On December 19, 2018, Borough Council adopted Resolution No. 1177-2018, invoking the pending zoning ordinance doctrine regarding the regulation of oil and gas recovery in Franklin Park. The draft Oil and Gas Zoning Ordinance Amendment (“Ordinance”) was formally placed into pending status on January 25, 2019 with the first publication of the public hearing notice.
Special Counsel Amy Sable presented the Ordinance to the Planning Commission on Tuesday, February 19. You can access the PowerPoint presentation here. At that meeting, the Planning Commission took comment from residents in attendance, and agreed to table the Ordinance for further consideration at their Tuesday, March 19 meeting. The role of the Planning Commission is to review the Ordinance and make recommendations to Council.
Council has scheduled a public hearing to commence on Wednesday, March 20 during Council’s regular meeting. Amy Sable will again present the Ordinance, and residents will have an opportunity to provide input. Council will not vote on the ordinance at the March 20 meeting, but rather will table the motion to a future meeting so that all input can be considered. At this time, the likely date that Council will reconsider the motion is Wednesday, May 15. If, after the public hearing on the Ordinance, the proposed Ordinance is changed substantially, or is revised, to include or remove land within the proposed overlay, Council is required to recirculate the revised ordinance to the Planning Commission and hold another public hearing.