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Horsham rezones former Willow Grove base. Here's how 862 acres could be transformed
Fourteen years after closing, the former U.S. Navy base in Horsham is slowly inching closer toward long-awaited redevelopment.
Horsham Township Council is scheduled to hold a public hearing on the official map for the former Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base Willow Grove later this month.
The hearing comes after the council unanimously adopted an ordinance to rezone the base from industrial to residential in June. "We wanted to get something done," said Michael Shinton, executive director of the Horsham Land Redevelopment Authority.
The former base closed in 2011 and since then, the township and the Horsham Land Redevelopment Authority have been planning the strategic mixed-use redevelopment of the 862-acre site off Route 611.
The redevelopment project was previously stalled by extensive PFAS remediation efforts on the site by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
Since the discovery of the toxins, officials have been working on a phased transfer of the property so that the township can start obtaining the portions of the site that have already been remediated, Shinton said. In the meantime, they've taken steps like the recent rezoning to get the site ready for when work can start.
"We're just trying to be proactive about getting the property ready for when that transfer can occur," he said.
This includes working with local public water and sewer authorities, the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, the Hatboro-Horsham School District and more to have as much in place as possible for when they can begin the redevelopment in earnest.
"There's so many moving pieces and we can't do them all at once so we're just trying to make sure that we're ready for when good things do happen," Shinton said.
It's still impossible to estimate when the whole property will be in the hands of the township or when work on the redevelopment plan will begin on the ground, he said.
"This has taken longer than anyone had anticipated but we do continue to diligently move forward," Shinton said.
"This property is really the destiny of the township — it's the last large undeveloped tract," he said. "So we're working really hard to make sure that it's a quality community-based redevelopment that's really going to serve Horsham and Horsham residents for the next several hundred years."
What is planned for former Willow Grove base in Horsham?
Under the current plan, the sprawling site would be home to multiple housing types of varying price levels including single-family lots, townhomes, apartments or condos, and a Continuing Care Retirement Community, according to a map of the project.
The project will also designate approximately 10 acres of land for 70 permanent supportive housing units for those struggling with homelessness.
In addition to housing, the plan is "focused on the creation of job generating uses" like office parks, a hotel and a conference center, according to the HLRA's official website for the project.
The redevelopment also includes plans for a town center that could include amenities like a movie theater, bowling alley, ice skating rink and more retail and restaurant options.
"We are working really hard to make good things happen there and to fulfill the vision that they asked of us back in 2005 when we started this," Shinton said of the residents who helped develop the redevelopment plan more than a decade ago.
A large town center, a school, an indoor recreation center, a golf course and much more are also planned for the property and would be phased in over the course of several years.
A 40-acre section of the redevelopment will remain earmarked for the school district, but its future use may change depending on the timeline and the district's needs at the time, Shinton said, making note of the new Keith Valley Middle School set to open for students this fall.
Officials have estimated that the project could create over 7,000 jobs.
Which of the many projects begin first will depend largely on which areas of the former base the township obtains first, Shinton said.
All of the plan's individual elements will need to go through the typical land development process with the township. Ultimately, Horsham Township Council would need to approve each project's specific development plans before any work could begin on the ground.
The public hearing regarding the official map is set for Aug. 25. The next meeting of the Horsham Land Redevelopment Authority is scheduled for Oct. 15.
Lacey Latch is the development reporter for the Bucks County Courier Times and The Intelligencer. She can be reached at LLatch@
This article originally appeared on Bucks County Courier Times: Willow Grove Naval Air base rezoned for housing, retail in Horsham
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