New Castle City Zoning Code
ARTICLE 1323
Administration, Enforcement and Appeals
§ 1323.01 Zoning Officer appointment.
[Ord. 7903, passed 11-12-2009]
Council shall appoint the Zoning Officer who shall administer and enforce the provisions of this Zoning Ordinance.
§ 1323.02 Duties of Zoning Officer.
[Ord. 7903, passed 11-12-2009]
The Zoning Officer shall interpret and enforce all the provisions of the Zoning Ordinance and shall have such duties and powers as are conferred on him by the Zoning Ordinance and are reasonably implied for that purpose.
(a)
Applications. He shall receive applications for zoning certificates and building permits and make all inspections in accordance with the provisions of this Zoning Ordinance.
(b)
Inspections. The Zoning Officer may examine or cause to be examined all structures and/or land for which an application has been filed for a zoning certificate and, he may conduct such inspection from time to time during and at completion of the work for which a zoning certificate has been issued.
(c)
Nonconforming use. The Zoning Officer may keep an up-to-date list of all nonconforming uses.
§ 1323.03 Zoning certificates.
[Ord. 7903, passed 11-12-2009]
(a)
Requirements. Until the Zoning Officer has issued a zoning certificate applicable thereto, no person shall:
(b)
Expiration. The zoning certificate shall expire six months from the date of its issuance.
(c)
Application and fees. Each applicant for a zoning certificate shall present with the application a plan of the property showing clearly and completely the location, dimensions and nature of any structure involved and such other information as the Zoning Officer may require as to compliance with the Zoning Ordinance, together with a filing fee in the amount of $10.
(d)
Records. The Zoning Officer shall maintain a permanent file of all zoning certificates and applications as public records.
§ 1323.04 Assistant Zoning Officers.
[Ord. 7903, passed 11-12-2009]
The Zoning Officer may delegate his duties to such Assistant Zoning Officers as he may deem necessary. Such Assistant Zoning Officers shall have the powers and duties of the Zoning Officer but shall be subject to his direction and control.
§ 1323.05 Appeals conformity with State Planning Code.
[Ord. 7903, passed 11-12-2009]
The procedure and time limitations for appeal from any ordinance, decision, determination order of the Zoning Officer, Zoning Hearing Board or other applicable agency or officer of the City in the enactment or administration of the Zoning Ordinance shall be in conformance with the provisions of the Pennsylvania Municipalities Planning Code, Act of 1968, P.L. 805, No. 247 as reenacted and amended.
§ 1323.99 Penalty.
[Ord. 7903, passed 11-12-2009]
(a)
Enforcement notice.
(1)
If it appears to the City of New Castle that a violation of any zoning ordinance enacted under this act or prior enabling laws has occurred, the City of New Castle shall initiate enforcement proceedings by sending an enforcement notice as provided in this section.
(2)
The 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.
(3)
An enforcement notice shall state at least the following:
A.
The name of the owner of record and any other person against whom the City of New Castle intends to take action.
B.
The location of the property in violation.
C.
The specific violation with a description of the requirements which have not been met, citing in each instance the applicable provisions of the ordinance.
D.
The date before which the steps for compliance must be commenced and the date before which the steps must be completed.
E.
That the recipient of the notice has the right to appeal to the Zoning Hearing Board within a prescribed period of time in accordance with procedures set forth in the ordinance.
F.
That failure to comply with the notice within the time specified, unless extended by appeal to the Zoning Hearing Board, constitutes a violation, with possible sanctions clearly described.
(b)
Preventative remedies.
(1)
In addition to other remedies, the City of New Castle may institute and maintain appropriate actions by law or in equity to restrain, correct or abate violations, to prevent unlawful construction, to recover damages and to prevent illegal occupancy of a building, structure or premises. The description by metes and bounds in the instrument of transfer of other documents used in the process of selling or transferring shall not exempt the seller or transferor from such penalties or from the remedies herein provided.
(2)
The City of New Castle may refuse to issue a permit or grant any approval necessary to further improve or develop any real property which has been developed or which has resulted from a subdivision of real property in violation of this Ordinance. This authority to deny such a permit or approval shall apply to any of the following applicants:
A.
The owner of record at the time of such violation.
B.
The vendee or lessee of the owner of record at the time of such violation without regard as to whether such vendee or lessee had actual or constructive knowledge of the violation.
C.
The current owner of record who acquired the property subsequent to the time of violation without regard as to whether such current owner had actual or constructive knowledge of the violation.
(3)
As an additional condition for issuance of a permit or the granting of an approval to any such owner, current owners, vendee or lessee for the development of any such real property, the City of New Castle may require compliance with the conditions that would have been applicable to the property at the time the applicant acquired an interest in such real property.
(c)
Enforcement remedies.
(1)
Any person, partnership, or corporation who or which has violated or permitted the violation of the provisions of this Ordinance shall, upon being found liable therefor in a civil enforcement proceeding commenced by the City of New Castle, pay a judgment of not more than $500 plus all court costs, including reasonable attorney fees incurred by the City of New Castle as a result thereof. No judgment shall commence or be imposed, levied or payable until the date of the determination of a violation by the district justice. If the defendant neither pays nor timely appeals the judgment, the City of New Castle may enforce the judgment pursuant to the applicable rules of civil procedure. Each day that a violation continues shall constitute a separate violation, unless the district justice determining that there has been a violation further determines that there was a good faith basis for the person, partnership, or corporation violating this 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 district justice and thereafter each day that a violation continues shall constitute a separate violation. All judgments, costs and reasonable attorney fees collected for the violation of zoning ordinances shall be paid over to the City of New Castle, whose ordinance has been violated.
(2)
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.
(3)
Nothing contained in this section shall be construed or interpreted to grant to any person or entity other than the City of New Castle the right to commence any action for enforcement pursuant to this section.
(4)
District justices shall have initial jurisdiction in proceedings brought under this section.