South Abington Twp. officials will hear a senior living community’s plans for a sprawling expansion of new independent-living buildings that neighbors say could affect their quality of life.
The zoning hearing board will hear Elan Gardens Senior Living’s request to add a four-story structure with 48 units to its existing building, and 16 one-story buildings, on its 22-acre property at 465 Venard Road on Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. in the Chinchilla Hose Company on Shady Lane Road, according to a legal notice in The Times-Tribune.
The project, which will be known as Elan Commons, calls for setbacks ranging from 20 to 50 feet on all sides of the property and for the addition, which would be 44 feet high — 9 feet above the maximum building height of 35 feet under township zoning. It also calls for a special zoning exception to construct the 16 freestanding housing units. The plans include several stormwater management areas and 133 new parking spaces.
Facility officials said in the application the project will use an existing state road for access, services and operational infrastructure, and won’t increase traffic, noise or demands to public utilities. They anticipate construction will start early next year.
The township granted a special exception for the existing facility in 1995. The current building, which has 58 assisted-living residences, opened in 1996.
Some residents who live near the facility oppose the plan, stating it could adversely affect the area’s character. They say more light and less buffering between the facility and surrounding properties could impact property values.
An online petition asking officials to reject the proposals had more than 230 signatures as of Tuesday afternoon.
The plans call for variances for the addition, buildings and setbacks for the property.