I was in our monthly council work session last night for East Petersburg, and the talk was all about "TNDs". Traditional Neighborhood Design is the buzzword for the new year in Lancaster County, PA as East Hempfield Township rejected an proposed ordinance to allow such high-density developments to go forward. At issue is the huge tract of land at State Road & Harrisburg Pike owned by Charter Homes, which is the site of a proposer 3,400 unit TND entitled "Independence". Charter has visions of grandeur by creating an entirely new town within a short drive of Lancaster City, including a train station along the adjoining rail line. They say that they are going to develop it anyway, and why not use the TND model to do "smart growth" rather than "urban sprawl"-style homes? Seems like an offer residents can't refuse.
The residents in the area did refuse, however, and lobbied the township officials to reject the ordinance crafted by Charter Homes last Wednesday. People are coming down on both sides of this issue, with some (those employed by Lancaster Newspapers, interestingly) advancing that "democracy won out over common sense" with the vote, and others saying that the TND model is untested and grandiose in it's conception, with local impacts on traffic and schools, etc. unknown.
I think everyone agrees that they want to see precious Lancaster County farmland preserved. I think the folks with the county agencies charged with planning for "smart growth" have done their homework. I even think that the TND model holds a lot of promise.
What the paid planners have not done, however, is translate their work into language & venues that the public can understand. I think the dialogue has to be county-wide, not on a case-by-case basis. And certainly the builder has to deliberately take a back seat during the discussion, or common folk will "smell a rat".
Let's all commit to keep talking about this.
Good post, Jeff. I think the resistance to TNDs is somewhat based on a fear of low-cost new homes and traffic congestion. In fact, builders like Charter would probably be building upscale townhomes that would complement the neighborhoods.
This particular location, between busy highways, would not have impinged on a quiet rural area in any case. And the argument could be made that TNDs actually reduce total traffic, by reducing the need for short drives to retailers.
Thanks for reporting this. I've done some research into TNDs and forcing them into rural / ag areas is usually a lose - lose situation. The only benefit is to the developer who walks away when the damage is done, usually struggling to carry the sacks of money they've made.
It looks like another part of Lancaster Pennsylvania is having issues with over burdened schools (Donegal ?). The higher density housing is affecting the ability to provide adequate schools. It looks like Hempfield already has a massive school system. Is the developer being held accountable for anything or was this a free-for-all / anything goes TND ordinance.
Kudos to the folks for saving their neighborhood! Often times developer money and advertising dollars drowns out the average homeowner voices. I've heard the builder is also the chief McMansion builder in the Hempfield area (Verandas - Big homes in the $375K to $500K price range). I can image that anything upscale being built would be out of the price range for locals in Lancaster.
Jay