East Allen Township Board of Supervisors’ Jan. 23 meeting agenda had a one-line entry labeled Conditional Use Hearing #19-17002. The time required for this single agenda item forced the meeting to carry over to a Feb. 27 meeting at the township office.

SVN Imperial Realty has been part of the Skeans family for decades, and the property at the corner of Airport Road and Route 329 was one of its earlier developments. Attorney Mark Kaplan represented the company at the hearing.

Last year, SVN Imperial Realty signaled its intentions to rework the land, converting it from a community of 19 individual job shops to a single warehouse complex similar to the Vertek building across Airport Road. The original plan called for retaining the strip mall bordering Route 329, keeping a series of smaller buildings along Airport Road and removing the job shops to replace them with a single 250,000-square-foot warehouse.

Part of the decision was fueled by the age of the community. Septic systems are failing after decades of use, and new facilities are needed at significantly higher costs.

As council reported on several prior occasions, this is a permitted use. The property is zoned appropriately, and the action by council is to establish conditions and guidelines that are acceptable for the redeveloped property.

The conditional use hearing was delayed for several months because the plan was being altered following earlier feedback.

Kaplan explained he received input about the potential for traffic congestion and safety from various people, including supervisors. Based on those concerns, the plan was modified.

Kaplan indicated the amount of impervious coverage on the site could be increased if there was a central sewer. All of the new information produced an entirely new plan.

One concern in the original plan was the access to the strip mall is in the stacking lane for trucks and cars making a right turn to Airport Road. The developers took an unexpected measure. The new proposal adds a continuous right turn lane and eliminates the strip mall completely.

The size of the warehouse is expanded to 450,000 square feet.

The long-abandoned bank building across from the development on Route 329, along with the vacant parcels surrounding the building, is converted to retail space. A new central sewer is installed to serve both properties. The developer offered to contribute $250,000 for road improvements, specifically the continuous turning lane.

The new proposal was strikingly different and, according to Kaplan, enthusiastically supported by the planning commission. The reception at the hearing was less than enthusiastic.

The meeting continued well into the night as residents asked questions regarding their concerns. Many of the questions addressed concerns about the number of warehouses in the Valley in general.

Solicitor Joseph Piperato redirected questions to the specific proposal. Specific concerns included the height of the embankment north of the intersection. Several people indicated the embankment blocked the view of the intersection for drivers approaching the intersection from the north. Access to the new proposed retail center was a concern.

Supervisor Georgianne Hunsicker, who expressed interest in the right-turn lane, did question the new change. She was concerned vehicles continuously turning right might cause more traffic blockage than anticipated.

Adding to the confusion is the ongoing road improvements. Vertek is required to expand access and turning lanes into Imperial Realty’s property. The impact the new improvements will have on traffic is unknown.

Kaplan was astonished at the reaction. He expected a favorable response.

“We made changes to address concerns you expressed,” he said. “We do not need to make changes, and we are not required to do so.”

Kaplan indicated the purchase of the additional property across from the existing strip mall was closed around the time of the meeting. The developer can only get approval for a central sewer if it serves two parcels and the parcel across Route 329 is essential to increasing the size of the building.

Piperato stressed the hearing was for a conditional use - much of the details in design will be hammered out during the land development phase of the project.

The developer and its attorney agreed to work with engineering to adjust the plan. The changes and refinements will be presented at the next hearing, scheduled for Feb. 27.