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A
Abatement: (often in legal use) the ending, reduction, or lessening of something.
Abutting: (of an area of land or a building) be next to or have a common boundary with.
Access: A way of approaching or entering a property. Access includes ingress, the right to enter, and egress, the right to leave. In zoning and subdivision regulations, recorded lots are required to have direct access to a public street or highway or to a private street meeting public standards. This guarantees entry by owners and emergency vehicles.
Accessibility/Accessible: A term that describes the usability of a facility, product or service by people with disabilities.
Accessory Building or Use: structures with a floor area 145 square feet or greater, with a maximum height of 20 feet.
ACSM: American Congress on Surveying and Mapping; a professional membership society for the spatial data information industry.
Acre-Foot: a unit of volume equal to the volume of a sheet of water one acre (0.405 hectare) in area and one foot (30.48 cm) in depth; 43,560 cubic feet (1233.5 cu m).
Acres, Gross: the number of surface acres in which a working interest is owned.
ADA: Americans with Disabilities Act; (1990) a civil rights law that prohibits discrimination against individuals with disabilities in all areas of public life, including jobs, schools, transportation, and all public and private places that are open to the general public.
Administrative Decision: the routine application of adopted rules and standards. Examples include the issuance of zoning permits (permitted uses), building permits and sign permits. Discretion associated with these types of decisions is very limited.
Ad Valorem Tax: a form of taxation based on the value of a transaction or a property, either real estate or personal property.
Adverse impact: The potential noise, odors, truck traffic, air pollution, and scale of industrial development that can have a negative effect on residential development, and are often incompatible with housing.
Afforestation: establishment of trees on non-treed land.
Agricultural Preserve: preventing land uses that are incompatible with farming such as uses that would create excessive traffic, pollution, or consume large areas of farmland.
Agriculture: land for planting, growing, cultivating and harvesting of crops for human or livestock consumption and pasturing or yarding of livestock.
ALTA: American Land Title Association; a detailed land parcel map, showing all existing improvements of the property, utilities, and significant observations within the insured estate.
Annex/annexation: the process of bringing property into city limits.
Appeal: an application to a higher decision-making body to reverse a decision believed to be made in error.
Application for development: every application, whether preliminary, tentative or final, required to be filed and approved prior to start of construction or development including but not limited to an application for a building permit, for the approval of a subdivision plat or plan or for the approval of a development plan.
Appointing authority: the mayor in cities; the board of commissioners in counties; the council in.
Arterial: a through road.
As-of-right Use: a person may take a certain type of legal action without obtaining permission.
Assessed Valuation: a property's determined valuation to calculate the appropriate tax rates.
Authority: a body politic and corporate created pursuant to the act of May 2, 1945 (P.L.382, No.164), known as the “Municipality Authorities Act of 1945.”
"An act providing for the incorporation as bodies corporate and politic of Authorities for
municipalities, counties and townships; prescribing the rights, powers and duties of such
Authorities heretofore or hereafter incorporated; authorizing such Authorities to acquire,
construct, improve, maintain and operate projects, and to borrow money and issue bonds
therefor; providing for the payment of such bonds, and prescribing the rights of the holders
thereof; conferring the right of eminent domain on such Authorities; authorizing such
Authorities to enter into contracts with and to accept grants from the Federal Government
or any agency thereof; and conferring exclusive jurisdiction on certain courts over rates."
B
Base Flood: a flood having a recurrence interval that has a 1% chance of being equaled or exceeded during any given year.
Berm: a level space, shelf, or raised barrier (usually made of compacted soil) separating areas in a vertical way, especially part-way up a long slope.
Bicycle-Friendly: a city that has efficient infrastructure, transportation policies and societal consensus to make cycling a main transport mode.
Board of Appeals: An appointed board that hears appeals on variances and exceptions.
Boundary: a specific location surrounding a piece of real estate that is the edge or location of the owner's claim.
Buffer Zone: an area of land designated for environmental protection.
Building Code: a set of rules that specify the standards for constructed objects such as buildings and non-building structures. Buildings must conform to the code to obtain planning permission, usually from a local council.
Building Coverage: The percentage of the lot area that is covered by building area, which includes the total horizontal area when viewed in plan.
Building Official: a construction code enforcement person working as an inspector, or plan reviewer, or actively engaged in the administration and enforcement of adopted building, electrical, mechanical, or plumbing codes, or any combination of these codes.
