Marlborough Township
City Zoning Code
City Zoning Code
ARTICLE III
Violations; Enforcement; Fees; Conflict
§ 275-13 Violations.
A.
It shall be the duty of the Building Code Official to take cognizance of violations of this chapter. He shall investigate each violation which comes to his attention whether by observation or communication. He shall order in writing the correction of such conditions as are found to be in violation of this chapter.
B.
Failure to secure a permit or Zoning Hearing Board approval, when required, previous to the erection, construction, extension, or addition to a building shall be a violation of this chapter.
§ 275-14 Enforcement notice.
An 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. The notice of enforcement shall include:
A.
The name of the owner of record and any other persons against whom the Township intends to take action.
B.
The location of the property in violation.
C.
The specific violation with a description of the requirements that have not been met, citing in each instance the applicable provisions of this chapter.
D.
The date on which expires the period in which compliance with this chapter is to be achieved.
E.
A statement describing the recipient's right to appeal to the Zoning Hearing Board within 30 days of receipt of the notice.
F.
A statement that failure to comply with the notice within the time specified by the notice, unless extended by appeal to the Zoning Hearing Board, constitutes a violation, with possible sanctions clearly described.
§ 275-15 Enforcement proceedings.
A.
If a violation is not corrected within the period specified by the enforcement notice, it shall be the duty of the Building Code Official to notify the Township Supervisors, who shall take necessary action to correct the violation, which action may include initiation of a civil enforcement proceeding.
B.
Where, in the opinion of the Building Code Official, a violation presents peril to life or property, the Building Code Official may recommend to the Supervisors immediate initiation of a civil enforcement proceeding.
§ 275-16 Enforcement remedies.
A.
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 Township, pay a judgment of not more than $500 plus all court costs, including reasonable attorneys' fees incurred by the Township as a result thereof.
(1)
No judgment shall commence or be imposed, levied or payable until the date of determination of a violation by the Magisterial District Judge. If the defendant neither pays nor timely appeals the judgment, the municipality may enforce the judgment pursuant to the applicable rules of civil procedure.
(2)
Each day that a violation continues shall constitute a separate violation, unless the Magisterial District Judge, determining that there has been a violation, further determines that there was a good faith basis for the person, partnership or corporation violating the ordinance to have believed that there was no such violation, in which event there shall be deemed to have been only one such violation until the fifth day following the date of the determination of a violation by the Magisterial District Judge, and thereafter each day shall constitute a separate violation.
(3)
All judgments, costs and reasonable attorney fees collected for the violation of this chapter shall be paid over to the Township.
(4)
The court of common pleas, upon petition, may grant an order of stay, upon cause shown, tolling the per diem fine pending a final adjudication of the violation and judgment.
B.
Causes of action. An aggrieved owner or tenant of real property who shows that his property or person will be substantially affected by an alleged violation of this chapter may institute any appropriate action or proceeding to prevent, restrain, correct, or abate the violation.
§ 275-17 Fees.
The fees for permits, applications for special exceptions, applications for variances, Zoning Hearing Board certificates, etc. and other charges associated with this chapter shall be fixed in accordance with a fee schedule adopted by a resolution of the Board of Township Supervisors upon the enactment of this chapter, and such schedule may be amended from time to time by resolution of the Board of Township Supervisors.
§ 275-18 Effect on other provisions.
It is not intended by this chapter to repeal, abrogate, annul, or interfere with any existing ordinances 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 buildings 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, then the provisions of this chapter shall control.