be used for analyzing existing conditions, traffic impacts, access requirements, or other future conditions for which traffic, geometric, and control parameters can be established.

(14)

Required levels of service. The recommendations of the traffic impact study shall provide safe and efficient movement of traffic to and from and within and past the proposed development, while minimizing the impact to nonsite trips. The current levels of service shall be maintained if they are Level C or D, not allowed to deteriorate to worse than Level C if they are currently Level A or B, and improved to Level D if they are Level E or F.

(15)

Documentation required. A traffic impact study report shall be prepared to document the purpose, procedures, findings, conclusions, and recommendations of the study.

The documentation for a traffic impact study shall include, at a minimum:

Study purpose and objectives.

Description of the site and study area.

Existing roadway conditions in the area of the development.

[4]

Recorded or approved development(s) within the traffic impact study area.

[5]

Trip generation, trip distribution, and modal split.

[6]

Projected future motorized and nonmotorized traffic volumes.

[7]

An assessment of the change in roadway operating conditions resulting from the development traffic.

[8]

Recommendations for site access and transportation improvements needed to maintain and/or improve motorized and nonmotorized traffic flow to, from, within, and past the site at an acceptable and safe level of service.

[9]

Transit location, availability of bike routes, connection to a park and/or trail system.

The analysis shall be presented in a straightforward and logical sequence. It shall lead the reader step-by-step through the various stages of the process and resulting conclusions and recommendations.

The recommendations shall specify the time period within which the improvements shall be made (particularly if the improvements are associated with various phases of the development construction) and any monitoring of operating conditions and improvements that may be required. The recommendations shall also identify who will be responsible for making the improvements.

Data shall be presented in tables, graphs, maps, and diagrams wherever possible for clarity and ease of review.

To facilitate examination by Brecknock Township, an executive summary of one or two pages shall be provided, concisely summarizing the purpose, conclusions, and recommendations.

(f)

The study documentation outlined above provides a framework for site traffic access/impact study reports. Some studies will be easily documented using this outline. However, the specific issues to be addressed, local study requirements, and the study results may warrant additional sections.

Improvements.

Responsibility for improvements. The applicant shall be responsible for the improvements required to provide safe and convenient ingress and egress to the development site.

Coordination with municipal requirements. The applicant shall be responsible for other improvements related to the results of the traffic impact study as may be agreed to with Brecknock Township consistent with provisions of the Pennsylvania Municipalities Planning Code. The applicant shall consult PennDOT's Policy Manual on Improvements, and PennDOT may require additional improvements along state roadways.

§ 98-38 Historic and cultural resources.

Archaeological investigations.

Specific state and federal guidelines and procedures for review procedures as well as pertinent legislation may be obtained by contacting the Bureau for Historic Preservation (BHP) of the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission (PHMC). Specific state and federal guidelines and procedures are outlined in detail in A Summary of Major Relevant Federal and State Legislation and Regulations Appendix A, and Procedures for Compliance with Federal and Commonwealth Preservation Law Appendix H. PHMC administers both the state and federal regulations.

Projects affecting or potentially affecting historic and archaeological properties are subject to review by the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission's Bureau for Historic Preservation under the provisions of both Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 and Section 10 of the 1978 Pennsylvania Historic Preservation Act. No project shall be developed on a site identified by the PHMC as containing or likely to contain features of archaeological or historic significance until procedures for compliance with federal and state regulations have been realized and the review process has been completed.

All subdivisions and/or land development plans which meet the above-mentioned requirements shall provide a letter of determination and/or report from BHP addressing the following:

BHP letter of determination. The BHP letter of determination.

Additional required action. The BHP letter may recommend one or more of the following activities:

Phase I survey.

Phase II survey.

Phase III (mitigation).

Preservation of historic features.

Subdivisions and land developments shall be designed to preserve, adaptively reuse, or otherwise retain the historic features of the Township. Historic features that are retained within the project area shall be situated on a lot of sufficient size to retain its integrity of setting.

Modifications or exterior alterations to historic features or sites, or new construction in the immediate vicinity of historic features, shall be consistent with the Secretary of the Interior's Standards for Rehabilitation of Historic Properties, as published by the National Park Service. New construction shall be visually compatible with the character of historic features in the vicinity in terms or size, scale, mass, shape, proportion, materials and textures, rhythm and patterns, orientation and location, cornice and floor-to-floor heights, arrangement and size of windows on the facade, etc.

