The Feb. 11 meeting of the Lower Macungie Township Planning Commission involved two projects – U-Haul Self Storage and Jaindl Commercial Park.

The meeting began with a discussion of the Jaindl Commercial Park North project at 6161 Hamilton Blvd. The planning commission conferred with staff and members of the Lower Macungie Fire Department to determine the emergency access service point on the property. Tom Harper, of Zator Law and Bud Newton, of Newton Engineering represented the Jaindl Commercial Park project.

Newton wanted to be able to use more of the native species of plants on the property for stormwater credits rather than sticking to the list of approved street trees created for the zone. He agreed to work with the township to come up with a compromise the planning commission agrees with. There was a discussion about moving the placement of trees so there is better aerial fire truck access. It was suggested the applicant use a type of tree which does not grow as tall.

Newton did not expect any significant changes to the plan for the project. He said the project is on a very strict timeline with the company that rented out the office space, Buckeye Pipeline.

The planning commission unanimously approved the project’s waivers and the land development plan conditional upon the result of an environmental inspection.

Another project discussed during the meeting was U-Haul Self Storage at 7785 Spring Creek Road. There was a discussion about fire department access to the property. Lower Macungie Fire Chief Dave Nosal mentioned a couple of outstanding concerns in a letter he sent to the planning commission and the applicant. There was a discussion about the placement of fire hydrants on the site.

The U-Haul Self Storage was represented by Erich Shock, of Fitzpatrick Lentz and Bubba. Shock discussed the historic building on the property. He said they planned to keep the historic farmhouse on the property, but they did not have a use for it.

One fire department concern is servicing the property with the ladder truck. Shock said they had a discussion with the fire department and the concern was eased.

There was a discussion about the difficulty of putting in sidewalks in front of the property. The possibility of deferment on sidewalks was discussed.

Shock decided to contribute money to the township to install sidewalks along the property frontage in the future. This would include any alterations needed for the flood plain. It was argued the construction of the sidewalk would be more expensive if the township puts it in than if the developer puts it in.

The planning commission approved all but two of the waivers and the discussion was tabled.

A workshop meeting was planned 6 p.m. Feb. 18 where issues with the subdivision and land development ordinance were to be discussed. Some of the topics planned were what constitutes lot area, life safety concerns and lot consolidation and lot design and size standards.

The next Lower Macungie Township Planning Commission meeting will be March 10. Usually the planning commission meets the second Tuesday of every month and occasionally there is a workshop meeting on the third Tuesday of the month. The planning commission meetings take place 7 p.m. and are held in the township municipal building.