WEST VINCENT TOWNSHIP
PLANNING COMMISSION

April 17, 2008 7:30 PM

Attendance:    Chairman Peter Rodgers, Vice Chairperson Jean Warrick, Sara Shick, Bob Kaiser, Jim Wendelgass, Township Manager Township Engineer Kenneth Yerger and Township Secretary Tammy Swavely.

Chairman Rodgers called the meeting to order at 7:35 PM.

The minutes of March 20, 2008 were unanimously approved as amended on a motion by Kaiser and a second by Shick.

Correspondence:

The Open Space Advisory Committee Minutes, the Environmental Advisory Council Minutes and the Board of Supervisors Minutes that were previously distributed by e-mail were acknowledged as received.  The Erosion & Stormwater Control Inspection Reports and Earth Disturbance Reports distributed by e-mail were acknowledged as received.  Rodgers stated that upon reading the Erosion & Stormwater reports he saw that they were pertaining to dirt in the roads.  He assumes that all of the offenders had been talked to about these problems.  Jim Wendelgass stated that all had been re-inspected at this point.  If there were any fines they would have been from the state or county (and most likely none had been levied). 

SUBDIVISION/LAND DEVELOPMENT:

Wilkinson:  Nothing new with this application.

Burch/Woodstone:  A revised plan was received January 8, 2008 and a review by Carroll Engineering was received on the plan dated January 22, 2008.  The Planning Commission will review this plan again and make a recommendation to the Board once the Applicant responds to the engineer’s letter.  There are water and sewer issues that need to be resolved.

Weyl:  A Conditional Use Decision will be made by the Board of Supervisors on April 21, 2008.

St. Andrews Church:  A revised land development plan was received April 7, 2008.  A Carroll Engineer letter was submitted April 16, 2008.  No one was present for the Applicant.  On the revised plan, the onsite parking requirements need to be shown.  The Zoning Officer has yet to determine if a Conditional Use is necessary.  A letter dated April 7, 2008 from the Applicant states that they are still waiting on a sewage report.  The extension has a date of April 30, 2008 which is before the next Planning Commission meeting.  Swavely has spoken with the Applicant’s engineer and is in the process of obtaining another extension of time.  Rodgers made the motion that absent an Extension of time being granted, based on the review of Carroll Engineering dated April 16, 2008 that the land development application be denied since they haven’t complied with the requirements delineated in the afore mentioned letter.  Warrick seconded the motion which was unanimously approved. 

PLANNING/ZONING:

Ludwigs Square:  A sketch plan was received February 6, 2008 and an engineer review was received March 5, 2008.  There has been nothing new with this application.

Collie Construction:  A Zoning Hearing Application has been filed and a hearing date of May 20, 2008 has been set.  The Planning Commission stated that as designed, this plan should be a turn down.  The Applicant is requesting several variances plus, according to the Township Engineer’s review, there are several additional variances that appear to be required and that were not requested.  Warrick made the motion to recommend to the Zoning Hearing Board that the use variance not be granted but that the Planning Commission recognizes the Applicant’s need for dimensional relief via variance for the minimal expansion of the existing structure (or its replacement) to allow a reasonable residential use to be implemented on the lot as permitted by right, and to further encourage the ZHB to attach reasonable conditions along with the granting of such variance relief in light of the parcels proximity to the stream.  This motion was seconded by Shick which carried unanimously.                     

Becker:  Shick made the motion to recommend to the Zoning Hearing Board that this Application be turned down since this plan does not adhere to the 100’ stream buffer protection which is important to the Township and it is a sensitive site.  In addition, the proposed facilities may compromise the space remaining and required for the rescue sanitary sewage disposal system required for when the current system fails, and lastly it not clear whether the storm water basin shown is proposed as a temporary or a permanent basin.  Warrick seconded the motion which carried unanimously. 

Abram Realty/PNC Bank:  A new land development sketch plan was received to the Township for the corner of Routes 100 and 401.  The Planning Commission would like a Township Engineer review even though this is a sketch plan.  Wendelgass will inform the Board of Supervisors of this request.  There seem to be many things questionable about this sketch, zoning relief may be required if the 75’ setback is used since they will not have any usable ground. 

OLD BUSINESS:

Accessory dwellings were discussed at the last workshop.  Kaiser made the motion that the Planning Commission recommend to the Board of Supervisors to amend the Zoning Ordinance Section 2201 to reduce the maximum allowed square footage for an accessory dwelling to 1500 square feet, to require that accessory dwellings be located within 100’ of the primary dwelling, and that accessory dwellings be an allowed to be constructed in the front yard of the subject lot so long as it complies with the required building setbacks.  Shick seconded the motion which carried unanimously. 

NEW BUSINESS:

North Coventry Township has adopted a Community Wellhead Protection Ordinance.  The Planning Commission is interested in evaluating the benefits that such regulations might have for West Vincent Township and asked Wendelgass to review North Coventry’s ordinance and report back to them with his impressions as to the value of such regulations for West Vincent. 

Meeting adjourned 8:40 PM