Welcome to “#NewtownPA Year 2023 in Images.” There were many unique and interesting issues that I and other Newtown Township supervisors confronted in 2023.

This is a selection of images that document what I consider the most interesting news items and issues.

Many of these were highlighted in my News of Interest to Newtown Area Residents email newsletter, Twitter account, Facebook page, or website.

This month, preliminary and final development plans submitted to the Bucks County Planning Commission were discussed at the township planning commission meeting on Aug. 8 and brought to the supervisors on Aug. 16.

Sketch plans were first presented to the township planning commission a year ago.

What does the plan for a West Rockhill Wawa include?

Julie Von Spreckelsen with Eastburn and Gray, who represents Provco, presented the proposal for a 6,049-square-foot convenience store, a canopy area with 16 gas pumps and 73 parking spaces, including seven oversized spots for larger vehicles such as landscaping trucks.

Spreckelsen also provided updates on progress made over the past year, such as meeting with neighboring property owners to hear their feedback.

“We incorporated their suggested changes all in an effort to reduce impact as much as possible,” she said, which included increasing the berm on the rear property line, adding more landscaping and fencing, and moving the trash enclosure from the back of the property to the front.*

This is my personal summary of the June 14, 2023, meeting of the #NewtownPA Township Board of Supervisors (BOS). This is not a complete nor an official summary.

Access the 2023 BOS Chronicle for detailed summaries of all 2023 BOS meetings plus the BOS voting record (UNOFFICIAL) for 2023.

Agenda Items

• Planning Committee Report
  • Capital Grille Restaurant
  • Brandmar (The Grey Stone) Expansion
• Engineer’s Report
  • ARLE Funding Program: Pedestrian Safety - Sycamore St versus Newtown-Yardley Rd
• Solicitor’s Report
  • Wawa Settlement Agreement
• Newtown Zoning Armageddon(tm)
• Detailed Meeting Notes
• Official Video
• Video Transcript

A years-long battle to put a Wawa in Newtown Township has ended on the side of Wawa.

The township board of supervisors voted 3-2 at its Wednesday night meeting to approve a settlement agreement that ends all litigation between the township and the project’s developer, Provco Pinegood Newtown LLC, and clears the way for the 5,585 square-foot store with fuel dispensers on a 4.95-acre property at the corner of the Newtown Bypass and Lower Silver Lake Road.

Before the vote, township Solicitor David Sander explained that the settlement will end a validity challenge filed by Provco to provisions of the joint municipal zoning ordinance that governs zoning for Newtown, Upper Makefield and Wrightstown townships. Those provisions do not allow eight fuel dispensers – the number proposed by the developer – or the types of signs Provco wanted to put up. The township zoning hearing board had held a series of hearings on the validity challenge and another had been scheduled for June 27.

The settlement also ends litigation pending in Bucks County Court of Commons Pleas on the ZHB’s denial of fuel dispenser and sign variances, and the supervisors’ denial of land development approval for the project. In addition, the agreement reduces and simplifies the signage Provco had been proposing and also limits the number of fuel dispensers to a maximum of six.

By virtue of the settlement, Provco will also install six electric vehicle charging stations with two plug-ins each that will be available for public use. The developer will also put up solar panels to help power the new Wawa, Sander explained.

Supervisors’ Chairman Dennis Fisher voted in favor of the settlement agreement along with fellow board members Phil Calabro and Elen Snyder. Kyle Davis and John Mack voted no. 

But Mack had a much different take, saying the settlement’s approval sets a very bad precedent and will lead to a “zoning Armageddon” in the township.

“There’s a slippery slope happening here and it’s really unfortunate,” he said. “We just exhibited to every other developer that we will cave in.”

Davis said he felt a Wawa at that location could be a danger, enticing kids to cross highways to get to it. He and some residents also said the township should have made a full copy of the settlement agreement available to residents before voting on it. Davis’ motion to table consideration of the settlement to another date in the interest of transparency, seconded by Mack, was voted down 3-2.

Before Wednesday night’s vote, several residents implored the supervisors to keep fighting.

“If you settle, over time you’ll get more pumps and more signs,” said Tom Crawford, who lives on Lower Silver Lake Road. “They will keep coming back at you. I’m not opposed to Wawas in the appropriate places, but this will be the first step toward turning the Bypass into another Route 1 corridor. If you’re going to give up, you should be voted out of office.”