Building setback Line: a set building line on a lot, measured parallel from the front and/or corner side lot line, where the structure must be located.
Build-out: the execution of a building or community development plan.
Built Environment: man-made structures, features, and facilities viewed collectively as an environment in which people live and work.
Bulk Regulations: standards and controls that establish the maximum size of buildings and structures on a lot and the buildable areas within which the building can be located.
C
Carrying Capacity: The level of land use, human activity, or development for a specific area that can be accommodated permanently without an irreversible change in the quality of air, water, land, or plant and animal habitats.
Certificate of Compliance: statement issued by an insurance department or other regulatory authority confirming that an insurer is in compliance with applicable statute and regulation.
Certificate of Occupancy: a document issued by a local government agency or building department certifying a building's compliance with applicable building codes and other laws, and indicating it to be in a condition suitable for occupancy.
Channelization: alteration of a waterway to improve its characteristics for shipping.
Clustered Development: the economic development of a structure for a particular use, such as residential or business.
Collector: low speed (25-30mph) streets with moderate volume that provide circulation through a neighborhood.
Commercial: a classification for land use intended for the buying and selling of services and commodities.
Common Open Space: a parcel or parcels of land or an area of water, or a combination of land and water within a development site and designed and intended for the use or enjoyment of residents of a development, not including streets, off-street parking areas, and areas set aside for public facilities.
Complete Streets: streets designed to serve current and future land use.
Condemnation: a process in which private property is taken for a public use.
Conditional Use Permit (CUP): a zoning exception that allows you to use your property in non-conforming ways.
Conditional Use: a use permitted in a particular zoning district pursuant to the provisions in Article VI.
Condominium: a building or complex of buildings containing a number of individually owned apartments or houses.
Conservation Easement: a voluntary agreement between a landowner and a land trust or government agency that permanently limits uses of the land in order to protect its conservation values.
Construction Stakeout: a survey where wooden stakes are placed in order to outline a location designated for improvements.
County: In Pennsylvania, a political and administrative division of a state, providing certain local governmental services; any county of the second class through eighth class.
Fourth - Max Pop. 209,999 Min. Pop. 145,000 (Beaver, Butler, Cambria+, Centre, Fayette+, Franklin, Monroe, Schuylkill, Washington)
+A county's population must be under the minimum for a class for two (2) censuses prior to a reduction in class.
Fifth - Max Pop. 144,999 Min. Pop. 90,000 (Adams, Blair, Lawrence, Lebanon, Lycoming, Mercer, Northumberland)
Sixth - Max Pop. 89,999 Min. Pop. 45,000~ (Armstrong, Bedford, Bradford, Carbon, Clarion~, Clearfield, Clinton~, Columbia, Crawford, Elk+~, Greene~, Huntingdon, Indiana, Jefferson, McKean+, Mifflin, Perry, Pike, Somerset, Susquehanna~, Tioga~, Venango, Warren+, Wayne)
~A county having a population between 35,000 and 44,999 may elect to be a county of the sixth class.
Seventh - Max Pop. 44,999 Min. Pop. 20,000 (Juniata, Snyder, Union, Wyoming)
Eighth - Max Pop. 19,999 Min. Pop. 0 (Cameron, Forest, Fulton, Montour, Potter, Sullivan)
Cul-de-sac: a street, lane, etc., closed at one end; blind alley; dead-end street.
Curb Cut: a small ramp built into the curb of a sidewalk to make it easier for people using strollers or wheelchairs to pass from the sidewalk to the road.
D
Deforestation: the action of clearing a wide area of trees.
Density: the number of units in a given area.
Detention Dam/basin: a dam built to catch surface runoff and stream water flow to regulate the water flow in areas below the dam, in order to reduce flood rate.
Designated growth area: a region within a county or counties described in a municipal or multi municipal plan that preferably includes and surrounds a city, borough or village, and within which residential and mixed use development is permitted or planned for at densities of one unit to the acre or more, commercial, industrial and institutional uses are permitted or planned for and public infrastructure services are provided or planned.
Developer: any landowner, agent of such landowner, or tenant with the permission of such land-owner, who makes or causes to be made a subdivision of land or a land development.
Development of regional significance and impact: any land development that, because of its character, magnitude, or location will have substantial effect upon the health, safety, or welfare of citizens in more than one municipality.
