The Zoning Office shall administer, enforce, and interpret this chapter in accordance with its literal terms. He shall be appointed by and be responsible to Borough Council, shall demonstrate to Council a working knowledge of municipal zoning, and shall hold no elective office in the Borough. The Zoning Office need not be a resident of Indiana Borough, and compensation for the position shall be at the discretion of Council.

The Zoning Office shall receive and process applications for building permits and permission to occupy in accordance with this chapter, and shall not permit any construction or any use or change of use which does not conform to this chapter.

The Zoning Office shall investigate alleged violations and take action in accordance with § 460-57 of this chapter. He shall also testify before the Zoning Hearing Board on contested decisions he has made or when otherwise called to testify.

All questions of interpretation of this chapter shall be first presented to the Zoning Office, who shall make a decision thereon based on literal interpretation. The decision may be appealed to the Zoning Hearing Board, which shall act after receiving recommendations and a written record from the Planning Commission.

The Zoning Official shall attend all meetings of the Planning Commission and the Zoning Hearing Board, and meetings of the Borough Council, as required by the Borough Manager.

In addition, the Zoning Official shall represent the Borough at hearings before the Magisterial District Judge (see § 460-56C), shall maintain public files of all permits issued and applications processed, shall attend meetings of Council at its request to provide reports of his activities (see § 460-55H), and shall examine permitted work in progress (see § 460-55D).

No person shall erect, alter or convert any structure or building or part thereof, nor alter the use of any land until a zoning permit has been issued by the Zoning Office.

An application for a zoning permit shall include the following in duplicate on forms provided by the Zoning Office. A site plan may be waived by the Zoning Office if the application includes no construction outside the existing buildings on the lot.

If the application is satisfactory, the Zoning Office shall inspect the premises where the construction is proposed to occur. It shall be the responsibility of the property owner to locate proposed edges of construction and adjacent property lines.

The Zoning Office may from time to time visit the property whereon the approved construction is taking place in order to assure himself that the work is proceeding in accordance with the Zoning permit. The Zoning Office shall not be denied access to the property during normal working hours in order to inspect the construction in progress, and may order the work corrected to conform to the permit or halted pending appeal to the Zoning Hearing Board.

If an applicant wishes to amend the use, arrangement or construction of his building from that shown on the permit after the permit is approved, he shall file with the Zoning Office an application for an amended zoning permit.

Zoning permits shall have a life of six months from the date of issue. A permit may be renewed indefinitely every six months thereafter at no charge to the applicant until the permitted work is complete. No work shall be done after a permit has become void and before a replacement permit has been issued.

A demolition permit shall be required for the removal of any building or part of any building on a permanent foundation. The application shall secure a bond acceptable to the Borough to guarantee that the excavation is backfilled, debris removed, and that sanitary sewers are blocked and inspected, all within 60 days of the demolition permit's date of issue.

The Zoning Office shall keep records of all applications, either approved or disapproved, including one copy of each permit issued, and shall maintain a journal of his activities.

If the Zoning Officer finds any provisions of this chapter are being violated, such as the operation of an illegal use or the locating of a structure illegally on a lot, he shall notify the owner of record of the property upon which the alleged violation is occurring by mail or hand-delivered notice, with a copy to the Borough Secretary and to others requested by the property owner.

The enforcement notice shall state:

At the end of the period within which the violation is to be corrected, the Zoning Officer shall inspect the property to determine if the violation has been removed. If the violation has not been corrected and the owner has not appealed to the Zoning Hearing Board to reverse the Zoning Officer's decision, modify it, or grant a time extension, the Zoning Officer shall take the owner before the Magisterial District Judge, who, if he finds the owner guilty, shall assess penalties and/or order appropriate action in accord with Subsection D below.

Continuation of a violation beyond the period within which it is to be corrected, without an appeal having been filed, shall constitute a civil offense. While an appeal is in process, development shall not continue on the contested portion of the project. Any person, partnership, or corporation who or which has violated or permitted the violation of the provisions of this chapter shall, upon being found liable therefor in a civil enforcement proceeding commenced by the Borough, pay a judgment of not more than $500 plus all court costs, including reasonable attorneys' fees incurred by the Borough as a result thereof. No judgment shall be imposed or payable until the date of the determination of the violation by the Magisterial District Judge. If the defendant neither pays nor timely appeals the judgment, the Borough may enforce the judgment pursuant to applicable rules of civil procedure. Each day that a violation continues shall constitute a separate violation. The Magisterial District Judge shall determine on which day the violation actually commenced. All judgments, costs and reasonable attorneys' fees collected for a violation shall be paid over to the Borough.

The owner or tenant of any structure, premises or part thereof and any architect, engineer, builder, contractor, agent, or other person who commits, participates in, assists in, or maintains a violation may each be found guilty of a separate offense and suffer the penalties herein provided.

Nothing herein contained shall prevent the Borough from taking such other lawful action as is necessary to prevent or remedy any violation or to bring action to enjoin any violation of this chapter.

