Must Township Cite to the Ordinance Provisions That Authorized Subdivision Plan Conditions ?

In Koller v. Weisenberg Township, 871 A.2d 286 (Pa. Cmwlth. 2005), a developer, Koller, received approval of his preliminary subdivision plan subject to conditions to which he objected. Koller appealed, and the trial court reversed. Regarding the disputed conditions, the trial court held that the township was required to cite to the ordinance provisions that authorized the conditions. Because it did not do so, the township's conditions were invalid. Accordingly, the trial court held that the township's invalid rejection entitled Koller to a deemed approval of his plan under Section 508(3) of the Pennsylvania Municipalities Planning Code (MPC). On appeal, this Court reversed the trial court. The Court held that the MPC does not require a township to support each condition with a citation to the statute or ordinance supporting the imposition of the condition. The Court explained that where a preliminary plan is approved with conditions not accepted by the developer, the conditional approval constitutes a rejection. The aggrieved applicant's sole remedy is to appeal to the trial court for a determination of whether the objected-to conditions are legal.