Cranberry Township’s Planning Commission reviewed plans for two different developments during a meeting Monday, Nov. 25.

The developer of a Holiday Inn Express located at 1744 Route 228 received a green light for construction several years ago before the COVID-19 pandemic prompted a change in plans.

Cranberry’s municipality planning code provides a 5-year window for construction after approval. After that expired earlier this year, it was standard procedure for the developer to go through the process again.

“Those five years ran out this past February,” said Cranberry’s Planning and Development Services Director Ron Henshaw. “So in cases like that, they just have to come back through again and receive a new approval. If anything has changed in the ordinance, they’ve got to comply with it. But in this case, it was all the same.”

Henshaw also noted the four-story, 84-room hotel that will sit on about 3.71 acres was already on a master plan site with a Cracker Barrel Restaurant that already exists. The stormwater infrastructure, road and most of the pavement is already in place — the building itself is the only missing piece.

A public hearing on the hotel is scheduled for the supervisor’s meeting on Jan. 30, 2025, and it could be on the agenda for final approval the following week.

The commission also considered plans for a revised preliminary land development and a final phase development for the Crescent Neighborhood.

While Crescent already contains a number of residences, Phase 2 of the development never received final approval.

Developers updated their plans by increasing the number of units in Phase 2 from 110 to 160 and decreasing the number of units in Phase 3 from 219 to 185, resulting in a net gain of 16 units.

The developer also tweaked the road plans leading in and out of the development in relation to surrounding structures.

“They’ve reimagined the road system within their plan,” Henshaw said. “The developer was not satisfied with their own design, so they took a closer look at it, and we think they’ve made some nice changes to how the road enters from the Cranberry Springs Development into the Crescent Development.”

Since it’s already an existing development, no public hearings are necessary when it comes to the modifications.

Henshaw also explained that Charter Homes, the company that built Crescent, is “very good for anticipating what the weather is going to be” and would most likely begin the reconfiguration process when the weather permits.