Worcester Township City Zoning Code
ARTICLE XXV
Administration
§ 150-205 Zoning Officer and Assistant Zoning Officer; appointments and qualifications.
The provisions of this chapter shall be enforced by a Zoning Officer and Assistant Zoning Officer with the aid of other municipal agencies. The Zoning Officer and Assistant Zoning Officer shall be appointed at the first meeting of the Township Supervisors following the adopting of this chapter, to serve until the first Monday of January next following and shall be appointed annually to serve terms of one year and/or until their successors are appointed. The Zoning Officer and Assistant Zoning Officer may succeed themselves. They shall receive such compensation as the governing body shall provide. Reference herein to the Zoning Officer shall include the Assistant Zoning Officer.
§ 150-206 Zoning Officer duties and powers.
A.
It shall be the duty of the Zoning Officer and he shall have power to:
(1)
Keep a record of all plans and applications for permits and all permits issued with notations as to special conditions attached thereto. All records shall be open for public inspection.
(2)
Review applications for zoning permits for elections or alterations of structures or changes of use; determine whether such construction or use is in accordance with the general requirements of this chapter, all other applicable ordinances and with the laws and regulations of the commonwealth. The Zoning Officer shall issue no permit unless it conforms with all applicable ordinances, statutes and regulations. If he refuses to issue a permit, he shall instruct the applicant in the method of appeal or application to the Zoning Hearing Board.
(3)
Conduct inspections and surveys to determine compliance or noncompliance with the terms of this chapter. In carrying out such surveys, the Zoning Officer or his representative may enter upon any land or building.
(4)
Make written orders requiring compliance with the provisions of this chapter to be served personally to be mailed to latest known address according to Township records.
(5)
Institute proceedings in courts of proper jurisdiction for the enforcement of provisions of this chapter.
(6)
Maintain a map showing the current zoning classification of all land.
(7)
Maintain a map and register showing the registration, identity, location and type of all nonconforming uses.
(8)
Participate in all proceedings before the Zoning Hearing Board, present facts and information to assist the Board in reaching a decision which shall be compatible with this chapter and have decisions of Zoning Hearing Board reviewed in a court of proper jurisdiction when, in the judgment of the Zoning Officer, such review is desirable or indicated.
B.
The Zoning Officer shall issue no permit for the construction or use of any land or building or other structure unless it also conforms to the requirements of all other ordinances and regulations of the Township and with the laws of the commonwealth insofar as they are known to him.
§ 150-207 Permits.
No buildings or other structures shall be constructed, placed or altered in the Township or the use of any building or other structures changed, nor vacant land occupied until a zoning permit is secured from the Zoning Officer. Upon completion of the work authorized by any permit, the applicant or owner shall notify the Zoning Officer of said completion. No permit shall be considered as complete or permanently effective until the Zoning Officer has noted on the permit that the work has been inspected and approved as being in conformity with the provision of this chapter.
§ 150-208 Application for permit.
A.
All applications for zoning permits shall be made by the owner or tenants or authorized agent and shall be filed with the Zoning Officer, in writing, on forms prescribed by the Zoning Officer. The application shall include a statement as to the proposed use of the building or other structure; shall be accompanied by a plan, drawn to scale, showing the location of the building or other structure in relation to property and road lines; shall include a statement that the side lines of all roads shown on the plan have been located and staked on the premises by a surveyor or other person competent to give such location; and shall give the name and address of the person who has so located and staked the road lines.
B.
If the applicant desires relief from the Zoning Hearing Board, then, in addition, the application shall set forth the nature of the relief and shall state briefly the reasons why such relief should be granted and any other information the Zoning Officer or the Zoning Hearing Board may require.
§ 150-209 Requirement of use and occupancy permits.
A use and occupancy permit shall be required prior to any of the following:
A.
Use and occupancy of any building or other structure hereinafter erected or altered.
B.
Change in use of any building or structure.
C.
Use of land or change in the use thereof, except that the placing of vacant land under cultivation shall not require a use and occupancy permit.
D.
Change in use or extension of a nonconforming use.
[Amended 3-21-1990 by Ord. No. 115]
E.
[1]It shall be unlawful for any person to use or occupy any building or other structure or land until a use and occupancy permit has been duly issued therefor.
