REVISION TO THE COMPREHENSIVE PLANelibrary.pacounties.org/Documents/Crawford_County...single family...

REVISION TO THE

COMPREHENSIVE PLAN FOR

SADSBURY TOWNSHIP CRAWFORD COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA

J A N U A R Y 1982

SADSBURY TOWNSHIP PLANNING COMMISSION

PAUL H. "YE, CHAIRMAN C. SHERMAN ALLEN, SECRETARY DR. JOHN R. " E K RICHARD D. MILLER EMERSON W. CHRISTIE

TERlU LEE REAM, CLERK

BOARD OF TOWNSHIP SUPERVISORS

RICHARD D. MILLER, CHAIRMAN BURTON L. WANT DONOVAN K. ROBERTS

MARY LOU REAM, SECRETARY R. CHARLES THOMAS, SOLICITOR

THE PREPARATION OF THIS PLAN =PORT WAS DONE BY THE CRAWFORD COUNTY PLANNING COMMISSION STAFF THROUGH THE ASSISTANCE OF AN APPALACHIAN REGIONAL COMMISSION

GRANT

SADSBURY T O W N S H I P P L A N N I N G C O M M I S S I O N C r a w f o r d C o u n t y , P e n n s y l v a n i a

July 19, 1982

Richard D. M i l l e x Burton L. Wyant Benovan K. Roberts

Township S u p d s o r s Sadsbury Township

Gentlemen:

W e axe pleased t o submit fox your review t h i s Revised Comprehensive Plan f o r our township. es tab l i shed , but it provides add i t iona l and more current information and has attempted t o articulate a .uore de t a i l ed set of objec t ives , p o l i c i e s and programs which w e urge you to consider c a r e f u l l y , e spec ia l ly so s ince they shal l form the b a s i s of the revised zoning ordinance which w e expect to forward t o you in the very near fu ture .

I t is grounded in many of the f a s t s the e a r l i e r plan

One and all w e thank you far supporting us in t h i s undertaking. pleased t o have ava i l ab le the more d e t a i l e d maps or' t h e township which w e r e produced as p a r t of t h i s work program.

W e are

As you review the proposals in t h i s r epor t w e would l i k e the opgortunity of elaborat ing on any of the issues you f e e l a r e cont rovers ia l . W e hope you w i l l be able t o schedule a public hearing on this plan a t an ea r ly d a t e -

chairman

I.

11.

111.

INTRODUCTION

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Page

BACKGROUND INFORMATION The Existing U s e of Land

Land U s e Survey Results Vacant Land Study In Vicini ty O f Conneaut L a k e Commercial uses In The Conneaut Lake Area

Groundwater Resources Lands Subject To Flooding S u i t a b i l i t y O f Land For Agriculture

Community Faci l i t ies And Services Introduction Municipal Governance Township Property And Equipment Police Protection F i r e Protection Emergency Services Health Care And Other Human Services P u b l i c Schools Library Service Recreation Refuse Disposal Postal Service Public Transportation U t i l i t i e s

Character is t ics O f The Physical Environment

Sanitary Sewage Systems Water Systems Natural G a s , E l ec t r i c i ty , Telephone and C a b l e Television Storm Water Drainage

Roads Socioeconomic Character is t ics

The Labor Force Educational Attainment Income Housing

Township Fiscal. Analysis Population Forecast

The Forecast Permanent V s . Seasonal Population Distr ibut ion By Age

Issues To B e Addressed

REVISED TOWNSHIP PLAN Preliminary Remarks Development Objectives Land Use Plan, Pol ic ies Highways P l a n , Po l ic ies

And Sex

And Projects And Projects

Cokunity Faci l i t ies P l a n , Po l ic ies And Projects Projects Summary And Pr io r i t i za t ion The " R e a l " Meaning O f This Plan

1

2 2 2 5 8 9 9

1 3 1 4 1 7 17 17 1 7 18 1 8 18 19 19 19 20 20 20 2 1 2 1 2 1 23 23 25 27 32 32 32 32 32 36 38 38 38 40 4 1

43 43 44 45 55 59 62 64

I L IST OF TABLES 8 CHARTS

I 1 t I I I I I

Identification Number

1. Existing Land Use Accounts

2. Use Of Vacant Land In The Vicinity Of

3. ADT Comparisons

4. Population 14 Years And Over By Labor Force Status In 1969

5. Employed Persons 14 Years Old & Over

6. Employed Persons 14 Years Old & Over

7. Population By Age & Sex, 1970

Conneaut Lake

BY Major Occupation Classification & Sex

By Major Industry Classification & Sex

L I S T OF MAPS

Identification Number

1. Existing Land Use, Sadsbury Township

Page

4

6

30

33

34

35

39

Page

Jacket, Back Cover

2. Existing Land Use, Conneaut Lake Area Jacket, Back Cover

3. Highway Classifications, "The Lakeland Area" 2

4. East Side Community, Conneaut Lake 7

5. Groundwater Resource Facts 10. 6. Geologic Strata

7. Land Subject To Flooding

8. Facilities Serving The Township & Conneaut Lake Area

12

14

22

9. Common Water Systems 24

10. Watershed Delineation East Side Conneaut Lake

11. Land Use And Highways Plan

26

47

12. Guideline Site Plan, Suburban Residential, East 49

13. Guideline Site Plan, 'Suburban Residential, East 50



16. Guideline Site Plan, Suburban Residential, West 53

17. Guideline Site Plan, Suburban Residential, West 54

INSIDE OF BACK COVER . . . . . . PROPERTY LINE BASE MAP

I , INTRODUCTION

In 1967 Michael Baker, Jr., Inc. working i n cooperation with.ffie Conneaut Lake Regional Planning Commission published a planning repor t e n t i t l e d "Comprehensive Plan For Conneaut Lake Region." This regional planning commission w a s comprised of community representat ives of Conneaut Lake ,Borough and Sadsbury Township; the plan studied these t w o municipal i t ies and establ ished po l i c i e s , p ro jec ts and programs t o guide community development f o r t he ensuing twenty years. This planning repor t w a s very w e l l done and today is a very readable and useful document. From the planning work completed i n 1967 the borough and the township both enacted sub- divis ion and zoning ordinances t o use as too ls t o improve the qua l i ty of l i f e i n t h e i r municipal i t ies and t o provide a measure of public guidance f o r future development.

Early i n 1980 municipal leaders i n Sadsbury Township discussed with the s t a f f of the Crawford County Planning Commission the need they f e l t t o again look, i n an ana ly t i ca l way, a t land development issues i n the township. The Appalachian Re- gional Commission (ARC) committed funds t o Crawford County t o assist the townships and boroughs i n western Crawford County t o prepare plans and ordinances t o handle expected impacts from growth and development. These funds w e r e committed because it w a s believed the U. S. Steel Corporation would build a la rge steelmaking com- plex on the shore of Lake E r i e near the Ohio boundary. The Crawford County Plan- ning Commission believed the use of a portion of these ARC funds f o r a planning program i n Sadsbury Township w a s a f i t t i n g project . Hence t h e decision w a s made f o r the Commission's s t a f f t o undertake a revis ion t o Sadsbury Township's comprehensive plan and t o include i n t h i s work the preparation of a revised zoning ordinance.

It is important t o understand t h a t the information and plan formulations i n t h i s revised plan repor t are supplementary t o the content of the 1967 Plan. T h i s repor t i s not intended t o dupl icate the material presented i n the plan completed 1 4 years ago. The primary focus i n t h i s planning repor t i s on the development of a revised land use plan and land u t i l i z a t i o n po l i c i e s which can be used a s a bas i s f o r a revised zoning ordinance. Sections of "new material" i n t h i s repor t include discussions of groundwater resources i n the township, flooding conditions, t he locat ions and cha rac t e r i s t i c s of ac t ive ag r i cu l tu ra l a c t i v i t i e s i n the township, storm water drainage i ssues and an analysis of vacant or "passed over" land i n the Conneaut Lake Area. *

. I n order f o r the township t o be successful i n using i t s development related ordinances, t he zoning and land subdivision ordinances, it must ident i fy the land development issues within i t s t e r r i t o r y and decide what i n the general public in- terest are the best object ives and po l i c i e s r e l a t i v e t o these issues . Carrying through fu r the r , township ordinances, ongoing programs and spec i f i c pro jec ts should a l l be shaped based on the objectives and po l i c i e s es tabl ished through t h i s process. This is the aim of t h i s plan revision.

This plan repor t contains t w o major sections. The f i r s t is comprised of background information f o r plan-making. The second is the revised plan i t s e l f . For the reader who i s not aware of the township's locat ion i n r e l a t ion t o surrounding Crawford County municipal i t ies , Map 3, (Maps 1 and 2 a r e i n the "jacket" on the in- s i d e of the back cover of t h i s repor t . ) shows Sadsbury Township's regional context.

1

I I I BACKGROUND INFORMATION

THE EXISTING USE OF LAND

LAND USE SURVEY RESULTS

A survey of the ex i s t ing use of land is v i t a l t o the work of rev is ing the townsh ip ' s comprehensive plan. The survey work is r e f l ec t ed ch ief ly on "property l i ne" maps of t he township. The o r ig ina l fieldwork f o r the survey w a s conducted i n the autumn of 1979 and i n the spring of 1980; t h i s work w a s updated i n January of 1981. In order t o record the ex is t ing use of land adequately f o r the township two maps w e r e used. One map displays land use i n the v i c i n i t y of Conneaut Lake. This map, Map 2. , is drawn a t a scale of 1 inch t o 300 f e e t and includes, general ly , the area i n the township bounded by Route 618 and the abandoned Meadville Branch l i n e of t he B e s s e m e r and Lake E r i e Railroad on the w e s t and Route 18 on the east. The other map, Map la , displays the e n t i r e township and is drawn a t a scale of 1 inch t o 1000 f ee t . These t w o maps show a l l of t he propert ies i n the township with various pa t te rns fixed t o the propert ies indicat ing land use. A copy of each of these maps is placed i n the "jacket" on the in s ide of the back cover of t h i s report .

In order t o record the ex i s t ing use of land a series of use categories were iden- t i f i e d . A l i s t i n g of these categories with a br ie f explanation of each follows.

Residential . Housing which accommodates, o r appears t o accommodate, a s ing le family uni t . This c l a s s i f i ca t ion is given t o a housing s t ruc tu re based upon i ts appearance from the public o r pr iva te road which serves the property. Included i n t h i s category are conventional housing un i t s , mobile homes and dwellings on farm properties.

Multifamily Residential . including, apartments, duplexes and mobile home parks.

Vacant Subdivided Lot. a subdivided parce l but which has not been improved with a building.

Mixed Residential/Commercial. U s e s which combine on the same property r e s iden t i a l and business a c t i v i t i e s .

Commercial. Business a c t i v i t i e s other than manufacturing or s i m i l a r uses, which would be more appropriately c l a s s i f i e d a s i n d u s t r i a l a c t i v i t i e s .

Indus t r ia l . Goods producing establishments including gravel and mineral ex t rac t ion a c t i v i t i e s .

Agricultural . could be immediately used i n t h i s manner.

Woodland and Brush. as cropland o r pasture and which w a s "going t o brush'' as w e l l as "brush" and wooded areas.

Conservation Lands. S igni f icant ly la rge areas of land owned and managed by the State of Pennsylvania.

Recreation, Public and Private . S i tes which provide recrea t ion opportunities other than the la rge land holdings of t he state; it includes sites which a re owned o r managed by public o f f i c i a l s , f o r example the township supervisors, and by p r iva t e in t e re s t s . Examples of these si tes include swimming and boating beaches, golf courses and campgrounds.

Housing which accommodates more than one family

A property which is l i s t e d i n the land records as

Land u t i l i z e d f o r crop production or pasture , o r land which

Land which d id not appear t o have been i n use recent ly

3

Public. Uses owned or operated by a unit of government, normally local government.

Semi-public. Uses which are generally open to, and used by, the public but not owned by the public. Examples of such uses are churches, cemeteries, volunteer fire companies and grange halls.

TABLE 1.

EXISTING LAND USE ACCOUNTS SADSBURY TOWNSHIP

USE CATEGORY 1 Residential

Multifamily Residential

Vacant Subdivided Lot

I *

ACRES

1,129

24

231

Mixed Residential/Commercial 7 Commercial

Industrial

Agricultural

Woodland and Brush

Conservation Lands

Recreation, Public and Private

Public

Semi-public

Roads and Railroad Right-of-way

2

2

96

139

4,476

5,939

2,254

2 90

24

77

461

Conneaut Lake ,

827

Total 15,974

PERCENT OF TOTAL

7.1%

.1

1.4

.6

.9

28.0

37.2

14.1

1.8

.1

.5

3.0

5.2

100.0%

NOTES: 1. Residences where they are located on large parcels of land, 10 acres or more, were assigned an area of approximately 2.5 acres and the remaining land on the property was assigned use categories as appropriate.

aerial surveys. 2 . These land use categories were determined principally from

SOURCE: Crawford County Planning Commission staff research and fieldwork 1979 and 1980, and updated in January 1981

In Table 1. an accounting is provided of the existing land uses mapped in the township. In terms of percentage Sadsbury Township has less agricultural and woodland and brush land, and it has more residential land than most other townships in Crawford County. This is true for two reasons. Because of the existence

4

of Conneaut Lake and the permanent and seasonal residences t h a t have been a t t r ac t ed t o loca te near t h i s amenity, there has been a considerable amount of community development i n the township. Also i n the southeast and the southwest sect ions of the township there are wetland areas which have been put i n t o state ownership over t h e years and which are managed as game lands.

Sadsbury Township's land use pa t t e rn is characterized by one overriding f ac t . There are r e a l l y t w o township i d e n t i t i e s ; one i s the r e l a t i v e l y dense, urban-like series of sett lements c lustered around Conneaut Lake; thd other i den t i ty i s the rural development typ ica l of development i n most of the county's townships. Out- s i de of the Conneaut Lake Area there are only two development c lus t e r s readi ly discernable; one is the v i l l a g e of Shermansville and the other is along Route 6 about 1.5 miles east of Shermansville.

The ex is t ing land use maps i n this report do not show the locat ions of mobile homes i n the township. It is usefu l t o ident i fy t h e i r locat ions because they cons t i t u t e a s ign i f i can t ly d i f f e r e n t housing type. Work maps avai lable i n the Crawford County Planning Commission o f f i ce show mobile home locat ions. On Map l., displaying the e n t i r e township except the Conneaut Lake area, 47 mobile homes are indicated; they are spread throughout t he rural areas of t h e township, and t h i s f igure does not include mobile home park u n i t s ; one mobile home park is s i t e d on Route 285 j u s t w e s t of Conneaut Lake Borough, and it current ly contains 31 mobile home uni t s . On Map 2. , displaying the Conneaut Lake Area, 29 mobile homes are indicated, and 17 of these are located i n the v i c i n i t y of Mohawk, Sag- inaw and Edgeview Avenues. Considering the many dwelling u n i t s which surround Conneaut Lake there are r e l a t i v e l y few mobile homes i n this area of the township.

VACANT LAND STUDY I N V I C I N I T Y OF CONNEAUT LAKE

A c lose look a t land use pa t te rns i n the v i c i n i t y of Conneaut Lake indicates t h a t there is a considerable amount of vacant land i n t h i s area which is developable. On the east s ide of the Lake a development study w a s made of the area bounded by Oakland Beach and Seneca Roads and by Route 18 and the Lake . On the w e s t s i de of t he Lake the area studied is bounded by Route 618, Pymatuning Avenue, Aldina Drive and the Lake. A map showing the r e s u l t s of t h i s study is avai lable i n the township o f f i c e and i n the Crawford County Planning Commission o f f i ce . Also Map 4. shows a t a reduced scale the community on the east s ide of Conneaut Lake, displaying the parcels of vacant land, right-of-way widths f o r the roads and ce r t a in development proposals.

T a b l e 2. displays the r e s u l t s of t h i s study s t a t i s t i c a l l y . In this study area (both s ides of Conneaut Lake) there are approximately 180 acres of vacant developable land. This land is a l l within the service area of the Conneaut Lake Jo in t Municipal Authority which provides sewage service, and most of the 114 acres of vacant developable land on the east s ide of the Laketare within the serv ice area Of

t he Oakland Beach Water Company.

T a b l e 2. shows t h a t approximately 430 new s ingle family detached housing l o t s can be developed on t h i s vacant land. In order t o develop 120 of these 430 new l o t s approximately 8,500 l i n e a l f e e t of new public street would have t o be b u i l t . A l l of these l o t s are within the serv ice area of the public sewerage system. However, 200 of these po ten t i a l l o t s are d i r e c t l y abut t ing an ex is t ing sewage l i n e and approximately 100 of these poten t ia l l o t s abut ex is t ing water l i n e s owned by the Oakland Beach Water Company.

within this study area around Conneaut Lake there a r e many seasonal dwellings, i n cont ras t t o year-round dwellings. A seasonal dwelling i n t h e survey w a s

5

TABLE 2.