Development plan: the provisions for development, including a planned residential development, a plat of subdivision, all covenants relating to use, location and bulk of buildings and other structures, intensity of use or density of development, streets, ways and parking facilities, common open space and public facilities. The phrase “provisions of the development plan” when used in this act shall mean the written and graphic materials referred to in this definition.
Discretionary Review: a review of appeals by a city or county committee of projects that complies with zoning ordinances.
District: a designated area of a city or county defined by zoning ordinances.
Due Diligence: an analysis of a property and surrounding area, inspecting all physical and financial conditions of the property, after a contract has been accepted.
Dwelling Unit: a single living space that provides permanent provisions for living, sleeping, cooking, eating, and sanitation for one or more persons.
E
Encroachment: a situation where a property owner violates the property rights by building on or extending a structure onto a neighboring property, intentionally or otherwise.
Environmental Impact Report (EIR): a document required by the 1969 National Environmental Policy Act, which outlines how a project may impact the surrounding natural environment.
Erosion: the geological process in which earthen materials are worn away and transported by natural forces such as wind or water.
Existing deficiencies: existing highways, roads or streets operating at a level of service below the preferred level of service designated by the municipality, as adopted in the transportation capital improvement plan.
Expansive Soils:
soil which contains swelling clay materials that can cause excessive swelling when in contact with water, and shrinkage when drying.
F
Feeder Roads:
a lower capacity road that runs parallel to a large high speed roadway, allowing for access to local amenities.
FEMA: Federal Emergency Management Agency; the Federal Government's lead agency in responding to and recovering from many of the Nation's greatest moments of crisis.
Floodplain: an area of low-lying ground adjacent to a river, formed mainly of river sediments and subject to flooding.
Floodway: a channel from a river or watercourse meant to redirect flood water.
Footprint, Building: the area of land occupied by a building measured at ground level, and enclosed by exterior walls.
Forensic Survey: a detailed investigation of both physical evidence, and written evidence such as maps and deeds concerning land use issues.
Forestry: the management of forests and timberlands when practiced in accordance with accepted silvicultural principles, through developing, cultivating, harvesting, transporting and selling trees for commercial purposes, which does not involve any land development.
Future growth area: an area of a municipal or multi municipal plan outside of and adjacent to a designated growth area where residential, commercial industrial and institutional uses and development are permitted or planned at varying densities and public infrastructure services may or may not be provided, but future development at greater densities is planned to accompany the orderly extension a provision of public infrastructure services.
G
Governing body: the council in cities, boroughs and incorporated towns; the board of commissioners in townships of the first class; the board of supervisors in townships of the second class; the board of commissioners in counties of the second class through eighth class or as may be designated in the law providing for the form of government.
Green Space: Trees & Forest, Shrubs, Grass & Herbaceous, Agriculture, Orchards, Woody Wetlands, and Emergent Wetlands.
Gross Acreage: the total property area defined by a land division map.
Groundwater: water found below the surface of the earth. Pennsylvania contains 30% more groundwater than surface level water, such as streams, rivers, or lakes.
H
Highways, roads or streets: any highways, roads or streets identified on the legally adopted municipal street or highway plan or the official map which carry vehicular traffic, together with all necessary appurtenances, including bridges, rights-of-way and traffic control improvements. The term shall not include the interstate highway system.
Historic Preservation: the protection or conservation of buildings and landscapes of historical significance.
Housing Unit: a unit within a larger structure, such as a house, apartment, mobile home, or rooms for the purpose of living (sleeping, cooking, sanitation, etc.) in.
I
Impact fee: a charge or fee imposed by a municipality against new development in order to generate revenue for funding the costs of transportation capital improvements necessitated by and attributable to new development.
Inclusionary Zoning: a regulation to ensure that a development can offer a variety of price points, including affordable housing compared to the market rate for that area.
Incorporation: the creation of a city, county, town, or other municipality with a local governing body.
Industrial: a land use zone meant for, but not limited to - factories, office complexes, workshops, construction yards, or warehouses.
In-Lieu Fee: credits approved through the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) for projects involving the restoration, establishment, and/ or preservation of a natural habitat. Known as Pennsylvania Integrated Ecological Services, Capacity Enhancement and Support Program (PIESCES, 2022).
