[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Commissioners
of the Township of Cheltenham 6-27-2006 by Ord. No. 2110-06. Amendments noted
where applicable.]
The International Property Maintenance Code, 2006 Edition, as published by the International Code Council, be and is hereby adopted as the Property Maintenance Code of the Township of Cheltenham, in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania for regulating and governing the conditions and maintenance of all property, buildings and structures; by providing the standards for supplied utilities and facilities and other physical things and conditions essential to ensure that structures are safe, sanitary and fit for occupation and use; and the condemnation of buildings and structures unfit for human occupancy and use, and the demolition of such existing structures as herein provided; providing for the issuance of permits therefor; and each and all of the regulations, provisions, penalties, conditions and terms of said Property Maintenance Code. Said Code is adopted, and made a part hereof, as if fully set out in this chapter, with the additions, insertions, deletions and changes, if any, prescribed in § 215-2 of this chapter.
A.
The following sections of the International Property
Maintenance Code, 2006 Edition, are hereby revised as follows:
(1)
In Section 101.1 Title, insert "Township of Cheltenham."
(3)
In Section 102.6 Historic buildings, add "Historic
buildings shall be designated as such by the Township, county, state,
or federal government."
(7)
Delete Section 103.5 Fees, and insert "No fees will
be charged at this time but may be added in the future by resolution."
(8)
Delete Section 104.7 Department records, and insert
"Records shall be retained in accordance with the "Retention and Disposition
Schedule for Records of Pennsylvania Municipal Governments."
(9)
In Section 106.4 Violation penalties, add "Upon conviction
before the Magisterial Judge, a fine of not more than $1,000 per day,
together with costs of the suit shall be collectible as permitted
by this chapter."
(10)
In Section 107.2 Form, add, "5. The right to appeal is before the
Public Works Committee. The request to be heard must be received in
writing by the Township Manager no more than 14 days after the decision,
notice or order is issued by the Township. The appellant shall first
appear and present his or her appeal to the Township Manager and the
Code Official at a meeting at the Township Building prior to appearing
before the Public Works Committee. The Township Manager and the Code
Official shall attempt to address or resolve the decision, notice
or order and all underlying issues on behalf of the Township. In the
event the Township Manager and the Code Official are unable to resolve
or dispose of the appeal and all underlying issues of the decision,
notice or order appealed, the Township Manager shall report the details
and/or results of the meeting to the Public Works Committee prior
to the appearance of the appellant before such Committee."
[Amended 8-15-2018 by Ord. No.
2374-18]
(11)
In Section 108 Unsafe Structures And Equipment, insert a new and
revised subsection 108.2.1 as follows:
[Amended 6-15-2016 by Ord. No. 2330-16]
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108.2.1 Vacant Buildings. It shall be unlawful for an owner or operator to allow a building(s) to remain vacant unless the owner or operator complies with the requirements of Chapter 283, entitled "Vacant Building Registry and Regulations," and maintains the building(s) in accordance with this chapter, the International Fire Code, the International Building Code and Chapter 188, entitled "Nuisances."
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(12)
In Section 108.4.1 Placarding, add "No person shall
occupy a placarded premises nor operate placarded equipment until
written approval is secured from and such placards removed by the
Code Official."
(13)
Delete Section 111 Means Of Appeal. See Section 107.2.
(15)
NEGLECT
VACANT BUILDING
In Section 202 General Definitions, insert new and revised definitions
as follows:
[Amended 6-15-2016 by Ord. No. 2330-16; 11-15-2017 by Ord. No. 2359-17]
A lack of routine maintenance and repair action by a property
owner or others having legal possession, custody or control of a property
that causes a building or structure to become vulnerable to decay
by exposure to the elements and/or vandalism. Some common conditions
exhibited by neglected buildings or structures, include, but are not
limited to:
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Deteriorated foundations, walls, floors, ceilings, or rafters;
or
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Ineffective waterproofing of roofs, walls, or foundations, including
broken doors and windows and/or deteriorated brick, mortar, or stucco
or pervasive, deteriorated paint; or
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Signs of rot or decay, such as holes, rotted wood or any deterioration
that creates a hazardous condition; or
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Lack of maintenance of the surrounding environment, such as
retaining walls and outbuildings; or
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•
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Appearance of graffiti or other signs of vandalism; or
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Any other condition of structural weakness, decay, and/or deterioration,
whether or not as a result of negligence or willful neglect, purpose
or design, by the owner or others having legal possession, custody
or control of a property to such a degree that the code official is
of the opinion that there is a reasonably significant possibility
that the condition will lead to a structure's inability to be
rehabilitated or reused.