USE OF VACANT LAND I N THE V I C I N I T Y OF CONNEAUT LAKE

SADSBURY TOWNSHIP

ITEMS

EAST SIDE CONNEAUT LAXE

Developed land including ex is t ing streets V a c a n t developable land - 284 new l o t s considered possible involving the construction of approximately 7,275 l i n e a l f e e t of new publ ic street; however many the new l o t s requi re no s t ree t construction 35,

Vacant land judged undevelopable

Total acreage of t he study area ( 2 )

WEST SIDE CONNEAUT LAKE

Developed land including ex is t ing streets Vacant developable land - 147 new l o t s considered possible involving the construction of approximately 1,300 l i n e a l f e e t of new publ ic s t reet ; however many of the new l o t s require no street construction (1)

V a c a n t land judged undevelopable U t i l i t y Constructors, Inc. holdings Other lands

Total acreage of t he study area ( 2 )

TOTAL BOTH SIDES OF CONNEAUT LAKE

Developed land including ex is t ing s t r e e t s V a c a n t developable land

431 new l o t s and 8,575 l i nea l f e e t of new s t reet (1) -

Vacant land judged undevelopable U t i l i t y Constructors, Inc. holdings Other lands

( 2 ) Grand Totals

ACREAGE

235.2 114.1

28'. 6

377.9 acres

89.9 69.1

153.8 102.2

20.0

435.0 acres

325.1 183.2

182.4 102.2

20.0

812.9 acres

NOTES: (1) A l l suqqested new l o t s are a minimum of 7,500 square f e e t

PERCENT OF TOTAL

62.5 30.0

7.5

100.0%

20.6 15.9

35.6 23.4 4.5

100.0%

40 23

22 13

2

100.0%

i n s i ze ; - - most of them are l a rge r than t h i s , however. 431 new l o t s , 310 of them can be created without building new public streets. designed f o r s ing le family detached housing, there are 30 new l o t s suggested f o r attached housing un i t s . The study area includes a l l the land i n Sadsbury Township around Conneaut Lake bounded by the following streets: Route 618, Pymatuning Avenue, Aldina Drive, Oakland Beach Road, Route 18, and Seneca Road

O f t he grand t o t a l of

In addi t ion t o the 431 new l o t s a l l of which are

(2)

SOURCE: Design study developed by Crawford County Planning Commission s t a f f and ava i lab le i n the Commission's o f f i c e and a t the Sadsbury Township building.

6

I I I I I I I I I I I I I I

VACANT DEVELOPABLE L A N D I P U B L I C ROAD

- -.-- P R I V A T E R O A D

" P A P E R " S T R E E T S I ---- . . . . . . . . . . . .

- WALK TO BE CARRIED INTO CONMEAUT LAKE BOROUGH

MAP 4

EAST SIDE COMMUNIYY 50' & R O A D RIGHT-OF-WAY W I D T H A CONNEAUT LAKE

I... D........

I A'

P R O P O S E D S I D E W A L K O N W E S T S I D E ROUTE 18

P R O P O S E D COLLECTOR ROAD P R O P O S E D S T R E E T S TO S E R V E N E W S U B D I V I S I O N S T O P O G R A P H Y

T N

SAOSBURY TOWNSHIP CRAWFORD COUNTY PENNSYLVANIA

NOVEMBER 1981 PREPARED B Y THE CRAWFORD COUNTY PLANNlNQ COMMISSION WITH THE ASSISTANCE OF AN A P PAL ACH I AN 0 R ANT R EO1 ON AL CO MM IS S I 0 N

1 I 1 1 I I I I 1 I I I I

' I I I I I I

determined by noting the address of the property owner; i f the property owner's address, as l i s t e d in t h e County Assessor's records, w a s not the same as the address of the Conneaut Lake property the assumption w a s made t h a t the residence w a s a seasonal dwelling. This, one must immediately poin t ou t , does not mean the dwelling is used only seasonally. family u n i t s when the owner does not use the dwelling, and some owners, undoubt- edly, are t r u e absentee owners, never res iding on the property and rent ing it year-round. dwellings 691 o r 52% w e r e c l a s s i f i e d as seasonal.

Many such dwellings are rented to other

Given t h i s "ground ru le" , so t o speak, out of 1,136 s ing le family

T h i s study demonstrates t h a t there is a considerable amount of "passed over" land i n the Conneaut Lake A r e a . area it l i k e l y would be very d i f f i c u l t t o convert a l l of the land t o new building ventures. Y e t the conversion of t h i s vacant land t o more ac t ive use would maximize the investments already made i n public streets and the sewerage and water systems and i n general strengthen the economy of the township.

Because of the mul t ip l i c i ty of ownerships i n t h i s

Comment is i n order concerning the nature of t he r e s i d e n t i a l areas i n the v i c i n i t y of Conneaut Lake as delineated on Map 2, placed i n the jacket on the ins ide of t h e back cover. These areas are b u i l t a t a r e l a t ive ly high density. Many p la t t ed l o t s are s ized a t 50 f e e t by 100 f e e t o r 5,000 square f ee t . Many of t he road rights-of- way are less than 50 f e e t i n width. There are a number of roads i n these neighborhoods which have not been accepted fo r management by the township supervisors; there are many instances where roads dead-end with inadequate turnaround arrangements. Conneaut Lake on Map 4. these areas i s the lack of a comprehensive storm water drainage system. This d i f f i c u l t y is of ten overlooked because these neighborhoods are blessed with extensive tree cover, but t he f a c t is that the lack of adequake storm w a t e r f a c i l i t i e s de t r ac t s from the character of t h i s housing.

These cha rac t e r i s t i c s are delineated f o r the east s ide community of Perhaps one of the g rea t e s t d i f f i c u l t i e s fo r t h e housing i n

COMMERCIAL USES I N THE CONNEAUT LAKE AREA

In the area bounded generally by Routes 18, 618 and 322 the commercial uses (45 of t h e m ) were iden t i f i ed and f igures were gathered on the extent of the area they cover. The t o t a l amount of f l oo r space u t i l i z e d among these propert ies w a s approximately 207,400 square f ee t . This f igure includes basement areas and auxi l ia ry o r secondary s t ruc tu res which might only be used f o r storage. These 45 uses occupied 161,800 square f e e t of ground (building coverage). p roper t ies i s 105 acres. In other words there w a s about 22 t i m e s more land area than there w a s useable f loo r space. For comparison purposes shopping centers of ten are developed with 3 t o 5 t i m e s as much land area as there is f loo r space. I f the commercial uses examined i n this study had a r a t i o of 5 t i m e s as much land as there w a s i n f l o o r space, the amount of property needed f o r a l l 45 of these uses would be 23 acres. The amount of land zoned fo r commercial uses i n the current zoning ordinance administered by the township i n the Conneaut Lake Area is 380 acres. Most of t he commercial uses i n the township are included i n t h i s study inasmuch as they are located within the study area as noted above.

The t o t a l acreage of these 45

8

CHARACTERISTICS OF THE PHYSICAL ENVIRONMENT

GROUNDWATER RESOURCES

Good information recent ly has been made avai lable f o r the areas of Crawford County w e s t of French Creek. The U. S. Geological Survey i n cooperation with the Pennsyl- vania Geologic Survey published a r epor t e n t i t l e d , "Geology And Groundwater Resources Of Western Crawford County, Pennsylvania. 'I1

George Schiner and John Gallaher. The publ icat ion da te w a s 1979; however, many years of research preceeded the publication date . search involved a carefu l study of water w e l l information which " d r i l l e r s " are required t o provide the state government. has been gleaned from t h i s report .

The authors of this repor t were:

A major port ion of the re-

The material presented i n this sec t ion

Drinking w a t e r i n Sadsbury Township, as i n m o s t of Crawford County, is obtained from w e l l s . Analyzing water w e l l y ie lds as represented i n the Schiner/Gallaher repor t is a pa r t i cu la r ly appropriate method f o r determining t h e a v a i l a b i l i t y of water i n the township. geologic o r ig in of the township's land can be placed i n two general categories , (1) g l a c i a l outwash areas, and ( 2 ) g l a c i a l t i l l /bedrock areas. In r e a l i t y bedrock underlies a l l of t he township; however, there is a vas t difference i n the amount of g l a c i a l d r i f t which has been deposited i n various areas of Sadsbury Township. Since a l l of Crawford County w a s covered by g l ac i e r s i n p reh i s to r i c t i m e , any discussion of the character of i t s lands must include the impacts of glaciat ion. Glacial d r i f t is a term used t o def ine any sediment deposited as a r e s u l t of g l a c i a l a c t i v i t y - the "leavings" of the g l ac i e r s , so t o speak. A l l of t he bedrock i n the county is "topped o f f " by g l a c i a l d r i f t , e i t h e r till o r outwash. Where the d r i f t material w a s deposited d i r e c t l y without any "sorting" a c t i v i t y by water the g l a c i a l d r i f t is cal led till. T i l l deposits a re normally not any deeper than 25 f e e t . o r running water, the deposi ts are called outwash. The depth of outwash deposits ranges from 50 t o as much as 500 f e e t i n some areas of the county. These outwash deposi ts were layed down i n p reh i s to r i c va l leys , which were i n e f f e c t , " f i l l e d in" , by g l a c i a l action. Map 5. shows how the outwash deposi t pa t t e rn "breaks" upon the township; the areas of till on t h i s map are those areas where bedrock is c lose r t o the land ' s surface, - about 25 f e e t below the surface. 44% of the township is i n the g l a c i a l outwash deposits category and 56% i n the till area where the bedrock is reasonably close t o the surface. Examining Map 5. note t h a t the outwash areas generally are the areas of lower elevat ion i n the surface configuration of the township as w e know it today, - areas characterized by lakes and marsh, i .e. the Conneaut Outlet wetlands, Conneaut Lake i t s e l f , the State G a m e Lands i n the western Section of the township.

For the purpose of analyzing groundwater resources the

Where the g l a c i a l d r i f t w a s ' 'sorted" by standing

Approximately

Map 5. a l s o shows t h e locat ions of a l l w e l l s i n the township where the d r i l l i n g records were evaluated i n the Schiner/Gallaher study. Data from 128 w e l l s w e r e examined; 34 of these are located i n the outwash area and 94 are located i n the area where g l a c i a l till covers bedrock. per minute (GPM). In t h i s r epor t the y ie lds of w e l l s are l i s t ed separately f o r the outwash and the t i l l /bedrock areas. In the outwash sect ions of the township t h e median w e l l y ie ld w a s 20 GPM. In the t i l l / bed rock sect ions the median w e l l y i e ld w a s 15 GPM.

W e l l y ie lds a r e expressed i n gallons

'This r epor t i s ava i lab le i n the o f f i c e of the Crawford County Planning Commission. Also it can be purchased from the State Book Store, P. 0. Box 1365, Harrisburg, Pa. 17125. The cos t of the r epor t i s $13.25. The state a l s o has given this publ icat ion the t i t l e , "Water Resource Report 46.

9

GROUNDWATER RESOURCE FACTS SADSBURY TOWNSHIP

WESTERN CRAWFORD COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA SCALE I"= I MILE 0 MILES I -

NOVEMBER 1981 PREPARED BY THE CRAWFORD COUNTY PLANNING O WELL FINISHED IN GLACIAL DRIFT

AREA OF G L A C I A L OUTWASH

AREA OF G L A C I A L TILL/BEDROCK t COMMISSION WITH THE ASSISTANCE OF AN

.L E G E N D

FINISHED IN BEDROCK

mHm' L ~ T l O ~ O F ~ C f y l y W E S - 'm hlh W L A W N P W N A I _ M M I U N W T

Further ana lys i s of the w e l l records i n Sadsbury Township shows that 16 of the 128 w e l l s had y i e lds of 40 GPM o r greater . Of these, 9 w e l l s were f in i shed i n bedrock and 7 i n the outwash area. located in the outwash area.

The h ighes t y i e ld w e l l - a t 625 GPM - is

Evaluation of the y i e l d s and depths of ex i s t ing w e l l s i n Sadsbury co r re l a t e s w e l l with the obsenrations made i n the Schiner/Gallaher r epor t concerning t h e e n t i r e western Crawford County study area. f e r s a r e in the g l a c i a l outwash areas where high y i e ld w e l l s can be expected t o produce 500 GPM o r more. very productive w e l l locat ions i n the outwash area are not easy t o find. Often the wa te rp roduc t ive loca t ions i n the outwash depos i t areas a r e on t h e downstream s i d e of the in t e r sec t ion of two streams. These very productive w e l l s i n t he outwash area are never real deep; they are not normally over 100 f e e t .

Township

The most productive aqui-

All outwash areas do not support high y i e ld w e l l s ; t h e

Wells which a r e f in i shed i n g l a c i a l till areas a r e hardly ever productive. Yields f o r these w e l l s are seldam more than 6 GPM. These normally are r e l a t i v e l y shallow w e l l s because the depth of till deposi ts i n the t i l l / bed rock areas is on the average 25 f ee t . Few w e l l s in the county a r e completed i n the g l a c i a l till; where outwash areas are not ava i lab le w e l l s a r e d r i l l e d deeper i n t o the underlying bedrock s t r a t a , o r layers i f one were t o use a more descr ip t ive term. Map 6 . shows the bedrock formations i n Sadsbury Township. page helps one i n t e r p r e t Map 6 . ; t i e loca t ion of the cross sec t ion l i n e shows on Map 6 . ; it is i n the c e n t r a l p a r t of the township running general ly north-south (on a diagonal) .

The cross sec t ion sketch on t h i s

. . . . . - -_.____ . - . . .

GEOLOGIC C 3 O 5 . S S E C T I O N AB ! T 9 i R O U G H SABSBURY TOWNSHIP

IN CONNEAUT U S E PARK

A I

VICINITY OF SAOS~URY I TOWNSHtP SUILDINQ

46 0. i I 300

200

I80

IO00

900

aoo 700

GOO FEET

1 L E G E N O

HOR!ZONTAL SCALZ Ius 1.6 MILE VERTTCAL SCALC I": 300 F E W

'MAP 6 G E O L O G I C S T R A T A

SADSBURY TOWNSHIP WESTERN CRAWFORD COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA SCALE I": IMlLE 0 MILES I -

.PREPARED BY THE CRAWFORO CC~UNTY PLANNING

L E G E N D

BEOFORD SHALE BEREA SANDSTONE MEAOVILLE SHALE CUYAHOGA GROUP QEVOMIAN SHALES ORANGEVILLE SHALE SHE N A N GO FQR M AT I ON CUSSEWAGO SANDSTONE

NOVEMBER 1981

COMMISSION WITH THE ASSISTANCE O F AN '

APPALACHIAN REGIONAL COMMISSION GRANT N

m m

1 1 1 1 t I 1 1 I 1 I I I I 1 I I I I

The reader needs t o be aware t h a t these layers of bedrock o r strata are stacked, one on top of t he other ; the ones smaller i n area being more towards the land ' s surface. The Cussewago Sandstone layer , f o r example, is overlain by a number of strata culminating i n the Meadville Shale and the Shenango Formation. A l s o one needs t o keep i n mind t h a t bedrock ex i s t s throughout a l l of t he township, a f a c t which Map 6. and the accompanying cross sect ion sketch i l l u s t r a t e . Devion Shale rocks underl ie the areas of the g l a c i a l outwash. The Devonian Shales are very poor acquifers , and i n areas of t he county where there are no outwash deposi ts and where the bedrock cons is t s of primarily the Devonian formation, w e l l y ie lds are poor: such is the s i t u a t i o n i n Beaver Township.

The bes t bedrock aquifers i n western Crawford County are the Cussewago and the Sharpsville Sandstones,, ed i n the Cussewago Sandstone; t h i s formation underl ies a l l of the t i l l /bedrock area shown on Map 6. - a condition which is favorable f o r Sadsbury Township.

Under optimum conditions y ie lds of 100 GPM can be obtain-

Of the w e l l s located i n Sadsbury Township which were studied i n the Schiner/Gallaher report , 39 were f inished i n the Cussewago Sandstone layer ; the median y ie ld of these w e l l s w a s 20 GPM.

The average amount of water used per day per person is normally between 60 and 70 gallons. The average household uses about 350 gallons per day, such a household can be supplied by a w e l l pumping on demand i f a 3 GPM capacity ex is t s . a household is obtaining less than 3 GPM from i ts w e l l , t he w e l l w i l l s u f f i ce i f s torage f a c i l i t i e s a r e ava i lab le and i f the household exercises care i n i t s water usage

where I

In general water derived from the Cussewago Sandstone layer a t a depth of approximately 200 f e e t should be low i n i ron content and r e l a t i v e l y "sof t ." Water taken around 75 f e e t below the surface has a g rea t i ron content and is "hard." Water obtained between 75 and 200 f e e t generally has l i t t l e i ron, but it is "hard. I'

Map 5. del ineates the locat ion of f r ac tu re traces. These f r ac tu re t r aces indi- ca te a subsurface f rac ture , and it is l i k e l y t h a t water i s concentrated along these f r ac tu re l i nes . The i d e a l locat ion t o d r i l l a w e l l is a t the in te rsec t ion of two f r ac tu re traces. Fracture trace zones range i n width from 51 t o 60 f e e t . They are observable t o the " t ra ined eye" from a study of aerial photographs.

To conclude this sec t ion w e may say #at generally the a v a i l a b i l i t y of potable water i n Sadsbury Township is good both i n the g l a c i a l outwash areas and i n the areas where w e l l s need t o reach the bedrock layers. In the t i l l b e d r o c k areas, f o r the bes t r e s u l t s the w e l l should be d r i l l e d i n t o the Cussewago Sandstone layer. The reader may want t o pursue i n greater d e t a i l some of t he conclusions reach- ed i n t h i s narrat ive. H e may want t o examine the data recorded f o r pa r t i cu la r w e l l s and the in t e re s t ing maps developed by Messrs. Schiner and Gallaher. Foot- note 1. on page 9 ind ica tes the a v a i l a b i l i t y of t h i s valuable report .

