HomeMy WebLinkAboutMay 2025 - PC Staff ReportFranklin County Planning Department Updates
Franklin County Planning Commission
Thursday, May 1, 2025
Agricultural Preservation
The program currently has 162 preserved farms totaling over 19,795 acres.
2022 Farms
● Martin, Donald & Denise #2 (48.75 acres) - Settled 4/8/25
● McKenrick, Rodney & Bonnie (101.52 acres) - Settled 4/14/25
● Hershberger, Daniel & Amy (113.78 acres) - Ready for Settlement
2023 Farms
● Lemar Road LLC (204.08 acres) - Peters Township - In Review for State Approval
● Steve and Lynn Hykes (141.10 acres) - Antrim Township
● Paul Witter (4) (88.2 acres) - Southampton Township
● Barry Timmons - (46.11 acres) - Montgomery Township
● Todd and Vicki Heckman - (37.1 acres) - Peters Township
● Donald and Denise Martin #3 - (79.6 acres) - Guilford Township - In Review for State Approval
● Jeff Grove - (58.17 acres) - Peters Township – State Approved 4/10/2025
● JEM Farm - (93.39 acres) - Washington Township
2024 Farms
● Schnebly (136.6 acres) - Montgomery Township - Survey Process
● Brake, B (80.7 acres) - Montgomery Township – Ready for Title
● Brenize, Ben (115.3 acres) - Southampton - Survey Process
● Gingrich, A. (104.9 acres) - Peters Township - Survey Process
● Bachtell (132.90 acres) - Montgomery Township - Survey Process
2025 Farms
• Jay Shelly (40 acres) - Peters Township
• Rotz Family Farm LLC (87.9 acres) - Peters Township
• Robert & Rhodena Eckstine (57.46 acres) - Montgomery Township
• Daniel & Amy Hershberger (243.15 acres) - Peters Township
• William & JoAnn Haines (100.5 acres) - Southampton Township
Community Development Block Grant (CDBG)
● FY 2024 Funds in the amount of $357,219 have been awarded to the county and we are waiting
on our contract from DCED to proceed. Projects awarded are as follows:
○ Luminest- Acquisition - $242,919
○ Habitat for Humanity- Acquisition- $50,000
● The County received an executed contract for FY 2023 in August of 2024. We are currently in the
process of completing Environmental Reviews and executing contracts with our subrecipients.
Final Projects:
○ Borough of Greencastle - Baltimore Street Crossing Signal - $54,210
○ Habitat for Humanity- Acquisition- $37,488.96
● Notices to proceed for FY 2022 CDBG were sent to our subrecipients in April of 2024. A
modification for was approved at the end of March 2025 to fund Habitat for Humanity. Final
Projects are as follows:
○ Borough of Greencastle - ADA Curb Ramp/Sidewalk project: $286,103
■ A revision to the scope of work was made in April. Going to bid in May.
○ Habitat for Humanity- Acquisition: $10,845
● Our FY 2021 CDBG contract ends in May of 2025. We have completed draw down and have
closed each activity. The projects are as follows:
○ Borough of Greencastle – ADA Curb Ramp project: $110,000
○ WCHS – Nursing Program: $9,000
■ WCHS was unable to spend this funding. $9,000 will be recaptured upon DCED’s
closeout.
○ CONTACT Helpline: $9,000
● General updates on other CDBG program years:
○ FY 2019:
■ Greencastle Curb Ramp Project- $289,875: The county was recently approved for
a 3 year activity extension due to Greencastle’s activity being delayed.
Greencastle now has until June 1st to complete the 32 curb ramps. At this time,
they have 25 constructed ramps.
Comprehensive Plan
A report on the 2024 accomplishments was included in the Annual Report. Staff would be happy to
accept feedback on community organizations that are or may be willing to help advance some of these
goals so that we can work together on implementation.
Housing
The Commissioners have awarded $10,000 from the Housing Trust Fund to The Chambersburg Project to
help to make repairs to homes for families or individuals that need assistance.
Mosquito and Tick-Borne Disease Control Program
● Mosquitoes: The 2025 Mosquito and Tick season started on April 1st. Currently 14 larval
treatments have been conducted focusing in on key areas where the age demographics are 65
and older. Dry conditions are helping with low larvae numbers, especially nuisance species who
have been a problem during the spring in the past. Mosquito trapping and testing for West Nile
Virus will begin May 1.
● Ticks: Tick collection began April 14. A Southern Black Legged Tick, new species of tick in
Pennsylvania, was collected in Bedford County. Additionally, the Longhorn Tick is now
established in Huntingdon County. These discoveries are not a large surprise as new species of
ticks are constantly being discovered in northeast United States that were typically only found in
the southeast of the country.
Solid Waste Plan
The Solid Waste Advisory Committee has met twice to discuss updates to the plan. Drafts of chapters 1
and 2 have been reviewed and will soon be submitted to DEP for review. Drafts of chapters 3 and 4 are
expected soon. An RFQ is being developed to ensure Franklin County has the necessary capacity for the
next 10 years.
Transportation
● 2024-2025 and 2025-2027 Unified Planning Work Program (UPWP): Following the drafting of
final documentation and submission to PennDOT, elements for the 2025-2027 UPWP have been
completed. Currently several administrative modifications for the 2024-2025 UPWP are being
put forward to PennDOT to reflect staffing changes and necessary adjustment of available funds
between Task items.
● Cumberland Valley Rail Trail Feasibility Study: During the February 13, 2025 FCMPO Policy
Board meeting, a breakdown of the study’s findings was provided, as well as recommendations
for the adoption and/or updates of official maps of municipalities within the trail corridor to
serve as planning tools to forward future trail extension efforts. Representatives from
Southampton Township and Chambersburg Borough expressed wanting to branch out trail
extensions from their respective municipalities and laid out the stated interest of area
businesses that operate within the corridor. A motion was put forward recommending the
County to investigate the prospect of an official map to help continue extension efforts, which
was approved.
● Request for Proposals – MPO On-Call Consultant: Working in collaboration with Franklin
County Procurement Department, a request for proposals for potential on-call consultant
services for the MPO has been issued as of March 24. Applications for consideration will
continue to be accepted through May 7 at 3:00pm, after which time interviews will be arranged
and evaluations of prospective firms will be conducted until May 21, with an anticipated start
date aiming for July 1, 2025.
● County Bridge Projects: Preliminary engineering for bridge replacement projects on bridges 130
and 131, which is receiving federal funding through the FCMPO TIP, continues following the
inclusion of necessary supplements for both projects. The superstructure replacement project
for Bridge 118 on Shimpstown Road over Licking Creek has been approved – being funded
through available ACT 13 funding. Our office has also introduced an advertisement in ECMS for
the purposes of securing a new County bridge engineer in preparation for the expiration of the
county contract with HRG. The Statement of Interest submission period closed as of April 11,
and selection committee members are currently conducting interviews of interested firms.