City Councilman Bobby Henon’s chief of staff, Courtney Voss, talked about a recent court hearing against the mulch supplier.
The Upper Holmesburg Civic Association last week welcomed City Councilman Bobby Henon’s chief of staff, Courtney Voss, to discuss proposed zoning changes for parts of the neighborhood.
The discussion included a proposal to move the Wawa at Frankford and Linden avenues down one block to Frankford and Academy Road and an update on the most recent court hearing that Britton Industries had.
On May 8, there was another public hearing at City Hall for the suit filed against Britton.
Toward the end of 2017, the city filed a lawsuit against Britton, a mulch and topsoil supplier company with a site at 8901 Torresdale Ave. Residents and members of the civic association have made their concerns clear with the company at multiple hearings. Their main issue with Britton has been the odor that travels for several blocks and the debris around the site.
The civic association was pleased with how the April hearing transpired, but not as satisfied with the May hearing.
The association discussed the disadvantage of not having an attorney present to represent its case and held an open discussion of what the next steps the group should make in addressing the matter.
Members of the association believe they have a strong case against Britton, but need an attorney to properly present their case.
They held an open discussion of how they would pay for an attorney and questioned how much it would cost.
The next hearing for Britton will be June 7.
A group representing Wawa approached the civic association about the possibility of closing the Wawa at Frankford and Linden avenues and moving it down one block at Frankford and Academy Road.
The existing Wawa was built in 1988. It has 34 parking spaces, no truck loading, no trash enclosure, no public restroom and no gas station. The proposed Wawa would provide front and rear store customer access, 50 parking spaces, 16 fueling stations, a dedicated loading area, remote trash enclosure, pedestrian walkways, bike rack and privacy fencing, among a few other distinctions.
The group representing Wawa discussed having PennDOT widen Academy Road to add a lane. Ideally, work would get started in early 2019. ••
John Cole can be reached at [email protected]
