Meeting #791 of the Hanover Township Northampton County Planning Commission was held at the Hanover Township Municipal Building, 3630 Jacksonville Road, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, Monday April 14, 2003, and convened at 7:30 P.M.

Planning Commission members in attendance:

Mark Tanczos

Joseph Hilton

Paul Kuehne

John McGonigle

Glenn Taggart

Karen Fritz

Hanover Engineering Associates, Inc. represented by James B. Birdsall, P.E.

Meeting scheduled April 7, 2003 was cancelled due to the inclement weather.

On the motion of Kuehne, seconded by McGonigle, the minutes of the March 3, 2003 Planning Commission Meeting were approved as written.

HANOVER RIDGE – PHASE I 19 Lots Preliminary/Record Plan

Terry Zawarski (Developer) Mr. Steve Turoscy, Lehigh Engineering Associates was present representing Hanover Ridge. Mr. Turoscy stated that the technical issues have been worked out and they feel they are ready to receive Planning Commission approval.

Mr. McGonigle asked what will happen to Phase II and III before work starts, while work is going on in the other phase? Answer the areas will be seeded and maintained until the phases are ready for approval. Jacksonville Road and Stoke Park Road will be improved in Phase I.

Mr. Tanczos asked about the 147 shade trees. Mr. Turoscy stated that he has been in contact with Mr. Sterner and that a cash contribution could be made in lieu of the trees being planted.

Motion was made by Tanczos, seconded by Taggart, to forward letter to the Board of Supervisors recommending Conditional Approval, pending satisfaction of comments outlined in Hanover Engineering’s letter dated April 1, 2003.

Preliminary/Record Plan

J. Scott Pidcock (Engineer) David Jaindl (Developer)

Mr. Pidcock stated they are coming before the Planning Commission with the endorsement of Hanover Engineering Associates. Route 512 realignment must be approved by PennDot. Mr. Birdsall explained the improvements to Route 512 that they think will take place. The improvements for Route 512 are subject to approval by PennDot, they have not been reviewed and will probably change prior to final approval.

Section 305 Perimeter roadway improvements – requested that the widening and improvements of Route 512 along the Monocacy Farms perimeter be waived and constructed with the Hanover Corporate Center improvements. The Township Solicitor issued a letter stating this was not a waiver but rather a deferral of the improvements.

Section 306 Easements – requesting that the Township grant a waiver from the required twenty-foot (20’) drainage easement and to allow a fifteen-foot (15’) easement along the required twenty five-foot (25’) planting easement along the northern boundary line of Monocacy Farms

Motion by Tanczos, seconded by Hilton to recommend waiver approval of Section 306 of the Subdivision Ordinance which pertains to the easements to allow a 15’ easement instead of the required 20’.

Tanczos yes, Hilton yes, Fritz yes, Taggart yes, McGonigle yes, Kuehne yes.

Section 401.I.3 Stormwater Management Ordinance 98-2 requesting a waiver to allow the proposed detention basin on the commercial lot to be a wet pond.

Motion by Tanczos, seconded by Hilton to recommend waiver of Section 401.I.3 to allow a detention basin on the commercial lot to be a wet pond.

Tanczos yes, Hilton yes, Fritz yes, Taggart yes, McGonigle yes, Kuehne yes.

Section 401.I.7 Stormwater Management Ordinance 98-2 requesting a waiver to allow the maximum permitted basin side slope to be changed from 5:1 to 3:1 above the 100 year water surface only.

Motion by Tanczos, seconded by Kuehne to recommend waiver of Section 401.I.7 to allow a change in slope from 5:1 to 3:1 above the 100 year water surface only.

Tanczos yes, Hilton yes, Fritz yes, Taggart yes, McGonigle yes, Kuehne yes.

Section 401.I.10 Stormwater Management Ordinance 98-2 requesting a waiver of the minimum permitted 2% basin bottom slope to allow a 1% basin bottom slope with cable concrete low flow channels.

Motion by Tanczos, seconded by McGonigle to recommend waiver of Section 401.I.10 to allow a 1% basin bottom slope with cable concrete low flow channels.

