At the Wednesday, March 17, Lancaster County commissioners meeting, the board will likely vote to endorse the South Central Pennsylvania Regional Plan. Under this plan, Lancaster County’s region—which also includes Adams, Cumberland, Dauphin, Franklin, Lebanon, Perry, and York counties—will strategically collaborate regarding mutual challenges and objectives, and ultimately work together to solicit state dollars for multi-county projects.
The plan came as a result of a state initiative that started in 2003, when the commonwealth began forming statewide guidelines for land use and transportation planning. Later, the South Central Caucus of the County Commissioners’ Association of PA organized a steering committee of county planning directors to develop the regional plan, which was completed in November of last year.
James Cowhey, executive director of Lancaster’s planning commission, told NewsLanc that the plan will not result in new land use restrictions or policy changes. The plan, Cowhey noted, will mostly serve to stimulate regular productive dialog between counties on expansive project initiatives. Until recently, there has been no structured coordination between county planning directors in the region.
“It doesn’t really govern anything,” Cowhey said of the plan, explaining that it establishes that “we’re going to cooperate to influence how the state funds projects. So it’s about fostering dialog and coordinating support for investments.”
With the sluggish economy and strained state budget, Cowhey noted, the collaboration may not immediately yield new investments from the State; however, he said, the new lines of communication will be valuable in developing projects in the not-so-immediate future.
“Some of the things we’re thinking about for the future might be the Capitol Red Rose Corridor commuter rail between here and Harrisburg—that could be one,” Cowhey told NewsLanc, “Those are the types of projects that we’re thinking of—large projects that cover a wide geography.”
