Harris
Acres and Fairfield
This
is the fourth in a series
of profiles on each of
the 19 neighborhoods in
Harris Township. Neighborhood
profiles of 400 words
or less can be sent to
the Township, or emailed
to harrisbbg@adelphia.net.
Be sure to feature your
neighborhood!
Our
thanks to the County Recorder
of Deeds, Joe Davidson,
for the background help.
Joe is a resident of the
College Township portion
of Harris Acres, and now
lives in the same house
his parents built in in
June 1961 in that section
of Harris Acres.
Harris
Acres was created from
properties that included
the James M. Hubler farm
and the Joseph C. Meyers
estate, and encompassed
107.5 acres. The original
plan was submitted to
the Township in 1954,
followed by several revisions.
Current residents of Harris
Acres are aware that portions
of the development lay
in both Harris and College
Townships. This was by
design when, in 1952,
the townships’ lines
were re-plotted to fit
existing markers. The
revised plan was approved
by Harris and College
Townships’ respective
planning commissions and
supervisors.
The original idea for
Harris Acres actually
started in 1946 and involved
only the James Hubler
farm at that time. After
revising the plan in 1954,
the development is nearly
as it is known today.
There were originally
lots of ¼ acres
in size, with 24 in the
original plan. The developers
at the time were known
as Central Pennsylvania
Enterprises, and O.W.
Houts was the builder
of record for those first
homes. There were 14 different
covenants on the lots.
Included in these covenants
was the requirement that
each house have a driveway.
The covenants also prohibited
pig pens, as well as livestock
and poultry from being
raised or bred on the
lots. Also, no temporary
structures, such as tents
or trailers, were permitted
as housing. Once a lot
was purchased, it was
required to be one-story
if the structure was 1,500
square feet or less. Structures
of 1,800 square feet or
more were required to
be two-story.
Remnants of Old Boalsburg
Road are behind the development
at the current flashing
signal perpendicular to
South Atherton. The Old
28th Division Highway
can also be seen. Harris
Acres at the time was
considered the outermost
edge of State College
as far as modern developments
in the Centre Region.
The
Fairfield Development,
right next door to Harris
Acres and fronting Route
45, was made from land
owned by the Mary Ishler
family. Don Coyne and
Dan Hawbaker, working
as the Fairfield Group,
began the development
in 1983 and drew up plans
in 1986 for a development
created from three tracts
that encompassed 10.01,
17.123, and 13.08 acres
of land, respectively.
The development was approved
in June of 1986 and in
the 20 ensuing years has
been built to what residents
see today.
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