News-Planning Archives

Ridgway Riverfront Master Plan Wins Honor Award from PA-DE ASLA

Recently, two of our landscape architects: Tracy Strickland and Jennie Ryan-Gisewhite, RLA, accepted an award on HRG’s behalf for the Ridgway Riverfront Master Site Plan we developed last year. The project received the Honor Award for analysis and planning from the Pennsylvania-Delaware Chapter, American Society of Landscape Architects.

 

Tracy Strickland and Jennie Ryan-Gisewhite accept the Honor Award for Analysis & Planning for the Ridgway Riverfront Master Plan

 

The Borough of Ridgway is a gateway to the scenic PA Wilds. Its waterfront area has the potential to significantly improve livability for the community and attract outside visitors. We worked with the borough to develop a master plan to improve public access to the river and create new public recreational space along the waterfront.

We collected extensive input from the community and regulatory agencies via meetings and surveys to determine the most desirable uses for the space and created several design concepts. Almost the entire site is located within the floodplain, so we carefully designed the concepts to incorporate flood mitigation and reforestation. You can see the designs below. The master plan groups improvements into five phases for implementation and includes detailed cost analysis and funding strategies.

Thank you to PA-DE ASLA for the recognition and to everyone who worked with us on this exciting project. Thank you also to the Borough of Ridgway for the opportunity and to the community for their ideas and engagement with the process. We look forward to seeing this area develop.

Bridgeport Transportation and Land Use Study Receives Planning Award

HRG was part of a team that was honored this week at the Places 2040 Planning Leadership Awards. Our project, the Bridgeport Transportation and Land Use Study, was recognized in the Thinking Beyond Borders category. Thinking Beyond Borders is one of five “Big Ideas” in Lancaster County’s comprehensive plan (otherwise known as places2040). It promotes cooperation across traditional boundaries to achieve regional goals, and the Bridgeport Transportation and Land Use Study exemplifies this approach.

Bridgeport began as a historic village and gateway for travel between Lancaster’s city neighborhoods and its rural landscapes, dating as far back as the 1800s. Today, it encompasses portions of four municipalities: the City of Lancaster and East Lampeter, West Lampeter, and Lancaster Townships. These four municipalities worked together on a shared vision for the area’s transportation infrastructure, trails, and land use policies in order to enhance walkability, reduce congestion, and create vibrant spaces for the community to enjoy.

HRG provided transportation planning services and cost estimates for the creation of this study. Derck & Edson led public engagement and provided streetscape and land planning services. Town Planning Partnership, LLC, assisted with land planning and public engagement. All municipalities and the Lancaster County Planning Department provided representatives for the steering committee. Over 800 local community members provided essential input/feedback as part of the planning effort.

We’re humbled to be recognized among so many great projects at the Places 2040 award ceremony, and we’re thankful for the opportunity to be a part of this project team.

Bridgeport Transportationa and Land Use Study team accepts the Places2040 planning leadership award

(L-R) Bob Shenk, Steve Hackett (Derck & Edson), Ryan Hostetter (HRG), Cindy McCormick (City of Lancaster), Tara Hitchens (East Lampeter Township), Mark Evans (Derck & Edson, Town Planning Partners), Terry Martin (Lancaster County Planning Commission), Ben Bamford (Lancaster County Planning Commission)

 

 

Laura Ludwig Joins HRG as a Community Planner

Laura Ludwig portraitLaura Ludwig has joined the Pittsburgh office of Herbert, Rowland & Grubic, Inc. (HRG) as a community planner.  She will assist HRG’s municipal clients with zoning, ordinance amendments, and requests for land development plan approvals and permits.  She will also act as a liaison between community groups, government agencies, developers and other stakeholders in developing neighborhood plans.

She has extensive experience as a community organizer, municipal government employee, and consultant.  Prior to joining HRG, she served as the director of community development for North Fayette Township.  Her responsibilities included guiding residents and businesses through the subdivision and land development review process, ensuring local construction project comply with codes and ordinances, and implementing the community’s comprehensive land use plan.  She also worked as a private consultant, drafting a comprehensive plan for South Beaver Township and assisting dozens of municipalities with their zoning and land use programs.

Ms. Ludwig earned her master’s degree in urban and regional affairs from the University of Pittsburgh and is certified by the American Institute of Certified Planners

 

ABOUT HRG

Herbert, Rowland & Grubic, Inc. (HRG) is a nationally ranked design firm providing civil engineering, surveying, and environmental services. The firm was founded in Harrisburg in 1962 and has grown to employ more than 200 people in Pennsylvania, Ohio, and West Virginia. For more information, please visit the website at www.hrg-inc.com.