The planning commission of Lower Macungie Township held its regular meeting May 12, discussing the approval of a new restaurant at the intersection of Mill Creek Road and Lower Macungie Road.

The proposed Poblano Med-Mex Grill is 22,000 square feet and is expected to have a 62 seat-capacity. The seating capacity of the restaurant necessitates 29 parking spaces; there are 75 available.

One concern raised by several of the commissioners was pedestrian accessibility of the restaurant. Poblano Med-Mex Grill would be adjacent to the Shoppes at Trexler (formerly the Trexler Mall) and in close proximity to the Air Products campus.

The Beit Simcha Synagogue was also discussed.

A particularly contentious issue developed during a discussion of expansion of the Ciocca dealership. While the dealership met with the zoning hearing board April 28, the expansion plan was not approved by the planning commission beforehand.

Ciocca Properties argued due to the planned structure being temporary, it did not fall under the purview of the planning commission.

Ciocca Properties re- cently purchased the Audi franchise from Knopf Automotive under the condition a temporary dealership site would be constructed. The temporary structure is three trailers (those similar to temporary classrooms) clad with aluminum composite material panels for aesthetic appeal.

"If a commercial structure goes on a property, it goes through land development," Sara Pandl, the township's planning director, said.

Ciocca Properties is planning a 36,000+ square foot facility to house their new Audi franchise. The permanent structure must be finished within two years to maintain control of the license.

The dealership also recently purchased Queen City Tire to expand their lot and facilitate their eventual vision of a car dealership campus.

The planning commission also heard a proposal regarding two warehouses along Mill Creek Road. The largest warehouse would be 1.14 million square feet, while the second warehouse would be 1 million square feet.

The commission raised concerns over pedestrian accessibility and substantial traffic pattern changes. The proprietors are currently working with LANTA to add a bus stop for the warehouse campus. The commission ultimately stipulated three or four new adaptive traffic signals be added to outlying intersections to mitigate increased traffic.

Lastly, the planning commission echoed concerns of some residents over ongoing construction of the Spring Creek properties, particularly damage to Smith Lane. The road has always been deemed "in poor repair" with the possibility of further deterioration due to heavy construction vehicles. Workers have ceased operating construction vehicles along Smith Lane.