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The Pennsylvania Municipalities Planning Code (MPC), which establishes the framework for land use planning and regulation in Pennsylvania, defines a "County Comprehensive Plan" as "a land use and growth management plan prepared by the county planning commission and adopted by the county commissioners which establishes broad goals and criteria for municipalities to use in preparation of their comprehensive plan and land use regulation."

All comprehensive plans are subject to the following four common criteria: 1) contain basic plan elements set forth in Section 301(a); 2) contain a plan for the reliable supply of water, considering current and future water resources availability; 3) be reviewed every 10 years, and 4) "…identify those areas where growth and development will occur so that a full range of public infrastructure, including sewer, water, highways, police and fire protection, public schools, parks open space and other services can be adequately planned and provided as needed to accommodate growth."

County comprehensive plans have an additional set of requirements. MPC Section 301 (7) requires a county plan to:

1. Identify land uses as they relate to important natural resources and appropriate utilization of existing minerals.
2. Identify current and proposed land use which have a regional impact and significance, such as large shopping centers, major industrial parks, mines and related activities, office parks, storage facilities, large residential developments, regional entertainment and recreational complexes, hospitals, airports and port facilities.
3. Identify a plan for the preservation and enhancement of prime agricultural land and encourage the compatibility of land use regulation with existing agricultural operations.
4. Identify a plan for historic preservation.

Source: The Comprehensive Plan in Pennsylvania, Planning Series #3 (click to download the PDF document), published by the Governor's Center for Local Government Services.

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Why prepare a comprehensive plan?

The county's current comprehensive plan was developed and adopted in 1977. The MPC requires that county comprehensive plans be reviewed and updated at least every ten years. The current plan is nearly 30 years old. More importantly, social, industrial, and population issues in McKean County have changed quite a bit over those years and the county needs to be guided by policy that addresses these contemporary community needs. Read on for more details.

Concerning Rural Issues

While the county is rich in natural and cultural resources, McKean County is facing community development issues and challenges common to many rural counties. The county's population has been steadily declining since 1970 for several reasons. Residents have followed business and industry to more accessible areas of the state and region. Manufacturing, still the lead industry, has eliminated jobs and relocated operations to maintain profitability. Few new and modern businesses have moved into the county over the past 30 years. What can't be found in McKean County requires lengthy travel to Erie, Pittsburgh, or Buffalo, NY, if not farther. Residents seeking shopping areas must travel hours and miles to reach their destinations. As business and industry shrink, so too does the working population, leaving behind communities of older residents. These residents are well rooted in their communities, but their age brings additional demands for services, particularly social services, in a market of fixed incomes. This, in turn, increases the tax burden on the working population to fund such services and results in financial disincentives to live and work in the county.

Assets for a Brighter Future

These are indeed concerning issues for officials, residents and community and business leaders. Trends suggest that these conditions will likely worsen rather than improve and the current comprehensive plan provides little guidance in light of its age, dating to 1977. Therefore new policy is needed. For McKean County, this means attracting residential and business investment to stabilize and, where possible, reverse current trends. Fortunately, McKean County has many ready assets to guide, give input and help achieve a brighter future.

McKean County is home to the Zippo lighter company. The popularity of this everyday device has made Zippo the leading employer in the county. Local, resource-based companies, such as Bradford Forest Products, have grown into sizeable operations and can serve as models for other entrepreneurial enterprises.

The county is also home to over 800 acres KOZ or KOEZ across 17 sites. More importantly, these sites are available in range of sizes, providing flexibility with in the commercial/industrial real estate market.

As a workplace and training ground, the University of Pittsburgh at Bradford is a tremendous and growing asset in the county. Tapping into the skills, talents, programs and facilities of the University may offer new direction for workforce development, youth retention strategies and community amenities.

U.S. Highway 219, also known locally as part of the Continental 1 corridor, has received significant attention recently. The long-term vision for this roadway is a 4-lane limited access facility that stretches from Toronto, Ontario, Canada, to Miami, Florida. This improvement would of course take many years to design and construct, but the attention given to the corridor has brought new interest to McKean County. Rail and airport facilities supplement the highway network with additional travel/transportation options.

Nearly 85 percent of the county is forested. This includes public lands as well as thousands of acres of privately held woodlands. The sheer abundance and quality of this resource is evident in the value of this standing timber at the end of the 1990s at almost $600 million. Annual economic returns from the forestry sector total $33 million with an additional $42 million from wood products and paper. These figures reflect a portion of the financial value of forests but do not begin to quantify the environmental and community benefits from this natural resource, such as recreation, wildlife, water protection, biodiversity, carbon sequestration, and aesthetics.

While not contributing as much financially to the local economy, agriculture should not be overlooked. While the number of farms and the amount of farmland has been decreasing, the total value of production is up 10 percent since 1997; the per farm value is up 19 percent. The majority of total production value lies in livestock production.