1. From the time an application for approval of a plan, whether preliminary or final, is duly filed as provided in this Chapter, and while such application is pending approval or disapproval, no change or amendment of the zoning, subdivision or other governing ordinance or plan shall affect the decision on such application adversely to the applicant and the applicant shall be entitled to a decision in accordance with the provisions of the governing ordinances or plans as they stood at the time the application was duly filed. In addition, when a preliminary application has been duly approved, the applicant shall be entitled to final approval in accordance with the terms of the approved preliminary application as hereinafter provided. However, if an application is properly and finally denied, any subsequent application shall be subject
to the intervening change in governing regulations.
2. When an application for approval of a plan, whether preliminary or final, has been approved without conditions or approved by the applicant’s acceptance of conditions, no subsequent change or amendment in the subdivision or other governing ordinance or plan shall be applied to affect adversely the right of the applicant to commence and to complete any aspect of the approved development in accordance with the terms of such approval within 5 years from such approval.
3. Where final approval is preceded by preliminary approval, the aforesaid 5-year period shall be counted from the date of the preliminary approval. In the case of any doubt as to the terms of a preliminary approval, the terms shall be construed in light of the provisions of the governing ordinances or plans as they stood at the time when the application for such approval was duly filed.
4. Where the landowner has substantially completed the required improvements as depicted upon the final plan within the aforesaid 5-year limit, or any extension thereof as may be granted by the Board of Township Supervisors, no change of municipal ordinance or plan enacted subsequent to the date of filing of the preliminary plan shall modify or revoke any aspect of the approved final plan pertaining to zoning classification or density, lot, building, street or utility location.
5. In the case of a preliminary plan calling for the installation of improvements beyond the 5-year period, a schedule shall be filed by the landowner with the preliminary plan delineating all proposed phases as well as deadlines within which applications for final plan approval of each phase are intended to be filed. Such schedule shall be updated annually by the applicant on or before the anniversary of the preliminary plan approval, until final plan approval of the final phase has been granted and any modification in the aforesaid schedule shall be subject to approval of the Board of Township Supervisors in its discretion.
6. Each phase in any residential subdivision or land development, except for the last phase shall contain a minimum of 25% of the total number of dwelling units as depicted on the preliminary plan, unless a lesser percentage is approved by the Board of Township Supervisors in its discretion. Provided the landowner has not defaulted with regard to or violated any of the conditions of the preliminary plan approval, including compliance with landowner’s aforesaid schedule of submission of final plans for the various phases, then the aforesaid protections afforded by substantially completing the improvements depicted upon the final plan within 5 years shall apply and for any phases or phases, beyond the initial phase, in which the required improvements have not been substantially completed within said 5-year period the aforesaid protections shall apply for an additional term or terms of 3 years from the date of final plan approval for each phase.
7. Failure of landowner to adhere to the aforesaid schedule of submission of final plans for the various phases shall subject any such phase to any and all changes in zoning, subdivision and other governing ordinance enacted by the Township subsequent to the date of the initial preliminary plan submission.
(Ord. 2011-05, 3/14/2011, § 310)