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Staff outlines broader UDO review with consultant, public input and timeline
Summary
Planning staff told the board the town will hire a consultant to conduct a holistic review of the Unified Development Ordinance, with public input sessions planned and a phased timeline; staff flagged state law constraints (Bill 382) that may limit substantive changes in developed areas.
Planning staff updated the Town of Harrisburg Planning and Zoning Board on Jan. 21 about a forthcoming, broader review of the Unified Development Ordinance (UDO) that will be performed with an outside consultant and include public input sessions.
Staff said the consultant will review the entire UDO holistically and deliver chapter- and section-level recommendations. The board was told the consultant will likely visit for a two-day engagement, provide an overview and solicit feedback from board members and the public. Staff emphasized the work will include structural fixes (links, numbering, table corrections) and may also address substantive topics such as street standards, floodplain consistency and tree protection.
The staff presentation noted practical constraints. Planning staff cited a recently discussed state law, identified in the meeting as Bill 382, which limits local jurisdictions' ability to eliminate existing uses or reduce density without unanimous consent of property owners in a zoning class. Staff said that constraint particularly affects developed areas and could limit some substantive policy changes the town may consider.
Staff described an initial timeframe of several months for the first-phase corrections, and said more involved substantive work could extend the project. The board was told that the implementation will likely be phased if the scope proves larger than initially anticipated and that adopted code changes will be subjected to the same public-review and council-adoption process the town uses now.
Board members asked about whether the development regulations would remain in the town code (staff said yes but noted some technical standards might remain as referenced documents) and urged user-friendly numbering and labeling. Staff said floodplain ordinance consistency is important to maintain eligibility for flood insurance and that the street-standards update may be handled as a separate ordinance and then plugged into the UDO.
Staff committed to public input sessions and additional board engagement; no formal board action was taken on the item during the meeting.
