A.
See 53 P.S. § 10609, Enactment of zoning ordinance amendments.
B.
For the preparation of amendments to zoning ordinances, the procedure
set forth in Section 607 for the preparation of a proposed zoning
ordinance shall be optional.
C.
Public hearing.
(1)
Before voting on the enactment of an amendment, the governing
body shall hold a public hearing thereon, pursuant to public notice,
and pursuant to mailed notice and electronic notice if applicable
per 53 P.S. § 10109. In addition, if the proposed amendment
involves a Zoning Map change, notice of said public hearing shall
be conspicuously posted by the municipality at points deemed sufficient
by the municipality along the tract to notify potentially interested
citizens. The affected tract or area shall be posted at least one
week prior to the date of the hearing.
[Amended 1-6-2020 by Ord. No. 1-6-2020]
(2)
In addition to the requirement that notice be posted under Subsection C(1) where the proposed amendment involves a Zoning Map change, notice of the public hearing shall be mailed by the municipality, at least 30 days prior to the date of the hearing, by first-class mail, to the addressees to which real estate tax bills are sent for all real property located within the area being rezoned, as evidenced by tax records within the possession of the municipality. The notice shall include the location, date and time of the public hearing. A good-faith effort and substantial compliance shall satisfy the requirements of this subsection.
(3)
This subsection shall not apply when the rezoning constitutes
a comprehensive rezoning.
D.
In the case of an amendment other than that prepared by the planning
agency, the governing body shall submit each such amendment to the
planning agency at least 30 days prior to the hearing on such proposed
amendment to provide the planning agency, an opportunity to submit
recommendations.
E.
If, after any public hearing held upon an amendment, the proposed
amendment is changed substantially, or is revised, to include land
previously not affected by it, the governing body shall hold another
public hearing, pursuant to public notice, and mailed notice and electronic
notice, if applicable, before proceeding to vote on the amendment.
[Amended 1-6-2020 by Ord. No. 1-6-2020]
F.
If a county planning agency shall have been created for the county
in which the municipality proposing the amendment is located, then,
at least 30 days prior to the public hearing on the amendment by the
local governing body, the municipality shall submit the proposed amendment
to the county planning agency for recommendations.
G.
The municipality may offer a mediation option as an aid in completing proceedings authorized by this section. In exercising such an option, the municipality and mediating parties shall meet the stipulations and follow the procedures set forth in Article IX.
H.
Within 30 days after enactment, a copy of the amendment to the zoning
ordinance shall be forwarded to the county planning agency or, in
counties where no planning agency exists, to the governing body of
the county in which the municipality is located.
A.
See 53 P.S. § 10609.1, Procedure for landowner curative
amendments.
B.
A landowner who desires to challenge on substantive grounds the validity
of a zoning ordinance or map or any provision thereof, which prohibits
or restricts the use or development of land in which he has an interest,
may submit a curative amendment to the governing body with a written
request that his challenge and proposed amendment be heard and decided
as provided in Section 916.1. The governing body shall commence a
hearing thereon within 60 days of the request as provided in Section
916.1. The curative amendment and challenge shall be referred to the
planning agency or agencies as provided in Section 609, and notice
of the hearing thereon shall be given as provided in Section 610 and
in Section 916.1.
C.
The hearing shall be conducted in accordance with Section 908, and
all references therein to the zoning hearing board shall, for purposes
of this section, be references to the governing body; provided, however,
that the provisions of Section 908(1.2) and (9) shall not apply, and
the provisions of Section 916.1 shall control. If a municipality does
not accept a landowner's curative amendment brought in accordance
with this subsection and a court subsequently rules that the challenge
has merit, the court's decision shall not result in a declaration
of invalidity for the entire zoning ordinance and map, but only for
those provisions which specifically relate to the landowner's curative
amendment and challenge.
D.
