Borough of Lewistown, PA Article III Plan Requirements and Processing Procedures

The following procedures shall be observed by all applicants:

§ 220-7 General.

The plan requirements and processing procedures shall be followed by land developers/subdividers as set forth herein and shall be submitted to the Commission for review and approval prior to consideration or approval by Council. It is the intent of the Borough Council to expedite the receipt and processing of plans so as to reduce delays that may result in increased costs or inconvenience to the applicant or to the Borough. The procedure set forth below establishes maximum time limits permissible under state law, but the Borough Council, when possible, will attempt to complete its reviews and approvals in a timelier manner.

A. Required plans. Preliminary and final plans and other required supporting data for all proposed subdivisions and land developments shall be submitted by the applicant to the Borough, together with the then applicable fee (which shall be established and fixed from time to time by resolution of the Borough Council) for review. In addition, prior to submitting the official preliminary plan for review, the applicant may prepare a sketch plan for informal discussion with the Borough.

B. Mifflin County Planning Commission and other agency reviews. The Subdivision Officer shall provide copies of the plans together with applicable fees submitted by the applicant to the Mifflin County Planning Commission as well as other appropriate agencies for review and comment.

C. Consideration of plans. Subdivision and land development plans and supporting data submitted to the Borough will be considered at the next regularly scheduled meeting of the Lewistown Borough Planning Commission, provided that they are received at least 10 calendar days in advance of said meeting.

D. Action. The Borough Council shall consider all plans submitted to determine compliance with this chapter and shall approve, disapprove or approve with conditions all submitted plans. After the plan is filed, the Borough Council shall act upon applications no later than 90 days following the date of the next regular meeting of the Lewistown Borough Planning Commission that follows the date that the application is filed, provided that, should the said next regular meeting occur more than 30 days following the filing of the application, the said ninety-day period shall be measured from the 30th day following the day the application has been filed.

E. Notification. The Borough Council shall notify the applicant, in writing, no later than 15 days after the date when a decision is reached by the Borough Council. When a plan is not approved, the decision of the Borough Council shall specify the defects found in the plan and shall cite the provisions of the ordinance and law that have not been met.

F. Conditional approvals. If the preliminary or final plan is approved, subject to conditions, then the applicant shall either accept or reject such conditions in writing within a period of 15 days of receipt of such conditions. Any conditional approval shall be rescinded automatically if the applicant fails to accept or reject such conditions within the fifteen-day time period established above.

G. Time extension. Failure of the Borough Council to render a decision and communicate it to the applicant within the time and in the manner required 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 of communication shall have like effect.

H. Public hearing. Before acting on any preliminary or final plan, the Borough Council may hold a public hearing thereon after public notice.

I. Sketch plan. Sketch plans are not required by this chapter, but it is recommended that the applicant submit such a plan in order to establish, at an early stage in the planning of the subdivision or land development, the basic conditions required for the approval of a preliminary and a final plan.

J. Preliminary plan. All major subdivision and land development plans filed with the Borough shall be considered the official preliminary plan. Said preliminary plan shall be reviewed to determine compliance with these regulations, and said plan shall be approved, approved with conditions or rejected or disapproved and the applicant notified accordingly. However, the applicant may proceed to final action at the first consideration of a plan for a minor subdivision in accordance with the definition herein and the procedure set forth in § 220-11.

K. Final plan. After approval of the preliminary plan, the final plan for the entire subdivision or land development or a final plan for a section or stage of development, which has been prepared in accordance with the approved preliminary plan, shall be submitted by the applicant to the Borough. Said final plan shall be reviewed to determine compliance with these regulations, and said plan shall be approved, approved with conditions, rejected or disapproved and the applicant notified accordingly.

§ 220-8 Review fees.

A. Fees for the review and processing of subdivision and land development plans to determine compliance with this chapter shall be charged to the applicant and shall be submitted at the time of the filing of the plan.

B. Review fees of the Mifflin County Planning Commission and the Mifflin County Conservation District and other agencies, as applicable, shall also accompany the submittal of the plans by applicant.

C. Review fees of professional consultants of the Borough of Lewistown shall also be payable by the applicant and shall include the reasonable and necessary charges of the professional consultants of the Borough of Lewistown. Such professional consultants' review fees shall in no event be greater than the rate or cost charged by the Borough's professional consultants for comparable services which are not reimbursed or otherwise imposed on applicants.

D. A fee schedule shall be adopted by separate resolution by the Borough Council of the Borough of Lewistown, and such may be amended from time to time by the Borough of Lewistown.[1]

[1] Editor's Note: The current Borough Costs and Fees Schedule is on file in the Borough's offices.

§ 220-9 Official plan applications.

