Turnover of long-time staff at Somerset Township led to a loss of institutional memory, but the fresh perspectives of new township personnel motivated its Board of Supervisors to invest in updates to the community’s Subdivision and Land Development and Zoning Ordinances and conduct an Ordinance Codification process. Strategic Solutions, in collaboration with township staff and its third-party enforcement agency, drafted updates to the community’s SALDO and Zoning Ordinance, ensuring cohesion between the two and establishing practical, enforceable regulations.  With preserving the community’s rural character while preparing for potential growth as the main goal of the amendment process, the Strategic team introduced a new zoning use chart and more modernized uses, definitions, and regulations to protect the community’s agricultural setting and to provide for agritourism opportunities. 

With a complete overhaul of the township’s SALDO and Zoning Ordinance at a completion, Strategic Solutions is now facilitating Somerset’s Ordinance codification process, carefully cataloguing and reviewing Ordinances ahead of a full legal review conducted by General Code. The full-scale process results in updated, usable Ordinances and greater transparency for residents.