New Landhope Farms store gets OK in township

LOWER OXFORD » Supervisors this week gave conditional approval to a preliminary plan for a new Landhope Farms convenience store and gas/diesel station at the southeast corner of the intersection of Route 10 and Connor Road.

Supervisor Ron Kepler relayed concerns from the township engineer that a left-turn lane into the site could be needed on Connor Road. The developers have done a traffic study, and PennDOT is not requiring a turning lane. They will be making other improvements to Connor Road, including raising the surface so that it is less steep at the intersection with Route 10. The plan also calls for a traffic light to be installed at the intersection.

Those improvements will be done at substantial cost for the developer, but the township is still hoping to find a way to install a turn lane as well. “It may not be needed now, but if the land on the other side of the road is developed at some point down the road, it is going to be a necessity,” Kepler said.

The preliminary approval is contingent not on the turn lane, but on securing outside agency approval such as a highway occupancy permit from PennDOT, and approval from the Chester County Conservation District.

Under new business, the supervisors approved a fire protection contract for 2018 with Union Fire Co., No. 1 in the amount of $64,017.84. This is an increase of more than $6,000 from the current year, and represents .0325 mills based on the assessed value of the properties in the township.

The supervisors tabled a similar contract with the Union Fire Co., No. 1 Ambulance Division pending corrections to some of the wording in the contract. The Supervisors want to be sure the formula used for determining the contract amount is correctly described, and that they will receive an audited annual financial statement by July.

The ambulance contract amount is $25,775, up about $11,000 from the current year. “What you are seeing is the full effect of having two ambulance crews on all the time.

The supervisors will hold a work session on Oct. 23 at 9 a.m. to discuss the budget for 2018.