Committee grants conditional approval for two‑lot subdivision at 1313 Ashborne Road with tree‑mitigation plan

The Public Works Committee voted Wednesday to grant conditional preliminary and final approval — with associated waivers — for a subdivision and development plan at 1313 Ashborne Road in Elkins Park that will split a vacant 14,450‑square‑foot lot into two 7,225‑square‑foot parcels and build a single‑family house on each.

Amy Ferrell, counsel for the applicant, told the committee the property had previously been in poor condition, was taken by the bank and cleared, and that neighbors had been engaged through the design process. She said constraints include a rear sewer easement and steep grades that limit where trees can be planted and drove the proposal for a shared driveway.

Under the township tree‑replacement ordinance staff calculated a replacement obligation of 35 trees for trees removed in the prior two years. Ferrell and the project team said the compact lot cannot physically accommodate that many new trees. The committee accepted a mitigation approach supported by staff and the Shade Tree Commission: maximize on‑site plantings where possible, create understory plantings just off the rear property line if the adjacent property owner agrees, and pay a fee in lieu to account for five trees that cannot be reasonably planted.

Commissioners said they appreciated neighborhood engagement and that the proposed driveway width meets ordinance requirements. The resolution granting conditional approval passed by voice vote.