August 17, 2026

Real estate is local—and many of the decisions that ultimately affect housing supply, property values, development opportunities, infrastructure, and private property rights are made in local government meetings long before their impact is visible in the marketplace.

This week, there are several items across York, Lancaster, and Chester Counties that PRAR members should have on their radar. Some are proposals or scheduled agenda items and have not yet received final approval. PRAR will continue to monitor these issues and share updates as they develop.

York County: Proposed Change Could Affect Properties with Multiple Zoning Districts

York County Council is scheduled to hold a public hearing Monday, August 17 at 6:00 p.m. on a proposed amendment involving parcels that contain more than one zoning district.

Under the proposal, a parcel divided by multiple zoning districts could be governed by the development regulations of the zoning district covering the greatest portion of the parcel. The proposal would also allow certain combinations or recombinations of lots containing more than one residential zoning district. This is a proposed ordinance currently in the public-hearing process, not a final change to the zoning code.

Why It Matters to REALTORS®

Properties divided by zoning boundaries can create additional questions for owners, buyers, developers, and real estate professionals about permitted uses and development standards. If adopted, this change could simplify how some split-zoned parcels are treated and how certain residential lots may be combined or reconfigured.

It is also a good reminder that zoning should be part of the due-diligence conversation whenever a transaction involves land, redevelopment potential, or property whose current use may not tell the complete zoning story.

Lancaster County: Major UDO Update Reaches an Important Stage

Lancaster County continues moving forward with a substantial update to its Unified Development Ordinance, or UDO—the regulations that help determine how and where development occurs.

As part of that process, the County scheduled public-input meetings on August 11 in Lancaster and August 12 in Indian Land. The process now moves to a Planning Commission public hearing on August 18 at 6:00 p.m. County Council’s current schedule shows first reading on September 14, second reading on September 28, and third reading on October 12.

This is especially significant for the real estate community because the UDO review has included topics such as housing types, planned development districts, development agreements, subdivisions, stormwater, open space, buffers, landscaping, parking, streets, rights-of-way, rural business zoning, and conservation subdivision requirements.

Another Date Members Should Understand: The Residential Development Moratorium

Lancaster County’s nine-month residential development moratorium was adopted on third reading on November 10, 2025. The ordinance states that the moratorium would terminate nine months after third reading—or upon implementation of a revised UDO—while also providing a process through which the County could extend the moratorium by as much as an additional 90 days. That placed the end of the ordinance’s original nine-month term at August 10, 2026, unless extended or otherwise superseded.

The County continues to maintain a moratorium information page and mapping layer, so members working with property that may fall within the affected area should verify the current project-specific status directly with Lancaster County Planning before advising a client that a particular development can proceed.

Why It Matters to REALTORS®

The UDO is much more than a technical planning document. It can influence housing types, density, development costs, project timelines, land values, infrastructure requirements, and ultimately the amount and variety of housing that can be built.

For REALTORS®, these decisions directly intersect with two issues our members see every day: housing availability and affordability. PRAR will continue watching the UDO process closely as it moves from public input toward formal consideration.

Chester County: Housing Development, Rezoning and Data Centers All on the Radar

Chester County has a particularly active land-use week ahead.

At the August 17 County Council meeting, Council is scheduled to consider several rezoning matters, including third readings involving property off Columbia Road and on Edgeland Road, as well as first readings involving approximately 14 acres near Armory Road/Industrial Park Boulevard and approximately 2.4 acres on Moffitt Creek Road. The agenda also includes a report on Council’s data-center questions. These are scheduled agenda items; final outcomes should not be assumed until Council acts.

The data-center discussion is worth watching. In June, Chester County announced that Council had approved first reading of a proposed six-month pause on the acceptance of new data-center applications while the County studies impacts involving the power grid, utilities, economic development, the environment, and surrounding communities. The County emphasized at the time that the proposal was intended as a period for research and public discussion rather than a permanent prohibition.

The following evening, the Chester County Planning Commission is scheduled to meet August 18 at 6:00 p.m., with several significant development items on its agenda.

Among them are a request for final plat approval for Phase 1 of the Winchester Subdivision, consisting of 200 lots, and preliminary plat approval for Phase 1 of Eureka Mills Apartments, consisting of 60 dwelling units. The Commission is also scheduled to revisit a request involving approximately 103 acres on Cedarhurst Road for General Industrial zoning and consider a County request to assign Multi-family Residential zoning to approximately 23 acres on Pinckney Road. These are proposals before the Planning Commission and should not be reported as approved unless and until action is taken.

Why It Matters to REALTORS®

Chester County is seeing decisions that touch several sides of the real estate market at once: new single-family housing, multifamily development, industrial growth, infrastructure, and emerging large-scale uses such as data centers.

For REALTORS®, understanding that pipeline helps us better understand where housing and employment growth may be headed—and where infrastructure, land-use compatibility, utilities, and community planning will become increasingly important.

The Bottom Line for PRAR Members

This week’s activity is a strong example of why local government matters to real estate.

A zoning text amendment in York County can affect how property is used. Lancaster County’s UDO can influence what types of housing are built and how development moves through the approval process. Chester County is simultaneously considering new housing, industrial land use, and policies surrounding one of the fastest-growing types of large-scale development.

These decisions do not happen overnight, and many of the items highlighted above are still moving through the public process. That is exactly when REALTOR® awareness and engagement matter most.

PRAR will continue monitoring local government throughout York, Lancaster, and Chester Counties with a focus on housing supply and affordability, private property rights, zoning and land use, infrastructure, taxation, responsible growth, and policies that affect our members and the clients and communities they serve.

Real estate is local. Your REALTOR® Association is paying attention.