A landscape plan shall be provided that provides buffering, using vegetative materials, walls or fencing, as appropriate, between new construction and historic features to help mitigate adverse visual or auditory impacts and to help the historic feature retain its integrity of setting.

Demolition restricted.

Prior to the demolition or removal of an historic feature from its original foundation, review and approval by the Board of Supervisors shall occur. The applicant shall provide the Board of Supervisors with an evaluation by a qualified historic preservation professional of the historic and/or architectural significance of the building. In addition, the applicant shall provide credible evidence in response to each of the following specific criteria:

That it is not feasible to continue the current use.

That other uses permitted within the underlying zoning district, either as permitted uses, special exception uses, or conditional uses, have been denied or are not feasible due to constraints on the building or structure.

That adaptive use opportunities do not exist due to constraints related to the building, structure, or property.

That the building, its permitted uses, and adaptive use potential do not provide a reasonable rate of return, based on a reasonable initial investment.

That the applicant has not contributed to the existing conditions, either through neglect or prior renovation, conversion, alteration, or similar physical action.

(f)

That the demolition will not adversely affect the character of the neighborhood or community.

(g)

That a proposed new building(s), structure(s), or use of the property will not adversely affect the character of the neighborhood or community.

(h)

That the building is structurally unsound.

If the application for a permit for demolition, relocation, or removal is approved, said permit shall not be issued by Brecknock Township until the following additional requirements have been satisfied:

The recording of an approved subdivision or land development plan for the lot where the demolition, removal, or relocation is proposed;

Issuance of any necessary zoning approvals; and

Approval of the land development plan by the Board of Supervisors.

Applicants whose applications for demolition, removal, or relocation are approved may be subject to conditions that include but may not be limited to the following: (The applicant will be informed at the conclusion of the review process regarding any conditions that shall be satisfied. Refusal to comply with the conditions will be deemed a violation.)

A complete set of exterior and interior photographs of the building proposed for demolition, removal, or relocation which includes all exterior elevations, interior spaces, and all significant architectural features.

An historic structure report which may include any or all of the following:

Physical description, including a site plan with North arrow, showing all buildings on the parcel, nearby roads, landmarks, streams, etc., a written description of the general area, a written description of the lot or parcel with relationships of buildings to one another, and a written description of each building with exterior and interior word pictures.

Historic narrative telling the story of the property and including a bibliography.

Chain of title, including documentation of the source of the information, such as the deed or will book, volume, page number, etc.

[4]

Photo documentation, including general photos of the property showing relationships of buildings and detailed photos (interior and exterior) of all buildings.

[5]

Measured drawings labeled and cross-referenced to photographs of the same detail.

[6]

Appendixes, including copies of deeds and wills, maps, and other supporting materials.

A plan for the salvage of architectural features and/or building materials.

Retention of local names. Applicants are encouraged to perpetuate historic names or geographic references that are traditionally associated with the area in which a project is located rather than proposing project names that are not consistent with the Township or Lancaster County traditions or culture.

§ 98-39 Parks and open space.

Dedication. All plans for residential subdivision of land or residential land developments, with the exception of those classified as minor rural plans and lot add-on plans, shall provide for the dedication of land for park and open space uses and/or, upon agreement by the applicant, the construction of recreation facilities, the payment of fees in lieu thereof, the private reservation of land, or any combination thereof. All dedications of land for park and open space purposes shall be consistent with standards contained within the officially adopted Park and Recreation Plan, the Brecknock Township Official Map,[1] and the Township Comprehensive Plan.

[Amended 3-11-2014 by Ord. No. 196-2014]

Editor's Note: See Ch. 68, Map, Official.

General requirements. Applicants shall designate areas of residential subdivisions or residential land developments for parks, playgrounds, or other public open space and recreational uses in accordance with the provisions of the Park and Recreation Plan and the Comprehensive Plan. The applicant shall make an irrevocable offer of dedication for such land to Brecknock Township, as required by the Board of Supervisors. Title to such land shall be good and marketable, free of liens or other defects, and acceptable to the Municipal Solicitor. The Board of Supervisors may, upon agreement of the applicant, authorize the transfer of the land to a homeowners' association or to a nonprofit corporation whose purpose is the conservation or preservation of land. All plans proposing park and open space lands shall be forwarded to the Township Park and Recreation Committee for review and comments to the Board of Supervisors upon initial application.

