1. All off-street parking, loading, access facilities and service areas used by motor vehicles shall comply with the following provisions and with the parking requirements set forth in Article 4. All required parking spaces shall be provided off-street and on the same lot as the principal use served, except that the Zoning Hearing Board may approve parking on an adjacent commercially-zoned lot as a special exception if the applicant proves that an appropriate legal mechanism will be in place to ensure that the parking continues to be available as long as the use is in operation.
2. Structures and uses in existence at the date of adoption of this Ordinance shall not be subject to the requirements of this Article so long as the kind or extent of use is not changed, provided that any parking facility now serving such structures or uses shall not in the future be reduced below its current extent or below what is required by this Ordinance.
3. Whenever there is an alteration of a use which increases the parking requirements, the total additional parking required for the alteration, changes or extension shall be provided in accordance with this Ordinance.
4. Parking space and travel aisle dimension shall be in conformance with Chapter 153, Appendix A, § 524.
5. Shared Parking for Mixed Uses.
A. The parking requirements for each individual use within a mixed use development shall be met.
B. Two or more uses may provide for required parking in a common parking lot if the total space provided is not less than the sum of the spaces required for each use individually. However, the number of spaces required in a common parking facility may be reduced below this total if it can be demonstrated to the Board of Supervisors that the hours or days of peak parking needed for the uses are so different that a lower total will provide adequately for all uses served by the facility. Area for spaces which are required but not built under this provision shall be reserved in accordance with subsection .6 below.
6. Reservation of Nonresidential Parking Areas. In order to prevent the establishment of more parking spaces than are immediately needed, the Board of Supervisors may allow for a portion of the required parking area to be built at a later date, provided that the following conditions are met:
A. The parking lot design must designate sufficient space to meet the total parking requirements. The plan shall illustrate the layout for the total number of spaces.
B. A minimum of 60 percent of the required spaces shall be built with the completion of the project. An area adequate to accommodate the remaining 40 percent may be reserved as open land until needed. The reserved area shall not include any required buffers, setbacks, or yard areas in which parking would not be permitted under this Ordinance. The percentage of parking spaces to be constructed with the completion of the project shall be determined by the Board of Supervisors, provided that the minimum 60 percent requirement shall be met in any case.
C. A landscape plan for the reserved area shall be provided and approved by the Board of Supervisors.
D. As a condition of receiving an occupancy permit, the applicant shall establish a performance bond and an agreement shall be executed with the Township and recorded to construct the additional spaces if the Board of Supervisors determines that they are needed. This agreement shall apply to any future owners of the property.
E. The reserved parking area cannot be used to meet the parking requirements for future expansions of the facility, unless it is specifically released in writing by the Board of Supervisors if the applicant proves that it was unneeded based upon actual experience.
F. The stormwater management system of the lot shall be designed so that it can be improved to serve the full parking area, if needed.
7. Parking in Required Yard Areas. Parking spaces for nonresidential principal uses may occupy up to 25 percent of the required front yard setback area and shall not occupy any required buffer yard.
8. Location of Parking Areas. Off-street parking shall be located to the side or rear of the principal structure rather than in front of the principal structure wherever possible.
9. Maintenance of Parking Areas. For parking areas of three or more spaces, the area not landscaped shall be graded, surfaced with asphalt, concrete, paving block or other suitable low-dust material approved by the Township, and drained to the satisfaction of the Township Engineer to the extent necessary to prevent dust, erosion, or excessive water flow. All parking spaces shall be marked so as to indicate their location.
(Ord. passed 10-2-2007, § 503; Ord. 191, passed 1-8-2019)