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West Goshen Township
City Zoning Code

ARTICLE XXIV

RGC Residential Golf Course District

[Added 10-11-1988 by Ord. No. 9-1988]

§ 84-117 Intent; purpose.

A. 
The intent of this district is to further the objectives of this chapter by permitting the coordinated development of residential dwellings as an integral part of a golf course community, which provides a high ratio of open space to land development, while at the same time providing for a variety of housing types, subject to the provision for public sewer and public water.
B. 
This article establishes performance criteria to permit a residential golf course development, and such development will result in a more desirable environment, provide for the sufficient use of land, encourage the reservation and intelligent use of open space, enhance recreation opportunities and amenities and better the overall appearance of the community.
C. 
Single-family detached residential cluster development pursuant to the open space design option regulations of Article XXV is permitted when property within the RGC District is not developed as part of a golf course pursuant to Subsections A and B of this section, when authorized as a conditional use by the Board of Supervisors.
[Added 5-23-1995 by Ord. No. 4-1995]

§ 84-118 Administration; applications to be treated as conditional use applications.

It is not the intention of the Board of Supervisors by the adoption of this article to provide for the establishment of a Planned Residential Development controlled by Article VII of the Pennsylvania Municipalities Planning Code.[1] Rather, the Board shall hear and consider applications for development within the RGC Residential Golf Course District as conditional use applications, the approval of which shall be subject to such reasonable conditions as the Board shall, in its discretion, determine necessary.
[1]
Editor's Note: See 53 P.S. § 10701 et seq.

§ 84-119 Conditions for development.

The following are prerequisite conditions of a development plan within the RGC Residential Golf Course District, and no development shall be approved that does not strictly comply with the following requirements:
A. 
Any tract of land, hereinafter known as the "development tract," proposed to be developed shall be in single and separate ownership or, in the case of multiple tracts and separate ownership proposed to be combined for such development, at the time the application is filed with the Board, there shall be submitted therewith a written agreement in the form of a declaration of restrictions, covenants and easements, in a form suitable for recordation, which imposes upon all such tracts the condition that they be developed in accordance with a single plan, with common authority and common responsibility, so that the tracts so combined are developed as a single development tract in accordance with the zoning regulations of this district and the subdivision and land development regulations established in Chapter 72 of this Code.
B. 
The development tract shall be a contiguous minimum area of 115 acres, provided that, if the applicant proposes to develop a championship golf course, as that term is defined by the Professional Golfers Association, the minimum development tract area shall be 175 contiguous acres. If an existing golf course is proposed to be expanded and will be utilized and integrated as a part of the expanded golf course, that area of ground comprising the existing golf course may be included as forming a part of the required minimum development tract area; provided, however, within the area comprising the expanded golf course area there shall be not less than 6.3 acres per hole for a nonchampionship golf course and 9.7 acres per hole for a championship golf course.
C. 
The tract shall be served by public sanitary sewers and by a public water supply system.

§ 84-120 Use regulations.

The following principal uses shall be permitted when authorized as a conditional use, subject to compliance with the terms and conditions of this article and the imposition of such reasonable conditions as the Board shall determine necessary:
A. 
A unified development of single-family detached dwellings, attached single-family dwellings or any reasonable combination thereof, when planned, designed and constructed in conjunction with and as part of a golf course, with residential units located throughout the course, along and integrated with the course's fairways.
B. 
Any of the following accessory uses shall be permitted:
(1) 
Customary residential accessory uses.
(2) 
Customary golf course accessory uses, including clubhouse, maintenance buildings and structures, recreational uses, such as tennis courts, swimming pool, multipurpose courts, sports field, hiking, walking and bicycle paths, and other active and passive recreational facilities.
C. 
A unified development of single-family detached dwellings and customary residential accessory uses when designed and developed as a cluster development pursuant to the open space design option regulations of Article XXV of this chapter, when approved by the Board of Supervisors as a conditional use pursuant to § 84-123 of this Article XXIV. The R-3 Residential District shall be considered an overlay district on the RGC District for purposes of the applicability of the Article XXV regulations to the use and development permitted by this Subsection C; provided, however, that only the regulations of §§ 84-124 through 84-129 of Article XXV shall apply to the use and development permitted in the RGC District by this Subsection C. No other uses or development otherwise permitted by the R-3 Residential District regulations shall be permitted in the RGC District. The provisions of §§ 84-119, 84-121 and 84-122 of this article shall not apply to a use and development permitted by this Subsection C in the RGC District.
D. 
Forestry shall be permitted by right, subject to the standards in § 84-57.8.
[Added 5-9-2001 by Ord. No. 6-2001]

§ 84-121 Area and bulk regulations.

