Site plan proposing a total of 60 “workforce housing” units to be built on Pennbrook Parkway, at bottom, as presented to Upper Gwynedd commissioners on April 10 2023. (Screenshot of meeting video)
Plans likely to be discussed further in 2025
A project that drew plenty of discussion in 2023, then went quiet in 2024, looks likely to come back for more discussion in 2025.
Township residents continued to sound off this week on plans for a proposed project at 1500 Pennbrook Parkway in Upper Gwynedd, talks that look likely to pick up again in the new year.
“I don’t support the proposal, but I’m not here to say that I oppose it either,” said resident William Jackson.
In August 2023, township commissioners approved a zoning text and map change expanding Upper Gwynedd’s transit overlay district into a roughly six-acre parcel of light industrial land on Pennbrook Parkway, where New Jersey-based developer The Walters Group had proposed a complex of 60 apartment units. Walters representatives’ first public presentation of the plans in April 2023 showed 60 units on roughly six acres in three-story buildings with some dedicated to what the developer termed “workforce housing,” meant for residents who meet certain low-income qualifications. In the months between that presentation and the vote that August, residents questioned the need for, and motivation behind the project, while the developer, county officials, and a councilman from nearby Lansdale argued that the project would help address housing needs in the county.
2024 has brought less discussion on the project: county officials named that project as a recipient of a Montco Forward low-interest loan in March, and an update from staff in July said that no formal application had yet been submitted. In November township staff said the township planning commission would be next to see the latest plans, while a resident vowed to challenge the board’s 2023 approval of the zoning change.
An “Available” sign stands on a four-acre parcel along Pennbrook Parkway where a developer has begun talks on a proposed housing project, as seen in summer 2022.
Parked trailers and “No trespassing” signs can be seen on a property on Pennbrook Parkway in Upper Gwynedd which could be the site of new development and a change in the township’s zoning map, as seen in June 2022.
Advocates backing a zoning change for a proposed development on Pennbrook Parkway pose for photos after Upper Gwynedd’s commissioners approved the zoning change request on Tuesday, Aug. 22 2023. At center holding poster is Kim Krauter, Pennsylvania director of development for The Walters Group
Lansdale councilman BJ Breish, at podium, speaks to Upper Gwynedd’s commissioners after presenting a petition supporting a proposed development on Pennbrook Parkway on Tuesday, Aug. 22 2023.During their last meeting of the year, the township commissioners heard a brief update on the project on Monday night from township planning and zoning officer David Conroy, who said he had little new to report since the November update.
“1500 Pennbrook Parkway: we’re just waiting on revised plans, after the initial review letter that our township engineer sent out,” he said.
During public comments, Jackson shared his thoughts, saying he’s been following the discussion for over a year, and saw both sides of the arguments for new housing, and against that specific project, and was glad to hear some concerns already addressed.
Yard sign opposing a proposed development on Pennbrook Parkway, as seen on Broad Street in Upper Gwynedd on Tuesday, Aug. 22 2023.“At the time, our police chief did due diligence, calling to some of the other properties that are owned by the Walters Group, and confirmed that there was no significant amount of crime coming out of those, and that the properties were well managed, and there was other investigation to make sure that those were well-maintained and clean,” he said.
“In this area, we have a housing shortage, an affordable housing shortage. My understanding of this proposal is that it will bring some diversity to what we have here in Upper Gwynedd,” in its housing supply and the availability for those of low incomes, Jackson said.
Jackson then described who he hopes to see in the new housing.
A text amendment to Upper Gwynedd’s zoning map shows the prior transit-oriented development zone shaded in grey, east of Church Road and north of Wissahickon Avenue, and a proposed “TOD-2” expansion approved in 2023 of that overlay lined in red and blue off of Pennbrook Parkway. (Credit: Upper Gwynedd Township).“I’m hoping, if it does get passed, out of those residents we’ll see recruits for our police department, we’ll see young teachers in our school district, we’ll see people who check you in at the doctor’s office, all of those places where we need folks who can afford to live there, versus some of the more expensive housing in the township,” he said.
“We need a diversity of all those economic strata, to fill all of the roles we need — so that when we go to the grocery store or the hardware store, there’s more than one lane open, because they can’t staff the store,” he said.
He then took aim at language used by those opposing the project.
“I don’t consider it a threat to Upper Gwynedd. I don’t think it’s going to change the nature of our township. Some of those phrases have been used in the past. I just want to make sure you all hear there are some people that do not oppose the proposal,” he said, before asking the board to make sure the final design includes bike racks.
The next comments on the project came from Deborah Wurstle, who said her following the project brought to mind concerns from decades ago that new development could overload the township’s infrastructure.
“About 15 or 20 years ago, I got a letter saying that there would be no residential building because the sewer system, and the water system, would be compromised. This town was a small town,” she said.
“I don’t believe this town was meant to be a big city. And it’s becoming more and more like a large city, which is very disturbing to me. There’s been more accidents, there’s been horrible drivers in the area, and I think this would create more problems,” she said. “I just think it would be too much.”
Commissioners President Katherine Carter thanked both residents for their comments, and the board and staff did not otherwise respond to either.
Upper Gwynedd’s commissioners next meet at 7 p.m. on Jan. 6 and the township’s planning commission meets at 7 p.m. on Jan. 8, 2025, both at the township administration building, 1 Parkside Place. For more information visit www.UpperGwynedd.org.
This article appears courtesy of a content share agreement between North Penn Now and The Reporter. To read more stories like this, visit https://www.thereporteronline.com.
