Project Report:
Oakwood Hills Pedestrian Access
(OHPA)
Version 2.0
02/8/17
Benjamin Holderman
Alex Issis
Caleb Stevens
Kevin Breisch
Justin Witters
Partner
Rider Musser Development, LLC
Mr. Kelly Phipps
5 Kacey Court, Suite 203
Mechanicsburg PA 17055
(717) 458-5450
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Version History
Version
Date
Description/Notes
1.0
10/18
Beginning and Start of Project
1.1
11/1
Preliminary Project Investigation
1.2
11/15
Update for Final Submission
2.0
2/8
Analysis Rubric, Meeting with Kathie Shafer, Learning
AutoCAD, and Grantham Road Proposals
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Table of Contents
Abstract ........................................................................................................................................... 4
Problem Definition.......................................................................................................................... 4
Project Goals ................................................................................................................................... 5
Section 1: Preliminary Project Investiation .................................................................................... 5
Project Research .......................................................................................................................... 5
Rider Musser Development, LLC ........................................................................................... 5
Subdivision and Land Development Ordinances – SALDO ................................................... 6
Pedestrian Access Alternative Solutions Comparison ................................................................ 6
Alternative Solutions Analysis Rubric .................................................................................... 7
Rider Musser Meeting ................................................................................................................. 8
Kathie Shafer Meeting ................................................................................................................ 8
Grantham Road Proposals ........................................................................................................... 9
Learning AutoCAD Civil 3D ...................................................................................................... 9
Plan for the Future ....................................................................................................................... 9
Section 2: Specifications ................................................................................................................. 9
Section 3: Conceptual Design ......................................................................................................... 9
Section 4: Detailed Design.............................................................................................................. 9
Section 5: Delivery ......................................................................................................................... 9
Section 6: As-Built ........................................................................................................................ 10
Section 7: Service and Maintenance ............................................................................................. 10
Conclusion .................................................................................................................................... 10
References ..................................................................................................................................... 11
Appendices .................................................................................................................................... 11
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Abstract
The Oakwood Hills Pedestrian Access Project has developed a partnership with Rider
Musser Development to ensure successful interfacing between Messiah College and new
development across Lisburn Road from the campus. There is a need for the Messiah College
community to safely access the proposed development, for which Rider Musser Development,
LLC is providing leadership. Our team will be working on the pedestrian access study to
determine and design the best method for a safe crossing of West Lisburn Road. This report
outlines to start of the project and the steps taken to meet with the project’s partners. Also,
included are descriptions of the work done to analyze various alternative crossing solutions and
determine an optimal choice to suggest to our partner. The project has ventured into working
with Messiah College as well as Rider Musser Development. The college is need of a sidewalk
to connect the campus to Lisburn Road for access to the President’s house. Meetings with the
college’s vice president of operations, Kathie Shafer, are detailed in the report along with
suggestions of services our team can provide to Messiah concerning the scope of the project.
Problem Definition
The proposed development would include some restaurants and other businesses that the
Messiah College community would be accessing. There are no dedicated pedestrian access
points that allow the Messiah College community to cross West Lisburn Road safely. The
problem exists even absent of a new development as increasing numbers of students cross
Lisburn Road for events at Orchard Hill – home to Messiah College’s presidential family.
Figure 1 provides a map of Messiah College and the proposed development. Concerns around
pedestrian safety are exacerbated with the growing likelihood of new development and increased
pedestrian traffic. Further refinement of the problem statement, including developing parameters
for a successful deliverable, is ongoing through the start-up phase of this project.
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Figure 1 – Map of proposed development
Project Goals
Develop a pedestrian access solution, for the Messiah College community to have a safe
connection between the Oakwood Hills development and the Messiah College campus. The
solution must ensure safety, while balancing cost and user convenience.
Section 1: Preliminary Project Investiation
Project Research
Rider Musser Development, LLC
Incorporated on May 14, 2014, Rider Musser Development, LLC was formed to develop
the Rider, Musser and Mummau tracts of land once owned by Messiah College and located in
Grantham, Pa., Upper Allen Township as shown in Figure 2 below. Rider Musser Development,
LLC is dedicated to developing a beautiful, sustainable and safe environment for business and
residential tenants. Rider Musser’s work will center around their strategic imperatives and core
principles, and their developments will be known as premier places to live, work, relax and
enjoy.
Figure 2- Map of Oakwood Hills Land
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Rider Musser has two goals, one serves Messiah College and the other serves the local
community. They will serve the College by generating revenue for the College. The purpose for
this is to make Christian education affordable for future generations. Rider Musser’s goal for the
local community is to provide quality housing options to those who desire upscale, maintenancefree living, and convenient banking, restaurant and other service-center oriented business
alternatives to our community. Our aim is to provide an economic stimulus to Upper Allen
Township and the Mechanicsburg region” (Rider Musser Website).
