Glen Rock City Zoning Code
PART 7
ADMINISTRATION AND ENACTMENT
§ 27-701 Permits.
[Ord. 284 (86-2), 8/14/1986, § 701; as amended by Ord. 429 (2004-4), 8/11/2004, §§ 2, 3; by Ord. No. 521, 5/17/2023; by Ord. No. 526, 8/21/2024]
1.
Zoning Permits.
B.
Duration of Permit. An initial zoning permit shall be in effect for one year from the date of issuance. A zoning permit may be renewed one time for one year from the date of renewal with approval from the Zoning Officer.
C.
Application. The zoning permit application must be accompanied by a site plan showing as necessary to demonstrate conformity to this chapter:
(1)
Lot. The location and dimensions of the lot.
(2)
Streets. Names and widths of abutting streets.
(3)
Structures and Yards. Locations, dimensions and uses of existing and proposed structures and yards on the lot, and, as practical, of any existing structures within 100 feet of the proposed structure but off the lot.
(4)
Improvements. Proposed off-street parking and loading areas, access drives and walks and proposed sewage disposal system.
For lots less than 1/2 acre in size, the site plan must be on the scale of one inch equals 20 feet; for larger lots, the site plan must be at a scale of one inch equals 40 feet. The north point must be shown on all site plans. |
2.
Use Certificates. A use certificate, certifying compliance with this chapter, must be obtained from the Zoning Officer for any new structure as below or for any change of use of a structure or land as set forth below before such new structure or use or change of use is occupied or established:
A.
Use of a structure erected, structurally altered or extended, or moved after the effective date.
B.
Use of vacant land except for agricultural purposes.
C.
Any change in conforming use of a structure or land.
D.
Any change from a nonconforming use of a structure or land to a conforming use.
E.
Any change in the use of a structure or land from that permitted by any variance of the Zoning Hearing Board.
The application for a use certificate must include a statement of the intended use and any existing use of the structure or land. The certificate continues in effect as long as the use of the structure or land for which it is granted conforms with this chapter. |
3.
Driveway Permits. A driveway permit shall be required for any new driveway, not including resurfacing of an existing driveway, unless said resurfacing includes the complete removal of the existing surface or a change in the type of surface material (e.g., concrete to blacktop).
§ 27-702 Erroneous Permit.
[Ord. 284 (86-2), 8/14/1986, § 702]
A building permit or other permit or authorization issued or approved in violation of the provisions of this chapter, is void without the necessity of any proceedings for revocation. Any work undertaken or use established pursuant to such a permit or other authorization is unlawful. No action may be taken by a board, agency, or employee of the Borough purporting to validate such a violation.
§ 27-703 Enforcement; Zoning Officer.
[Ord. 284 (86-2), 8/14/1986, § 703; as amended by Ord. 336 (92-3), 5/6/1992, §§ 14, 15; and by Ord. 429 (2004-4), 8/11/2004, §§ 4 — 9]
1.
Appointment and Powers. For the administration of this chapter, a Zoning Officer, who may not hold any elective office within the Borough, shall be appointed by the Borough Council. The Zoning Officer shall meet qualifications established by the Borough and shall be able to demonstrate to the satisfaction of the Borough a working knowledge of municipal zoning. The Zoning Officer shall administer this chapter in accordance with its literal terms and shall not have the power to permit any construction or any change of use which does not conform to this chapter. The Zoning Officer is the enforcement officer for this chapter. The Zoning Officer shall issue all zoning permits, driveway permits and use certificates, and at the direction of the Zoning Hearing Board, special exceptions and variances. The Zoning Officer may identify and register nonconforming uses and nonconforming structures together with the reasons why they were identified as nonconformities. The Zoning Officer may conduct inspections and surveys to determine compliance or noncompliance with the terms of this chapter with the consent of the owner.
3.
Transmittal of Papers. Upon receipt of an application for a special exception, variance or a notice of appeal, the Zoning Officer must transmit to the Secretary of the Zoning Hearing Board and to the Borough Planning Commission, copies of all papers constituting the record upon the special exception, variance, or appeal.
4.
Action on Zoning Permits. Within 15 days, except for legal holidays, after receipt of an application for a zoning permit, the Zoning Officer shall grant or refuse the permit. If the application conforms to the applicable requirements of this chapter, the Zoning Officer shall grant a permit. If the permit is not granted, the Zoning Officer shall state, in writing, the grounds for his refusal.
5.
Action on Use Certificates. Within 15 days, except for holidays, after receipt of an application for a use certificate, the Zoning Officer must grant or refuse the certificate. If the specifications and intended use conform in all respects with the provisions of this chapter, he must issue a certificate to that effect. Otherwise, he must state in writing the grounds of his refusal.
6.
Preliminary Opinion. In order not to unreasonably delay the time when a landowner may secure assurance that the ordinance or map under which he proposes to build is free from challenge, and recognizing that the procedure for preliminary approval of his development may be too cumbersome or may be unavailable, the landowner may advance the date from which time for any challenge to the ordinance or map will run pursuant to § 27-506 of this chapter by the following procedure:
A.
