Norristown Council To Weigh State Hospital Proposal At Tuesday Meeting

NORRISTOWN, PA — Norristown will decide the future of a proposal that would redevelop an enormous swath of the former state hospital grounds at a municipal council meeting on Tuesday night.

Officials will weigh both the proposal and public comment during the meeting, which will take place at Municipal Hall at 6:30 p.m.

Norristown has already hosted two public listening meetings to gather input and feedback from the community, which they said they will use to help shape their imagination of the project.

The developer, PRDC properties, is calling for a sprawling multi-use residential, business, and retail area on the 70 acre swath that was deeded to the municipality and county from the state last year.

A total of 728 residential units, including 446 townhomes and 282 apartments, are in the initial proposal, PRDC said.

There is also roughly 70,000 square feet of commercial space, and what they're calling an "office/industrial tech complex" that they're hoping would attract major employers. The tech office space would cover about 272,000 square feet, according to the latest estimate.

See previous coverage: 'Momentous Day For Norristown' As State Hospital Opens For Development

Regardless of what comes to the property, Norristown will see a huge boon in real estate and other local taxes, possibly up to tens of millions of dollars.

Gov. Wolf's administration originally reached an agreement in December 2017 with the municipality to vacate two buildings on the state hospital grounds by 2022, opening the door for the long-discussed possibility of redevelopment.

The state hospital will remain open into the future at a lower capacity, with altered uses for some of its buildings. There remain 137 beds for forensic patients.

Norristown's municipal council meetings are open to the public. Municipal Hall is located on 235 East Airy Street.