[Added 3-21-1990 by Ord. No. 115]
[1]
Editor's Note: Former Subsection E, which required a use and occupancy permit for transfer of property, amended 3-21-1990 by Ord. No. 115, was repealed 5-16-2007 by Ord. No. 217. This ordinance also provided for the redesignation of former Subsection F as Subsection E.
§ 150-210 Application for use and occupancy permits.
All applications for use and occupancy permits shall be made in writing on forms furnished by the Township and shall include all information necessary to enable the Zoning Officer to ascertain compliance with this chapter.
§ 150-211 Issuance of use and occupancy permits.
No use and occupancy permit shall be issued until the proposed use complies with all the provisions of existing Township ordinances. Permits for construction and uses which require a special exception or a variance shall be issued only upon order of the Zoning Hearing Board.
§ 150-212 Issuance or refusal of permits.
If the Zoning Officer determines that an application is in compliance with the provisions of this chapter, it shall be his duty to issue the appropriate permit; and if he determines that an application is not in compliance with the provisions of this chapter, it shall be his duty to refuse the permit, in which case he shall instruct the applicant in the method of appeal or application to the Zoning Hearing Board.
§ 150-213 Fees.
The applicant for a permit shall, at the time of making the application, pay to the Zoning Officer, for the use of the Township, a fee in accordance with a fee schedule adopted by resolution of the Board of Supervisors, as may be amended from time to time.
§ 150-214 Requirement of development plans.
Development plans, in accordance with the requirements of the Worcester Township Land Development Subdivision Ordinance,[1] shall be submitted for the use and development of all land, except that no such plans shall be required for agricultural or single-family detached dwellings where no street work or changes are involved.
§ 150-215 Conditional uses.
The Supervisors may grant approval of a listed conditional use under any district, provided that the following standards and criteria are complied with by the applicant for the conditional use. The burden of proving compliance with such standards and criteria shall be on the applicant.
A.
The applicant shall establish by credible evidence that the use or other subject of consideration for approval complies with the declaration of legislative intent as stated in Article I of this chapter and the declaration of legislative intent that may appear at the beginning of the applicable district under which approval is sought.
B.
The applicant shall establish by credible evidence compliance with conditions on the conditional use enumerated in that section which gives the applicant the right to seek a conditional use.
C.
The applicant shall establish by credible evidence that the proposed use or other subject of consideration for approval shall not adversely affect neighboring land uses in any way and that the proposed use or other subject of consideration for approval shall not impose upon its neighbors in any way, but rather shall blend in with them in a harmonious matter.
D.
The applicant shall establish by credible evidence that the proposed use or other subject of consideration for approval shall be properly serviced by all existing public service systems. The peak traffic generated by the subject of the approval must be accommodated for in a safe and efficient manner or improvements made in order to effect the same. Similar responsibility must be assumed with respect to other public service systems including police protection, fire protection, utilities, parks and recreation.
E.
The applicant shall establish by credible evidence that the proposed use or other subject of consideration for approval shall be properly designed with regard to internal circulation, parking, buffering and all other elements of proper design.
F.
The applicant shall provide the Supervisors with sufficient plans, studies or other data to demonstrate that compliance with the permitted uses or other such regulations, as may be the subject of consideration for a conditional use approval, is unreasonable or inappropriate for the instance at hand.
G.
The Supervisors shall impose such conditions as are necessary to ensure compliance with the purpose and intent of this chapter, which may include planting and buffers, harmonious design of buildings and the elimination of noxious, offensive or hazardous elements.
§ 150-215.1 Expiration of conditional uses.
[Added 5-19-1999 by Ord. No. 170]
Unless otherwise specified in the decision of the Board of Supervisors, a conditional use shall expire if the applicant fails to obtain a building permit in connection therewith within one year of the date of the order of the Board or court granting such conditional use. In those instances where land development or subdivision approval is a necessary prerequisite prior to obtaining a building permit, the conditional use shall expire if the applicant fails to make a diligent effort to obtain such approval within six months following the date of conditional use approval. Upon receipt of land development approval, the conditional use shall expire if a building permit is not obtained within six months of the date of land development approval.