A state appeals court Wednesday upheld a Dauphin County judge’s ruling that derails plans for a hotel/restaurant/office development in Lower Swatara Township.
In an opinion by Judge Michael H. Wojcik, the Commonwealth Court panel backed county Senior Judge Lawrence F. Clark Jr.’s conclusion that the would-be developers failed to demonstrate hardships that would warrant issuance of a zoning variance for the project.
At issue was a proposal submitted by five property owners for a 17-acre site bounded by Route 283, North Union Street and the Swatara Creek. Eight homes, some with septic system issues, are on the plot now.
The landowners went to the township zoning hearing board in April 2016 seeking a variance to develop their project in the residential-suburban zone where such uses are not permitted.
They proposed to build a restaurant, an office building, two stores and a 79-room hotel on the site, Wojcik noted.
The zoning board rejected the proposal after holding four public hearings that included testimony from neighbors who opposed the variance. The neighbors claimed the proposed development would exacerbate traffic and noise and light pollution problems created by a nearby FedEx facility, the state judge wrote.
Ultimately, Wojcik noted, the zoning board found a variance wasn’t warranted because the owners didn’t show the site couldn’t be developed in accord with the existing residential-suburban zoning, which allows for housing and such low-impact uses as medical and dental clinics.
The possibility that developing the site with the hotel/office/restaurant complex would be more profitable for the owners isn’t relevant, the state judge found.
“A variance will not be granted simply because a zoning ordinance deprives the property owner of the most lucrative and profitable uses,” Wojcik wrote.