Media Planning Board Opposes Wawa Rezoning

The Media Borough Planning Commission recommended that Borough Council oppose the rezoning of a small portion of the proposed Super Wawa property at its recent meeting.

The Super Wawa is proposed for the currently vacant lot, border by Providence Road, Baltimore Avenue and State Street, where the Media Inn once stood.

Zoning changes and variances will need to be approved in order for the project to move forward. The lots are currently zoned HBO, highway-business-office district, with a TND overlay, traditional-neighborhood district. But a small portion of the lot is zoned R3-residential.

The BP gas station that currently sits on the lot would be removed however that section of the lot, bordering State Street, is currently zoned residential so a variance would be needed to zone it back for commercial use.

Media Real Estate (the project's planners) requested an ordinance which would rezone about a third of an acre of the lot that's being used as a parking lot back to HBO-Highway, Business, Office district, according to the Delaware County Daily Times.

This portion of the lot was originally zoned for business until a 1989 rezoning initiative that changed it to residential, according to the Delco Times.

The applicant would also need Media Borough Council approval to purchase and alter Baker Street, which runs through the proposed Wawa and would need to be altered in order for the project to move forward. Baker Street is owned by the borough. Wawa is proposing to turn Baker Street at a 90 degree angle, at the end of a row of houses, to run behind the proposed Wawa and on to State Street.

The project is currently scheduled to be back before the Planning Commission on Jan. 8.