Sep. 28--The area of Washington County closest to Allegheny County continues to be a popular destination for commercial, retail and residential development.

A report by GVA Oxford provides some insight into the reasons why.

"Location, lower taxes and an abundance of land" are fueling growth in communities such as Canonsburg, North and South Strabane, Peters and the city of Washington, the commercial real estate company points out in its second-quarter "Pittsburgh Real Estate" report.

"Running north to south along Interstate 79, you can be in Pittsburgh in 25 minutes," the report notes.

Another transportation plus is that Interstate 70, which runs east and west, intersects I-79 at the county seat in Washington and provides a connection to the Pennsylvania Turnpike.

Allegheny County leaders often complain about the advantages some surrounding counties have in attracting residents and development due to the long absence of property tax reassessments there.

GVA Oxford notes that Washington County property is assessed at 25 percent property value but with 1981 as the base year, the last year there was a general reassessment of property there.

"As an example, a (Washington County) property worth $100,000 today may have had a 1981 value of $67,000," the report says. "That would make the assessed value $16,750." The actual tax is determined by multiplying the assessed value by the millage rate.

Such factors help explain why the communities of Peters, Cecil and North and South Strabane have ranked in the top 10 percent of municipalities in the region in volume of sales and number of units sold, according to GVA Oxford.

At the same time, North Strabane and Peters ranked third and fourth, respectively, out of 284 communities surveyed by GVA Oxford in new construction units sold since 2000, with Peters third (behind Adams and Cranberry in Butler County) in total volume of new construction sales.

On the retail front, the report lists shopping complexes in North Strabane, South Strabane and surrounding areas, including the most recent addition, the $70 million Tanger Outlet Center off Racetrack Road that opened Aug. 29.

The list includes two proposed centers, Centre Point at North Strabane, a 200,000-square-foot project proposed for a site near Canonsburg General Hospital, and South Pointe Town Center, a 400,000-square-foot center proposed as part of the Southpointe II development on the 217-acre site of the former Western Center, a state facility for the mentally disabled.