Chapter 1
The Joint Comprehensive Plan
Introduction
& Purpose
The
rolling farmlands of the west and central portions of Washington Township, the busy
and commercialized Route 16 Corridor, the historic character of Waynesboro, and
the scenic vistas of Michaux State Forest create unique challenges as well as
opportunities in future land use planning.
Issues such as economic growth and viability of downtown Waynesboro,
agricultural and open space preservation, cultural development, and the
preservation of natural resources in the face of increasing development
pressure makes this Plan critically important.
In
1968, the
In
2000,
A
Joint Comprehensive Plan is more than just a plan for development. The Plan is a means granted to local
governments by the
The
municipalities have prepared individual comprehensive plans in the past,
Contents of
a Comprehensive Plan
The State allows local governments to address
virtually any issue that is of municipal concern, but Act 247 established
certain minimum requirements. According
to §301 of Act 247, a valid Comprehensive Plan must include:
·
a statement of
objectives concerning future development;
·
a plan for land
use;
·
a plan to meet
the housing needs of present residents and of any anticipated increase of
population;
·
a plan for the
movement of people and goods, which may address automobile travel, parking
facilities, non-motorized trail systems, and public transportation facilities;
·
a plan for
community facilities and services, which may address public and private
education, recreation, municipal buildings, fire and police services,
libraries, hospitals, water supply and distribution, sewerage and solid waste
management, storm drainage, and utilities;
·
a statement of
the inter-relationships among the components of the plan;
·
a discussion of
short-range and long-range implementation strategies for the plan objectives;
·
a review of how
compatible the plan is with the existing and proposed development and plans in
contiguous portions of neighboring municipalities outside of the planning
region;
·
a statement
regarding consistency with the county comprehensive plan;
·
a plan for the
protection of natural and historic resources; and
·
a plan for the
reliable supply of water.
In addition, the municipalities may address virtually
any area of local concern.
It
is important to realize that this Joint Comprehensive Plan does not have the
force of law, although it provides the foundation for ordinances and
regulations that do. In fact, a sound
Joint Comprehensive Plan becomes critical in the event that an ordinance of
either municipality is challenged in court: if the ordinance in question is
shown to be consistent with a duly adopted Joint Comprehensive Plan, a
successful legal challenge is much more difficult than it would be otherwise.
What does a
Comprehensive Plan Accomplish?
The
Comprehensive Plan contains a vision of what
The
Comprehensive Plan is an educational document, providing discussion of
conditions, issues, and opportunities, and identifying resources that are
worthy of protection and preservation.
The
Comprehensive Plan contains policies for land use, circulation and community
facilities which will serve as a guide for public and private decision‑making
to accomplish the goals and objectives, and thus the vision for the region.
The
Comprehensive Plan provides a basis for implementation techniques, such as land
use ordinances, official maps and capital improvements programs, which will
implement the policies contained in this plan.
It is critical that the Action Plan be implemented.
Planning
jointly allows allocation of land uses, housing types, densities, and
development patterns over the entire region, rather than trying to fit all
types of uses and densities into each municipality separately. It also allows for coordinated land use
planning along municipal boundaries; coordinated planning for trails,
recreation and open space, and transportation throughout the Region; and
coordinated planning along the common road corridors in the Region. Coordinated input can be provided to County
and State agencies and an overall approach to economic development can be
presented, addressing retention of major components of the economy and allowing
for appropriate commercial and industrial development, which complements rather
than detracts from existing commercial areas.
The following list summarizes benefits of multi-municipal planning:
Benefits of
Multi-Municipal Planning
§
Provides a
regional planning approach and allocation of land uses
• Where
• How
much to accommodate population projections
• Patterns
of development
§
Establishes
growth areas and future growth areas regionally
• Coordination
with infrastructure
• Opportunities
for infill
§
Provides
coordinated planning along the common boundaries of the municipalities
§
Supports existing
centers rather than weaken them
§
Coordinates road
corridor planning, standards, and management
§
Provides for
linkages between municipalities
§
The Plan and
implementing ordinances are considered by state agencies in permitting
decisions
§
Addresses review
of “developments of regional impact”
§
Identifies
opportunities for future joint efforts
§
Promotes common
land use designations and definitions
§
Establish goals
for economic character over the entire Region
§
Provides support
for municipalities in zoning challenges
§
Enables
Transportation Impact Fees across municipal boundaries
§
Enables Transfer
of Development Rights across municipal boundaries
§
Enables priority
consideration in state funding programs
§
Provides
opportunity to learn from neighbors’ shared experiences
§
Enhances the
Region’s attractiveness to quality development
§
Enables
developing a “specific plan” for an area designated for non-residential
development, preparing regulations for that area, and streamlining the approval
process
Some Basic
Terms
Clear
communication is essential to sound planning.
A potential source of confusion lies in the meaning of basic terms. Many of these terms are commonly used words,
and different individuals have different interpretations of their precise
meanings and how they are meant to relate to each other. Planning terms tend to reflect the iterative
process of revision and refinement that is planning itself. For the purposes of this document, the
following terms shall be defined as follows.
·
An ISSUE is a
particular topic to be addressed. It is
value-neutral and can usually be expressed as a single word or phrase. Examples of ISSUES addressed in this
Comprehensive Plan are “traffic” and “housing.”
·
A POLICY
expresses the municipalities’ position regarding a given issue. For purposes of clarity, it is ideal to
establish a single POLICY statement for each issue, but this is not a strict
rule. Depending upon the complexity of
the issue, it may be necessary to define several policies, although it is
critical to be sure that they are not in conflict. A POLICY statement relative to the issue of
agricultural preservation would be “Preserve remaining agricultural lands,
particularly those characterized by prime agricultural soils and soils of
state-wide importance”.
