Birmingham Township
City Zoning Code
City Zoning Code
ARTICLE I
General Provisions
§ 122-1 Title.
This chapter shall be known and may be cited as the "Birmingham Township Zoning Ordinance of 1978."
§ 122-2 Purpose.
A.
This chapter is enacted under and pursuant to the Municipalities Planning Code, Act 247 of 1968, as amended,[1] for the following purposes: to promote, protect and facilitate the public health, safety and general welfare of the inhabitants of the Township of Birmingham by coordinated and practical community development, by providing for property density of population and assuring adequate light and air and facilitating the adequate provision of transportation, police protection, water, sewerage, schools, parks and public grounds; and to prevent overcrowding of land, blight, danger and congestion in travel and transportation and loss of health, life or property from fire, flood, panic or other danger.
[1]
Editor's Note: See 53 P.S. § 10101 et seq.
B.
The regulations and districts contained herein represent reasonable consideration as to the character of the districts and their peculiar suitability for particular uses of land and have been made with a view to enhancing the existing environment and assuring the development of a future environment that realizes the greatest possible use and enjoyment of land on individual properties, balanced against the necessary protection of the values of buildings and land and the use and enjoyment of land on adjacent properties, with the objective of promoting and protecting the public welfare through the regulation of land use and the process of land development.
§ 122-3 Community development objectives.
A.
Birmingham Township, located to the southwest of West Chester and having as its western boundary the Brandywine River, is rich in natural resources and historic significance. As a member of the West Chester Regional Planning Commission and an integral part of the region, Birmingham seeks through this chapter to implement not only its own Comprehensive Plan but also to be in harmony with the Open Space, Housing, Commercial and Circulation Plans of the West Chester Region.
B.
The Township's development objectives, set forth in proper context and detail in its Comprehensive Plan, are summarized herein as follows:
(1)
To preserve and enhance the agricultural, rural, scenic, open space character of Birmingham Township.
(2)
To preserve without reduction those resources within Birmingham Township which are viewed as unique assets of present and future generations and which have potential region-wide benefits (e.g., open space, agriculture, historic sites, scenic areas and the Brandywine River Valley), particularly as identified in the West Chester Region Open Space Plan.
(3)
To focus on and emphasize the conservation of prime agricultural lands and existing agricultural activities, balanced and legally strengthened by limited and spatially concentrated residential development.
(4)
To protect the quality of streams, floodplains and wet soils.
(5)
To establish priorities among those land uses and natural resources which the community desires to conserve and to enact land use control policies for conservation and development compatible with those priorities.
(6)
To provide opportunities within the Township for a variety of dwelling unit densities, types and costs consistent with agricultural preservation, legal mandates and overall Township goals.
(7)
To maintain Township self-sufficiency in waste disposal, water supply, renewable resources and energy through conservation-oriented approaches and policies.
C.
In view of the regional and external nature of much of the growth pressure facing Birmingham, the Township's pace and pattern of future development should strongly reflect regional relationships.
§ 122-4 Interpretation of provisions.
In the interpretation and application of the provisions of this chapter, said provisions shall be held to be the minimum requirements for the promotion and protection of the public health, welfare and safety. Except as to regulation of development under the Birmingham Township Planned Residential Development Ordinance of 1977, (Article XIV hereof), where the provisions of this chapter impose greater restrictions than those of any other ordinance or regulation, the provisions of this chapter shall be controlling. Where the provisions of any statute, other ordinance or regulation impose greater restrictions than this chapter, the provisions of such statute, ordinance or regulation shall be controlling.
§ 122-4.1 Tables of Uses and Area and Bulk Regulations.
A.
For convenience purposes only, the following appendices are hereby attached to this chapter:
B.
These tables are provided for reference only, and individual districts and supplemental use regulations must be consulted for the specific and full set of requirements that apply to each use and to all area and bulk requirements applicable to such use. If a conflict exists between the Table of Uses and/or the Table of Area and Bulk Regulations and the Zoning Ordinance text, the Zoning Ordinance text shall control.
C.
The Table of Uses appended to this chapter and the Table of Area and Bulk Regulations appended to this chapter are hereby adopted as Appendix A and Appendix B of this chapter.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: Appendix A and B are included as attachments to this chapter.