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Residents and alumni urge faster zoning rewrite to ease housing shortage; council urged to press timeline
Summary
Multiple residents and a Penn State alumnus told council during public hour that the borough's multi‑year zoning rewrite has dragged on, arguing faster action is needed to add housing and keep the university accessible and affordable.
Multiple speakers used the public hour at the May 12 council meeting to press the Borough Council to speed a long‑running zoning rewrite they say is needed to address workforce and student housing shortages.
Blake Harper, a landlord and member of the Zoning Rewrite Advisory Committee, called the process "eight years without much to show" and said repeated timeline changes and late announcements have undercut public trust. Harper urged council to "hit the gas pedal" and urged transparent scheduling.
Nick Rizzio, a Penn State alumnus and housing advocate calling in from Pittsburgh, said limited off‑campus housing threatens access to the university and described personal experience living on campus as essential to affording school. "In the time that this rewrite has dragged on, I applied to college, got into Penn State, got my diploma, got a job, moved to Pittsburgh," he said, urging council to complete the zoning rewrite.
Several councilors, including Councilor Herndon, who has repeatedly pushed for progress, acknowledged frustration with the pace. Herndon noted a long interval since the May joint council/planning commission meeting (he quantified delays in days during remarks) and reiterated that affordable housing remains a crisis for the borough.
Why it matters: Commenters said the code rewrite is central to broader efforts to expand housing supply near campus and in the borough; council has discussed zoning and timelines at multiple meetings and residents said recent schedule changes were announced too late in the meeting record for effective public engagement.
Context and council response
Council President and staff acknowledged the timing issues and said staff would continue coordination. Mayor Fontaine and staff previously released a timeline; commenters said several dates had slipped or been changed and wanted clearer advance notice and agenda placement for zoning items.
Ending
Speakers closed by reiterating a call for urgency and a request that council and staff prioritize zoning changes to increase housing supply.
