Marion Township supervisors slow down rezoning process after resident outcry

Marion Township supervisors took action at a public hearing Wednesday to slow down a controversial rezoning process that could allow the development of a travel plaza.

It was the second public hearing on the issue, and was held at the Howard Volunteer Fire Company after more than 70 residents crammed into the first public hearing earlier this month.

At the first hearing, 26 residents spoke in opposition to the rezoning and the possible development of an Onvo travel plaza off of Interstate 80’s Jacksonville Road/Howard exit. They raised concerns about the speed of the rezoning process and lack of transparency, with fears about damage to the environment and increased crime if the travel plaza is developed.

The area along Walt Road where Onvo has proposed the travel plaza is zoned for agricultural preservation and development, not commercial. And with the Interstate 99/Interstate 80 interchange project’s finished product no longer linking the interstates directly to Jacksonville Road, the pre-existing commercial zone around the interchange will be going away.

Township solicitor Louis Glantz previously recommended that the supervisors work on a plan to find space in the township for a zone of that sort before a business exploits an exclusionary zoning policy and develops an unregulated commercial business anywhere in the township.

About 50 residents attended Wednesday’s public hearing, where the three supervisors voted unanimously to adopt a curative amendment declaration. By doing so, the township effectively declared its zoning ordinance to be invalid, triggering a process to amend the ordinance’s deficiencies.

“[The declaration] says that no one can file a [land development] application with the township under the current ordinance for 180 days,” township solicitor Louis Glantz said.

Within those 180 days, the township must complete revisions to its current zoning ordinance and enact a curative amendment, which validates the revisions.

The township’s supervisors and planning commission must also identify a list of the ordinance’s deficiencies, submit them to and receive comments from the three planning commissions the township belongs to (Centre County’s, Nittany Valley Joint Planning Commission and their own) and pass a resolution stating the reasons why the ordinance is invalid — all within 30 days.

While resident James Burris pointed out that the declaration technically signals an admittance from the supervisors of a commercial zone deficiency within the township, Glantz said the supervisors could find no deficiencies with the ordinance.

If that happens though, Glantz said the township would run the risk of a business seeing the township’s inadequate amount of commercial zoning, and exploit an exclusionary zoning policy that would allow them to develop an unregulated commercial business anywhere.

Two supervisors also pointed out that the township’s hands might just be tied.

“If we don’t rezone and bring some commercial property in, if we don’t do that, taxes are going to go up,” Supervisor Herb Chapman said. “We have four developments in the township, and them four developments cost the township money. We have to maintain the roads, plow the snow.”

Board chair Archie Gettig agreed and said that the township needs businesses to come into the area “with a tax base,” or the township could be forced to raise taxes in the coming years.

Seven residents spoke at the public hearing, with many offering suggestions about what they want to see included in the updated ordinance.

Resident Bill Lingle suggested adding a requirement that would make future businesses install water contamination-monitoring wells across their properties to the fullest possible extent, and require them to take out an annual surety bond in case a maintenance agreement is broken.

Resident Phil Lucas asked if it would be possible to put the commercial zone south of Interstate 80’s Jacksonville Road/Howard exit, beyond a row of trees to buffer noise.

“I don’t think any of us want a bunch of [traffic] going on Jacksonville Road,” Lucas said. “That’s [one of] my concerns. My main concern, of course, is water and sewer — but I think if you could keep everything south of 80 where there’s nothing over there except woods, it wouldn’t impact our Amish community.”

Resident Mike Bronchosky agreed, saying that moving the potential commercial zone to the south side of the interstate “would make a lot more sense for the residents,” while Lisa Miller thanked the supervisors for slowing the rezoning process down and brought up the idea of making amendments to other zoning areas, if time allows.

Former township supervisor John Dillon sang a different tune though, and said that if residents had attended the supervisors and planning commission meetings during his terms in government, they would’ve seen this coming.

“Anybody who’s moved here after 2020 should know all about this stuff, and should have read everything that was going on in the paper or the local government minutes,” Dillon said. “No one came to meetings until just a few weeks ago, a month ago, when this all started.”

Township officials urged all in attendance to submit their recommendations for the ordinance change in the form of a written statement, submitted in person or by mail, to be reviewed at the upcoming meetings.

More information about future Marion Township meetings can be found on the township’s website.