[HISTORY: Adopted by the Township Council
of Horsham Township 6-9-2004 by Ord. No. 2018. Amendments noted where
applicable.]
Horsham Township, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania,
hereby elects to administer and enforce the provisions of the Pennsylvania
Construction Code Act, Act 45 of 1999, 35 P.S. §§ 7210.101-7210.1103,
as amended from time to time, and its regulations.
The Uniform Construction Code, contained within
Title 34 Pa. Code, Chapters 401-405, as amended from time to time,
is hereby adopted and incorporated herein by reference as the municipal
building code for Horsham Township, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania.
Administration and enforcement of the Code within
Horsham Township shall be undertaken, as determined by the Horsham
Township Council, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, in accordance with
the regulations of the Pennsylvania Construction Code Act.
[Amended 3-13-2019 by Ord. No. 2019-04]
A.
Creation of Appeals Board. A Building Code Board of Appeals (hereinafter
"Appeals Board") is hereby established in conformity with the requirements
of the Pennsylvania Construction Code Act, Act 45 of 1999, 35 P.S.
§§ 7210.101 through 7210.1103; Section 501.(c) and
34 Pa. Code § 403.121. The Operation of Board of Appeals
shall hear and rule on appeals, requests for variances and requests
for extensions of time.
B.
Appointment of members. The Township shall have the authority to
appoint and reappoint five members of the Board of Appeals by resolution,
as required, which members shall serve as follows: one for five years,
one for four years, one for three years, one for two years and one
for one year. Thereafter, each new member shall serve for five years
or until a successor is appointed. Such members may be removed with
or without cause by a majority vote of the Council of Horsham Township.
The composition of the Board shall be subject to the limitations of
and in conformity with the provisions of the Pennsylvania Uniform
Construction Code and the regulations adopted thereunder and set forth
in 34 Pa. Code §§ 403.121 and 403.122. The Township
shall also have the authority to appoint a solicitor to advise the
Board on legal matters when reviewing an appeal.
C.
Qualifications of members. The members of the Appeals Board shall,
in the discretion of the Council, be qualified by training and experience
to pass on matters pertaining to building construction. Training and
experience may consist of licensure as an architect or engineer, experience
in the construction industry, or training or experience as an inspector
or plan reviewer. No member of the Council nor any code inspector
employed by the Township may serve on the Appeals Board. If the Council
is unable to find a sufficient number of qualified individuals who
reside within the Township, it may appoint a qualified person who
resides outside of the Township to fill a position.
D.
Alternate members. The Council of Horsham Township shall appoint
two alternate members who shall be called by the Board Chairman to
hear appeals during the absence or disqualification of a member. Alternate
members shall possess the qualifications required for Board membership
under the Pennsylvania Uniform Construction Code and shall be appointed
for five years or until a successor has been appointed.
E.
Chairman and Secretary. The Board of Appeals shall annually select
one of its members to serve as a Chairman. Horsham Township Council
shall designate an individual who may or may not be a Board of Appeals
member to serve as Secretary to the Board. The Secretary shall file
a detailed record of all proceedings to the members of Horsham Township
Council within a reasonable time after the conclusion of such proceedings.
F.
Disqualification of a member. A member of the Appeals Board shall
not hear an appeal which that a member has any personal, professional
or financial interest.
G.
Operation of Board of Appeals. The procedure for conduct of hearing
and notices of hearings established by resolution of Township Council
and shall be consistent with Pennsylvania law and regulations of the
Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry.
A.
All ordinances and/or resolutions or parts thereof
which have previously been adopted by Horsham Township on or before
July 1, 1999, and which are equal to or exceed the requirements of
the code shall remain in full force and effect until such time as
the provisions of these ordinances fail to equal or exceed the minimum
requirements of the code, as amended from time to time.
B.
