Appointment. The provisions of this chapter shall be administered and enforced by a Zoning Officer, who shall be appointed by and be responsible to the Board of Township Supervisors. He may be provided with the assistance of such persons as the Board of Township Supervisors may direct. The compensation of all employees shall be determined by the Board of Township Supervisors. The Zoning Officer may not hold any elective office in the township.

Duties and powers. The Zoning Officer shall administer this chapter in accordance with its literal terms and shall not have the power to permit any construction or any change of use which does not conform to this chapter, to other pertinent ordinances of the Township of West Earl and the County of Lancaster, including Chapter 155, Subdivision and Land Development, and to the applicable statutes and regulations of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the United States of America. The Zoning Officer's duties and powers shall include but are not limited to the following:

Requirements. A zoning permit shall be required prior to a change in use of land or buildings or the commencement of excavation for or the erection, construction, relocation or alteration of any building, structure or sign or any portion thereof. No permit shall be required for repairs or maintenance of any building, structure or grounds, provided that such repairs do not change the use or otherwise violate the provisions of this chapter or any other applicable ordinance, statute or regulation.

Form of application.

Description of work. In addition to the information required in Subsection B above, the application shall contain a general description of the proposed work and/or use and occupancy of all parts of the building, structure or sign.

Issuance of permit. Upon receiving the application, the Zoning Officer shall examine the same within a reasonable time after filing. If the application or plans do not conform to the provisions of all pertinent laws, he shall reject such application, in writing, within 90 days after the application is filed, stating the reasons therefor and the manner, if any, in which the application can be corrected and/or modified to obtain the required approval. He shall inform the applicant of his right of appeal to the Zoning Hearing Board in the event that such application is rejected. If satisfied that the proposed work or use conforms to the provisions of this chapter and all other pertinent laws and ordinances, he shall issue a permit therefor as soon as practical but in no event more than 90 days after the application is filed.

Expiration of zoning permit. The permit shall expire within six months from the date of issuance if the work described in the permit has not begun. If the work described in the permit has begun, said permit shall expire two years from the date of issuance thereof.

Revocation of permit. The Zoning Officer may revoke a permit or approval issued under the provisions of this chapter if he subsequently determines that the same was issued erroneously, in the case of any false statement or misrepresentation of fact in the application or on the plans on which the permit or approval was based or for any other cause set forth in this chapter.

Posting of permit. A true copy of the permit shall be kept on the site of operations and open to inspection by the Zoning Officer during the entire time of prosecution of the work and until the completion of the same as defined in the application.

Payment of fees. No permit shall be issued until the fees prescribed by the Board of Township Supervisors pursuant to resolution shall be paid to the Zoning Officer.[1] The payment of fees under this section shall not relieve the applicant or holder of said permit from payment of other fees that may be required by this chapter or by any other ordinances or law.

Compliance with chapter. The permit shall be a license to proceed with the work and should not be construed as authority to violate, cancel or set aside any of the provisions of this chapter or any conditions which may have been imposed by the Zoning Hearing Board.

Compliance with permit and plot plan. All work or use shall conform to the approved application and plans for which the permit has been issued, as well as the approved plot plan.

When required. It shall be unlawful to use and/or occupy any structure, building, sign or land or portion thereof for which a permit is required until a certificate of use and occupancy has been issued by the Zoning Officer. The Zoning Officer shall not issue such certificate unless he has inspected said structure, building, sign or land and has determined that all provisions of this chapter and other ordinances of the township have been satisfied.

Form of application. The application for a certificate of use and occupancy shall be in such form as the Zoning Officer may prescribe and shall be made when the work covered by the zoning permit has been completed.

Description of use and occupancy. The application shall contain a description of the intended use and occupancy of any structure, building, sign or land or portion thereof for which a permit is required herein.

Action upon application. The Zoning Officer shall inspect any structure, building or sign within 10 days after notification that the proposed work that was listed under the zoning permit has been completed. If he is satisfied that the work is in conformity and compliance with the work listed in the issued zoning permit and all other pertinent laws, he shall issue a certificate of use and occupancy for the intended use listed in the approved application. If he finds that the work has not been performed in accordance with the approved application, the Zoning Officer shall refuse to issue the certificate of use and occupancy and, within 90 days after the application is filed, give the reasons therefor in writing and inform the permit holder of his right to appeal to the Zoning Hearing Board.

