A proposed condo community at 450 Colwell Lane in Conshohocken was before Conshohocken’s Planning Commission on June 10th. The issue before the commission was whether to recommend the granting of a conditional use to allow a residential development within the limited industrial zoning district.

The members of the commission voted unanimously to recommend it to the borough council. The issue will now go before the borough council at a future meeting for consideration. While the borough council recently removed a residential overlay that encouraged residential development in this area, the developer, David Brosso, filed an application prior to the change.

A few things we learned:

• The proposed development would consist of 48 units
• For the project to move forward as presently designed it will need zoning relief on two issues. One is regarding the size of the front yard. The developer wants to reduce this to 5′ to make it align with the sidewalk and other homes along West 5th Avenue. The second is to increase the height of the homes by 5′.
• The developer has agreed with the Borough of Conshohocken to not develop the residential community for at least seven years. The developer plans to operate a sports complex and decide in the future as to whether to redevelop the property with the homes
• The developer will allow the borough to install a safety arm on the property that would control access to the lower section of Colwell Lane during a flood