The April 11 meeting of the Lower Macungie Planning Commission involved three potential subdivisions.

There was a fourth project, Valley at Indian Creek, which was removed from the agenda at the applicant’s request.

The meeting began with a statement regarding former Planning Commissioner Rudy Fischl, who died last month.

Two new members of the planning commission attended the meeting –Martine Minninger and Ozias Moore.

The first project discussed was The Cove at Mill Brook.

The project would include a 14 lot subdivision at the intersection of Macungie Road and Sauerkraut Lane. Due to the location of an unnamed creek tributary on the property there will not need to be a stormwater basin.

Lower Macungie Township Planning Director Nathan Jones talked about having a streetlight district on the property and retaining as many existing trees as possible.

There was a discussion about a walking trail on the property and an easement to let the township connect the trail to Macungie Road in the future.

The project was represented by Attorney Catherine Durso of Fitzpatrick, Lentz and Bubba. The planning commissioners discussed the widening of Sauerkraut Lane along with an 8-foot trail along Sauerkraut Lane.

There would be a macadam path along Sauerkraut Lane over the entire frontage of the property. Commissioners asked for curbing along Sauerkraut Lane. The project was tabled until the next meeting.

The second project discussed was Elbow Lane Minor Subdivision. The property would be a three lot minor subdivision. It is a residual lot with an existing single family home and a pair of auxiliary structures.

The property would be divided into three lots. There were concerns about access to the site. The idea of widening Elbow Lane was discussed. The applicant, Paul Stepniak, was present along with David Tettemer from Keystone Consulting Engineers.

There were discussions about stormwater and the traffic patterns in the area. Planning commissioners asked for right of way dedication of Elbow Lane. The project was tabled until the next meeting.

The final project discussed was 6709 Mountain Road, Stone Hill Haven Subdivision. The property would be a two lot subdivision at the corner of Mountain and Gehman roads. A waiver of curbing and frontage improvements was discussed. Commissioners talked about an easement to gain access to Wildlands Conservancy resources on South Mountain.

Stone Hill Meadows resident Ken Martin had concerns about continued development on the property. Jones discussed the concerns based on lot size and zoning relief.

Martin also asked questions about access to the Wildlands Conservancy bird sanctuary through the Stone Hill Meadows trail system. He wanted to ensure people would not park in Stone Hill Meadows in order to use the trails and reach the Wildlands Conservancy property.

The next planning commission meeting will be May 9.

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. There was no workshop in April.

Both regular and workshop meetings begin 6 p.m. Currently all planning commission meetings are held both in person and over Zoom with a video recording uploaded to Lower Macungie Township’s YouTube channel after the fact.