Planning is the process of making decisions today for actions to occur in the future.
A comprehensive plan for a relatively isolated or slowly growing community may need little or no change for a decade. Conversely, any municipality within commuting distance of a growth-inducing entity, such as a large city or a new highway, will frequently need to reassess the adequacy of its comprehensive plan.
Comprehensive planning is what local officials and their planning commissions can do as the basis for the regulation of land use and control of development in the township.
A zoning ordinance should generally conform to the comprehensive plan for the township. It must at a minimum contain a statement of community development objectives. If zoning regulations lack evidence of good planning, and a controversy with a developer reaches the courts, the regulations stand a good chance of being rejected or overruled.
Amendments to the MPC in 2000 intended to encourage greater intergovernmental cooperation have led to over 600 cities, boroughs and townships becoming part of a multi-municipal planning group. A multi-municipal plan such as this one adopted by Lower Alsace Township and Mount Penn Borough can provide supervisors and other local officials with a broader perspective and greater opportunity to tackle larger planning and land use issues.