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Developer presents sketch plan to settle 2019 litigation; commission flags access, stormwater and floodplain issues
Summary
Prime Development Group presented a sketch plan intended to resolve a 2019 mandamus action by combining six tax parcels into three buildable lots; planning commissioners provided technical feedback on shared driveways, basin conditions and floodplain concerns but took no formal action.
Attorney John Van Luveny, representing Prime Development Group, told the Warrington Planning Commission the sketch plan is intended to form the basis for settling pending litigation and to convert six older tax parcels into three conforming building lots if property owners agree.
Van Luveny described a long-running dispute that began in 2019 and said his client’s strategy is to consolidate parcels so three single-family homes could be built while preserving remaining parcels as open space. He told the commission staff asked for a sketch plan so township consultants could review engineering and zoning compliance before any settlement or formal subdivision application.
Commissioners raised multiple technical and procedural concerns. They noted the township ordinance does not allow shared residential driveways, and several lots currently access a paper street; the commission emphasized that any new lots must have legal access to a street meeting township standards. Staff also flagged that an existing stormwater basin on the site appears to be functioning as a pond and will require re-evaluation; commissioners said planting, maintenance and basin depth require verification before a permit is issued.
Floodplain mapping was disputed in the hearing: commission members referenced a possible 100-year floodplain at the end of Warrington Avenue while the applicant’s team suggested the area is within a 500-year floodplain and that mapping can be inconsistent. The commission asked the applicant to demonstrate the correct floodplain limits.
On fire access, commissioners warned that placing a home far back on a lot might require a 20-foot fire-capable driveway and a turnaround suitable for emergency vehicles, and that such a layout could make the plan infeasible without design changes. The commission provided comments but did not make a motion; Van Luveny said he would take the input back to his client and revise the plan as needed.
The commission’s comments at the sketch stage are advisory: they identify issues that must be addressed in any subsequent preliminary subdivision or a written settlement agreement.