J
Joint-use Agreements:
an agreement within a municipality, or community which entails the shared responsibility, costs, and capital for a public use facility.
L
Land Development: any of the following activities -
(1) The improvement of one lot or two or more contiguous lots, tracts or parcels of land for any purpose involving:
(i) a group of two or more residential or nonresidential buildings, whether proposed initially or cumulatively, or a single nonresidential building on a lot or lots regardless of the number of occupants or tenure; or
(ii) the division or allocation of land or space, whether initially or cumulatively, between or among two or more existing or prospective occupants by means of, or for the purpose of streets, common areas, leaseholds, condominiums, building groups or other features.
(2) A subdivision of land.
(3) Development in accordance with section 503(1.1)
Landowner: the legal or beneficial owner or owners of land including the holder of an option or contract to purchase (whether or not such option or contract is subject to any condition), a lessee if he is authorized under the lease to exercise the rights of the landowner, or other person having a proprietary interest in land.
Land Use Regulation: land use and zoning laws enforced in the development of real estate.
Land Use Feasibility Studies: the act of analyzing the project systematically to determine if it is capable of being carried out successfully.
LEED: Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, green building certification.
LOMA: Letter of Map Amendment; an official amendment, by letter, to an effective National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) map by FEMA.
Lot: a designated parcel, tract or area of land established by a plat or otherwise as permitted by law and to be used, developed or built upon as a unit.
Lot Line Adjustment: the alteration of property lines on an existing parcel of land.
M
Manufactured Housing: a factory built dwelling which can be placed on a property, such as a trailer, mobile home, or prefabricated house.
Median: the middle value of a data set.
Mediation: a voluntary negotiating process in which parties in a dispute mutually select a neutral mediator to assist them in jointly exploring and settling their differences, culminating in a written agreement which the parties themselves create and consider acceptable.
Metes and Bounds: the legal boundaries of a parcel of land.
Mobile Home: a transportable, single family dwelling intended for permanent occupancy, contained in one unit, or in two or more units designed to be joined into one integral unit capable of again being separated for repeated towing, which arrives at a site complete and ready for occupancy except for minor and incidental unpacking and assembly operations, and constructed so that it may be used without a permanent foundation.
Mobile Home lot: a parcel of land in a mobile home park, improved with the necessary utility connections and other appurtenances necessary for the erections thereon of a single mobile home.
Mobile Home park: a parcel or contiguous parcels of land which has been so designated and improved that it contains two or more mobile home lots for the placement thereon of mobile homes.
Multi municipal plan: a plan developed and adopted by any number of contiguous municipalities, including a joint municipal plan as authorized by this act, except that all of the municipalities participating in the plan need not be contiguous, if all of them are within the same school district.
Multi Municipal planning agency: a planning agency comprised of representatives of more than one municipality and constituted as a joint municipal planning commission in accordance with Article XI, or otherwise by resolution of the participating municipalities, to address, on behalf of the participating municipalities, multi municipal issues, including, but not limited to, agricultural and open space preservation, natural and historic resources, transportation, housing and economic development.
Municipal authority: a body politic and corporate created pursuant to the act of May 2, 1945 (P.L.382, No.164), known as the “Municipality Authorities Act of 1945.”
Municipal engineer: a professional engineer licensed as such in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, duly appointed as the engineer for a municipality, planning agency or joint planning commission.
Municipality: any city of the second class A or third class, borough, incorporated town, township of the first or second class, county of the second class through eighth class, home rule municipality, or any similar general purpose unit of government which shall hereafter be created by the General Assembly.
N
New development: any commercial, industrial or residential or other project which involves new construction, enlargement, reconstruction, redevelopment, relocation or structural alteration and which is expected to generate additional vehicular traffic within the transportation service area of the municipality.
No-impact home-based business: a business or commercial activity administered or conducted as an accessory use which is clearly secondary to the use as a residential dwelling and which involves no customer, client or patient traffic, whether vehicular or pedestrian, pickup, delivery or removal functions to or from the premises, in excess of those normally associated with residential use. The business or commercial activity must satisfy the following requirements:
(1) The business activity shall be compatible with the residential use of the property and surrounding residential uses.
(2) The business shall employ no employees other than family members residing in the dwelling.
(3) There shall be no display or sale of retail goods and no stockpiling or inventory of a substantial nature.
