W.Vincent ordinance draws ire

By David Bernard, Staff Writer March 01, 2003

WEST VINCENT -- As planning commission Chairman Jim Wendelgass opened Thursday’s meeting, he announced that the board would take comments only on the township’s proposed zoning ordinance, and not on specific projects currently under consideration, such as a planned apartment complex in Ludwig’s Corner.

The apartments, however, were the undeniable focus of the evening. About 40 area residents attended the three-hour meeting. While the new zoning ordinance is 400 pages long, nearly all of their comments revolved around "Tier 5," an option in the ordinance that would allow apartment complexes to be built in the township’s residential zones. During the meeting, none of those assembled spoke in favor of Tier 5. "When you look at Tier 5 and what it does to the township, that’s what gives us the greatest concern," said resident Bob Frye. "What you’re prepared to do with Tier 5 is open us up to huge development ..this would totally change the character of this township." Wendelgass said the planning commission would consider the audience’s suggestions and vote whether to adopt the West Vincent Zoning Ordinance of 2003 at its March 20 meeting. "The only point I’ll make tonight is ..we take this matter very seriously and always have," he said toward the end of the evening. Thursday’s controversy originated from a developer’s plans for the Griffith farm tract on Nantmeal Road, behind the Ludwig’s Corner Fire Company. Villanova developer David Della Porta has proposed 216 apartments in eight 45-foot- high buildings on the site. The result would be the Route 100 corridor’s largest apartment complex between the village of Eagle and Pottstown. Della Porta’s plan has raised concern among residents that the apartments -- and the development projects that may follow them -- will wreck the rural character of the township and affect property values. Signs emblazoned with the word "Why?" have appeared in front yards throughout the township, questioning the need for the apartment project and protesting the process through which it has been reviewed. Township officials have pointed out, however, that the apartment complex is actually low-density development. Della Porta had originally planned to fill the entire 120-acre tract with single-family houses. The proposed apartments, on the other hand, would occupy 18 acres along Route 100 and leave the remaining land as open space. The proposed zoning ordinance discussed at Thursday’s meeting, a revision of the township’s 1998 ordinance, corrects and clarifies the earlier document. In particular, planning commissioners said, it provided for all possible residential, commercial and industrial zoning uses in the township, in accordance with Pennsylvania’s Municipal Planning Code. In other words, they said, the previous ordinance was not sufficient to allow the building of apartments, and they feared legal action by developers who wanted to build them. More than one resident saw the Tier 5 addition as an open door to, and even a promotion of, high-density development. "You have a fiduciary responsibility to current residents, as opposed to an unknown future," said Henry Osborn, who advised the planning commissioners to channel their efforts into encouraging and assisting property owners in the preservation of their land. Others argued that Tier 5 seemed to be written specifically for the Della Porta project. "The genesis of it was one developer," said Bob Frye, "and we have a big problem with that." By the evening’s end, planning commissioners said they would consider several suggested changes to Tier 5. The suggestions included requirements that Tier 5 projects be reviewed through "conditional use" processes and not allowed "by right;" meet height restrictions of 35 rather than 45 feet; be limited to parcels adjacent to routes 100 and 401; and have pitched roofs instead of flat ones.

©Daily Local News 2003

	Reader Opinions
Name: cooky mcclung Date: Mar, 01 2003 Why on earth would any responsible planners and zoners want to build a complex that will be filled with renters who add nothing to the tax base of the town, who will add considerably to the existing nightmare traffic and overburden the already stressed area schools? We moved from Chester County some years ago to a place where planners aren't bought by developers. It was clear years ago that the the writing on the wall, and development would soon pave over the rural landscape. What a pity to further degrade what was once such a lovely place to live.   Number of Opinions: 1 1 - 1 of 1