(a)

All uses shall be developed in a manner consistent with the preservation of the quality of the existing environment and of any natural amenities present on the site.

(b)

All uses shall provide for the preservation and the minimum destruction of natural drainage areas, minimum grading and destruction of the ground surface, the preservation of substantial stands of trees and forested areas, and the preservation of attractive views and any other natural features existing on the site.

(Ord. No. 761, § 501)

(a)

No landowner, tenant nor lessee shall use or allow to be used land, structures or premises that they are responsible for and/or using in such a way as to threaten or create any of the following situations or conditions or activities:

(1)

Communicable disease hazards, including activities that encourage the breeding of disease-prone insects or rodents;

(2)

Significant physical hazards to the public, especially hazards that would be easily accessible by small children;

(3)

Activity that would prevent neighboring landowners of ordinary sensibilities from making reasonable use of their property;

(4)

Activity that would be a significant hazard to the public health and safety because of serious explosive, fire, biological, biogenetic or toxic hazards;

(5)

Activity that would seriously threaten or cause serious pollution to groundwaters or surface waters.

(b)

It is the responsibility of all property owners to ensure that their property does not threaten the public health or safety. Property owners shall remove or alter any structure or situation that threatens the public health and safety. This includes, but is not limited to: Structurally unsound structures, including those damaged by fire, and storage areas and detention basins that are not properly secured from young children.

(c)

Fire Safety. The State Department of Labor and Industry requirements for fire safety of commercial, industrial, apartment and institutional buildings shall be complied with as applicable, in addition to other federal, state and local fire safety regulations which may be applicable.

(d)

The provisions of this section are not intended to diminish or limit the law of public or private nuisance.

(Ord. No. 761, § 502)

(a)

Intent. The intent of this section is to control the intensity of development on lands that are steeply sloped to avoid severe erosion and sedimentation problems, to avoid the construction of steep roads that are extremely difficult to maintain and keep free of snow and ice, to avoid the safety hazards of driving in snow and ice on steep streets and driveways, to avoid severe stormwater runoff problems often created by construction in steeply sloped areas, to avoid the high public expense of repairing and maintaining utilities on steeply sloped lands and to steer development to lands that are more physically suited for it.

(b)

Applicability. This section shall apply to all land, buildings and uses and all grading of land in preparation for building in all zoning districts.

(c)

Definitions. For the purposes of this section the following definitions shall apply:

"Building site" means the land area proposed to include the actual location of a principal building and all accessory buildings.

"Fifteen percent slope" means areas of land that have a net vertical change averaging fifteen feet vertically for every one hundred feet of horizontal distance, when measured between the contours required to be submitted under this section.

"Impervious cover" means the percent of the lot area covered by surfaces that have a runoff coefficient of 0.8 or higher. In case of uncertainty, the borough engineer shall have the authority to determine the runoff coefficient of a type of material.

"Twenty-five percent slope" means areas of land that have a net vertical change averaging twenty-five feet vertically for every one hundred feet of horizontal distance, when measured between the contours required to be submitted under this section.

(d)

Submission.

(1)

Any application for subdivision or land development or any application for a zoning or building permit for a principal building or principal use or any proposal to extensively alter the pre-existing contour of land shall include the submission of a detailed topographic map if the existing lot involved includes any areas of fifteen percent or greater slope that total greater than one thousand square feet.

(2)

The topographic maps shall be at a scale of one inch equals fifty feet and shall show the pre-existing contours of all lands proposed for any subdivision, land development, building or use. Such contours shall be at intervals of two feet of vertical change. Contours shall be based on an actual field survey supervised and certified by a registered land surveyor or engineer.

(3)

The topographic map shall clearly identify areas that have a pre-existing slope of between fifteen and twenty-five percent slope, between twenty-five and thirty-five percent slope and greater than thirty-five percent slope.

(4)

The applicant shall clearly designate the proposed building site, for each lot that includes or is proposed to include any areas of fifteen percent or greater slopes. Such building location shall then become binding, once approved, unless a subsequent submission and approval occurs under this section.

(e)

Uses and Lot Areas.

