1. What do you like most about the G-U-L Region?
• Rural environment/atmosphere (beautiful countryside)
• Safe
• Good schools
• Small town type of community
• Easy access to Harrisburg, Baltimore, and Washington D.C.
• Low Crime
2. What assets of the G-U-L Region are most important to preserve?
• Farmland/Agriculture
• Greenspace/Open spaces
• Individual school districts verses county-wide school districts
3. What are the most important problems facing the G-U-L Region today?
• Traffic congestion/ traffic flow
• Surge of Population/density of people (moratorium in adjacent county in Maryland that will push people North to Region)
• Too much development, houses “smacked up next to each other” with no limits
• High Taxes – elderly population struggling to pay
• Need more business/industrial to improve tax base
• Need more business infrastructure
• Selling farms to put up more houses
• Germany Township has no Zoning Ordinance
• Hard to get participation and volunteers from community members in Region
• Water Quality and Quantity
• Uncontrolled growth (need growth management) – sprawl development is loosing rural character of area
• Sewer/septic problems
• Police Protection for the people
• Low paying jobs (turning into a bedroom community)
• Developers are digging wells to provide Littlestown Borough water to get a number of building permits/per amount of gallons they can provide to the Borough. They are effecting individual wells in Germany Township.
4. What are the most important issues the G-U-L Region will face in the next ten years?
• Growth management
• Over population
• Germany Township needs Zoning with lot size requirements
• Population influx
• Moratorium in Maryland will put development pressure,
• Real-estate will go up, taxes will increase
• Number of farmers and other fixed income people struggling to survive in area
• Sewer/septic problems and well/water quantity and quality issues = need public water and sewer where development already exists
• Quality of housing
• Traffic around Littlestown
• Too many houses
5. What current or future opportunities should be seized by the municipalities in the G-U-L Region?
• Sewer and water issues – region needs to decide to provide public water and/or sewer or let operations be handled by independent sources.
• Growth should be managed – growth pressures from Maryland
• Create more industrial and business parks
• Leaders who are sympathetic to older population and provide opportunities for residents to retain their communities and houses.
• Need Zoning Ordinance to control growth
• Purchase development rights
• Need more recreational facilities – large facilities built by developers
• Preserve farmland in large lots to be profitable
• Improve the local government system, work as a region on land use decisions
• Attract more business and industry to area by increasing services for existing community 6. Is it important to you to preserve the remaining farmland in the Region, and if so, why?
• Yes – there is only so much land that God has given us.
• Yes – but if development is done right, not opposed to nice development.
• No - Land is more valuable in other uses.
• Yes- important to preserve but there has to be incentives for landowners
• Yes- need to go corporate with farming b/c small family farms are not family sustaining anymore.
• Yes – if not, where are we going to get the food to eat?
• Yes – keep open spaces, makes a nicer looking place, with lack of public sewer cluster development are difficult
• Yes- likes to see open space, nice farmland and not houses on top of each other
• Yes- development is happening too quickly
• Yes- it is a rural area turning into a suburban area, and we need to preserve the rural character and open space of the area.
• Yes –loosing too much to development from Maryland developers and population influx.
• Adds to the beauty of the area.
7. If you think additional housing is needed in the G-U-L Region, what kind of housing should be recommended?
• More upscale condominium for high-income lifestyle.
• A good mix to attract young (first time homebuyers) to stay, settle, and establish businesses locally which will increase the amount of job opportunities and increase the tax base so to profit the school district.
• Affordable housing
• Retirement communities (with no children)
• More apartments to house the masses (higher density)
• Townhouses
• A Mix/variety of homes with building codes enforced.
• No, preserve rural and farmlands
• Single family detached
• No more $250,000 - $300,000 homes
• No more needed
• If any goes in it should be concentrated in the existing centers
• Ground doesn’t perk well.
8. What kind of community do you want the G-U-L Region to be in the future?
• As it is now, community has a lot of good qualities now
• More golf courses
• Good mix of residential, business, industrial so it doesn’t turn into a bedroom community
• Managed and directed growth so to invest in the community and attract young people to stay and live in the area.
• It is growing too much residentially that has put a strain on the school system.
• Taxes will be increased if too much residential development is allowed in the future.
• More business and industry attraction throughout the area for more local jobs and less commuting time.
• No more sprawl!
• Rural, slow pace of things
• Needs more public infrastructure including sewer, water and gas lines.
• Community that is well liked, and where people get along
• High quality of life
• Safe community
• Pleasant agricultural community - non-commercial
• More residential
• Clean, in order community with zoning and distinct land uses.
• Like to see the region share a regional police force