Developer To Present Vision For Steeple View Property At NAC Meeting

NEWTOWN, PA — Developer Jim Worthington will share his vision for the former Steeple View property during a special meeting tonight at the Newtown Athletic Club.

During the 7 p.m. meeting, Worthington and his team of professionals will present plans for Liberty Centre, a 125-unit residential neighborhood planned for the former Steeple View site.

Worthington acquired the property earlier this year from developer Allan Smith who had approved plans for a mixed-use project, including residential, retail and restaurant uses.

Worthington’s new plan scales back the project scope to 125 luxury apartments, but retains plans for a public walkway along the creek and a town plaza, which he plans to triple in size from Smith’s original plan.

During a meeting of the planning commission in October, Worthington unveiled sketch plans for the eight-acre property, which stretches south along the Newtown Creek from Centre Avenue to just south of the Wine and Spirits store.

During that meeting, the project’s architect, Michael Lawson from Minno Wasko, walked the planners through the project using a series of image boards depicting a landscaped residential neighborhood in the heart of the town, punctuated by a public plaza.

A rendering of one of the three proposed residential buildings. (Jim Worthington)

The development site along the Newtown Creek stretches from Centre Avenue to the south. Centre Avenue is on the right. South State Street is in the foreground. The proposed walkway can be seen along the creek and the public town square is on the right in the light brown shading.

A vision of the proposed public plaza and the entrance road into the development. (Jim Worthington)

“As you walk along Centre Avenue, what you will be greeted with is a new public plaza, which we envision as the new town square of Newtown," said Lawson. "This is where you can have your farmer's markets, public events, and your tree lightings. We would be using lighting, trees, landscaping, and pavers to make this urban space come to life," he said.

Connected to the plaza will be a walkway along the creek that will extend south along the creek to a new bridge that will link the Liberty Centre neighborhood with Carl Sedia Park in Newtown Township.

As you drive into the site, passing the town square on the right, you'll come to the heart of the neighborhood where three multi-floor luxury apartment buildings are envisioned with about 30 to 40 units each.

Lawson said each will be strategically placed so view sheds from South State Street into the site will showcase the front-facing facades of the buildings, which incorporate architectural elements found throughout the downtown area.

The former Wine & Spirits store will be torn down to make way for the project. (Jeff Werner/Patch)

Steeple View Phase One - The Wine & Spirits store and Mamie Colette. (Jeff Werner/Patch)

Lawson said a strategically placed passive park at the center of the residential neighborhood will add to the neighborhood feel and also enhance Steeple Phase One - the Wine & Spirits store and one of the most popular businesses in town - the Mamie Colette bakery.

The three new residential buildings will be served by ground-level parking in each building and surface parking. "That works well from a marketing standpoint, but also much different than what was envisioned before," said Lawson.

The balance of the parking will be in surface lots located close to the buildings. There will be no parking located off-site, according to Lawson.

"We have drastically reduced the amount of traffic coming in and out compared to the previous plan because we're putting the right uses here to complement the rest of the downtown," said Lawson.

The next step for Worthington will be to submit land development plans for the site. That will trigger a public review process of the plans by the borough's planning commission and borough council.

“I’m not interested in doing anything that isn’t a legacy project,” said Worthington. “I have a number of projects on the books right now. This is number one mainly because this is where I come for a sandwich or a cup of coffee. I love the borough, and I would never do anything to take away from it.

“At the end of the day, you’re going to have something that is going to be talked about, and people are going to say they really did something special here.

“When you look down Centre Avenue or if you look down from State Street, you’re going to be impressed,” said Worthington.