Planning & Development

Comprehensive Plan Information

External Links

ICOPD

Indiana County CEO

Contact Info

Executive Director:  Byron G. Stauffer, Jr.

byronjr@ceo.co.indiana.pa.us

Office of Planning & Development 
801 Water Street
Indiana, PA 15701-1705

Hours: Mon-Fri 8:30am-4:30pm

Phone: (724)-465-3870
Fax: (724)-465-3150

Closed Holidays

Comprehensive Plan Information

Where We Live

A Comprehensive Plan for Indiana County, Pennsylvania is the name of the new Comprehensive Plan that will replace the outdated Indiana County Comprehensive Plan from the 1960s. Unlike an ordinance, Where We Live has no regulatory authority.  It will, however, be an official policy document for the County.

Where We Live will identify strategies for maintaining and enhancing our unique sense of place and our quality of life by establishing policies and land use guidelines to help local governments ensure the orderly development of land, encouraging development that balances growth with Indiana County’s rural character; and encouraging development that connects people with each other, with communities and with the countryside.  Where We Live will establish a framework for future growth, conservation, and preservation that strengthens our existing communities and responsibly stewards our natural, agricultural and cultural resources.

What is a Comprehensive Plan?

A county comprehensive plan is a document that identifies community development objectives and policies to guide future growth and development patterns. It can assist local leaders in decision-making by creating a blueprint for land use patterns of tomorrow and charting the County’s path into the future.

Where We Live is being developed in accordance with the requirements of the Pennsylvania Municipalities Planning Code (MPC), which states that all comprehensive plans must include the following components:

Statement of community development objectives;

  • Plan for land use
  • Plan to meet housing needs
  • Plan for movement of people and goods
  • Plan for community facilities and utilities
  • Plan for the protection of natural and historic resources
  • Plan for the reliable supply of water
  • Statement of interrelationships among various plan elements
  • Short- and long-range implementation strategies
  • Statement that existing and proposed development is consistent with or can be buffered against that in contiguous municipalities

The MPC also requires county comprehensive plans to identify:

  • Land uses as they relate to important natural resources and utilization of existing minerals
  • Current and proposed land uses which have regional impact and significance
  • A plan for preservation of prime agricultural land that encourages compatibility of land use regulations with agricultural operations
  • A plan for historic preservation

Adopted comprehensive plans provide a context for important future decisions.  Among the kinds of decisions that a comprehensive plan helps to guide are:

  • Requests to implement or modify zoning
  • Decisions about expansion of infrastructure
  • Decisions about location of new infrastructure
  • Decisions about major public investments

For questions concerning Where We Live… A Comprehensive Plan for Indiana County, please contact the Indiana County Office of Planning & Development at (724) 465−3870.  Please visit the Indiana County Office of Planning & Development on Facebook.

Comprehensive Plans Document