Reprinted below is the full text of the Franklin Coalition’s Declaration of Principles. The Coalition is seeking your endorsement of these principles, which will eventually be presented to all Township Supervisors, Borough Council members, and County Commissioners in Franklin County. Through these principles, the Franklin Coalition is seeking to support locally owned businesses while endorsing comprehensive land use planning practices and a fairer, more evenly applied tax base.

    We invite your organization or your business to formally endorse these principles by adding your name to the signatories. To sign onto the Declaration, contact Ian Kramer, at (717) 530-0764, and leave a message identifying your organization, a contact person with phone number, and a statement that the organization has endorsed the Franklin Coalition’s Declaration of Principles.

    We thank you for your attention to these important principles, and we look forward to building a strong, economically sound, politically responsive Franklin County.

THE FRANKLIN COUNTY COALITION

Declaration

    The Franklin County Coalition, an organization composed of citizen and community groups located in Franklin County, hereby declares that it supports the following principles and urges the County government and all local governments to observe these principles while making policy and budgetary decisions.

    The Franklin County Coalition believes that the Franklin County area is currently experiencing serious environmental degradation as a result of industrial development, residential development, land use practices, and insufficient participation in governmental affairs at all levels. The Franklin County Coalition believes that governments and citizens should seek to preserve and protect the quality of life that makes Franklin County a safe and pleasant area in which to reside. The Coalition urges governments and citizens to recognize and address several problems that threaten Franklin County, which include:

1. The loss of open space and farmland resources;
2. The lack of regional land-use planning;
3. Urban sprawl and lack of cluster development;
4. Encouragement of irresponsible waste management;
5. Reduction in standard of living for Franklin County residents;
6. The failure to approach development needs in a consistent fashion that recognizes the importance of human communities and respect for natural communities.

1. The Coalition urges local governments to reform the taxing system to discourage sprawl and encourage the redevelopment and urban renewal of boroughs.
2. The Coalition urges greater involvement of residents in all levels of local government, including both non-electoral and electoral participation.
3. The Coalition urges all local governments and residents to purchase goods and services from locally owned and operated businesses and residents.
4. The Coalition urges all local governments to establish Environmental Advisory Councils, and to incorporate the recommendations of these Councils into local government planning.
5. The Coalition urges the Franklin County Commissioners to make farmland protection and agricultural viability high priorities and to appropriately fund these efforts.
6. The Coalition urges local governments to adopt and support comprehensive transportation plans. These plans should only encourage the construction of new roads that are part of the plans. The Coalition also urges local governments to support planning for bike lanes, public transportation, other alternatives to vehicle use, and rails-to-trails projects.
7. The Coalition urges local governments to develop and support local recycling programs. The Coalition urges governments to establish locations for the collection of household hazardous waste.
8. The Coalition supports responsible energy use which promotes energy conservation and the use of renewable and non-polluting energy sources.
9. The Coalition urges all local governments to support community efforts to monitor surface and groundwater to ensure safe and clean water for public, agricultural, and wildlife use.
10. The Coalition urges all local governments to preserve and restore farmland, streamside buffers, wildlife, and wildlife habitat.
11. The Coalition urges all local governments to use municipal buildings as Clearinghouses for the distribution of materials on energy conservation, renewable energy resources, and voter registration and informational materials.
12. The Coalition urges all local governments to exclude corporations from doing business in the locality that have a history of violating local, state, or federal law.
13. The Coalition urges all local governments to adopt policies which provide for the preservation of all buildings, structures, and lands that have historic or potentially historic value.
14. The Coalition urges respect for diversity and for the rich cultural heritage of Franklin County.
15. The Coalition urges all local governments to exercise increased cooperation in regional planning, and to begin to produce comprehensive land use plans that address County-wide and region-wide environmental and community problems.
16. The Coalition urges local governments to adopt policies which ensure easy access to all public records.

The Franklin County Coalition:

The Fair Tax Coalition
The Unity Coalition
Citizens for Planned Responsible Growth
The Greene/Guilford Environmental Association
The Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund (CELDF)
Shippensburg Student Environmental Action Coalition (SEAC)
Conococheague Chapter of the Audubon Society
The Green Ballot Clearinghouse