Southampton Township Cumberland County
City Zoning Code
City Zoning Code
ARTICLE IV
A Agricultural District
§ 350-401 Purpose.
A.
The Agricultural District includes areas of prime agricultural soils, active farms, and other predominately agricultural uses. These regulations are designed to help protect and stabilize the characteristics associated with productive agriculture, and to permit, with exceptions, those uses and activities which are agricultural in nature, while allowing limited residential activity. The Agricultural District encourages the preservation of the Township's most productive farmland; encourages farm and related uses of the type that do not create infrastructure demands; and discourages large-scale residential development and other incompatible land uses.
B.
In an Agricultural District, the regulations set forth in this article and referenced by this article shall apply.
§ 350-402 Permitted uses.
See Table 350-305.
§ 350-403 Accessory uses.
See Table 350-305.
§ 350-404 Conditional uses.
See Table 350-305.
§ 350-405 Lot area and yard regulations.
A.
Maximum area of subdivided land.
(1)
Upon the effective date of this chapter, the maximum land area that can be developed for non-farm use from a parent parcel shall be equal to 10% of the gross area of the parent parcel (i.e., 100-acre farm: 100 x 0.1 = 10 acres). The following subsection shall be completed for the property being developed and added to the plan notes.
(2)
Any subsequent owner of any parcel or land legally existing on the effective date of this chapter shall be bound by the actions of previous owners, in that such current owner may only subdivide or develop for the purposes of nonagricultural use. Any subdivision or land development plan hereafter filed for a tract of land in the Agricultural District shall specify the amount of any unused quota and which lot or lots shall carry with them the right to erect or place thereon any unused development quota as determined by the provisions of this section.
(a)
For each tract of contiguous land in single ownership that is 10 acres or less as of the effective date of this chapter, there may be one additional residential lot subdivided when meeting the requirements of the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection.
B.
Any lot, tract or parcel shall comply with the following:
Minimum Yard Setbacks | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Use | Minimum Lot Size (square feet) | Minimum Road Front (feet) | Maximum Impervious Lot Coverage | Front (feet) | Side (feet) | Rear (feet) | Maximum Building Height** (feet) |
Single-family detached dwellings | * | 24 | 30% | 35 | 15 each | 25 | 35 |
Farm-related uses | 10 acres | 50 | 20% | 50 | 30 each | 30 | None |
Other principal uses | * | N/A | 30% | 50 | 35 each | 50 | 40 |
(Residential) Accessory buildings and structures | N/A | Included with above | Not permitted in required front yard | 15 | 25 | 25 | |
Shed | N/A | Not permitted in required front yard | 5 | 5 | 12 | ||
NOTES: | |
|---|---|
* | See PA Act 537[1] and the Township Sewage Officer. |
** | Maximum height limitations do not include chimneys, spires, unoccupied towers, elevator penthouses, tanks, silos, antennas or other similar projections. |
[1]
Editor's Note: See 35 P.S. § 750.1 et seq.
§ 350-406 Farm regulations.
A.
Livestock may be kept on parcels of land less than 10 acres and shall be housed in farm buildings in compliance with Subsection B below.
B.
Farm accessory structures (all farm building excluding the main barn) shall not be constructed closer than 75 feet to a front property line or right-of-way line of a public street, nor closer than 100 feet to a side or rear property line.
(1)
No buildings may be erected within an area designated in a utility or drainage easement.
(2)
When an accessory structure is attached to the principal building, it shall comply in all respects with the requirements of this chapter applicable to the principal building.
(3)
Where a property has a corner lot, no accessory building shall be placed in the required front setback or the clear sight triangle.
C.
A manure management plan for such operation must be approved in accordance with regulations adopted pursuant to the Pennsylvania Nutrient Management and Odor Management Act, 3 Pa.C.S.A. § 501 et seq., if required. Any such plan shall be on file with the Township. Such plan shall become a condition of each zoning permit issued. Failure to comply with the manure management plan on file shall be cause for the Township, through the Zoning Officer, to revoke the zoning permit.
§ 350-407 Agricultural nuisance disclaimer.
A.
All lands within the Agricultural Zone are located within an area where land is used for commercial agricultural production. Owners, residents and other users of this property may be subjected to inconvenience, discomfort and the possibility of injury to property and health arising from normal and accepted agricultural practices and operations, including, but not limited to, noise, odors, the operation of machinery of any kind, including aircraft, the storage and disposal of manure, the application of fertilizers, soil amendments, herbicides, and pesticides. Owner, occupants and users of this property should be prepared to accept such inconveniences, discomfort and possibility of injury from normal agricultural operations, and are hereby put on official notice that Section 4 of Pennsylvania Act 133 of 1982, the Right to Farm Law,[1] may bar them from obtaining a legal judgment against such normal agricultural operations.
[1]
Editor's Note: See 3 P.S. § 951 et seq.
B.
All farming operations which are in compliance with applicable manure management regulations shall not be subject to further restriction on account of odor, except as provided under Article XII, § 350-1202 of this chapter, where odors emitted are determined not to be the result of normal agricultural operations.