Montgomery County officials think non-drivers haven't been adequately considered in planning for Sanatoga Springs.

LIMERICK PA – Cars, cars, and more cars. Slow-moving traffic. Bottle-necks and tie-ups. There’s been a lot of talk so far, in both Limerick and Lower Pottsgrove (PA) townships, about the role of automobiles in commercial developments proposed near the Sanatoga interchange of U.S. Route 422. The discussion is so car-centric, in fact, that Montgomery County planners think an important audience is being overlooked.

People who don’t drive.

County planners foresee a heightened need for public transportation and safe sidewalks on what is expected during the next few years to be exceedingly busy acreage near the townships’ dividing line on the south side of 422. The county Planning Commission has formally recommended both transit and pedestrians be given greater attention there.

The Philadelphia Premium Outlets opened on 78 acres parallel to 422, along Lightcap Road, just 14 months ago. An additional 71-acre shopping center proposed to be built nearby, called Sanatoga Springs, will be the subject of a public hearing Jan. 22 (2009; Thursday) at 7 p.m. in the Limerick municipal building, 646 W. Ridge Pike.

King of Prussia-based developer O’Neill Properties Group has grand plans for Sanatoga Springs. Its project of six buildings with mixed uses currently includes one “big-box” store, a gas station, and several pad sites for businesses like banks and restaurants. Local speculation reported Wednesday (Jan. 14, 2009) in The (Pottstown PA) Mercury newspaper puts national wholesaler Costco in the box as the center’s anchor tenant, surrounded by 651 parking spaces.

Drawings for Sanatoga Springs, submitted to the county for review, lack any mention of public transit. They also fail to show where a bus shelter and drop-off area would be located, according to commission observations carried in a Dec. 3 (2008) letter to Limerick Township Manager Daniel Kerr. Letter author Barry Jeffries, a senior design planner with the commission, considers the omission a problem.

• Jeffries’ four-page letter, and an accompanying two-page diagram with his notations, is available for free download from ‘The Post’ as an Adobe Acrobat file (PDF).

“The proposed development will generate a high number of non-skilled labor jobs,” and a significant portion of that labor pool is likely to travel to and from them using public transit, Jeffries wrote. He recommended Limerick and O’Neill coordinate with the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) to ensure it offers bus service at Sanatoga Springs, and to “consider where and how public transportation facilities will be accommodated” on-site.

O’Neill’s plans also fail to indicate sidewalks along Lightcap Road, as required under Limerick’s subdivision and land development code. Jeffries wrote the commission will “strongly support the provision of sidewalks and pedestrian improvements” that connect Sanatoga Springs to existing walkways at the outlets. Sidewalk installation will ensure “safe pedestrian movements” of workers and shoppers alike, he noted.

It remains to be seen which, if any, of Jeffries’ stated concerns are on the minds of Limerick residents who participate in next week’s hearing. The meeting is open to the public.

Photo from Clipart.com

Related:

• County Suggests Cooperation On Sanatoga Springs
• Improving The Odds At The Interchange
• More About … Sanatoga Springs (No. 1 In A Series)
• Trial Balloon: An Inter-Municipal Agreement
• Lobbyists Court Lower Pottsgrove
• A New Arrival In “Sanatoga Springs”

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