Faded signs stand in front of the current Wawa store at Forty Foot Road and Sumneytown Pike in Towamencin in December 2022. Photo by Dan Sokil | The Reporter.
Township officials have gotten an update on a project on one of the township’s most visible corners.
Towamencin’s supervisors heard details in late June on plans for a Wawa on the corner of Forty Foot Road and Sumneytown Pike, and heard an update on when it might become a reality.
“We are moving through the administrative process, trying to finish up all the loose ends, so that we can get to construction,” said attorney Julie Von Spreckelsen.
Plans date back to 2017 for a project combining two lots, a current Wawa store and the now-demolished adjacent former Lukoil station on the corner, into one larger lot that would have a Wawa fuel station and store in front and an early version had a separate retail building behind.
New renderings were shown in late 2022, with the building featuring a brick façade and pyramid roof meant to match the nearby buildings, and an approval in early 2023 included an updated lighting plan for the parking spaces surrounding the planned building.
Site Renderings of new Wawa store proposed for the corner of Forty Foot Road and Sumneytown Pike, as presented to Towamencin’s supervisors on Nov. 22, 2022.During the township supervisors meeting on June 26, Von Spreckelsen told the board on behalf of Wawa that the developer is seeking a formal time extension on prior approvals granted by the township’s zoning hearing board for that project in 2022, and from the supervisors in 2023.
Supervisors Chairman Chuck Wilson summarized the prior approvals, then asked solicitor Bob Iannozzi if the attorney had a recommendation whether or not the board should send him to the zoning hearing board to represent the township.
“My recommendation is that the board remain neutral, as it has previously. The reason why the applicant is before the board is, because the relief expired,” Iannozzi said, and the plans had been “previously blessed by you guys.”
“They’re just doing it to re-up, to get more time on the clock,” he said.
Von Spreckelsen said earlier delays were caused by litigation, and the approval would clear a major hurdle ahead of construction.
“Any guesstimates on when can we buy a cup of coffee there?” said supervisor Kristen Warner, and the attorney replied: “Hopefully very, very soon,” with updated zoning approvals possible in July and construction targeted to start “shortly thereafter.”
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