Residents of Upper Moreland recently attended the Township Planning Agency meeting to voice their displeasure of the construction of the Wawa to be built at the old Bally’s Fitness location.
Representatives from Goodman Properties presented their Land Development Plan that included pumps, parking, and the beginning stages of building. Some residents spoke out and wanted the developers to drastically change their plans. A motion by the Democratic Committee to reject the plan was officially turned down, and then a motion to ask for a revised plan to be re-submitted also failed.
“We tried to get them to modify the plan,” Democratic Committee member Nick Scull said. “How about we build an apartment house there with stores on the first floor and three or four stories of apartments by the train station? What a great location.
“When you only have so much space downtown, you want more that promotes density, this is opposite,” Scull added.
Scull said the redevelopment of the Willow Grove downtown area should be more pedestrian friendly. It should provide for a walk-able area downtown with wide sidewalks, big storefronts and residential spaces for people. In the original plan, proposed in July of 2012, it called for a 6,200 square-foot building, with six gas stations and 12 dispensers. A connecting 4,500 square-foot bank with three drive-thru windows was also included.
Scull said he wouldn’t be opposed to putting the Wawa in a different location near the Turnpike entrance since Goodman Properties owns that space as well.