A. Preliminary plan.

(1) Preliminary plans and supporting data shall comply with the provisions of Article VII of this chapter.

(2) Six copies of the preliminary plan shall be submitted to the Borough of Lewistown by the applicant, with separate checks to the various reviewing entities for the applicable review fees. Additional copies may be requested if required for submission or reference to other appropriate agencies. The Subdivision Officer shall distribute copies of the plan to the following:

(a) Lewistown Borough Planning Commission.

(b) Borough Engineer.

(c) Borough Solicitor.

(d) Mifflin County Planning Commission.

(e) Mifflin County Conservation District.

(3) The applicant shall also transmit additional copies of the preliminary plan and supporting data, together with applicable fees and transmittal costs, to the Subdivision Officer for distribution to the following agencies, in number as specified by that agency: other appropriate agencies, such as Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, or other agencies affected by or having an interest in the plan.

(4) The Borough Council shall not approve a preliminary plan until comments from the Mifflin County Planning Commission are received or until the expiration of 30 days from the date the application was forwarded to the County.

(5) The Borough Council shall consider any recommendation made by the Lewistown Borough Planning Commission and the Mifflin County Planning Commission before taking official action.

(6) The official action and decision of the Borough Council shall be in writing and shall be forwarded to the applicant at his/her last known address not later than 15 days following such action. In the case of a rejection or disapproval of the plan, the Borough Council shall specify the defects of the plan and the requirements of this chapter that have not been complied with.

(7) Approval of the preliminary plan, subject to conditions, revisions, and modifications as stipulated by the Borough Council, shall constitute conditional approval by the Borough Council of the plan as to the character and intensity of the development and the general layout and appropriate dimensions of streets, lots and other proposed features, and such approval shall entitle the applicant to submit plans for final review.

(8) Approval of plats. The Borough Council shall act upon the application not later than 90 days following the date of the first regular meeting of the Lewistown Borough Planning Commission following the date the plan is filed or after an order of court remanding an application, provided that, should the said next regular meeting occur more than 30 days following the filing of the plan, the said ninety-day period shall be measured from the 30th day following the day the plan has been filed.

B. Final plan.

(1) A final plan with supporting data shall be submitted within one year after approval of the preliminary plan by the Borough Council, provided that an extension of time may be granted by the Borough Council upon written request for a valid reason presented by the applicant. Otherwise, the plan submitted may be considered as a new preliminary plan.

(2) The final plan shall conform in all important respects with the preliminary plan as previously approved by the Borough Council and shall incorporate all modifications and revisions specified by the Borough Council in its conditional approval of the preliminary plan. The Borough Council may accept a final plan that has been modified to reflect changing conditions since the time of preliminary plan approval. Other modifications, not previously submitted to and considered by the Borough Council, may be sufficient cause for considering the plan to be a revised preliminary plan.

(3) The Borough Council may permit submission of the final plan in sections or stages, each covering a portion of the entire proposed subdivision as shown on the preliminary plan, except that the first stage shall be submitted within one year after approval of the preliminary plan as required in Subsection B(1) above.

(4) The Borough Council may require that any final plan or any section or stage of a final plan not completed within five years from the date of preliminary plan approval, as required by § 220-2E, shall require a new preliminary plan submission to reflect changing conditions or legal requirements that may affect the subdivision or land development unless an extension of this five-year limit is granted by the Borough Council upon written request.

(5) The final plan and supporting data shall comply with the provisions of Articles VII and VIII of this chapter. Failure to do so may be sufficient cause for tabling or rejecting the plan.

(6) Six copies of the final plan with supporting data shall be submitted to the Borough. Additional copies may be requested if required for submission or reference to other appropriate agencies. The Subdivision Officer shall distribute copies of the plan to the following:

(a) Lewistown Borough Planning Commission.

(b) Borough Engineer.

(c) Borough Solicitor.

(d) Mifflin County Planning Commission.

(e) Mifflin County Conservation District.

(7) The applicant shall also transmit additional copies of the preliminary plan and supporting data, together with applicable fees and transmittal costs, to the Subdivision Officer for distribution to the following agencies, in number as specified by that agency: other appropriate agencies, such as Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, or other agencies affected by or having an interest in the plan.

(8) The Borough Council shall not approve a final plan until comments from the Mifflin County Planning Commission are received or until the expiration of 30 days from the date the application was forwarded to the County.

(9) The Borough Council shall consider any recommendation made by the Lewistown Borough Planning Commission and the Mifflin County Planning Commission before taking official action.

(10) Such actions shall include approval, approval with conditions, or disapproval, with reasons for disapproval specifically stated. Approval by the Borough Council shall be subject to the satisfactory resolution of all applicable plan requirements and/or any conditions set by the Borough Council and, when applicable, the execution of a development agreement as required in Article VIII.

