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Cornwall Borough Council unanimously agreed Monday to advance an amendment to move warehousing from the limited industrial (LI) zone to general commercial (GC).
Council directed its solicitor to isolate the warehousing section from the combined amendment and send the new amendment to the Planning and Zoning Commission, as well as county planning, for review. Once both entities have reviewed the amendment, council may advertise it for a public hearing and subsequently adopt it.
In case you missed it… Background on this story
Residents group Citizens United 4 Responsible Development came forward with an earlier version of this amendment in October 2023. It was discussed alongside an amendment proposed by developer Byler Holdings to allow manufacturing uses in the general industrial (GI) district.
Read more: Cornwall Borough Council refers citizen’s text amendment to ad hoc committee
While the latter amendment was passed in January due to a time-crunch on the part of PRL Industries, which sought to rent the manufacturing space, the former was not acted upon. Instead, it was merged with the Byler-proposed Lake Resort Community text amendment, which lays out criteria for lake-adjacent mixed use developments and allows them in the LI district.
As of now, the Planning and Zoning Commission is working with other parties to refine the Lake Resort Community text amendment.
The warehousing portion of the amendment is being advanced largely as it is unknown how long discussions around the Lake Resort Community amendment will take.
Council also unanimously agreed to authorize a contract with Karla Farrell for phase one of plans to develop Snitz Creek Park, although they expect that there will be a name change required, as a park of the same name already exists in North Cornwall Township.
Plans for phase one of the park’s development plan — including design, landscaping, construction management, and bidding — total $46,526 for payment of a project manager, CAD technician, project engineer, and clerical employee.
Including construction, the estimate for phase one totals around $500,000, with $250,000 of this to be paid for by a DCNR grant. The grant requires a 50 percent match, which (at present) is being paid for through a no-interest loan from the borough’s around $800,000 rainy day fund.
Read more: Cornwall Borough Council hears completed parks and recreation plan
Other grant funding is being sought for the project, councilman John Karinch said.
As of March 2023, the Snitz Creek master site plan was expected to cost $1,534,500, including walking trails, pickleball courts, volleyball courts, and more.
Read more: Cornwall Borough Council hears completed parks and recreation plan
However — as Karinch noted — the borough is not committed past phase one, and may choose to stop further development if additional funding is not acquired.
Mayor Mark Thomas expressed his displeasure with the costs of the plan, and asked Karinch to guarantee the project would not cost taxpayers money in the long run.
Karinch said it would not. With $2,500 per housing lot going toward the recreation fund (following the doubling of the rec fee in 2022), $229,000 is expected to be paid out from two Byler Holdings’ incoming residential projects, he explained.
The three-phase, 131-home Rexmont Road project — a plan that was approved in July — will generate around $131,000 from the first phase of development, Karinch said.
Read more: Cornwall Borough Council approves PRL and Rexmont Road subdivision plans
He also noted a sketch plan Byler Holdings has submitted for a 98-townhouse development in Miners Village. The first phase of this project, he said, would generate around $98,000. This does not include possible recreation fees generated by a lakefront community development, or any other potential future housing developments, Karinch said.
Read More: Cornwall Properties submits sketch plan for 98-unit Miners Village development
Thomas said that money isn’t guaranteed, as Byler Holdings could abandon a plan all together (as H&K did with its water park resort plans in the early 2010s). Karinch said that was possible, but not likely.
Council also unanimously agreed to seed the fields at the park, which they were assured would not be affected by phase one of its development.
In other news, council:
- Unanimously agreed to contact Byler Holdings regarding the acquisition of land behind the borough office as a potential space for expanded parking.
- Unanimously passed a motion of support for a countywide ordinance establishing rules and regulations for conduct on the Lebanon Valley Rail Trail, and gave the police department the go-ahead to enforce applicable rules.
- Unanimously agreed to amend the zoning ordinance to define major trailers and prohibit them in front of homes in the residential forest district, as well as set specific limitations on the placement of trailers. This is following several months of back-and-forth with P&Z.
- Unanimously agreed to amend the starting salary for a probationary officer from $62,000 to $67,000. While councilman Thomas Burton said his starting salary as an officer was much lower, the mayor said he was fine with this action, and that he generally aims to keep costs low.
- Discussed dead trees overhanging the road in the aftermath of a storm last month.
- Unanimously agreed to authorize the countywide Trick or Treat night on Oct. 31.
- Unanimously agreed to authorize Burton to attend the PSAB Leadership Conference.
- Unanimously agreed to get quotes to install a generator and propane tank at the borough office.
- Agreed to avoid selling Lodge Hall at Palmer Street Lot for now following a request.
- Unanimously agreed to request Byler Holdings provide plans for an agreement to move the right-of-way at Gold Street to give a small amount of land to adjacent landowners.
- Unanimously agreed to set up a meeting with Landmark about Forge Drive Lot 12. The grading at the site was not done to specifications.
- Unanimously approved minutes and reports.
- Directed the township manager to look into purchasing TVs for the meeting room.
- Unanimously agreed to approve the Kreider/Zimmerman subdivision plan, which township manager Cody Rhoads said is a small plan mostly redefining lot lines.
- Heard that a Spring Hill Acres emergency access has been established.
Cornwall Borough Council meets the second Monday of each month at 6:30 p.m. The meetings are open to the public and do not require prior registration.
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