Upper Mount Bethel Township
City Zoning Code
City Zoning Code
ARTICLE I
General Provisions
§ 350-1 Short title.
This chapter shall be known and cited as the "2004 Zoning Ordinance of the Township of Upper Mount Bethel, PA."
§ 350-2 Applicability.
No building, sign or other structure or land shall be used or occupied and no building or structure or part thereof shall be erected, constructed, reconstructed, moved, enlarged or structurally altered unless in conformity with the regulations of this chapter. However, this chapter shall not require any change to any building, structure or use legally existing at the effective date of this chapter, or any amendment thereto, or to any building, structure or use planned and construction started in compliance with existing laws prior to the effective date of this chapter, or any amendment thereto, and completed within a one-year period after the effective date of this chapter, or any amendment thereto, except as otherwise provided herein.
§ 350-3 Jurisdiction.
The regulations and provisions of this chapter shall apply to and affect the entire geographic area of Upper Mount Bethel Township, Northampton County, PA, as shown on the Zoning Map included herein.
§ 350-4 Purpose.
A.
This chapter is enacted to implement the Comprehensive Plan for the Township of Upper Mount Bethel in accordance with the provisions of the Pennsylvania Municipalities Planning Code, Act of 1968, P.L. 805, No. 247, as reenacted and amended,[1] for the following purposes: to promote, protect and facilitate the public health, safety, morals, general welfare, coordinated and practical development of the Township, the proper density of population, the provision of adequate light and air, protection of persons and property, the maintenance and improvement of the aesthetic qualities of the Township, vehicle parking and loading space, transportation, water, sewage, schools, public grounds and other public requirements, the preservation of farmland and open space, and the protection and the conservation of the environment and the natural biodiversity of the Township.
[1]
Editor's Note: See 53 P.S. § 10101 et seq.
B.
This chapter is also designed to prevent the overcrowding of land, blight, danger and congestion in travel and transportation, loss of health, life or property from fire, flood, panic or other dangers, and to give consideration to the character of the Township, its various parts, and the suitability of the various parts for particular uses and structures.
§ 350-5 Statement of Community Development Objectives.
This chapter is hereby enacted to implement the Community Development Objectives for the Comprehensive Plan of the Township of Upper Mount Bethel adopted on July 9, 2001, as amended, which are incorporated herein by reference, a copy of which is attached hereto as Attachment A.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: Said attachment is on file in the Township offices.
§ 350-6 Interpretation and validity.
A.
Interpretation.
(1)
Minimum requirements.
(a)
In the interpretation and the application of the provisions of this chapter, they shall be held to be the minimum requirements for the promotion of the health, safety, morals and general welfare. It is not intended to interfere with or abrogate or annul other rules, regulations or ordinances, provided that where this chapter imposes greater restrictions upon the use of buildings or premises, or upon the height or bulk of a building, or requires larger open spaces, the provisions of this chapter shall prevail.
(2)
Similar uses.
(a)
Any list of permitted or prohibited uses is not an exhaustive list, but is included to clarify, emphasize and illustrate, by example, uses which are desirable or undesirable in a particular area.
(b)
All specific land uses in this chapter are classified into use classes in § 350-14. Where a specific use is proposed by a zoning applicant which is not specifically listed in any specific use class, then the Zoning Hearing Board may determine the use class subcategory (as defined herein) which is most similar to the proposed use and said proposed use, if approved by the Board, shall be subject to all of the requirements of said use class subcategory, subject to the requirements of §§ 350-18 and 350-40C(1)(b).
B.
Severability; validity.
(1)
If any section, subsection, sentence, clause or phrase of this chapter is for any reason held to be unconstitutional, unenforceable, or invalid, such decision shall not affect its remaining portions. The Supervisors of the Township of Upper Mount Bethel hereby declare that it would have passed this chapter and each section and subsection thereof irrespective of the fact that any one or more of its sections, subsections, clauses, or phrases may be found by court to be unconstitutional or otherwise invalid.
(2)
No provision contained in this chapter is intended to discriminate against persons protected under federal or Commonwealth of Pennsylvania laws pertaining to age, sex, race, ethnic origin, civil rights, religion, handicap or disability, or other equal opportunity issues.
C.
Repealer; exceptions.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I)]
(1)
Repealer. Except as provided below, the "Upper Mount Bethel Township Zoning Ordinance of 1976" enacted in July 1977, and all amendments thereto, are hereby repealed and replaced by this chapter. All other existing ordinances or parts of ordinances in conflict with this chapter, to the extent of such conflict and no further, are hereby repealed.
(2)
Proviso. Notwithstanding the above repealer language, Township Ordinance No. 95-06 (Wellhead Protection), Attachment I,[1] Township Ordinance No. 99-03 (Antennae, Towers, Commercial Communication Towers and Wireless Telecommunication), Attachment G,[2] Township Ordinance No. 2000-5 (Heavy Industrial I-3 District), Attachment F[3] and UMBT Ord. No. 2014-01 (Floodplain Ordinance), Attachment B, are specifically readopted and reenacted and incorporated into this chapter.
[2]
Editor's Note: Ord. No. 99-03 is included as an attachment to this chapter and entitled "Wireless Telecommunications."
[3]
Editor's Note: Ordinance No. 2000-5 is a Zoning Map amendment and is on file in the Township offices.
(3)
Subdivision and stand alone ordinances. Notwithstanding the above repealer language, Chapter 298, Subdivision and Land Development, of the Code of the Township of Upper Mount Bethel, is not repealed and continues to remain in full force and effect. Further, stand alone ordinances enacted by the Township regulating land use and/or development are also not repealed and continue to remain in full force and effect. The following ordinances are listed by way of illustration and are not meant to be all-inclusive: UMBT Ordinance No. 95-5 (Junkyards), UMBT Ordinance No. 2005-1 (Outdoor Fires), UMBT Ordinance No. 93-8 (Weed Ordinance), UMBT Ordinance No. 93-9 (Highway Occupancy Permit), UMBT Ordinance No. 94-4 (Tree Harvesting Ordinance), UMBT Sanitary Ordinance and UMBT Ordinance 2000-01, amending the Sanitary Ordinance.[4]
§ 350-7 Relationship of zoning and subdivision and land development regulations.
This Chapter 350, Zoning, regulates the type, intensity and density of land uses permitted in the Township. The Township Code's Chapter 298, Subdivision and Land Development, regulates how an existing parcel of land in the Township may be subdivided for two or more uses permitted by zoning or how development with one or more uses may be developed, provided that they comply with the requirements of this chapter. Subdivisions and developments shall only be permitted when they are consistent with this chapter.
§ 350-8 When effective.
This chapter shall take effect immediately subsequent to adoption. See § 350-47 of this chapter for the official adoption date.