[Ord. 790, 12/8/1971, Section 1]
The features of nature within the Municipality are among its
most important assets. Those natural features, along with individual
initiative and creativity of the members of the private and public
sector who have developed the man-made features, give State College
Borough its present character. Therefore, the overall community planning
goal is to preserve the good, remove the ugly, and enhance the present
natural features through sensitive physical development of both the
private and public sector. It is this basic goal that the following
community goals should achieve.
[Ord. 790, 12/8/1971, Section 1]
a.
Goals.
(1)
The central business district should be protected and strengthened
by creating a focal point of the community, rich in a variety of commercial,
cultural, business and governmental facilities as well as being endowed
with a pleasing physical environment.
(2)
The provision of an adequate distribution of goods and services in
attractive locations, which will be convenient to the population and
compatible with surrounding land uses should be encouraged.
b.
Policies.
(1)
To areas outside the central business district, encourage attractiveness
of design through the use of adequate setbacks, adequate landscaping
and adequate buffers with residential areas.
(2)
To protect and encourage the improvement of viable planned shopping
centers in accordance with other stated goals and policies.
(3)
To enhance safety of all commercial areas through the provision of:
controlled vehicular access to establishments, well-designed wide
landscaped separations of adequate widths between streets and parking
lots, vehicle and pedestrian separation which avoid large unbroken
expanses of parking lots.
(4)
To create pedestrian malls where appropriate in the downtown area.
(5)
To develop a functional design concept which will permit ease of
pedestrian movements between parking areas and business locations,
and between high-density areas and to central business district.
(6)
To encourage attractiveness of both public and private property by
coordinating themes for signs, streetlighting and planting materials.
[Ord. 790, 12/8/1971]
Adequate distribution of varied types of educational facilities
should be provided in a manner that will offer maximum safety and
convenience to students.
[Ord. 790, 12/8/1971, Section 1]
a.
Goals.
Encourage that the physical development of the natural environment
be based on sound ecological principles that will provide for a livable
and enjoyable urban setting which preserves and complements the natural
setting for existing and future generations.
b.
Policies.
(1)
To promote and encourage good design of buildings and landscaping.
(2)
To protect the beauty of the town and countryside.
(3)
To discourage unplanned changes in land contours which might interfere
with proper natural drainage, create unstable topographic conditions
or damage natural amenities.
(4)
To encourage, insofar as possible, retention of the natural environment
for the enjoyment of community residents and visitors.
(5)
To seek means of suppressing pollution of air and water and the improper
disposition of litter and solid wastes.
(6)
To encourage careful design of necessary commercial and municipal
services such as signs, utility lines, roads, etc., so that they do
not damage the beauty and livability of the community.
(7)
To encourage citizen efforts to make the community more attractive
and livable.
(8)
To encourage cooperation between the Borough and nearby municipalities
in the protection and improvement of environment quality.
(9)
To seek means of defining and suppressing unwanted noise pollution.
[Ord. 790, 12/8/1971, Section 1]
a.
Goals.
Sites for light industrial development conveniently accessible to
living areas where site development and performance standards are
applied to minimize external effects of the use will not adversely
affect surrounding areas should be provided.
[Ord. 790, 12/8/1971, Section 1]
a.
Goals.
A wide variety of well-designed recreation facilities in carefully-selected
areas should be provided to meet the needs and desires of all age
groups for passive and active recreation, in locations which will
promote safety and convenient accessibility for participants.
b.
Policies.
(1)
To provide a recreational activity cluster network which will satisfy
the recreational/leisure time needs of all residents of the community.
(2)
To develop a linear recreation and open space system whose primary
function would be to act as a connector to link together recreation
activity clusters, to link residential areas to these clusters, and
to link residential areas to employment areas, with a primary emphasis
on pedestrian and bike traffic.
(3)
To develop a mini-activity system to accommodate both residents and
pedestrians in older highly-developed urban areas, which will provide
relief from high-density residential/commercial development.
(4)
To protect steeply sloping lands adjacent to stream valleys and drainage
ways, or elsewhere, where they contain natural interest features,
or where they are subject to erosion problems.
(5)
To protect the natural amenities of valley lands within the municipal
limits and to encourage similar action in adjoining townships.
(6)
To consider, for adoption, the Centre Regional Recreation and Open
Space Plan in general and, specifically, those portions relating to
the Municipality; and work in close cooperation with the State College
Area School District, the State College Area Parks and Recreation
Board and the other municipalities of the Centre Region in implementing
the various elements of the Regional Plan.
[Ord. 790, 12/8/1971, Section 1]
a.
Goals.
