‘Creating the future’: How you can impact what gets built in York, Lancaster counties
Anyone who buys, sells or builds on property in this region needs to know what’s allowed on it. York and Lancaster counties, two of the faster growing spots in the region, are ready to update their visions of what should go where.
First, both want to hear from the public.
“It’s very important that we hear from our citizens and businesses — their thoughts, ideas and suggestions in updating our comprehensive plan,” said Diane Dil, York County planning manager.
Counties, cities and towns all have comprehensive plans. They typically run a decade or two before required updates, though municipalities can adjust them more often. Plans bring together community visions, goals and policies to enhance quality of life in an area. They consider proximity between homes and business, transportation and other factors.
York and Lancaster counties have ongoing updates. Chester County has a plan that runs through 2025.
A comprehensive (or comp) plan is a variable in land use decisions. It isn’t the only one.
Yet planning commissions and councils rely heavily on their comp plans. If a development project doesn’t fit it, decision-makers typically have to give a reason the project should move forward. If it fits the plan, often approvals become more formality.
“The comprehensive plan is the county’s road map to creating the future,” Dil said.
The first in a series of public engagement meetings for York County’s plan, York Forward, comes Tuesday. The Field Day Park event in Lake Wylie will be followed by community meetings at the York County Office Complex on Heckle Boulevard on Thursday, York County Government Center in York on Sept. 1.
All meetings will be held 5-7:30 p.m. An additional meeting likely will be set in the Fort Mill area.
Lancaster County has a similar process going on. The county held three public drop-in meetings this summer on Lancaster 2040, its comprehensive plan update. Four topic specific forums follow in September and October.
An agriculture and natural resources forum will be Sept. 8 in Kershaw. Economic development is the topic Sept. 29 in Lancaster. An Oct. 13 forum on land use and growth management comes to USC Lancaster, with forums ending Oct. 27 with a transportation focus at CrossRidge in Indian Land.
All forums begin at 6:30 p.m. For more details, visit lancaster2040.com.
Both York and Lancaster counties are leaders in the region for population and new business growth. York County had more than 282,000 residents in the 2020 Census, up 25% from the prior census. More than 56,000 new people in that decade is roughly the population of Summerville, the state’s seventh largest municipality.
U.S. Census Bureau estimates as of mid-2021 put York County at more than 288,000. An increase of 2% in the less than two years since the census.
Lancaster County had about 96,000 residents at the 2020 Census. Up from 76,000 people a decade earlier. Much of that growth has come in the Indian Land area. The mid-2021 estimate for Lancaster County is more than 100,000 residents.
This story was originally published August 22, 2022 at 2:10 PM.
