Changes Made to Sanatoga Green Plans

LISTEN TO THE MUSIC: Here are the remaining free summer concerts at the Sanatoga Park bandshell.

Several interesting items from last night's meeting are worth telling you about.

Perhaps the biggest impact item was Township Engineer Chad Camburn's report that the nearly 500-unit project called Sanatoga Green has seen major changes.

He told the commissioners that both the second and third phases have been completely re-designed.

The second phase, which had called for a hotel and a medical office building will now instead include two medical office buildings and no hotel.

The third phase, which consists mostly of apartments, has bee completely re-designed. Camburn said

The original Sanatoga Green site plan.

his firm, Bursich Assoc., feels the new design is an improvement for traffic flow, and will also result in fewer apartment units, but he could not recall exactly how many.

The first phase of the $146 million project was approved in December and called for the construction of 147 townhomes.

Located on a total of 57 acres, the project called for the construction of 490 housing units comprised of the approved 147 town homes; 343 apartments in 17 buildings; a 50,000 square foot medical office building and a 108-room hotel. Now the hotel has been eliminated and a second medical office building is being added.

The site is located off Evergreen Road, near the entrance to the Costco and Philadelphia Premium Outlets, both of which are in Limerick.

The "Site" marker shows where the shopping center near Sanatoga 

Green and the Costco is proposed.

Camburn also reported that the sewer planning modules for Sanatoga Marketplace, the proposed shopping center on High Street next to the Turkey Hill at Rupert Road, can be submitted to the state.

As for the shopping center proposed for property between Sanatoga Green and Route 422, Camburn said so far, the township has received only a sketch plan.

In a related development, Camburn said road improvements for Evergreen Road and the Santoga interchange, to accommodate Sanatoga Green and the other shopping center, known as LFT Commercial, are under review.

Also of interest was some disappointing news for improvements planned for the township's Gerald Richards Park off Buchert Road.

The township hops to improve the parking lot, re-grade two Little League fields, construct a new practice field, replace deteriorated trails and improve handicapp access, as well as stormwater improvements.

However only two bids for the project came in and they are more than double the estimated budget.

Township Manager Ed Wagner said the township has $80,000 in grants, but the bids came in at more than $247,000.

"The contractors don't need the work and they're telling us the red tape associated with the Montgomery County Conservation District requirements is driving up costs," Camburn told the commissioners.

Wagner said the stormwater improvement requirements along "are more than a quarter-million dollars."

There were two public hearings last night. One was to set off negotiations with Verizon to begin negotiations for a new franchise agreement with the township, which expired in March. Comcast also serves the township.

Only two people spoke, and she praised Verizon, said the company's customer service was excellent, that the signal rarely went out and "they're much better than Comcast.

The other speaker, who lives off Deer Ridge Lane, said Verizon wanted thousands of dollars to run a line to his home, but Comcast did it for free. The township is now commencing negotiations, said Township Solicitor Charles D. Garner Jr.

The other hearing was for an ordinance change to allow people living in the Spring Valley Farms subdivision, now under construction, erect decks and other outdoor structures more easily. It was unanimously adopted by the commissioners.

And here are the Tweets from the meeting:

Setbacks, Sanatoga Green and Your Cable Provider