Receive all applications for zoning permits and occupancy permits and maintain records thereof. The Zoning Officer shall keep a file of all zoning and occupancy permits that are issued.

Issue zoning permits and occupancy permits for all applications that comply with the literal terms of this chapter and other applicable ordinances, except where approvals are required by this chapter from the Borough Council, the Planning Commission, Zoning Hearing Board or other board or agency.

Receive, file and forward to the Borough Council all applications for conditional uses, maintain records thereof and issue a zoning permit when authorized by the Council.

Receive, file and forward to the Zoning Hearing Board the records in all appeals and all applications for special exception uses, variances and changes of nonconforming uses; maintain records thereof; and issue a zoning permit when authorized by the Zoning Hearing Board.

Inspect buildings, structures and uses of land to determine compliance with the provisions of this chapter.

Issue stop, cease and desist orders and written correction orders for any condition found to be in violation of this chapter, in accordance with the procedures contained in § 158-64. It shall be unlawful for any person to violate such order issued lawfully by the Zoning Officer, and any person violating any such order shall be guilty of a violation of this chapter.

Institute, with approval of or at direction of the Borough Council, appropriate legal action to prevent, restrain, abate or correct any violation of this chapter.

Revoke any order, zoning permit or occupancy permit issued under a mistake of fact or contrary to the provisions of this chapter.

Make and maintain accurate and current records of all legal nonconformities under this chapter.

Maintain a journal of all zoning administrative and enforcement activities. Submit a monthly report to the Borough Council listing all applications received, permits issued, fees collected, status of pending applications, any enforcement actions and other administrative activities. The Zoning Officer shall submit an annual summary of the prior year's actions to the Council by March 1 of each year.

Maintain a map or maps showing the current zoning classification of all land in the Borough.

A zoning permit shall be obtained from the Zoning Officer before any person may:

Improvements to land, preliminary to any use of such land, shall not be commenced prior to the issuance of the zoning permit.

Requirements.

Application.

Issuance of occupancy permit.

Whenever the proposed activity requires approval or a permit under another Borough ordinance, the application for the zoning permit shall be made prior to or simultaneously with the application for the other permit approval.

Applications for a zoning permit shall be submitted, in writing, on such forms provided by the Borough, along with the required fees in accordance with the schedule of fees.[2]

Applications shall include three copies of a site plan of the property upon which the proposed use or development is to occur, drawn to scale and dimensioned, showing:

Narrative statement.

If the application requires no other reviews or approvals by the Borough, the Zoning Hearing Board or other governmental agency, the Zoning Officer shall act upon it within 30 days after the application is filed. If the application is approved, the Zoning Officer shall return one copy of the application documents, together with a signed zoning permit authorizing the applicant to proceed. If the application is disapproved, the Zoning Officer shall return all but one set of the application documents, together with a letter indicating the specific reasons why the application cannot be approved.

The Zoning Officer shall not issue the zoning permit until all other required approvals and permits have been obtained from applicable Borough, county, state and federal agencies. The applicant shall submit copies of such approvals/permits to the Zoning Officer.

Upon completion of the applied-for work, the applicant shall notify the Zoning Officer, who shall examine the building, structure or use of land involved within 10 days after notification. If the Zoning Officer shall find that such construction, erection, structural alteration or use of building and land has been completed in accordance with the provisions of this chapter and other applicable ordinances, the occupancy permit shall be issued.

Public notice of hearings shall be given in accordance with the provisions for such in Article II of this chapter. A notice shall be mailed to all interested parties, including the applicant, the Zoning Officer, the Borough Secretary, President of the Council, the Chairman of the Planning Commission, all property owners within a 300-foot radius of the property(ies) in question and every person or organization who shall have registered with the Board for the purpose of receiving such notices. In addition, notice shall be conspicuously posted on the affected tract of land. The Borough Secretary's office shall be responsible for placing all notices required by this section.

Hearings shall be conducted by the Board, or the Board may appoint one member as a hearing officer. The decision or, where no decision is called for, the findings shall be made by the Board, but the parties may waive the decision or finding by the Board and accept the decision or findings of the hearing officer as final.