(1)

Permitted Uses. The only uses that shall be permitted on a building site that includes lands of fifteen percent slope or greater shall be the following:

(A)

Single-family detached dwellings, each on one individual lot;

(B)

Uses serving a governmental purpose and owned by the Borough of Kennett Square;

(C)

Public recreation uses owned by a government agency;

(D)

Uses that are clearly customarily and incidentally accessory to a use permitted by this section;

(E)

Nature preserves, not involving any principal buildings or commercial use.

(2)

Lot Areas.

(A)

If a proposed use would include any areas with pre-existing slopes between fifteen percent and twenty-five percent, the following requirements shall apply to each lot:

(i)

A maximum disturbance of thirty percent of slopes of fifteen to twenty percent, and

(ii)

A maximum disturbance of fifteen percent of slopes of twenty to twenty-five percent.

(B)

Building sites within the lot that would include any areas with pre-existing slopes of twenty-five percent or greater, shall be prohibited. These areas shall be used for open space purposes.

(f)

Slopes of Roads and Driveways.

(1)

No portion of any street proposed to be dedicated to the borough shall have a finished slope in excess of ten percent, unless approved by borough council.

(2)

No portion of any private street, accessway or driveway shall have a finished slope in excess of twelve percent, unless approved by borough council.

(3)

If road or driveway slope standards that are more restrictive are required under the borough subdivision and land development ordinance, those more restrictive standards shall apply, unless approved by borough council.

(g)

Grading. The requirements of this section shall apply to the contours of land existing at the time of the adoption of this article. The contours of land regulated by this section shall not be changed prior to submission and regulation under this section.

(h)

Floodplain. See also borough ordinances that regulate construction within the one-hundred-year floodplain and within alluvial soils areas.

(Ord. No. 761, § 503)

(Ord. No. 877, § 1, 5-18-2009)

No construction will be permitted in wetlands as determined and certified by an appropriate professional expert, except as may be permitted pursuant to the rules and regulations of the Department of Environmental Protection or other governmental authority having jurisdiction. No structures or impervious surfaces shall be permitted within fifteen feet of any wetlands. No structures or impervious surfaces will be permitted in the area designed as one-hundred-year floodplain, except as permitted by and in accordance with the rules and regulations of the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection. Pervious parking surfaces as approved by the borough engineer may be permitted within the one-hundred-year floodplain.

(Ord. No. 761, § 504; Ord. No. 778, § 6)

All proposed uses in designated floodplains shall comply with the requirements of article X of this chapter and other borough floodplain regulations, as amended from time to time.

(Ord. No. 761, § 505; Ord. No. 939, § 4, 8-7-2017)

(a)

Permit Required. All activities which require the moving of earth or the filling or excavation of an area, except for street construction, shall obtain a zoning permit issued by the zoning officer with the concurrence of the borough engineer. Finish grading or incidental grading of a lot and minor earthmoving from one place to another on a lot for landscaping or agricultural purposes shall not require a zoning permit.

(b)

Grading Regulations.

(1)

The existing grade shall not be increased so that unstable slopes are created.

(2)

The surface area of any yard adjacent to a building or structure shall be graded so that surface water will be drained away from such structure.

(3)

The deposit of soils, detritus or other debris (as a result of site preparation, grading, or excavating) shall not be unsightly or detrimental to any property, street, sewer, or natural waterways.

(4)

All Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, Regional Office and county soil and water conservation district regulations shall apply.

(Ord. No. 761, § 506; Ord. No. 860 § 1 (part))

All methods of sewage and waste treatment and disposal shall be approved by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, Regional Office and in accordance with the sewage plan for the borough.

(Ord. No. 761, § 507; Ord. No. 860, § 1 (part))

(a)

No person shall operate or cause to be operated on private or public property any source of continuous sound (any sound which is static, fluctuating or intermittent with a recurrence greater than one time in any fifteen second interval) in such a manner as to create a sound level which exceeds the limits set forth for the receiving land use category in the following table when measured at or within the property boundary of the receiving land use:

Sound Level Limits by Receiving Land Use and Time

(b)

For any source of sound which emits a pure tone, the maximum sound level limits set forth in subsection (a) of this section shall be reduced by five dBA.

