Parking variance granted

Posted by Rich Schwartzman on April 22, 2023

A decision by the Chadds Ford Zoning Hearing Board paves the way for a coffee shop to move into the former location of the Bryn Mawr Trust Bank. One condition of the approval is for the property owner to pave the rear area.

The site is the little strip mall with the U.S. Post Office and Agave restaurant on Route 1. The back side of the strip hasn’t been kept up. Much of it is broken concrete, gravel, and potholes as well as problems with trash and stormwater runoff.

But the need for the variance was for the number of parking spaces. According to the township code, 143 spaces are needed for the entire strip mall, but the township said there were only 79 spaces available, making the site 64 parking spots short of what’s required. But according to property owner Casey Lafferty, there are more than 79 spaces.

Lafferty testified Thursday night that after going over the site with the township engineer, there are 102 spaces and there will be 37 more after the rear area is paved. His attorney, Ernie Angelas, called the site a pre-existing nonconformity and said the requested variance is now minimal.

Neighbors, such as John Grace, said there’s plenty of parking and he supports the request. His concern has been the lack of maintenance of the property, that it needs to be cleaned up and maintained properly.

Lafferty agreed with the conditions of the approval, that the rear parking area be paved and striped, and that the dumpsters be fenced. He added that along with the paving, the rear area will be regraded to allow stormwater to run off into the grassy area behind the property.

The decision allows barista Steve Sonsini to move forward with his plans to open a coffee shop in the old bank location. He testified in February that his shop hours would be 6:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. during the week and 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday, but during the April session, he said the hours would be 6:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. every day.

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.