A high level of service and a safe, efficient, economic and convenient
location for local governmental services of utilities, administration,
police and fire protection, library cemeteries, civic centers and
other facilities and services should be provided to the citizenry.
[Ord. 790, 12/8/1971, Section 1]
a.
Goals.
Sites for churches, clubs, fraternal organizations and others with
convenient accessibility for the people using such facilities should
be provided and encouraged.
[Ord. 790, 12/8/1971, Section 1]
a.
Goals.
The Municipality should be recognized as a social and economic part
of the Centre Region. The physical development of the Municipality
does have an effect on the Centre Region. Therefore, mutual cooperation
and understanding of municipalities in the Centre Region is desirable
for planning and problem-solving, in order that the maximum social
and economic benefits may be derived by all residents in every municipality
of the Centre Region.
[Ord. 790, 12/8/1971, Section 1]
a.
Goals.
(1)
Opportunities for a variety of housing choices in locations, types
and cost within living environments that offer maximum amenities of
safety, quietness, convenience, economy and freedom of blight should
be offered to the citizenry.
(2)
The high quality of existing housing should be maintained.
(3)
The character of older, sound residential neighborhoods, which lie
within close proximity to the University should be preserved.
b.
Policies.
(1)
To encourage dwellings ranging from single-family to high-density
apartments, which will be designed in harmony with their surroundings.
(2)
To provide for high density, quality development in appropriate older
sections of the Municipality where general property deterioration
and proximity to downtown and campus plus existing land use are influential
factors.
(3)
To separate residential areas from inharmonious land uses by utilizing
major streets, topographical features, open space and screening as
transition areas, as well as the judicious use of building heights
and building orientation.
(4)
To provide adequate opportunity for private landowners to create
interesting, more livable housing projects.
(5)
To investigate ways of providing housing for elderly persons and
lower income groups.
(6)
To retain the fine character of the main fraternity district and
protect contiguous surrounding single-family areas as well as other
older single-family residences.
(7)
To continue improvements to public property such as streets, alleys,
sidewalks, parks, boulevards, etc.
(8)
To acquire land for recreational and open space purposes, where appropriate.
(9)
To confine high-density residential development to areas within easy
walking distance of the central business district, insofar as is possible,
in order to reduce vehicular traffic on municipal streets and to stimulate
commercial activities downtown.
(10)
To combine existing commercial uses with high-density residential
uses conducive to a good living environment.
[Ord. 790, 12/8/1971, Section 1]
a.
Goals.
A transportation network that will efficiently, rapidly and safely
move people and goods within and around the Municipality should be
provided in a manner as to enhance the environmental amenities.
b.
Policies.
(1)
To encourage the municipal transportation network with the regional
transportation network.
(2)
To provide for a balanced transportation system.
(3)
To prevent unnecessary congestion along any particular street or
set of streets through the coordination of land use and the proper
design of roadway facilities.
(4)
To protect the character of local residential streets through a system
of functional classification of streets.
(5)
To create a harmonious integration of main traffic routes and residential
land uses through screening, reverse lots, etc.
(6)
To encourage the use of inner and outer circumferential routes for
intra-regional travel.
(7)
To encourage the safe and efficient separation of pedestrian and
vehicular traffic to help reduce the conflict normally associated
with these two modes of transportation.
(8)
To work with other municipalities in establishing safe inter-connecting
bike routes within the Region.
(9)
To encourage the development of a coordinated plan for public mass
transportation for the Region and the University.
(10)
To discourage private driveways from connecting directly to major
roads where new development occurs and requiring safer, well-marked
entry ways where necessary.
(11)
To develop programs for removing paving from grassplots located within
public rights-of-way and replacing them with appropriate plantings
so as to create easily-identified driveways and more attractive roadways.
(12)
To work with other municipalities in the area to create uniformity
of and protection for highway design and function.
(13)
To encourage reverse frontages for new development, particularly
adjacent to State highways or existing municipal major streets.
(14)
To require that new subdivisions be served by interior collector
streets with access to major streets at controlled points.
(15)
To adopt an Official Map incorporating all existing and proposed
streets.
(16)
To seek the cooperation of the Pennsylvania State University to develop
a highway feeder and dispersal system which will not endanger the
privacy of, or overload neighborhood streets.
(17)
To control density of development so as not to place unnecessary
traffic on neighborhood streets or overtax any particular arterial
or collector streets.
(18)
To develop a street network which will: permit easier traffic circulation
within downtown; make downtown more accessible; and encourage through
traffic to by-pass down- town on one of the loop systems.
(19)
To protect the privacy of local residential streets through proper
subdivision design which will prevent traffic from using such streets
to supplement major streets.
