CUMBERLAND COUNTY COMMISSIONERS APPOINT RETTEW PLANNER
Knarr to Serve Four-Year Term on Planning Commission

CARLISLE, Pa. — The Cumberland County Board of Commissioners (CCBC) recently appointed Christopher Knarr, AICP, to serve a four-year term on the Cumberland County Planning Commission (CCPC). Knarr is a resident of Cumberland County and a community planner with RETTEW, a comprehensive engineering, planning and environmental consulting firm serving the mid-Atlantic region.

“Chris really has a thorough knowledge of the development and land-use issues facing Cumberland County,” said Kirk Stoner, AICP, director of Cumberland County Planning Department and Commission. “Combined with a dedication to his profession and the community, he is a perfect fit to serve on the commission. I look forward to working with him over the next four years.”

A certified planner with more than ten years of professional planning experience, Knarr is actively involved as a volunteer for revitalization efforts currently underway in Mechanicsburg, Pa. He serves on the board of directors of Main Street Mechanicsburg (MSM) and MSM’s community design and historic preservation committee. He is also a member of the Mechanicsburg Borough Planning Commission and was directly involved in successfully completing the borough’s comprehensive plan, as well as helping institute a historic and architectural review board, securing funding for various planning projects and updating the borough’s zoning ordinance and subdivision and land development ordinances.

Knarr’s professional experience includes working extensively with both the public and private sectors and all levels of government to address land-use and growth challenges facing townships, boroughs and cities. As a community planner at RETTEW, he crafts zoning ordinances and regulations and works with numerous Pennsylvania and Maryland communities and their residents to develop comprehensive plans and downtown and neighborhood plans. Additionally, Knarr is familiar with the statewide enabling legislation for community planning in Pennsylvania and the Municipalities Planning Code.

“Chris’s expertise and passion for planning will serve CCPC very well,” said Mark P. Lauriello, president, RETTEW. “On behalf of RETTEW, I congratulate Chris on yet another great achievement.”

Knarr recently conducted a series of training courses in Chester, Dauphin, Lackawanna, Allegheny and Crawford Counties as part of the Governor’s Center for Local Government Series Training Program, Planning Series. The training provided community planners with insight into updating community development codes to ensure that new building and development patterns are appropriate and compatible with surrounding buildings and established development patterns.

In 2006, Knarr was one of only 15 people to earn certification as a member of the American Institute of Certified Planners (AICP) from the Pennsylvania Planning Association (PPA), a chapter of the American Planning Association (APA). He has presented at past conferences of the Pennsylvania Planning Association (PPA), Pennsylvania Downtown Center and Pennsylvania Downtown Center Revitalization Academy. A member of APA and PPA, he earned his bachelor’s degree in geography from Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania and a master’s in regional and city planning (MRCP) from the University of Oklahoma. A native of Woolrich, Clinton County, Pa., he resides in Mechanicsburg.

The Cumberland County Planning Department and Commission is responsible for investigating, coordinating and administering all matters that have direct and/or indirect impact upon Cumberland County so as to maintain the highest quality of life for its inhabitants, maintain a balance between urban centers and rural areas, and meet the needs of the county's present population without compromising the needs of future generations. CCPC is composed of nine county residents, providing representation from all areas of Cumberland County. Members are appointed by the county commissioners to serve a four-year term.

RETTEW provides engineering, land development, planning, surveying and environmental consulting services to a broad range of clients in the mid-Atlantic region. Beginning in 1969 as a single-person office, today RETTEW has more than 230 employees. Offices are located in Camp Hill, Chambersburg, Chester Springs, Lancaster, Nazareth, and Schuylkill Haven, Pa.; and Liberty and Margaretville, N.Y. For more information on any of RETTEW’s services, please call 1-800-RETTEW-5 or e-mail rettew@rettew.com.

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June 25, 2008