These ordinance provisions, which are hereby saved
from repeal, include, but are not limited to:
(1)
Ordinance No. 2015, adopted on January 12, 1994, enacting
the 1993 BOCA National Building Code; the CABO One- and Two-Family
Dwelling Code, 1993 Edition; Ordinance No. 3008, adopted on January
12, 1994, adopting the 1993 BOCA National Plumbing Code; Ordinance
Nos. 2016, adopted on January 12, 1994, and 2017, adopted on July
13, 1994; and Ordinance No. 2009, enacted on September 8, 1981, establishing
regulations for property maintenance, to the extent the regulations
set forth in any of the above-mentioned codes are stricter than the
UCC Building Code.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: Copies of the above-enumerated
ordinances are on file and available for inspection at the Township
offices.
(2)
All provisions of Ordinance Nos. 2015, 2016, 2017,
3008, and 2009 and the codes adopted thereunder which equal or exceed
the minimum requirements of the code, especially noting the following
regulations:
(a)
Section 3 of Ordinance No. 3008 which includes regulations
prohibiting acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) plastic pipe.
(b)
Section 3 of Ordinance No. 2016 adopting § 407.3
of the 1993 BOCA Building Code which requires a fire-stopping material
in all voids and penetrations topped off with fire-rated caulk.
(c)
Section 3 of Ordinance No. 2016 adopting § 704.4.1.1
of the 1993 BOCA Building Code which requires 5/8 inch fire-rated
drywall between living areas and garages.
(3)
Ordinance No. 2009 which establishes the Horsham Township
Housing Code (a property maintenance code).
C.
All ordinances and/or resolutions or parts thereof
which have previously been adopted by Horsham Township that are in
effect as of the effective date of this chapter and whose requirements
are less than the minimum requirements of the code are hereby amended
to conform with the comparable provisions of the code.
D.
All other ordinances, resolutions, regulations and
policies of Horsham Township not governed by the code shall remain
in full force and effect.
This code may be changed and/or modified by
the governing body of Horsham Township in accordance with the Pennsylvania
Construction Code Act, Act 45 of 1999, 35 P.S. §§ 7210.101-7210.1103,
Section 503.
A fee schedule assessable by Horsham Township
for the administration and enforcement undertaken pursuant to this
chapter and the code shall be established by the governing body of
Horsham Township by resolution from time to time.
In accordance with Section 403.102(l) of Title
34, Part XIV, Chapter 403, the following regulations set forth in
the Pennsylvania Code are amended as set forth below:
A.
Section 403.43(g). Delete the words "five years" and
replace with the words "one year."
B.
Section 403.43(h). The permit holder shall keep a
copy of the permit on the work site until the completion of the construction
or the issuance of a use and occupancy permit, whichever comes later.
C.
Section 403.62(c)(1)(xvii) is deleted in its entirety.
D.
Section 403.64(d). Delete numbers 1 through 4 and
replace with the following:
E.
34 Pa Code 403.82 is hereby amended to read as follows:
"A building code official shall follow the following procedures if
an inspection of an occupied building reveals a violation of the Uniform
Construction Code:
(1)
"A construction code official shall discuss the inspection
results with the permit holder at the completion of the inspection.
(2)
"The building code official may issue a written notice
of violations to the permit holder. The notice is to contain a description
of the violations and an order requiring correction of the violations
within a reasonable period determined by the building code official.
When a violation relates to an unsafe building, structure or equipment,
a building code official shall act in accordance with § 403.84
(relating to unsafe building, structure or equipment).
(3)
"After the compliance date contained in the order,
the building code official shall inspect the building, structure or
equipment to determine whether the violation was corrected. The building
code official shall close the order if the violation was corrected.
The building code official may issue an order to show cause under
§ 403.83 (relating to order to show cause/order to vacate)
to the owner for a violation that was not corrected."
All other ordinances and/or resolutions or parts
thereof which are in conflict with this chapter are hereby repealed.
Nothing in this chapter or in the code hereby adopted shall be construed to affect any suit or proceeding impending in any court, or any rights acquired, or liability incurred, or any cause or causes of action acquired or existing, under any act or ordinance hereby repealed as cited in § 90-9 of this chapter; nor shall any just or legal right of remedy of any character be lost, impaired or affected by this chapter.