The Zoning Official or the designated staff member shall notify the new owner at the time of transfer, in writing, advising the new owner of the number of legal occupants. Such notification should meet all the requirements of this chapter to notify the owner of the number of legal occupants for the property.

An amendment of this chapter may be initiated by the Planning Commission, by the Borough Council or by petition presented to the Planning Commission by a property owner or owners, or by a person or corporation who or which has an option to purchase property in the Borough. The proposed amendment or petition shall be written as proposed to be adopted. Revisions to the Zoning Map shall be specified, in writing, citing particular boundaries. Spot zoning shall be prohibited unless backed by a Planning Commission report on the future land use of the neighborhood within which the proposed zoning is located, supporting the amendment.

The Planning Commission shall review an amendment petition or a proposal by Borough Council and prepare recommendations to Council not later than the Commission's second regular meeting after receiving the proposal. The Commission may recommend approval of the proposal as presented, approval with specific changes, or rejection. If the proposal is made by Borough Council, Council shall allow the Commission at least 30 days to review and comment on the proposal before taking action.

Borough Council, if it finds the amendment proposal has merit, shall call and hold a public hearing after reviewing the Commission's recommendations. In addition, the Board shall send the proposal to the Indiana County Planning Commission for review and comment at least 30 days before the hearing.

Borough Council shall advertise for its hearing twice in a newspaper of general local circulation, once in each of two consecutive weeks, the first notice not more than 30 days and the second notice not less than seven days before the hearing. The notice shall contain the full text of the amendment or a summary, reference to a place and times where and when the amendment may be examined free of charge before the hearing, and the date, time, place, and purpose of the hearing.

In addition, where a change of zoning district boundary is sought, the property or group of properties affected shall be posted in at least one conspicuous location not less than seven days before the hearing with the same information as in the hearing advertisement, owners of property within, abutting, or directly across a street from the boundaries of an area proposed for a change of zoning classification shall be informed by hand delivered notice or by mail at least 14 days before the hearing with the same information. The applicant shall receive his/her notice by certified mail.

Borough Council shall hold the hearing, keeping a written or sound record of the testimony, and shall make a decision by majority vote to adopt or reject the amendment within 90 days after the vote. Council shall submit a copy of the adopted ordinance to the County Planning Commission, indicating the date of adoption and the numerical vote favoring adoption.

At least seven days but not more than 60 days before adoption of an amendment, Council shall advertise once in a newspaper of general local circulation a notice of its intention to adopt the amendment. The notice shall include the date, time and place of the meeting at which adoption will be considered, and reference to a place in the Borough, and times and dates where and when the amendment may be examined prior to adoption. The notice shall either contain the full text of the amendment or a brief summary prepared by the Borough Solicitor. If the full text is not used, a copy of the full text shall be provided to the newspaper running the notice, and an attested copy of the full text shall be filed in the County Law Library.

If an amendment is substantially revised before the vote to adopt, Borough Council shall, at least 10 days prior to adoption re-advertise, noting a brief summary of the amendment and specifying the final changes proposed. Appeal from a decision by Council on an amendment proposal shall be to the Indiana County Court of Common Pleas.

Curative amendment.

Borough Council shall establish, by resolution, a schedule of fees to cover the cost of permits, special exception approvals, petitions to amend this chapter, or any action brought before the Zoning Hearing Board.

The current fee schedule shall be available at the Borough office and may be amended only by official resolution of Council.

No permit shall be issued nor any action taken on proceedings before Council or the Zoning Hearing Board until the appropriate fees have been paid in full.

This chapter is required for the immediate protection of the public health, safety, and welfare and shall be effective upon its passage and signing by the President of Borough Council and the Borough Secretary.

This chapter has been duly presented after public hearings and adopted at a regular meeting of the Borough Council of Indiana Borough, Indiana County, Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania, held on the third day of March 1998.

Filing of conditional use. For any use permitted by conditional use, a conditional use must be obtained from the Borough Council. In addition to the information required on the zoning permit application, the conditional use application must show:

General criteria. Each applicant must demonstrate compliance with the following:

Conditions. Borough Council, in approving conditional use applications, may attach conditions considered necessary to protect the public welfare and the purposes listed above, including conditions which are more restrictive than those established for other uses in the same zone. These conditions shall be enforceable by the Zoning Office, and failure to comply with such conditions shall constitute a violation of this chapter and be subject to the penalties described in this chapter.

Site plan approval. Any site plan presented in support of the conditional use pursuant to Subsection A shall become an official part of the record for said conditional use. Approval of any conditional use will also bind the use in accordance with the submitted site plan; therefore, should a change in the site plan be required as part of the approval of the use, the applicant shall revise the site plan prior to the issuance of a building permit. Any subsequent change to the use on the subject property not reflected on the originally approved site plan shall require the obtainment of another conditional use approval.

Hearing procedures.

Time limitation.