(4) There shall be no outside appearance of a business use, including, but not limited to, parking, signs or lights.
(5) The business activity may not use any equipment or process which creates noise, vibration, glare, fumes, odors or electrical or electronic interference, including interference with radio or television reception, which is detectable in the neighborhood.
(6) The business activity may not generate any solid waste or sewage discharge, in volume or type, which is not normally associated with residential use in the neighborhood.
(7) The business activity shall be conducted only within the dwelling and may not occupy more than 25% of the habitable floor area.
(8) The business may not involve any illegal activity.
Noise Contour: a line which represents levels of noise exposure on a map.
Noise Element: measurements of sound exposure including - density, duration, and frequency.
Non-Attainment: any area that does not meet national primary or secondary ambient air quality standards.
Nonconforming lot: a lot the area or dimension of which was lawful prior to the adoption or amendment of a zoning ordinance, but which fails to conform to the requirements of the zoning district in which it is located by reasons of such adoption or amendment.
Nonconforming structure: a structure or part of a structure manifestly not designed to comply with the applicable use or extent of use provisions in a zoning ordinance or amendment heretofore or hereafter enacted, where such structure lawfully existed prior to the enactment of such ordinance or amendment or prior to the application of such ordinance or amendment to its location by reason of annexation. Such nonconforming structures include, but are not limited to, nonconforming signs.
Nonconforming use: a use, whether of land or of structure, which does not comply with the applicable use provisions in a zoning ordinance or amendment heretofore or hereafter enacted, where such use was lawfully in existence prior to the enactment of such ordinance or amendment, or prior to the application of such ordinance or amendment to its location by reason of annexation.
O
Official map:
a map adopted by ordinance pursuant to Article IV. (Zoning)
Offsite improvements: those public capital improvements which are not onsite improvements and that serve the needs of more than one development.
Onsite improvements: all improvements constructed on the applicant’s property, or the improvements constructed on the property abutting the applicant’s property necessary for the ingress or egress to the applicant’s property, and required to be constructed by the applicant pursuant to any municipal ordinance, including, but not limited to, the municipal building code, subdivision and land development ordinance, PRD regulations and zoning ordinance.
Open Space Land: land restricted for the use of conserving natural or scenic resources, such as soils, beaches, streams, wetlands, or tidal marshes.
Ordinance: a rule or regulation constituted and enforced by a local governing body.
Overlay: a regulatory tool to place zoning over pre-existing zones on a map to mark changes or modifications to a defined area.
Overlay Zoning: stricter regulations used for the purpose of conserving natural resources in a defined area.
P
Parcel Map:
also known as a property map or tax map, is a map that defines ownership boundaries, dividing a property into sections called parcels which can contain multiple structures.
Parcel: a unit of division on a property, a single lot used under single ownership or control for the purposes of development.
Planned residential development: an area of land, controlled by a landowner, to be developed as a single entity for a number of dwelling units, or combination of residential and nonresidential uses, the development plan for which does not correspond in lot size, bulk, type of dwelling, or use, density, or intensity, lot coverage and required open space to the regulations established in any one district created, from time to time, under the provisions of a municipal zoning ordinance.
Planning agency: a planning commission, planning department, or a planning committee of the governing body.
Plat: the map or plan of a subdivision or land development, whether preliminary or final.
Plot Plans: plan showing the present or intended use of a piece of land, and the position of roads, buildings, and other important structures.
Preservation or protection: when used in connection with natural and historic resources, shall include means to conserve and safeguard these resources from wasteful or destructive use, but shall not be interpreted to authorize the unreasonable restriction of forestry, mining or other lawful uses of natural resources.
Prime agricultural land: land used for agricultural purposes that contains soils of the first, second or third class as defined by the United States Department of Agriculture natural resource and conservation services county soil survey.
Professional consultants: Persons who provide expert or professional advice, including, but not limited to architects, attorneys, certified public accountants, engineers, geologists, land surveyors, landscape architects or planners.
Pro Rata: Latin, “in proportion”, meaning the allocation or assignment of a resource in equal portions.
Public grounds: includes,
(1) parks, playgrounds, trails, paths and other recreational areas and other public areas
(2) sites for schools, sewage treatment, refuse disposal and other publicly owned or operated facilities
(3) publicly owned or operated scenic and historic sites.
