Lansdale City Zoning Code
ARTICLE XXIX
Child Day-Care Facilities
§ 405-2901 Intent; definitions.
A.
In addition to the purpose and statement of community development objectives found in Article I, § 405-102, of this chapter, the specific intent of the Borough Council of the Borough of Lansdale in establishing this article is to promote the following goals:
(1)
To permit the establishment of a sufficient number and variety of day-care arrangements in safe and convenient locations throughout the Borough of Lansdale in order to accommodate the growing demand of residents for such services, while meeting the operational and physical standards of the Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare (DPW) for health, safety and welfare purposes.
(2)
To permit family day-care homes to be located in residential surroundings so as to offer children a home environment conducive to healthy and safe development, while adhering to standards designed to preserve the residential character of neighborhoods within the Borough of Lansdale.
B. BABYSITTING(1) (2) (3) CHILD DAY-CARE FACILITY(1) (2)
For the purpose of this article, the terms used herein are defined as follows:
Any of the following three types of activities and, as so defined, is not intended to be regulated by this article:
The temporary or occasional care of any number of children not related to the caregiver which takes place at the home of the caregiver;
The temporary or occasional care of any number of children at a dwelling unit customarily and regularly occupied by the children as their residence; or
The regular care of one, two or three children not related to the caregiver which takes places at the home of the caregiver.
Any dwelling, building or portion thereof in which child day-care services are provided, including any on-site outdoor play area. Child day-care facilities shall be further differentiated by the following two classifications:
FAMILY DAY-CARE HOMEAny premises or dwelling unit otherwise used as a family residence, operated for profit or not for profit, in which child day care is provided on a regular basis to a cumulative number of four, five or six children during any twenty-four-hour period. Any child related to the caregiver or any child residing in the premises or dwelling unit so operated shall not be included in the permitted number of children unless that child is age five years or younger.
DAY-CARE CENTERA facility which is licensed by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare to provide care to a cumulative number of seven or more children during any twenty-four-hour period, where the child-care areas are not being used as a family residence.
§ 405-2902 General provisions.
The following provisions shall apply to each of the two defined types of child day-care facilities unless the context clearly indicates otherwise:
A.
Categories included. The provisions of this section pertain to day-care service for children by caregivers in family day-care homes and day-care centers, subject to Chapter II, Sections 8A, 8B and 8C, of the Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare Social Services Manual Regulations, as revised or from time to time amended. Day-care service for children shall include out-of-home child day-care service for part of a twenty-four-hour day for children under 16 years of age by caregivers, excluding care provided by relatives. Day-care service for children shall not include babysitting or day care furnished in places of worship during religious services.
B.
Registration and licensing. Family day-care homes, as defined in this article, must hold an approved and currently valid DPW registration certificate. Day-care centers, as defined in this article, must hold an approved and currently valid DPW license. In addition, all child day-care facilities shall comply with all current DPW regulations, including but not limited to those standards governing indoor space and accessible outdoor play space, as well as any applicable state or local building or firesafety code.
C.
Borough notification and fee. Each operator of a newly established or newly expanded child day-are facility shall notify the Borough, in writing, at least 60 days prior to the initiation or expansion of such use when there is a simple change in land use and 90 days in advance when the land development process is required. This time period will allow the Borough to inspect the property for code compliance and to establish a record of the new land use or expansion. Already existing licensed or registered facilities shall be required to notify the municipality of its operation, in writing, within 60 days after the enactment of this article. In addition, the operator of any facility must certify compliance with all aspects of this article and all other applicable requirements. Upon compliance, the Borough will issue a use and occupancy permit at a cost to be established by resolution of the Borough Council of the Borough of Lansdale. Renewal fees shall likewise be established by resolution of the Borough Council of the Borough of Lansdale.
(1)
Family day-care homes must provide proof of an approved DPW registration certificate at the time of initial notification to the Borough and must renew the Borough license every two years at the time of DPW registration certificate renewal.
