Study touts growth
CRANBERRY TWP — An above-average population growth rate, more significant income bumps, a low unemployment rate and $30 billion added to the economy by businesses along the Route 228 corridor.
Those were the accomplishments touted by Mark Gordon — county chief of economic development and planning — of Adams, Cranberry and Jackson Townships plus Seven Fields at Wednesday's “Intersection of Progress” event at the Regional Learning Alliance.
The event, hosted by the Butler County Chamber of Commerce, explored the progress along Routes 19 and 228 in terms of economic development. That development, in the form of residential and commercial construction and infrastructure upgrades, makes southern Butler County a good place to live and work, Gordon said.
“On average, we have a really good thing going here,” he said.
One of the most apparent areas in which the southwest corner has developed is in its ever-increasing population.Between 2010 and 2018, data from the U.S. Census Bureau indicates, the four municipalities have added nearly 6,000 residents, an increase of more than 750 residents annually. To house that increased population requires a corresponding increase in residential units.The municipalities responded to that need through permits for more housing units, with more than 19,500 units being filled by 2018, according to American Community Survey five-year estimates released by the census bureau. That's an increase of about 3,000 units in eight years, or about 375 per annum.Much of the increase at the beginning of the decade was in Adams and Cranberry townships, Jackson Township manager Chris Rearick said. Yet, as the decade progressed, the surrounding areas — including Jackson — began to see more growth.“As that (development) began to pick up, the realization came that Jackson Township is close to Cranberry and close to the North Hills,” Rearick said. “And I think that change in perception has resulted in an exponential increase in development.”Rearick also said that because much of the development in the township came in the latter half of the decade, the population is between 4,500 and 5,000 people, rather than the less than 4,000 the census bureau estimates.Some of the growth in Jackson's development also might have stemmed from the growth slowdown in Adams Township. In 2018, 55 housing units were built; that shrunk to 39 in 2019, said Gary Peaco, township manager. Those two are much lower than the 150 to 200 units per year the township saw previously.Peaco said much of that slowdown had to do with Adams Township's moratorium on planned residential developments. He added there is not a lot of land for sale, as some landowners in the township would prefer to keep their property for farming.“We're kind of glad that people still want to farm, because we're losing so many farms,” Peaco said. “It's an interesting dynamic.”The increased growth in other areas also doesn't mean Cranberry is done growing, said Dan Santoro, Cranberry's deputy township manager.“When people drive through Cranberry Township, they often think, 'Wow, it's pretty built-out. Is there any land left to develop?' ” Santoro said. “And certainly there is.”
Municipalities such as Cranberry now think of ways to integrate commercial aspects into residential developments to create a more “authentic” neighborhood feel, Santoro said. He said the Meeder development is a prime example of mixed-use development in which people may not have to drive to get to commercial amenities.“So, you'll be able to walk to a little Main Street and a downtown and an authentic place and get a beer and, hopefully, a coffee and, you know, do some other things and get outside,” Santoro said.Boroughs such as Seven Fields have a disadvantage in development, borough manager Tom Smith said, because they're often one square mile, rather than Cranberry's 23 square miles. That's where mixed-use developments come in handy. The Enclave at Highpointe is one such development, he said.“We're very excited with that type of development because ... Butler County is seeing a different demographic where we have empty nesters (and) millennials (who) don't want the traditional housing,” Smith said. “They want to be able to come out of their household and go to the local Giant Eagle, to the spa or wherever.”In Jackson Township, commercial development is keeping course with what has been successful there. Transportation companies, for example, have tended to have success in the township, Rearick said, making it no surprise that FedEx would have its base on Route 528 in Jackson.
Rearick added that Jackson has been able to leverage its growth in developments to improve infrastructure.Funds from the FedEx campus, for example, helped pay for improvements to the intersection of Route 528, Jo Deener Drive and Tomlinson Drive, which Rearick said was previously a substandard junction, with Jo Deener Drive connecting at a poor angle.In Adams Township, planners were able to do the same thing with their commercial developments. Along Route 228, Peaco said, developers agreed to grant the township an additional 40 feet of right of way, which Adams then used as in-kind contributions to state and federal grants to improve the arterial road.Cranberry has similarly improved its infrastructure with the aid of development. The MSA Thruway, for example, will be the product of a public-private partnership with MSA, whose corporate center is in Cranberry Woods, and state and federal grant money, Santoro said. That project will use no municipal tax dollars, he added.And in Seven Fields, expanding Route 228 remains a priority. In the borough, the artery remains a two-lane road.“Now, more than ever, we're optimistic that it'll happen in 2022 with a completion in 2025,” Smith said.
