West Chester University presents College Arms redevelopment; residents press for parking, process changes

West Chester Borough’s Smart Growth Committee opened a lengthy public discussion Oct. 8 on a proposed redevelopment of the College Arms complex, a university‑owned student‑housing site on High Street, Rosedale Avenue, Sharon Alley and Linden Street.

The university’s representative, Brian Nagel, described a redevelopment concept that would replace the existing buildings with three new structures totaling about 420 upperclassmen beds, roughly 7,500 square feet of re‑sited retail, on‑site resident life offices and a welcome center at High and Rosedale. Nagel said the existing North Building has 60 beds offline, the South Building 15 occupied beds and the East Building 22 occupied beds, and that prior repair work to date totals about $6,500,000; an architect estimated restoring the North Building alone at about $14,300,000.

Neighbors and civic leaders pressed the university and borough for more information on parking, scale, traffic and the public‑notice process. Anne Carroll, chair of Civic Action Southeast, said the plan felt rushed and warned the proposal “is carving out an entire more than half of a square block” of the NC‑2 neighborhood conservation district for PUC2 zoning. Daryl Cook, a resident on Sharon Alley, asked for the age definition of “upperclassman” and for parking counts; other neighbors questioned whether 420 beds would overwhelm local parks, sidewalks and intersections.

Why it matters: the proposal would require a zoning change to create a Planned University Campus 2 (PUC2) district across the street from West Chester University’s main campus. Residents said the change could extend university land use and campus character into an established residential conservation district and that parking and pedestrian safety must be resolved before any rezoning is approved.

Discussion and next steps

Nagel said the university prefers townhouse‑scale buildings rather than a single mid‑rise and that the design attempts to transition from campus to neighborhood by breaking the front facades and adding courtyards, covered parking and controlled vehicle access from Linden and Rosedale. He described 91 on‑site spaces (about 80 for housing) plus the university’s plan to designate an additional roughly 130 spaces in the M Lot for residents, for a combined approximate total of 210 spaces. Nagel also said the project would be limited to sophomores and above — “upperclassmen” — and that resident assistants would live on site as they do today.

Committee members and residents repeatedly asked for clearer, written information: floor plans, an explicit count of dwelling units and beds per unit, a traffic/pedestrian study tied to campus‑wide circulation, and a clear accounting of parking permits and use of the M Lot. Several speakers urged the university to identify visitor parking for a proposed welcome center; neighbors said the corner lacks onsite visitor spaces and questioned what the welcome center’s retail and merchandising would mean for the NC‑2 neighborhood.

Council direction and outreach

Committee Chair Nicole Shimoni said the item would remain on the public agenda and be placed on next week’s council docket as “discussion only.” The committee and university agreed to hold a neighborhood meeting with Civic Action Southeast (CASE) and other residents and for the university to provide more detailed parking numbers and additional materials before the next public presentation. The solicitor and borough staff will review zoning language if the council signals support for a PUC2 approach; no rezoning or final approvals were made at the Oct. 8 meeting.

What was raised but not decided

• Rezoning to PUC2: introduced; no vote taken. • Building scale and bed count (420 beds): presented by the university; neighbors called the figure too large for the NC‑2 area. • Parking: university said 91 on‑site spaces plus ~130 M Lot spaces would be designated for residents; neighbors remain skeptical. • Parks and public space impacts (recreation uses, trash, noise): raised by residents; borough and university acknowledged the concerns and said upgrades to nearby park facilities would be discussed.

Speakers

• Brian Nagel — Representative for West Chester University (Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education). • Nicole Shimoni — Chair, Smart Growth Committee (West Chester Borough). • Aaron — Director of Zoning/Planning (West Chester Borough staff). • Anne Carroll — Chair, Civic Action Southeast (resident/civic group). • Daryl Cook — Resident, Sharon Alley. • Mike Reese — Resident, South Walnut Street. • Lisa Kearns — Resident, West Biddle Street. • Nicole Ward — Executive Director of Design & Construction, West Chester University.

Authorities

• Chapter 112, Planned University Campus District (PUC) — referenced as the existing PUC and the proposed PUC2. • West Chester Borough Comprehensive Plan (2016 and 2018 referenced in discussion) — cited by residents and speakers for policy context. • Borough zoning and HARB standards — referenced as design and review authorities.

Actions extracted

• Discussion only: Presentation of ordinance language proposing a new PUC2 district and conceptual redevelopment — outcome: continued public discussion; no rezoning action taken. • Outreach direction: Borough and university to schedule a neighborhood meeting with CASE and residents; university to supply parking counts and additional plan materials for next public discussion.

Clarifying details

• Proposed capacity: 420 upperclassmen beds (university figure presented by Brian Nagel). • Current on‑site beds and repair estimates presented by the university: North Building — 60 beds offline; South Building — 15 occupied; East Building — 22 occupied; repair costs to date ~$6.5 million; estimated cost to repair North Building ~$14.3 million (source: Brian Nagel presentation). • Parking numbers presented by university (Brian Nagel): ~91 on‑site spaces (about 80 allocated to housing) plus a proposal to designate ~130 spaces in the M Lot for building residents (total ~210). • Upperclassman definition: sophomores and above (source: Brian Nagel).

Proper names

[{"name":"College Arms","type":"location"},{"name":"West Chester University","type":"organization"},{"name":"West Chester Borough","type":"government"},{"name":"Civic Action Southeast","type":"organization"},{"name":"High Street","type":"location"},{"name":"Rosedale Avenue","type":"location"},{"name":"Sharon Alley","type":"location"},{"name":"Linden Street","type":"location"},{"name":"M Lot","type":"other"}]

Community relevance

Geographies: High Street corridor; adjacent NC‑2 neighborhood (east of High Street); Walnut/Matlak residential corridors. Funding sources: not specified. Impact groups: neighborhood residents, West Chester University students and staff, local businesses.

Meeting context

Engagement level: high public engagement (multiple residents and civic leaders spoke); item drew the largest public turnout and the longest discussion of the meeting. Implementation risk: medium to high (rezoning would require formal ordinance changes, master plan amendments, design review and traffic studies). History: topic raised earlier in campus/membership meetings and in recent borough meetings; university has previously discussed renovation vs. replacement options for College Arms.

Searchable_tags:["PUC2","CollegeArms","student_housing","parking","zoning","WestChesterUniversity","NC2","HighStreet"]

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