Resident Bradley Cooper had similar thoughts, adding approval of the Wawa will have a “domino effect.”

The township is in discussions with Provco on a potential settlement of litigation regarding its proposal to build a Wawa convenience store and gas station in the township.

The supervisors have been meeting in executive session to draft a settlement agreement, according to township sources. No additional details were forthcoming.

It was also not known if the settlement is for all the litigation regarding the Wawa project or just one aspect.

Provco has been fighting the township on a number of legal fronts, including the validity challenge before the zoning hearing board and an appeal in Bucks County Court of the township’s vote denying approval of its land development last fall.

Provco is seeking to build a Wawa convenience store and gas station on Lower Silver Lake Road and the Newtown Bypass in the township’s office-research zone.

Nine Newtown Twp residents attended this Zoom meeting, which focused on the following topics (view the presentation below...):

• Video of Opening Presentation
• Deluca Construction Project – Appeal to Board of Supervisors (BOS): The applicants are seeking to subdivide a 3.08 acre parcel at 70 Twining Bridge Road into two lots for single family homes whereas the CM District permits only one home on 3 acres. Will they succeed in getting the BOS to change its mind and NOT oppose the plan? 
• Finally! Work Recommences on Lower Dolington Rd Trail!
• Zoning “Validity Challenges”: Provco/Wawa (Combo Convenience Store/Gas Station in OR District), Kushner RE (245 Unit Apartment Building in OR District)
• Capital Grille Restaurant and Parking in Shopping Center
• Speed Limit Enforcement: Newtown-Yardley Rd
• Single-Hauler Municipal Trash Collection?
• Detailed Meeting Notes

More...

This is my personal summary of the May 10, 2023, meeting of Newtown Township Board of Supervisors (BOS). This is not a complete nor an official summary.

Access the 2023 BOS Chronicle for detailed summaries of all 2023 BOS meetings plus the BOS voting record (UNOFFICIAL) for 2023.

Agenda Items

• Planning Commission Report
  • Applebee’s, 2 West Road
  • Billboards
• Public Comment Regarding Wawa & Pedestrian Safety
• 4 May 2023 Engineer’s Report
  • Lower Dolington Road Trail Fiasco
  • Business Commons Sidewalk Project
• Fire Services Agreement Amendment
• April 2023 Police Report
• See My Detailed Meeting Notes for more details, including Sterling Act Resolution, Bills List, Meeting Room AV Improvement Proposals, etc.
• Etc

More...

The latest Newtown Township Zoning Hearing Board meeting last Thursday night on a proposed Wawa in the township saw one expert witness testify on behalf of the developer, Provco Pinegood Newtown LLC, board solicitor Michael Clarke wrote in an email to NewtownPANow.com.

The next hearing on the matter will be May 30, he added.

“No decision will be reached at that (May 30) meeting,” Clarke wrote. “While not confirmed, we expect a vote will occur in July.”

Provco is proposing a 5,585 square-foot Wawa with eight fuel dispensers on a 4.95-acre parcel just off the Newtown Bypass near Lower Silver Lake Road. Thursday night’s meeting was the latest in a series of zoning hearings being held on a validity challenge filed by the developer to certain provisions of the joint municipal zoning ordinance that governs zoning for Newtown, Upper Makefield and Wrightstown townships.

The provisions of the JMZO being challenged are those that don’t allow eight fuel pumps on a tract less than five acres, and don’t allow the type of electronic sign being proposed by Provco, considered an “electronic messaging center” under the JMZO.

Welcome to the April 24, 2023, Meet Mack Monday Zoom meeting! I am John Mack, your host and a Newtown Supervisor. Each month I host a Meet Mack Monday Zoom meeting to inform residents of items that are of interest to them and to get feedback and comments from them. This helps me keep better informed of residents’ concerns when voting on important issues at supervisor meetings.

