Hearing for land purchase planned in Pennsbury

Pennsbury Township’s Board of Supervisors’ meeting on Wednesday, Nov. 19, will start with a hearing that supervisors hope will lead to the purchase of three parcels of land for open space.

At least $5 million will be used, maybe more.

The board voted in October to borrow $4 million to buy parcels on either side of the township building property. Interest on the 20-year loan is slightly less than 2.7 percent.

Those two tracts were part of the controversial Pennsbury Village project that never fully got off the ground. The idea was to join those two parcels with land owned by the township for the village development. The original plan called for a combination of commercial and residential use.

However, after years of challenges to using public land — township property — for a commercial project, lawsuits, and counter suits, a stipulation agreement was reached in 2011.

That agreement ended the litigation and allowed Pennsbury Village Associates to go forward in seeking approval for a modified plan that was strictly residential. However, that proposal fizzled when PVA filed for bankruptcy in 2013.

The parcels are currently owned by a subsidiary of Toll Bros.

Supervisors are also looking to buy the three-acre Hickory Hill property on the southwest corner of Hickory Hill Road and Route 1.

Other money will also be involved. According to Supervisor Aaron McIntyre, the township expects to use about $1 million currently in the Open Space Fund for the buy.

The Pennsbury Land Trust is also considering contributing some funds, according to Alma Forsythe. She’s not sure how much, though.

Supervisors’ Chairman Charles “Scotty” Scottoline said he’s grateful that the trust wants to help out.

Scottoline said the plan right now is to use $1 million from the Open Space Fund as a down payment, then pay off the loan using money from the Open Space Tax.

The hearing is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m.

About Rich Schwartzman

Rich Schwartzman has been reporting on events in the greater Chadds Ford area since September 2001 when he became the founding editor of The Chadds Ford Post. In April 2009 he became managing editor of ChaddsFordLive. He is also an award-winning photographer.

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