Back to list December 27, 2016 Improvements planned for East Penn Drive ahead of development By Zack Hooopes, of The Sentinel/Cumberland Valley Business Journal. Although still in its early phases, a large multi-use development is being planned for the parcel of land along East Penn Drive in East Pennsboro Township, north of the Highmark building and adjacent to Adams Ricci Park. The parcel is approximately 113 acres, according to East Pennsboro’s zoning officer, John Owen. The partially-wooded lot had been owned by Valley Land Company and was for sale for some time before a group of local developers under the name 199 Associates purchased the parcel, Owen said. Preliminary plans call for 396 housing units, 20,000 square feet of retail space, a 129,000 square foot medical rehabilitation facility, and an unspecified area of convalescent care. The facility will geared toward senior living. Major access to the facility will be provided by road stubs that are already build into the east side of East Penn Drive, between Creekside Drive and the Adams-Ricci Farmers’ Market. The Cumberland Area Economic Development Corporation is also pursuing a PennDOT grant to finance road improvements “There will be a main entrance and two accessory entrances. The two secondary entrances will be turning lanes off of East Penn Drive, but the main entrance will require a new signal to be put in,” Kuna said. “The grant is for the signal, the expansion of the road to allow for turn lanes, and to synchronize the lights along the corridor.” CAEDC is also working with the developer and East Pennsboro Township to connect the trails in Adams-Ricci Park into the development, allowing residents direct access to the park. This may also include a pedestrian bridge over East Pennsboro Drive to connect the development on the east side with the main portion of Adams-Ricci, which is to the west. The current proposal will not require any re-zoning, as residential and medical facilities are allowed by right on the parcel. Owen said he is awaiting further feedback from the developer after returning township staff’s initial questions and comments. This article was published on Cumberlink.com on December 23, 2016.