The landowner may submit plans and other materials describing his proposed use or development to the Zoning Officer for a preliminary opinion as to their compliance with the applicable ordinances and maps. Such plans and other materials shall not be required to meet the standards prescribed for preliminary, tentative or final approval or of the issuance of a building permit so long as they provide reasonable notice of the proposed use or development and a sufficient basis for a preliminary opinion as to its compliance.
B.
If the Zoning Officer's preliminary opinion is that the use or development complies with the ordinance or map, notice thereof shall be published once each week for two successive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation in the Borough. Such notice shall include a general description of the proposed use or development and its location, by some readily identifiable directive, and the place and times where the plans and other materials may be examined by the public. The favorable preliminary approval under § 27-506 of this chapter and the time specified therein for commencing a proceeding with the Zoning Hearing Board shall run from the time when the second notice thereof has been published.
7.
Records. The Zoning Officer must keep record of:
A.
All applications for zoning permits, certificates of use and occupancy, driveway permits, special exceptions and variances and all actions taken on them, together with any conditions imposed by the Zoning Hearing Board.
B.
All complaints of violations of provisions of this chapter and the action taken on them.
C.
All plans submitted.
D.
Nonconforming uses and nonconforming structures.
§ 27-704 Appeals.
[Ord. 284 (86-2), 8/14/1986, § 704; as amended by Ord. 336 (92-3), 5/6/1992, § 16]
Any person aggrieved or affected by the provisions of this chapter or a decision of the Zoning Hearing Board may appeal in the manner provided in this chapter and as provided in Articles IX and X-A of the Municipalities Planning code, Act 170 of 1988, as amended, 53 P.S. §§ 10901 et seq., 11001-A et seq.
§ 27-705 Violations; Enforcement.
[Ord. 284 (86-2), 8/14/1986, § 705; as amended by Ord. 336 (92-3), 5/6/1992, § 17]
1.
Violations. If it appears that a violation of this chapter has occurred, the Borough shall initiate enforcement proceedings by having the Zoning Officer send an enforcement notice as provided in this section.
2.
Enforcement Notice. The enforcement notice shall be sent to the owner of record of the parcel on which the violation has occurred, to any person who has filed a written request to receive enforcement notices regarding that parcel, and to any other person requested in writing by the owner of record.
3.
Content of Notice. The enforcement notice shall contain the following information:
A.
The name of the owner or record and any other person against whom the Borough intends to take action.
B.
The location of the property in violation.
C.
The specific violation with a description of the requirements which have not been met, citing in each instance the applicable provisions of this Part.
D.
The date before which steps for compliance must be commenced and the date before which the steps must be completed.
E.
That the recipient of the notice has the right to appeal to the Zoning Hearing Board within a prescribed period of time in accordance with the procedures set forth in this chapter.
F.
That failure to comply with the notice within the time specified, unless extended by appeal to the Zoning Hearing Board, constitutes a violation with possible sanctions clearly described.
§ 27-706 Causes of Action.
[Ord. 284 (86-2), 8/14/1986, as added by Ord. 336 (92-3), 5/6/1992, § 18]
In case any building, structure, landscaping or land is, or is proposed to be, erected, constructed, reconstructed, altered, converted, maintained or used in violation of this chapter, the Borough Council or the Zoning Officer, with the approval of the Borough Council, or any aggrieved owner or tenant of real property or person who shows that his property or person will be substantially affected by the alleged violation, in addition to other remedies, may institute any appropriate action or proceeding to prevent, restrain, correct or abate such building, structure, landscaping or land, to prevent, in or about such premises any act, conduct, business or use constituting a violation. When any such action is instituted by a landowner or tenant, notice of that action shall be served upon the Borough at least 30 days prior to the time the action is begun by serving a copy of the complaint on the Borough Council. No such action may be maintained until such notice has been given.
§ 27-707 Enforcement Remedies.
[Ord. 284 (86-2), 8/14/1986; as added by Ord. 336 (92-3), 5/6/1992, § 19; and amended by Ord. 490 (2017-05), 10/18/2017]
Any person, partnership or corporation who or which has violated the provisions of this chapter shall, upon being found liable therefore in a civil enforcement proceeding commenced by Glen Rock Borough before a magisterial district judge, pay a judgment of $500 plus all court costs, including reasonable attorney fees incurred by Glen Rock Borough as a result thereof. No judgment shall commence or be imposed, levied or be payable until the date of determination of a violation by the magisterial district judge. If the defendant neither pays nor timely appeals the judgment, Glen Rock Borough may enforce the judgment pursuant to the applicable rules of civil procedure. Each day that a violation continues shall constitute a separate violation unless the magisterial district judge determines that there was a good faith basis for the person, partnership or corporation violating this chapter to have believed that there was no such violation, in which case there shall be deemed to have been only one such violation until the fifth day following the determination of a violation by the magisterial district judge and thereafter each day that a violation continues shall constitute a separate violation. All judgments, costs and reasonable attorney fees collected for the violation of this chapter shall be paid over to Glen Rock Borough. The Court of Common Pleas of York County, upon petition, may grant an order of stay, upon cause shown, tolling the per diem judgment pending a final adjudication of the violation and judgment. Nothing contained in this section shall be construed or interpreted to grant to any person or entity other than Glen Rock Borough the right to commence any action for enforcement pursuant to this section.