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A building where no person(s) or entity(ies) actually, currently
conduct(s) a lawfully licensed business in, or lawfully occupies any
part of the building as the legal or equitable owner(s) or tenant-occupant(s)
or owner-occupants, or tenant(s) on a permanent, nontransient basis.
For the purposes of this chapter, evidence of vacancy is considered
any condition that on its own, or combined with other conditions,
would lead a reasonable person to believe the property is vacant,
as defined. Such conditions may include, but not be limited to, lack
of activity on the site; low or no utility usage; accumulation of
mail; lack of furniture, equipment or machinery; lack of window coverings;
open accessibility; deferred maintenance or deteriorating buildings
and structures; overgrown or dead vegetation; dumped refuse or rubbish;
public or attractive nuisances; boarded windows or doors; and statements
by neighbors, passersby, delivery agents or government agents; among
other evidence that the property is vacant. A building may also be
considered vacant if less than 10% of the total square footage of
the building is actively used by the owner(s) or tenant(s) on a permanent,
nontransient basis for domestic or lawfully-licensed business purposes.
(18)
Delete Section 302.8 Motor vehicles. (See Cheltenham Code, Chapter 188).
[Amended 4-15-2008 by Ord. No. 2156-08; 10-19-2016 by Ord. No. 2334-16]
(20)
In Section 303.2 Enclosures, add "The fence or barrier
shall not have openings, holes or gaps that would permit the passage
of a four-inch diameter sphere."
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(20.1)
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In Section 304.3 Premises identification, add
"304.3.1 Building identification. All commercial and multiple-family
occupancy buildings are required to display the numeric street address
and English name of the establishment in Arabic numbers of not less
than six inches tall with a stroke of not less than 3/4 inch, at both
the front and rear of the building. In buildings with internal service
corridors, all doors in the corridor shall be marked with the store
name or description of the use of the area serviced by the door.
[Added 10-17-2006 by Ord. No. 2118-06] |
(21)
In Section 304.14 Insect screens, insert "June 1 to
November 1."
(24)
Delete Section 403.4 Process ventilation (regulated
by other government agencies).
(25)
Delete Section 404.4 Bedroom and living room requirements,
Section 404.4.1 Room area, and Section 404.5 Overcrowding, and replace
with language used in the 2003 Property Maintenance Code which reads
as follows:
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Section 404.4 Bedroom requirements. Every bedroom shall comply with the requirements of Section 404.4.1
through 404.4.5
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Section 404.4.1 Area for sleeping purposes. Every bedroom occupied by one person shall contain at least 70 square
feet (6.5 square meters) of floor area for each occupant thereof.
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Section 404.5 Overcrowding. Dwelling
units shall not be occupied by more occupants than permitted by the
minimum area requirements of Table 404.5.
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TABLE 404.5
MINIMUM AREA REQUIREMENTS
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Space
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Minimum Area in Square Feet
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1-2 Occupants
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3-5 Occupants
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6 or More Occupants
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Living rooma,b
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No requirements
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120
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150
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Dining rooma,b
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No requirements
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80
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100
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Bedrooms
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Shall comply with Section 404.4
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NOTES:
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For Sl: 1 square foot = 0.093 square meters
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a. See Section 404.5.2 for combined living room/dining
room spaces.
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b. See Section 404.5.1 for limitations on determining
the minimum occupancy area for sleeping purposes.
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Section 404.5.1 Sleeping area. The
minimum occupancy area required by Table 404.5 shall not be included
as a sleeping area in determining the minimum occupancy area for sleeping
purposes. All sleeping areas shall comply with Section 404.4.
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Section 404.5.2 Combined spaces. Combined living room and dining room spaces shall comply with the
requirements of Table 404.5 if the total area is equal to that required
for separate rooms and if the space is located so as to function as
a combination living room/dining room.
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(26)
In Section 602.3 Heat supply, insert "October 1 to
May 15."
(27)
In Section 602.4 Occupiable work spaces, insert "October
1 to May 15."
(28)
Delete Section 606 Elevators, Escalators And Dumbwaiters
(regulated by other government agencies).
(30)
Add new Section 110.5:
[Added 11-15-2017 by Ord.
No. 2359-17]
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Demolition by neglect. It shall be unlawful for a property owner or others having legal possession, custody or control of a property in the Township: (1) to neglect the property and allow the condition of the property to incur such deterioration as to be beyond the point of feasible repair; or (2) to allow the property to become dangerous, unsafe, insanitary, or otherwise unfit for human occupancy. The property owner shall maintain the property in compliance with all relevant property maintenance codes, including Chapter 110, Building Construction, Chapter 151, Fire Prevention, Chapter 188, Nuisances, Chapter 215, Property Maintenance, Chapter 283, Vacant Building Registry and Regulations, and Chapter 295, Zoning, of the Cheltenham Township Code of Ordinances.
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