(2)
Day-care centers must provide proof of an approved and currently valid DPW license at the time of initial notification to the Borough and must provide proof of annual DPW license renewal and apply for Borough renewal annually.
D.
Inspection.
(1)
The operator of a family day-care home or day-are center will allow, upon request, appropriate representatives of the Borough to enter the property at reasonable times to inspect such use for compliance with the requirements of this section and all other applicable law.
(2)
Nothing set forth herein is intended to create any Borough duty to inspect, nor is any inference to be drawn that Borough inspections, if any, shall occur with any particular frequency.
E.
General safety. No portion of a child day-care facility shall be located within a five-hundred-foot distance from any potentially hazardous land use or activity which could pose a threat to the safety and welfare of the children, staff or other occupants at the facility. Hazardous land uses or activities include but shall not be limited to gasoline service stations, heavy industrial operations, storage of flammable materials or high-pressure underground pipelines or truck or rail loading areas. In addition, the location of a child day-care facility shall be registered with the police and fire departments so that these public safety departments can have advance records of the facilities' locations in the event of an emergency.
F.
Hours of outside play. Outside play shall be limited to the hours between 8:00 a.m. and sunset, as defined by the National Weather Service.
G.
Outdoor play area. An on-site outdoor play area, as required by DPW regulations, shall be provided for any proposed child day-care facility. The on-site outdoor structured play areas or areas of high outdoor activity shall be located in the rear yard and must be enclosed with fencing of suitable material a minimum of five feet in height with openings no more than two inches in width and two inches in height.
H.
Altering exterior of residential structures. Any addition or improvement to an existing residential structure or property for purposes of child day care shall preserve the residential character of the structure or property. The scale, bulk, height and roof pitch of any addition and the building materials used shall be compatible with the existing structure. Any improvements to the structure or property shall be in compliance with all other applicable law.
I.
Traffic impact study. Any proposed child day-care facility which will generate a combined total of 100 new trips during the morning and evening peak hours shall be required to conduct a traffic impact study.
§ 405-2903 Family day-care homes.
Family day-care homes may be permitted by conditional use permit subject to the standards of the zoning district in which the unit is located and both the development standards and the conditional use standards in this section.
A.
Conditional use standards. Any proposed family day-care home shall comply with the following conditional use standards in addition to the general provisions for all types of child day-care facilities in § 405-2902:
(1)
The proposed family day-care home must be located in a single-family detached or semidetached unit or the end unit of a townhouse or row home.
(2)
The applicant shall demonstrate that the children in the family day-care home can safely, quickly and easily vacate the premises in case of emergency. Two independent means of egress, one to the front and one to the rear of the property, are required.
(3)
No family day-care home shall be located within 500 feet of any other family day-care home.
B.
Development standards. The following standards shall apply to all proposed family day-care homes:
(1)
Dropoff area. One on-site dropoff space for clients shall be provided. An existing driveway or common parking lot space may be used as the dropoff area if it can be demonstrated that there is sufficient space available in the driveway that is not otherwise occupied or committed to safely accommodate a parked vehicle. If a driveway is used for the dropoff area and the proposed use fronts an arterial or major collector street, an on-site turnaround area shall be provided, subject to the requirements in §§ 405-1701, 405-1702 and 405-1703A(5) of this chapter.
§ 405-2904 Day-care centers.
Any proposed day-care center shall comply with the following standards in addition to the general provisions for all types of child day-care facilities in §§ 405-2901 and 405-2902.
A.
Where allowed.
(1)
Permitted by right. Day-care centers are permitted by right in the Commercial and Business Zoning Districts, subject to the regulations of the zoning district in which the proposed use is located and the development standards in this section.
(2)
Conditional uses.
(a)
Day-care centers are permitted as a conditional use in any industrial zoning district, subject to the regulations of the zoning district in which the proposed use is located and both the development standards and the conditional use standards in this section.
(b)
Day-care centers are permitted as a conditional use when proposed as an accessory use to a church or school in any zoning district, subject to the regulations of the zoning district in which the proposed use is located and the development standards and accessory use standards in this section and this chapter.
