County Commissioners Discuss Development Projects

Centre County just keeps on growing, and there was proof of that during the Aug. 10 county board meeting, as the commissioners heard plans on five projects that are in the works throughout the county.

The projects discussed by county subdivision and land development planner Christopher Schnure include a Dollar General in Aaronsburg, two housing developments in Benner Township, a maintenance facility at the airport and additional wind turbines at Sandy Ridge Wind Farm.

The commissioners agreed to move memoranda of understanding for the projects to this week’s consent agenda. MOUs are agreements between the county and the developer or the county, the developer and township for reimbursement of costs associated with review and approval of engineering plans.

Commissioner Michael Pipe said it was interesting to see the variety of projects throughout the county.

“Typically we only see one or two, so this exciting to see development all throughout the county in different places,” said Pipe.

AARONSBURG DOLLAR GENERAL

Schnure said a landowner in Haines Township plans to reconfigure a track of land on State Route 45 to develop the Aaronsburg Dollar General.

The store is going to be located just east of Millheim Borough, in the western part of Aaronsburg. Final development plans show the store is expected to be 8,960 square feet and the parking lot will have one exit and entrance along SR 45.

Penns Valley is home to one other Dollar General in Centre Hall, which is one of six in the county.

SANDY RIDGE II WIND PROJECT

The Sandy Ridge Wind Farm sits high on the ridge running alongside Interstate 99, partially in Taylor Township, Centre County, and partially in Synder Township, Blair County.

In 2012, nine wind turbines were approved on the Taylor Township side of the project. Liberty Power plans to add four wind towers to that total, along with more in Blair County, said Schnure.

The plans have received approval from the FFA and PennDOT’s Bureau of Aviation for the first phase of the project, said Schure.

CENTRE COUNTY AIRPORT AUTHORITY MAINTENANCE BUILDING

A new 4,332-square-foot maintenance garage is in the works at University Park Airport. The garage would be located on Alexander Drive next to the storage lot for rental vehicles that service airport customers.

The garage would serve as the maintenance garage for these vehicles.

“They would like to be able to get some of the cars out of the elements for when they do their repairs on site,” said Schnure.

HARVEST MEADOWS

In Benner Township, a developer’s preliminary plans for the Harvest Meadow development call for the subdivision of 322 lots, compromising of 81 single-family detached homes, 236 townhomes and five open space lots on 88 acres along Fillmore Road, approximately 900 feet from the Fox Hill Road intersection near The University Park Airport.

Berks’s Homes plans to construct the subdivision in four phases and final plans will be submitted independently in the future. The land is near a well operated by State College Water Authority and Schnure said they are working with Berk’s Homes to acquire additional land around the well sites.

BELLE ROSE TOWNHOMES

Also in Benner Township, preliminary land development plans for the Belle Rose Townhomes call for the construction of 10 residential townhouse units and corresponding infrastructure along Benner Pike, next to the Belle Rose Plaza and approximately 200 feet south of the Clemens Lane intersection.

This story appears in the Aug. 12-18 edition of the Centre County Gazette