Public hearing: a formal meeting held pursuant to public notice by the governing body or planning agency, intended to inform and obtain public comment, prior to taking action in accordance with this act.
Public infrastructure area: a designated growth area and all or any portion of a future growth area, describes a county or multi municipal comprehensive plan where public infrastructure services will be provided and outside of which such public infrastructure services will not be required to be publicly financed.
Public infrastructure services: services that are provided to areas with densities of one or more units to the acre, which may include sanitary sewers and facilitates for the collection and treatment of sewage, water lines and facilitates for the pumping and treating of water, parks and open space, streets and sidewalks, public transportation and other services that may be appropriated within a growth area, but shall exclude fire protection and emergency medical services and any other service required to protect the health and safety of residents.
Public meeting: a forum held pursuant to notice under 65 Pa. C.S. CH. 7 (Relating to open meetings).
Public notice: notice published once each week for two successive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation in the municipality. Such notice shall state the time and place of the hearing and the particular nature of the matter to be considered at the hearing. The first publication shall not be more than 30 days and the second publication shall not be less than seven days from the date of the hearing.
R
Regional planning agency: a planning agency that is composed of representatives of more than one county. Regional planning responsibilities shall include providing technical assistance to counties and municipalities, mediating conflicts across county lines and reviewing county comprehensive plans for consistency with one another.
Regulatory Permit: Authorization for land use determined by federal, state, and local ordinances, and municipal zoning ordinances.
Regulatory Taking: when governmental regulations limit the use of private property to such a degree that the landowner is effectively deprived of all economically reasonable use or value of their property.
Rezoning: the action or process of assigning land or property to a different category of restrictions on use and development.
Road improvement: the construction, enlargement, expansion or improvement of public highways, roads or streets. It shall not include bicycle lanes, bus lanes, busways, pedestrian ways, rail lines or tollways.
Roadway: the part of a road intended for vehicles, in contrast to a sidewalk or median.
Runoff: the draining of water (or substances carried in it) from the surface of an area of land, a building or structure, etc.
S
Sanitary Landfill: method of controlled disposal of refuse on a limited area of land.
Sanitary Sewer: an underground pipe or tunnel system for transporting sewage from houses and commercial buildings to a sewage treatment plant or disposal.
Sediment: solid material that is moved and deposited in a new location. Sediment can consist of rocks and minerals, as well as the remains of plants and animals.
Siltation: water pollution caused by particulate terrestrial clastic material, with a particle size dominated by silt or clay.
Site Analysis: a preliminary phase of architectural and urban design processes dedicated to the study of the climatic, geographical, historical, legal, and infrastructural context of a specific site.
Site Plan: set of construction drawings that a builder or contractor uses to make improvements to a property.
Site Plan Review: a process whereby development plans are reviewed, usually by the planning commission and staff, to ensure proposed projects are in accordance with standards and regulations, and include all necessary elements, such as public facilities, streets, or other zoning requirements.
Special exception: a use permitted in a particular zoning district pursuant to the provisions of Articles VI and IX.
State Land Use and Growth Management Report: a comprehensive land use and growth management report to be prepared by the Center for Local Government Services and which shall contain information, data and conclusions regarding growth and development patterns in this Commonwealth and which will offer recommendations to commonwealth agencies for coordination of executive action, regulation and programs.
Stormwater Detention: measures taken in development to retain or deter stormwater, such as retention basins, porous pavement, or rooftop storage.
Street: includes street, avenue, boulevard, road, highway, freeway, parkway, lane, alley, viaduct and any other ways used or intended to be used by vehicular traffic or pedestrians whether public or private.
Structure: any man-made object having an ascertainable stationary location on or in land or water, whether or not affixed to the land.
Subdivision: the division or redivision of a lot, tract or parcel of land by any means into two or more lots, tracts, parcels or other divisions of land including changes in existing lot lines for the purpose, whether immediate or future, of lease, partition by the court for distribution to heirs or devisees, transfer of ownership or building or lot development: Provided, however, That the subdivision by lease of land for agricultural purposes into parcels of more than ten acres, not involving any new street or easement of access or any residential dwelling, shall be exempted.
Substantially completed: where, in the judgment of the municipal engineer, at least 90% (based on the cost of the required improvements for which financial security was posted pursuant to section 509) of those improvements required as a condition for final approval have been completed in accordance with the approved plan, so that the project will be able to be used, occupied or operated for its intended use.