§ 27-708 Amendments.
[Ord. 284 (86-2), 8/14/1986; as amended by Ord. 336 (92-3), 5/6/1992, § 20]
1.
The Borough Council may from time to time amend, supplement or repeal any of the regulations and provisions of this chapter. Before voting on the enactment of an amendment, the Borough Council shall hold a public hearing thereon, pursuant to public notice. In addition, if the proposed amendment involves a Zoning Map change, notice of said public hearing shall be conspicuously posted by the Borough at points deemed sufficient by the Borough along the perimeter of the tract to notify potentially interested citizens. The affected tract or area shall be posted at least one week prior to the date of the hearing.
2.
In the case of an amendment other than that proposed by the Planning Commission, Borough Council shall submit each such amendment to the Planning Commission at least 30 days prior to the hearing on such proposed amendment to provide the Planning Commission an opportunity to submit recommendations. In addition, Borough Council shall submit the proposed amendment to the York County Planning Commission for recommendations at least 30 days prior to the hearing on the amendment.
3.
If, after any public hearing held upon an amendment, the proposed amendment is changed substantially, or is revised to include land previously not affected by it, Borough Council shall hold another public hearing, pursuant to public notice, before proceeding to vote on the amendment.
§ 27-709 Landowner Curative Amendments.
[Ord. 284 (86-2), 8/14/1986; as amended by Ord. 336 (92-3), 5/6/1992, § 21]
1.
Submission. A landowner who desires to challenge on substantive grounds the validity of this chapter or Zoning Map or any provision thereof, which prohibits or restricts the use or development of land in which he has an interest may submit a curative amendment to Borough Council with a written request that his challenge and proposed amendment be heard and decided. Borough Council shall commence a hearing thereon within 60 days of the request. The curative amendment and challenge shall be referred to the Planning Commission and the York County Planning Commission for review as provided in § 27-708 of this chapter.
2.
Hearing. Notices of the hearing shall be given as provided in § 27-502, Subsection 1, of this chapter and of the proposed amendment as provided in § 610 of the Municipalities Planning Code, Act 170 of 1988, 53 P.S. § 10610. The hearing shall be conducted in accordance with § 27-502 of this chapter and all references therein to the Zoning Hearing Board shall, for the purposes of this section, be references to the Borough Council.
3.
Determination. If Borough Council has determined that a validity challenge has merit, it may accept the landowner's curative amendment, with or without revision, or may adopt an alternative amendment which will cure the challenged defects. Borough Council, in making its determination, shall consider the curative amendments, plans and explanatory material submitted by the landowner and shall also consider the factors enumerated in § 27-505, Subsection 2, of this chapter.
§ 27-710 Borough Curative Amendments.
[Ord. 284 (86-2), 8/14/1986; as amended by Ord. 336 (92-3), 5/6/1992, § 22]
1.
If Borough Council determines that this chapter, or any portion thereof, is substantially invalid, it shall take the following steps:
A.
Borough Council shall declare by formal action this chapter or portions thereof to be substantially invalid and propose to prepare a curative amendment to overcome such invalidity. Within 30 days following such declaration and proposal, Borough Council shall:
B.
Within 180 days from the date of the declaration and proposal, Borough Council shall enact a curative amendment to validate, or reaffirm the validity of, this chapter pursuant to the provisions of § 27-708 of this chapter and § 609 of the Municipalities Planning code, Act 170 of 1988, 53 P.S. § 10609.
C.
Upon initiation of the procedures as set forth in this section, Borough Council shall not entertain or consider any landowner's curative amendment filed pursuant to § 27-709 of this chapter nor shall the Zoning Hearing Board be required to hear a challenge pursuant to § 27-505 of this chapter subsequent to the declaration and proposal based upon the grounds identical to or substantially similar to those specified by the resolution of Borough Council. Upon completion of the procedures set forth in Subsections 1A and B of this section, no right to a cure pursuant to the provisions of this chapter or the Municipalities Planning Code, Act 170 of 1988, as amended, 53 P.S. § 10101 et seq., shall, from the date of 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.
D.
Borough Council having utilized the procedure set forth in this section may not again utilize said procedure for a thirty-six-month period following the date of the enactment of a curative amendment, or reaffirmation of the validity of this chapter pursuant to this section; provided, however, if after the date of declaration and proposal there is a substantially new duty or obligation imposed upon the Borough by virtue of a change in statute or by virtue of a Pennsylvania appellate court decision, the Borough may utilize the provisions of this section to prepare a curative amendment to this chapter to fulfill said duty or obligation.
§ 27-711 Fees.
[Ord. 284 (86-2), 8/14/1986, § 706; as amended by Ord. No. 525, 8/21/2024]
The Borough Council may set fees for all Zoning Determination Letters prepared by the Zoning Officer, applications, permits, or appeals provided for by Chapter 27 to defray the costs of advertising, mailing notices, processing, inspecting, and copying applications, permits, and use certificates. The fee schedule shall be available at the Borough Office for inspection.