LANDS SUBJECT TO FLOODING

In recent years both federa l and s ta te governments have taken strong act ions t o dea l with the p e r i l s of flooding. The federa l government, s ince the m i d 1970's, has been working pa t i en t ly with loca l governments i n s i s t i n g t h a t they regulate new development i n areas iden t i f i ed as subject t o the hazards of flooding. Under the d i r ec t ion of federa l o f f i c i a l s areas subject t o flooding have been mapped municipality by municipality. This has been done i n Sadsbury Township. In 1979

13

STATE OWNED LANOS.

FLOOD HAZARD AREAS (GENERAUZED)

t N MAP 7 MUD SUWECT TO FLOODING

SAOSBURY TOWNSHIP CRAWORO COUNTY, PENNSYLYANtA

SCALE I"= I MILE 0 MILES I - NOVEMBER 1981

PREPARED B r THE CRAWFORO COUNTY PLANNING COMMISSION W I T H THE ASSlSTANCE O F A X CIPP&tACHIAH REGIONAL COMYISSION GRANT

1 B I I 1 I E l 1 1 I I P I I I I I I

the S t a t e of Pennsylvania passed a Flood Plain Management A c t requir ing t h a t a l l municipal i t ies regulate areas subjec t t o flooding i n ce r t a in ways. by the s ta te and federa l governments are the d i r e c t r e s u l t of reoccurring floods which have cos t vas t amounts of property damage and caused the l o s s of many l ives .

These..actions

Sadsbury Township is pa r t i c ipa t ing i n the flood management program which f i r s t the federa l government urged upon the township and now which the state government mandates. Flood hazard area maps dated October 10, 1980, have been prepared f o r the township a t a scale of 1 inch t o 1000 f ee t . the d i rec t ion of t he Federal Insurance Administration i n the Department of Housing and Urban Development. Sadsbury Township, i n reviewing its zoning ordinance, w i l l include flood hazard areas on its o f f i c i a l zoning map. t he general locat ion of these hazard areas is shown. Approximately 1,385 acres o r 9% of the township is delineated a s hazardous t o flooding. T h i s f igure sounds forbidding, bu t most of the areas subject t o flooding are wetlands and considered undevelopable. township, i n the area of the Conneaut Outlet , and i n the general area south of Conneaut Lake Park bounded by the abandoned Bessemer Railroad spur, Conneaut Lake and the "State Ditch."

These maps have been prepared under

On Map 7. i n t h i s r epor t

These flood hazard areas are along the southeast boundary of the

SUITABILITY O F LAND FOR AGRICULTURF:

The Soil Conservation Service, U. S. Department of Agriculture, has developed a classi- f i c a t i o n system f o r soils based on t h e i r capabi l i ty t o sus ta in productive agr icu l ture . There are e igh t c lasses of s o i l s i n t h i s system. Classes 1 and 2 are considered very good f o r farming. C l a s s 3 is considered f a i r f o r carrying on ag r i cu l tu ra l operations; it requires more carefu l land management prac t ices and w i l l respond w e l l i f rrianaged properly. Classes 4 through 8 are considered poor f o r farming. Each of these c lasses is discussed i n the S o i l Survey Of Crawford County issued i n May 1978. The s o i l s i n the township were anlayzed and a map made which assigned one of the three categories described above t o every s o i l configwation i n .the township. The r e s u l t s of this study are displayed as follows:

% Of A l l Capability S u i t a b i l i t y For A c r e s In Soi l s In

C l a s s Agriculture The Township The Township

1 & 2 Good 2 , 268 15

3 Fair 8,975 60

4 - 8 Poor 3,904 25

15,147 A c r e s 100 %

These s ta t is t ics show t h a t 75% of the township's s o i l s are su i t ab le f o r productive agricul ture . slopes of 15% o r less; s o i l s with slopes grea te r than 15%, no matter how good they are f o r agr icu l ture , are automatically put i n t o c lasses 4 t o 8. The map showing the loca- t i on of the "good', " f a i r " and "poor" s o i l s i n the township i s avai lable i n the o f f i c e of the Crawford County Planning Commission.

It might be noted t h a t a l l s o i l s i n capabi l i ty classes 1 through 3 have

A survey w a s made of the lands i n the township which are being ac t ive ly farmed e i t h e r by the owner o r by others under lease arrangements. This survey w a s conducted by consulting with persons knowledgeable about ag r i cu l tu ra l operations i n Sadsbury Township. i n "for p r o f i t " agr icu l ture , the e n t i r e property was included i n the area t o t a l s f o r ac t ive ag r i cu l tu ra l lands. used pr imari ly fo r hobby farming o r used i n such a way t h a t obtaining p r o f i t s from

Where a port ion of the property w a s used a s pasture or f o r cropping

Excluded from these area t o t a l s w e r e propert ies

15

8 I

the operation was not a strong motivating factor in the activity. showing the properties supporting "active" agriculture; this map is available in the County Planning Commission office. this map are 6,230, or about 40% of the land area of the township. There was no tabulation made of the relative amounts of "good", "fair" and "poor" land included in the universe of properties designated as being used for "for profit" agriculture.

A map was made

The total number of acres delineated on

I

16

1 I

COMMUNITY FACILITIES AND SERVICES

INTRODUCTION

This sect ion of the plan should be considered as an extension of the very f i n e f a c i l i t i e s and services information provided i n the 1967 Plan. There is no need i n t h i s plan t o repeat t he observations made i n the earlier work; the 1967 Plan should be reviewed along with the following material by the ser ious reader of this plan. Map 8., where applicable, displays the f a c i l i t i e s l i s t e d i n t h i s section.

MUNICIPAL GOVERNANCE

Sadsbury Township i s a Second C l a s s Township under Pennsylvania l a w . A s such a l l governmental powers, except those i n the area of education, l i e with a Board of Supervisors who are elected " a t large" by township res idents f o r staggered s i x year terms. Currently the supervisors employ three full-t ime road workers and a roadmaster; and a secretary/ t reasurer , a s o l i c i t o r , a wage t ax co l l ec to r , a zoning o f f i c e r , a sewage enforcement o f f i c e r and an engineering firm e i t h e r part-time or on an as-needed basis . A real estate t ax co l lec tor and three audi tors are elected by the ci t izenry.

A f i v e person planning commission serves the township as w e l l as a f i v e person recreat ion board.

Sadsbury Township is p a r t of t he 2 1 s t U. S. Congressional D i s t r i c t , t h e 50th State Senator ia l District and the 17th S ta t e General Assembly Distr ic t . In 1980 the township became a char te r member of the Western Crawford County Council of Govern- ments, pa r t i c ipa t ing with Conneaut Lake and Springboro Boroughs and North and South Shenango Townships.

The Board of Township Supervisors over the l as t th i r t een years has enacted f i v e ordinances r e l a t i n g t o community development:

1. Zoning ordinance (enacted i n 1968)

2. Land subdivision ordinance (enacted i n 1973)

3 . A buildirig permit ordinance; t h i s does not include an elaborate series of standards but simply provides f o r the issuance of permits a s required t o m e e t f edera l flood management program mandates

A sewage permitt ing and enforcement ordinance

An ordinance creat ing a township planning commission

4.

5.

6. A n ordinance regulat ing public gatherings (enacted i n 1979).

TOWNSHIP PROPERTY AND EQUIPMENT

The Board of Supervisors own four propert ies :

1. The s i t e of t he township building and maintenance garage on the northeast quadrant of the in te rsec t ion of Route 285 and Campbell Road (L.R. 20010). This s i te is 1.3 acres. The meetings of e lected and appointed o f f i c i a l s of t he township are normally held here.

2. The Sadsbury Recreation A r e a (30 acres) i s located on Greiser Road j u s t

17

3 .

4.

5.

south of i ts in te rsec t ion with U. S. Route 6. This property, purchased i n 1975, is used f o r recreat ion a c t i v i t i e s and is developed with four b a l l f.ields. Civic organizations handle the recreat ion programs which are held i n t h i s park.

A 4.8 acre s i t e on the w e s t s ide of Route 18 a sho r t dis tance south of Edgeview Avenue. This s i te and building is leased t o the E a s t Side Volunteer F i r e Company.

A s i t e of approximately 24 acres i n s i z e , adjacent t o the Conneaut Out- l e t Creek j u s t southeast of Conneaut Lake Borough, which ' is leased t o the Conneaut Lake J o i n t Municipal Authority; i t s treatment p l an t i s located on t h i s s i te .

The Conneaut Marsh tract , a s i t e s i t ua t ed south of Conneaut Lake and abut t ing the south s ide of U. S. Route 322 and including approximately 50 acres. This land is undeveloped and is pr inc ipa l ly a wetlands.

The supervisors own a road grader, a backhoe, a high l i f t vehicle , a t r a c t o r , a loader, a mower, a pick-up truck and two 30,000 (gross weight) trucks. This equipment i s used ch ief ly i n the township road maintenance work.

POLICE PROTECTION

The township provides pol ice services through a cooperative agreement with Conneaut Lake Borough. Through t h i s agreement a pol ice ch ie f , one full-t ime and one par t - t i m e o f f i c e r are retained; they operate with two p a t r o l cars. vides 70% of the funding f o r t h i s service. The borough provides the pol ice ch ie f , 30% of the funding, the o f f i c e f a c i l i t y and handles the adminis t ra t ive du t i e s f o r t he system. Police calls are dispatched through the County Emergency Control Board operated 24 hours a day out of the county s h e r i f f ' s o f f i c e i n Meadville. C a l l s on the pol ice rad io network are monitored by the S t a t e Police who serve as "back-up" t o the Conneaut Lake pol ice force program. Also there are approximately twenty f i r e po l ice volunteers who assist i n emergencies and f o r spec ia l events.

The township pro-

FIm PROTECTION

There are two volunteer f i r e companies located i n the township: the E a s t Side Company located on Route 18 and the Conneaut Lake Park Company located on Route 618. These companies receive assis tance from t h e following companies i n serving township propert ies : Conneaut Lake Borough, Linesvi l le , the Summit Volunteers i n Harmonsburg and the Hartstown Volunteers.

The "Park" Company has about twenty ac t ive members and the following equipment: a 1980 pumper, a 1964 tanker, a four-wheel dr ive truck with a 350 gal lon per minute pump and a squad car. The E a s t Side Company has s ix teen ac t ive members and the following equipment: a 1500 gal lon tanker, a 1000 gal lon tanker and a 750 gal lon per minute pumper truck. The township provides some f inanc ia l support t o t he Conneaut Lake Borough volunteer company, a p rac t i ce which has exis ted f o r many years.

EMERGENCY SERVICES

Ambulance service is provided t o the township by the Conneaut Lake Area Ambulance Service headquartered i n Conneaut Lake Borough. The organization i s en t i r e ly volunteer and m a n s two ambulances; it has a chief and eighteen ac t ive members, seventeen of whom are c e r t i f i e d emergency medical technicians. The Service ob-

18

I I I 1 I 1 E 1 I I I 8 R 1 I I I 1 1

1 I 1 I I I 1 i E I I 1 I I I I I I I

t a i n s funds from annual membership contr ibut ions, contracts with municipal i t ies and patron contributions. Currently there are 57.5 "paying" memberships. R e s i - dents i n the Shermansville area and w e s t are served by the Linesvi l le Area Ambu- lance Service also.

In cases of t he need f o r water rescue, the Crawford County Scuba Rescue C l u b , a volunteer group, serves the area. This club is headquartered a t the Conneaut Lake Park F i r e Station.

HEALTH CARE AND OTHER HUMAN SERVICES

Hospital, medical and denta l , and a complete range of other human services are avai lable i n Meadville. However, there a re medical c l i n i c s located on the east s i d e of Conneaut Lake and i n the nearby borough. community on the east s ide of Conneaut Lake. Community Health Services (CHS) of Crawford County, Inc., with o f f i c e s i n Meadville,:provides a t cos t o r on an a b i l i t y to-pay bas is a number of serv ices t o township res idents i n t h e i r homes: s k i l l e d nursing care, nu t r i t i ona l and educational services t o expectant mothers and in- f an t s , diagnosis and treatment se rv ices t o low income famil ies and home delivered meals.

A d e n t i s t is located i n the

A t t h i s wri t ing CWS has 46 c l i e n t s i n Sadsbury Township.

PUBLIC SCHOOLS

The township is p a r t of the Conneaut School Dis t r ic t . The D i s t r i c t is divided i n t o attendance areas and Sadsbury Township along with North Shenango, E a s t Fallowfield, West Fallowfield and Greenwood Townships and Conneaut Lake Borough are in the Conneaut Lake attendance area. The elementary aged students i n Sads- bury Township at tend school i n Conneaut Lake Borough; t h e junior and senior high school ages a t tend the Conneaut Lake Junior-Senior High School located on U. S. Route 6 j u s t w e s t of the borough. The Conneaut Lake-Sadsbury Elementary School and the junior-senior high school a re located on twelve acre sites.

An elected school board has the respons ib i l i ty t o manage the public school system I t i s d i f f i c u l t f o r township planners t o "catch the eye" of public school of- f ic ia l s so t o speak. pointed out that addi t ional classrooms were needed i n the Conneaut Lake attendance area a t the primary (grades one t o s i x ) and secondary (grades seven t o twelve) l eve l s , and t h i s plan recommended t h a t t h e s e classrooms be obtained by expanding the ex is t ing elementary and junior-senior high school si tes.

In the 1967 Plan a very thorough analysis of school needs

The school d i s t r i c t shares the use of the Crawford County Vocational High School with the two other major school d i s t r i c t s i n the county. school is located i n Meadville. A l l applicants des i r ing t o go t o t h i s f a c i l i t y cannot be accepted because of space l imitat ions.

The vocational high

There has been a decl ine i n enrollments i n the Conneaut School D i s t r i c t s ince 1975. In the Conneaut Lake attendance area the decline i n enrollments from 1976 t o 1980 has been i n the magnitude of approximately 170 students. The enrollment a t the beginning of the 1980-81 school year, i n the Conneaut Lake A r e a , w a s 1650 s tudents .

LIBRARY SERVICE

The township has no l i b r a r y f a c i l i t y , but it does give f inanc ia l support t o t he Shontz Memorial Library i n Conneaut L a k e Borough. This l i b r a r y i s a member of

19

the Crawford County Federated Library System which enables it t o receive county and s ta te funds. Through the use of the in t e r l i b ra ry loan program, sponsored by the s ta te l i b ra ry system, one can obtain v i r t u a l l y any book t h a t is avai lable f o r d i s t r ibu t ion . Books t h a t a r e not avai lable loca l ly are sent-in through the d i s t r i c t l i b r a r y i n the City of E r i e . The borough l i b r a r y i s open twenty hours per week. During the year of 1980, 9,637 books w e r e checked out and a t o t a l of 3,549 people used the f a c i l i t y .

RECREATION

The Board of Supervisors do not themselves administer a recrea t ion program e i t h e r a t the Sadsbury Recreation Area o r elsewhere i n the township. recreat ion a c t i v i t y , as distinguished from commercial o r pr iva te ly operated re- c rea t ion f a c i l i t i e s , i s handled i n the township by a c i t i zens group, the Conneaut Lake Youth Association. This organization is pa r t i cu la r ly " into" basebal l ; they use three l i t t l e league/sof tbal l f i e l d s and one basebal l f i e l d . There is a lso an organization ca l led the Sadsbury Township Recreation Board; t h i s group has a broader range of i n t e r e s t s and is concerned with many and varied a c t i v i t i e s which could be provided i n the township. The primary a i m of this board is t o promote the improvement of ex is t ing recreat ion s i tes and secondarily t o oversee the purchase of addi t iona l land f o r recrea t ion a c t i v i t i e s .

Public

It should be pointed out t h a t Firemens' Beach, owned and operated by Conneaut Lake Borough, i s i n the township. and boating. there are many p r iva t e recrea t iona l developments i.e. golf courses, campgrounds, a go-cart race course, etc. plan.

The primary a c t i v i t i e s car r ied on here are swimrhing Of course with the importance of t he t o u r i s t economy a t the Lake,

They s h a l l not be discussed a t any length i n this

REFUSE DISPOSAL

The Board of Township-Supervisors does not provide refuse (garbage and t r a sh ) pick- up o r disposal . Residents must m a k e t h e i r own arrangements f o r t h i s se rv ice w i t h p r iva t e haulers who generally pick-up on a weekly basis . Currently two companies serve m o s t township res idents : which are then picked-up on appointed days; t h e other simply charges a f l a t month- l y ra te t o customers.

one hauler uses a system of s e l l i n g p l a s t i c bags

A l l s o l i d w a s t e i s hauled t o l a n d f i l l s i tes located outs ide of Crawford County. The Crawford County Commissioners appointed a Solid Waste Authority i n 1972 which invest igated a l t e rna t ive ways t o handle s o l i d waste needs throughout the county. No supportable program f o r managing s o l i d waste needs could be developed i n the approximately f i v e years t h i s Authority w a s act ive. A s m a t t e r s s tand today the county plays no r o l e i n s o l i d waste a f f a i r s ; a l l hauling and disposal a c t i v i t i e s are handled by p r iva t e firms who contract with municipal i t ies , o r the c i t i z e n direct , t o provide t h e i r service.

POSTAL SERVICE

Nearly a l l of the township obtains pos ta l service from the Conneaut Lake Borough of f ice . There is a s m a l l por t ion of the township, i n the northwest corner w e s t of t he in t e r sec t ion of L.R. 20009 and Allen Road (T-3781, which obtains serv ice through the Linesvi l le pos t o f f i ce .

