Ross Planning Commission to Hear Heartland Homes' Plans for Highland Country Club

The Ross Township Planning Commission will consider Thursday night, for the first time, Heartland Homes' plans for the former Highland Country Club property.

Heartland hopes to create a 302-lot subdivision on the 117 acres of land bordered by Highland Avenue, Gass Road and Golf Drive. 

Tuesday, U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge Jeffrey Deller approved a plan to have Heartland Homes pay off a more than $2 million delinquent mortgage on the property held by Slovak Savings Bank of Brighton Heights and more than $90,000 in back taxes owed to Ross Township, Allegheny County, and the North Hills School District, the Pittsburgh Tribune Review reported.

Heartland plans to build 120 luxury town-homes, ranging in price from $180,000 to $240,000, along Gass Road.

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An additional 132 single-family homes, ranging in price from $350,000 to $500,000 will be built on the remainder of the property.

Heartland's plans include two entrances along Highland Avenue, two more along Gass Road, and one along Golf Drive.

Ross Township Commissioner Gerald R. O'Brien estimated the 316 new homes and town-homes will add $90-million in taxable property to the township, resulting in an additional $270,000 a year in tax revenue, once the project is completed in about six years.

John Schalcosky, President of the Ross Township Historical Society who was present at the meeting when the plans were revealed on Oct. 29, said the development includes a generous amount of green space, and even a memorial park, named after the township's founding resident, Casper Reel. 

 near the 18th green of the property, and a grave marker will be relocated to the new park. Schalcosky said it's his belief the plans would change if any human remains are discovered during construction.

"There are plans to relocate the bones of the Reel's IF they are found," he said. "The only problem is that the spot where the marker is now is only a memorial. No one, including me, has 100% proof of the "exact" location unfortunately - it is lost to time."

Do you think the Heartland Homes' plans are good news for Ross Township? Share your thoughts in the comments box below. 

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