Huntington Township hears rezoning request for 180 South Bridal Road amid runoff, traffic and policing concerns

HUNTINGTON TOWNSHIP — Supervisors held a public hearing on a request to change the zoning of a 4.7-acre parcel at 180 South Bridal Road (Parcel 22I005-0038) from Agricultural Conservation District to Commercial Industrial District after an application by J. "Jay" Weaver.

Weaver, the applicant, told supervisors he intends to locate a small complex of ballfields, with parking at the front, a walk to four fields in the rear, and a central shed for concessions and equipment. "This is only for seasonal," Weaver said, describing use in spring, summer and fall, and adding that the plan is for travel-team practices and occasional tournaments. He told the board the township planning commission had "unanimously supported" rezoning the roughly 104-acre tract at its earlier meeting.

The hearing focused less on Weaver’s stated immediate plans than on how rezoning could change long-term uses. "If it's changed to commercial industrial, then basically anything that's allowed in the commercial Industrial District would be allowed to be done on this property," a supervisor said during the meeting, stressing that rezoning broadens permitted uses under the township ordinance.

Residents raised a range of site-specific concerns. Several neighbors described existing drainage patterns they said carry runoff from the subject property into nearby ditches, culverts and private fields. "I have a ditch from Wireman's Mill Road the whole way down between those two fields," said Steve Hastings, who described recurring wet conditions on his land. Neighbors said prior work — including a retaining pond installed for another house — already altered local flows; some offered to show township staff footage and photographs of standing water.

Township officials and planning staff noted that any development requiring ground disturbance would be subject to stormwater management regulations. "If they change the zoning and they put in something, they're gonna have to comply with stormwater management," the chair said, indicating that subsequent permitting steps would dictate drainage controls.

Traffic and road maintenance were recurring themes. Residents said South Ridge Road and the intersection with Wireman's Mill Road are narrow and have been damaged by large vehicles; they questioned who would pay for road repairs if tournaments or future commercial operations increased heavy truck traffic. "Who's gonna put the — who's gonna pay to redo the roads?" one neighbor asked.

Neighbors also worried rezoning the entire parcel could open the property to warehousing, trucking or other heavier commercial uses in the future. "If this whole property is zoned commercial industrial, that's gonna change the whole feel of that community," a resident said, adding concerns about property values and the rural character of the area. Some speakers urged limiting rezoning to only the acreage needed for fields; township staff said sports complexes must be within the Commercial Industrial District but did not definitively resolve whether only a portion could be rezoned at this stage.

Other questions included hours of operation, lighting and parking capacity for tournaments. One resident estimated that four active fields could generate dozens of vehicles at peak times and said adjacent yards had seen overflow parking and crowding at other tournament venues.

Several speakers also raised public-safety concerns tied to policing and emergency response. Huntington Township relies on Pennsylvania State Police coverage from Gettysburg for law enforcement, and residents said response times in past incidents have been slow. "Who’s gonna patrol it? And pay for it?" one resident asked.

Township staff and residents referenced existing regulations: the board noted a commercial-sports-complex ordinance and reiterated that a zoning-map amendment requires a drawn plan and subsequent county and township reviews. The chair explained this hearing was an initial step: the supervisors can request an ordinance to change the zoning map, submit it for county and township planning review and, at a later public meeting, adopt or reject the change.

No vote took place. After ending the public-comment portion and closing the stenographic record, supervisors said they would hold a brief executive session and then place the item on the agenda for the next regular public meeting (scheduled for August 8) for further consideration.