[Amended 3-11-2014 by Ord. No. 196-2014]

Amount of land to be dedicated.

Required amount.

[Amended 3-11-2014 by Ord. No. 196-2014]

In order to enable the amount of land required to be dedicated to the Township, the developer of a proposed residential subdivision or land development shall provide the Township with the following information:

The number and type of dwelling units proposed to be erected, including the number of bedrooms to be located within each dwelling unit.

The estimated number of persons who will occupy each dwelling unit.

Should the Township disagree with the developer's estimated population per dwelling unit, the developer shall present the Township with census data and information concerning household sizes within Brecknock Township and within Lancaster County in order to enable the Township to verify the accuracy of developer's estimate or to compute a new estimate.

The amount of land to be dedicated shall be based upon the estimated population of the proposed development established utilizing the information provide by the developer. The amount of park and open space land to be dedicated shall equal one acre per each 100 projected residents or fraction thereof.

If the applicable plan specifically designates a future park site within the acreage of the tract proposed for development, all subdivision plans shall be designed in conformance with such designation in that all land required to be dedicated shall correspond to the location of the future park site.

Should the amount of land required to be dedicated exceeds the acreage of the future park site as designated within the applicable plan, the development proposal shall provide for such additional area to be located in a manner that best serves future residents of the proposed development.

Should the amount of land required to be dedicated fall short of the acreage of the future park site as designated within the applicable plan or if the proposed development involves only a portion of the development rights afforded to the tract, the applicant shall reserve that portion of the future park site which will best serve the immediate development. In addition, a sketch plan shall be prepared to depict how full build-out of the site will be accomplished in a manner that respects the location of the future park site and ensures its accessibility to all future dwellings on the tract. As an alternative to such piecemeal dedication, Brecknock Township may opt to purchase that portion of the future park site, in which case, the future dedication of land associated with the development of the tract would proceed in accordance with the provisions of § 98-39I.

Fee in lieu of dedication. The applicant may, with the consent and approval of the Board of Supervisors, elect to pay a fee to Brecknock Township in lieu of the park and open space dedication and so note on the plans.

The amount of any fee to be paid in lieu of dedication of land shall be equal to the average fair market value of the land (based on the unimproved land value) otherwise required by this section or shall be in accordance with any existing, municipally adopted, flat fee-in-lieu schedule which establishes a fixed price per lot, unit, or acre. If no formula is provided in any other municipal planning documents, the formula to be used in computing the fee based upon fair market value shall be:

N x (average FMV of one acre) = fee.

	Where:
		N	=	The number of acres required to be dedicated for park and open space purposes, calculated in accordance with § 98-39C.
		FMV	=	Fair market value based on the unimproved land value.

The applicant shall provide the Board of Supervisors with all information necessary to determine the fair market value of the land, including, but not limited to, the following:

If the applicant is the equitable owner, or purchased the land in fee simple less than two years prior to the preliminary or final plan submission, a copy of the agreement of sale or real estate transfer tax affidavit of value.

If the applicant is the equitable owner, or purchased the land in fee simple more than two years prior to the preliminary or final plan submission, an opinion of value of the property by a state certified appraiser acceptable to the Board of Supervisors.

Any applicant aggrieved by the fee established shall have the right to secure a second opinion of value of the property by a state-certified appraiser acceptable to the Board of Supervisors. The two estimated values shall be averaged, with the result being the amount upon which the fee will be based.

(4)

Such fee shall be payable to the Board of Supervisors prior to the recording of each final phase of the plan and shall be in an amount equal to the percentage of the total number of dwelling units in the phase.

Parkland Acquisition Fund. All fees paid by the developer in lieu of dedication of park and open space land shall be paid to Brecknock Township and, upon its receipt, shall be deposited in a separate interest-bearing account. Fees deposited to this account shall be administered as required by the Pennsylvania Municipalities Planning Code.

General design criteria.

The type of areas to be dedicated for park and open space land within a subdivision or land development plan shall principally involve neighborhood parks, which are defined as "those parks providing primarily active outdoor recreational opportunities located within a one-half-mile radius from a majority of the residences to be served thereby." Exceptions to this will be when dedications are made to a community park which serves the subdivision and is located within a two-mile radius of the majority of the residences to be served.

