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Commission Vice Chairman Marc Gaughan said after the group's monthly meeting Monday that while commercial and residential zoned borders will change little, the commission is revisiting the existing plan line-by-line and issue-by-issue, such as a recent need to address outdoor wood-burning units, wind turbine technology and structural setbacks.
Mr. Gaughan said the new zoning ordinance is being written with better business incentives, such as eliminating parking requirements of developers. Mr. Gaughan said a recent trend of developers razing structures to accommodate mandatory parking for their business creates an extra development hurdle for Main Street business owners. But more importantly for officials, it is jeopardizing borough structures that can be reused.
"We need all the buildings we have," Mr. Gaughan said.
The municipality is receiving guidance on the new zoning ordinance from private consultant Harry Lindsay, who has assisted the borough for more than 30 years. Mr. Lindsay, who is also Lackawanna County's director of Planning and Economic Development, said the parking changes will help redevelopment on Main Street.
"It puts money in development rather than parking," Mr. Lindsay said.
Officials said the revisions also take into account the borough's limited room for residential development.
In 1990, the ordinance was 90 pages, and was amended in 1999 to include a cell phone tower regulation, among other items. Officials say new changes are expected to expand the ordinance from its current 147 pages to 160 by the time it is finalized.
The commission expects to complete the new zoning ordinance this month. It will submit the plan to the county Planning Commission for review before it passes the plan on to a public hearing, tentatively planned for June, and then to Borough Council for a vote.
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