Attention all Gettysburg Borough, Straban Township or Cumberland Township residents:
Your municipality is developing the Central Adams Joint Comprehensive Plan, a regional effort by the Adams County Office of Planning and Development to study economic development, infrastructure and service-related challenges.
And guess what? The comprehensive plan’s steering committee wants your feedback!
The committee, comprised of five members from each of the three municipalities, made a survey to rank residents’ priorities as they pertain to housing, development, tourism, commerce, roadway improvements, utilities and the like.
Do you think agriculture is more important to the area than tourism? Let the committee know why. Would you rather have more affordable housing and utilities or see more diverse shops downtown? Tell them.
The survey can be accessed on each of the municipalities’ websites as well as right here. It only takes a few minutes.
Committee members identified issues to address and what their challenges are, said Andrew Merkel, comprehensive planning manager for the county’s planning office. The county’s planning office is acting as the consultant for the three municipalities, Merkel said.
The survey will be available for another month or so, Merkel said.
Anytime the Gettysburg region is involved with regional planning, the borough is the “big gorilla in the room,” Merkel said, noting that it is the county seat and impacts a lot of different roadway, transportation and agriculture systems.
“Having this region talking to each other and coming to some sort of plan for utilities, roadwork and agriculture sets the tone for the county,” Merkel said.
Regional debates surrounding the “Big Pipe” and concentrated animal farming operations are “big ticket issues” the survey’s results will aim to address, Merkel said.
“This plan will hopefully put together information so people can decide, ‘how do we want to answer those questions?’” Merkel said. “The hope is that this plan will give us the tools to decide that.”
One of the steering committee’s members, Judie Butterfield, said the meetings have been fascinating. The contrast of Gettysburg’s needs compared to the neighboring townships’ needs is interesting, she said.
The committee formed subcommittees, said Butterfield, a Gettysburg resident who serves on the borough’s recycling committee and as a volunteer for the Adams County Arts Council.
Butterfield said she is sitting on a subcommittee geared toward maximizing local arts and entertainment opportunities. There is a subcommittee for housing, another for transportation, she said.
“We need to address cultural issues to attract and keep young families here,” Butterfield said. “What we offer culturally is important.”
Check out the municipalities’ websites: Cumberland Township, Gettysburg Borough, Straban Township