With the approval of two key zoning amendments, Upper Gwynedd Township Tuesday night paved the way for the development of an affordable housing project on Pennbrook Parkway near the SEPTA Pennbrook station.
Before a packed and sometimes contentious crowd, Upper Gwynedd Township Commissioners unanimously approved ordinances amending the zoning map, creating a transit-oriented development (TOD) area by the station and allowing higher-density development at 1500 Pennbrook Parkway to proceed.
Commissioners President Denise Hull outlined her vision for the township after the vote: "To be a township where all its residents, business owners and visitors always feel safe and welcome. I would like to create a township where we recognize the benefit of diversity and different life experiences that make our lives richer and ultimately better, a township where there's a basic respect for every person who chooses to live, work or play here.”
The development, which contains 60 units on roughly six acres of property and includes one residential building and a clubhouse, will be supported by the federal Low-Income Housing Tax Credit program, which subsidizes construction of rental housing for low- and moderate-income tenants.
More than a dozen township residents and members of neighboring communities took the floor during the nearly four-hour meeting to express their support or opposition to the proposed housing project, which New Jersey-based developer The Walters Group is designing to supply affordable housing for the area’s work force.
Many residents, like Linda Gallo, said they were concerned with overpopulation as a result of the project. She said she moved from Philadelphia to Upper Gwynedd in 2007 due to safety concerns in the city. Gallo lived in Montgomery County prior to living in Philadelphia, and her kids attended Gwynedd Square Elementary.
"Gwynedd Square is where those children would go and it's already overpopulated,” Gallo said. "Do you want the school to overpopulate like Philadelphia where there’s 30 to 40 kids in a class? We don't want that. Our kids can’t get the proper education.”
The project is intended in part to address homelessness in Montgomery County as a result of the lack of affordable housing, but resident Glenn Hatfield said the affordable housing crisis does not exist in Upper Gwynedd Township. "They are affordable because they're full,” Hatfield said. "If they weren't affordable, they would be empty. There would be vacancies. That’s not the case right now.”
He added that there is a wide selection of housing, apartments, mobile homes, and twin and single homes at every price level available, meaning that there is no need for a new development for affordable housing.
Resident Mark Connelly said those opposing the project are ignoring current residents who may benefit from more affordable housing. In his own research, he said he found that in 2021, there were hundreds of renters in the township that spent 30 percent or more of their incomes on housing, which is the affordability threshold set by the Department of Housing and Urban Development.
"These statistics show rents were almost universally unaffordable to those making under $75,000 a year,” Connelly said. "If incomes remain stagnant and rents continue to rise at their current rates, we are going to see some of our fellow citizens pushed out of our township without the reprieve of this affordable housing development.”
Voices of support for the project also came from members of neighboring communities. North Penn School Board member Jonathan Kassa, who resides in Montgomery Township, spoke about assisting two single-mother households with children attending North Penn School District to find services to help them stay in their homes during recent crises.
"I share this because they’re living examples of the thousands of good people who make this community strong,” Kassa said. "When a family or medical crisis risks them being homeless or needing to leave North Penn — which is what was facing these two single-family households, one of them in this township — that’s not right. … That’s not who we aspire to be.”
Kassa said that the project would provide housing and support for members currently in the North Penn community. "Affordable housing means that they’re staff, students and classmates of our district that we don't want to send a message in short that you're not wanted or to fend for yourself,” Kassa said. "It's not who we are as a community and we’re far from it.”
Lansdale Borough council member BJ Breish, reading from a letter signed by about 100 area residents, said many renters in the township face increased risks of being one financial crisis away from eviction or having to leave the community. "Housing costs are rising faster than wages for our residents,” Breish said. "If we take action now by supporting the zoning text amendment, we will have homes that allow Upper Gwynedd residents to live closer to their jobs, save for homeownership, and thrive.”
High-quality homes that provide close proximity to job services, amenities, access to transportation, health care and quality schools and are available to those with all income levels will have a collective benefit, he said. "It allows townships to become an even more attractive community to invest in because of the strong workforce at all levels, a demand for a wider variety of goods and services and opportunities for economic mobility.”
Resident Linda Price, who said the development will be behind her house, bought her first home in Norristown, which she found to be affordable, but had to do a short sale to leave her home after 10 years when her property value went down. "I bought my house (in Upper Gwynedd) to be my retirement home,” Price said. "Well, is it really? Or am I gonna have to be part of the mass migration of people that move out of here once this happens?”
From an economic standpoint, the project can spark employee growth, said resident Jeff Fields. Young adults can fill in entry-level job positions in healthcare, education and service industries, which allows necessary services to continue in the area, while also allowing young adults to live closer to their families, he said.
Tuesday night's decisions were the first steps in the long process of land development, said attorney Joe Clement, representing The Walters Group. Hearings will continue as part of the land development process, but the timeline for that is yet to be determined.
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