Developers coming to UM???

It's about time that developers got interested in developing in UM again!! The only problem as I see it is that because the comissioners did not extend the "town center zone" to include the areas north on York Rd. & Davisville Rd., there is only 1 developer that will bnenfit from the TIF. I only hope that the voters in ward 1 realize that Commissioner Romaniello was the driving force behind keeping the "town center zone" samller rather than enlarging it to include areas that; to quote Comm. Hotchkiss; "... is ugly and keeps getting uglier". Read below and feel free to comment.



By Jesse Reilly Staff Writer
With a tax incentive aiming to increase development in downtown Willow Grove waiting on approval from the county, it seems developers are already interested in the area.Several presentations came before the community development committee Monday night proposing a movie theater, student housing and major improvements to the Willow Grove Shopping Center.David Iemolo of Federal Realty Investment Trust, which has owned the shopping center since the mid 1980s, presented the committee with a plan that would upgrade nearly 6 acres of the 13-acre center and add a six-story parking garage, more than 250 residential units and increase the retail square footage by nearly 80,000.“It would really open up the space and allow pedestrian connection straight through,” Seth Shapiro, the director of planning and urban development for the project said. “It would look quite different than it looks right now.”The project is consistent with the guidelines of redevelopment in the town center, Jody Holton, urban development planner for the township, said.“This plan really seems to embody all of your goals,” she said. “It looks to eliminate big box stores and increase pedestrian travel. It is centralized and much more efficient.”For Commissioner Joe Lavalle, chairman of the committee, the project seemed to embody the township’s goals.“This could inject life back into this area of town,” he said. “It’s a big project but I think we’re going in the right direction.”With Toys-R-US vacant, Iemolo said there is a short window of opportunity to begin the project because, if it is re-occupied, it could put construction on hold for as long as a decade.Federal Realty would be the first developers looking to utilize tax incremental financing — a tool used to generate funds for projects by freezing taxes for developers, allowing them to use the money they would have paid in taxes for construction.“Without that, this project would not be possible,” Iemolo said. “This needs to be a partnership because it is a large scale project.”Even with 229 one- and two-bedroom apartments, Shapiro said he did not believe there would be a significant impact on the school district — one of the entities needed to approve a TIF.“This is luxury apartment living and we usually see young, single professionals or newly married couples without children,” he said. “We don’t see it bringing too many children to the school district.”In addition to the improvements to the shopping center, a representative for Frank Theaters proposed a 16-screen movie theater and IMAX at the old Sam’s Club Property, 1001 S. York Road.The plan also proposed restaurants in the area and possible retail space in the future, Thomas Chapman, attorney for Frank Theaters said.A variance for restaurant use, parking and possibly for the height of the IMAX would be needed.Finally the township heard a proposal for a three-story, 50 two-bedroom unit student housing at 422, 423 and 503 York Road.“We have had conversations with Penn State Abington and Arcadia,” Jeffery Cairone of Joseph Cairone Construction said. “There is a definite need for student housing in the area.”Commissioner James Hotchkiss agreed.“That area is ugly and keeps getting uglier,” he said. “Any construction would be welcome.”There would be security on the property from Thursday to Sunday as well as the possibility of a graduate student as a resident assistant.Although the developers were interested in a TIF, Kate Harper, the township’s solicitor, said she did not believe it would apply and is something both entities would have to look into.Excited to keep the lines of communication open with all developers, it seemed that the members of the board had some reservations but were in favor of the projects.“It’s a very exciting time,” Lavalle said. “We just need to keep the lines of communication open.”