Corridor Plan
Corridor Plan Project
Overview
The recently completed Lycoming County Brownfield Assessment Program identified and evaluated brownfield opportunities in four municipal clusters around the County. Through that two corridors were identified as having extremely high redevelopment potential. Two seperate Corridor Plans will be developed: one for the City of Williamsport and one for the Borough of Montgomery.
Process
The Corridor Plans for the Old Mill Corridor and the Interstate 180 Corridor will be developed through the utilization of a three-step approach involving: Feasibility, Visioning, and Implementation. The three-step approach to the Corridor Plans will provide a comprehensive understanding of the areas and allow for community input to be integrated into realistic, implementable plans. For more details, please read our Scope of Work.
Outcomes
The Corridor Plans will give the municipalities the opportunity to plan for future development in a sustainable and innovative manner that highlights each municipality's individual character. With a long-range vision, the plans will provide a legacy for the future that transcends administrations, making this project adoptable and realistic.
Locations
The Interstate 180 Corridor is outlined in yellow, below. It lies along the southern border of Williamsport and is bounded by Market Street on the east, US 15 on the west, I-180 on the south, and 3rd Street on the north.
The Old Mill Corridor, below, is located in Montgomery Borough, south of Route 405. The area was once a center of textile manufacture.
The revitalization process has been graphically rendered to show where the process has started and how we have progressed to where we are today. The arrow points forward to show that more work is needed with the ultimate goal being revitalization.
Project Team:
Mackin Engineering (Brandi Rosselli, Project Lead)
Lycoming County Department of Planning and Community Development
City of Williamsport
Corridor Plan
Objective: Document current status of each site and identify physical, political, and business constraints in order to understand the range of options and future potential for them. Attention to be paid to each parcel and its highest use.
Key Components:
- Examine Existing and Planned Infrastructure
- Develop Comprehensive Parcel Profiles
- Undertake Market Assessment
- Assess Environmental Conditions
- Review Existing Plans and Ordinances
- Identify Business Displacement and Replacement
Deliverables: Maps and studies detailing the realistic possibilities of the Corridors and the feasibility of redevelopment for each parcel
Status Update: Feasibility Study is substantially complete and fully incorporated into the overall Corridor Plan.
Objective: Utilize extensive public participation methods to identify two or more realistic and promising conceptual redevelopment scenarios.
Key Components:
- Steering Council
- Landowner Meetings
- Public Meetings
- Moving Meetings (Abridged public meetings that can be taken to civil, social, or neighborhood organizations as a way to engage the largest number of residents in the Corridor Plan.)
- Focus Groups
- Charettes (Intense group design exercises that allow creative expression of planning ideas.)
- Youth Ambassador Program
Deliverables: Maps, vision boards, and report capturing the community's shared vision.
- Click here for the I-180 Corridor Vision boards.
- Click here for the Old Mill Corridor Vision boards.
Status Update: Thank you to all the community members who attended the public meetings – they were very successful and provided a great deal of insight into the happenings of the corridors.
Public Officials Meeting was held in late August 2010 in both Williamsport and Montgomery
- I-180 Corridor Public Meeting was held in Williamsport on October 28th
- Old Mill Corridor Public Meeting was held in Montgomery on October 29th
- Landowner/Stakeholder Meetings were held on October 28th and 29th
- Corridor Plan Steering Council Meeting held Wednesday, December 2nd
- Youth Ambassador Programs in Williamsport Area School District and Montgomery Area School District were held between January and March. Students will continue to work on the project and be invited to the next round of Public Meetings. Check out the Youth Ambassador Program page for more details!
The document linked here details the initial themes that came out of the first round of public meetings!
Scope of Work
Modified Date: 9/3/2009
Objective: Determine the what, how, when, by whom, and at what cost can the vision be implemented and what public-private opportunities exist within the process.
- Identify Action Steps to Transform Vision into Reality
- Identify Obstacles to Redevelopment
- Identify Public and Private Funding
- Identify a Usable Plan as a Legacy for Future Generations
Deliverable: Usable Tool for Redevelopment
- Status Update: Redevelopment is Happening – even before adoption! This is pretty impressive and goes to show the timeliness of Corridor Plan and interest in brownfield redevelopment.
- The Old Mill Corridor has been purchased by a private logistics company and the site is being transformed into a hub for Marcellus Shale Servicing Companies. In addition, the Montgomery Mill Office building has been donated to the Borough of Montgomery and will be rehabilitated into a historical and community center.
- The I-180 Corridor has quite a few changes happening in it. The WIlliams Street Development Area is being worked on. The Church Street Parking Deck is nearly completed as are many other developments throughout the I-180 Corridor. The Williamsport Youth Ambassadors have become a permanent club at the Williamsport Area High School and are working with the Mayor's Office and other community groups on gettin projects within the corridor realized, including the 'Welcome to Williamsport' mural on Maynard Street.
There are many oppourtunities for you to get involved in the Corridor Plan Project. Some of them are:
- Public Meetings
- Montgomery Public Meeting: February 8, 2011 at 6:30pm
- Williamsport Public Meeting: February 17, 2011 at 7:00pm
- Focus Groups and Charettes/Group Designing Sessions
- Corridor Steering Committee
- Youth Ambassador Programs
For additional information, please visit the following online resources.
The Youth Ambassador Program was developed as part of the visioning for the Corridor Plan Project. It focuses on getting input from youth about the futures of Montgomery Borough and the City of Williamsport.
The program will give young people in our area the opportunity to understand the municipal planning process. Student representativs will engage in a planning exercise during a two-day workshop.
The workshop will involve:
- Introduction to S.W.O.T. (Strengths, Weaknesses, Threats, Opportunities) Analysis
- Field trip to the corridor
- Small-group exercises
- Survey administration and analysis
- Preliminary and final plan design
The plans developed by the students will be presented to City/Borough Councils and integrated into the official Corridor Plan.
Workshop schedules and timelines are available in the brochures for Montgomery and Williamsport Area school districts:
- Montgomery Youth Ambassador Program brochure (550 KB PDF)
- Williamsport Youth Ambassador Program brochure (530 KB PDF)
Status Update: the Montgomery Youth Ambassador Program kicked off December 2nd with a presentation to eighth and ninth grades. The presentation detailed general definitions of planning and then went through the specifics of the Corridor Plan and the Youth Ambassador Programs. Raffle prizes were given out to students for answering questions about the presentation. All the students were very engaged in the presentation and excited to get involved in the Youth Ambassador Program.
The Youth Ambassador Program was a huge success! Students completed the projects and developed realistic plans for the corridor areas. The Youth Ambassadors will continue to be involved in the Corridor Plan process and the implementation of the plans. 
US EPA Mid-Atlantic Brownfields and Land Revitalization program recognizes Youth Ambassadors! Article here.
Status Update 2: Williamsport Youth Ambassadors have become a permanent club at the Williamsport Area High School. The students involved in the Youth Ambassador Council (YAC) have been working with the Mayor of Williamsport's Office and the Public Art Academy on a "Welcome to Williamsport" mural on Maynard Street. The YAC recently held a fundraise and has more planned for the future.
The Montgomery Youth Ambassadors (MYA) participated in the Old Mill Corridor Groundbreaking in November 2010. They were excited to see changes being made in the corridor, particularly ones similar to those they envisioned. The MYA will continue to be actively engaged in the redevelopment of the Montgomery Mill Office Building.
Sponsored by:
With support by