(c)

The maximum permissible sound level limits set forth in subsection (a) of this section shall not apply to any of the following noise sources:

(1)

The emission of sound for the purpose of alerting persons to the existence of an emergency;

(2)

Emergency work to provide electricity, water or other public utilities when public health or safety are involved;

(3)

Domestic power tools between the hours of 7:00 a.m. and 9:00 p.m. on Mondays through Fridays and between 8:00 a.m. and 9:00 p.m. on Saturdays and 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. on Sunday;

(4)

Explosives and construction operations;

(5)

Agricultural;

(6)

Motor vehicles travelling on a road or highway;

(7)

Public celebrations, specifically authorized by the borough;

(8)

Surface carriers engaged in commerce by railroad;

(9)

The unamplified human voice.

(d)

For any source of sound which emits an impulsive sound (a sound of short duration, with an abrupt onset and rapid decay and an occurrence of not more than one time in any fifteen second interval) the excursions of sound pressure level shall not exceed twenty dBA over the ambient sound pressure level, regardless of time of day or night or receiving land use, using the "fast" meter characteristic of a Type II meter, meeting the ANSI specifications S1.4-1971.

(Ord. No. 761, § 508)

(a)

No person shall operate or permit the operation of any device or conduct or permit any use to be conducted that creates vibration which is above the vibration perception threshold of an individual at or beyond the property boundary of the source (if on private property) or at fifty feet from the source (if on a public space or public right-of-way).

(b)

For the purposes of subsection (a) of this section, "vibration perception threshold" means the minimum ground-or-structure-borne vibrational motion necessary to cause a normal person to be aware of the vibration by such direct means as, but not limited to, sensation by touch or visual observation of moving objects.

(Ord. No. 761, § 509)

No person shall operate or permit the operation of any device or conduct or permit any use to be conducted which does not conform with the standards established under the State Air Pollution Control Act of January 9, 1960. Public Law 2119, as amended, and Title 25, Rules and Regulations, Department of Environmental Resources, Subpart C, Protection of Natural Resources, Article III Air Resources.

(Ord. No. 761, § 510)

(a)

All uses shall minimize the production of light, heat or glare that is perceptible beyond any property line of the lot which the light, heat or glare is produced.

(b)

Lighting shall be installed as desired by the applicant and/or required by the borough, at the expense of the applicant utilizing underground conduit, in accordance with the most current edition of the National Electrical Code (NEC) as adopted by the Uniform Construction Code (UCC). All lighting fixtures shall be operated and maintained by the property owner and/or tenant.

(c)

Fixtures provided shall maintain a uniform light level within the area and shall be suitable and customary for the installation.

(d)

Lighting standards within parking areas and/or material storage lots shall be located not more than one hundred feet apart.

(e)

Except as otherwise permitted for stadium lighting accessory to public, private and parochial secondary schools in subsection (k) below, lighting standards located within the borough shall not exceed sixteen feet above finished grade. "Stadium" shall mean a large oval, round or U-shaped open structure, typically used for football, soccer, lacrosse, field hockey, track events etc., surrounded by tiers of seats for a minimum of two thousand three hundred spectators.

(f)

Fixtures mounted on lighting standards shall be angled at sixty degrees or more from horizontal.

(g)

Lighting standards within parking areas and/or material storage lots shall be operated by automated timing devices which shall reduce the uniform light level to 1.0 footcandle within the area during periods in which the facility is not in operation. For facilities which operate for twenty-four hours, the lighting shall be reduced to 1.0 footcandle at 9:00 p.m. standard local time.

(h)

All lighting shall be effectively shielded and installed so as to protect adjacent streets and properties from direct glare or light radiation which may cause a safety problem and/or nuisance. Glare control shall be eliminated by the use of shields mounted on the fixture.

(i)

The Illuminating Engineering Society Publication, RR-89 indicating the illumination intensity and uniformity requirements shall be utilized for lighting located within the borough.

(j)

At no time shall the light measured at the property line for any installation and/or facility located within the borough exceed 0.2 footcandle.