This short 14-minute presentation focuses on the following topics:

* Single-Use Plastics Ban – What McCaffery’s Market had to say about it at April 3, 2023 EAC meeting. Some survey results will be presented.
* Business Commons Overlay – Specifications for “Mixed” Residential/Business use presented to Newtown Planning Commission by Bucks County Planning Commission
* PFAS In Our Drinking Water: EPA is proposing drastically lower safe limits. How do these limits compare with measured amounts in our water?
* Lower Dolington Road Trail Fiasco: Residents are disappointed in the progress or lack thereof.
* LED Streetlights Feasibility Study
* New Plan to Fix Villas of Newtown Detention Basin – Another project that has been plagued by delays. Bids accepted for new solution. Will It Work?
* Tractor Trailer Trucks Parked on Lower Dolington Road Are An Eyesore & Hazard – What Can Be Down About It?
* Deluca Construction of 2 single-family houses at 70 Twining Bridge Rd - Seeking relief in connection with a proposed subdivision of a 3.08-acre parcel into 2 lots where the lots will not comply with the dimensional regulations of the CM district. Another potential “historic resource” threatened?
* Wawa Update – Decision by ZHB regarding Amended Challenge to Validity of the JMZO put off to May 4, 2023. Why?
* Blue Point Grill Patio Expansion – The owners are seeking relief to install a 976 sq.ft. patio which will exceed the max. allowable impervious limitation for Newtown Shopping Center. More seating, less accessible parking space?

The battle to bring a Wawa to the township is back before the zoning hearing board where Provco Pinegood LLC is challenging the validity of sections of the township’s E30 use ordinance.

In its latest appeal, Provco, which has been fighting to build a Wawa convenience store and gas station on Lower Silver Lake Road and the Newtown Bypass for the past five years, is challenging the ordinance’s limit on the number of gas pumps allowed, the definition of an Electronic Message Center (EMC) sign and the ordinance’s restriction on signage along the Newtown Bypass.

During its second appearance before the zoning hearing board on Monday night, Matthew Hammond, a licensed civil engineer specializing in traffic planning, and Michael Tantala, a civil engineer, specializing in signage, testified on behalf of Provco.

Hammond testified that if Provco is not allowed to put a monument sign on the bypass alerting motorists of the store and gas station, it could create a dangerous condition on the bypass with motorists making split second decisions to make the turn onto Silver Lake Road after realizing there’s a Wawa there.

Under the E30 ordinance, signs are prohibited along the limited access Newtown Bypass.

Hammond testified that visible signage is important, especially for impulse customers who need enough advance warning to move to the proper turning lane.

“These signs are designed with the appropriate size, height and location necessary to provide a safe and efficient flow of traffic along these roads,” Hammond told the zoning board.

Regarding the use of signs for safety, zoning board chair Paul Cohen wanted to know if that only applied for certain uses. “Do you believe going from an office use to a retail use increases the need for signage?”

“I do,” said Hammond. “Retail use is what I’ll classify as an impulse use. Obviously there are people who want to traverse to that specific use. That signage is important. If it was an office it may not be as important because you’re not normally passing by an office building and saying, ‘Oh, I should probably try to turn in there.’”

More...

Have you heard about lower speed limits, higher sewer rates, challenges to our zoning, and more News of Interest to #NewtownPA residents?

Read the February 6, 2023, issue of News of Interest to Newtown area residents.

Planning Commission Report, Earned Income Tax Trends, Joint Zoning Council, 2023 Liquid Fuels Program, Sycamore Street Speed limit Reduction, More…

This is my personal summary of the February 8, 2023, meeting of Newtown Township Board of Supervisors (BOS). This is not a complete nor an official summary.

Access the 2023 BOS Chronicle for detailed summaries of all 2023 BOS meetings plus the BOS voting record (UNOFFICIAL) for 2023.

Agenda Items

• Planning Commission Report – see Full Summary
• Earned Income Tax (EIT) Trends
• Joint Zoning Council Report
• Engineer's Report
  • 2023 Liquid Fuels Road Program
• Solicitor's Report
  • Speed Limit Lowered to 25 MPH on Sycamore Street
• Manager's Report
  • Police Report – Traffic Citations (January 2023 and all of 2022)
• Official Video
• Transcript

At a special session of the Newtown Township Zoning Hearing Board (ZHB) on January 30, 2023, Provco/Wawa appealed the ZHB's 2021 denial of all signage and fuel dispenser variances to the JMZO E30 zoning ordinance (read “Wawa's Request for Zoning Variances Denied!”).

Wawa is challenging Section 803.E.30.3, Section 1103.CA, and Section 1101.A of the ordinance, as "arbitrary, unreasonable, and not substantially related to the purposes of the Pennsylvania Municipalities Planning Code (MPC), or the public health, safety, or welfare of Newtown Township that the JMZO purports to serve" (refer to the “Amended ZHB #1104-19 Provco Pinegood Newtown LLC Substantive Challenge”).

