The Mayview State Hospital property is likely to be rezoned soon for use by business parks, but it's not likely to stay that way very long.

The South Fayette Planning Commission last Thursday recommended the B-1 business park zoning for 335 state-owned acres along Chartiers Creek. The state is planning to close the hospital and sell the property, which is zoned for rural residential use.

"People haven't put a whole lot of thought into what the property should be when it grows up," township solicitor Jon Kamin said. "B-1 would be a good use for it as we continue to study it -- commercial zoning, but thoughtful commercial zoning."

The South Fayette commissioners and planning commission have been trying to encourage commercial growth.

Business park zoning would ensure that if a developer bought land and tried to build on it immediately, it would be an office/warehousing/light industrial use.

The planning commission will also, however, start discussing soon what it would like to see in a long-term zoning plan for the main portion of the property. There has been talk of mixed-use village-style zoning to create an old-fashioned neighborhood with modern amenities.

There is a more specific vision, however, for the unused part of the hospital, which lies to the west of Mayview Road.

The portion, about one-fifth or one-sixth of the total property, is up a steep slope and abuts the township's Fairview Park. The township is interested in acquiring the property to expand the park, and even if it doesn't, would like to see compatible development there.

The planning commission Thursday said it would address that by starting work on language for a conservation/recreation district to be added to the township's zoning ordinance, something that does not exist in the ordinance now. The district would be developed with the Mayview property in mind, but could be applied to other areas as well.

Mr. Kamin warned the planners that "we can't just say there will be no development whatsoever." Creating a zone so strict that the property would become de facto park space would constitute what's called "regulatory taking," he said -- taking control of a property by ordinance rather than acquiring it legally.

"But we can custom-tailor it so that any development there would fit," he said.

The planning commission also discussed concerns that have been raised over natural gas exploration that is going on throughout the region. North Fayette recently passed an ordinance limiting the hours of drilling and the areas where it can be done, and it's been an issue in other municipalities as well.

Mr. Kamin, however, noted that a recent Commonwealth Court decision ruled that federal laws supercede local ones on drilling, making ordinances like North Fayette's unenforceable, in his opinion. That ruling is being heard by the state Supreme Court, but "we shouldn't be interfering with property rights when we know it's an area in flux," he said.

South Fayette engineer Dave Gardner noted that there have been "horror stories" about drilling companies taking the tops of ridges off and leaving areas a mess when they're done.

Mr. Kamin said "the best thing for us to do for landowners would be to educate them as to their rights."

He said landowners approached by drilling companies can negotiate various things into a contract, including buffering, remediation and sound-proofing for machines. And he advised them that given the amounts of money involved, a property owner would be wise to get a lawyer to work out the contract.