Zoning

THE LAND USE PLAN

The planned land uses of adjacent communities are included as a reference. Chief recommendations of the land use plan are as follows, grouped by major roadway.

Route 202 not only carries significant levels of traffic within the Township, but its large office, service, and retail developments make it a trip destination for regional travel. The plan gives priority to future housing and office development on the corridor. New office development on the corridor. New office buildings are foreseen near the Schuylkill Expressway interchange, the Turnpike vicinity, and between Henderson Road and the Conrail tracks. New development along Route 202 should employ shared driveways to help maintain traffic flow.

Rout 202 is scheduled for widening to six lanes from Schuylkill Expressway to Chester county.

South Gulph Road, which parallels the Schuylkill Expressway (I-76) for most of its length, has a dual character: office and industrial on the south side and residential on the north side. The plan reflects this, calling for medium density residential use (5 to 9 units per acre) near existing neighborhoods and medium low density (2 to 4 units per acre) in the Gulph Mills area. The Matsonford Road and Route 202 areas are targeted for commercial retail development. Elsewhere, non-residential uses should only be permitted where residential uses are no longer viable.

A new on/off ramp to I-76 is planned in the vicinity of Henderson Road.

South Henderson Road provides access to major industrial sites in Upper Merion, such as quarries, landfills, and warehouse/distributors. The plan recognizes the likelihood of some change to different uses -- residential and professional/ office -- in the Route 202 area. The planned addition of a ramp to the Schuylkill Expressway would establish this road as the Township's major north/ south link between I-76, Route 202, and proposed Schuylkill Parkway.

River Road (Rout 23) was once active with heavy industrial uses, including Alan Wood Steel, the Keystone Coke plant, Monroe Quarry, and the Reading Railroad Yard. New uses such as Smith Kline Beecham pharmaceuticals and chemicals and the Renaissance Office Park indicate a new direction for this corridor. The plan designates light and heavy industrial and office uses, with public parks and open spaces along the Schuylkill River. Additional housing development is encouraged adjacent to the Swedeland neighborhood. Most developable sites will require road improvements, and coordination with Bridgeport and West Conshohocken Boroughs will be needed to address expected traffic increases.

Church Road serves as a principal east-west route in Upper Merion. At the western end of the corridor are established neighborhoods where additional housing "infill" can occur. Land use is predominantly office and industrial at the eastern end, and included the Renaissance Office Park and the future site of Philadelphia Newspapers, Incorporated's printing plant in Swedeland. Job Growth and its accompanying traffic are projected to continue in this area. The Township is proposing to extend Hertzog Road from River Road to Crooked Lane to create an additional east-west connector.

Hansen Road, if extended, could create a potential new corridor in Upper Merion. The existing road has limited use, serving a small number of industries west of South Henderson Road south of the Turnpike. As planned, the road would parallel Conrail's Chester Valley freight line and connect with the Route 23 interchange at the Dannehower Bridge.

In the vicinity of the Hansen road extension, a variety of land uses are proposed by the Comprehensive Plan. East of Henderson Road, industrial and utility uses are planned near the PECO right-of-way, medium-high density residential to Route 202, and industrial and medium density residential to the Bridgeport borough line.