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LOWHILL TWP., Pa. – The Lowhill Township Board of Supervisors approved a preliminary land development and planning warehouse proposal Thursday night at the Fogelsville Fire Company. The vote was 2-1.

The approval was for a 312,120-square-foot commercial warehouse and distribution center on a 43.4-acre tract at 2766 Route 100, which is located on the west side of Route 100, south of the Kernsville Road intersection.

Two other industrial projects at 2951 Betz Court and Lehigh Industrial Park are also under consideration. All three properties are owned by "2766 Route 100 Associates." If all three projects are approved, it would put a total of 700,000 square feet of warehouses within a 1-mile radius of a residential area.

The preliminary plan OK'd Thursday night calls first for the demolition of a mobile home and driveway currently there. The facility will have multi-tenant use with one primary access point. There will be a total of 16 ports on a single building side, with no trailer parking and no truck activity on the building's west side.

There will be 216 parking spaces for employees. Designers noted additional trees on top of the berm will be installed to further shield the warehouse from residents on Route 100. Developers are anticipating constructing a fire/water tank and lot septic system on the site.

Residents packed the room to voice their concerns and hear the developer discuss other plan aspects. Plans included the installation of left- and right-turn lanes, which can accommodate up to three tractor-trailers at one time. These lanes would require a road widening of roughly 11 feet.

Truck routing will begin about 3.4 miles south at the Route 100 and Interstate 78 exchange and the Kernsville Road intersection.

Over the past five years, there have been 142 reported crashes along Route 100 between the I-78 interchange and Kernsville Road intersection. Of that, 33 crashes occurred within the township jurisdiction.

Officials for the project say they've taken into account future traffic volume, which is information that's required by Pennsylvania Department of Transportation before moving forward. Those numbers showed an additional 100 cars on Route 100 in the morning and evening hours.

"Its going to be a nightmare," said John Sekella, a township resident. "The amount of traffic is already going to be exponential."

Objections to the project were fierce. They were primarily related to traffic, safety and diminished quality of life.

"We don't need that," said one resident. "We don't need tractor-trailers around here."

"We're not powerless," he added. "We have you men to say, 'no.'"

Another resident said he's been hit by a tractor-trailer four times in his life, and he is afraid bringing in warehouses could test his fate for a fifth time.

The developer is being represented by Fitzpatrick Lentz & Bubba Law, whose representatives said at the board meeting that they've thought about all of the neighbors' concerns.

"We do recognize the fact that traffic is a huge component of this and huge concern of the residents," said one of the representatives from the law firm.

It was announced Thursday night that the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation has not yet approved the plans, but developers noted PennDOT had all but given the plan it blessing. In addition, the township cannot deny a plan based on a pending decision from another agency.

In addition to various fees developers must pay the township to develop any property, Matthew Nunn, a principal with Trammel Crow Company, told the audience the company will donate an additional $250,000 to Lowhill Township to use at its discretion, with "no strings attached."

The proposed size of a third warehouse proposed for Route 100 in Lowhill Township has been reduced by almost half, but the LVPC still has concerns.

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