NORTH WHITEHALL TOWNSHIP, Pa. — North Whitehall Township Planning Commission on Thursday unanimously voted to recommend rejecting land development approval for a proposed 501,000-square-foot warehouse.
Township residents opposed to the Nexus 78 development, proposed near Route 309 and Orefield Road, packed a meeting room in Lehigh Carbon Community College’s Community Services Center.
Much of Thursday’s hearing centered on how the proposed warehouse would affect traffic.
A traffic study found the warehouse would not create additional delays.Developers Trammel Crow
A traffic study conducted on behalf of developer Trammel Crow found the warehouse would not create additional delays, according to representatives for the developer.
The township’s traffic engineering consultant told the planning commission that, to increase safety, the developer should bar tractor-trailers from turning left out of the warehouse’s driveway onto Route 309.
A lawyer representing Trammel Crow, Kate Durso, told commissioners her client would not accept the restriction as a condition of land development approval.
She argued that traffic studies submitted to the state Transportation Department as part of the highway occupancy permitting process — and which the agency accepted — did not include such a restriction.
Route 309 roadwork problems
Commissioners also expressed concern that the warehouse could begin operation well before PennDOT completes upgrades to Route 309.
Without the upgrades, drivers could experience meaningful delays because of the development, the township’s traffic engineer said.
During the public comment part of the meeting, township residents raised concerns that large trucks traveling to and from the development could cause significant delays — and serious accidents.
North Whitehall’s board of supervisors will vote on whether to grant land development approval for the proposed warehouse at their June 2 meeting.