Specifically, Wawa wants to have 8 fueling dispensers (16 pumps) whereas the E30 ordinance allows only 6 and it wants signage facing or visible to the Bypass, which is also prohibited by Newtown zoning codes.

John Van Luvanee, attorney for Provco/Wawa presented two expert witnesses to testify at the ZHB hearing. This audio snippet features the testimony and cross-examination by Newtown Township's Solicitor (Dave Sander) of expert witnesses Jason Korczak, P.E., Bohler Engineering and Mike Redel, a Real Estate Project Engineer employed by Wawa.

Peter Nelson, an attorney representing Upper Makefield Township was a party to the case and also cross-examined Provco's witnesses at the hearing

Listen to the testimony and cross-examination...

A dozen people (mostly Newtown Twp residents) attended this Zoom meeting, which focused on the following topics (view the presentation):

• Change Zoning to Allow Apartment Complex? [Background: “20 December 2022 Newtown Planning Commission Meeting Summary”]
• Should Newtown Pull Out of the Jointure? [This was discussed at the 17 January 2023 Planning Commission meeting. Listen to the discussion...]
• Sewer Rate Increase: Why? Will It Be the Last? [Background: “#NewtownPA Sewer Authority Manager Warren Gormley Explains Rate Increase”]
• “Historic” Site on Toll Bros Site: Should It Be Preserved? [Background: “A ‘Major Historic’ Resource Re-Discovered!”]
• Updates
  • Newtown-Yardley Rd & N Sycamore St Pedestrian Safety: Flashing Beacons, Lower Speed Limits
  • Wawa’s Substantive Validity Challenge: What’s Next?
  • Lower Dolington Road Trail
  • LED Streetlight Procurement Program
• Privilege of the Floor – Q&A Session covering the following:
  1. Trucks Parked on Lower Dolington Road – Quite an Eyesore!
  2. Spot Zoning in OR District!
  3. No Turn on Red – More Dangerous for Pedestrians?
• Detailed Meeting Notes

Contents:

• Underground Cable Work on LDR Begins
• Traffic Speed Study – Newtown-Yardley Road @ Tara Boulevard Crosswalk
• Was Green Parrot Owner Bullied by CR Teachers, Others Over Film Showing?
• Provco Appeals #NewtownPA Township's Denial Of Wawa Plan
• Pedestrian Bridge Over #NewtownPA Creek May Be Back On The Table
• Mack's Summary of the 7 December 2022 #NewtownPA Board of Supervisors Meeting
• Falls Township Proposes Earned Income Tax: What’s the Impact on #NewtownPA?

Read the entire issue…

Welcome to “The Year 2022 in Images."

There were many unique and interesting issues that I and other Newtown Township supervisors confronted in 2022. This is a selection of images and stories that document what I consider the most important news items and issues of interest to Newtown residents.

Images include the following with links to more information:

• It Took a Pedestrian Death
• No Gun Shows in Newtown!
• Newtown Says NO to Wawa
• Stand With Ukraine
• OLI/LI District Overlay Plan
• Did Anti-DEI Activists Drive Fraser Away from CRSD?
• 5G Antennas - Are They Safe?
• Shots Fired!
• NAS Asks for More AID
• It's Time For Solar Power!
• Bucks County Sewer Sale Stymied
• Lower Dolington Road Trail - The Longest DELAY!
• Women's Right To Choose
• Not On My BYpass!
• Movie Controversy
• "Historic" Resource Re-Discovered
• Why Did Charlie Feuer Cross the Road?

More...

Provco is taking the township to court over its vote to deny land development plans to build a Wawa convenience store and gas station in the township's office/research zone at Lower Silver Lake Road and the Newtown Bypass.

On Wednesday night, the board of supervisors voted 3 to 2 to authorize its solicitor to defend the township’s decision to turn down Provco’s preliminary/final land development plan.

In November the supervisors voted to deny the plan citing its failure to obtain approval for a larger canopy over the gas pumps, for submitting its plan as a preliminary/final plan rather than just a preliminary plan and for providing an eight foot setback from the road where a 20 foot setback is required.

Voting in favor of the motion to fight Provco in court were Kyle Davis, Elen Snyder and John Mack., the same supervisors who voted to deny the plan. Supervisors Phil Calabro and Chairman Dennis Fisher voted against the motion.

