Township Considers Facilitator in Dreshertown Apartment Proposal

An outside facilitator will now likely be joining the ongoing discussion between Upper Dublin's Planning Commission and Brandolini Companies, regarding .

At Tuesday night's monthly meeting, the commission spoke at length with Brandolini President Mark Snow and attorney Marc Kaplan, before revealing plans to enlist the services of BartonPartners, of Norristown, to act as a facilitator.

Board of Commissioners president Robert Pesavento has commented on this article since its publishing, calling attention to the fact that the board has not yet approved the appointment of a consultant, that the consultant would also consider the language of the zoning code for the Fort Washington Office Park, and that any decisions to build ultimately rest with the commissioners.

"[The] Commissioners have not approved funding for this yet, but if someone is hired then it will be to review the entire area and not just focus on this Brandolini nightmare," said Pesavento. "To my knowledge there is no support from Commissioners to allow apartments on this property."

About BartonPartners

According to BartonPartner's website, the firm is "an integrated architecture, landscape architecture, architectural design, residential and commercial development and planning firm with a staff of more than fifty architects, planners, designers and landscape designers."

The firm also claims to have experience working with mixed-use development, an important attribute considering the key complications of the proposed plans for Dreshertown.

About the proposed designs

As , Brandolini proposed building a 140-unit apartment complex in an empty plot immediately south of the Dreshertown Shop n' Bag in June. In addition, Brandolini planned to knock down the first storefront immediately perpendicular to the Shop n' Bag in the strip's 'L' shape, to construct a path to the apartments. The designs were the latest in a series from Brandolini, and could be further altered to accomodate changes to the Dresher Overlay.

Planning Commission claims that plan is a "mix of uses," and not "mixed-use"

However, Planning Commission members stated that they saw the latest designs as merely "plopping down" a residential complex next to a commercial area, and did little to integrate the two or provide public space.

Conversations have stalled along those lines over the past few months, with Brandolini representatives claiming that the design matches their interpretation of the township's call for "mixed uses" in its comprehensive plan, and commission members claiming that the design was instead a "mix of uses."

"I still have many concerns about what you were doing, [or] not doing in terms of road traffic, that I thought weren't really addressed," said Planning Commission member Jeffrey Albert, at Tuesday's meeting. "Part of the contention…was whether [the comprehensive plan] required that the use be mixed in a building, or that the use be mixed within the property."

Albert went on to say that while he personally took issue with the effect that the development might have on traffic, he had previously stated he was satisfied with the proposed mixed use of buildings. However, he acknowledged that there was not a consensus among the planning commission regarding the mixed-use issue.

"I can't speak for everyone, but for myself, I want to see a mix of uses in the Dresher triangle area," said Wesley Wolf, Planning Commission chair. "I'm still behind that concept. I know there's a question about within buildings, or within a site having a mix of uses."

Brandolini claims that a mixed-use design isn't financially viable

However, representatives of Brandolini claimed that the economics of developing mixed-use buildings, or residential and commercial within the same structure, don't work in today's market.

"The economics are totally different. You're not going to see a mixed-use building, because they're just not doing it," said Kaplan. "There aren't the kind of tenants to go into the first floor of a residential building, in the center of a shopping center, that's two hundred feet off the road. It's just not going to happen. If you put an ordinance that says that in place, we can't rent."

Brandolini submits ordinance proposal for Dresher Overlay

At Tuesday's meeting, Brandolini submitted an ordiance proposal for the Dresher Overlay, a decade old addition to the township's zoning code created with the intentions of defining what types of development would be acceptable for the area. Brandolini representatives feel as though clearer language and requirements in the overlay would better guide them as to what would be acceptable to build.

What now?

Essentially, the discussion now rests on this key point of contention: the commission requesting that Brandolini representatives present designs that show more mixed use, while Brandolini representatives counter that such designs would not make financial sense to construct.

This problem would be addressed with a change to the Dresher Overlay, and by hiring an outside consultant, the commission and Brandolini hope to have a neutral party suggest which side's stance has more give, and what changes should be made to the overlay.

The commission will now choose a consultant from the firm, and said they will consult with other township and county entities to ensure they select a neutral representative. Planning Commission members expressed desire to have a report from the consultant by the end of February or early March.

The hiring of a consultant must also be approved by the Board of Commissioners, although Upper Dublin Code Enforcement Director Rick Barton told the Planning Commission that members of the board were consulted and would likely approve.

What do you think of move to bring in an outside facilitator? Which side do you agree with? Take our poll and tell us in the comments.