·
A GOAL is a general
statement of a long-term objective relative to a particular policy. A GOAL is always a qualitative
statement. Continuing with the example,
a sample GOAL for the policy could be “preserve agricultural and natural
resources.”
·
OBJECTIVES are
specific steps toward a goal. Typically,
a single goal will be supported by multiple OBJECTIVES. OBJECTIVES are always quantitative. One possible OBJECTIVE for the sample goal
could be to “encourage purchase of development rights of active farmland in the
Region”.
·
The ACTION PLAN,
also known as the implementation strategy, will include a compilation of all
the objectives identified in the Joint Comprehensive Plan, setting forth
specific steps to achieve each one. The
ACTION PLAN will also identify who should be responsible to execute each step,
including a time element. Obviously,
financing is a critical part of implementation.
An ACTION PLAN should include guidance on funding sources, but a
comprehensive budget and financing strategy would be premature.
When
the Joint Comprehensive Plan is first adopted, the Action Plan is likely to be
the most useful portion of the document, as it provides very specific
direction. As time passes and objectives
are achieved, the less specific elements will be more useful. Clear goals and policy statements are
particularly helpful as unforeseen circumstances arise, as they assist local
decision-makers to determine what actions are in the best interest of the
community.
Arrangement
of This Document
This
Joint Comprehensive Plan has been arranged in that the conclusions and plan
elements are presented first, with the
research and documentation provided at the end.
This arrangement may be confusing for someone attempting to read the
Plan straight through – and it is certainly not the order in which the document
was written – but the Plan will be used most efficiently when arranged like a
research document. The Plan should be a
reference document that users will consult for guidance or research on specific
topics. Also, since this document is a plan, it is logical to give the plan
elements prominence rather than precede it with research about conditions that
will change over time and become increasingly irrelevant.
The
initial introductory chapters are designed to provide the user with sufficient
information on the planning process and planning terms to assure clear
understanding of the document. A summary
of municipal-related information is provided to give a sense of the character
of the community and of the issues that will be addressed by the plan.
The
later chapters discuss the Goals and Objectives which name the specific issues to
be addressed by this Plan. This section of the Plan then presents each of the
actions that have been established, including a chapter for each plan element,
as well as the overall Action Plan.
This
Plan concludes with a chapter reviewing the interrelationships among the plan
elements, which is required by
Methodology
The
Washington Township/Waynesboro Planning Committee began the planning process in
December 2006 by selecting Spotts, Stevens and McCoy (SSM) and Derck and Edson
(D&E) as the professional planning consultant team to work with the municipalities. Local officials appointed a Planning
Committee to work with SSM and D&E, including representatives from the
The Committee held monthly meetings starting in January
2007 for the duration of the planning process.
Among the earliest actions of the Committee was to identify goals and
priorities, and to identify means to gain input from local residents and
business owners regarding their perceptions of the municipalities, and any
critical issues they share. A
three-pronged approach to obtain
public input was implemented.
·
SSM conducted a
series of interviews via telephone with specific individuals identified by the
Committee. The selected persons were
chosen due to their positions within the community and the particular insights
those positions gave them. The
interviewees included a variety of public officials, public and school district
employees, and other local leaders.
These individuals were questioned about their specific likes and
dislikes in the region, what they felt were the most pressing issues facing the
community, what they would like the community to become, and other questions
more directly related to their particular areas of expertise.
·
The Committee and
SSM prepared a written questionnaire that was mailed to 10% of the households
of the region.
·
Finally, the
Committee and consulting team facilitated a visioning session that was open to
all interested residents. The session
was in two parts, the first being a detailed presentation of the analysis of
the survey responses and the second being a discussion about possible solutions
to the principal issues identified by the resident surveys.
Once
the planning process was underway, Committee meetings were largely occupied
with discussion of the various plan issues and review of text as prepared by
SSM. Upon completion of the text and
maps, the entire draft document was reviewed to assure that the plan elements
created a coherent whole.
As
required by Act 247, the complete draft was submitted to the Franklin County
Planning Commission, the adjacent school districts, and each adjoining
municipality in February 2009 in order to allow them to review and
comment upon the Plan. Drafts were also
available for public review. Each municipal
Planning Commission convened a public meeting for the purpose of presenting the
draft as submitted by the Committee to the public, and to solicit
comments. Following the Public Meetings,
both of the governing bodies held official public hearings, as per the
requirements of the Municipalities Planning Code, to hear any additional
comments from their respective residents.
The municipalities officially adopted the plan in ----------.
Need for Continuing Planning
This
Comprehensive Plan is just a start. It
is the foundation for the attainment of the goals and objectives established
within the plan, which can be accomplished only with the support of the
municipal governments, municipal commissions, boards and committees, area
businesses, area residents, and surrounding municipalities and regional
planning groups.
The
objective has been to prepare a plan, which will not sit on a shelf and gather
dust, but a plan that will be implemented and used by municipal governing
bodies, planning commissions and other groups within the municipalities to
guide their actions in attaining the goals of this Plan.
This
Plan presents a strategy to guide municipal officials and other agencies in
making decisions that will assure that the Washington Township/Waynesboro Region
will continue to be an attractive place in which to live, work, and visit. This Comprehensive Plan is not an ordinance
or regulation, but is a basis for establishing regulations and undertaking
specific functional plans designed to implement the policies set forth within
the plan. Each municipality retains the
right to control zoning within its municipality, whether through individual
zoning ordinances or a joint zoning ordinance.
Planning is an ongoing process
and this Joint Comprehensive Plan must be continually reviewed in light of
unforeseen changes in development trends, the state of the economy, capacity of
public infrastructure, changes in community goals, and the appropriateness of
the Plan's objectives, policies, and implementation program. It is recommended that the recommendations of
this Plan be reviewed every 5 years.