Halfmoon Township wanted to help guide development. Residents said no
Halfmoon Township supervisors did not approve an application that would have allowed dense development on a 935-acre plot of land in the eastern portion of the township.
Supervisors met Thursday night for their regular monthly meeting to consider a Development of Regional Impact application that proposed extending the Centre Regional growth boundary and sewer service area. It also would have changed existing zoning laws in order to provide public water and sewer service to a 935-acre tract of land slated for development of anywhere from 1,500 to 2,200 houses.
More than 60 members of the public were in attendance.
Jim May, director of the Centre Region Planning Agency, which would oversee the DRI application, said the agencies that would need to support increased development — such as emergency services, the University Area Joint Authority, the State College Borough Water Authority — said they could probably handle the increase over 35 years but would need to be kept updated.
Township supervisors said their main goals in submitting the DRI application would be to provide more concentrated, affordable housing to current and prospective township residents and to guide development instead of leaving it up to developers.
Both Halfmoon and Patton township residents, however, had major concerns about potential development due to the potential of increased traffic, the DRI application opening up the township to more development, adverse effects on wildlife and the environment and the cost to taxpaying residents of the township.
At one point, residents who attended the meeting voiced such overwhelming opposition to development that township Supervisor Chair Danelle del Corso demanded order.
Some residents said they were not opposed to all development but wanted more community input and more defined planning, paying special attention to environmental and infrastructure impacts.
After more than two hours of discussion, Halfmoon Township supervisors voted to defer action on the DRI application and not submit it to the CRPA.
“I think we obviously need to go back to the drawing board a little bit and take a closer look at the environmental impacts and that type of thing. I want to thank everyone for coming out and voicing your opinions because up to this point, we haven’t had any input, or we’ve had very little input,” Supervisor Bob Strouse said.
Supervisor Barbara Spencer said that she did not want to see excessive development, but that the township government needs to take a proactive role in shaping what development is going to look like.
“I’d like to see something happen (with area planning), because there’s something going to happen, and I think we need to get ahead of it,” she said.
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