[Ord. No. 2-2022, 2/14/2022]
Definitions for words or terms used in this chapter are given in Part
11.
Except as hereinafter provided, no land, building, structure
or premises shall hereafter be used, and no building or part thereof
or other structure shall be located, erected, reconstructed, extended,
enlarged, converted, altered or moved except in conformity with the
regulations herein specified for the district in which it is located
and in conformity with all duly ordained ordinances or regulations.
No yard space or minimum area required for a building or use shall
be considered as any part of the yard space or minimum area for another
building or use.
1. No accessory building shall be erected in any required court or any
yard other than a rear yard, except as provided hereafter. An accessory
building may be erected as part of a principal building, or, if at
least six feet therefrom, may be connected thereto by a breezeway
or similar structure, provided all yard requirements of this chapter
for a principal building are complied with.
2. In any Conservation, Agricultural or Residence District, where a
corner lot adjoins in the rear of a lot fronting on the side street,
no part of any accessory building on such corner lot within 25 feet
of the common lot line shall be nearer a side road lot line than the
least depth of the front yard required along such side street for
a dwelling on such adjoining lot, and in no case shall any part of
such accessory building be nearer to the side road lot line than the
least width of the side yard required for the principal building to
which it is accessory.
The conversion of any building into a dwelling, or the conversion
of any dwelling so as to accommodate an increased number of dwelling
units, or families shall be permitted only within a district in which
a new building for similar occupancy would be permitted under this
chapter, and only when the resulting occupancy will comply with the
requirements governing new construction in such district with respect
to minimum lot size, lot area per dwelling unit, percentage of lot
coverage, dimensions of yards and other open spaces, and off-street
parking. Each conversion shall be subject also to such further requirements
as may be specified hereinafter within the part applying to such district.
Excavations of sand, gravel, coal stripping or other minerals,
and rock and peat moss shall be considered a temporary use, and new
excavations shall be permitted only in Mining, Agricultural, Conservation
or Heavy Industrial Districts. Deep coal mining shall be permitted
in any district. All new excavations of materials listed above shall
require the approval of the Board.
1. In the case of coal mining, new excavations shall be defined as those
specific limited areas not now operating under a state permit at the
time this chapter becomes effective. For strip mining, applications
shall not exceed 10 acres in area, and the Board shall require such
measures as will protect the public interest including conformance
with the following:
A. Map. Submission of a map which will outline the entire proposed area
to be strip mined, said map to contain the surface features showing
buildings, dwellings, churches, schools, railroads, highways, and
lot lines of public and semi-public uses within a distance of 500
feet from the perimeter of the proposed strip mining operation. In
addition, said map will indicate the approximate or proposed depth
of said strip mining operation.
(1)
Bond and Backfilling. That a bond in the sum of $2,500 per acre
of land to be excavated, be filed with the Board, to guarantee the
complete backfilling of any overburden removed, and to guarantee 50%
of survival of all trees planted for a year's period in connection
with the state law in anthracite strip mining. Backfilling is to restore
the land to a usable condition. If, after complete backfilling of
all overburden, the land is not approximately level with the unexcavated
area, the slopes of the edge of the excavated area shall not be steeper
than one foot of vertical distance for each 1 1/2 feet of horizontal
distance. On sloping hillsides, the final grade of this stripped area
shall range from 7% to 15%.
B. Insurance. That a certificate of insurance with limits of $100,000
per person and $300,000 per accident for personal injuries, and $300,000
for property damage, be filed with the Board both for the benefit
of all persons who might be injured or suffer property damage as a
result of said mining operations, and to save the Borough of Wyoming
and its officials harmless from any and all claims, suits or demands
caused by the mining operations.
C. Supervision of Blasting. The use of explosives for the purpose of
blasting in connection with strip mining shall be done in accordance
with regulations promulgated by and under the supervision of a representative
of the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection.
D. Distance Provisions. The perimeter of any excavation under this section
shall not be nearer than 200 feet from any building or road, except
that owned by the excavator, or 100 feet from any, or any other, public
or semi-public use.
E. Timing. Primary blasting in any excavation shall occur only between
the hours of 8:30 a.m. and 4:00 p.m., on either Eastern Standard or
Eastern Daylight time, as the case may be.
F. Location of Processing Equipment. To reduce airborne dust, dirt and
noise, all structures for sorting, crushing, grinding, loading, weighing,
washing, and other operations shall not be built closer than 300 feet
from the right of way of any public highway, or 300 feet from the
boundary of residential, commercial or light industrial districts.
G. Drainage. All excavations both during operations and after completion
shall be adequately drained to prevent the formation of pools of water
and reduce the seepage of water into underground mines, both for safety,
and to reduce formation of mine acid water polluting the streams and
rivers. Prior to any excavation for stripping operations a ditch shall
be excavated on the outside of the proposed pit for the purpose of
conveying the drainage from the watershed above the stripping pit
to the regular creek channels to reduce seepage of surface water into
underground mines.
H. Compliance with State Requirements. Permits under the provisions
of this chapter will not be issued until the required license or permit
has been secured from the Department of Environmental Protection,
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
2. In the case of quarries, sand and gravel pits, and peat moss bogs,
the Board shall require conformance with the following:
A. Map. Submission of a map which will outline the entire area proposed
to be excavated, said map to contain the surface features showing
dwellings, churches, schools, railroads and highways, and lot lines
of public and semi-public uses, within a distance of 500 feet from
the perimeter of any quarrying operation, and a distance of 300 feet
from any sand and gravel pit or peat bog. In addition, said map will
indicate the approximate or proposed depth of said excavating operation.