Subdivision and Land Development Ordinances – SALDO
The Subdivision and Land Development Ordinance process (or SALDO) for Upper Allen
Township was researched by the team. This was done in order for this information to be
referenced as the project progresses, as well as in preparation for the team’s October 11th
meeting with Rider Musser. The basis of this research was a document on the Upper Allen
Township website that describes this process in full.
Upon analysis of said document, the steps of this process were found and noted. For all
land development projects taking place in the township, the SALDO denotes strongly
encouraged initial steps of submitting sketch plans of the project and the organizing a conference
before applying. A preliminary plan of the project is then submitted and reviewed by the
township. This plan includes a multiple step design process regarding the project, as well as
other reports and necessary data. If approved, a final plan is then completed, which is a revised
version of the preliminary plan.
This research enabled an understanding of the steps of the SALDO process within the
team. With this, the team was able to comprehend the context of what exactly was completed and
what was yet to be done when the status of the Oakwood Hills project was stated at the Rider
Musser meeting. This research will also be continually referenced in the future, as the Oakwood
Hills project further progresses.
More information on this can be found in the Notes on the Subdivision and Land
Development Ordinance Process Project Record.
Pedestrian Access Alternative Solutions Comparison
Our team started working on developing several solution ideas for possible paths and
crossings to the new development. In total, six different paths from the college campus to the
new development were created. All solutions either featured a crosswalk or a bridge, giving two
options for crossing the road. Analysis of these various options will help lead to a decision of an
optimal crossing solution. We are working on developing pros and cons for each option to weigh
one solution against another to present to our partner. We also added a grading scheme to help
decide which alternative solution would be the optimal choice.
Two general examples of path options are shown below in Figure 3. One path follows
Grantham road and the other travels past cemetery hill and along the field to the entrance of the
commercial area. We believe the paths along the Grantham Road to be the best option as it is the
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most direct path with the least disturbance to neighbors. This path also provides both access to
the residential area of the development as well as access to events hosted at Orchard Hill.
Path along field
Path along Grantham road
Figure 3 - Example Maps of Path Options
In addition, we looked at two possible methods for crossing the road, a bridge and a
crosswalk. The bridge had the advantages of not disrupting traffic, also making it safer for the
students. However, it would be the most intensive to build and also would have the most cost
associated with both construction and maintenance. The crosswalk provides a solution that is less
expensive and takes less time to construct, but traffic must be on the lookout for any pedestrians
crossing the road, which can be difficult at night when visibility is limited.
After attending the meeting with Rider Musser, the group decided to add a new viewpoint
to the visual pathways to create a clearer representation of each pedestrian access. This new
viewpoint consisted of using a street view. When comparing the street view to the original plan
view, street views show the pedestrian access ideas at a street level. This viewpoint provides
clearer details at each access point and shows any errors that may not be noticed when looking at
the previous plans in a plan view. The team hopes these visual representations, both plan and
street views, will create an easier understanding of the possible pedestrian access ideas when
presented to the parties involved.
For additional more in-depth information concerning specific solutions and their pros and
cons can be found in the Alternative Solutions Comparisons Project Record.
Alternative Solutions Analysis Rubric
After the first MVP on November 11, 2016, we received feedback from the panelist that a
grading system for the different options for crossing the road would help in presenting and
determining the best possible solution. From this recommendation, we developed a grading
rubric that served to compare each of the solutions proposed in the Alternative Solutions
Comparison Project Record. Each solution was rated based on the distance, safety, time to build,
cost, elevation, and practicality/desirability. Using this grading rubric, we found the best solution
was the access through the roundabout at the entrance to Oakwood Hills.
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For the rest of the results and the breakdown of the categories and scoring, refer to the
Alternative Solutions Analysis Rubric Project Record.
Rider Musser Meeting
The meeting between Kelly Phipps of Rider Musser and the Oakwood Hills Pedestrian
Access team took place on October 11, 2016. The meeting was meant to gain an understanding
as to where the two parties stand on the Oakwood Hills project. In the meeting, we were given a
history of the project as well as specific project details previously unknown by the team. The
current status, expected timeline, and future plans of Oakwood Hills were also discussed. We
presented our crossing ideas for feedback, and made developments in establishing our
relationship with our client.
Some of the specifics in regards to the exact working relationship between our team and
Rider Musser and the expected project timeline were left ambiguous at the meeting. Due to the
project being on hold, these specifics could not be properly addressed at that time. Despite this,
the meeting proved to be a very worthwhile and informative experience. We were happy to meet
with our client face to face, and the large amount of information learned and clarified was
extremely beneficial. The potential for a very successful working relationship between our team
and Rider Musser was very noticeable. More information concerning this meeting can be found
in the Rider Musser Meeting Notes Project Record.
