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Northampton ZHB OK's Holland Wawa. Matter Goes Back to Bucks County Judge: "The case is all about the word 'entirely.'"

Northampton ZHB OK's Holland Wawa. Matter Goes Back to Bucks County Judge: "The case is all about the word 'entirely.'" | Newtown News of Interest | Scoop.it

The Northampton Zoning Board rendered a decision Monday to allow a Wawa with fueling station to move forward over the objections of nearby residents,

 

[Note from Brett Duffey: "Since the supervisors voted against it last November, Wawa will have to submit a new plan to go through the approval process, so at this moment, there is no formal plan on the table, only a preliminary sketch that the supervisors are not acting on."]

 

For years developer Provco Pinegood Northampton has sought to build the convenience store and gas station at 287 Holland Road in the Holland section of the township.

 

The board had rejected the proposal, but was ordered to reconsider it when the developer appealed to Bucks County Court. Judge Denise Bowman remanded the case back for additional testimony on whether the proposed Wawa required a conditional use hearing , said Northampton Township Manager Robert Pellegrino.

 

"The matter will now go back to Judge Bowman for a decision on the legal issues before the Court."

 

Residents last, and perhaps most remote chance, to delay or altogether halt the project lies with Bowman's decision. No hearing had been set as of Wednesday.

 

Critics of the project mounted a furious, grassroots-driven effort that included fundraising for legal representation and joining with residents in Newtown Township, who are fighting a proposed Wawa on the Newtown Bypass and Lower Silver Lake Road.

 

Pam Duffey, a critic of the project and one of the of the neighbors who say they will be adversely affected by the existence of gas pumps mere yards from their house, seemed resigned to the fate.

 

"We lost with the Northampton Township Zoning Board as we expected. We still have hope that the judge, Denise Bowman, will note that Wawa did not prove that their gas operation is 'entirely' incidental," Duffey said. "The case is all about the word 'entirely.'" [See Insights.]

 

johnmacknewtown's insight:

 

"The case is all about the word 'entirely.'"

 

In a personal communication via email, Brett Duffey said:

 

"During the [ZHB] meeting, Wawa deceitfully changed the narrative from the burden that they had to prove their gas operation was  "entirely incidental" to just clouding the issue by having an expert witness say that gas is just part of one big convenience store use that is permitted "by right" in our ordinance. They basically said selling gas is like selling any other retail good, including unbelievably baked items. When our lawyer objected because Wawa was not talking about gas being entirely incidental (i.e. the purpose of the hearing), Chairman Fenningham overruled him."

 

"In my opinion, by the metric Wawa is using that the zoning board approved, any business in Northampton Township can add gas pumps and sell gas and call it part of the incidentals they sell," said Pam Duffey in a separate personal email. "Residents of Northampton Township need to wake up."

 

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Newtown News of Interest
These Scoops are excerpts from articles published in local newspapers and other sources that may be of interest to Newtown area residents. Please click on the "From" link to access the full original article. Any opinions and "insights" appended to these article summaries are solely those of John Mack and do not represent the opinions of any other person or entity.
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