The home on the eastbound side of Route 70 in Cherry Hill just before the Old Orchard neighborhood and in front of the Wexford Leas neighborhood has been vacant for years. The plan calls for affordable housing on the long and narrow parcel.
A long-planned affordable 64-apartment housing project on Route 70 in Cherry Hill abutting the Wexford Leas and Old Orchard neighborhoods is scheduled to go before the Township zoning board on Thursday, May 1.
The three-story project, now being developed by Volunteers of America/Delaware Valley on the 4.74-acre unused property, received preliminary major site plan approval in 2019 under former developer Fortitude Realty LLC.
Lilley's Place, which the development would be named, and VOADV Property Inc., both of 531 Market Street in Camden, are the formal applicants. Final major site plan approval is being sought at the meeting, which begins with an open caucus at 7 p.m. followed by the meeting at 7:30.
The Route 70 property, next to the Wexford Leas Swim Club, also would have St Bartholomew's Episcopal Church on the west side (left) and First Korean United Methodist Church on the east side.
A condition from the 2019 approval requiring a 100-foot perpetual landscape buffer in the rear of the property near the neighborhood remains a condition with the new owner, according to Township documents. The only entrance and exit to the apartments would be on Route 70 eastbound, with ponds on either side of the driveways.
Out of the total 64 one-bedroom apartments, 52 would be age-restricted to seniors and 12 would be non-age-restricted for tenants with special needs, according to documents filed with the Zoning Board of Adjustment.
A rendering of the planned affordable housing on Route 70.
The long, narrow 1991 Route 70 property and 58-year-old ranch-style house have been vacant for years.
According to the Township review letter, the former owners, the Bancsh family, had "a long-standing history of (zoning) violations on the property, as they operated a construction business on the lot for some time."
"From 1992 until the property was vacated, there are a number of complaints regarding property maintenance and zoning violations," according to the review letter.
The affordable housing developer proposes a six-foot board fence on the side and rear property lines.
Although the property appears to be heavily wooded, many of the trees are invasive species, according to the zoning board's engineer.
"In general, they consist of invasive species such as Black Cherry, Callery Pear and Black Locust that are poorly developed and of no ecological value," wrote Timothy G. Kaluhiokalani of Environmental Resolutions Inc. of Mount Laurel. "Consequently, I do not believe replacement is warranted. There are White Pines that...will be retained along the residential and swim club borders that have lost most of their lower branches."
Added C. Jeremy Noll of Environmental Resolutions: "We understand that the applicant is proposing to keep much of the buffering vegetation; however, we would like to work with the applicant to provide some infill and denser landscaping throughout the site."Â
Plans show the building on the lot with a buffer, left, in the back near the border of the Wexford Leas neighborhood. Ponds with aerators would be on either side of the driveways on Route 70.