The following area and bulk regulations shall apply and shall govern the design, approval and implementation of any development permitted within this district:
A. 
Density. The following standards shall govern the density of dwelling units permitted on the development tract:
(1) 
The maximum number of dwelling units allowable on the development tract shall be calculated by multiplying the total number of acres located wholly within West Goshen Township in the development tract by 1.0.
(2) 
The Board, in the exercise of its reasonable discretion, may, but shall not be required to, increase the allowable density to not more than 1.2 dwelling units per acre, calculated in accordance with Subsection A(1), if the Board determines that:
(a) 
The objectives of this article can be achieved by permitting such maximum density.
(b) 
The developer agrees to such development restrictions, whether greater than and/or additional to the minimum development standards imposed by this chapter, as the Board shall require.
(c) 
The developer proves by clear and convincing evidence that a greater density will preserve, rather than destroy, the environmental features of the development tract.
(d) 
Compliance with the area and bulk regulations and the design standards are demonstrated.
B. 
Maximum development tract coverage: 30%.
C. 
Maximum building height: three stories, not to exceed 30 feet.
D. 
Minimum building setback line: 40 feet; provided, however, that where the developer proposes that the streets throughout the development tract not be dedicated to the Township as public streets but remain under the ownership and control of the homeowners' association proposed to be established for the development, the required right-of-way width may be reduced to 40 feet and the required cartway width may be reduced to 22 feet. No parking shall be permitted in the cartway. In that latter instance, the minimum building setback may be reduced to 15 feet from the cartway surface, except where a front-loading garage fronts on the street, in which case the minimum setback shall be 25 feet from the edge of the cartway.
E. 
Minimum development tract perimeter setback. All buildings and structures shall be setback a minimum of 40 feet from the development tract perimeter. The required setback shall be doubled along that part of the development tract perimeter which abuts existing residential uses, except when a single continuous common tract/residential boundary does not exceed by five times the length of all building faces proposed to be constructed along any such portion of the tract perimeter. Thus, if the common tract/residential boundary length is 300 feet and the building faces proposed to be constructed along that portion of the perimeter exceed a total of 60 feet, the required minimum setback shall be 80 feet. For purposes of this provision, a "building face" is defined as the front, side or rear of any building or structure.
F. 
Maximum number of attached units: three.
G. 
Minimum building separation. No building or structure, except landscape walls, shall be erected within 25 feet of any other building or structure, provided that a building separation of not less than 10 feet between buildings or structures shall be permitted if no more than 30% of the buildings housing residential units are separated by not less than a twenty-five-foot building separation on each side.
H. 
Required open space. At least 50% of the development tract shall be designated as a golf course and shall be deed-restricted to that use. On each development plan, the open space shall be identified and designated as common open space, which shall include that portion of the open space not dedicated and part of the golf course, and the golf course area itself, which shall include all tees, greens, fairways, pathways and other necessary and integral parts of the golf course. If an existing golf course is to be expanded and no uses permitted by § 84-120A and B(1) are proposed to be constructed upon the ground occupied by the existing golf course, only the expanded golf course area shall be required to be deed-restricted. With respect to all such open space, the following regulations shall apply:
(1) 
No such open space shall be accepted for dedication to the Township, unless specifically so required by the Board.
(2) 
The developer shall provide for and establish an organization for the ownership and maintenance of both the non-golf course and golf course open space, and such organization shall not be dissolved nor shall it dispose of the common open space, by sale or otherwise, except to an organization conceived and established to own and maintain the common open space; provided, however, that the golf course open space may be owned by a public or private organization or entity separate and apart from the homeowners' association for the residential development. In the case of the expansion of an existing golf course, this requirement shall apply only to that portion of the development tract constituting the expanded golf course area and not to the ground occupied by the existing golf course.
(3) 
Both the homeowners' association documents and the declaration of restrictions, covenants and easements or other recordable document by which the golf course is restricted to use as a golf course and from further subdivision or land development shall give the Township the powers provided for in Section 705(b)(2) and (3) of the Municipalities Planning Code.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: See 53 P.S. § 10705(b)(2) and (3).
(4) 
The developer shall be required to set aside and dedicate for park, open space and recreation use generally accessible land based on a formula of one acre for each 20 dwelling units or part thereof. This land need not be located on the site but must be acceptable to the Supervisors. In lieu of the requirements of this subsection, the Township shall have the option of accepting a capital contribution to the West Goshen Township Park, Open Space and Recreation Reserve Fund in such amount as approved by the Board of Supervisors. This requirement shall be in lieu of § 72-35A of this Code, but the developer shall otherwise be required to comply with § 72-35C thereof.
(5) 
All open space created within the tract shall be deed-restricted against any use, except as active and passive open space, a golf course or any recreational use normally operated by a country club.

