JACKSON TWP — “Another Cranberry” is what some residents are calling the township nowadays.

The backhoes, leveled land and incomplete structures between Route 19 and Interstate 79 serve as a crystal ball to the township's future.

The township's draft comprehensive plan released in May details just how much growth township residents will see in the next eight years.

“Developers have increasingly recognized the convenient location of the township and its accessibility to Cranberry, the North Hills and downtown Pittsburgh,” said township manager Chris Rearick.

Despite developments being built along Route 19, Route 528 and near Little Creek Road, the comprehensive plan “encourages greater density in key areas, along with buffering of proposed uses and preservation of open space in areas surrounding and beyond those key corridors.”

Rearick said while residents expressed an appreciation for the township's “small-town character” in the comprehensive planning process, they also expressed a desire for more recreational opportunities and business services such as restaurants and a grocery store.

Development growth

The growth in developments in the township can be attributed to its closeness to major highways and changes in the township's ordinances from five years ago.

Don Rodgers, a developer from Creative Real Estate Development, said he first started buying properties in Jackson and Lancaster Townships in the mid-'90s because ramps connecting I-79 and Little Creek Road near Seneca Valley High School were being built.

“It takes me nine minutes and 39 seconds to get from my sites to Route 228, which is faster than 95 percent of the residents in Cranberry Township,” he said. “That's why you're seeing development along the I-79 corridor in Jackson Township and Lancaster Township, because of drive time and cost.”

He also said the area costs less to develop than in Cranberry Township.

Former township supervisor Ron Lutz, who served on the board of supervisors from 2010 to late 2016, said the previous ordinances were too restrictive for companies to develop businesses on. He said the ordinances served to protect farmland and rural areas.

The township was founded as an agricultural community in 1854.

“That may have been good in intention, except the reality was economically, farming was leaving here anyway,” said Lutz. “They were trying to protect something that was going away.”

Lutz said property owners should be able to control their properties along with owning them.

Rodgers said working with the current board of supervisors has made it easier to have development plans approved.

“They're more inclined to work with property owners,” he said. “It's much easier to work in Jackson Township and Lancaster Township than any other communities in the north.”

Growth accelerates

Lutz said growth signals came from developers such as the Buncher Co. buying speculation properties in the township starting in 2007.

These are properties without a particular buyer in mind, but designed to appeal to the maximum market possible.

“Buncher was willing to take the risk to speculate that they could make development work here,” he said. “They had vision.”

Lutz made the motion as a supervisor in 2010 to make changes in ordinances to better suit the company. The vote passed 2-1.

Rearick, who was hired in 2011, spent most of his time researching possible changes in ordinances. The changes took place after a vote by the supervisors in 2012.

“The board (of supervisors) indicated an overall need to update its ordinances to reflect current and emerging market demands, recognizing that the township is in the path of growth,” Rearick said.

“The board recognized that the township would be impacted by surrounding growth via increased traffic on its roads and related police service, and sought to accommodate manageable growth as a means of expanding the township's tax base and improving its existing infrastructure,” Rearick said.

From there, word got out about the township's new mentality toward developers.

Sippel Development and Rodgers soon began developing or planning on developing more properties. Sippel Development leases the land that now has a FedEx distribution center which opened in 2016, and other businesses.

Plunkett Motor Freight Rentals is also working on a 42-acre development between Route 528, I-79 and FedEx that is planned to have a hotel, restaurant, convenience store and a flexible-use building.

“Once we decreased regulations, it was natural for people to gravitate here,” Lutz said.

Population growth

The township's total population is expected to increase as well. The population, according to the comprehensive plan, was 3,637 in 2010. By 2020, that number is expected to rise to 5,362, and if the township's rate of growth continues, by 2025, to 6,602.

Patio homes and low-maintenance, condominium-style housing are likely to intensify during the next five years, according to the comprehensive plan. More single-family homes and rental housing are also listed as potential future trends for the township.

Growth in recreation

The township, in anticipation of the impending population growth, has also been working on increasing recreation in the area.

Officials recently entered into an agreement with adjacent Zelienople to develop soccer fields, a loop trail, picnic and play areas, and parking at the old borough reservoir, a nearly 24-acre property.

The reservoir basin closest to the Connoquenessing Creek is also planned to be developed as a fishing pond enhanced with plantings.

The township has committed to an annual contribution of $38,750 for four years to the Zelienople Community Park, totaling $155,000. Township residents receive lower membership prices for the park's pool and pavilion rentals.

Harmony may also be included in the agreement in the near future.

The township also plans on working with the Seneca Valley School District for shared resources.

Officials are also in the planning stages of a regional trail system for walkers and bicyclists. The trail would spread across Evans City, Seneca Valley Middle and High Schools, Zelienople, Harmony and the I-79 corridor.

Adjusting for growth

The township has begun taking steps to accommodate growth.

Jackson Township has made adjustments to its local and state roads in recent years, changing speed limits and adding more traffic signals.

Rodgers is working with the state Department of Transportation to install two traffic signals and a roundabout near Little Creek Road and Route 19 for a retail development he plans to build in that area.

“They are going to experience significant growth because of drive time and easy accessibility to Route 228 and the city of Pittsburgh,” Rodgers said. “The infrastructure for Jackson Township will be good for many years.”

A five-way traffic signal installation is being built on Route 19 at its intersection with Fanker Road, Wise Road and Mennonite Lane, and a traffic signal is being built on Route 19 at its intersection with Tollgate School and Gudekunst roads.

Rearick said road improvements have been bolstered by an increased tax base, grants and gas well impact fees, as well as enhancements driven by developers and the gas industry mitigated roads.

However, officials don't agree with calling the township “another Cranberry.”

“We don't have the same terrain as Cranberry,” Lutz said. “We have so much more hilly terrain and commercial businesses generally can't produce enough revenue and profits to justify excavating all that soil.”

“The dynamics of the property owners change all the time,” he said. “You don't know what the next generation is going to see it like.”

Rearick said the township's developments serve more as “a complement” to the more intensive retail and office use seen in Cranberry Township. He also said residential growth patterns are in part guided by the constraints of the township's topography and buffered by connected open spaces.