Zoning Shift Would Allow 4-Story Mixed Use Lancaster Ave Building

LOWER MERION TOWNSHIP, PA — Zoning changes are proposed for several parcels along the 300 block of West Lancaster Avenue in Lower Merion and members of the public are invited to join a meeting on the proposal.

The township is hosting a community meeting on the potential zoning change for the properties at 331-355 W. Lancaster Ave.

Members of the public are inviting to attend a virtual meeting at 6 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 17 to discuss the zoning map change.

The meeting will help inform residents and nearby civic groups of what could happen to the properties should it change to the new zoning designation

Township staff will provide the public with background on the proposal and answer questions.

Contact planning staff at 610-645-6271 or at hcolello@lowermerion.org before noon on Sept. 17 to request a link to participate in the Zoom meeting.

A public hearing on the zoning change is slated for October.

The properties are zoned as Village Commercial, but the zoning and planning boards are considering rezoning them to Town Center 1.

According to the township zoning code, Village Commercial Districts are the small commercial areas that function as neighborhood or village centers, generally compact, walkable in scale, with local retail, and occasional residential uses above the first floor.

Town Center Districts are medium to larger commercial areas, related to major transportation corridors, mixing local, regional and national retail, with some residential uses above the first floor. More specifically, TC1 Districts are the township's traditional shopping districts that developed around train stations and grew as corridors over time. These are pedestrian-oriented with buildings entered from street-front sidewalks, with a variety of retail and service uses, and may include shared and municipal parking.

Director of Building and Planning Chris Leswing told Patch the property owner of 355 W. Lancaster Ave. submitted a placeholder plan for a large scale gas station with retail use — akin to a Wawa or Turkey Hill — at 355 W. Lancaster Ave. before the township's zoning code was updated in February.

Leswing said the developer did so to preserve his rights in the event he couldn't move forward with a multi use development and was left with an aging office building.

Some community members have launched a petition urging the township to deny the zoning change appeal.

"We don't need an ugly eyesore in the heart of our community right next to our beautiful residential homes," the petition reads.

Leswing said at a July 8 meeting that property use proposed by the owner was something the township was trying to phase out when it changed its zoning code so "a gas station of that scale wouldn't have an impact on our commercial districts."

Under TC1 zoning guidelines, constructing a gas station at 355 W. Lancaster Ave. would be impossible due to the township's strict zoning standards.