Sep 4, 2002 By Amy Karpinsky 4 min read

The executive director of the Fayette County Redevelopment Authority told his board Tuesday that it may take state legislative action to resolve the zoning dilemma involving property in the Fayette County Business Park. Raymond C. Polaski has been seeking to have a portion of the 277-acre Business Park rezoned from manufacturing to business for continued development at the property. The South Union Township property is located along a busy area of Route 40 near the Uniontown Mall. The decision to rezone the property falls in the hands of the township supervisors.

The issue is more complicated than simply rezoning the property because the manufacturing zone is located in a state-designated Keystone Opportunity Zone, which will provide tax-free status for occupants until 2013. Two of the three supervisors are adamantly against changing the zoning designation, saying it wouldn’t be fair to allow businesses tax exemptions when other businesses in the area are paying taxes. However, the majority of supervisors have also spoken out in favor of eliminating the KOZ, if at all possible.

Polaski has maintained that without a zoning change, growth in the park will slow or cease. To date, a new hotel and an engineering firm have located in the park and plans are under way for two other businesses to move there. Currently, 170 acres of the park are zoned for manufacturing/light industrial. However, the size of the KOZ cannot be changed. Polaski said there’s interest in a doctors office/clinic locating in the park but he doesn’t have enough property in the current business zone to accommodate the request.

“We are looking for some type of change in zoning to continue to bring businesses and jobs to the business park,” Polaski said. “We’re hoping it can be resolved.”

Polaski said because it was “enabling legislation” that created the KOZ, it is up the state legislature to change the size of or eliminate the KOZ, and not local governmental bodies. He said the problem is that the geography in the township doesn’t lend itself to manufacturing, it lends itself to business uses.

However, Polaski said the question becomes, should the businesses pay taxes, not pay taxes or pay something else in lieu of taxes. He said the meetings continue to move forward and the solicitor for the township is researching alternatives for the property, including the possibility of accepting money in lieu of taxes.

Authority member Charles Cieszynski said he believes the bottom line is that the focus should be on creating jobs.

“We don’t want to bring a business from one end of the county to the other,” he said.

Polaski said some businesses looking to locate in the park have agreed to pay taxes but he doesn’t know if it is legally possible to accept money for businesses in a KOZ.

The KOZ was accepted by the township, county and school district after legislation created the designation in 1995. Polaski said he looked at 26 KOZ areas in five counties and the uses ranged from assisted living, medical facilities and residential to manufacturing, industrial, businesses and commercial.

Authority member Ross DiMarco said the site doesn’t lend itself to manufacturing development. Authority member Jim Woleslagle said there are now sites for manufacturing companies to locate that were not available when the KOZ was approved for South Union. He said the Fay Penn property near Penn State and the industrial park in Fairchance are more suitable sites.

“It would be a nightmare getting in and out (of there),” Woleslagle said.

Woleslagle added that it wouldn’t be fair for a business to get a tax break when other businesses there are paying taxes.

“There’s something wrong here that we need to fix,” Polaski said. He said there is the possibility of “mitigation,” which allows to move the KOZ area to another portion of the county where it would be more appropriate. “Then no one loses the precious designation of KOZ,” Polaski said.

Woleslagle said the county needs businesses in the KOZ that will stay and pay taxes after they get a jump start, unlike Sony or Volkswagen, which moved out of tax free areas shortly after their free rides ran out.

In action related to the business park, the authority voted to award a contract to John T. Subrick Inc. of Eighty Four not to exceed $274,862 for site development at Phase II. The company submitted the lowest of nine bids received for the project.

Polaski said the “public works” project begins at the cull de sac near the future site of the Fayette County Career Link Office and extends to other property where the county Mental Health/Mental Retardation building is set to be construction. Polaski said the project also serves a portion of ground that can’t be immediate utilized because it is located in the KOZ.