§ 123-68. Site design regulations., Article VI. Mobile Home Regulations, Part 1. Subdivision Regulations, Chapter 123. Subdivision and Development of Land, Part II. General Legislation, Code of Ordinances, Lower Providence

Arrangement of structures and facilities. The tract, including mobile home stands, patios, other dwellings and structures, and all tract improvements shall be organized in relation to topography, the shape of the plot and common facilities. Special attention shall be given to new mobile home designs and to common appurtenances that are available.

Adaptation of tract assets. Each mobile home unit or other dwelling or structure shall be fitted to the terrain with a minimum disturbance of the land and a minimum elevation difference between the floor level of the unit and the ground elevation under it. Existing trees and shrubs, rock formation, streams, floodplains, steep slopes and other natural features of the tract shall be preserved to the maximum extent practical. Favorable views shall be emphasized by the plan.

Courts and spaces. Groups or clusters of units, so placed as to create interior spaces and courtyards, shall be incorporated whenever feasible.

Orientation. Mobile homes are encouraged to be arranged in a variety of orientations and are strongly encouraged to have many units with their long sides facing the street, rather than their ends, in order to provide variety and interest. Site layout shall be designed to ensure that mobile home units are offset to block long uninterrupted vistas between the units.

Street layout. Gridiron layouts and street patterns unrelated to the topography of the site are to be avoided.

Roadways.

(1)

Standards. All Township standards for the construction of roads, "contained in Subdivision and Land Development Ordinance of Lower Providence," as subsequently amended, shall be adhered to for all public roads in and abutting mobile home developments. In those developments wherein the roads are to be maintained as private internal roadways, owned and maintained by the mobile home park operator or owned and maintained in common by the residents/owners of the individual lots, the standards shall be as follows:

(a)

Rights-of-way. There shall be an equivalent right-of-way, as defined herein, reserved along those streets which are designed to function as feeder or collector roads and which connect major exterior roadways, form major loops, traverse the development or provide major or important access to adjacent parcels. No equivalent right-of-way is required on other roads. On those roads where an equivalent right-of-way is required, parallel parking may be permitted, but perpendicular or angle parking is discouraged.

(b)

Pavement. The pavement width of all residential streets serving as access to mobile home lots shall be not less than 26 feet, except that this may be reduced to not less than 22 feet on a street serving as access to no more than 30 mobile home lots where parking is prohibited along the road and off-street visitor parking is provided in common areas within 300 feet of all dwelling units at a rate of 0.3 space per mobile home.

(c)

Grades. Gradients on all residential streets shall not exceed 10%.

(d)

Culs-de-sac. A paved turnaround area with a minimum radius of 50 feet shall be provided at the closed end of any cul-de-sac road serving as a sole access to four or more mobile home lots. No permanently closed cul-de-sac street shall exceed 500 feet in length or serve as the sole access to more than 25 mobile home lots.

(e)

Other requirements. All other applicable requirements of this Part 1 relating to grades, vertical curves, horizontal curves, tangents between curves, sight distance, construction specifications, intersection alignment, intersection radius, interconnection of adjacent parcels and similar regulations shall be adhered to in all mobile home park developments.

Editor's Note: See now , Engineering Standards, included at the end of this chapter.

(2)

Access limitations. Mobile home lots may have direct access only onto roads internal to the development. Direct access from a mobile home lot shall not be permitted onto the road(s) from which the mobile home development gains primary access.

(3)

Conversions. Any road built as a private road and later proposed for conversion to a public road shall be brought up to the applicable standards for public roads prior to being ordained as a public way, unless this requirement is waived by the governing body subsequent to determining that compliance with the requirement would have a negative effect on the mobile home development.

Pedestrian circulation.

(1)

General requirements. All mobile home developments shall provide safe, convenient, all-season pedestrian walkways of adequate width for intended use, durable and convenient to maintain between individual mobile homes, mobile home development, all community facilities provided for the residents and off-site pedestrian traffic generators, such as schools, bus stops, commercial centers, etc. These pedestrian walkways may parallel vehicular roadways, where they shall only be required on one side, or they may form a separate but coordinated system away from streets. Walkways must be provided wherever pedestrian traffic is concentrated and where school children congregate but may be waived elsewhere if the applicant successfully demonstrates a lack of need.

(2)

Common walk system. Where a common walk system is provided and maintained between locations, such common walks shall have a minimum width of four feet. Where these walks parallel roadways, they shall be separated from the road pavement by a distance of at least four feet.

(3)

Individual walks. All dwellings shall be connected to common walks or to streets or to driveways or parking spaces connecting to a paved street. Such individual walks shall have a minimum of two feet.

Parking spaces required. Two paved off-street parking spaces shall be provided for each dwelling either on the same lot therewith or in common parking facilities, provided that parking areas contained therein are within 150 feet of the mobile home lots for which they are intended. Parking for any commercial or other nonresidential use shall follow the requirements otherwise applicable for such uses.

Common parking areas. Where common parking facilities are to be used, the parking areas shall conform to §§ 123-37 and 123-50 of this Part 1.

Common open space. In addition to the requirements of the Township Zoning Ordinance, the following regulations shall apply:

(1)

Arrangement. The common space shall be designed as a contiguous area unless the applicant demonstrates to the satisfaction of the Board of Supervisors that two or more separate areas would be preferable. The open space shall also have easily identifiable pedestrian and visual accessibility to all residents of the mobile home development, although all units do not have to abut the common open space.

(2)

Recreation. Recreation areas and facilities shall be provided to meet the anticipated needs of the residents of the development. Not less than 25% of the required open space area, exclusive of lands within the required buffers, shall be devoted to recreation. Recreation areas should be of a size, shape and topography that is conducive to active and passive recreation.

Buffers.

(1)

General requirements. A permanent buffer shall be provided along all exterior property lines in conformance with § 123-50C of this Part 1.

(2)

Existing buffers. In cases where the property line of a mobile home development occurs along natural features which function as buffers, including but not limited to mature vegetation, significant grade changes or stream valleys which are likely to be permanently preserved, buffering may be waived along that property line upon approval of the Township Board of Supervisors upon recommendation of the Township Planning Commission.

(3)

Buffer landscape plan. A landscaping plan shall be submitted with the final plans, in accordance with § 123-18A(3)(p), showing all pertinent information, including the location, size and species of all individual trees and shrubs to be preserved or planted or, alternately, the general characteristics of existing vegetation masses which are to be preserved.

Design standards. All the provisions of the Lower Providence Township Stormwater and Erosion Control Ordinance, as well as design standards and procedures contained in this Part 1, shall be adhered to for all mobile home developments during and after development.

Editor's Note: See Part 3, Stormwater and Erosion Control, of this chapter.

Ground cover requirement. Exposed ground surfaces in all parts of every mobile home development shall be paved or covered with stone screenings or other solid material or protected with a vegetative growth that is capable of preventing soil erosion and the emanation of dust during dry weather. Impervious pavement shall be kept to a minimum. All ground surfaces shall be appropriately maintained.

Lighting facilities. Lighting facilities shall be provided as needed and arranged in a manner which will protect the mobile home development residents, neighboring properties and adjacent highways from direct glare or hazardous interference of any kind. Lighting facilities shall be required where deemed necessary by the governing body for the safety and convenience of the mobile home development residents and shall be installed by the developer.