B.
Development standards. The following standards shall apply to all proposed day-care centers:
(2)
Dropoff area.
(a)
Dropoff area location and design. The dropoff area shall be located immediately adjacent to the facility. The dropoff area should be designed in such a way that pedestrians do not cross vehicular traffic lanes in any parking area or driveway. The dropoff area may be designed either as a part of the on-site parking area, or the required dropoff spaces may be designed as part of the driveway providing direct access to the day-care canter.
(b)
When the dropoff area is incorporated into the on-site parking area, the parking spaces nearest to the facility shall be designated as dropoff spaces. When the dropoff area is incorporated into a driveway, the dropoff spaces shall be located within a vehicle turnout area 12 feet in width exclusive of the driveway through traffic lane(s).
(3)
Landscaping. Landscaping shall be provided in order to create a vegetative buffer for adjacent uses as well as to create an aesthetically pleasing environment.
(a)
Buffer standards for lots on which a proposed day-care center is located shall be as follows:
[1]
Vegetative buffers. A vegetative screen buffer shall be required unless waived by the Borough Council. The following standards shall apply to buffers unless modified by the Borough Council:
[a]
Buffers shall contain combinations of evergreen and deciduous vegetation. The planted buffer shall be a minimum of 10 feet in width and six feet in height at the time of installation. Earthen berms may be provided in combination with vegetative material. Earthen berms shall not exceed four feet in height nor exceed a maximum slope of 3:1.
[b]
Continued maintenance of vegetative buffers shall be the responsibility of the operator of the facility and the landowner.
(b)
Landscaping in outdoor activity areas. Existing or proposed planting material shall be suitable in and around areas used by children. No thorny, poisonous or other hazardous plants shall be allowed in areas used by children.
(4)
Fencing of outdoor play area. In order to physically contain the activity of children in the outside play area, a minimum five-foot-high fence of suitable material with openings no more than two inches in width and two inches in height shall be erected along the perimeter of the outside play area.
(5)
Play equipment setback. Play equipment in designated on-site play areas shall not be located within 10 feet of an abutting property line.
(6)
(7)
Lighting. All pedestrian pathways shall be adequately lit for safety and security when utilized during nondaylight hours. Specific areas for lighting are entranceways, pedestrian access to the outdoor play areas, sidewalks used in nondaylight hours, dropoff areas, merchandise delivery areas and all parking lots.
(8)
Soundproofing. When located in a portion rather than the whole of any building, the Borough Council shall require soundproofing of the day-care center portion to protect the children. The requirements of this provision may be waived at the discretion of the Borough Council.
C.
Conditional use standards. The Borough Council may impose any conditions it deems appropriate for health, safety and welfare purposes. The Borough Council shall consider, at a minimum, any and all standards set forth in § 405-2205 of this chapter (regarding standards for special exceptions) as they may apply, as well as the following, when reviewing a conditional use application for a proposed day-care center.
(1)
Safety. The Borough Council may impose any conditions it deems appropriate for health, safety and welfare purposes. The Borough Council shall consider, at a minimum, whether there exists any land use or activity within the vicinity of the proposed day-care center which would pose a threat to the health, safety and welfare of the users of the facility. Issues shall include but not be limited to objectionable or unsafe levels of noise, vibration, fumes, odors, dust, glare, heat, toxic gases, electric or electronic interference, liquid wastes or sewage, vehicular loading and unloading activities and any other physical activity on sites within the vicinity of the proposed day-care center.
(2)
The proposed day-care center shall not be detrimental to the use, development, peaceful enjoyment and economic value of the surrounding properties or the neighborhood.
(3)
The proposed day-care center shall be compatible with the existing character of the neighborhood with consideration to population density, scale, bulk, design and external appearance of new structures; intensity and character of activity; and traffic and parking.
(4)
Choice of access streets. When streets of different classifications are involved, the driveway shall provide to the street of lesser functional classification.