Background Materials — What Has Been Accomplished

Landscapes has guided significant progress in achieving the original vision. Between 1995 and 2015, implementation of Landscapes and Landscapes2 helped balance growth and preservation in Chester County in the following ways:

Sprawl development was curbed

• 100,000 new residents were accommodated on 10,000 fewer acres than projected
• Municipalities updated their plans and ordinances
• Supporting county program: Vision Partnership Program awarded over $6.3 million and generated matching funds over $2.7 million
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Protecting open space retained our quality of place

• 92,000 acres of open space were permanently protected, representing a land area larger than Philadelphia
• By 2015, protected open space represented 27% of the total county land area
• Supporting county program: Open Space Preservation Program provided $205 million and generated matching funds of $403 million
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City and boroughs revitalized

• Improved streetscapes, sidewalks, sewer, water, and communications, which contributed to attracting an additional 10,000 residents to Urban Centers
• Supporting county program: Urban Center Revitalization Program invested $60 million, helping increase tax assessments by 2.7%
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Trail system expanded

• More than 25 miles of new county trails were constructed, resulting in over a half million trips on county trails every year, and many local trails were added
• Supporting county effort: Construction of Schuylkill River Trail and Chester Valley Trail segments
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Transportation system accommodated growth

• Significant new road capacity was added by projects such as the Exton ByPass, Route 202 widening, and the new Pennsylvania Turnpike interchange
• Stations along the Paoli-Thorndale rail line were updated
• Supporting programs: $1.27 billion in federal and state transportation funding
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