Upper Frederick Township
City Zoning Code
City Zoning Code
ARTICLE XXV
Transfer of Development Rights
§ 285-214 Declaration of legislative intent.
The purposes of this article include:
A.
Preservation of open space, scenic views, critical and environmentally sensitive areas, and natural hazard areas;
B.
Conservation of agriculture and forestry uses of land;
C.
Protection of lands and structures of aesthetic, architectural, and historic significance;
D.
Implementation of the Township and the Regional Comprehensive Plans;
E.
Ensure that the owners of preserved, conserved, or protected land may make reasonable use of their property rights by selling the development rights which can then be transferred and used in eligible zones;
F.
Provide a mechanism whereby development rights may be reliably transferred; and
G.
Ensure that development rights are transferred to properties in areas or districts that have adequate community facilities, including transportation, to accommodate additional development.
§ 285-215 Authority.
This article is enacted pursuant to the authority granted by Article VI, Zoning, Section 603, Ordinance Provisions, (c)(2.2), of the Pennsylvania Municipalities Planning Code.
§ 285-216 Establishment of sending and receiving districts.
§ 285-217 Right to transfer development rights.
A.
Each transferor shall have the right to sever all or a portion of the development rights from the sending parcel and to sell, trade, or barter all or a portion of those rights to a transferee consistent with the Declaration of Legislative Intent of § 285-214 above.
B.
The transferee may retire (temporarily or permanently) the rights, resell them, or apply them to property in a receiving district in order to obtain approval for development at a density or at an intensity of use greater than would otherwise be allowed on the land, up to the maximum density or intensity of use indicated in Table 1. The purchase of one development right shall equal the right to develop one dwelling unit in the receiving district.
Table 1 | ||||
TDR Density Bonuses (Dwelling Units Per Net Acre) | ||||
Dwelling Unit Type | Base Density | TDR Bonus Density | Maximum Density with TDR | |
R-60 Medium Density | ||||
Single-family detached cluster | 0.75 | 1 | 1.75 | |
Village house, lot line and single-family semidetached | 0.75 | 1.75 | 2.5 | |
Single-family attached | 0.75 | 4.25 | 5 | |
R-40 High Density | ||||
Single-family detached | 1.75 | 2.25 | 4 | |
Two-family dwellings (2 units in 1 structure) | 2.5 | 2.5 | 5 | |
Single-family attached (townhomes) | 5 | 1 | 6 | |
Multifamily dwellings | 6 | 0 | 6 | |
C.
Any transfer of development rights pursuant to this article authorizes only an increase in maximum density and shall not alter the development standards for floodplains, wetlands, riparian corridors, and/or other environmentally sensitive areas. Nor shall it allow a use otherwise prohibited in a receiving district.
§ 285-218 Determination of number of development rights; issuance of certificate.
A.
Voluntary enrollment. A property owner with a single tract of land 10 acres or greater and within a sending district established in § 285-216 above may participate in the TDR program. The number of TDRs that may be transferred from a property in the sending district shall be calculated by either of the following methods:
(1)
Submitting a TDR determination application, on a form available from the Township. Upon submission of the determination application, the Township and/or its designees or professionals will develop a sketch yield plan using available Geographic Information System (GIS) data and excluding any existing dwellings, nonresidential and nonagricultural uses, and other existing deed restrictions. The sketch yield plan will determine the number of residential units that might be developed under the then-existing local and state laws and regulations. This number may then be used by the property owner as the number of development rights that could be severed from the subject property.
(2)
Submitting a subdivision plan to the Township for review. The total number of buildable lots determined on the approved preliminary subdivision plan shall be the number of development rights that could be severed from the property.
B.
Application for TDR certificate. Upper Frederick Township shall be responsible for:
(1)
Determining, upon application by a transferor, the number of development rights that may be transferred from a property in a sending district to a property in a receiving district and issuing a transfer of development rights certificate upon application of a transferor.
(2)
Maintaining permanent records of all certificates issued, deed restrictions and covenants recorded, and development rights retired or otherwise extinguished, and those transferred to specific properties or entities.
(3)
Making forms available on which to apply for a transfer of development rights certificate.
C.
An application for a transfer of development rights certificate shall contain:
(1)
A certificate of title for the sending parcel prepared by a title company licensed to do business in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, confirming that there are no encumbrances against the sending parcel;
(2)
Five copies of a plat of the proposed sending parcel and a legal description of the sending parcel prepared and sealed by licensed land surveyor;
(3)
A statement of the type and number of development rights being transferred from the sending parcel, and evidence showing how same was determined;
(4)
Payment of all applicable fees; and
(5)
Such additional information required by the Township Designee as necessary to determine the number of development rights that qualify for transfer.
