Concord denies request to amend resolution
Borough reinforces position that Shops at Ridge Road cannot proceed before addressing concerns from Chadds Ford residents
CONCORD >> Council reinforced a decision made by its predecessors in 2008 and reapproved six years later, voting 4-0 to deny a request to amend the resolution regarding the proposed Shops at Ridge Road.
The applicant, Delawarebased Pettinaro Co., received final land development approval in October 2008 to construct a 190,000-square-foot center on the approximately 25-acre parcel. The main driveway would be on Ridge Road and the street would be widened to accommodate the entrance/exit.
As the property borders Chadds Ford, the resolution included the stipulation that prior to release of the final plans, a letter would be needed from that township stating all road improvements as approved are satisfactory, including but not limited to the PennDOT HOP (highway occupancy permit) plan. It further stated Chadds Ford is to receive scheduling notification for road improvements. The original and supplemental resolutions were approved unanimously and the applicant agreed to the conditions, said township Solicitor Hugh Donaghue.
Pettinaro recently learned of several Ridge Road residents in Chadds Ford who are concerned about the improvements and impact on local neighborhoods, said attorney John Jaros. As a result, board of supervisors President Frank Murphy wrote a letter stating Chadds Ford “has not and will not issue any approval until such time as the issues of concern are addressed.”
Jaros showed copies of four PennDOT documents signed by Chadds Ford officials that he said indicated the township gave “tacit approval” and was satisfied with the road improvements. As a result, he asked council to either modify the original condition or rescind it in its entirety.
“For Chadds Ford to now claim they had no notice of this approved development or disagree with the road improvements is disingenuous,” said Jaros. “This has placed us in an impossible situation and we are before the one municipality that has jurisdiction in this application.”
After the vote, Jaros said his client is in the process of determining the appropriate action to file in Delaware County Common Pleas Court.
Council President Dominic Pileggi, owner of the adjacent Olde Ridge Village, has abstained from all actions regarding the proposed Shops at Ridge Road and did not participate in the latest vote.
In other business, council voted unanimously to approve the final subdivision and lot consolidation plan of Concord Ventures regarding a 61.4-acre parcel adjacent to Route 202 near Beaver Valley. The tract, zoned PRD-1 and R-2D, is owned by Woodlawn Trustees with equitable owners Eastern States Development McKee-Concord Homes.
The original request, to create three new lots from four existing ones, was denied by the thensupervisors in 2015. The decision was subsequently reversed on appeal last year by Delaware County Common Pleas Court Judge Charles Burr, who ordered the applicant to address the comments in the township engineer’s letter. The board chose not to appeal the ruling.
The initial design for the tract, which showed 29 townhomes, 167 apartments and a 7,200-squarefoot clubhouse, has been revised based on the comments of township consultants. New plans have not yet been filed with the township. Co. and