The Falls Township Board of Supervisors held a workshop meeting on December 12th to review several sketch plans for potential residential developments. Sketch plans are a precursor to land development review.
The board took no action. Any future consideration by the Board of Supervisors would follow the applicant’s detailed submission of land development plans.
One of the plans, for Marrazzo’s storage, calls for constructing a self-storage facility, along with office, retail and residential at 316-320 W. Trenton Avenue. Township Manager Matthew Takita said the developer is looking to build offices in the front and apartments on the second floor to screen the self-storage facility.
The scale of the buildings as detailed on the sketch plan, would “mimic” what’s on West Trenton Avenue now, Takita said.
“It’s actually a nice-looking design,” Supervisors Chairman Jeff Dence said. “It looks decent to me.”
Supervisor John Palmer agreed that it fits into the corridor. Supervisors Jeff Boraski, Brian Galloway and Erin Mullen were absent during the meeting.
The board had reviewed a sketch for the property previously and asked the developer at that time to make it “fit into the neighborhood” better. The Supervisors said the latest sketch does just that.
Takita said the developer was looking for input from the Supervisors before finalizing land development plans.
In other business, the Supervisors reviewed a sketch plan for 654 Lincoln Highway, which was formerly Lincoln Garage. The developer is proposing to construct two four-story, 48-unit age-restricted apartment buildings.
As proposed, the units would be for people 55 and over. The board had reviewed a sketch plan previously but had asked the developer to provide more parking.
The most recent sketch plan shows 187 parking spaces where 264 are required.
Dence and Palmer agreed that a minimum of two parking spots are needed per unit, meaning as outlined the development would be five short. Dence said he would like the rest of the Falls Supervisors to give input.
The board also reviewed a sketch plan for 10 single family detached housing units at 2219 Fallsington-Tullytown Road. The twin units would be situated in the general vicinity of the Challenger Fields at Levittown Continental, officials said.
“It’s odd that somebody would build a house backing up to Route 13, but I’ve seen stranger things,” Dence said. “There’s not a lot going on down there.”
The township has received other proposals for the property lots, including warehousing, buildings for contractors and self-storage facilities, Takita said.