Mixed-use development and a floodplain overlay are the big-ticket items when the small community of Akron Borough in Pennsylvania recently updated its zoning code.

The Borough Council in Akron Borough, Pennsylvania, a small community of just over 4,000 residents, recently approved the city’s first update to its zoning ordinance since 1997, with two big cutting related to the separate issues of commercial zoning to flood management.
According to an article by Larry Alexander, the majority of the changes approved by the city council updated definitions, including changes to mixed-use provisions in the city’s C1 commercial districts. “Primarily this ordinance addresses potential uses involving the Ten Thousand Villages building. The ordinance now will allow for some retail ‘providing they meet certain criteria,’” writes Alexander, quoting Assistant Borough Manager Sean Molchany.
Another change to the city’s zoning includes the creation of a floodplain overlay for all R1 residential properties located in a floodplain.
The source article, linked below, includes descriptions of some of the additional changes approved by the city.
FULL STORY: Akron council approves revisions to its zoning ordinances

Alabama: Trump Terminates Settlements for Black Communities Harmed By Raw Sewage
Trump deemed the landmark civil rights agreement “illegal DEI and environmental justice policy.”

Study: Maui’s Plan to Convert Vacation Rentals to Long-Term Housing Could Cause Nearly $1 Billion Economic Loss
The plan would reduce visitor accommodation by 25% resulting in 1,900 jobs lost.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

Wind Energy on the Rise Despite Federal Policy Reversal
The Trump administration is revoking federal support for renewable energy, but demand for new projects continues unabated.

Passengers Flock to Caltrain After Electrification
The new electric trains are running faster and more reliably, leading to strong ridership growth on the Bay Area rail system.

Texas Churches Rally Behind ‘Yes in God’s Back Yard’ Legislation
Religious leaders want the state to reduce zoning regulations to streamline leasing church-owned land to housing developers.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
Caltrans
Smith Gee Studio
Institute for Housing and Urban Development Studies (IHS)
City of Grandview
Harvard GSD Executive Education
Toledo-Lucas County Plan Commissions
Salt Lake City
NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service