Hatfield Township City Zoning Code
ARTICLE I
Title; Purpose; Objectives; Conflict; Validity
§ 282-1 Title.
This chapter shall be known and may be cited as the "Hatfield Township Zoning Ordinance of 1966," as amended.
§ 282-2 Purpose.
This chapter is enacted for the purpose of promoting the health, safety, morals, and the general welfare of the Township, and is designed to lessen congestion on the roads and highways, and to secure safety from fire, panic and other dangers, to provide adequate light and air, to prevent the overcrowding of land, to avoid undue concentration of population, to facilitate the adequate provision of transportation, water, sewerage, schools, parks and other public requirements, to conserve the value of buildings and to encourage the most appropriate use of land throughout the Township; as well as preservation of the natural scenic and historic values in the environment and preservation of forests, wetlands, aquifers and floodplains.
§ 282-3 Community development objectives.
A.
In interpreting and applying the provisions of this chapter, they shall be held to be the minimum requirements for the promotion of the health, safety, morals, and the general welfare of the Township, and they shall embody the following objectives:
(1)
Guiding and encouraging the future development of the Township in accordance with comprehensive planning of land use and population density that represents the most beneficial and convenient relationship among the residential, commercial, industrial and recreational areas within the Township, having regard to their suitability for the various uses appropriate to each of them and their potentiality for such uses, as indicated by topography and soil conditions, existing man-made conditions, and trends in population, in the direction and manner of the use of land, in building development, and in economic activity, considering such conditions and trends both within the Township and with respect to the relation of the Township to surrounding areas.
(2)
Protecting the character and the social and economic stability of each of such areas and encouraging only their orderly and beneficial growth.
(3)
Protecting and conserving the value of land and buildings throughout the Township appropriate to the various zoning districts established herein.
(4)
Bringing about through proper timing the gradual conformity of land use to these regulations and minimizing conflicts among the uses of land and buildings.
(5)
Aiding in bringing about the most beneficial relation between land use and the circulation of traffic throughout the Township, having particular regard to traffic to and from the expressways, and the avoidance of congestion in the streets and the provision of safe and convenient access appropriate to the various land uses.
(6)
Aiding in providing a guide for public policy and action in the efficient provision of public facilities and services, in the provision of safe and proper sanitary sewage disposal, and for private enterprise in building development, investment, and other economic activity relating to land use.
§ 282-4 Conflict with other provisions.
It is not intended by this chapter to repeal, abrogate, annul or interfere with any existing ordinance or enactment, or with any rule, regulation or permit adopted or issued thereunder except insofar as the same may be inconsistent or in conflict with any of the provisions of this chapter; provided, that where this chapter imposes greater restrictions upon the use of building or land, or upon the height, and bulk of buildings, or prescribes larger open spaces than are required by the provisions of such ordinance, enactment, rule, regulation or permit, the provisions of this chapter shall control.
§ 282-5 Validity.
Should any section or provision of this chapter be declared by a court of competent jurisdiction to be invalid, such decision shall not affect the validity of this chapter as a whole or any other part thereof, nor shall the effect of such decision apply to any other person, property or situation other than those involved in the immediate situation.