D.
A transfer of development rights certificate shall identify:
(1)
The transferor;
(2)
The transferee;
(3)
A legal description of the sending parcel on which the calculation of development rights is based;
(4)
A statement of the number of development rights in dwelling units per net acre eligible for transfer;
(5)
If only a portion of the total development rights are being transferred from the sending property, a statement of the number of remaining development rights in dwelling units per net acre remaining on the sending property;
(6)
The date of issuance;
(7)
The signature of the Township Designee; and
(8)
A serial number assigned by the Township Designee.
E.
No transfer of development rights under this article shall be recognized by Upper Frederick Township as valid unless the instrument of original transfer contains the Township Designee's written certification.
§ 285-219 Instrument of transfer.
A.
An instrument of transfer shall conform to the requirements of this section. An instrument of transfer, other than an instrument of original transfer, need not contain a legal description or plat of the sending parcel.
B.
Any instrument of transfer shall contain:
(1)
The names of the transferor and the transferee;
(2)
A certificate of title for the rights to be transferred prepared by an attorney licensed to practice law in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania;
(3)
A covenant that the transferor grants and assigns to the transferee and the transferee's heirs, assigns, and successors, and assigns a specific number of development rights from the sending parcel to the receiving parcel; and
(4)
An acknowledgment by the transferor that he permanently and forever has no use or right of use to the development rights being transferred.
C.
An instrument of original transfer is required when a development right is initially separated from a sending parcel. It shall contain the information set forth in Subsection B above and the following information:
(1)
A legal description and plat of the sending parcel prepared and sealed by a licensed surveyor;
(3)
A covenant indicating the number of development rights remaining on the sending parcel (if any) and stating the sending parcel may not be subdivided or developed to a greater density or intensity than permitted by the remaining number of development rights; and
(4)
An acknowledgment that all provisions of the instrument of original transfer is a covenant running with the land which binds the sending parcel in perpetuity and which may be enforced by the Township.
D.
The Township Solicitor shall review and approve as to the form, content, and sufficiency of the following instruments in order to effect a transfer of development rights to a receiving parcel:
E.
Upon such approval, the Township Solicitor shall notify the transferor or his or her agent, who shall then record the instruments with the Recorder of Deeds Office of Montgomery County, and shall provide a copy to the Montgomery County Real Estate Tax Assessor. Such instruments shall be recorded prior to release of building permits for the receiving parcel.
§ 285-220 Application of development rights to receiving parcel.
A.
A person who wants to use development rights on a property in a receiving district up to the maximums specified in Table 1 in § 285-217 above shall submit an application for the use of such rights on a receiving parcel. The application shall be part of a development plan. In addition to any other information required for the development plan, the application shall be accompanied by:
(1)
An affidavit of intent to transfer development rights to the property; and
(2)
Either of the following:
(a)
A certified copy of a recorded instrument of the original transfer of the development rights proposed to be used and any intermediate instruments of transfer through which the applicant became a transferee of those rights; or
(b)
A signed written agreement between the applicant and a proposed original transferor, which contains information required by § 285-219B above and in which the proposed transferor agrees to execute an instrument of such rights on the proposed receiving parcel when the use of those rights, as determined by the issuance of final approval of a development plan.
B.
No final plan, including minor subdivisions, shall be approved and no development or building permits shall be issued for development involving the use of transferable development rights unless the applicant has demonstrated that:
(1)
The applicant will be the bona fide owner of all transferred development rights that will be used for the construction of additional dwellings or the creation of additional lots;
(2)
A deed of transfer for each transferred development right has been recorded in the chain of title of the sending parcel and such instrument restricts the use of the sending parcel in accordance with this article; and
(3)
The development rights proposed for the subdivision or development have not been previously used. The applicant shall submit proof in the form of a current title search prepared by an attorney licensed to practice law in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
C.
TDR calculation. If a TDR bonus is used, the plan submission must include a schedule which clearly indicates:
(1)
Net developable acres.
(2)
Base yield under Subsection C(1) above. Base yield equals the Net developable acres times base density rounded down to the nearest whole unit.
(3)
Potential yield or the maximum number of dwelling units allowed under maximum density, above.
(4)
Proposed yield or the total number of proposed dwelling units.
(5)
TDRs applied. TDRs applied equal the proposed yield minus the base yield.
D.
Minimum threshold for use of TDR. An applicant that wishes to use the TDR bonus density must build at least 1/2 of the additional dwelling units allowed under maximum density. The threshold number is equal to the base yield plus 1/2 of the difference of maximum potential yield and the base yield.