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Planning commission updates meeting procedures, deadlines and application checklist
Summary
The commission revised internal procedures — including naming the meeting the 'voting meeting,' clarifying chair responsibilities, endorsing a one-page application summary and tightening submission deadlines (staff suggested 4 p.m. electronic submissions the Wednesday before work sessions) — to reduce late materials and 90‑day exposure.
At the Jan. 12 session, the West Chester Planning Commission reviewed and approved a set of procedural edits intended to improve consistency, clarity and advance review of applications.
Commissioners agreed to standardize the meeting name to "voting meeting" across documents, add a secretary duty to prepare quarterly and annual planning commission reports, and clarify that the chair has authority to determine whether items appear on the agenda. The body also approved moving forward with a one-page application summary for every submission that lists location, submission date, applicant, recipients of the application and deadlines for the planning commission recommendation and borough council action.
Deadlines and statutory timing: Members debated the notice language and material-submission timing. The draft procedures originally included a 7-day meeting notice combined with a 4 p.m. Thursday material deadline; commissioners expressed that receiving substantive materials the Thursday before the voting meeting left insufficient review time and raised exposure under the statutory 90-day review clock. As a compromise, commissioners discussed and endorsed a consistent electronic-submission deadline (multiple speakers suggested 4 p.m. Wednesday before the work session) to provide two or three days of review time and reduce late, large submissions.
Submissions format: The commission agreed to prefer electronic submissions while retaining the requirement that applicants provide a paper copy when a large-format physical plan is necessary for on-site review. Chair and staff said hard-copy backups remain available for review appointments if members request them.
Vote and next steps: Commissioners moved to approve the procedural edits in the meeting (voice vote recorded). Staff were assigned to implement the changes to the procedure document and circulate the one-page application template to members.
