For a Few Dollars More

Photo by Evan Brandt

This building, the former Rosenberry's Supermarket and former McCabe's Auto Supply, will be knocked down and replaced with a new building to house a Family Dollar store according to information revealed at Wednesday night's borough council meeting.

A new building for a new Family Dollar Store is being planned for the site of the former McCabe's Auto Supply at 381 Farmington Ave.

(Of course, if you are a long-time resident of Pottstown, you will remember it as having been Rosenberry's Supermarket, but that was many years ago indeed.)

The news comes by way of Pottstown Borough Council, which, at Wednesday night's work session, indicated support for the developer's request for a zoning variance to allow a larger-than-allowed sign to be installed out front.

The matter is ultimately the decision of Pottstown's zoning Hearing Board, but council precedent says council can be neutral to a request, oppose it or support it.

Borough Council President Stephen Toroney said he intends to ask council to vote Monday on sending the zoning board a letter supporting the request.

Toroney said he and councilman Dan Weand, who both also sit on the planning commission, had already seen the plans.

"They're going to tear down what's there and put up a new building," Toroney said.

Photo by Evan Brandt

The building is located at the split between Farmington Avenue and 

North Hanover Street.

He said the planning commission voted to support the developer's request for relief from the restrictions of the sign ordinance.

"It's going to be a great project moving forward," said Toroney.

Weand agreed.

Specifically, the developers, Boos DEvelopment Group Inc., are seeking a variance to erect a 36-square-foot "monument sign" as well as two 30 square-foot wall signs on both sides of the building one 31 square-foot "medallion" sign.

According to the legal notice published in Tuesday's Mercury, the signs exceed the zoning code "regarding the maximum number of permitted signs, the total square footage of the signs and the maximum limitations of the individual signs."

Council will vote on Toroney's request for a letter of support at Monday night's council meeting, 7 p.m. Monday in the third-floor council meeting room of borough hall.

The zoning hearing board will consider the matter at its meeting on Wednesday, Augl 21 at 7 p.m. in the same room.

Photo by Evan Brandt

The new Sears store is in the space formerly occupied by 

Blockbuster Video

Should the variance be granted, the project must still received final site plan approval from both the planning commission and borough council.

That is not the only variance from the sign ordinance that the zoning board will consider at the Aug. 21 meeting.

Sears has also submitted a variance request seeking a variance form property at 223 Shoemaker Road.

There, permission is being sought to install a "free-standing pylon sign" whose proposed height exceeds the maximum allowed in the ordinance according to Borough Solicitor Charles D. Garner Jr.

Additionally, the free-standing sign, plus a wall sign planned, would together exceed the total sign area allowed under the ordinance.