Provco will be seeking to declare the township's zoning ordinance "unconstitutional" because it did not provide for a combination convenience store and gas station use prior to the development of the E30 curative amendment.

“If they are successful at the zoning hearing board or ultimately on appeal through the court system they will have the ability to develop their property as they wish with a convenience store and gas station without having to comply with the E30 use ordinance,” Sander told the supervisors.

The courts — and a majority of nearby residents — have spoken: there will be no new Wawa coming to 287 Holland Road.

The proposed Wawa would have been situated on 6.481 gross acres with frontage on Rockville Road, Buck Road and Holland Road.

The Court of Common Pleas of Bucks County ruled that the Northampton Zoning Hearing Board acted incorrectly when it upheld the township zoning officer's determination last May that allowing Wawa to install more than a dozen fuel pumps shouldn't change the lot's primary use designation as a retail store.

"Although the zoning hearing board held a further hearing, there was no additional evidence introduced at that hearing on this particular factual issue," read a portion of the decision. "As a result, the record continues to lack the substantial evidence required to support the finding that the proposed accessory use is 'entirely incidental and subordinate to' the proposed principal use.

"Accordingly, the Court finds that the zoning hearing board abused its discretion and the decision to uphold the determination of the Zoning Officer is reversed."

Attorney Christopher Papa who has long represented Northampton residents in their fight against Wawa, heralded the victory as a David versus Goliath matchup.

"This a huge victory, after a nearly three-year legal battle against steep odds, by the local community to preserve the quaint, residential integrity and nature of Holland," Papa said. "One for the little guy."

Related Content:

• “Northampton ZHB OK's Holland Wawa. Matter Goes Back to Bucks County Judge: The case is all about the word entirely.”; https://sco.lt/74PVya
• “Wawa’s Suburban Focus - Including Holland & #NewtownPA - Is Getting Pushback From neighbors”; https://sco.lt/69lUnI

At the November 22, 2022, Newtown Board of Supervisors (BOS) meeting, the supervisors approved and authorized the execution of a fee agreement to hire David C Babbitt and Associates LLC to assist the township in its defense against Provco Pinegood Newtown, LLC 's [Wawa’s] Substantive Validity Challenge (SVC) to the joint Municipal Zoning Ordinance (JMZO). The agreement and fees were laid out in a letter dated November 13 2022.

Wawa first filed its SVC several years ago (on October 16, 2019) and held it in abeyance UNTIL the BOS denied its plan to build a combination gas station and convenience store on Newtown Bypass at the October 26, 2022 BOS meeting. Provco has asked that its SVC be moved forward for a Zoning Hearing Board (ZHB) hearing. The schedule is not yet known, but an extension has been granted through February 28, 2023.

In order to assist the township, David Sander, the Township Solicitor, contacted Mr. Babbitt – “our go-to planner,” said Sander – who assisted the Township in fighting the variances for additional pumps and signs facing the Bypass (read “Newtown Twp vs Wawa: Round 3, Newtown's Expert Testifies”). Mr. Babbitt is therefore familiar with the site and, in Mr. Sander’s opinion, has the expertise necessary to review the substantive validity challenge and the ordinance and to testify in favor of the township.

What’s The Basis for Provco’s Claim? Read more...

“This is happening in the Far Northeast, it’s happening in Roxborough, it’s happening in North Philadelphia, it’s happening in Center City,” said Inspector Charles Layton, who oversees the homicide, major crimes, and special victims units. “I don’t think if you go outside of the city it’s going to change anything because they have increasing carjackings, as well.”

“I don’t think the public is aware of this because they may think of shootings usually happening at bars or nightclubs, certainly not at gas stations,” said lawyer David P. Thiruselvam, who has filed nine lawsuits against gas stations. “But it’s becoming an epidemic, and the gas station industry is aware of it because it’s in the news all the time. But they are not doing anything about it.”

Other violent crimes at gas stations have soared, according to police data. Carjackings have more than quadrupled, with 30 so far this year, up from seven last year. There were none between 2018 and 2020.

There have been 69 gunpoint robberies at stations this year, up from 65 for all of last year. Nonfatal shootings at gas stations have spiked, as well, leaving 17 victims so far this year and last year. The city averaged only one a year from 2018 to 2020.

