By virtue of the adoption of a Resolution of Cooperation by the Board of County Commissioners of Jefferson County and by the City, Village, and Township governments within Jefferson County, Ohio, there has been created a Regional Planning Commission vested with powers given to regional planning commissions under the laws of the State of Ohio, particularly Revised Code 713.21 et seq. Such Resolution of Cooperation provides for the creation of a Commission composed of representatives of Jefferson County, the cooperating Cities, Villages and Townships and Citizen Representatives appointed by the Board of County Commissioners which has the right to exercise the powers and duties of the Regional Planning Commission. Subject to the provisions of all applicable statutes and in order to carry out the duties and functions of the Regional Planning Commission vested in it by virtue of the Resolution of Cooperation and the Statutes of the State of Ohio.
The Jefferson County Regional Planning Commission shall have the power and duty to make plans and maps of the Region showing the Commission's recommendation for land use patterns, systems of transportation, highways, park and recreational facilities, water supply, sewerage and sewerage disposal, solid waste disposal, civic centers and other public improvements which affect the development of the Region as a whole, or more than one political subdivision within the Region, and which do not begin and terminate within the boundaries of any single municipality.
Regional Planning Commission Administrates the following:
- CDBG Grant
The Planning Commission distribute the monies which come into Jefferson County for the Community Development Block Grant. The components of this grant include, but are not limited to, Emergency Home Repairs, Street Improvements, Sidewalk Improvement, Demolition, upgrades to an establishment and Fair Housing to name a few.
- CHIP Grant
The Community Housing Improvement Program is a much larger grant than the CDBG Grant and therefore covers a larger area of projects.
This is a targeted area grant which includes, but is not limited to Down Payment Assistance, Homeless Prevention, Private Rental Rehab, and Fair Housing to just name a few.
- CHIS
This large document is a component of the CHIP Program. The Community Housing Improvement Strategy provides information of the housing needs and issues based on local demographic information. It shows the housing issues and the recommended priority housing needs for the next five years.
- USEPA Brownfield Coalition Assessment Grant
The Planning Commission will oversee a $1,000,000 grant to conduct environmental assessments at appoximately 25 to 37 potentially contaminated properties (brownfields) throughout the County, with emphasis on the Coalition member target areas: City of Steubenville, City of Toronto and the Village of Mingo. The purpose of the grant is to evaluate environmental issues at brownfield sites, as a first step toward putting abandoned or underutilized properties back to beneficial reuse.
- Deed Approval
The Planning Commission approve lot splits and transfers of property before going to the Courthouse for final recording.
- Subdivision Approval
The Planning Commission approve new subdivisions and write up the subdivision regulations for the county to follow.
- Topographical Map Distributor
JCRPC are the local distributor for the USGS topographical maps for Jefferson County and a few neighboring counties.
- Nature Works Grants
The Planning Commission assist various communities with Nature Works Grants to obtain playground equipment, ball fields, bleachers, and other items which would qualify under this matching grant.
- Floodplain Administrator
The Planning Commission is the Floodplain Administrator for Jefferson County. We administer flood permits, flood zones, and the Floodplain Regulations for the County