Decision May Be Near for Ardmore Transit Center; Locals Doubtful

Plans to revitalize the Ardmore Transit Center will be discussed among Lower Merion Township commissioners this week as the long-awaited improvement project looks to see the light of day.

On May 25th, the Economic Revitalization Committee of the township's Board of Commissioners will attempt to narrow down four proposals currently under consideration for the ATC project.

“The meeting is to present the four options,” said Angela Murray, the township’s assistant director of community and economic development. “The recommendation of the Ad Hoc Ardmore Committee will be presented to the ERC, and it will be up to the ERC to choose a direction for the project. 

The four options submitted by Dranoff Properties, the Philadelphia developer for the project, are:   

• The Dranoff March 3rd Proposal plans to bring in new residents and retail merchants by building a new mini-Main Street. This option would not include improvements to the train station until funding was available to make it compliant with the federal Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Amtrak and SEPTA, co-owners of the train station, may not support this option without those improvements, however. “Both Amtrak and SEPTA have stringent safety and building requirements that must be incorporated into any future development plans affecting the rail line,” Murray said. This option has the smallest funding gap of all the proposals, at an estimate of $5 million to $10 million.
• The Cricket Lot, ATC Garage and Transit Improvements Proposal would provide a new transit station that complies with the federal ADA guidelines and would offer the largest increase in parking space, but this option has the largest funding gap—estimated at $20 million to $23 million. SEPTA did pledge $10 million in capital budget funds for it, but had to delay dispersement when state funding was lost. There is no word from SEPTA when, or if, those funds will again be made available for the ATC project.
• The Cricket Lot and ATC Garage Proposal is similar to option two, but would defer any transit improvements until the funding sources were identified. SEPTA and Amtrak are not likely to approve this plan and the funding gap is projected at $8 million to $10 million.
• The ATC Transit Improvements Proposal includes no revitalization plans for Ardmore, and defers construction of a parking garage for SEPTA and Amtrak riders. No funding gap has been estimated at this time.

Once an option has been selected by the Board of Commissioners, the schedule will resume with design work. Necessary zoning changes would be identified, and then go back to the Board of Commissioners for a vote. In addition, approvals from SEPTA and Amtrak will need to be secured along with any promised funds.

The process is expected to move forward through the end of 2011 with construction advancing in late 2012 at the earliest. In the meantime, Murray said other sources of income need to be explored.

“The township and Dranoff Properties continue to work with our partners, SEPTA and Amtrak to identify sources to address the funding gap,”she said.

Fifth Ward Township Commissioner Cheryl Gelber is vice-chair of the Ad Hoc Ardmore Committee, which has been active in their call for a revitalization plan.  She supports option three because “it makes sense and is best for my constituents.”

Gelber does not want township residents to pick up the tab for the funding gap. 

“Any grant money should come from other sources such as SEPTA, Amtrak or Dranoff Properties,” she said. “I will not support a rise in taxes. You can’t do what you don’t have money to pay for.”

There is another issue that is a growing concern as well.

According to a May 20 letter to Murray from Township Manager Douglas Cleland, under the developer agreement, Dranoff has until June 30 to enter into an agreement with Amtrak to acquire the Amtrak site. But both the township and Dranoff are requesting a 90-day extension “to determine needed changes to the Development Agreement, including but not limited to the revised project description, project sequencing, milestone dates, funding sources and funding allocations.”

Following the (Lack of) Money

Whatever the case with Amtrak, Carl Dranoff, president of Dranoff Properties, is well connected politically, and was able to secure $15 million in state grants from former Pennsylvania governor Ed Rendell. But according to Gelber, “Those contacts have left with the exit of  the Rendell administration, so he may not be able to get any additional funding.”

Congressman Jim Gerlach, who secured initial federal funds for the project, supports the ATC revitalization project and said in a  statement that “the federal funding is not in jeopardy of being pulled due to setbacks in the project,” soemthing that had been reported by other news organizations.

Gerlach also said he is “anxious for the township and Board of Commissioners to choose a plan and move forward." He is “hoping that any revitalization plan includes as much renovations to the Ardmore train station as they can do, but it is a local decision.”

Some business owners have expressed doubt that any plan would be approved. They say that revitalization plans in one form or another have been proposed over the last two decades—and that not one of them has seen a shovel hit dirt.

Harry Althouse, owner of Harry’s Treasures and Collectibles, has been in business in Ardmore since 1990.

“The township has been talking revitalization since then,” Althouse said. “The commissioners should make a decision soon and be done with it. Enough talking, make a decision already! I am frustrated at the amount of time they are taking to make this decision.”

When asked about how the project would affect his business, Althouse said, “Whatever they decide, I will lose money during the construction—all the businesses will. I will never make back the loss of business during construction and my store may not be here by the time they are done. I may choose to close it down and retire. But for the good of Ardmore, there needs to be some revitalization.”

Bobbi Simons, manager of the Pennywise Thrift Shop, is a lifelong resident of Ardmore and is in favor of option three, but admits, “I will be surprised if anything gets done. The township has been talking about revitalization for years and it has never been done.”

Simons says option three “makes sense because we need more parking and residential living here in Ardmore. Option three would do that, and besides, there used to be apartments in the Cricket Avenue lot years ago. They burned down and were never replaced.”

Lessoning the Impact; 'Crucial' Redevelopment

Commissioner Gelber says she understands the frustrations of business owners and the ad hoc committee is discussing parking alternatives, along with possible shuttle buses to keep customers coming into Ardmore during construction.

“We will work to lessen the negative economic impact to businesses, but if we don’t do something, Ardmore will die,” Gelber said. “We have to realize that we are competing with other towns that have already done or are in the process of revitalization. We need to show that Ardmore is the place to come.”

The Ardmore Initiative, the business district authority responsible for physical improvements and economic development in downtown Ardmore, supports options two and three, said Christine Vilardo, executive director of the organization. 

“The business community has always maintained that the most important piece of this project is the mixed-use component and increased parking,” Vilardo commented. "The development on the Cricket lot is also crucial to call attention to all of the businesses on Ardmore’s side streets.

“We are also very concerned that a new garage, at the very least, must be able to accommodate Lower Merion Township staff and police vehicle parking, so as not to put those additional vehicles out onto metered spots.”

Credit Where Credit is Due

In the end, a factor working in the project’s favor could be the very thing that has been its biggest obstacle for the past three years, commercial real estate experts say: the lending market.

Commercial banks stopped almost all lending in the wake of the collapse of the nation’s investment banks in late 2008, but the high-finance credit market for developers like Dranoff has thawed somewhat over the past six months. If the economy improves further, the outlook for the ATC becoming a reality becomes brighter.

Wednesday's meeting will be held at 6 p.m. at the Lower Merion Township Administration Building (75 East Lancaster Ave.) in the second floor board room.

A PDF detailing the four options, with architectural drawings and artists' renderings of the buildings and streetscapes, is attached, and can be seen below the photo slide show. It is dated April 15, 2011, to Murray from Township Manager Douglas Cleland.