Parties to the hearing shall be the municipality, any person who is affected by the application who has made timely appearance of record before the Board and any other person, including civic or community organizations permitted to appear by the Board. The Board shall have the power to require that all persons who wish to be considered parties enter appearances, in writing, on forms provided by the Board for that purpose.

The Chairman or Acting Chairman of the Board or the hearing officer presiding shall have power to administer oaths and issue subpoenas to compel the attendance of witnesses and documents requested by the parties.

The parties shall have the right to be represented by counsel and shall be afforded the opportunity to respond and present evidence and argument and cross-examine adverse witnesses on all relevant issues.

Formal rules of evidence shall not apply, but irrelevant, immaterial or unduly repetitious evidence may be excluded.

The Board or the hearing officer, as the case may be, shall keep a stenographic record of the proceedings, and a transcript of the proceedings and copies of graphic or written material received in evidence shall be made available to any party at cost.

The Board or the hearing officer shall not:

Written decisions.

If the hearing is conducted by a hearing officer, and no stipulation has been made that the officer's decision or findings are final, the Board shall make reports and recommendations available to the parties, and the parties shall be entitled to make written representations thereon to the Board prior to final decision or entry of findings, and the Board's decision shall be entered no later than 45 days after the decision of the hearing officer.

Where the Board has power to render a decision and the Board or the hearing officer, as the case may be, fails to render the same within 60 days from the date of the applicant's request for a hearing, the decision shall be deemed to have been rendered in favor of the applicant, unless the applicant has agreed, in writing, to an extension of time. Nothing in this subsection shall prejudice the right of any party opposing the application to urge that such decision is erroneous.

A copy of the final decision or, where no decision is called for, of the findings shall be delivered to the applicant personally or mailed by certified mail not later than the day following its date. The Board shall provide, by mail or otherwise, a brief notice of the decision or findings and a statement of the place at which the full decision or all findings may be examined to:

Appeals from the Zoning Officer. The Board shall hear and decide appeals where it is alleged by the appellant that the Zoning Officer has failed to follow prescribed procedures or has misinterpreted or misapplied any provision of the valid ordinance or map or any valid rule or regulation governing the action of the Zoning Officer. Nothing contained herein shall be construed to deny to the right to proceed directly in court where appropriate.

Challenges to validity of the chapter or map.

Variances.

Special exceptions. Where this chapter states that special exceptions may be granted or denied by the Board, the Board shall hear and decide requests for such special exceptions in accordance with such standards and criteria as specified in this chapter. In granting a special exception, the Board may attach such reasonable conditions and safeguards, in addition to those expressed in this chapter, as it may deem necessary to implement the purpose of this chapter.

Unified appeals. Where the Board has jurisdiction over a zoning matter pursuant to Subsection G(3)(b)[1] through [3] above, the Board shall also hear all appeals which an applicant may elect to bring before it with respect to any municipal ordinance or requirement pertaining to the same development plan or development. In any such case, the Board shall have no power to pass upon the nonzoning issues but shall take evidence and make a record thereon as provided in § 158-61F of this chapter. At the conclusion of the hearing, the Board shall make findings on all relevant issues of fact which shall become part of the record on appeal to the court.

Changes of nonconforming uses. The Zoning Hearing Board shall hear requests for a change of one nonconforming use to another nonconforming use in accordance with the provisions of Article VII of this chapter.

All applications and appeals to the Board shall be in writing and shall refer to the specific provision of this chapter which is involved, and describe the nature of the appeal, challenge or application for special exception use or variance. The required filing fee shall be submitted with the application.

An appeal from a decision of the Zoning Officer or a validity challenge may be filed by the affected landowner, by any officer or agency of the Borough or any person aggrieved. Requests for a variance or special exception may only be filed by the landowner or a tenant with the permission of the landowner.

No person shall be allowed to file any proceeding with the Board later than 30 days after an application for development, preliminary or final, has been approved by an appropriate municipal officer or body, if such proceeding is designed to secure reversal or to limit the approval in any manner, unless such person alleges and proves that he had no notice, knowledge or reason to believe that such approval had been given. If such person has succeeded to his interest after such approval, he shall be bound by the knowledge of his predecessor in interest.