Tanczos yes, Hilton yes, Fritz yes, Taggart yes, McGonigle yes, Kuehne yes.

Motion by Tanczos, seconded by Kuehne, to forward a letter to the Board of Supervisors recommending Conditional Approval, pending satisfaction of comments outlined in Hanover Engineering’s letter dated April 4, 2003.

Tanczos yes, Hilton yes, Fritz yes, Taggart yes, McGonigle yes, Kuehne yes.

Tom Bliss Liberty Engineering Stephen Ferretti Husky Properties

Proposed is a restaurant in the Lehigh Valley Corporate Center II Lot 11

They have reviewed the letter from Hanover Engineering Associates, Inc. and will comply. They now have an architect on board. Mr. Bliss questioned what is entailed in the market study? Mr. Birdsall stated that there are no guidelines for this study, just what will their draw be. Answer customers usually come from within a five mile radius. Now we have customers coming from 15 mile radius.

Section 185.36.0.1 Exterior Lighting – The quartz lights are under the canopy and will make the canopy glow. There will be no neon lighting. There will be a neon sign on the front of the building facing Schoenersville Road. There may be a small entrance sign showing where to enter.

There will be background music outside. A small fence will go around the patio. The patio will have room for 40 people and will be used for lunch and dinner. Mr. Kuehne asked if there will be additional screening around the patio. Answer there will be some screening around the patio. The outside music will be in the front of the restaurant and at the patio. Questioned how far from the building will you hear the music? Answer 25’ to 30’. Questioned when will the music go off? Answer anytime we want. We will close at 11 P.M. from Sunday through Thursday and 12 Midnight on weekends. There will only be security lighting on after midnight. Questioned if they could close at 11 P.M. on weekends? Answer yes. Questioned if the music could be shutdown at 10 P.M. Answer yes and there is always a manager on staff.

Mr. Birdsall stated that with regard to the Preliminary/Record Plan and the Conditional Use the biggest thing is the lighting and to have it shown on the plan so that everyone knows what is proposed. Mr. Hilton asked the fence around the dumpster and the proximity to the loading zone how was that fixed? There will be a gate on the fence. There is now more room to the loading zone.

Regina Costantino addressed the issue of the canopy and the lighting and asked if there was a drawing. Questioned the elevation of the restaurant and is concerned about the music and noise. It was stated there will not be any special events at this location. Mr. Kuehne stated there is a 6’ high elevation. Mrs. Costantino asked to see a landscape sketch plan to see if the restaurant will be screened from the residents. It was also stated that truck traffic will come from Schoenersville Road only.

Mary Jo Johnson addressed the issue of truck traffic. Please keep them off Stoke Park Road. Where will the exhaust be going? I am concerned about the quality of life. Answer there will be filters on the exhaust fans and they are changed quarterly.

Mr. Kuehne stated that as the warrants indicate there will be a traffic light at High Point Boulevard and Stoke Park Road. Mr. Hilton stated he would like to see the restaurant without the patio. It was stated that they always planned on the patio. The developer does not believe that sound will be an issue. There will be low background music and the patio will have a three foot high fence around it.

Mr. Taggart stated that they must be cognizant of the sensitivity of the noise level. Mr. Tanczos stated he would rather not have the patio. Mrs. Fritz stated that the landscaping would shield the people in the restaurant from the traveling public and would shield noise from the neighbors. There should be a limit to the number of people allowed on the patio. The traffic from Schoenersville Road would be louder than the noise from the patio. The Developer stated that they will not allow a group to use the patio for a private event. Mr. Kuehne stated he is in agreement with the statements made by Mrs. Fritz. Mr. McGonigle stated he is okay with everything as long as there were no parties on the patio.

Motion was made by Tanczos, seconded by Fritz to recommend approval of the Conditional Use for the Bennigan’s restaurant based on the comments and discussion tonight in regards to lighting, hours of operation, noise levels, no groups on the patio and screening.

Tanczos yes, Hilton yes, Fritz yes, Taggart yes, McGonigle yes, Kuehne yes.

