The Hanover Township Board of Supervisors unanimously approved a conditional use application of Faulkner Subaru Inc. for property located at 370 and 380 Stoke Park Road, during a meeting on June 23 held via Zoom.

The conditional use, classified as a “Dealer Vehicle Storage Facility,” had been in discussions since February, with a hearing taking place June 9. Faulkner Subaru Inc. currently owns a dealership at 330 Stoke Park Road.

The conditional use agreement is contingent that the 370 Stoke Park Road building not be leased to another user requiring on-site parking while Faulkner Subaru Inc. is using the lot for vehicle storage, that all vehicle storage will be located within the fenced areas of the lot or provide for additional screening of storage areas, and that the applicant complies with all comments from the Hanover Engineering review letter.

In addition to the conditional use approval of 370 and 380 Stoke Park Road, the board unanimously approved a revision to the Chapter 185 Zoning Article XII Administration & Penalties, enabling district magistrates or courts to carry out injunctive procedures for zoning violations.

An injunction- a court order requiring a person to cease a specific action - will give the courts more freedom to help stop violators under the article. Previously, the magistrates or courts were only permitted to hand out fines.

The board also unanimously approved a preliminary/record land development plan for 257 Broadhead Road, owned by Broadhead Road Holdings LLC., for parking lot development.

The plan, dated May 8 and revised June 9, waives the requirement for having to obtain preliminary plan approval prior to a record land approval. Broadhead Road Holdings LLC. bought the 33,000-square foot property in April from First Commonwealth Federal Credit Union (FCFCU).

Conditional use hearings were also held for Advanced Health Care and Universal Adler Place, with approval of both being pushed back to the next board meeting scheduled for July 4, according to Hanover Township Manager John Finnigan.

Advanced Health Care is proposing conditional use for a transitional care and rehab facility on a 3.78-acre lot located at 3370 High Point Blvd. The proposed plan consists of two one-story buildings marked as 33,350 and 20,750 square feet, respectively.

Advanced Health Care Chief Executive Officer Joseph Walker said the average age of a patient is 72 years with an average stay of 22 days. Advanced Health Care agreed on the record that the facility would not house drug and alcohol rehabilitation patients but rather is geared toward patients coming from a hospital who need rehab before returning home.

Advanced Health Care also agreed that road access would be solely from High Point Boulevard, land-locking Stoke Park Road. Per ordinary procedure, however, the board did not move to approve the conditional use on Tuesday evening.

“The board in consultation with its professional, Mr. (James) Broughal and Hanover Engineering, will consider and work with the township manager to determine what conditions we will impose, and I believe, we will have this on our next agenda in two weeks,” said Supervisor Susan Lawless. “That would be the goal.”

Universal Adler Place applied for the reuse of an existing building at 3864 Adler Place -utilizing 10,600 square feet of the building for an adult care facility for individuals recovering from traumatic brain injuries, with the potential to expand to use to the full building of nearly 27,000 square feet.

Universal Adler Place proposed to remove three parking spaces from the lot, reducing it to 91 spaces, in order for an outdoor recreational space for patients.

Aside from the usual proceedings of the meeting, the board discussed policies relating to police force in the wake of the killing of George Floyd. Finnigan also spoke on the reopening of community facilities amidst the COVID-19 pandemic as Northampton County moved to the green phase of reopening on June 26.

Chairman John Diacogiannis said the Colonial Regional Police Commission, consisting of two members each from Lower Nazareth Township and Hanover Township, reviewed Colonial Regional Police Department policies in regard to the use of force and issued a statement.

The statement, read by Diacogiannis, said that a few minor changes were made, but that the policy essentially remained unchanged. Changes in policy will be distributed to the township managers.

“We are satisfied with these policies as currently written and do not believe that any changes are necessary,” the statement read. “In particular, we determined that the ‘8 can’t wait’ police reform principals in the news these days are properly addressed in the existing policies.”

In regard to the continued presence of the coronavirus, Finnigan issued caution that while the county may be easing restrictions, the risk of contracting the virus remains prevalent and residents should remain cautious.

Finnigan said that basketball and tennis courts will reopen but that there will be no access to drinking water in parks. The community center will reopen July 7 with limited access and required sign-ups for gym facilities. Field rentals will begin Aug. 3.

An email describing the changes was scheduled to go out to community members on June 25, Finnigan said.

“Red hardly stops people, yellow means they speed up like heck to get through the light, and green just means they continue to do their merry way,” Finnigan said. “We cannot do that because we need to practice social distancing, still need to understand the requirements that are in place.”