Millcreek remains a community divided over standards that would bar builders from erecting sometimes-supersized homes in this east-side suburb.
That rift resurfaced Thursday before the Millcreek Township Planning Commission as two of the four community councils sided against a proposal that would impose stricter size restrictions on Millcreek homes, but provide flexibility for up-sizing houses so long as they are compatible with surrounding neighborhoods.
"Yes, we want change," Canyon Rim Councilman Anthony Godfrey told the commission. "Yes, something has to happen, but not this particular ordinance."
It's a not-so-surprising development in Millcreek, a community of 65,000 people that has struggled for more than two years to craft codes that would keep so-called "monster homes" from disrupting the character of more-modest neighborhoods.
The process has proved difficult as planners have tried to balance the rights of property owners who want bigger homes with neighbors who fear those rooftops will overshadow their backyards, creep too closely to their property lines and shingle over their community's green space.
On Thursday, even the community councils split -- with Mount Olympus and west Millcreek voting for the stricter standards (with some minor tweaking) and East Millcreek and Canyon Rim going against them.
"I was a little disappointed that we didn't hear more consensus," Planning Commission Chairman Gary Sackett said after the meeting. "But we will try to get as close as possible to a result that will be acceptable to the community at large."
The point of disagreement is the flexibility fashioned into the proposed building standards that some condemn as too restrictive and other criticize as too loose.
"It is becoming clear," quipped Commission member Laura Hanson, "that there is no way to make everyone happy."
The Planning Commission plans to host a town-hall meeting in March to vet its proposed building guidelines.
Leslie Riddle, chairwoman of the East Millcreek Community Council, hopes the commission will craft an ordinance that is a bit more palatable to both sides.
"I don't think when both sides go away dissatisfied that we have done our job," she said. "It means we have not done our job."
