Cluster housing will be allowed in Salisbury Township.

The township board of commissioners voted unanimously 5-0 after a brief public hearing July 14 to approve an amendment to the zoning ordinance to allow cluster housing.

Commissioner Alok Patnaik made the motion, seconded by Commissioner Heather Lipkin.

The amendment was reviewed June 9 by the Lehigh Valley Planning Commission and recommended for approval in a letter to Salisbury Township Planning and Zoning Officer Kerry H. Rabold, who researched and prepared the amendment, with consultation by Salisbury Township Solicitor Attorney John W. Ashley, Salisbury Township Consulting Engineer David J. Tettemer and Salisbury Township Assistant Manager-Director of Community Development Sandy Nicolo.

“The planning and zoning officer spent a lot of time putting this together,” Ashley said. Ashley made a few semantic changes to the final version of the amendment.

“I don’t think that there’s any major changes that would require another public hearing,” Ashley said.

The Salisbury Township Planning Commission recommended township commissioners approve the amendment.

Commissioners voted unanimously 5-0 after a separate brief public hearing July 14 to approve an amendment to the zoning ordinance to regulate off-street parking and loading. Board of commissioners Vice President Rodney Conn made the motion, seconded by Lipkin.

Cluster housing is intended to allow dwellings to be placed in closer proximity to reduce impervious surface, such as streets and sidewalks, and provide for areas of open space, which could include walking and bicycling trails for public use.

The amendment states cluster housing is an option for developers in CR, R1 and R2 zoning districts.

Streets in the development are to be owned and maintained by the developer through a homeowners’ association.

The minimum required tract size is five acres. The minimum number of proposed dwelling lots is 10.

Dwelling lots are not required to have frontage along a public street and may be clustered around a private roadway, the amendment states.

If the development is an age-restricted community, defined in the amendment as having at least one resident of a dwelling unit to be 55 years or older and no one under the age of 18, it is to be single-family detached dwellings and twin dwellings.

If a development is not an age-restricted community, it is to be single-family detached dwellings.

The amendment defines what can constitute open space. The amendment provides for a percentage formula to determine the size of the open space as it pertains to the size of dwellings.

The amendment is seven pages and can be viewed on the township website under the July 14 meeting agenda.

The off-street parking requirements include agricultural, business, restaurant, group home, church, hospital, school, apartment and residential buildings and those of the Americans With Disabilities Act.

As an example, for a miniature golf course, two off-street parking spaces per hole and a parking space for 1.2 employees are required.

Design standards, size and traffic patterns for parking are enumerated. Paving, lighting, grading, landscaping (including recommended trees and prohibited trees) and drainage are explained and listed.

The amendment regulates the parking and storage of vehicles, including recreational vehicles, commercial vehicles, trailers and junk vehicles.

The design of loading facilities and loading spaces and their size depends on the type of truck.

The amendment, which is 35 pages of detailed regulations, can be viewed on the township website under the July 14 meeting agenda.

In other business at the July 14 meeting, commissioners voted 5-0 to:

- Amend tax collector fees charged for reimbursement of expenses. The tax certification fee increases from $15 to $20. The duplicate bill fee increases from $3 to $5. Conn made the motion, seconded by Patnaik.

- Approve the agreement between the Salisbury Township School District and Salisbury Township Police Department for BusPatrol services. Conn made the motion, seconded by Commissioner Alex Karol.

BusPatrol provides cameras, mounted on the red stop sign and arm gate that swings out from a stopped school bus when students are being picked up or dropped off.

“The school district engaged the services of BusPatrol, which will be installing the cameras on the bus stop arms,” Ashley said.

“BusPatrol will gather the evidence and provide it to the police department, who will be available should it be disputed before the magistrate,” Ashley said.

“We evaluate it. If it’s a violation then it goes out to the owner,” Salisbury Township Police Sgt. Charles Whitehead said.

- Motion to award bid of $151,556.50 for Gutter Mill and Overlay Project for East Texas Boulevard, South 25th Street and Main Street to Bracalente Construction, Inc, Northampton. Lipkin made the motion, seconded by Pataik.

- Motion to approve Payment No. 2, final payment, of $249,089.70 to Michael F. Ronca & Sons, Inc. for Water Main Replacement-Sanitary Sewer Repair Projects. Patnaik made the motion, seconded by Liipkin.

“We inspected the work and we’re satisfied,” Tettemer said, noting the project is $62,000 under budget. “It’s a much thinner pavement surface,” Tettemer explained.

During the commissioners’ and administrators’ discussion, Salisbury Township Director of Finance Paul Ziegenfus said he met July 14 with State Rep. Peter G. Schweyer, D-22nd, concerning funding for the Swain Station Firehouse project of Western Salisbury Volunteer Fire Company.

“It was a good first meeting,” Ziegenfus said.

Ziegenfus said his discussions continue with United States Department of Agriculture officials for funding for the Swain project. “We are moving along. We’re making progress,” Ziegenfus said.

“The Western Salisbury Fire Company deed issue was resolved. The revised deed has been recorded,” Jerry Royer, Western Salisbury Volunteer Fire Company Safety Officer, board member and trustee, stated in an email to a reporter for The Press.

Salisbury Township Director of Public Works Jim Levernier said work continues on pickleball courts at Devonshire Park. “It may not be until fall that they get everything done,” Levernier responded to a question from Patnaik, who said residents asked him about the project.

There was no workshop after the meeting.

Commissioners met in executive session to discuss personnel matters.

The July 20 Environmental Advisory Council meeting is canceled. The township is seeking members for the council.

The July 27 planning cmmission meeting is canceled.

The board of commissioners is next scheduled to meet 7 p.m. July 28, meeting room in the municipal building, 2900 S. Pike Ave.