Rydal-Meadowbrook Civic Association

 Abington Commissioners voted in favor of the FTD.

Fairway Transit District (FTD) ordinance was presented to the Board of Commissioners by land planner consultant John Kennedy. The ordinance will impact quality of life, the economy and traffic conditions. The meeting was on Thursday January 6 and only two commissioners voted againt it.  

Read a Times Chronicle article here >

Get a refresher on history of the property, dates of meetings in the past, proposals by Brandolini and the proposed Fairway Transit District (FTD) ordinance here. FTD will allow 189 residential units on the full 18.9 acres as the base density and a maximum of 245 residential units after achieving the maximum bonus points. It also caps the retail office space to 136,000 sq.ft. in the base ordinance which may be increased to 170,000 sq.ft. with maximum of bonus points. This is a slight reduction from Brandolini's last formal proposal, which had 260 residential units. Township officials have prepared this new zoning plan to demonstrate that they are minimizing the impact of development on the Baederwood Shopping Center. For example, they calculated that as many 422 units could be built within existing Planned Business (PB) zoning. Download the proposal. 

The FTD ordinance wass designed to avoid litigation. The existing mix of PB and one-acre residential (R-1) is considered "reverse spot zoning" and less adventageous that the proposed FTD ordinance. Click here to read how Township officials are providing information they want the public to have.

Concerned residents have not examined the appropriate use of Police Powers of the Township and could ask that they be asserted on behalf of the safety of residents. For example, there was a study conducted by the Township in 2007 that found that nine intersections in Abington represented failures because of conjestion and wait-times. Susquehanna and Washington Lane (at the bridge) was one. Yet, conjestion is not enough to make the claim that additional traffic will risk the safety or health of residents. It requires evidence of accidents and injuries. The study found that there were more than 40 crashes at the intersection of Susquehanna & Old York Road in a three year period. Read more here.