T
Topographic:
a survey which locates all surface features of a property, and depicts all natural features and elevations.
Traditional neighborhood development (TND): an area of land typically developed for a compatible mixture of residential units for various income levels and nonresidential commercial and workplace uses, including some structures that provide for a mix of uses within the same building. Residences, shops, offices, workplaces, public buildings, and parks are interwoven within the neighborhood so that all are within relatively close proximity to each other. Traditional neighborhood development is relatively compact and oriented toward pedestrian activity. It has an identifiable center and a discernible edge. The center of the neighborhood is in the form of a public park, commons, plaza, square or prominent intersection of two or more major streets. Generally, there is a hierarchy of streets laid out with an interconnected network of streets and blocks that provides multiple routes from origins to destinations and are appropriately designed to serve the needs of pedestrians and vehicles equally.
Traffic or transportation engineer or planner: any person who is a registered professional engineer in this Commonwealth or is otherwise qualified by education and experience to perform traffic or transportation planning analyses of the type required in this act and who deals with the planning, geometric design and traffic operations of highways, roads and streets, their networks, terminals and abutting lands and relationships with other modes of transportation for the achievement of convenient, efficient and safe movement of goods and persons.
Transferable development rights(TDR): the attaching of development rights to specified lands which are desired by a municipality to be kept undeveloped, but permitting those rights to be transferred from those lands so that the development potential which they represent may occur on other lands where more intensive development is deemed to be appropriate.
Transportation capital improvements: those offsite road improvements that have a life expectancy of three or more years, not including costs for maintenance, operation or repair.
Transportation service area: a geographically defined portion of the municipality not to exceed seven square miles of area which, pursuant to the comprehensive plan and applicable district zoning regulations, has an aggregation of sites with development potential creating the need for transportation improvements within such area to be funded by impact fees. No area may be included in more than one transportation service area.
U
Use Permit: a formal approval for a proposed development project after review by a governing committee.
Use Tax: in Pennsylvania this rate is the same as the sales tax rate: 6 percent state tax, plus an additional 1 percent local tax for items purchased in delivered to or used in Allegheny County and 2 percent local tax for Philadelphia.
V
Vacant:
Land or buildings that are not being used for any purpose.
Variance: relief granted pursuant to the provisions of Articles VI and IX.
Village: an unincorporated settlement that is part of a township where residential and mixed use densities of one unit to the acre or more exist or are permitted and commercial, industrial or institutional uses exist or are permitted.
W
Watercourse:
a brook, stream, or artificially constructed water channel.
Watershed: an area or ridge of land that separates waters flowing to different rivers, basins, or seas.
Water survey: an inventory of the source, quantity, yield and use of groundwater and surface-water resources within a municipality.
Water Table: the level below which the ground is saturated with water.
Y
Yard:
a unit of measurement equal to 3 feet or 0.9144 meters
Yield: the expected revenue received by a government from taxes, determined by multiplying the rate by the base.
Z
Zoning:
divide into or assign to zones.
Zoning Board of Adjustment: the legislative division of a community into areas in each of which only certain designated uses of land are permitted so that the community may develop in an orderly manner, in accordance with a comprehensive plan.
Zoning Map: a map of a city, county, or other municipality that shows how an area is divided by use district or zone.
SOURCES
1.) Development, P., 1968. Pennsylvania Municipalities Planning Code - PA Department of Community & Economic Development. [online] PA Department of Community & Economic Development. Available at: <https://dced.pa.gov/download/pennsylvania-municipalities-planning-code-act-247-of-1968/> [Accessed 10 May 2022].
2.) The official website for the Pennsylvania General Assembly. n.d. Statutes of Pennsylvania and the Constitution of Pennsylvania. [online] Available at: <https://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/legis/LI/Public/index.cfm> [Accessed 10 May 2022].
3.) County Commissioners Association of Pennsylvania. n.d. Home - County Commissioners Association of Pennsylvania CCAP. [online] Available at: <https://www.pacounties.org/> [Accessed 10 May 2022].
4.) Local land use planning controls in Pennsylvania. n.d. Conservation Tools. [online] Available at: <https://conservationtools.org/guides/58-local-land-use-planning-controls-in-pennsylvania> [Accessed 14 May 2022]
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