Council advances major zoning rewrite draft after 30 public commenters; council gives directional yes/no votes

State College Borough Council spent the bulk of its August 31 meeting taking public testimony and then providing directional votes on a comprehensive zoning rewrite draft designed to increase housing options and guide downtown development.

After roughly 30 people spoke during a timed public comment period, council signaled its approval to send the current draft to planning consultants with guidance provided by a sequence of targeted yes/no votes. Planning director Ed LeClere told council the night's votes were not final ordinance adoptions but were intended to instruct staff and the consultants as they prepare a new draft for review. ‘‘What we are doing tonight is not the end of the zoning process. We're not voting on the zoning. We are trying to get a draft, imperfect as it will certainly be, that we can then all review,’’ LeClere said.

On specific decisions, council endorsed several staff recommendations and provided direction in multiple areas: it supported increasing R3 bonus height to allow up to four stories with incentives (the base remains three), added a ‘‘green fund’’ and a 65% one‑and‑two‑bedroom unit requirement as incentives in several districts, and reduced the West End district maximum from 7 stories to 5 (staff to set a new base and incentive floors). Council also directed staff to retain neighborhood compatibility standards but to revise them so they function alongside taller buildings, and instructed staff and the consultant team to re‑work the green building points system.

Council used a hand‑raise method repeatedly; on several items the chair counted hands and announced the result to the room. The mayor stressed that if council members did not have sufficient information to vote yes on a topic, they should vote no so planning staff would not assume the item should remain in the draft. The council president moved that ‘‘the latest draft... be forwarded by the planning department to the consultants with guidance provided by this council, by us voting on every topic, by a separate yes or no vote on each,’’ and the motion carried as the meeting concluded.

Next steps: staff will incorporate the council's guidance into a third draft and prepare follow‑up public hearings and additional council work sessions as needed.