Kathie Shafer Meeting
On November 4, 2016 Ben Holderman, Bryan Hoover, Dr. Brian Swartz, Doug
Flemmens, and Dereck Plante met with Kathie Shafer, Messiah College’s Vice President of
Operations, to discuss our team’s involvement with the upcoming development. We desired to
receive feedback from her concerning our alternative crossing solutions and how they may
overlap Messiah’s master plan for the campus. Kathie informed us that Messiah College has a
desire to update the Grantham Road entrance into the campus. The campus is in need of a
sidewalk stretching out to the President’s house on Orchard Hill. The president hosts roughly
60% of the students throughout the year. Currently, students walk in the grass or on the road to
reach the presidents house which is not ideal. Kathie sent Ben Holderman Messiah’s conceptual
design of how the updated road may look to assist us in our work. Meeting with Kathie was very
informative and encouraged our team. Messiah’s desire to update Grantham road and need for a
sidewalk to Orchard Hill provides our team potential for addition work.
A second meeting with Kathie Shafer has been scheduled for February 22, 2017 to
further discuss possible involvement of our Collab team with Messiah's desire to update the
Grantham Road campus entrance. Our team has worked to develop services we are capable of
offering Messiah College concerning the update of the Grantham Road entrance into the college
and various project options on the campus. We would like to meet with Mrs. Shafer to discuss
the viability of these projects and to shape a possible formal proposal to Messiah.
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Grantham Road Proposals
Upon learning about Messiah College’s plans to update Grantham Road within the
campus master plan and the possibility of our team assisting in the project, we compiled a list of
the tasks we as a team would be able to fulfill. Our team devised two design proposals for
crossing methods from College Avenue to Grantham Road, as well as a proposed sidewalk for
Grantham Road that connects the college to the President’s house. Our team also proposes
working on the update of Grantham Road through data obtained from self-conducted surveys, asbuilt contracts of services pertaining to this road, and the campus master plan. Our efforts in
learning AutoCAD will give us the tools necessary to complete these designs. These proposals
showcase our willingness and existing ability to assist in this project. We will be presenting these
ideas to Mrs. Shafer during our meeting on February 22, 2017. Details of these proposals can be
found in the Grantham Road Proposals Project Record.
Learning AutoCAD Civil 3D
Our client will work with designs developed using AutoCAD. We have been working on
learning AutoCAD Civil 3D to be able to stay consistent with our client’s plans. We have
acquired a Discovering AutoCAD 2017 manual to teach ourselves how to use the software. We
will continue to improve our skills and competency with the software as the project continues.
Plan for the Future
We plan on continuing to learn AutoCAD. We will be working on a proposal for the
sidewalks at Messiah College for Kathie Shafer. A meeting with Kathie Shafer has been
scheduled for February 22, 2017. A decision about which crossing idea is going to be proposed
to Kelly Phipps. There will be a meeting with H. Edward Black & Association and Kelly Phipps
to propose the idea and to decide what Oakwood Hill Pedestrian access is going to be doing and
what H. Edward Black & Association relating to the crossing over Lisburn road.
Section 2: Specifications
TBD - Specifications will be determined through future contact with Rider Musser and
Messiah College.
Section 3: Conceptual Design
TBD
Section 4: Detailed Design
TBD
Section 5: Delivery
Details TBD – Our team’s goal at this point in the project is to provide advice for our
partner to decide the optimal option for a pedestrian crossing. We also are working with Rider
Musser to be involved in the design of this crossing as well as the designs of the trails running
through the development area.
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Section 6: As-Built
TBD
Section 7: Service and Maintenance
TBD
Conclusion
The Oakwood Hills Pedestrian Access Project has made a good start to the project. We
have brainstormed several alternatives for a safe crossing of Lisburn Road and are prepared to
give our proposal to Rider Musser. We have made connections with both Rider Musser and
Messiah College, the two parties involved in this project, and have begun working with them to
gain direction in what they want us to do. We have met with Kathie Shafer and there is some
work that can be done on Messiah college's side of the project relating to sidewalks. Becoming
knowledgeable about AutoCAD is going to help us to communicate designs properly with our
client.
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References
Rider Musser Development Website - http://www.ridermusser.com/
Alternate Solutions Comparison Project Record
Rider Musser Meeting Notes Project Record
Alternative Solutions Analysis Rubric Project Record
Grantham Road Proposals Project Record
Appendices
SALDO Notes Project Record
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