§ 84-122 Design standards.

The following design standards shall apply:
A. 
Parking: as required by § 84-55I and J, as applicable, of this chapter.
B. 
Storage: as required by § 84-55B of this chapter.
C. 
Screening and tree preservation.
(1) 
The proposed development plan shall be conceived so as to preserve or enhance the natural site features of the development tract.
(2) 
Existing trees that are eight inches or larger in caliper at a point three feet above the ground level shall be marked and preserved, unless their removal is authorized by the Board.
(3) 
The development plan shall identify and designate those areas where construction of buildings and structures is anticipated, and these shall be identified as construction pockets. A construction pocket is any individual building site and/or construction area reduced to its minimum required size for project implementation, with no disturbance to areas outside of or between construction pockets merely for ease of construction.
(4) 
To facilitate the processing of a landscape and screening plan, a plant and tree schedule shall be prepared and submitted with the final subdivision or land development plan, shall give the botanical and common names of plants proposed to be used, the sizes to be planted and the quantity of each, and spacing. The landscape and screening plan shall be an integral part of the development plan, and the Board is granted wide latitude in imposing minimum planting requirements, including screening which shall be placed in the tract perimeter setback areas. In the event of dispute, however, the Board may require a minimum mixture of 10 deciduous and nondeciduous trees per gross acre of the development tract, up to 50% of which may be required to be planted around the perimeter of the development tract within the required setback.
(5) 
The development tract perimeter setback area shall be landscaped and shall be free of structures, materials and vehicular parking. No driveways or streets, excepting golf cart paths, shall be permitted in the setback areas, except at the points of ingress or egress to the development or when existing site constraints make adherence hereto less desirable and provided that any deviation from this requirement is approved by the Board of Supervisors in the Board's sole discretion.
D. 
Loading: as required by § 84-55H of this chapter.
E. 
Stormwater management. In addition to the minimum requirements by Chapters 69 and 72 of this Code, stormwater management controls shall include development with construction pocket controls as described hereinabove, including intermediate and prebasin control and temporary basin with riser pipes during the course of construction, maintained for such period as the Township Engineer shall require.
F. 
Streets. All streets shall meet the minimum requirements of the Subdivision and Land Development Ordinance;[1] provided, however, that:
(1) 
If streets are not proposed to be dedicated to the Township as public streets but remain under the ownership and control of a homeowner's association, the required minimum right-of-way width may be reduced to 40 feet and the required minimum cartway width may be reduced to 22 feet.
(2) 
No cul-de-sac street shall be greater than 850 feet in length, unless serving less than 25 residential units, in which event the cul-de-sac street length may be extended by an additional 250 feet if such extension is approved by the Board of Supervisors. A cul-de-sac street exceeding 850 feet and servicing more than 25 dwelling units shall be permitted when an emergency accessway acceptable to the Board of Supervisors is provided to connect the cul-de-sac street to an adjoining street, thereby reducing the effective cul-de-sac street length below 850 feet.
[1]
Editor's Note: See Ch. 72, Subdivision and Land Development.

§ 84-123 Conditional use application requirements.

[Amended 10-25-1994 by Ord. No. 3-1994]
An application for a conditional use within the RGC Residential Golf Course District shall be filed with the Board of Supervisors in accordance with the application requirements of § 84-74 of this chapter.