20

I 1 I 1 I I I I I I I I I 1 1 I I I I

PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION

Through the program of the Crawford Area Transportation Authority (CAT) a series of bus routes serving the r u r a l areas of the county are scheduled c e r t a i n days of each week. Conneaut Lake Borough t o Linesvi l le making, enroute, a loop around the Lake on Routes 18 and 618. Another route goes t o Espyville from Meadville v i a Conneaut Lake Borough. Custards, then v i a Route 285 t o Conneaut Lake and f i n a l l y back t o Meadville v i a U. S. Route 322. The e lder ly do not have t o pay f o r this t ransportat ion. Others boarding the buses on the f ixed rou te s pay between 50C t o $1.00 f o r a ride. This system of t ransportat ion is subsidized by state and federa l grants .

Three such routes t raverse Sadsbury Township. One route passes through

The t h i r d route makes a loop from Meadville t o the v i l l age of 1 I

I m

1 I I I 1 1 I I 1 11 I I

UTILITIES

The 1967 Comprehensive Plan For Conneaut Lake Region provided a good treatment of the u t i l i t y systems which serve Sadsbury Township: sewerage, water, na tura l gas, e lectr ic and telephone. The material i n t h i s sect ion of t he plan is intended t o supplement the previous work. W e a l so have included sect ions on storm water f a c i l i t i e s and on cable te lev is ion service.

Sanitary Sewage Systems. and operates the sewerage system which serves the developed areas around Conneaut Lake. The ex ten t of the areas served by this system i s shown on Map 8. upon which the l i n e locations have been delineated. Currently the Authority is pursuing grant monies from the federa l Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) i n order t o improve the system's operation and t o extend the system i n t o four new areas. The estimated cos t of t he improvements pro jec t is $4,003,712. amount $3,576,782 is e l i g i b l e f o r federa l funding. The "Step Two" repor t needed f o r t h i s pro jec t has been prepared.

The Conneaut Lake J o i n t Municipal Authority owns

The proposed extensions a re shown on Map 8. Of t h i s

The Authority 's treatment p l an t achieves secondary l eve l treatment using t r i c k l i n g f i l t e r s and chlorination. The average flow through t h e p l an t is .304 mill ion gallons per day; the p lan t is designed t o handle .78 mil l ion gallons per day. A f u l l e r discussion of t h i s system can be found i n the soon-to-be-published County-wide Sewage Faci l i t ies Plan.

Since the publication of the 1967 Plan there have been three major extensions of the sewerage system: i n t o Lakeview Estates subdivision east of Route 18 opposite Saginaw Avenue, i n t o the Dora1 Estates Mobile Home Park, which is located i n Summit Township and t o the Boonesboro campgrounds. The 1967 Plan recommended t h a t t he sewage treatment p lan t i n Conneaut Lake Park be taken over by the Authority and operated as part of i t s system. This d id not happen; t h i s p l an t w a s abandoned and the Park's s e w e r l i n e s were connected t o the Authority 's system.

In the balance of t he township sewage needs are handled by the i n s t a l l a t i o n of on-lot sewerage systems. The township's s o i l s w e r e analyzed t o evaluate t h e i r s u i t a b i l i t y f o r accommodating on-lot sewage systems; s u i t a b i l i t y is not good. Based on Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Resources (PennDER) standards: 78% of the township's s o i l s have severe l imi ta t ions f o r on-lot sewage which means on-lot systems might not be permitted on l o t s less than 10 acres i n area; 1 4 % of the townships s o i l s have moderate limits- t ions f o r the i n s t a l l a t i o n of on-lot systems, which means the systems must

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2 1

I

be carefu l ly i n s t a l l e d of ten using sand mounds o r similar techniques; and 8% of the soils should accommodate on-lot systems with l i t t l e d i f f i c u l t y . The pa t t e rn of s o i l s i n the township within these categories does not lend i t s e l f t o wr i t ten descr ipt ion. A map showing the locat ion of various s o i l s i n terms of t h e i r on-lot sewage s u i t a b i l i t y i s on f i l e i n the Crawford County Planning Commission o f f i ce ; such a map is not pr in ted i n t h i s plan but w i l l be published a t a fu tu re da te as p a r t of t he county-wide Sewage F a c i l i t i e s Plan.

-

The unmistakable inference from the nar ra t ive i n the above paragraph is t h a t where development proposals a r e made a t high dens i t i e s they very l i k e l y w i l l have t o u t i l i z e a public sewage system o r w i l l be obliged t o include the construction of a new common sewage system.

Water Systems. There a r e three water systems i n the township; they are pr iva te ly owned: pany and the Conneaut Lake Park Inc. proximately 525 customers (300 of these are seasonal) on the e a s t s ide of t he Lake. serves only the property owned by Conneaut Lake Park which includes 50 year- round customers and 140 summer use r s . These systems use w e l l s f o r t h e i r souree of water, although within the pas t decade the Oakland Beach system converted t o a w e l l source from a use of lake w a t e r . A f u l l e r treatment of these systems can be found i n the 1967 Plan and i n the County-wide Sewage Facil i t ies Plan soon t o be published. Oakland Beach and Lakeside systems.

the Oakland Beach Water Company, The Lakeside Water Com- The Oakland Beach Company serves ap-

The Lakeside Company serves 165 customers. The Park system

Map 9. shows t h e extent of the

Natural G a s , E l ec t r i c i ty , Telephone And Cable Television. The Natural Fuel G a s Company serves the northern half of the township along the major highways and i n the Conneaut Lake A r e a . The service area covered is shown on Map 8.

Almost a l l of the township is served by the Penn Power Company whose d i s t r i c t o f f i c e is located a t Clark i n Mercer County. Company provides service t o Conneaut Lake Park including the port ion of the Park i n Sadsbury Township. t i o n (NRECA) serves a s m a l l portion of the township along Porter Road (T-402) and along U. S. Route 6 i n the northwest corner of the township. Three phase d i s t r ibu t ion voltage, 12470, grounded wye, is supplied along U. S. Route 322 e a s t of Conneaut Lake Borough.

The Pennsylvania Electric

Northwestern Rural Electr ic Cooperative Associa-

Telephone service is provided throughout a l l of the township by the Mid-Penn Telephone Company.

Meadville Master Antenna Inc. provides cable te lev is ion hook-ups along U . S. Route 322 and t o the communities around Conneaut Lake and north t o the v i l l age of Harmonsburg i n Summit Township. means of an overhead l i n e from the company's transmission tower v i a Route 322 t o Conneaut Lake.

This se rv ice is supplied by

23

CONNEAUT LAKE

\ MAP 9 COMMON WATER SYSTEMS I

SADSBURY TOWNSHIP CRAW FO R D C OUNN, PENNSYLVANIA -

DECEMBER 1981 PREPARED BY THE CRAWFORD COUNTY PLANNING COMMISSION WITH THE ASSISTANCE O f A N A P P A L A W A E I RCGLONAL C O M M I S S I O N GRANT,

SCALE I": 1000' 500 1000

.. .. .. OAKLANO BEACH WATER Co., INC

WATER LINES l.lllJ1lllJ1 LAKESiDE WATER Co., INC.

~I 1 1 I I D I I 1 i I 1 i

Storm Water Drainage. As printed i n the 1967 Plan, the township does not have storm sewer systems, as such systems are normally defined. Storm drainage is handled by open d i tches and gut te rs . from the 1967 Plan very c l ea r ly point up the cur ren t storm water drainage i s sue :

The following statements

"Sadsbury Township i s served by open di tches and gut te rs . T h i s system is generally adequate i n the more rural areas of t he township; however, on the more densely populated E a s t and West sides of the Lake, t h i s system is considered unsuitable. Many of the streets are unpaved, and the open d i tches perpetuate the eroding 05 the street shoulders re- su l t i ng i n hazardous dr iving conditions, expensive r epa i r s , and damage t o adjoining property during periods of high w a t e r runoff. poses a danger t o pedestrians, as some of the di tches become f a i r l y deep through the continuing erosion problem."

This a l so

The township has severe problems accommodating storm water funoff without in jury t o developed property i n the areas i n the v i c i n i t y of Conneaut Lake. Natural drainage channels overflow. Water does not move off the streets i n t o drainage courses o r i n t o designed ponding areas; this causes road sur- faces t o de t e r io ra t e and makes f o r an una t t rac t ive "streetscape" - the chief "tone-setter" f o r developed areas, pa r t i cu la r ly r e s iden t i a l areas; makeshift o f ten undersized drainage devices abound a s each property Owner o r neigbor- hood attempts t o g e t the water off h i s o r t h e i r propert ies . This is usually a problem because good storm water management normally requires co l l ec t ive , areawide action.

The storm water drainage problem and the inadequate road rights-of-way which e x i s t i n t he developed areas around Conneaut Lake are mainly the r e s u l t of subdivision and s i t e development plans formulated by individuals and by land development companies without the guidance, review and approval of the townsh ip government based on reasonable standards and a soundly conceived physical plan. The building which i s problem-ridden w a s put i n . p l a c e before zoning and subdivision ordinances were adopted by the township supervisors. There are many si tes which should not have been b u i l t upon; there are na tura l drainage courses which should have been preserved i n t h e i r na tura l contour and which, when p a r t of pr iva te ly held property, should have been protectGd with easements t o the public f o r maintenance as p a r t of an e f f i c i e n t storm water drainage system. There are a number of roads which should have been b u i l t with adequately s ized and surfaced ( e i the r i n grass o r pavement) drainage swales which should have been within the public right-of-way. swales and storm w a t e r devices w e r e located on pr iva te land, they should be handled with easements. There are roads t h a t perhaps should have been b u i l t with curbing and an underground storm drainage system ou t l e t t i ng t o na tura l drainage channels. There are some areas which should have been developed as ponding areas t o ' h o l d drainage w a t e r temporarily o r permanently i n order t o accommodate water discharges from severe storms. Future development can be handled i n a responsible way because subdivision and zoning ordinances provide a vehicle through which the public i n t e r e s t can be defended. However, how does one cor rec t inherited problems?

O r , i f drainage

Map 10. shows the watershed area which discharges t o the developed areas of the east side of Conneaut Lake. The t o t a l area of t h i s watershed is approximately 1663 acres (2.6 square miles) and extends almost t o the east boundary of the township and includes a s m a l l portion of Summit Township. This map a l so iden- t i f i e s four sub-watersheds. Reading the subwatersheds from north t o south

25

1 I 1 I I 1 i 1 1 i 1 1 1 1 I 1 I

they are 220, 747, 330 and 366 acres respectively. The 747 acre watershed is t h e l a r g e s t and i ts p r inc ipa l waterway t raverses , throughout m o s t of i t s course, p r iva t e property crossing 3rd Street j u s t south of Teifer Avenue, crossing Midway and Lakeview Drives, t rave l ing along the backyard areas of the proper t ies f ront ing on the south side of Lakeview Drive and f i n a l l y out- l e t t i n g i n t h e Lake a t the south end of Midway Beach. The 330 acre w a t e r - shed has i t s major o u t l e t i n the v i c i n i t y of the south end of Konneyaut T r a i l . The 366 acre watershed o u t l e t s along Seneca Road.

The township has experienced high w a t e r conditions i n the area where the Finn Ditch crosses Aldina Drive on the southwest s ide of the Lake. See Map 2. Observations seem t o indicate t h a t these conditions are due t o the elevat ion of the Lake waters themself and the only long-term remedy, sho r t of lowering the Lake's e levat ion is t o abandon hope of "safe" development here, recognizing that the na tura l conditions w i l l have their way and are overpowering.

The s ta te has recognized the importance of storm w a t e r management i n the creat ion and maintenance of sound Pennsylvania communities. In 1978 it passed a Storm Water Management A c t . This A c t requires that a l l munici- p a l i t i e s i n the commonwealth have a storm water management plan technical ly p ro f i c i en t enough t o be approved by the state. Such a plan, s ince it in- volves regional areas (groups of municipal i t ies) , mandates county government t o take the lead i n i t s preparation. I t a l so mandates t h a t county government work with representat ives of a l l involved municipal i t ies . Im- plementation measures f o r this plan must ul t imately be embodied i n loca l subdivision ordinances. This is a "strong" piece of l eg i s l a t ion and espec ia l ly important t o Sadsbury Township because of i t s problems. the implementation of the A c t ' s requirements w i l l be extremely slow because of heavy cos ts involved.

-

However,

The township has storm w a t e r drainage problems i n other areas of i t s ju r i s - dict ion. The above account is by no means a f u l l treatment of t h i s prob- l e m . A l l development should be designed t o accommodate storm water needs. Unfortunately it usually i s n ' t . Of a l l the u t i l i t y systems supporting developed areas t h i s is usually the one most neglected - often t o our p e r i l and usually a t t he s a c r i f i c e of a t t r a c t i v e s i t e developments.

ROADS

One of the most s ign i f i can t f a c i l i t y systems is the road o r highway network. This network includes three types of roads based on "ownership": (1) those t h a t a r e state maintained, ( 2 ) those t h a t are township maintained, and ( 3 ) those which a r e maintained pr ivately. The d i s t inc t ions between these categories shows on Maps 1. and 2. placed i n the "jacket" a t the r e a r cover of t h i s r epor t and, f o r t he east s ide of Conneaut Lake, on Map.4. Most of t he state roads a r e iden t i f i ed by route numbers, f o r example PA 285 and U. S. 322 (federal route numbers are, i n f a c t , s ta te maintained roads) . However, some s ta te roads do not have route numbers i n which case they a r e indicated by l e g i s l a t i v e route numbers (L .R . ) , f o r example L.R 20009. A l l township maintained roads are given "T" numbers, f o r example T-378. Often i n addi t ion t o the number indicat ions roads w i l l have names. report .

Where names a re known they a r e given on the maps i n t h i s

27

pr iva te roads are not the "normal s i tua t ion" i n the township, but they do e x i s t pa r t i cu la r ly i n the v i c i n i t y of Conneaut Lake. e rv isors has not taken o f f i c i a l act ion t o accept a road i n t o i t s network, such a road is a pr iva te road and must be maintained by the abut t ing property Owners. Normally the township w i l l not accept a road i n t o i t s o f f i c i a l system unless the right-of-way i s a minimum of 33 f e e t and the construction of the road meets townsh ip standards.

Where the Board of Township Sup-

There are approximately 60 miles of publicly maintained roads i n the township: 33 miles of township maintained roads and 2 6 miles of s ta te maintained roads.

I Key t o understanding and planning f o r roads i n the recognition that they form a network, and the re la t ionship of the roads i n the network is important because a l l roads should not serve the same function. The network concept i s based on the f a c t t h a t there i s a hierarchy of roads; some roads serve i n t e r s t a t e and intercounty needs; o ther serve intertownship t r a v e l requirements and s t i l l o ther function only t o provide access t o abutting propert ies . Often t i m e s the r e a l i t y of things is t h a t the same road serves too many functions i n which case problems can arise.

The Federal Functional Class i f ica t ion System defines a "hierarchy" f o r roads. The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) accepts the federa l sys- t e m as the c l a s s i f i c a t i o n system t o use i n describing and categorizing roads, and t h i s plan, therefore , follows t h e nomenclature i n the Federal Functional System. The road c l a s s i f i c a t i o n s i n t h i s system are as follows:

Minor A r t e r i a l . A road which serves i n t e r s t a t e and intercounty t r a v e l and where t r i p s are normally of long duration.

Major Collector. A road serving intercounty t r a v e l and intracounty t r a v e l and which connects development centers within a county.

Minor Collector. A road which co l l ec t s t r a f f i c from the l o c a l road system and funnels it t o the major co l l ec to r and minor a r te r ia l systems.

The three categories described above include roads which have reasonable con- t i n u i t y . cha rac t e r i s t i c s , especial ly the l o c a l access road.

The following two categories demonstrate a d i f fe rence i n the cont inui ty

Local (Col lector) . This category of road is named l o c a l i n the Federal System and it includes a l l township maintained roads. However, from the persepective of l oca l people most township roads have cont inui ty throughout the municipali ty and serve many acres of land. Other roads could eas i ly be b u i l t "out from" the so-called township roads serving newly formed subdiviskons. I f t h i s w e r e t o happen it would be easy t o demonstrate t h a t the so-called loca l roads are co l l ec to r roads. Con- sequently i n t h i s plan the normal township road is ca l l ed a co l l ec to r i f it has reasonable continuity.

Local Access. This i s the t r u e loca l road, a road which would never - even with f u l l development on it and around it - carry appreciable through t r a f f i c and which primarily serves as access f o r abut t ing property owners.

Map 3 . displays the c l a s s i f i ca t ions f o r the township's road network based on t h i s Federal Functional F l a s s i f i ca t ion System. This map a l s o includes the surrounding townships because a l l of t he road c l a s s i f i ca t ions , from the Local (Collector) t o the Minor A r t e r i a l , can be understood best i n a regional framework. Please note t h a t t he roads which cannot be conveniently shown on t h i s map because of the map's s i ze are Local Access f a c i l i t i e s . Map 8. shows the right-of-way width f o r a l l a r te r ia l and co l lec tor roads i n the township.

28

1 1 1 I I 1 I 1 I I I 1 I 1 1 I I I 1

I 1 1 1 I

' I

.

