A basic plan for a text change to Concord Township’s zoning ordinance that was shot down in December was heard once again during a hearing on May 13.
The propsal, if approved, could eventually allow for the development of the 17-acre Hall family property at Featherbed Lane and Bethel Road. That development plan calls for greater density than currently allowed. While the proposal in December was denied, the new submission reworded the suggested amendment to make it more specific to the property in question.
Supervisor Dominic Cappelli said after the hearing that the original could be applied to too many properties.
“We didn’t want that,” he said. “We wanted it narrowed down to [the Hall] property.”
Supervisors’ Chairman Dominic Pileggi added that the new proposed change affects only properties in the R2 and R2D zoning districts and requires that historic buildings be preserved.
Supervisors have planned a meeting for May 27 to announce their decision. Even if the text amendment passes, the applicant would still need to go through a conditional use hearing and the normal land development procedure before work could begin.
Engineer Matt Houtmann, testifying for the applicant, said the property could be developed now to include about a dozen homes, but that would not be economically feasible given the extensive improvements that are planned. Those improvements include building a sewage pump station that could handle flows from 150 homes in neighboring developments. It could also handle flows from the Garnet Valley School District property to the north if the district chose to abandon its own treatment facility, Houtmann said.
Also included is a plan to extend Perkins Lane from Cambridge Downs through the proposed Hall development to Bethel Road. That would provide another access point for the existing Cambridge Downs and Clayton Park developments.
That new access is necessary based on the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation’s plan to widen Route 322 — the Conchester Highway. That widening would eliminate two left turns — at Cambridge and Merion drives — into and from Cambridge Downs along Route 322.
Pileggi said he’s especially interested in seeing better access for Cambridge residents.
Another consideration in developing the property is that it is a hilly area with steep slopes on the southern portion of the site and there is a need to do extensive grade work to put in the roadway and pump station, Houtmann said.
In return for the improvements, the applicant wants to increase the density to 44 homes. Houtmann said there would only be four houses in a row so that they would appear more like carriage houses than townhouses.
Many residents, including the township Historical Commission, oppose the idea.
Other residents asked whether the township would be responsible for maintaining the new internal road. Houtmann said that road — the extension of the existing Perkins Road — would be offered to the township for dedication and that Concord would then be responsible for its maintenance. Concord would also be getting liquid fuel taxes from the state for that.
Another resident wanted to know if Bethel Road would have to be widened. Houtmann said it would, but only at the approaches to the panned development.
Roughly three dozen residents requested party status, meaning they would have standing to appeal a decision they didn’t like. The meeting room itself was filled to capacity with a number of people standing along the walls.
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.