B. Slopes and Drainage. After excavations are completed, the slopes
of the edge of the excavated area of sand and gravel pits and peat
bogs shall not be steeper than one foot of vertical distance for each
1 1/2 feet of horizontal distance. The surface of the area excavated
shall be leveled, and drained to the extent feasible.
C. Blasting. The use of explosives for the purpose of quarrying shall
be done in accordance with regulations promulgated by and under the
supervision of a representative of the applicable state agency.
D. Distance Provisions. The perimeter of any excavation under this section
shall not be nearer than 200 feet in the case of quarrying, 150 feet
for sand and gravel pits, or 100 feet in the case of peat bogs, from
any building or road, except that owned by the excavator, or 100 feet
from any, or any other, public or semi-public use.
E. Location of Processing Equipment. To reduce airborne dust, dirt and
noise, all structures for sorting, crushing, grinding, loading, weighing,
washing, and other operations shall not be built closer than 300 feet
from the right of way of any public highway, or 300 feet from the
boundary of residential, commercial, or light industrial district.
1. Except for nonconforming junkyards, any lawful use of any dwelling,
building, structure, or land existing at the effective date of this
chapter may be continued, even though such use does not conform to
the provisions hereof. If a building ceases to be under the ownership
of the nonconforming person(s), the building shall forward conform
to the provisions of this chapter. A person may not alter or substitute
the nonconforming use to another nonconforming use if grandfathered
under this provision.
2. Whenever the use of a building shall become nonconforming through
a change in the Zoning Ordinance or in the district boundaries, such
use may be continued.
3. A nonconforming use of a building or a portion thereof which is hereafter
discontinued for a continuous period of one year, shall not again
be used except in conformity with the regulations of the district
in which such building is located.
4. Except for residential structures as hereinafter provided, a nonconforming
building which has been damaged by fire, explosion, act of God or
the public enemy to the extent of more than a 60% of its reproduction
value at the time of damage, shall not be restored except in conformity
with the regulations of the district in which it is located. When
damaged by less than a 60% of its reproduction value, a nonconforming
building may be repaired or reconstructed, and used as before the
time of damage, provided such repairs or reconstruction are completed
within one year of the date of such damage. For residential structures
nonconforming only as to yard spaces, in residential zones where most
of the residential structures nearby are similarly nonconforming,
the structures maybe rebuilt similar to the yard spaces of the adjoining
lots, or a majority of the lots in the particular block front.
Nothing herein contained shall require any change in the overall
layout, plans, construction, size or designated use of any development,
building, structure, or part thereof, for which official approval
and required permits have been granted, or where no approvals or permits
are necessary, where construction has been legally started, before
the enactment of this chapter, and completed within a one-year period.
1. In all districts except the industrial districts, no building in
the rear of a principal building on the same lot, other than a nonconforming
building, shall be used for residence purposes unless it conforms
to the open space requirements of this chapter. For the purpose of
determining the front yard in such case, the rear line of the required
rear yard for the Principal building in front shall be considered
the front lot line for the building in the rear. In addition, there
must be provided for any such rear dwelling an unoccupied and unobstructed
access way not less than 15 feet wide to a road, and there shall not
be more than one dwelling housing not more than two families for each
such easement, except that a common easement of access at least 40
feet wide may be provided for two or more dwellings housing any number
of families.
2. Zoning permit applications submitted for final approval shall be
in accordance with the Subdivision and Land Development Ordinance
of Wyoming Borough and all construction shall be in accordance with
the Subdivision and Land Development Ordinance and all other codes
and ordinances of Wyoming Borough except those excluded under this
section. The Subdivision and Land Development Ordinance of Wyoming
Borough, as amended, shall govern the construction and acceptance
of public improvements.
No lot shall contain any dwelling unless it abuts at least 20 feet on a street, or unless it conforms to the easement of access required in §
27-208 of this Part.
On any corner lot in any district, no fence, structure, planting
or any other obstruction shall be erected and thereafter maintained
within 15 feet in B-1 and B-2 Districts, and 20 feet of the "corner"
in all other districts, so as to interfere with traffic visibility
across the corner, except for single poles for signs or utilities,
which do not have to set back.
1. Agricultural Uses.
A. Except for compliance with minimum yard requirements, visibility
across corner lots, and for commercial raising of fur bearing animals
or hog farms, nothing in this chapter shall prohibit the use of any
land for agricultural purposes as defined herein, or the construction
or use of buildings or structures incident to the use for agricultural
purposes of the land on which such buildings or structures are located,
in any Conservation, Agricultural or Mining District.
2. Public or Semi-Public Uses.
A. Nothing in this chapter shall prohibit the erection, construction,
alteration or maintenance of essential services, by public utilities,
governmental agencies, and no zoning certificate shall be required
for any such structures; provided, however, that the provisions of
this subsection shall not apply to buildings, towers, or storage yards
of such public utilities or governmental agencies except when conforming
to the procedure specified by Pennsylvania Municipalities Planning
Code, Act No. 247, Article VI, § 619.
No zoning permit for construction, erection, or alteration of
any building or structure or part thereof, or for signs or outdoor
advertisements, or part thereof, shall be valid for more than one
year unless work at the site has commenced within such period.
The Zoning Officer shall be given at least 24 hours' notice
by owner or applicant prior to commencement of work at site under
zoning permits.
If a case is disapproved by the Governing Body of Wyoming Borough,
thereafter the Governing Body of Wyoming Borough shall take no further
action on another case for substantially the same proposal on the
same property, until one year after the date of such disapproval.
If a case before the Governing Body of Wyoming Borough is advertised,
and thereafter withdrawn by the applicant before or at the meeting
of the Governing Body of Wyoming Borough, he shall be precluded from
filing another application for substantially the same proposal on
the same premises for six months, and the case shall be readvertised.