Besides providing a convenient way t o organize one 's thinking on the township road network the Federal E'unctional System has o ther important cha rac t e r i s t i c s . I t denotes the amount of f i n a n c i a l help the f ede ra l government w i l l supply t o a p a r t i c u l a r road category. It a l s o is a key t o r e l a t i v e road importance and t o major improvement p r i o r i t i e s . qua l i fy f o r substantial f ede ra l a id . Minor Col lector and Local (Col lector) roads do not p a r t i c i p a t e i n the conventional federa l a i d programs.

Minor A r t e r i a l and Major Col lector roads

An important d i s t i n c t i o n among roads i n the township highway network is the f a c t that many roads are not paved; they are maintained with a gravel surfacing. This has importance because gravel roads seem t o promote a rural character . Also, today w i t h the high p r i c e of o i l and its der iva t ives , it is consider- ably l e s s expensive t o maintain gravel roads. Some state maintained roads a l s o have gravel surfacing. Map 8, shows the loca t ion of t he gravel roads i n the r u r a l a r eas of t he township; l o c a l access roads are not shown on t h i s map, but only t h e roads which have cont inui ty and are c l a s s i f i e d as Local (Collector) roads. There are 24.5 miles of gravel roads i n Sadsbury Township.

Average d a i l y t raff ic (ADT) is a term used t o express the number of vehicles which use roads. use a p a r t i c u l a r port ion of road i n a 24 hour period averaged over t he time span of one year. Map 8. shows the ABT counts t h a t a r e ava i lab le f o r Sadsbury Township. counts axe considered a s 1980 da ta , However, the reader should be aware t h a t these 1980 da ta a r e based on a c t u a l counts made i n 1971 but converted t o 1980 counts by a f a c t o r which PennDOT a r r ives a t through a monitoring technique. Table 3. displays these 1980 counts against data taken from the 1967 Plan. A study of these da ta shows that the median 1980 count increased by 30% over the 1967 count, except f o r t he counts taken on Route 618 where the ADT count was less i n 1980 by about 40%.

A s the term implies it measures the number of vehicles w h i c h

PennDOT staff do counts a t se lec ted points on c e r t a i n roads. These

It is important t o r e l a t e ADT information the t r a v e l loads on the road network. In the 1967 Plan p r a c t i c a l capac i t ies a r e given f o r major roads in t e r m s of ADT. and a r e given below i n order t h a t the ac tua l t r a v e l load a s expressed i n ADT counts can be compared t o a capaci ty ra t ing .

t o road capac i t ies i n order t o gage

These capac i t ies a re reasonable

Road Type -. -

Two lane major thoroughfare r u r a l road without parking lanes

Two lane major thoroughfare urban road (high volume of cross and turning t r a f f i c ) without parking lanes

Four lane major thoroughfare r u r a l road without parking lanes

Four lane major thoroughfare urban road (high volume of cross and turning t r a f f i c )

without parking lanes

29

Prac t i ca l Capacity Expressed A s ADT

7,500

4,500

19,500

9,500

TABLE 3.

ADT COMPARISONS SADSBURY TOWNSHIP

1967 1980 ( 2 ) ?5

Location Count Count Difference Change

Route 618 north of Conneaut

Route 618 south of Conneaut

Route 18 a t Oakland Beach

U. S. Route 322 w e s t s i d e in t e r -

L a k e Park 3 I 255 1 , 696 - 1,559 - 48%

Lake Park 3 I 800 2,650 - 1,550 - 30%

Golf Course 2,765 3,710 + 945 + 34%

sec t ion of Routes 322 & 18 i n the township 6,510 9,540 + 3,030 ' + 47%

U. S. Route 6 i n Conneaut Lake Borough w e s t of in te rsec t ion with Route 322 south 5 I 425 6,784 + 1,359 + 25%

U. S. Route 6 east of inter- sec t ion with Route 618 4,885 5,088 + 203 + 4%

U. S. Route 6 w e s t of- Greiser Road (T-400) 2,160 2 , 756 + 596 + 28%

U. S. Route 322 and Route 18 south of Conneaut Lake Borough 2,820 3,498 + 678 + 24%

Route 285 south a t Conneaut Lake Borough boundary 1 I 195 1,696 + 501 + 42%

Route 285 w e s t of Conneaut Lake Borough a t Greiser Road 400 2,226 + 1,826 +456%

NOTES: (1) ADT counts taken from "Comprehensive Plan For Conneaut Lake Region" 1967, prepared by Michael B a k e r , Jr., Inc. However the counts w e r e obtained from PennDOT data

( 2 ) ADT Counts based on ac tua l f i e l d records developed i n 1971 and converted t o 1980 counts by using PennDOT derived mult ipl iers .

SOURCE: Crawford County Planning Commission staff .

30

1 I I

Analyzing Table 3 . one can make the following observations:

1. With the extensive improvements made t o Route 285 w e s t t o the Pymatuning area t r a f f i c has increased vas t ly on t h i s road, very l i k e l y handling t r a v e l t h a t formerly used U. S. Route 6 .

2. The only decl ine i n t r a f f i c is i n the v i c i n i t y of Conneaut Lake Park on Route 618, indicat ing t h a t the Park is not generating the vehicular t r a f f i c it did i n the past.

3. An increase i n t r a f f i c on Route 285 south t o Geneva is very l i k e l y due t o the opening of 1-79 with i t s interchange on Route 285.

Using these standards there is one glar ing deficiency which can be iden t i f i ed i n the township road network. an ADT of 9,434. Regardless of whether one assigns a r u r a l o r urban c l a s s i f i c a t i o n t o t h i s road it is carrying more t r i p s than it is ra ted for . Dur- ing the summer months when t h e Conneaut Lake Area's t o u r i s t business is i n " f u l l swing" it would seem t o be appropriate t o consider Route 18 an urban road which means i t s capacity is ra ted 4,500 ADT. The other over-capacity area is i n Conneaut Lake Borough - on Water Street . Traf f ic tie-ups here are w e l l known t o the l o c a l res idents . A solut ion w a s proposed t o t h i s problem i n the 1967 '

Plan; the so lu t ion advanced w a s a bypass south of the borough.

Route 18 i n the v i c i n i t y of Midway Drive r e g i s t e r s See Map 8.

Anyone fami l ia r with the operation of township government i n r u r a l municipal i t ies such as Sadsbury Township knows t h a t road maintenance is t h e i r heaviest respon- s i b i l i t y . This is espec ia l ly t r u e fo r the supervisors i n Sadsbury Township because some sect ions of t he township have been b u i l t t o urban dens i t i e s , namely the neighborhood on t h e east s ide of Conneaut Lake. The roads i n t h i s neighborhood are a l so discussed i n the Existing Land U s e and the Storm Water Drainage sect ions of t h i s plan report . Map 4. shows the right-of-way widths of the roads i n t h i s " E a s t Shore" neighborhood. They vary from 33 f e e t t o 50 f ee t . There are approximately 7.5 m i l e s of road i n t h i s community which are township maintained; of t h i s amount approximately f i v e miles a re under 50 f e e t i n right-of-way width; t h i s i s about two-thirds of the system i n t h i s area. Many of these roads have a poor surface qua l i ty . In most cases t h i s poor surface qua l i ty is due t o the lack of adequate storm w a t e r drainage fo r t h i s road network. It i s very d i f f i c u l t t o construct adequabe storm drainage systems on roads less than 50 f e e t i n r igh t - of-way width.

The road right-of-way widths f o r township maintained roads i n the r u r a l areas of the township are shown on Map 8. Of approximately 24.5 m i l e s of township maintained roads i n the r u r a l area, 17 miles or 70% are under 50 f e e t i n right-of- way width.

31

SOCIOECONOMIC CHARACTERISTICS

In order t o understand the "ebb and flow" of l i f e within the township one needs t o have some idea of the work the people do, of t h e i r educational attainment, of their incomes and some knowledge of housing conditions. T h i s information is m o s t r ead i ly obtained from the decennial U. S. Census. Unfortunately the r e s u l t s of the m o s t recent u. S. Census survey - 1980 - were not avai lable a t the t i m e of t h i s writ ing. A l s o it is w e l l t o point out t h a t one could make more observations on the socioeconomic cha rac t e r i s t i c s i n Sadsbury Township than t h i s plan sets for th . But the usefulness of t h i s mater ia l is d i r ec t ly proportional t o t h e accuracy of the da ta and t o a committment t o intervene i n a f f a i r s which normally are outs ide of township government's scope of action.

THE LABOR FORCE

T a b l e 4. shows the number of persons i n the labor force. Compared with the county economy the township has 3% less of i t s population i n the labor force. very l i k e l y due t o there being a grea te r number of r e t i r e d persons l i v i n g i n the township.

This i s

Tables 5. and 6. show cha rac t e r i s t i c s of the labor force, by occupational and industry c l a s s i f i ca t ions . employed as managers and i n professional and technical occupations than i n the county as a whole. the wholesale and re ta i l t rade and i n providing professional se rv ices , 2/3rds of the labor force i s employed i n these indus t r ies .

In Sadsbury Township there are a grea te r number of persons

Township workers are employed pr inc ipa l ly i n manufacturing,

EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT

In terms of educational attainment 48% of the res idents have completed high school and 11% have completed col lege o r have earned even higher academic degrees. These attainments i n the county as a whole are 41% and 7% respect ively.

INCOME

Keeping i n mind t h a t 1970 da ta w e r e used, the mean income of famil ies and unrelat- ed individuals (derived by working with types of income which includes those un i t s obtaining retirement incomes and those obtaining public ass is tance) i n combination w a s $6,284. For t h e county as a whole t h i s f igure w a s $5,301.

Another measure of conditions i n the township based on res idents ' incomes is one which keys t o standards establ ished by the federa l Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). HUD ''pegs" low and moderate income households i n Crawford County as those t h a t are a t o r below 80% of the median income of the county. HUD'S f igure f o r median income i n 1970 is $8,238. Then 80% of t h i s f igure is $6,590. Using "4th count" U. S. Census da ta , i n Sadsbury Township 32% of the households are classi- f ied as having low and moderate incomes, t h a t is incomes under $6,590 - a l l based on 1970 data.

HOUSING

I t i s very d i f f i c u l t t o e s t ab l i sh standards and t o make useful statements on housing condi t ions ' in a. municiFality. T h i s is t r u e ' f o r reasons which are p r e t t y

32

obvious; housing is considered t o be a p r i v a t e m a t t e r ; "a m a x i ' s home is his c a s t l e . " A l s o most municipal governments i n Crawford County have not involved themselves in housing matters. This repor t w i l l set f o r t h some housing f a c t s as they have been gleaned from the 1970 U. S. Census.

Owner occupied, year-round housing u n i t s . . . e . . 533 Renter occupied, year-round.housing un i t s . . . . . . . 177 Vacant year-round housing un i t s . . e . . . . e I . . 82

Seasonal u n i t s * . e . . . . . . e . . e . . . . 836 -_

TOTAL 1628

Informaeon is ava i lab le from t h e 1980 Census on the t o t a l number of a l l un i t s as l i s t e d above i n the 1970 U. S, Census data; t h i s f igure is 1875 o r an increase i n " a l l units" over a ten year period of 247 units, amounting t o a 15.2% increase.

TABLE 4.

POPULATION 14 YEARS AND OVER BY LABOR FORCE STATUS IN 1969

SADSBURY TOWNSHIP 6 CRAWFORD COUNTY

SADSBURY TOWNSHIP

IN LABOR FORCE OUTSIDE OF LABOR FORCE MILITARY IN IN GRAND

SEX EMPLOYED UNEMPLOYED SERVICE INSTITUTIONS SCHOOLS OTHER TOTAL

Male 548 26 0 0 41 176 791

Female 236 18 0 0 61 521 836

Total 7 04 0 0 102 697 1,627 % of Total Group 48.2% 3% 0% 0% 6.3% 42 - 0% 100 %

CRAHFORD COUNTY

IN LABOR FORCE OUTSIDE OF LABOR FORCE MILITARY IN IN GRAND

SEX EMPLOYED UNEMPLOYED SERVICE INSTITUTIONS SCHOOLS OTHER TOTAL Male 20,183 636 20 3 20 3,630 3,946 28,735 Female 10,625 4 83 528 3,659 16,042 31,337

Total 30,808 1,119 20 848 7,289 19,988 60,072

-

% of Total Group 51.3% 2% .03% 1.4% 12% 33.3% 100%

SOURCE: 1970 U. S. Census data (4th count information) compiled by CCPC staff.

33

TABLE 5.

EMPLOYED PERSONS 14 YEARS OLD & OVER BY MAJOR OCCUPATION CLASSIFICATION & SEX

CRAWFORD I COUNTY SADSBURY TOWNSHIP

% OF % OF OCCUPATION MALE FEMALE TOTAL TOTAL TOTAL 1

Professional & Technical

Managers & Administrators

Sales

Clerical

Craftsmen & Foremen

Operatives

Transportation Equipment

Laborers (except farm)

Farm Laborers

Farmers & Farm Managers

Services (except in private

Private Household Workers

Occupation not reported

Operators

households)

74

79

46

4 120 15.3 11.3

83 10.6 7.0 1 28 15 43 5.5 5.8

21 65 86 11.0 12.7 I 138 7 145 18.5 17.8

21.3 I 81 60 141 18.0

35 14 49 6.3 3.6

29 0 29 3.7 4.9 I 5 0 5 .6 1.3

19 0 19 2.4 2.6 I 39 25 64 8.2 10.2

0 0 0 0.0 1.4 1 27 22 49 (1)

784 100% 100 % Totals 548 236

NOTE: (1) The quantity in this classification was allocated among other classifications.


34

TABLE 6.

EMPLOYED PERSONS 14 YEARS OLD & OVER BY MAJOR INDUSTRY CLASSIFICATION & SEX

CRAWFORD COUNTY SADSBURY TOWNSHIP

% OF % OF OCCUPATION MALE FEMALE TOTAL TOTAL TOTAL

Agriculture & Forestry 32 0 32 4.0 4.2

Mining 11 0 11 1.4 -2

Construction 47 0 47 6.0 5.3

Manufacturing, Durable Goods 13 2 38 170 21.7 28.8

Manufacturing, Non-Durable Goods 74 48 122 15.6 11.0

Transportation

Wholesale & Retail Trade

58 24 82 10.5 7 .O

96 43 139 17.7 16.0

Finance, Insurance, Real Estate, 16 15 31 4.0 2.6 Education

Business & Repair Service 0 9 9 1.1 1.4

Personal Services 15 3 18 2.3 3.5

Entertainment & Recreation 0 4 4 - 5 -7

Professional Services

Public Service

Inudstry not reported

37 52 89 11.3 16.5

30 0 30 3.8 2.7

20 16 36 (1) (1)

Totals 548 236 784 loo,% 100 %

NOTE: (1) The quantity in this classification was allocated among other classifications.


35

TOWNSHIP F I S C A L A N A L Y S I S

Sadsbury Township is c l a s s i f i e d as a township of the second class as are a l l of the townships i n Crawford County. Through the years 1976 t o 1980 the township supervisors have been ab le t o maintain a surplus of funds so as t o always be able t o operate with cash on hand, even though i n t w o of these f i v e years expenditures exceeded income. The following accounting summarizes these f i v e years.

1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 I Total rece ip ts $163,539 $174,396 $199,006 $212,177 $235,457

Total expenditures $148 , 034 $192 , 450 $184,574 $185 , 471 $248 , 695

Balance + 15,505 - 18,054 + 14,432 + 26,706 - 13,238

$1011949 I Previous years balance $ 63,360 $ 78,865 $ 60,811 $ 75,243 (carry-over)

Based on these f igures there w a s a carry-over i n t o the calendar year 1981 of $88,711.

Township revenues are derived ch ief ly from real estate and wage taxes and through grants-in-aid. Grant sources are from t h e federa l government through the general revenue sharing program and from the s t a t e i n the form of l i qu id f u e l s payments which are t o be used i n the township road maintenance program.

Tax on the assessed valuation of real estate has long been a bas ic source of revenue f o r l o c a l governments i n Pennsylvania. Assessed valuations are determined by tak- ing 30% of value based on 1971 do l l a r s . assessed valuat ion f o r t he p a s t f i v e years.

I The following l i s t i n g gives t h e township's

Assessed Year Valuation % Increase 1977 $ 6,279,350 - 1978 $ 6,488,850

1979 $ 6,632,700

19 80 $ 6,827,850

1981 $ 6,927,356

3.0%

2.0%

3.0

1.0%

I I I

The above f igures do not , of course, include t ax exempt propert ies . The Board of Township Supervisors have set a millage rate of seven; this is the 1981 rate. I f a l l taxes w e r e co l lec ted , the real estate tax due the township f o r 1981 would be $6,927,356 x 7 m i l l s o r $48,492. In 1977 property tax revenues w e r e (f igured a t 7 m i l l s ) , t heo re t i ca l ly , $43,955. Over a f i v e year period the township col lected an increase of $4,537 o r $907 per year from t h i s tax. Based on the township code the m a x i m u m millage rate the township supervisors can set f o r general government expenditures i s 1 4 mills. Applying this maximum millage rate t o 1981 assessments the township theo re t i ca l ly could c o l l e c t $96,983 from t h i s r e a l e s t a t e tax. Over the pas t f i v e years r e a l estate taxes have comprised about 23% of the townshp

.

I revenues.