The failure of anyone, other than the landowner, to appeal from an adverse decision on a tentative approval of a planned residential development application or from an adverse decision by a Zoning Officer on a challenge to the validity of an ordinance or map shall preclude an appeal from a final approval, except in the case where the final submission substantially deviates from the approved tentative or preliminary approval.

Upon filing of any proceeding and during its pendency before the Board, all land development pursuant to any challenged ordinance, order or approval of the Zoning Officer or any agency or body and all official action thereunder shall be stayed, unless the Zoning Officer or any other appropriate agency or body certifies to the Board facts indicating that such stay would cause imminent peril to life or property. In this case, the development or official action shall not be stayed otherwise than by a restraining order which may be granted by the Board or the court having jurisdiction of zoning appeals on petition after notice to the Zoning Officer or other appropriate agency or body.

When an application for development, preliminary or final, has been duly approved and proceedings designed to reverse or limit the approval are filed with the Board by persons other than the applicant, the applicant may petition the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas to order such persons to post bond as a condition to continuing the proceedings before the Board. After the petition is presented, the Court shall hold a hearing to determine if the filing of the appeal is frivolous and is for the purpose of delay. At the hearing, evidence may be presented on the merits of the case. After consideration of all evidence presented, if the Court determines that the appeal is frivolous and is for the purpose of delay, it shall grant the petition. The right to petition the Court to order the appellants to post bond may be waived by the appellee, but such waiver may be revoked by him if an appeal is taken from a final decision of the Court. The question of whether or not such petition should be granted, and the amount of the bond, shall be within the sound discretion of the Court.

Validity of the ordinance and procedural questions.

Appeals from the decisions of the Zoning Hearing Board.

Appeals from the decisions of the Borough Council relative to a conditional use application.

Petitions for amendment by a private person shall be filed with the Planning Commission, and the petitioner, upon such filing, shall pay any fees in accordance with the schedule of fees.[1] The Planning Commission shall review the proposed amendment and report its findings and recommendations, in writing, within 45 days to the Council and to the petitioner. The proposed amendment shall be introduced before the Council only if a member of the Council elects to do so. If an amendment proposed by petition is not introduced, any fees shall be refunded to the petitioner.

Any proposed amendment introduced by a member of the Council without written findings and recommendations from the Planning Commission shall be referred to the Borough Planning Commission for review at least 30 days prior to the public hearing.

Any proposed amendment shall also be submitted to the Allegheny County Planning Commission for review and comment at least 30 days prior to the public hearing.

Before voting on the enactment of an amendment, the Borough Council shall hold a public hearing thereon, pursuant to public notice as defined by this chapter.[2]

If, after any public hearing held upon an amendment, the proposed amendment is revised, or further revised, to include land previously not affected by it, the Council shall hold another public hearing, pursuant to public notice, before proceeding to vote on the amendment.

A vote on any proposed amendment shall take place at a regular or special meeting of the Borough Council, following the public hearing or hearings.

A landowner who desires to challenge, on substantive grounds, the validity of this chapter or map (or any provision thereof) which restricts or prohibits the use or development of land in which he/she has an interest may submit a curative amendment to the Borough Council, as provided by the Municipalities Planning Code (Sections 609.1 and 1004[3]).

The Borough Council shall commence a hearing within 60 days of the request. Procedures for reviewing and conducting hearings on the curative amendment shall follow Subsection A(4), (5) and (6) above.

Within 30 days following such declaration and proposal, the Council shall:

Within 180 days of the date of the declaration and proposal, the municipality shall either enact a curative amendment or vote to reaffirm the validity of its Zoning Ordinance. The procedures for adopting a curative amendment shall be as prescribed by § 158-63A(4), (5) and (6).

Upon the initiation of the procedures set forth in Subsection C(1) above, the Borough Council shall not be required to entertain or consider any landowner's curative amendment. Similarly, the Zoning Hearing Board is not required to give a report on any challenge to the validity of the chapter if said challenge is based upon grounds identical to or substantially similar to those specified in the Council's resolution.

Upon completion of the procedures as set forth in Subsection C(1) and (2), no rights to a cure pursuant to the provisions of § 158-63B of this chapter 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.

The Borough may not again utilize the above procedure for a municipal curative amendment for a thirty-six-month period following the date of the enactment of a curative amendment, or the reaffirmation of the validity of its Zoning Ordinance. 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.