L.M. Commissioners Approve Traffic Fees for New City Ave. Development

The  Board of Commissioners voted 9-1 on Wednesday night to adopt an ordinance to create a  (TSA) and establish a traffic-impact fee for new TSA development, which could net the township up to $4 million in fees for roadway improvements.

Four commissioners, Jane Dellheim, Lewis Gould, Cheryl Gelber and Philip Rosenzweig, were absent from the meeting.

The approval of the traffic impact fee—to be charged to developers for off-site road improvements within the TSA—is separate from a proposal to rezone City Avenue for redevelopment. The redevelopment proposal awaits a vote from the Board of Commissioners after more public input is gathered.

Director of Building and Planning Robert Duncan projects the $4 million in additional fees would be used to improve traffic at intersections. 

The township will charge new developers within the City Avenue TSA  an impact fee of $1,544 per afternoon peak-hour trip, Duncan said.  Lower Merion will have three years from the designated “improvement date” to use the fee, after which the developer has the right to recoup the money if it has not been spent.

A separate “reach back” fee of $1,000 per peak-hour trip will be charged to any developer who submitted a land development or subdivision application between April 1, 2010 and the adoption of the new ordinance on Wednesday night. Duncan estimated between $100,000 and $125,000 in these “reach back” fees. 

The Board of Commissioners approved the impact fee with just three days to spare, in terms of the reach-back fees. After Sept. 17, the board would have lost the right to collect the fees (but not regular traffic impact levees)—the reach-back period under the state municipalities planning code would have passed, Duncan said.

Brown: ‘Looming changes in zoning’

Only one person spoke Wednesday night during the board’s continued public hearing about the traffic impact fee: Gladwyne resident Bernie McNamee.

McNamee said he did not want to ignore that “we have some challenges on City Avenue, but I don’t think it’s broken … My experience is impact fees are a disincentive.”

McNamee said the township counted car trips to establish the impact fee but there are other methods that should be considered, such as the square footage of new development, or the number of parking spaces. Duncan replied that how the township establishes a transportation impact fee must comply with the state planning code.

“It has to be based on (vehicle) trip generation as it relates to future development,” Duncan said.

When the Board of Commissioners approved the traffic impact fee after the public hearing, Commissioner Jenny Brown, who is running for Montgomery County Commissioner, cast the sole dissenting vote. 

Brown said she was concerned about the proposal to rezone City Avenue because “residents’ quality of life concerns have not been addressed sufficiently,” and she had reservations about the traffic study conducted for City Avenue.

Brown said she was not convinced by reassurances that approving a traffic impact fee is separate from the proposal to rezone City Avenue.

“Let’s not kid ourselves,” she said. “The only reason why we’re looking at traffic impact fees is the looming changes in zoning.”

Commissioners Brian McGuire, Scott Zelov and Daniel Bernheim all voiced disagreement with Brown.

“This is about trying to help mitigate traffic,” said McGuire.  “It’s completely separate from the City Avenue rezoning and I think it deserves our support.”

Zelov said McGuire was right, and that in fact he voted in favor of the traffic impact fees but does not support the City Avenue rezoning proposal.

Regarding the City Avenue traffic study, Bernheim said, “To the extent that anyone wanted to challenge the criteria on which the traffic study was based, they had the chance.”

Rezoning Ordinance

Later in the night, during the Board of Commissioner’s Building and Planning Committee meeting, Duncan provided an update on several amendments which township staff have made to the proposed City Avenue rezoning ordinance, in response to comments from the Montgomery County Planning Commission (MCPC) and the public, along with township staff reviews of the ordinance.

One amendment added is a 400-foot separation requirement for “indoor recreation and indoor entertainment” uses, Duncan said. That is, 400 feet from any residential use in a residential zoning district.

During the public comment that followed Duncan’s update, Richard Kaufman of Bala Cynwyd (a Republican candidate for George Manos’ Ward 9 board seat) said the problem is not the separation of the entertainment complex.

“The problem that it exists, is the problem,” Kaufman said. “A crumb of 400 or 500 feet will not mollify the residents.”

Kaufman, one of three residents who spoke in opposition to the rezoning, said residents are also opposed to the proposal as a whole. “There’s an overwhelming anger and dissatisfaction with this project,” he said.

‘That canyon feeling’

Another amendment which was made to the rezoning proposal is “bulk and spacing” requirements have been re-worded to be clearer, and to increase the separation between taller buildings, Duncan said.

“The taller the building, the greater the separation, so you don’t create that canyon feeling that everyone’s concerned with,” Duncan said.

Township staff also added a new traffic impact standard, requiring a new traffic study when a development exceeds the limits of the square footage, floor area or traffic trips established by the Land Use Assumptions Report.

“Once any of those trigger points is exceeded, they’re going to have to do a traffic study and show how they can maintain that Level D,” Duncan said.

Level D refers to the preferred level of service for intersections within the City Avenue TSA, which is a delay of 35 to 55 seconds. Level of service for intersections ranges from a grade of A (the best, with a delay of less than 10 seconds at intersections) to F (a congested area with a wait of more than 80 seconds at an intersection).

“This goes a long way to address traffic concerns of those that fear we’re going to reach that full (redevelopment) build-out,” Duncan said.  “We’re going to maintain that Level D.”