Crafton zoning update aims to streamline rules, encourage walkable mixed use neighborhoods

Jenny Easton, planning director at Pashuk MTR, gave a public presentation to Crafton residents describing a multi-year zoning ordinance update that the planning commission has recommended for approval.

Easton said the update reorganizes the borough code into a shorter, streamlined ordinance intended to implement the borough's 2017 Thrive Plan and to make it easier for small businesses and walkable, mixed‑use development to occur. "Zoning is just one part of the whole book of ordinances that Crafton Borough has adopted," Easton said, adding the update seeks to clarify what zoning covers and what it does not.

The draft ordinance consolidates standards into eight articles, adds a use table for quick reference, and reorganizes district rules. It would explicitly allow residential uses on upper floors of established commercial buildings in appropriate districts and make several administrative changes intended to reduce permitting friction for small projects, Easton said. The draft also preserves existing protections for…