Availability of certificate. The certificate of use and occupancy or a true copy thereof shall be kept available for inspection by the Zoning Officer at all times.

Temporary certificate of use and occupancy. Upon request of a holder of a zoning permit, the Zoning Officer may issue a temporary certificate of use and occupancy for a structure, building, sign or land or portion thereof before the entire work covered by the zoning permit shall have been completed, provided that such portion or portions may be used or occupied safely prior to full completion of the work without endangering life or the public welfare. The Zoning Officer may also issue a temporary certificate of use and occupancy for such temporary uses as tents, trailers and buildings on construction sites, use of land for religious or other public or semipublic purposes and similar temporary use or occupancy. Such temporary certificates shall be for a period of time not to exceed six months.

Performance standards. In zones in which performance standards are imposed, no certificate of use and occupancy shall become permanent until 30 days after the facility is fully operating and when, upon reinspection by the Zoning Officer, it is determined that the facility is in compliance with all performance standards.

Violations. The construction, alteration, maintenance or use of any structure, building, sign, land or landscaping; the change of use, area of use, percentage of use or displacement of use of any structure, building, sign, land or landscaping without first obtaining a zoning permit; the use of any building, structure, sign or land without receipt of a certificate of use and occupancy; the use of property for a purpose different from that set forth in any zoning permit or certificate of use and occupancy without applying for and being granted a zoning permit or certificate of use and occupancy for such new or different use; the failure to comply with any other provision of this chapter; or the violation of any conditions imposed upon the grant of a variance or special exception by the Zoning Hearing Board or a conditional use by the Township Supervisors or by a court of competent jurisdiction if a variance, special exception or conditional use is granted by such court are hereby declared to be violations of this chapter.

Enforcement notice. If it appears to the Zoning Officer that a violation of this chapter shall exist, the Zoning Officer shall send an enforcement notice to the owner of record of the lot on which the violation has occurred, to any person against whom enforcement action may be taken, to any person who has filed a written request to receive enforcement notices regarding that lot and to any other person requested, in writing, by the owner of record. The enforcement notice shall contain the name of the owner of record and any other persons against whom the township may take action, the location of the property in violation, the specific violation with a description of the requirements which have not been met, citing in each instance the applicable provisions of this chapter, the date before which steps for compliance must be commenced and the date before which the steps must be completed, that the recipient of the enforcement notice has the right to appeal to the Zoning Hearing Board within 30 days and that a failure to comply with the notice within the time specified, unless extended by an appeal to the Zoning Hearing Board, shall constitute a violation with sanctions as provided in this chapter.

Prosecution of violations. If the enforcement notice is not complied with promptly, the Zoning Officer shall notify the Township Supervisors. The Township Supervisors may request the Township Solicitor to institute in the name of the township any appropriate action or proceeding at law or in equity to prevent, restrain, correct or abate such violation or to require the removal or termination of the unlawful use of the structure, building, sign, landscaping or land in violation of the provisions of this chapter or the order or direction made pursuant thereto. The Township Supervisors may also direct the Zoning Officer or Township Solicitor to institute a civil enforcement proceeding before a District Justice.

Penalties. 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 the reasonable attorneys' fees incurred by the township 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 township 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 chapter 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 attorneys' fees collected for the violation of this chapter shall be paid over to the township for the general use of the township.

Abatement of violation. The imposition of the penalties herein prescribed shall not preclude the township from instituting appropriate action to prevent unlawful erection or construction, to restrain, correct or abate a violation, to prevent illegal use of or occupancy of any structure, building, sign, land or premises or to stop an illegal act, conduct, business, use or occupancy of a structure, building, sign or land in and about any premises.

The governing body shall establish a schedule of fees, charges and expenses and collection procedures for zoning permits, certificates of occupancy, special exceptions, variances and appeals and other matters pertaining to this chapter.

The schedule of fees shall be available for inspection in the office of the Zoning Officer and may be altered or amended by the governing body.[1]

Until all application fees, charges and expenses have been paid in full, no action shall be taken on any application or appeal.