The governing body of a municipality which has determined that a
validity challenge has merit may accept a landowner's curative amendment,
with or without revision, or may adopt an alternative amendment which
will cure the challenged defects. The governing body shall consider
the curative amendments, plans and explanatory material submitted
by the landowner and shall also consider:
(1)
The impact of the proposal upon roads, sewer facilities, water
supplies, schools and other public service facilities;
(2)
If the proposal is for a residential use, the impact of the
proposal upon regional housing needs and the effectiveness of the
proposal in providing housing units of a type actually available to
and affordable by classes of persons otherwise unlawfully excluded
by the challenged provisions of the ordinance or map;
(3)
The suitability of the site for the intensity of use proposed
by the site's soils, slopes, woodland, wetlands, floodplains, aquifers,
natural resources and other natural features;
(4)
The impact of the proposed use on the site's soils, slopes,
woodlands, wetlands, floodplains, natural resources and natural features,
the degree to which these are protected or destroyed, the tolerance
of the resources to development and any adverse environmental impacts;
and
(5)
The impact of the proposal on the preservation of agriculture
and other land uses which are essential to public health and welfare.
A.
See 53 P.S. § 10609.2, Procedure upon municipal curative
amendments.
B.
If a municipality determines that its zoning ordinance or any portion
thereof is substantially invalid, it shall take the following actions:
(1)
A municipality shall declare, by formal action, it's zoning
ordinance or portions thereof substantively invalid and propose to
prepare a curative amendment to overcome such invalidity. Within 30
days following such declaration and proposal, the governing body of
the municipality shall:
(2)
Within 180 days from the date of the declaration and proposal,
the municipality shall enact a curative amendment to validate, or
reaffirm the validity of, its zoning ordinance pursuant to the provisions
required by Section 609 in order to cure the declared invalidity of
the zoning ordinance.
(3)
Upon the initiation of the procedures, as set forth in Subsection B(1), the governing body shall not be required to entertain or consider any landowner's curative amendment filed under Section 609.1 nor shall the Zoning Hearing Board be required to give a report requested under Section 909.1 or 916.1 subsequent to the declaration and proposal based upon the grounds identical to or substantially similar to those specified in the resolution required by Subsection B(1)(a). Upon completion of the procedures as set forth in Subsection B(1) and (2), no rights to a cure pursuant to the provisions of Sections 609.1 and 916.1 shall, from the date of the declaration and proposal, accrue to any landowner on the basis of the substantive invalidity of the unamended zoning ordinance for which there has been a curative amendment pursuant to this section.
(4)
A municipality having utilized the procedures as set forth in Subsection B(1) and (2) may not again utilize said procedure for a thirty-six-month period following the date of the enactment of a curative amendment, or reaffirmation of the validity of its zoning ordinance, pursuant to Subsection B(2); provided, however, if, after the date of declaration and proposal, there is a substantially new duty or obligation imposed upon the municipality by virtue of a change in statute or by virtue of a Pennsylvania Appellate Court decision, the municipality may utilize the provisions of this section to prepare a curative amendment to its ordinance to fulfill said duty or obligation.
A.
See 53 P.S. § 10610, Publication, advertisement and availability
of ordinances.
B.
Proposed zoning ordinances and amendments shall not be enacted unless
notice of proposed enactment is given in the manner set forth in this
section and shall include the time and place of the meeting at which
passage will be considered and a reference to a place within the municipality
where copies of the proposed ordinance or amendment may be examined
without charge or obtained for a charge not greater than the cost
thereof. The governing body shall publish the proposed ordinance or
amendment once in one newspaper of general circulation in the municipality
not more than 60 days nor less than seven days prior to passage. Publication
of the proposed ordinance or amendment shall include either the full
text thereof or the title and a brief summary, prepared by the Municipal
Solicitor and setting forth all the provisions in reasonable detail.
If the full text is not included:
(1)
A copy thereof shall be supplied to a newspaper of general circulation
in the municipality at the time the public notice is published.
(2)
An attested copy of the proposed ordinance shall be filed in
the county law library or other county office designated by the County
Commissioners, who may impose a fee no greater than that necessary
to cover the actual costs of storing said ordinances.
C.
In the event substantial amendments are made in the proposed ordinance
or amendment, before voting upon enactment, the governing body shall,
at least 10 days prior to enactment, readvertise, in one newspaper
of general circulation in the municipality, a brief summary setting
forth all the provisions in reasonable detail, together with a summary
of the amendments.