The land set aside for park and open space uses shall meet the following design criteria:

The park and open space land shall be reasonably located so as to serve all of the residents of the subdivision or land development.

The park and open space land shall be accessible from a street either directly or by pedestrian connection or shall adjoin and become a part of an already existing public park or open space area that is accessible from a street. Where access to the park is by public road, the width of the frontage shall be a minimum length deemed necessary by Brecknock Township for access, visibility of the site, and public safety.

No more than 25% of the park and open space land shall contain steep slopes exceeding 15% slope, detention basins or other stormwater management facilities, or be located within a floodplain or wetland. In all cases, land containing detention basins or other stormwater management facilities, floodplains, or wetlands shall be suitable for public recreation use without compromising the function of these areas.

[Amended 3-11-2014 by Ord. No. 196-2014]

The park and open space land shall be compact and contiguous, unless the land is located adjacent to and combined with existing park and open space land or specific topographic features require a different configuration. An example of such topographic features would be the provision of linear public open space along a scenic creek.

When public park and open space land exists adjacent to the tract to be subdivided or developed, the park and open space land shall be located to adjoin and enlarge the presently existing park and open space land.

(f)

The park and open space land shall be accessible to utilities, such as sewer, water, and power, that are provided within the subdivision; and if so, the developer shall extend such utilities to the park and open space land.

(g)

If the developer is planning to construct facilities for recreation on the dedicated property as an amenity for the development, such facilities shall be constructed in accordance with current standards established by the National Recreation and Park Association. Where applicable, facilities constructed shall also comply with the accessibility guidelines of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. Playground equipment constructed or placed on parkland shall be in compliance with guidelines from the Consumer Products Safety Commission.

Existing trails.

When a subdivision or land development is traversed by or abuts an existing public trail, customarily used by pedestrians and/or equestrians, the applicant shall make provision for the continued recreational use of the trail, subject to alterations of the course of the trail within the boundaries of the development under the following conditions:

The points at which the trail enters and exits the tract shall remain unchanged.

The proposed alteration exhibits quality trail design according to the generally accepted principles of landscape architecture.

The proposed alteration does not run coincidentally with the paved road intended for use by motorized vehicles.

The land set aside for the continuation of such existing trail shall be counted towards the amount of park and open space land.

Trails and linear parks. The trail or linear park shall conform to any applicable Municipal Master Park and Open Space Plan, the Brecknock Township Official Map, any County-Wide Trail and Recreation Master Plan, and appropriate Municipal and County Comprehensive Plans. The Board of Supervisors may require, as a condition of final plan approval, the dedication and improvement of trails and linear parks, which may be credited toward the park and open space land requirement. Trails and linear parks developed and dedicated for public use may be credited toward the park and open space land requirement.

Municipal fund reimbursement. Brecknock Township may from time to time decide to purchase land for parks in or near the area of actual or potential development. If Brecknock Township does purchase park and open space land within a distance of 1/2 mile, subsequent park and open space land dedications within that area may, upon agreement with the applicant, be in cash only and shall be calculated on a percentage basis to reimburse Brecknock Township's actual cost of acquisition and/or cost of development of such land for park and open space purposes. The cash amount shall be equal to the sum of the average price per acre of such land plus the actual costs of adjacent streets and on-site utilities (or an estimate of such actual costs provided by the Municipal Engineer) divided by the number of lots or dwelling units in the development.

Additional recreation reservations. The provisions of this section are minimum standards and shall not be construed as prohibiting a developer, with the approval of the Board of Supervisors, from dedicating or reserving other land for recreation purposes in addition to the requirements of this chapter.

Private reservation of land. Notwithstanding anything contained in the above sections, the applicant may, with the consent and approval of the Board of Supervisors, elect to fulfill the open space requirements through the private reservation of a recreation area.

Any project that proposes the private reservation of land shall be accompanied by an agreement which is acceptable to the Municipal Solicitor and which shall be recorded prior to or concurrent with the preliminary plan approval. Such agreement shall stipulate:

That maintenance of the designated open space is the responsibility of the applicant, a homeowners' association, a condominium unit owners' association, or other recognized conservation organization.

The availability of such private open space to nonresidents of the development.

The method by which the private reservation may be offered for public dedication.

That the land cannot be developed for anything other than open space purposes.

That the land cannot be sold or disposed of by the association except to another organization formed to own and maintain said open space and without first offering to dedicate the land and improvements to Brecknock Township.