The wage tax is an important source of township revenue. This tax i s l imited t o .5% of a workers gross income and is paid by employers, wherever they a r e located, t o the municipality i n which the employee res ides - i n t h i s case Sadsbury Township. Over the pas t f i v e years the wage t ax has supplied about 33% of t h e township revenues. I

36

1 I 1 1

The township benef i t s from the s t a t e ' s l i qu id fue l s reimbursement program. In 1981, 2J2 cents of the tax on every gallon of gasoline so ld i n the s ta te i s ear- marked f o r the l o c a l municipal governments. These monies are d i s t r ibu ted t o the u n i t s of l o c a l government based on t h e i r population and the m i l e s of roads they maintain. Over the p a s t f i v e years 17% of the township's revenue came from t h i s source o r approximately $33,900 per year. Over the pas t f i v e years the average annual contr ibut ion of the federa l government's revenue shar ing program has been $20,793 o r about 11% of the township's revenue over t h i s period.

It is useful t o poin t ou t t h a t f o r 1981 the t o t a l millage applied t o a property owner's assessment w a s 124 mills. As establ ished above only 7 m i l l s of the t o t a l were applied f o r township revenues. The county tax rate w a s 19 m i l l s , and the Conneaut School D i s t r i c t rate w a s 98 mills.

The p r inc ipa l township expense over the pas t f i v e years has been f o r the maintenance of road network; t h i s work has u t i l i z e d 60% of the revenues. w e r e i n t h e following areas: general administration, po l ice protect ion, f i r e pro- t ec t ion , maintenance of t he township building, t ax co l lec t ion and an assortment of miscellaneous expenses.

Other expenditures

A n analysis of the above information would ind ica te t h a t the township does not have adequate revenue t o e s t ab l i sh and implement an ambitious program of public improvements, even i f it w e r e t o raise i ts real estate tax t o 14 mills - an act ion t h a t would produce approximately $50,000 i n addi t ional revenue. However, i f t he popular w i l l is such t h a t there i s support f o r r a the r extensive public works i n almost any area of township concern - roads, storm drainage improvements, recreat ion f a c i l i - t i es , etc. - it i s possible , with t h i s support, t o f i x addi t ional millage rates spec i f i ca l ly f o r such improvements. The key t o improving f a c i l i t i e s and programs i n the public sec tor , d i f f e ren t i a t ed from the p r iva t e sec tor , is the will ingness O f the c i t i zen ry t o want a better qua l i ty of cornunity l i f e with such an in t ens i ty t h a t they w i l l pay fo r it, much as they would decide i n the pr iva te l i v e s t o want t o pay f o r a summer home, an addi t ional automobile o r a European Vacation.

37

POPULATION FORECAST

THE FORECAST

The 1967 P l a n did a thorough analysis of the township's population; the forecas t i n t h i s Plan fo r the township's population f o r the year 1980 w a s 2,571. The 1980 U. S. Census, j u s t recent ly completed, lists the township's population a t 2,702. The 1967 project ion w a s , therefore , about 131 persons sho r t of the r e a l i t y . Em- ploying what is ca l led the l i n e a r regression technique and using u. s. Census da t a from 1980, Sadsbury Township's population w a s projected t o be 3000 persons i n 1990 and 3,390 persons i n the year 2000. In the following table population f igures fo r t he township are given.

I i I 1

POPULATION FORECAST

YEAR U. S. CENSUS PROJECTED NUMBER INCREASE 1967 PLAN COUNT OF PERSONS OVER 1980 PROJECTION

1940 . . . . 1103

1950 . . . . 1479

1960 . . . . 1601

1 9 7 0 . . . . 2 2 2 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1960

1 9 8 0 . . . . 2 7 0 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2571

1990 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3,001 . . . . . . . . 299

2000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3,393 . . . . . . . . 691

SOURCE: Crawford County Planning Commission s t a f f ca lcu la t ions

Population forecas ts can never be considered any more than a guide. The l i n e a r regression method is based on "averaging" pas t growth trends and pro jec t ing this condition forward. Any unusual occurrence - a decision on the p a r t of t he U . S. Steel Corporation t o bui ld i t s projected p l an t i n E r i e County f o r example - would throw t h i s plan 's forecas t o f f .

To t r a n s l a t e t he population forecas t given above i n t o new households i n the township, one can divide the forecasted population increase by 3; the average family s i z e can be hypothesized t o be 3 persons. Thus i n 1990 w e could expect about 100 new households t o be added t o t h e township, and by the year 2000 w e can expect about 230 new households i n t h e township.

1 I . I I I I

PERMANENT VS. SEASONAL POPULATION

It is d i f f i c u l t t o know what the summer population of Sadsbury Township is. The 1967 Plan lists t h i s population a t 4,800 i n 1960. This is approximately 200% higher than the year-round population i n 1960. There has been no attempt i n t h i s plan t o a r r i v e a t a f igure f o r the summer, o r resor t - re la ted , population i n the township beyond the information provided i n the Existing Land U s e sect ion of t h i s plan which ind ica tes t h a t of a l l t he s ing le family homes located i n the v i c i n i t y of the Conneaut Lake, 690 of them (52%) were seasonal dwellings based on the de- f i n i t i o n assumed f o r t h i s c l a s s i f i ca t ion .

38 1

CHART ?

POPULATION BY AGE 8 SEX:1970 SADSBURY TOWNSHIP

MALES AGES FEMALES

mnL 1,107 TOTAL 1,114

t I I I L I I I 1 1 200 IS0 100 50 a 0 5 0 loo I60 200

mmnmote

THE UNITED STATES MALES AGES FEMALES

TOTAL 98,926,000 c t b

20 IS IO 5 0

T O T A L 1049 309,000

I I 1 A 0 5 IO IS 20

DISTRIBUTION BY AGE AND SEX

It is useful t o know the d i s t r ibu t ion of the township's population by age and by sex. This information f o r the year 1970 is given on page 39. The Township s cha rac t e r i s t i c s a r e displayed against those of t he nation i n order t o obtain an idea of the "normality", o r lack of it, of the d i s t r ibu t ion i n Sadsbury Township. The township nearly p a r a l l e l s the nat ional d i s t r ibu t ion except, (1) i n the 18-21 age group where, comparatively, t he township has 3% less of i t s t o t a l population i n t h i s bracket, and ( 2 ) i n t he 25-34 age group where the townships has 3% more of its t o t a l population i n t h i s bracket. These re la t ionships are observable i f one s tudies t h e graphs on page 39. If t h e age brackets were spaced evenly, t he graphs would be i n the form of a pyramid, however, as one can see t h i s is not t he case because of the "bracketing" chosen.

40

ISSUES TO BE ADDRESSED

1 B I 1

I I

e

I I

In studying the township as has been done i n t h i s Background Information sec t ion a series of i s sues have been "uncovered." Some of these i ssues , t h e reader may say, are very obvious. This may be so, but i n t h i s plan repor t w e can a t l e a s t ''catch them i n prose" so t o speak; we can w r i t e t h e m down so w e don ' t forge t t o dea l with them i n some way. Other issues , w e bel ieve, have not been so obvious, and t h e i r l i s t i n g herein is a f i r s t s t e p t o deal ing with them.

* There are two townships. One is r e l a t i v e l y urban, c lus te red around Conneaut Lake; t he o ther is r u r a l where residences are spaced, re la t ive- l y speaking, f a r apa r t and where there are very ac t ive ag r i cu l tu ra l operations being car r ied on. The i n t e r e s t s of these two i d e n t i t i e s and the .ac t ions they demand of t h e i r governing o f f i c i a l s d i f f e r sin many respects.

* A surpr is ingly la rge amount of the township's land is farmed. Y e t there i s a gradual fanning o u t of nonfarm housing i n t o the r u r a l areas of Sadsbury Township. Should the township take any ac t ion t o preserve and promote i t s ag r i cu l tu ra l economy?

of the permanent res idents versus those of t he seasonal res idents . These two groups have somewhat d i f f e r e n t needs and values. Seasonal res idents l i v e mainly i n the Conneaut Lake area and use the recrea t iona l and re- s o r t industry establishments located there. The expansion of tourism i n the township is dependent on a t t r a c t i n g more seasonal res idents . Per - manent res idents use many of the same r e s o r t f a c i l i t i e s but not i n the same degree. A g rea te r in f lux of seasonal res idents can cause con- gest ion i n the use of f a c i l i t i e s and services, unless these f a c i l i t i e s and serv ices can be improved or expanded.

* Should the township encourage growth? and should t h i s growth be a balanced growth, t h a t i s , should it be growth of not only an increasing number of res idents l i v ing i n the township but should it include growth i n industry i n order t h a t more jobs are created i n Sadsbury Township?

* Most of the permanent res idents of the township earn t h e i r l i v ing out- s ide of the township. There is l i t t l e basic manufacturing i n Sadsbury Township, and the township i s not a strong center f o r providing services . Should the township ac t ive ly promote economic development within i t s boundaries? Economic development could be of two general types: perman- en t jobs i n the manufacturing industry o r jobs of somewhat of a season- a l nature i n the t o u r i s t industry. Should economic development be promoted i n these two areas? In addition t o the i ssue of seeking t o provide more employment i n the township f o r a work force t h a t f o r the most p a r t must leave the township da i ly t o obtain employment there is the i ssue f o r providing more job opportunities f o r the young - high school and college graduates - i n t he township. Many of them, curren t ly , must leave the township t o obtain employment. There is no question t h a t t h i s is a l s o a county-wide issue.

of the built-up communities i n the township, p r inc ipa l ly around Conneaut Lake. Certainly the sewerage system serving the Conneaut Lake A r e a can handle more "hook-ups." I n - f i l l housing i n the Conneaut Lake Area which is reasonably w e l l served by community f a c i l i t i e s would s e e m t o make good "economic sense." Should the township promote such i n - f i l l housing? How can it be promoted?

* There is a second double iden t i ty i ssue i n the township: the i n t e r e s t s

* There i s a considerable amount of vacant land within the general area

41

*

*

*

*

*

*

*

*

*

Mobile homes a r e the housing choice of many famil ies i n our present mode of l iving. Should the mobile home be permitted t o loca te in t e r - mingled with conventionally b u i l t housing, where i t s appearance is c l ea r ly d iss imi la r?

In the g l a c i a l outwash areas of the township including the areas surrounding Conneaut Lake there is the po ten t i a l t o loca te extremely productive w a t e r w e l l s . But each individual property w i l l not be ab le t o have such w e l l s . In the densely populated areas should w a t e r be supplied through publ ic systems and would not t h i s approach be more economic i n the long run?

How can storm w a t e r drainage problems be corrected i n the heavily populated areas of the township where housing and street construct ion occurred without provision f o r adequate storm w a t e r drainage devices? How can such improvements t o l o c a l areas be financed?

Lands known t o be subject t o periodic flooding can be ident i f ied . State and federa l l e g i s l a t i o n requires t h a t l oca l municipal i t ies carefu l ly con- t r o l building a c t i v i t i e s i n such areas; t h i s mandate should be implemented i n some way.

Should the township act t o plan and construct addi t iona l recrea t ion fa- c i l i t i e s ( tennis courts , bicycle and hiking trails , etc.) i n order t o strengthen the t o u r i s t sec tor of the township's economy and t o provide more l e i s u r e time a c t i v i t i e s f o r i t s res idents?

Expanding development opportunities i n the housing, commercial and in- d u s t r i a l segments of the economy w i l l require publ ic sewerage system extensions. Assuming growth is t o be encouraged i n the township, how can these sewerage system extensions be promoted?

The g rea t e s t amount of t r a f f i c congestion i n the Sadsbury Township A r e a occurs on Route 18 and i n Conneaut Lake Borough. Especially ser ious is the congestion on Route 18 where a road improved t o rural standards is serving what amounts t o an urban area. How can these s i t ua t ions be improved - and once improved how can the i n t e g r i t y of t h e improvement be preserved through fu tu re years?

Many loca l access roads are pr iva te ly maintained. Is t h i s s i t u a t i o n desirable?

Should the township ]continue t o support th ree f i r e companies within 14 and 24 miles of each other?

The Conneaut Lake area is the center f o r publ ic education f a c i l i t i e s i n the Conneaut Lake attendance area of the Conneaut School D i s t r i c t . Where should needed expansions of public school classroom space occur, a t o r near ex i s t ing f a c i l i t i e s o r on s i tes located i n other sec t ions of the attendance area?

A weed cont ro l program using a chemical Conneaut Lake. The s ta te is scheduled t o underwrite the cos t of t h i s program and handle i t s implementation. There has been controversy over the environmental impact of t h i s program. Should the township support t h i s work?

Township revenues are in su f f i c i en t f o r an extensive c a p i t a l improvements program. How can des i rab le public improvements, f o r example i n the areas of road f a c i l i t i e s , recreat ion and u t i l i t i e s , be made?

I I I I 1 I 1 I @ I 1 I 1 I I

How does it a f f e c t t he v i sua l appearance of the townshkp?

(Diquat)has been begun f o r

42

I ' I

I I 1

m

111, REV I SED TOWNSHIP PLAN

PRELIMINARY REMARKS

As has been explained i n t h e preceding pages of t h i s plan r epor t the work included herein should be considered as an addi t ion t o , as a refinement o f , the "Compre- hensive Plan For Conneaut Lake Region" dated 1967. only with Sadsbury Township whereas the earlier work included, i n addi t ion t o the township, Conneaut Lake Borough. The u t i l i t y of t h e 1967 Plan is chief ly f o r the background information it provides. A new format and an array of new po l i c i e s and pro jec ts w i l l be set f o r t h i n the following pages of t h i s plan, the need f o r which one can readi ly understand a f t e r the lapse of almost f i f t e e n years.

This plan concerns i tself

The term "comprehensive" plan may be d i f f i c u l t t o understand. It means t h a t a l l of the elments contr ibut ing t o community l i f e are d e a l t with and woven i n t o one f ab r i c , so t o speak, which then provides a guide f o r the fu ture programs and projects f o r the "whole" community. This is an ambitious undertaking and, without b e l i t t l i n g the comprehensive plan process, it can never be f u l l y achieved. A study of the Background Information sect ion of t h i s plan shows t h a t , while many areas of community l i f e w e r e t rea ted , a l l areas w e r e not and some subjects were t r ea t ed rather l i gh t ly . Actually as s t a t ed i n the Introduction sect ion the primary emphasis of t h i s plan is "on the development of a revised land use plan and land u t i l i z a t i o n po l i c i e s which can be used as a bas is f o r a revised zoning ordinance." Most comprehensive planning undertakings concentrate on the "physical" community, not on s o c i a l and economic networks, although any plan f o r the.physica1 community is based on the prevai l ing s o c i a l and economic networks and i n tu rn has e f f e c t s on these networks.

The plan i s re f lec ted i n a map of the township which shows a desired pa t te rn of uses f o r a l l land within the boundaries of the township; this map is ca l led the land use plan. f o r community f a c i l i t i e s , such as park or recreat ion a rea , a new road alighment, etc. But the plan also includes a series of object ive and policy statements. These are extremely important because they e s t ab l i sh a sense of d i rec t ion f o r townsh$p's growth and development. From these object ives and po l i c i e s spec i f i c pro jec ts a re formulated which should be the bas i s f o r fu ture act ions i n the public o r government- a l sec tor as w e l l as the p r iva t e sec tor . ceding Background Information sect ion, especial ly so of Issues To B e Addressed subsection, t h i s r epor t ' s nar ra t ive w i l l proceed i n a r t i c u l a t i n g object ives and po l i c i e s f o r Sadsbury Township. The term object ive should be understood t o mean a general statement of purpose r e l a t i v e t o an issue. understood t o mean a more spec i f i c statement i n connection with act ion on an issue. The term pro jec t s h a l l be understood t o mean a spec i f i c undertaking whichlachieves s t a t ed po l i c i e s and objectives. "circles. 'I

Other elements of the plan which are mapped inlcude proposals

Mindful of the information i n the pre-

The term policy s h a l l be

These terms may be defined d i f f e ren t ly i n other

43

I DEVELOPMENT OBJECTIVES

* To encourage growth and development i n the township and t o manage this growth through the guidance established i n t h i s plan, - through the use of such devices as zoning and subdivision regulat ions and through af- fordable investments i n public f a c i l i t i e s .

To encourage ex i s t ing ag r i cu l tu ra l a c t i v i t i e s t o remain functioning and t o promote the expansion of agr icu l ture , discouraging uses harmful t o i t s continuation; and t o be guided i n these act ions by the land use plan pr in ted i n t h i s plan report .

TQ promote the widest possible range of opportunities fo r property use cons is ten t with po l i c i e s and programs designed t o s t a b i l i z e and p ro tec t investments i n property improvements.

To support t h e continuing development of the " t o u r i s t industry", believing it t o be important t o the township's economy and r e c q n i z i n g t h a t it has a long h is tory of existence i n Sadsbury Township, and a l so t o promote ove ra l l economic development i n the township pa r t i cu la r ly i n the manu- factur ing sect ion.

*

*

*

The " t o u r i s t industry" has a long h is tory of existence i n the townsh ip and i s important current ly t o the township's economy. Y e t s t ab l e long-term growth is unlikely to occur unless t he employment base is broadened and includes more year-round employment opportuni- t ies. I t is believed t h a t the intermingling of "permanent" and "seasonal" res idents w i l l add t o the v i t a l i t y of cornunity l i f e , although it i s recognized t h a t some c o n f l i c t s s h a l l always exist between the i n t e r e s t s of these two groups. Investments i n public i n f r a s t ruc tu re (road networks and recreat ion f a c i l i t i e s , f o r example) need t o be made t o reduce po ten t i a l con f l i c t s .

