Orchard Plaza eatery plan OK’d

Logan planners voice approval of land development for restaurant

The Logan Township Planning Commission Tuesday voted to recommend approval of a land development plan for a building suitable for a not-yet-determined "quick-serve" restaurant in Orchard Plaza.

The building will be located, to the left of the plaza's main entrance, where three former restaurants have stood, including Em's Subs.

Plaza owner 415 Orchard originally expected Greenbean Coffee House to occupy part of the building, while another tenant not yet determined would occupy the rest, but the plans with Greenbean fell through, officials at the meeting said.

The plaza owner obtained a setback variance in October from the township Zoning Hearing Board that will allow for the building to be 15 feet closer to the property line on Orchard Avenue, so there's room for parking between the building's far side and an internal plaza driveway and also room for two drive-thru lanes on the avenue side.

Current plans call for maximum-size construction on the site, to ensure that as many potential tenants as possible could fit their facilities, according to engineer C.J. Bock of Landcore Engineering Consultants in Philadelphia.

The Planning Commission granted two waivers.

One will allow the developer to plant four of the required five trees on alternate locations within the site, because there's no room at the locations specified by ordinance.

The other will allow for a sidewalk from the building site across the plaza entrance driveway, then at right angles across a driveway parallel to the avenue, connecting with a crosswalk to Park Hills Plaza. The ordinance calls for a sidewalk across the front of the property.

The commission's recommendation will go to the township's board of supervisors for ratification.

Commissioner Rick Meintel abstained from voting on the land development plan.

It would have been better if the land development plan were more like the one that was followed in a recently built triangular corner of Park Hills Plaza, where Orchard Avenue and Plank Road intersect, and where Kay Jewelers, Starbucks and Sport Clips are located, Meintel said.

That section doesn't look like the standard shopping center model, and is accentuated with a modicum of green space for an aesthetically pleasing effect, according to Meintel.

Mirror Staff Writer William Kibler is at 814-949-7038.