Tobyhanna Supervisors Set to Permit Commercial Resort Development in Conservation Districts

APR 18 2022, 9 pm

POCONO PINES (Tobyhanna Township) – If Adam Kerrick gets his way, in an unusual early morning meeting on May 2, Tobyhanna Township supervisors will change their zoning definitions that could alter the look of the “Open Space” districts in the town.

Mr. Kerrick wants to purchase some or all of a 285-acre parcel at the southwestern corner of the township and develop it into what he is calling a “Country Resort.” The property is in an “Open Space/Resource Conservation District” (OS district).

Heretofore, there have been but three permitted uses in the conservation districts: Single-family homes on a ten-acre minimum lot, hunting and fishing clubs and camps, and cemeteries.

The Kerrick Amendment, which will be subject to a public hearing on May 2, at 9:30 am, would add to permitted uses in the district “guest cottages, an inn and/or hotel;” “single family and duplex residential units for management and employees as needed;” along with “accessory uses,” including “conference centers, restaurants, bars, retail and gift shops, spa, indoor and outdoor recreation facilities, and event venues.” All of this would be permitted for anyone owning a conservation district parcel of at least 100 acres. There are twenty such parcels in the town.

Departing from the relative quietude associated with the current three permitted uses, the Kerrick Amendment also allows qualified parcels to host weddings, feature helicopter landing zones, install solar farms for their power requirements, and build “additional structures such as, but not limited to, gatehouses, barns, stables, . . . and maintenance buildings.”

In February, the Monroe County Planning Commission reviewed the proposal and raised numerous issues

At the outset, they questioned “if the proposed land use would be consistent with the intent of the OS district.” County planners noted that the township ordinance states that the district is intended to “protect fragile environmental and unique natural areas from development. The OS District is a residential district.”

“Due to its nature,” the review continued, “ ‘Country Resorts’ may be better situated in a commercial district. It should be noted that ‘Resorts’ are currently permitted in the Commercial (C) district and ‘Commercial Resorts’ are permitted in the residential districts as a special exception.”

The county planners also said that they didn’t understand the difference between a “Country Resort” and a “Resort.” They speculated the surplusage of a “Country Resort” was merely to allow a resort in the conservation district. If so, they thought it better practice to simply impose more restrictions in that district, rather than create an entirely new category of land use: “If the sole intent is to permit resorts in the OS district, additional conditions for permitting ‘Resorts’ in this district such as putting a maximum limit of 100 guest rooms would be an alternative to creating a new land-use category.”

The planners were also concerned about the vastly increased density potential for development under the Kerrick Amendment: “ A single family dwelling in the OS district requires a 10 acre minimum, and the density of a country resort could be well above this with potentially 100 cottage units on 100 acres. While lot coverage is limited to 10%, this does not include non-building impervious coverage such as a road network or parking areas.”

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The county said supervisors needed to consider “additional requirements to protect sensitive natural features or minimum open space requirements beyond what is required by existing ordinance standards would also be appropriate considering the intent of the OS district.”

Monroe County reminded the supervisors that they should be cognizant of “the amount of environmentally sensitive lands in this (conservation) district.” By definition, land in OS districts has been identified as “fragile . . . and unique” and therefore needed to be protected from development. Therefore, the county urged, instead of outright permitting the new uses, “conditional use or special exception approval would be more appropriate to mitigate the potential impacts of this use.”

Finally, they noted that only “some” aspects of the “Country Resort” use are consistent with the intention of the OS district to preserve “natural areas and provide open space and recreation areas for residents.”

The ordinance, advertised in the Easter Sunday edition of the Pocono Record for hearing and adoption on May 2, is unchanged from the problematic version sent to the county planning commission for review. There has been no public discussion among the supervisors of the county comments. Because the first public availability of the Kerrick Amendment came with the weekend legal advertisement, the public has not had an opportunity to discuss the proposal at any public meeting of either the supervisors or the planning commission.

The proposal first appeared on the planning commission agenda at the December 2, 2021 meeting. They then unanimously approved it at their January 6 meeting. It was forwarded to the county planning commission, which issued its response on February 18.

For the first time since, it will be on the supervisor’s agenda on May 2, 2022.  As mentioned, the May 2 meeting will be at 9:30 am. There will be a hearing on the zoning change, during which time interested parties are permitted to testify and comment on the proposal. Following the hearing, the expectation is the amendment will be voted on during the regular business meeting portion of the May 2 session.

The chair of the board of supervisors is John Kerrick; Al Kerrick is a member of the Planning Commission. Both have in the past recused themselves on this issue because, they each said, the proponent is a relative.  A township official said they did not know the nature of the relationship. Adam Kerrick is a member of the township’s Economic Development Agency.

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