* To maintain and s t r i v e t o improve the public f a c i l i t y and serv ice sys- t e m s i n t he township insofar as the governing o f f i c i a l s have ju r i sd i c t ion ;

These systems would include a primary way the township road network including i ts storm water drainage devices. recreat ion f a c i l i t i e s and pol ice protect ion and, i n an i n d i r e c t way, f i r e protect ion, san i ta ry sewerage, and l i b r a r y service.

They a l so include

* To promote the maximum use of common sewerage and w a t e r systems i n the densely s e t t l e d areas of t he township, where there are two o r more habi table buildings pe r gross acre.

To p a r t i c i p a t e i n the s t a t e mandated flood p l a in management program. *

44

LAND USE PLAN, P O L I C I E S AND PROJECTS

OBJECTIVE

To strive to locate future development in suitable areas of the township as indicated on the Sadsbury Township Land Use Plan which is incorporated into this plan report as Map 11. The plan designates in a general way areas for residential, commercial, agricultural and industrial development as well as areas subject to the hazard of periodic flooding and large land areas currently managed by the public for land and wildlife conservation.

The Land Use Plan is based on (1) the location of the existing uses of land in the township, (2) analyses of the potentials and constraints relative to the use of land and, ( 3 ) on resident preferences. A separation of some land uses from others normally serves to protect property values and promotes more efficient, attractive settlements. A more detailed explanation of this plan is found in the following paragraphs which state policies on the use of land. Clearly in the dynamics of community growth and development individuals propose uses for land which do not "fall neatly in line" with the uses advocated in this plan. Where such proposals are made they should cluding the community facilities and services which are required to support any human activity carried out on the land. The plan needs to be thought of as a flexible instrument for guiding the arrangement of uses on the land. The adaptation to new proposals for land use by the private sector is part of the dynamics of community growth. Most uses of land, if sited carefully, can accommodate well to their surroundings.

be evaluated in relation to this comprehensive plan in-

(1) Policy. Agricultural Areas are designated to encourage existing agricultural activities to remain functioning, to promote the expansion of agriculture where possible and to discourage from locating in its midst, uses harmful to the continuation of agriculture. Public facilities such as sewerage and water systems should not be extended into this area. be maintained in a rural character; bituminous pavement is not necessary here. Nonagricultural uses locating in this area should be prepared to accept the pr,imacy of agriculkural activity.

Public roads should

(2 ) Lakeside Residential Areas are designated to identify areas located on both shores of Conneaut Lake, developed with lots thaLare normally less than one acre and served almost completely by a sanitary sewerage system. The need for public facilities and services is great in these areas because of the high density of development. These areas are also unique in the township because approximately 50% of the residential units are seasonal. These areas are reasonably free of commercial uses and contain a significant amount of developable vacant land. ship as predominantly residential areas for permanent and seasonal residents.

Policy.

They should continue to serve the town-

( 3 ) Policy. To identify some programs that can be implemented by the township the aim of which would be to put under development passed-over, vacant, developable land in the Lakeside Residential Areas, particularly land which is served by common sewer and water systems.

(4) Policy. Suburban Residential Areas are designated to identify areas with considerable vacant land which are in close proximity to existing sewerage and water systems serving the residents in the Lakeside Residential Areas. In fact sewage and water services are provided to some of the residents in the

45

Suburban Residential A r e a s . The character of most of the uses i n these areas is r e s iden t i a l . These areas should be considered a s prime catchment areas f o r fu ture housing which does not loca te i n the Lakeside Residential Areas and which is t o be constructed a t suburban ( r e l a t ive ly urban) dens i t i e s ; such dens i t ies would be i n the v i c i n i t y of two dwelling un i t s per gross acre or more. These areas should a l s o be considered as prime locations f o r fu ture community f a c i l i t i e s , especial ly those which need r e l a t ive ly la rge land areas such as school o r recrea t ion f a c i l i t i e s .

(5) Policy. To encourage the development of higher density housing, i.e. t he duplex, t he townhouse and the apartment building, i n the Lakeside R e s i - den t i a l , Suburban Residential and commercial land use areas of the township where s e w e r , water and road access needs can be accommodated.

The cos t of s ing le family detached housing has escalated dramatically and no longer is expected-to be used as universal ly as i n the pas t . Increasingly higher densi ty housing un i t s w i l l be t h e housing of the fu ture because they a r e more econokcal t o construct and maintain.

(6) Policy. The mobile home should be accepted a s a legi t imate housing type. but i t s placement i n the township should be regulated i n such a way t h a t it cannot harm the value of nearby property improvements where its appearance r e l a t i v e t o neighboring buildings w i l l be c l ea r ly d iss imi la r .

( 7 ) Policy. A Resort Commercial Area is designated t o accommodate a mixture of commercial uses, primarily those associated with the township's t o u r i s t industry, and r e s iden t i a l uses associated with the t o u r i s t industry, mainly seasonal r e s i d e n t i a l accommodations. This area current ly is characterized by a mixture of such uses, and it is located i n c lose proximity t o Conneaut Lake Park, the p r inc ipa l t o u r i s t a t t r a c t i o n , outs ide of the Lake i t s e l f , i n the township. Relatively high dens i t i e s can be supported i n t h i s area because it is served by the township's public sewerage system.

(8) Policy. The s i t i n g of planned r e s o r t complexes, which combine densely constructed l i v ing arrangements and recrea t iona l f a c i l i t i e s on r e l a t i v e l y la rge parcels of land, should be encouraged i n the Conneaut Lake Area i n order t o strengthen tourism.

(9) Policy. General Commercial A r e a s are designated t o accommodate a wide var ie ty of commercial uses, those associated with the tou r i s t ' industry and others. The policy advocated i n t h i s plan is t o concentrate commercial a c t i v i t i e s because it is more e f f i c i e n t ( fo r customers, f o r the maintenance of publ ic services and f o r the businessmen) and because such a c t i v i t i e s can be s i t e d more a t t r a c t i v e l y i f clustered. heavy demand on access roads; i f they are c lus te red , road access c o n f l i c t s can be reduced and there i s less adverse impact on neighboring r e s iden t i a l uses . f o r t h i s land use a c t i v i t y . .

Commercial uses make a pa r t i cu la r ly

This plan does not see a need f o r more than 150 acres t o be provided

The i ssue of " s t r i p " commercial development is perennial . A s w a s indicated earlier i n t h i s plan report , a "Lake Area" land analysis showed t h a t there are approximately 207,400 square f e e t of ex i s t ing commercial f l o o r space i n the general v i c i n i t y of Conneaut Lake. Based on s i t e planning standards the amou t of t o t a l land area necessary t o accommodate t h i s quant i ty of commercial space would be 1,003,065 square f e e t o r 23 acres. The t o t a l area of the commercial uses i n t h i s land ana lys i s is 4,573,800 square f e e t o r 105 acres. merical i n the "Lake Area" is 380 acres. This plan report would s t a t e

The area current ly zoned com-

46

MAP //

LEGEND

SADSBURY TOWNSHIP A G R I C U L T U R E LAND USE 8r HIGHWAYS PLAN CRAWFORD COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA SCALE I" = 1000' vo0 OCTOBER 19132 P R E P a I I L O 81 THC C R l l r O R O PLIN"IHG c0YYIIsm" COUNT,

CONS E R V A T I ON S U B U R B A N R E S I D E N T I A L 0 M I N O R A R T E R I A L

R U R A L D E V E L O P M E N T L A K E S I O E R E S I D E N T I A L ma P R O P O S E D MINOR A R T E R I A L

V I L L A Q E G E N E R A L C O M M E R C I A L ++++ + + M A J O R C O L L E C T O R

I N D U S T R I A L R E S O R T C O M M E R C I A L = = - = m - . m = - - = = C O L L E C T O R ( G R A V E L S U R F A C E )

t h a t major co l lec tor and a r t e r i a l roads can "front" a t t r a c t i v e and stable r e s iden t i a l subdivisions; a l l land front ing on major highways does not have t o be zoned commercial f o r it t o have u t i l i t y . Where r e s iden t i a l uses f ron t on major highways, i f they a re s i t e d with reasonably generous setbacks and i f the f ron t yard area is planted i n appropriate t r e e s and shrubs with perhaps the use of so l id board fencing, they w i l l be very desirable and a f i n e r e s iden t i a l character can be achieved.

(10) Policy. Indus t r ia l Areas a re designated t o enable.the township t o promote a more balanced economy, encouraging the location of firms tha t w i l l provide increased job opportunities i n Sadsbury Township and fur ther strengthen the Conneaut Lake Area economy.

(11) Policy. A Village Development Area is designated which includes, a t its core, Shermansville. This v i l l age is an h i s t o r i c settlement i n Sadsbury Township and the policy of t h i s plan is t o promote i t s existence and expansion. A mixture of a c t i v i t i e s including commercial, i ndus t r i a l and community service uses should be encouraged t o locate here.

(12) Policy. A Rural Development Area is designated f o r the area of the township which does not have a predominance of "for-profit" agr icu l tura l ac t iv i ty , which is unlikely t o be sewered and which is not expected t o have a density of development tha t would ever be characterized a s urban or suburban. Act iv i t ies i n this area should be on properties which a r e a t l e a s t one acre i n s ize . . "Hobby" farms, r u r a l r e s iden t i a l l iv ing and other uses which require large areas of land i n order t o be adequately s i t e d would characterize the uses occupying this area.

(13) Policy. Conservation Areas a re designated which should be f r e e of habitable buildings. These areas include lands ident i f ied as subject t o periodic flooding and areas owned and managed by government fo r wi ld l i fe and open space uses.

(14) Policy. To use the township's zoning and subdivision ordinances as in- setruments t o achieve the objectives and pol ic ies embodied i n the Land U s e Plan.

Project. Using as a guide the Land U s e Plan given i n t h i s plan report the Sadsbury Township Planning Commission and the Board of Township Supervisors should re-evaluate and revise the township zoning ordinance, and through a process involving the par t ic ipa t ion of township residents and property owners adopt a revised zoning ordinance which w i l l regulate the use of land generally i n harmony with t h i s plan.

(15) Policy. To careful ly evaluate land development proposals through the subdivision review process t o insure t h a t the pat terns established f o r new l o t s and s t r e e t s w i l l in tegra te in to e f f i c i e n t and a t t r a c t i v e additions t o the township's communities.

On the following pages of t h i s report a re a s e r i e s of guideline s i t e plans which suggest road systems and l o t t i n g pat terns fo r the major portion of the Suburb= Residential Areas; i . e . the area bounded by Route 18, the township's e a s t boundary, the abandoned right-of-way of the Meadvklle Branch of the Bessemer & Lake E r i e Railroad and the township's north boundary (Maps 12., 13., 14. and 15.); and the area bounded by L. R. 20010, the west boundary of Connenut Lake Borough,

47

. MAP 15

"GUIDELINE S I T E PLAN I/ 2

MAP / 6 GUIDELINE SITE PLAN SUBURBAN RESIDENTIAL

AREA - WEST \

SADSBURY T O W N S H I P ' SHEET I O F 2

\Kt SCALE 1"=500' JANUARY 1982

7 B

the southwest boundary corner of the Borough projected w e s t , and Louderman Road (R-483) (Maps 16. and 1 7 . ) . These areas based on t h i s plan have the grea tes t potent ia l fo r high density growth outside of i n f i l l development which i s encouraged i n the Lakeside Residential Area; it is i n t o these areas t h a t sani tary sewerage should be extended i n the event the township experiences severe growth pressure.

These plans are not intended t o f i x specif ic s i te development patterns. They are t o be used by township o f f i c i a l s as a "yardstick" against which developers' proposals can be "measured". They show the poten t ia l of these land areas; they show logica l road alignments that in tegra te t o form a coxrununity network.

54

I B I B I I I I I I I I 1 I I D I 1 i

I I I I, I I I I I I I I 1 I 1 1 I I i

HIGHWAYS PLAN, P O L I C I E S AND PROJECTS

The Highways Plan is shown j o i n t l y with the Land U s e Plan on Map 11. and pro jec ts imp l i c i t i n t h i s plan a re explained i n t h i s section.

The po l i c i e s

(16) Policy. To accept the Federal Functional Class i f ica t ion System as a proper way t o c l a s s i f y highways with respect t o t h e i r ro l e s i n the overa l l highway network. Further, t o accept the c l a s s i f i c a t i o n designations as given i n t h e o f f i c i a l Federal Class i f ica t ion Map f o r the roads i n Sadsbury Township with the one exception, t h a t of the c l a s s i f i c a t i o n as a major co l lec tor of U. S. Route 6 from Conneaut Lake Borough westward. Map 3. shows the current federa l functional c l a s s i f i ca t ions .

Project. and the Board of County Commissioners, t o p e t i t i o n the state and federa l highway au tho r i t i e s t o upgrade the c l a s s i f i ca t ion of U. S. Route 6 from Conneaut Lake Borough w e s t t o the O h i o boundary from a major co l l ec to r t o a minor ar ter ia l highway.

Working with the Crawford County Planning Commission

When county o f f i c i a l s evaluated Crawford County's functional c l a s s i f i c a t i o n map i n 1976 they took the posi t ion t h a t because of the interconnections of U. S. Route 6 i n Ohio it should be designated a major co l lec tor road and Route 285 w e s t from Conneaut Lake Borough should be a minor ar ter ia l highway. Subsequent t o t h i s the possible construction of a U. S. Steel Corporation p lan t a t Conneaut, Ohio, has caused county o f f i c i a l s t o believe t h a t Route 6 forms a major highway linkage t o Crawford County from the Conneaut , Ohio area and should be r ec l a s s i f i ed as a minor a r t e r i a l .

Project. Route 18 t o Route 618, understanding t h a t t h i s would mean route number changes on the posted signs and on the o f f i c i a l s t a t e maps. The o f f i c i a l Functional Class i f ica t ion System map r e f l e c t s t h i s condition; see Map 3.

To p e t i t i o n PennDOT t o r e d i r e c t intercounty t r a f f i c on

Route 18 serves a s the main access road f o r the bus ies t r e s iden t i a l and commercial areas i n the township and i s un- necessarily burdened by serving also t o handle intercounty t r a f f i c . The construction of a p a r t i a l bypass south of Conneaut Lake Borough, a s proposed i n an ensuing sect ion of t h i s plan, re inforces the logic of d i rec t ing "through" t r a f f i c on t o "present day" Route 618.

(17) Policy. To e f fec tua te a major improvement t o Route 18 from i t s in t e r - sect ion a t U. s. Route 322 north through Sadsbury Township t o i t s in te rsec t ion with Route 618 i n Summit Township.

Project. County Planning Commission and with PennDOT r e l a t i v e t o scheduling a major reconstruction pro jec t f o r Route 18 and t o continuously monitor progress on t h i s project . The elements of the improvement desired are explained as follows and delineated i n the accompanying cross sect ions: From a point south of Iroquois Drive t o Oakland Beach Road the roadway should be of curb construct ion, approximately

To e s t ab l i sh d i r e c t communication with t h e Crawford

55

30 f e e t wide face t o face of curbs providing f o r th ree lanes of t r a f f i c a t major s t reet and commercial access dr ive in te rsec t ions i n order t o provide a lane f o r left-hand turning movements. There would be no on-street parking anywhere along the road. Where the turning lane is not needed two lanes of t r a f f i c would be provided, each lane c l e a r l y marked as t o i t s inner and outer l i nes so t h a t the s i x remaining f e e t of road pavement w i l l not be used f o r on- street parking. P - 3

-WEEE 10 -07 LuNG5-: I -Aa=.~TERSEGy\ON~. -1 4

150 FO3T ry(E/ --A

From u. S. Route 322 t o a poin t south of Iroquois Drive a swale drained, t w o lane improvement with 24 f e e t of pavement should suf f ice ; t h i s same type of improvement should su f f i ce north of Oakland Beach Road through the golf course land.

I

Where curbing is used the township should insure the' construction of a four foo t pedestr ian sidewalk which would be b u i l t only on the w e s t s i d e of the improved road from Oakland Beach Road t o U. S. Route 322 with painted crosswalks provided a t the Lakeside development area. The township should oversee the continuation of t h i s sidewalk from Iroquois Drive t o Conneaut Lake Borough. Map 4. de l inea tes this improvement.

The improvement of Route 18 t o the standards stated above re- f l e c t s its ac tua l use a s an urban street . I t i s the ''main street" f o r a l l of the development i n the east s ide community of the township, serving many res idents and businesses.

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1 I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I 1 I 1

I I 1 1 I 1 1 1 I I I 1 I I I 1 1 1 I

(18) Policy. To continue t o support the construction of a p a r t i a l bypass located south and w e s t of Conneaut Lake Borough; this .bypass would enable north-south t ra f f ic on Route 18 and east-west t r a f f i c on Route 285 and U. S. Route 6 t o make through connections without entering the Borough. A general- ized alignment f o r t h i s improvement i s shown on Map 11.

The Board of Township Supervisors f i r s t supported this improvement i n 1975. An improvement such as this would have t o be l i s t e d on the s ta te 's Twelve Y e a r Highway Program and gain a p r i o r i t y there i n order t o be scheduled f o r construction. because of a lack of money t o embark on pro jec ts involving the construction of new roads on new alignments. "Twelve Year Program!'.