A proposed super Wawa will not be coming to the Newtown Bypass and Silver Lake Road in the township for now.

But the fate of the project that has been met with opposition of township meetings could still be alive if the developer chooses to appeal the decision. Developer, Provco Pineville Acquisitions, LLC, has had to appeal municipal decisions in the past to move forward with plans to build Wawas in Bucks County.

Provco needed to overcome several issues to gain approval, specifically related to parking, gas pump canopies, setbacks and closeness to neighboring residences. Township supervisors also voiced concerns over hours of operation.

The Newton Township Board of Supervisors reached a 3-2 decision to to reject the developer's plan during its meeting on Oct. 26.

[For highlights of the discussion & video of resident comments, see my summary of the Oct. 26 BOS meeting.]

While not contained in the township's official decision, Township Supervisor John Mack also said he was concerned Provco would come back with more requests.

"I believe that if we approve this plan, you are going to continue to fight for (monument signage that is the basis for an ongoing appeal before the Newtown Township Zoning Hearing Board) and eventually you are going to wear us down and you're going to get it, and eventually, you're going to get the 18 pumps that you want," Mack told attorney and Provco representative John VanLuvanee. "And right away, the canopy size does not comply."

Mack also noted the security concerns of a family that lives near Silver Lake Road, pointing to an uptick in crimes occurring in or near Wawas in Bucks County.

"Recently, there has been a wave of armed robberies of Wawa stores in Bucks County by the way and not just in Philadelphia, and we're talking about criminals coming to Bucks County," Mack said. "We are going to have to have our police department out there and the family may be subject to somebody running away from the police and taking over their home. The hours of operation, in my opinion, should be limited as some of these other Wawas in Bucks County have started to limited their hours of operations between 5 a.m. and midnight."

Related: Wawa’s Suburban Focus - Including Holland & #NewtownPA - Is Getting Pushback From neighbors

VanLuvanee argued that those issues have little to do with the development plan on a whole, and and responded to Mack's assertions, stressing that the supervisors "have a plan in front" of them that "complies with the ordinances."

Where the plan goes from here is unclear, even as township supervisors consider the matter closed on their end. VanLuvanee hasn't responded to requests for comment, and Mack wouldn't rule out the developer fighting this rejection in court.

It was that threat of litigation that compelled supervisor Dennis Fisher joining Phil Calabro to vote in favor of the project.

Newtown-Wrightstown Police Services Agreement, Toll Bros - Historic Farmhouse, Provco/Wawa Land Development, Pedestrian Safety, More…

This is my personal summary of the October 26, 2022, meeting of Newtown Township Board of Supervisors (BOS). This is not a complete nor an official summary.

Agenda Items

• Newtown-Wrightstown Police Services Agreement
• Planning Commission: Newtown AOP, Toll Bros Land Development
• Consider Preliminary/Final Plan approval for Provco Pinegood Newtown/Wawa
• No Turn On Red Signage
• Pedestrian Safety: Newtown Yardley Rd/Tara Drive Crosswalk

More...

The major item on the agenda of the October 26, 2022, Newtown Board of Supervisors meeting was the consideration to approve the Preliminary/Final Plan for Provco Pinegood Newtown, LLC; i.e., Wawa’s plans to build a 24/7 Wawa convenience store and gas station on the Newtown Bypass.

This presentation focuses on the comments made by several residents who opposed this plan. Some of the reasons cited include:

* Limiting the hours of operation to prevent crime
* Opposition to development on the Newtown Bypass
* Support of local businesses
* Desire that Wawa obey our local laws including the E30 ordinance, which Wawa has challenged and even called “silly”
* Increased traffic will degrade the Bypass/Newtown-Yardley Rd intersection to PennDOT level D, which is suitable for an urban environment, but not for Newtown!
* And environmental issues, including the possible contamination of the local watershed

Included are several short snippets of comments addressing several of these issues. You can go to the Newtown Township Youtube page to view the entire meeting and hear all the comments. LINK: https://bit.ly/BOSviaYoutube

Plans to build a 24 hour Wawa convenience store and gas station on the Newtown Bypass are headed to court.

The board of supervisors on Wednesday night voted to deny preliminary/final land development plans for the project, which has been the source of discussion and debate in the township for the past four years.

[See the Wawa Versus Newtown Timeline going back to 2017.]