(k)

Outdoor illumination for stadium lighting facilities accessory to public, private and parochial secondary schools shall be permitted as an accessory use to those schools subject to the following conditions:

(1)

The height of poles or structures supporting stadium lighting fixtures shall not exceed eighty feet and shall be measured from at grade to the highest point of the pole or structure. If the pole or support structure is located on a sloped grade, then the average between the highest and lowest grades shall be used in calculating the height of the pole or structure;

(2)

Stadium lighting shall be accomplished using advanced, available fixture technology and design techniques appropriate for the use that minimize offsite glare and light trespass to the maximum extent possible;

(3)

Stadium light fixtures shall not project skyward and shall control glare at the property line through the use of cutoff fixtures, shields and/or baffles;

(4)

Stadium lighting may only be illuminated in conjunction with a school-sponsored recreational or athletic event, such as football, soccer, track, field hockey or lacrosse game, or marching band competition/cavalcade, where the majority of the participants engaging in the school-sponsored recreational or athletic event on behalf of the school are enrolled at the school (hereinafter an "event"). An event shall not include field practices or playoff/championship games;

(5)

Stadium lighting shall not be illuminated on Sundays and must be extinguished no later than 10:00 p.m. on Monday through Saturday, unless extenuating circumstances such as inclement weather causing a game delay, injury, safety concerns, safe exiting/evacuation of the public etc., cause the event to exceed that time limit in which case the stadium lighting shall be extinguished at the first reasonably available opportunity thereafter;

(6)

Stadium lighting may be illuminated for a total of forty events at the school property during any one school year (August 15 through June 15 of the following year). At the end of each school year, the school shall submit an annual report to the borough code enforcement officer of the dates and hours of the events where the stadium lights were illuminated to prove compliance with this restriction;

(7)

A school utilizing stadium lighting for evening events, which on occasion may approach capacity seating of the stadium, shall use its best efforts to address impacts related to parking, traffic control and public safety directly related to the event;

(8)

All stadium lighting shall be set back at least one hundred feet from a property line; and

(9)

As part of a permit application to provide stadium lighting, the school proposing to use stadium lighting as permitted herein shall submit a lighting plan to the borough engineer for review in conformity with all applicable sections of this section.

(l)

Final determination for lighting installations meeting the criteria identified above shall be the responsibility of the Kennett Square Borough Engineer and/or Kennett Square Borough Zoning Officer. If the borough zoning officer determines that a lighting installation produces unacceptable levels of light and/or nuisance glare, the property owner shall be notified to reduce the light levels and/or eliminate the glare.

(Ord. No. 761, § 511; Ord. No. 809; Ord. No. 900, § 1, 8-6-2012)

Every use requiring power shall be so operated that any service lines, substations or other facility shall:

(a)

Conform to the highest applicable safety requirements;

(b)

Be constructed and installed as an integral part of the architectural features of the plant; and

(c)

Be concealed by evergreen planting from residential properties.

(Ord. No. 761, § 512)

(a)

No person shall operate or permit the operation of any device or conduct or permit any use to be conducted which does not comply with the regulations of the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, Regional Office, the Federal Nuclear Regulatory Commission, the Federal Interstate Commerce Commission and the Federal Communications Commission.

(b)

No person shall conduct or permit any use to be conducted which causes electrical disturbances (except from domestic household appliances) to adversely affect any equipment at any time other than the equipment creating the disturbance.

(Ord. No. 761, § 513; Ord. No. 860, § 1 (part))

(a)

If a reasonable doubt exists in the determination of the zoning officer, the borough engineer, the planning commission or borough council whether a portion of a site would meet one or more state or federal definitions of a "wetland," the zoning officer shall require the applicant to provide a study by a qualified professional delineating whether wetlands exist prior to construction.

(b)

All applicants are put on notice that federal regulations may require a property owner to demolish newly constructed buildings and to remove all fill if land meeting a definition of "wetland" is altered.

(c)

All permits of the borough are issued on the condition that the applicant comply with federal and state wetlands regulations.

(Ord. No. 761, § 514)