Planning commission backs waivers for Lower Saucon Fire Rescue land‑development plan

The Lower Saucon Township Planning Commission on Aug. 27 recommended granting multiple waivers and deferrals for the proposed Lower Saucon Fire Rescue land‑development plan and voted to recommend the zoning officer waive an ordinance restriction on driveway access.

Ian Kaufman of Keystone Consulting Engineers summarized changes to the application and a set of waiver requests, saying the applicant would comply with Hanover Engineering’s review letter dated Aug. 20, 2026. Kaufman listed six waiver requests including processing the submission as a preliminary/final plan, reducing the mapped extent of existing features from the ordinance’s 500‑foot requirement to about 250 feet, and asking flexibility for contours and tree spacing. He also asked the commission to allow unusually wide driveway throat widths to accommodate fire apparatus: “We’re requesting a waiver to allow the driveway width intersecting Crestline Drive to be 71 feet at the street line, the driveway width intersecting Wassergas to be 80 feet at the street line,” Kaufman said, citing truck‑turning templates and vehicle sizes.

The applicant also explained the township’s open‑space dedication calculation and asked to waive land dedication for environmentally sensitive areas on the site. Kaufman gave the math used for dedications and fees: the required land dedication would be about 24,000 square feet based on unit assumptions, and the corresponding fee‑in‑lieu would be $39,720. He told the commission the parcel contains a creek and sensitive woodlands that make dedication impractical and noted the fire company operates as a volunteer organization.

Commissioners pressed staff and the applicant on stormwater and wastewater handling. Kaufman said a septic investigation is scheduled for Sept. 3 and that historical records indicate three 1,000‑gallon underground septic tanks. He described the planned truck‑wash system: trucks will be washed inside the apparatus bay, drain to a trench drain connected to the septic system, and the applicant plans to install an oil‑water separator that would be pumped and hauled by a septic contractor so no contaminated water discharges to storm drains.

After discussion, the commission moved and voted to recommend granting the waivers as outlined in Keystone’s revised letter (07/28/2026), approved the requested deferrals for road‑widening improvements, and separately voted to recommend that the zoning officer waive the ordinance requirement limiting direct access to collector/arterial roads under section 180‑98.b.3.f. The commission then voted to recommend approval of the plan subject to the conditions in Hanover Engineering’s review letter dated 08/20/2026.

Next steps: the recommendations recorded by the planning commission will be forwarded to the zoning officer and township council for final administrative action and any conditions required by Hanover Engineering.