Supervisor Kyle Davis, who has opposed the location of the store from the start, joined John Mack and Elen Snyder in voting to deny the plan while Chairman Dennis Fisher and supervisor Phil Calabro voted against denial.

The developer of the project, Provco Pinegood, will likely be appealing the decision to the Bucks County Court of Common Pleas where a judge will ultimately decide its fate.

At the meeting, Provco’s land use attorney, John VanLuvanee, presented what he called a “clean plan” to the supervisors, meaning that there were no outstanding issues that needed to be addressed under the township’s land development ordinances.

“This is not an application to determine whether or not a Wawa should be sited on the southeast corner of Silver Lake Road and the bypass. That’s already been determined and a special exception has been granted,” said VanLuvanee. “Tonight we’re looking objectively at a series of land development plans to determine whether they meet the ordinance. That’s the only issue before you tonight.”

“There are a lot people in the community who would like a Wawa and there are some who don’t,” said Chairman Fisher. “We worked to create the E30 ordinance and I believe Wawa has submitted a plan that has tried to follow that ordinance.”

Supervisor John Mack disagreed with Fisher that Provco has followed the ordinance, saying he believes that “Provco is not making a good faith effort to follow our ordinances. In fact every step of the way it has challenged the ordinance and even calls things in the ordinance silly. They have no respect for our laws and no respect for our residents.”

Earlier in the meeting, Mack also questioned Provco regarding the hours of operation of the store. He argued that because there’s a residential use well within 750 feet of the property hours of operation should be limited.

Supervisor Elen Snyder expressed disappointment that the proposed project is not more environmentally friendly. “I don’t think you made any effort to do so whatsoever. Yes, you do have native trees. I appreciate that. Other than that there’s not much to address climate change in the future. I’m not down with that. I’m sorry.”

Snyder also raised concerns over the impact the Wawa will have on the local mom and pop gas stations. “We have gas stations that have been here for decades. What I’m worried about is that you will undercut them as far as the price of gas and I don’t want to see our home-grown businesses lose business.”

[Philadelphia] Mayor Jim Kenney said last week that it was not a “bad omen” for crime-rattled Philadelphia that Wawa was closing two Center City stores. “We’re really happy with our relationship with Wawa,” the city’s top elected official said.

In Bucks County, where the chain has proposed a Super Wawa with 60 parking spaces and 16 gas pumps, residents had less positive things to say.

The store will “destroy Holland as we know it,” said Pam Duffey, 59, who was leaving a court hearing in Doylestown over the proposal. The Super Wawa would be on 6½ acres near her home, in an area with two-lane country roads. “Holland will never be the same.”

Duffey’s son Brett, 20, a college student, said that if the proposal goes through, “the centerpiece of Holland will be an industrial-sized gas station.”

Shutdowns in Center City

Citing concerns over crime, Wawa said last Thursday that it was closing its stores at 12th and Market and at 19th and Market in Philadelphia. 

Suburbanites push back on Wawa expansion

The fight over a new Super Wawa in Holland, which is part of Northampton Township, is among the most recent flare-ups between the company and local residents in the Pennsylvania suburbs and South Jersey.

Residents also are pushing back on a proposed Super Wawa in Newtown Township, a few miles from the one proposed in Holland, and on one proposed for the Barclay Farm section of Cherry Hill.

Bradley Cooper, a Newtown resident (and, no, not the Hollywood actor), said that Wawa “is taking over so many areas.” Newtown Township should support small businesses, he said.

“We always work to follow the processes set forth by local municipalities on new development and community reinvestment,” Bruce said in response to questions about the proposed Holland Super Wawa. “As a proud member of this community for more than a half-century, we believe in working with our friends and neighbors to develop a store that is a true asset to the community.”

It's Not Fine Dining; It's a Gas Station!

Christopher Papa, a New Castle, Pa., lawyer who represents Holland residents opposing the Wawa proposal, said that with a Super Wawa store, the convenience chain “is going for the gas. It’s not fine dining.”

According to court documents, Northampton Township’s zoning officer concluded that the gas-fueling part of the proposed Super Wawa complex did not constitute a gas station but part of the 24-hour retail convenience store that sold non-fuel merchandise and could be built there under the current zoning.

Residents appealed the decision and are awaiting a decision from Bucks County Common Pleas Judge Denise M. Bowman, who heard the latest arguments on Monday.