Times Herald Investigating Amount of Legal Fees Spent by Borough of Conshohocken Over Convenience Store with Gas Pumps

The Times Herald included Conshohocken’s Zoning Hearing Board in its Thumbs Up/Thumbs Down column again. This time for bringing the hearings for convenience store with gas pumps to a close and rendering a decision. It gave a thumbs up to this fact, but it sounds like it is more over the fact that it will no longer have to send a reporter to the hearings vs. giving credit to the board. From the Times Herald:

To the Conshohocken Zoning Hearing Board for unanimously denying requests for a special exception or use variance that would have allowed a convenience store with gasoline pumps on Fayette Street to be built in the former E.F. Moore car dealership. Not that we’re necessarily opposed to the plan, but mostly this is a thumbs up to the fact that it has finally come to a conclusion. The last hearing was the 27th since the development company started the application process in April 2014. We’re currently digging into how much the borough had to dole out in legal fees for this two-year-long exercise in civil procedure, but for now, we’re hopeful the issue is now closed.

The interesting part, however, is the last line of the above paragraph, the part about researching how much money was spent by the Borough in legal fees. It mentions the two year process, but we hope the Times Herald doesn’t forget, it just wasn’t two years. Prior to the Zoning Hearing Board, the developer unsuccessfully sought the support of the Planning Commission and Borough Council. Those were multi-meetings as well.

When the Times Herald publishes the figure, we will share it with you.