Pocopson Township Planning Commission Meeting

7:30 p.m., Wednesday, February 18, 2009

 

Members Present: Summers, McNemar, Breiseth, Costello, Johnson, Rafferty

Member Absent: Miller

 

1. Call to Order: Summers called the meeting to order at 7:30 p.m.

 

2. Rezoning/Moore: Richard Moore (Applicant) presented a request for a zoning change for his property located at 2111 Street Road from RA (Residential and Agricultural) to C-1 (Neighborhood Commercial) so that he can convert an existing house to two (2) offices – one to be rented and one to be occupied by Applicant. Applicant provided historical background including a drawing depicting the myriad of uses for the property since 1895. No retail or maintenance activity is planned for the office space; activity limited to billing, administrative, and customer support. McNemar noted Applicant should be mindful of meeting all requirements for floodplain and stormwater management as well as any impact of the Route 926 Bridge project that might affect the ingress/egress of the parcel. Planning Commission (PC) members voiced concerned that the parcel may not comply with existing Township Ordinances if rezoned for commercial use. Additionally, PC would like to review the zoning background for the Pocopson Veterinary Clinic. Generally, given the increase in rail and vehicle traffic, changing the zoning would make sense.

Motion: Rafferty moved that the Planning Commission recommend to the Pocopson Township Board of Supervisors to support the request of Richard Moore for zoning change for the parcel on the North side of Route 926 from RA to C-1 and that notification of the request be sent to surrounding property owners; seconded by Summers, unanimously approved.

 

3. 2nd Iteration/Sketch Plan Becker: Barry G. Stingel, RLA, Vice President, Hillcrest Associates Inc. and Jack Becker (Applicant) appeared before the Planning Commission to review updates to the sketch plan for parcel number 63-4-148 and 63-4-148.1. Stingel described the Plan noting 2008 FEMA map amendment removing a portion of the property from floodplain. Township Engineer recently met with the Applicant to discuss mitigation of stormwater issues that might include raising the elevation of the site with a retaining wall and installation of underground infiltration following perc tests on the North side of the property. Schematic of stormwater management alternatives not presented at this time. Discussions continue regarding parking that might include interior parking, garage parking, and parking on the North side. Admittedly, a mixed use with residential will cut down on parking requirements. Costello noted that parking on the North side may necessitate installation of a side walk to the building. PC asked but Applicant could not identify the number of vendors anticipated for the site. Applicant noted current sketch design accommodates setbacks resulting in an overall reduction in the building square footage. Applicant may seek zoning relief for the setback requirements in order to enhance aesthetic appeal of the building. Stingel noted that accommodation has been made for the sewer line easement outside the building envelope and the right-of-way road centerline. Applicant believes that the project is in compliance with the Act 537 Plan and does not exceed the number of equivalent dwelling units (EDUs). McNemar noted that Applicant should review impact of the project on the Scenic Byway Corridor Plan if applicable.

 

On zoning matters, it is not clear in Applicant’s reading of the current Township Ordinance if the C-1 (Neighborhood Commercial) will accommodate the addition of residential use. Applicant is reminded that the Plan submission must include a review by the Trails Committee.

 

4. LeFevre Sketch Plan: James Fritsch, Regester Associates, Inc., and Frederick W. LeFevre (Applicant), appeared to discuss a sketch plan for parcels 63-4-128.1 and 64-1-2.1 located in Pocopson and Pennsbury Townships respectively and consisting of 4.056 acres, zoned RA with a single-family dwelling and driveway. Applicant has owned the property since 1960 and proposes to subdivide the property to two (2) lots for estate planning purposes. Site is basically wooded with an existing driveway and a proposed twenty-five foot (25') common driveway easement. The township line runs through the property. Applicant has submitted the sketch plan to the Pennsbury Township Planning Commission for similar review during their regular meeting February 24, 2009. Applicant asks if Pocopson would prefer to defer the review to Pennsbury because most of the property lies within Pennsbury. PC members agree that an important contributing factor for the review process is a determination of the location of the building envelope. If building envelope is in Pennsbury, review process will be responsibility of Pennsbury. However, PC agreed that stormwater, grading, and natural resource issues could impact the Pocopson property and should be reviewed by Pocopson. McNemar and Rafferty suggested that Applicant contact Pocopson Township Engineer to arrange a review of the sketch plan in order to more fully understand the stormwater impact. No decision made at this time as to the review or application process pending comments from Pennsbury PC and the respective Township Engineers.

 

5. Election of Chairman and Vice-Chairman: Motion: Breiseth moved to nominate Gary Summers as 2009 Chair; Rafferty second; unanimously approved. Motion: McNemar moved to nominate Suzie Breiseth as 2009 Vice Chair; Rafferty second; unanimously approved.

 

6. Ordinance revisions: Summers reported that the Board of Supervisors requests the PC to begin reviewing the current Ordinance for the purpose of modifying fee-in-lieu of language throughout and particularly removing the references within the Zoning Chapter. Following discussion, the PC agreed that the language is inconsistent and that the requirement is subjective and there is a seemingly disparate treatment per project. Furthermore, the fee-in-lieu of language is used interchangeably with trails, recreation, and open space.  Following discussion, Costello and Summers agreed to review the fee-in-lieu of references and present their findings and recommendation to the PC and the Board of Supervisors.

 

Breiseth reported that she and Supervisor Brutscher will meet this week to finalize edits for the draft Ordinances for Keeping of Animals and Signs. The drafts will be submitted to the Board of Supervisors meeting Monday, March 9, 2009.  

 

7. Other Business/Announcements: Secretary reported that a request for an extension was received for the Bell Subdivision. Motion: Rafferty moved that the Planning Commission recommend granting the Bell Subdivision Plan a sixty (60) day extension to April 19, 2009; seconded by Summers; unanimously approved.

 

8. Approval of Meeting Minutes: January 21, 2009 Motion: Breiseth moved to approve the Minutes of January 21, 2009 as submitted; McNemar seconded; motion unanimously carried.

 

9. Adjournment:  Summers moved to adjourn at 9:30 p.m.; Rafferty seconded.  The next regularly scheduled Planning Commission Meeting is Wednesday, March 18, 2009.

 

 

___________________________                  ___________________________________

Susan Simone, Secretary                                  Gary Summers, Planning Commission, Chair