This program is almost inac t ive current ly

This pro jec t is not now l i s t e d on the

(19) Policy. To continue t o manage township roads which are now surfaced with gravel and which t raverse the Agricultural Areas of the township as gravel roads i n order t o help insure t h a t these areas r e t a i n a r u r a l , ag r i cu l tu ra l character. L. R. 20009, which t raverses the Agricultural A r e a , as a gravel road. The roads affected by t h i s policy are shown on Map 11.

Also the township s h a l l encourage PennDOT t o continue t o maintain

I t is believed t h a t roads surfaced with bituminous pavement may serve t o a t t ract growth that is nonfarm i n i t s or ientat ion. of maintaining certain roads with a gravel surface can help preserve' the i n t e g r i t y of the Agricultural Areas.

An avowed pol icy

Project. The township supervisors should es tab l i sh an o f f i c i a l map, publicly posted on a display panel i n the township building, of the roads the township intends t o manage and maintain with gravel surf acing

(20) Policy. To work f o r the upgrading the loca l road system i n the Lake- s ide Residential Areas, by obtaining more adequate widths f o r the public road rights-of-way, by ensuring t h a t a l l roads have adequate o u t l e t s (which i n many cases w i l l require obtaining turnaround area right-of-way and con- s t ruc t ing adequate turnarounds), and by promoting bituminous pavement surfacing.

Project. The township supervisors should inform res idents i n areas where the road systems are substandard t h a t the township w i l l provide the technical ass i s tance t o help people organize and develop spec i f ic road improvement plans with the understanding t h a t t he residents s h a l l have t o assume the cos t of the ac tua l construction, which, when completed, would r e s u l t i n township acceptance of the improved road system f o r public maintenance. The residents should be informed of t h i s program through a formal proclamation of some type. p ro jec t i s associ,ated with a s i m i l a r p ro jec t l is ted under Storm Water Drainage on page 60.

This

(21 ) Policy. To designate and make the necessary improvements f o r a col- l ec to r road f o r t he r e s iden t i a l area on the e a s t s ide of Conneaut Lake i n order t h a t t r a f f i c may t raverse t h i s neighborhood from north t o south without having t o use the already overburdened Route 18 connection.

Project. To make the necessary right-of-way acquis i t ions and provide engineering plans i n order t o COnStruct, from township revenues,

57

a co l l ec to r road from Seneca Drive t o Oakland Beach Road on the alignment as shown on Map 4. This road should be improved so t h a t it provides a paved roadway of a minimum of 20 f e e t i n width, and s igns should be i n s t a l l e d t o denote i t s use as a co l l ec to r road f a c i l i t y .

I

58

I I I I I I I I

I I I I I i I

-- i

I I I 'I II

II I I I 1 I I I I I 1 I

~I

COMMUNITY FACILITIES PLAN, POLICIES AND PROJECTS

There are many f a c i l i t i e s and services which are necessary t o provide a good l i f e f o r township residents . the respons ib i l i ty of township government; i n ce r t a in instances it is opt ional as t o whether the township provides a i d f o r these services. Y e t a concern f o r , and pa r t i c ipa t ion i n , these service networks w i l l increase the a t t rac t iveness of Sads- bury Township a s a place of residence i n Crawford County.

The del ivery of some of these services is not d i r e c t l y

Township Property (22 ) of t he township affairs so that the services provided the publ ic can be de- l ivered more e f f i c i e n t l y and conveniently.

Policy. To improve the physical f a c i l i t i e s used f o r the administration

Project. To bui ld on the 1.3 acre s i te , where the ex i s t ing town- .'

sh ip building is located, a new township building which w i l l provide o f f i ces f o r township o f f i c i a l s and adequate meeting room space t o accommodate the t ransact ion of the publ ic ' s a f f a i r s . the new building w i l l include f a c i l i t i e s which the public believes are necessary a spec ia l advisory committee should be appointed t o serve as a vehicle t o r e f l e c t c i t i z e n viewpoints as the township supervisors plan the building program.

In order t h a t

The exis t ing township building is a converted s t ruc ture and is awkward t o use f o r the t ransact ion of public business. Arrange-

. ments f o r vehicular parking are not convenient.

(23) j o in t ly providing supplemental pol ice protect ion t o township residents .

Policy. To continue par t ic ipa t ing with the Borough of Conneaut Lake i n

Fire Protection (24) To con,tinue providing f inanc ia l a i d t o the f i r e companies which serve the township; however, the number of the companies supported by the township has grown t o three, and it is doubtful t h a t much ex t ra service is obtained under t h i s arrangement. Conneaut Lake Borough company should be ended.

Policy.

Financial support t o the

Library Service (25) the operation of the Shontz Library i n Conneaut Lake Borough.

Policy. To continue t o support, with an annual contr ibut ion of funds,

Recreation ( 2 6 ) Policy. recreat ion programs and f a c i l i t i e s i n the township i n order t o improve l e i s u r e t i m e a c t i v i t i e s fo r the permanent res idents and to strengthen the a t t r a c t i o n of the Conneaut Lake Area f o r t o u r i s t s .

To continue t o provide leadership and f inanc ia l support f o r

Project. To loca te and purchase a s i t e f o r the eventual construction of recreat ion f a c i l i t i e s i n the Suburban Residential A r e a on the east s ide of t he lake. One need t h a t should be answered i n the s i t e development is the i n s t a l l a t i o n of tennis courts. Both seasonal and permanent res idents should have access t o these tennis courts .

Project. The Sadsbury Township Planning Commission should appoint from i t s membership two persons t o confer and work with other organiza- t i ons i n the township on the matter of weed control f o r Conneaut Lake.

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One of these persons would be designated as the Commission's l i a i s o n person on the weed control i s sue ; the other person would be the l i a i s o n ' s a l te rna te . These persons s h a l l study the i ssue of weed control and make recommendations t o the Commission i n an appropriate time. The matter of an e f fec t ive and environmentally sound method of weed control on Conneaut Lake is important and de- serves carefu l a t t en t ion from the planning commission.

Project. To declare publicly support of the object ives of the Con- neaut Lake Area Business Association and work with t h i s organization i n i t s e f f o r t s t o strengthen the economy of the Conneaut Lake A r e a .

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I I I I (27) Policy. To u t i l i z e the provisions of the subdivision ordinance t o

acquire parce ls of land f o r public park and recreat ion use where la rge , high

I densi ty subdivisions are planned i n t h e Lakeside and Suburban Residential Areas. t o maintain parcels of land dedicated f o r public recreat ion o r these recrea- t i o n and Dark areas would have t o be maintained by homeowners' associat ions.

In implementing t h i s policy the township would need t o be prepared

Sewerage (28) To open up more d i r e c t communications with the Conneaut Lake J o i n t Municipal Sewer Authority so that the Authority knows where the townsh ip is encouraging growth which w i l l be dependant on s e w e r service.

Project. To request with a formal communication t h a t the Conneaut Lake J o i n t Municipal Sewer Authority e s t ab l i sh a wr i t ten policy on the process t o be used t o handle s e w e r extensions by pr iva te developers. Pr iva te sec to r financing is l i k e l y t o be the only way fu ture sewer extensions i n t o the Suburban Residential Areas w i l l take place.

Policy.

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Water Supply (29) To encourage the i n s t a l l a t i o n of public w a t e r supply systems t o serv ice more development i n the Lakeside and Suburban Residential Areas.

Project. To appoint a spec ia l advisory committee of community leaders and businessmen t o study the issues regarding the establishment of common w a t e r supply systems f o r unserved areas of high densi ty populations. The f e a s i b i l i t y of the public purchase of t he ex i s t ing p r iva t e w a t e r supply system should be included i n the work of t h i s advisory committee.

Policy.

Storm Water Drainage (30) Policy. To work t o solve ex i s t ing storm w a t e r drainage problems par- t i c u l a r l y i n the Lakeside and Suburban Resident ia l Areas through t h e establishment of par tnerships with neighborhood organizations where the affected property owners share the program expense with township government.

Project. The township supervisors should aff i rm t h a t general fund monies cannot be spent t o r e c t i f y basic def ic iencies i n the storm I drainage systems t h a t w e r e constructed when o r ig ina l development occurred. But where neighborhood groups are in te res ted the townsh ip w i l l (1) r e t a i n someone t o a s s i s t t he neighborhood i n organizing an act ion committee, (2) r e t a i n engineering and l ega l ass i s tance i n designing and "costing out'' a storm water management improvement plan f o r the neighborhood, and ( 3 ) l e t a cont rac t f o r the construction of the improvement providing the neighborhood res idents agree t o pay

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construction costs .

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Project. The township supervisors should request the Board of County Commissioners t o p e t i t i o n the state (PennDER) t o give p r i o r i t y s t a t u s and t o a l loca t e funds i n order t h a t a storm water management plan can be started i n the Conneaut Outlet Watershed based on the provisions of the Pennsylvania Storm Water Management A c t of 1979.

Community And Economic Development (31) Policy. The township should use regional and county government t o assist it i n obtaining grants and in providing technical ass is tance t o carry out economic and community development a c t i v i t i e s .

Project. The township supervisors should request .the Board of County Commissioners t o organize and s t a f f a county redevelopment authori ty i n order t o assist the township (and other townships and boroughs i n Crawford County) i n submitting f o r community development funding from the state and federa l governments.

Project. development of i n d u s t r i a l sites from the Board of County C o d s s i o n e r s , or any o ther organization designated by the Commissioners t o promote economic development a c t i v i t i e s . The county commissioners current ly assist i n promoting tourism, but very l i t t l e has been done f o r t he county's townships and boroughs i n the area of i n d u s t r i a l development.

The township supervisors should reques,t ass i s tance i n the

Public Schools (32) Policy. Where new o r expanded public school f a c i l i t i e s are needed i n the Conneaut Lake attendance a rea , t o urge t h a t these f a c i l i t i e s be located i n , o r c lose t o , established centers of sett lement so t h a t t hey . a re convenient t o the publ ic which uses them.

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PROJECTS SUMMARY AND PRIORITIZATION

I I I I

So t h a t the township w i l l be c l ea r ly aware of the "calls t o act ion" recommended i n t h i s plan, t h i s sect ion summarizes the pro jec ts se t f o r t h i n the preceeding pages and sets a p r i o r i t y ranking f o r these projects . The p r i o r i t y is represented by the number introducing the project . be considered a rb i t r a ry ; a c t i v i t i e s could occur out of the sequence establ ished here. Pr ior i t ies do, however, provide a guide t o the r e l a t i v e timing of a c t i v i t i e s . So t h a t the pro jec ts are r e l a t ed t o the po l i c i e s t h a t they s t e m from, the policy number i s given also.

The p r i o r i t i e s assigned should not

. 1. To re-evaluate the township's zoning ordinance and adopt a revised ordinance based on the object ives and po l i c i e s i n t h i s comprehensive plan. (Policy 14)

2. To request , by l e t t e r and plan maps, of the Crawford County Planning Commission and PennDOT t h a t Route 18 from U. S. Route 322 t o Route 618 be scheduled soon f o r reconstruction with improvements t h a t recognize i t s use a s an urban-type street. (Policy 1 7 )

I I I I I I I I

3. To formally proclaim t o t h e public t h a t a l l l oca l roads which are not i n the township-maintained road system w i l l be accepted i n t o this sys- t e m i f t he cos t of t h e i r upgrading is born by abut t ing property owners. The Board of Township Supervisors would provide technical advice t o neighborhood groups who decide t o organize t o accomplish t h i s object ive; the Board would be responsible for drawing the improvements plans and supervising the construction which would qua l i fy the roads f o r acceptance i n t o the township system. Construction costs s h a l l be paid by the residents. (Policy 20)

4. The Board of Township Supervisors should aff i rm t h a t general fund monies cannot be spent t o r e c t i f y basic c i f i c i enc ie s i n storm drainage systems t h a t w e r e b u i l t inadequately a t t he t i m e of o r ig ina l subdivision. How- ever, where neighborhood groups are in te res ted the Board would (1) re- t a i n someone t o assist the neighborhood i n organizing an ac t ion committee, ( 2 ) r e t a i n engineering and l e g a l ass i s tance i n designing and "costing out" a storm w a t e r improvements plan, and (3) l e t a contract f o r t he construction of the improvements, providing the neighborhood res idents agree t o pay construction cos ts . T h i s a c t i v i t y can, and of ten would be, coupled with P r io r i ty 3. (Policy 30)

5. The Board of Township Supervisors should formally request t h a t the Board of County Commissioners organize a county redevelopment au thor i ty and assist the township (and o ther townships and the boroughs throughout Crawford County) i n submitting f o r community development funding from the state and federa l governments. (Policy 31)

I I I

6. To appoint a special advisory committee t o study the i ssues regarding the establishment of common w a t e r supply systems f o r the unserved areas of high density populations and t o study the f e a s i b i l i t y of the public purchase of ex is t ing p r iva t e water supply systems. (Policy 29)

7. The township supervisors should e s t ab l i sh an o f f i c i a l map, publ ic ly , . posted on a display panel i n the township building, of the roads the

township intends t o manage and maintain with gravel surfacing. (Policy 19)

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8. The township supervisors should request with a formal communication t h a t the Conneaut Lake J o i n t Municipal Sewer Authority e s t ab l i sh a wr i t ten policy on the process t o be used t o handle s e w e r extensions by pr iva te developers. (Policy 28)

9. The planning commission should appoint from i ts membership two persons t o confer and work with other organizations i n the township on the matter of weed control f o r Conneaut Lake. (Policy 26)

10. To publ ic ly declare support of the object ives of the Conneaut Lake Area Business Association and work with t h i s organization i n i ts e f f o r t s t o strengthen the economy of the Conneaut Lake Area. (Policy 26)

11. To bui ld on the 1.3 acre s i te , where the ex is t ing township building is located, a new township building which w i l l provide o f f i ces f o r township o f f i c i a l s and adequate meeting room space t o accommodate the t ransact ion of the publ ic ' s a f f a i r s . (Policy 22)

12 . To loca te and purchase a s i t e f o r t he construction of recreat ion fa- c i l i t i e s i n the Suburban Residential Area on the east s ide of the Lake and t o develop a s i t e plan f o r the improvements t o t h i s s i te . (Policy 26 1

13. The Board of Township Supervisors should make the necessary right-of-way acquis i t ions and provide engineering plans i n order t o construct , from township revenues, a co l lec tor road from Seneca Drive t o Oakland Beach Road on the alignment as shown on Map 4. i n t h i s plan report . (Policy 21)

14. To p e t i t i o n PennDOT t o r ed i r ec t intercounty t r a f f i c current ly on Route 18 t o Route 618, understanding t h a t t h i s would mean route number changes on the posted s igns and on the o f f i c i a l s t a t e maps. (Policy 16)

15. To work with the Crawford County Planning Commission and the Board of County Commissioners pe t i t ion ing the s t a t e and federa l highway au tho r i t i e s t o upgrade the c l a s s i f i ca t ion of U. S . Route 6 from Conneaut Lake Borough w e s t t o the Ohio boundary from a major co l lec tor road t o a minor a r t e r i a l highway. (Policy 16)

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16. The Board of Township Supervisors should request the Board of County Com- missioners t o p e t i t i o n the s ta te (PennDER) t o give p r i o r i t y s t a t u s and t o a l loca t e funds i n order t h a t a storm w a t e r management plan can be i n i t i a t e d i n the Conneaut Outlet Watershed based on the provisions of the Pennsylvania Storm Water Management A c t of 1979. (Policy 30)

17. To request ass i s tance from the Board of County Commissioners i n sponsor- ing, d i r ec t ly o r i nd i r ec t ly , economic development a c t i v i t i e s f o r muni- c i p a l i t i e s i n the county in te res ted i n promoting such a c t i v i t i e s . (Policy 31)

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THE REAL MEANING OF THIS PLAN

L e t it be sa id t h a t the real meaning of t h i s plan is t h a t it is p a r t of a con- t inuing process of looking cr i t ical ly a t community issues i n Sadsbury Township and, from Lle f a c t s a s they can be bes t determined, char t ing courses of act ion t o improve the general welfare of t he township. This w a s done i n 1967; it has now been done again. t o Sadsbury Township. e f f o r t s has been with land development issues; - the physical environment is always the cen t r a l concern f o r community planning endeavors. are a l l related t o socioeconomic conditions and therefore a comprehensive plan a l s o dea ls i n these conditions. In this plan repor t more could be done i f a l l of the 1980 U. S. Census information had been avai lable . I t w a s not. More can be done on socioeconomic conditions when these data are avai lable .

W e are developing a body of information and policy per t inent There i s no question t h a t the main focus of our planning

But land development i ssues

The w r i t e r s of t h i s plan bel ieve t h a t t h i s repor t comes t o g r i p with many important i s s u e s a f fec t ing the people of Sadsbury Township. This plan has staked out mean- ingfu l courses of act ion r e l a t i v e t o these issues . Y e t it is rea l ized more can be done, and the planning commission and the township supervisors should add as they can, as fu tu re events unfold, t o the policy making and pro jec t i den t i f i ca t ion fixed i n t h i s document.

It is hoped t h a t the po l i c i e s es tabl ished i n t h i s repor t w i l l be read of ten and used. as the y e T s pass, they cease t o have meaning they should be changed so they do have meanbg, o r they should be voided. worked on t h i s comprehensive plan i s t o see it being used.

They represent the m o s t important "output" of t h i s comprehensive plan. I f ,

The m o s t important regard f o r those who

.

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PROPERTY LINE BASE MAP SADSBURY TOWNSHIP CRAWFORD COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA 1 SCALE I" = 1000' -oo

M A R C H , I O B O

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