Lancaster County: Economic Development and Sustainability Plan

Overview

Lancaster County Planning Commission

From February 2008:

Another first for the County, and possibly the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the Lancaster County Planning Commission (LCPC) and a 120-member Task Force representing a diverse mix of stakeholders will be working together to develop a first-of-its-kind County economic development plan known as: “Lancaster County: Our Economic Future –Strategies and Indicators. ”

Once adopted, this new element will become part of the Lancaster County Comprehensive Plan entitled "Envision."  The comprehensive plan is the County's framework for balancing the need to accommodate population growth and promote economic development while preserving and protecting the County's farmlands, open spaces, natural resources and historic communities and heritage.

“Our Economic Future: Strategies and Indicators” builds upon the strategies outlined in "Balance," adopted in April 2006 as the "Growth Management Element” of the Lancaster County Comprehensive Plan and on another important document, "Lancaster Prospers: Strategy and Action Plan," released by the Economic Development Company (EDC) in 2004, said Charlie E. Douts, Jr., Task Force Co-Chair, Manager of West Hempfield Township, and LCPC member.  

“The goal of the Task Force is threefold,” said James Shultz, Task Force Co-Chair and Development Manager for Charter Homes and Neighborhoods, “1) to encourage and advance a common economic agenda; 2) to provide a framework for understanding and tracking economic issues countywide, by city, borough and township; and, 3) to develop a comprehensive set of policies and strategies for economic growth and sustainability.”

Ray D’Agostino, Task Force Co-Chair, West Lampeter Township Manager, and LCPC Vice-Chair, added, “At the end of the process of developing this plan, we as a community will have a clear understanding of where we are in terms of our local economy and where we need to go to strengthen and sustain our economy in a changing world.” 

With quality of life issues running throughout, the Task Force will be divided into five “Think Tanks” that will each focus on one of the five major economic themes (Business Dynamics, Workforce and Training, Education, Planning and Growth Management, and Governance and Leadership) endorsed by the 30-person Steering Committee guiding this effort.

The Think Tanks will meet several times over the next four months. The Think Tank deliberations on the five major economic themes will establish the focus for the Research Phase of the process. The Research Phase will form the basis of the Final Phase of the process which will outline important implementation strategies for strengthening the County’s economy and indicators to measure the effectiveness of those strategies over time.  The final report is expected to be released by the end of 2009.

Project Structure

Process Schematic

Plan Documents

Consultants

Steering Committee & Think Tank Members

Think Tank Notes

Reference Materials

Press Articles

Update December 2009:

The Phase II Research, based on the Research Plan developed in the first phase of the planning process, has been completed. The final round of Think Tank (Planning and Growth Management, Governance and Leadership, Education and Workforce Development, and Business Dynamics) discussions  have also been completed; and the LCPC Staff and the Consultant Team are now in the process of putting together the first draft of the Lancaster County Economic Development and Sustainability Plan for review by the Executive Team, Steering Committee, Think Tank members, and Planning Commission members. It is anticipated that the draft plan will be available for review in early 2010.

Documents from Phase II and Phase III of this process are posted and include the following:

Phase II Research Plan

Phase II Research

Phase II Housing and Education Research

Phase III Themes for Policy Discussions

Phase III Minutes from Think Tank Meetings