New Auto Body Shop Eyed for West High Street

Photo by Evan Brandt

An artist's rendering of the lay-out of the proposed Caliber Collision is superimposed on an aerial photo of the corner of Glasgow and West High Street's at the western border of Pottstown Borough.

A 14,000 square-foot auto body shop is being proposed for the northwest corner of Glasgow and West High Streets.

As proposed Caliber Collision would nine bays, 50 parking places, including for cars being worked on and could ultimately provide up to 30 jobs.

David Bailey, who works for the Nashville-based firm that created Pottstown High Street LLC to make the proposal, said the business is part of a national chain that focuses almost exclusively on auto body work for insurance companies.

The site is currently two parcels, both of which are empty lots, and engine, transmission and other work would be "out-sourced" to other locations, said Bailey.

Chris Mercer, owner of Mercer's TruCraft Collision at 401 W. High St., found that claim unlikely.

He said if the workers being hired are as skilled as Bailey claimed they would be "they're not going to send a car out on a flat-bed to replace a radiator or other fluid work."

Mercer spoke at the hour-long conditional use hearing held Wednesday prior to the regularly scheduled Borough Council work session.

The borough's zoning officer has ruled that the business is allowed in the Gateway West zoning district by conditional use, which requires a hearing before borough council only on allowing the use.

Council could render its decision as early as Monday night, but has as much as 60 days, said Borough Solicitor Charles D. Garner Jr.

If approved, the project would then move on to the planning commission, where engineering particulars would be worked out, and then would still require final site plan approval from council.

Mercer was not the only speaker at the hearing Wednesday, Robert G. Biggins, who lives in Vine Street in West Pottsgrove adjacent to the parcel, objected to the proposal on a number of grounds.

Biggins, who clashed repeatedly with about appropriate lines of questioning during a conditional use hearing, called the plan "a cancer-causing, environment-destroying filthy use."

He insisted neighbors in West Pottsgrove were not properly notified of the hearing,

"I feel this is being shoved down our throat, under cloak of darkness in the middle of summer when half the people are away on vacation," said Biggins. "I also call for zoning officer to resign."

"So noted, " Borough Council President Dan Weand replied dryly.
In addition to concerns about the impact the project could have on a stream that runs through the property, Biggins also said the site "is surrounded by residential properties and out of scale with existing development."

Councilman Joe Kirkland also expressed concern about stormwater, but was told the project's engineer, Carl Lightner, that when completed, the development would send no more stormwater off-site than currently. He also said during the site planning process which follows if council grants conditional use, that an underground storage facility for stormwater might be necessary.

• In other matters, Borough Manager Justin Keller said that the total damage to borough property from the July 11 flash flood along Manatawny Creek is now at $1.7 million.

Here is video of the latter half of his report (technical problems)



Keller said the borough's emergency services coordinator, Mike Campeggio, will submit estimates to Montgomery County in hopes of convincing Pennsylvania and the Federal Emergency Management Agency to release funds for repairs.

• Also, Pottstown Area Rapid Transit will be getting new buses in October and new routes, which include extensions to shopping centers in Boyertown and Douglassville, will go into effect in November.

And I would be remiss if I did not also share video of the mayor's report:


And with that, here are the Tweets from the meeting:

New Auto Body Shop & Ricketts Lease Debated