Attorney Stanley Margle III Ray Grinner Owner Tracy Snell Engineer

The building is located on South Commerce Way in LVIP IV. The building is a one story building and contains 76,070 square feet. The school is intending to occupy 22,800 square feet. The building is in a PIBD zone and the proposed use will be a conditional use under the Township Zoning Ordinance. The business deals with primarily younger children under 10 years old. They would like to examine this use as an exercise facility. Approximately 250 square feet will be used for retail and 22,000 used for exercise. There will not be a separate entrance for the retail area. The retail area will be an accessory use. It will be a recreational facility. There will be field trips, dance, twirling, gymnastics. There are about 50 children on a non-profit team and 6 of them are on a national team. The company receives most of their money through the recreational facility. The youngest students are from 13 to 14 months up to 16 years old. There are day camps from 9 A.M. to 12 Noon in the summer. The average length of time at the facility would be about one hour. At the present time they have about 300 children registered. The proposed building could have 600 children. The busiest days are Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. The children will be dropped off by the parents. At the present there are 33 children at one time. The most that would be at one time would be 66. The preschool children the parents stay, the school children are dropped off. Once a year we have an exhibition at the facility. Currently there are 12 employees (2 full-time and 10 part-time). They also have birthday parties. The facility is open 7 days a week and the hours of operation are 9 A.M. to 9 P.M. during the week, Saturday 9 A.M. to 7 P.M. and Sunday 11 A.M. to 7 P.M.

Tracy Snell discussed the parking issues. Ms. Snell stated she calculated the number of spaces used at the current schedule and came up with 55 spaces. There are 76 spaces set aside for this portion of the building. The peak traffic flow for this venture will be 7 P.M. to 8 P.M. Usage for the rest of the building is from 7:30 A.M. to 4:30 P.M. The other businesses in the building include Corporate Express, Centimark Roofing and Gap Metals.

Mr. Birdsall questioned sidewalk access from the off street parking area. There are 3 door locations. Mr. Tanczos questioned the lot size. The lot is 6.905 acres, therefore, the lot does not comply. Attorney Margle stated this should not be viewed as a retail shop because it is only for use by the students. This is a recreational facility. Mrs. Fritz stated that parking is a major concern. Mr. McGonigle asked about the seating for guests where will it be located? It will be in the observation area and will accommodate 120 people.

Motion was made by Tanczos, seconded by Fritz, to recommend the conditional use for Kids Co-op pending that the Board looks at Sidewalks, parking calculations, traffic flow specifically trucks from other businesses and the retail space.

Tanczos yes, Hilton yes, Fritz yes, Taggart yes, McGonigle yes, Kuehne yes.

Susan Lawless a potential candidate to fill the vacancy on the Planning Commission was present to ask the Commission questions.

Mr. Birdsall reported:

On the Jaindl approved 3 lot subdivision, there was a requirement that they do off-site work. Airport Road, Jacksonville Road intersection with Hanoverville Road and Township Line Road and some improvements on Route 512 near Route 22. They have come to a general consensus that since we now know the scope of the improvements that are necessary for the residential and the scope of improvements for the commercial and industrial are changing little bit in regard to their design philosophy the Board of Supervisors is willing to allow the residential to move ahead with the requirement that it is not triggered on the basis of number of trips but on two issues one is the 50 building lots and another at 120 building lots. But besides the trigger of building lots there is also a trigger of timing, which there never was before. If the residential developer takes 3 years to build out the first 50 building lots Mr. Jaindl is still responsible to finish the associated improvements within 18 months, so there is a time trigger as well as a building permit trigger. The 50 lots could go fast, but the 120 lots could take quite a while. So the Board has imposed 24 months on the next level of improvements. The 24 months would be Airport Road and Hanoverville Road, Jacksonville Road and Airport Road widening, signals at Airport Road and some signal adjustment at Route 512 and Hanoverville Road. The Snowdrift Road, the latest plans that are being reviewed by East Allen Township, will be completely reconstructed into a right angle intersection. The timing of any Route 512 improvements will be triggered by number of trips generated.

Motion of Hilton, seconded by McGonigle, the Board adjourned at 10:21 P.M.

Respectfully submitted,

Linda Sterner

Secretary to the Board of Supervisors