Last evening, Tyrone Borough Council updated its comprehensive plan and adopted a new zoning ordinance for the borough. The plan hasn’t been updated since 1974 and the borough has been working diligently on it since 2005.
Council adopted Ordinance No. 1260 with a 7-0 vote, with omission of the Big Yank property, rescinding Ordinance No. 863, known as “Tyrone Borough Zoning Ordinance,” with the new ordinance keeping the same title.
Council will look closer into how they wish to rezone the Big Yank property next month.
Ordinance No. 1260 includes, among other provisions, the following: 1. General provisions (including purpose, severability and repealer provisions); 2. Community development objectives; 3. Definitions; 4. Zoning districts as follows: R-1 low-density residential (formerly R-1 residential (low density); R-2 moderate-density residential (formerly R-2 residential (high-density); T-C town center commercial district; H-C highway commercial district; and I-M industrial manufacturing (all such zoning districts names and boundaries, except the above, remain unchanged; 5. Special and supplementary regulations (including accessory buildings, building height and yard setback provisions, group homes, mobile home parks, sexually oriented businesses and vehicle service stations) 6. Administration and enforcement procedures; 7. Amendment procedures; 8. Miscellaneous provisions (including approving a zoning map setting forth herein described zoning districts) and an effective date.
The ordinance doesn’t change the currently existing zoning district boundaries in the borough with the exception of rezoning and making changes in the zoning district and in the zoning map for the Borough of Tyrone, more particularly in the following areas: 1. Rezoning from R2 – residential to R1 – residential an area consisting mostly of the former Hagg Farm and including the General Jones Drive area said parcel to join parcels currently also zoned R1 – residential 2. Rezoning from R2 – residential to R1 residential an area beginning at a point on Adams Avenue/Back Vale Road where the same intersects with the Snyder Township/Tyrone Borough municipal boundary line, thence in a northwesterly direction along said municipal boundary line to a point located on land known as Logan Ridge Village Mobile Home Park, thence in a southerly direction to the said Adams Avenue/Back Vale Road, thence in a northeasterly direction to the place of beginning; and 3. Rezoning from HC – highway commercial to R2 – residential all property most of which contains the right of way for Interstate 99, said area to adjoin the currently zoned R2 residential area, all of which can be more accurately described on the borough’s zoning map to the adopted ordinance.
Council also adopted Ordinance No. 1262, a new parking ordinance within the borough. The borough recently installed new electronic parking meters that raised the fee from ten cents per hour to the now twenty-five cents for thirty minute parking. The new meters only take quarters and offer up to two hours of parking time.
There was more talk about a possible wind farm of 10-15 windmills on property owned by the borough on Ice Mountain. Josh Framel, from Gamesa Energy USA (Gamesa), and Mr. Dennis Beck, Manager of the Portage Water Authority and their forester, Mike Barton, gave a power point presentation of the wind farm on the Portage watershed to show the environmental friendly aspects of the project.
Mayor James Kilmartin and the rest of council decided they would need more time to make a decision on whether or not the borough would be interested in moving forward with the possible wind farm project with Gamesa.
