JACKSON TWP — Supervisors adopted a complete overhaul of the previous zoning ordinance at Thursday night's township meeting.

Chris Rearick, township manager, said there were two major changes between the ordinances.

“The overall zoning map and much of the structure of the prior ordinance remains in place,” Rearick said.

Rearick said changes made in the corridors of the township, particularly on Route 19, include a mixed-use district. The purpose of this district is to reserve additional land for local services, such as restaurants, retail, smaller medical offices and facilities geared toward recreational needs of residents and children.

The township has witnessed success in similar changes in the past, Rearick said.

“The township had some concerns that, throughout the comprehensive planning process, residents expressed the need for more local services, including restaurants and grocery stores,” he said. “The new ordinance allows for relatively smaller commercial uses to serve the economy.”

This plan doesn't include an expansion of commercial areas, but allows areas that were previously zoned highway commercial to be used for commercial services rather than just as commercial corridors.

The zoning ordinance is the combination of about two years of work by the planning commission, said Rearick.

The planning commission's goal in updating zoning ordinances was to work toward developing the 2017 comprehensive plan of the township's goals.

“The township's last comprehensive plan was adopted in the 1990s, so we were overdue in terms of developing a plan,” Rearick said.

For residential zoning and density, the overall density and lot sizes were decreased in much, but not all, of the township, and residential development may be permitted with smaller lots now.

The development on Tollgate School Road, for example, was a primary residential collector road, and that development is encouraged, Rearick said.

However, for other roads that might not have public utilities or require additional improvements, the density was changed from a base density of one acre — and a half-acre with public utilities — to a strict 1.5 acres instead of decreasing as in certain districts.

“The changes also provided for the ability for multifamily or townhouse developments on the township's main roads,” Rearick said. “In a sense, the township is providing for a variety of housing types and needs.”

Rearick said the goal here was to shift to the township's main corridors and decrease development on more rural areas of the township, which they want to preserve.