(11) The official action and decision of the Borough Council shall be in writing and shall be forwarded to the applicant personally or to his/her last known address not later than 15 days following such action. In the case of a rejection or disapproval of the plan, the Borough Council shall specify the defects of the plan and the requirements of this chapter that have not been complied with.

(12) When the Borough Council has approved the final plan, and when all other approvals, conditions and agreements required herein, including the provisions of §§ 220-23, 220-24 and 220-25 , as required herein, have been satisfied, the President of Borough Council or, in his/her absence or disability, the Vice President of Borough Council and Secretary of the Borough Council or, in his/her absence or disability, the Assistant Secretary shall endorse four copies of the approved final plan to that effect. The endorsed copies of the approved final plan shall each become the "final record plan." One copy of the endorsed final record plan shall be kept in the Borough files and the other two copies returned to the applicant. Additional copies may be endorsed to meet the needs of the applicant and other agencies.

(13) The effective date of final plan approval shall be the date when the final plan is endorsed as set forth in Subsection B(12) above.

(14) Approval of plats. The Borough Council shall act upon applications not later than 90 days following the date of the first regular meeting of the Lewistown Borough Planning Commission following the date the plan is filed or after an order of court remanding an application, provided that, should the said next regular meeting occur more than 30 days following the filing of the plan, the said ninety-day period shall be measured from the 30th day following the day the plan has been filed.

C. Conditional approvals. If the preliminary or final plan is approved subject to conditions, then the applicant shall either accept or reject such conditions in writing within a period of the 15 days of receipt of such conditions. Any conditional approval shall be rescinded automatically if the applicant fails to accept or reject such conditions within the fifteen-day time period established above.

§ 220-10 Recording of final plan.

A. The applicant shall record two copies of the approved final plan in the office of the Mifflin County Recorder of Deeds within 90 days of final approval or 90 days after the date of delivery of an approved plot signed by the Borough Council of the Borough of Lewistown following completion of conditions imposed for such approval, whichever is later. The copy of the final plan filed for recording shall be known as the "final record plan." It shall be a clear and legible document in a form as required by the Mifflin County Recorder of Deeds, bearing the original required endorsements of approval of the Borough Council and evidence that the plan has complied with the requirements of the Pennsylvania MPC and the Pennsylvania Sewage Facilities Act of January 24, 1966, P.L. 1535, No. 537, (1965), as amended and supplemented.[1] Failure to record the final record plan as required herein shall render all approvals null and void.

[1] Editor's Note: See 53 P.S. § 10101 et seq., and 35 P.S. § 750.1 et seq., respectively.

B. The Borough Council may extend said ninety-day limit if requested in writing.

C. The applicant shall provide the Borough with a copy of the plan bearing the recording information of the Mifflin County Recorder of Deeds office.

§ 220-11 Plans exempted from standard review procedures.

A simplified procedure for the submission and approval of subdivision and land development plans may be utilized when the following conditions exist:

A. Minor subdivisions. The applicant of a minor subdivision, as defined herein, may elect to omit the preliminary plan application review set forth above, provided such proposal is on an existing street and no new streets are involved. A minor subdivision is a final plan and shall be processed in accordance with §§ 220-9B and 220-21.

B. Lot additions. When a lot addition is being created, information on both the parent and recipient tracts are required. The information can be in the form of a complete survey for both parcels or a partial survey with deed and/or tax parcel data to ensure what the size of the existing parcels is before the approval of the lot addition as well as the new lot configurations after the merger has occurred. [See § 220-21B(1)(g).]

(1) Lot addition subdivision or a lot line adjustment shall not be required to show the following final plan requirements:

(a) § 220-21B(1)(k).

(b) § 220-21B(1)(r).

(c) § 220-21B(1)(w).

(d) § 220-21B(1)(jj).

(e) § 220-21B(2)(e).

(f) § 220-21B(2)(f).

(g) § 220-21B(2)(i).

(2) An inset map shall be required for lot additions and where subdivisions are not directly connected to a public road system. An inset map is a general location map of sufficient size and detail for the Borough Council to readily determine geographically where the subdivision or lot addition is proposed.

(3) Any applicant desirous of following this procedure may also first submit a sketch plan as set forth in § 220-7I in order to expedite the preparation of the final plan.

C. Agricultural parcels. The division of land, by lease, for agricultural purposes into parcels of more than 10 acres and not involving any new street or easement access is exempted from the provisions of this chapter, except that this shall not apply to agricultural subdivisions that are also used for other purposes such as for recreation, seasonal residential, commercial, industrial or other nonagricultural activities.

D. Other exemptions. Certain land developments, as set forth in the definition of "land development" included herein, have been exempted from the provisions of this chapter.