Thursday, March 21, 2013
The federal government this week announced 250 jobs coming to the Horsham Air Guard Station, but progress at nearby Willow Grove air base is expected to be much slower.
In the projected time it takes to establish and man a drone command center at the Horsham Air Guard Station, the status of the abutting former Willow Grove air base will be virtually the same. The 862-acre former military base will still be vacant, still be federally owned and its buildings will still be standing, albeit in disrepair, an official told Patch. It will be next March "or thereabouts" before Horsham officials are able to negotiate the transfer of land from the federal government to the Horsham Land Redevelopment Authority, according to HLRA Executive Director Mike McGee. McGee said the HLRA's consultant, Matrix Design Group, is fact finding and gathering information pertaining to the real estate market in the Delaware Valley. …
Monday, March 11, 2013
With a focus on fundraising for its multi-million dollar aviation museum, the Delaware Valley Historical Aircraft Association changed the structure of the organization recently.
Members of the volunteer-run Delaware Valley Historical Aircraft Association have their work cut out for them. In order to "build the museum we want to have" in Horsham, President John Rehfuss estimated that the group would need to raise between $20 million to $25 million in the next three to four years. How will DVHAA do that? For starters, DVHAA is in the process of establishing a board of trustees with former president Retired Major General Ron Nelson at the helm as chairman. "General Nelson is well-known around here," Rehfuss said. "(As president) he didn't have enough time to leverage the people he knows, aviation enthusiasts ... It's kind of hard to run (the organization) and fundraise." DVHAA reworked its bylaws late last year to …
40.201335
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The Wings of Freedom Museum
1155 Easton Rd, Horsham, PA
/articles/dvhaa-restructures-to-build-new-air-museum
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/locations/8953569
Friday, January 18, 2013
A Horsham resident expressed interest in the shuttered Willow Grove air base being used to film movies.
Instead of letting nearly 900 acres of shuttered Willow Grove air base sit vacant, long-time Horsham resident Bill Randel had another idea. "It looks like a perfect location for movies or a TV program," Randel told the Horsham Land Redevelopment Authority during the board's monthly meeting this week. "Why not notify people in the entertainment industry that you have a large property?" HLRA Chairman W. William Whiteside said the board has done just that. Whiteside, who attends other communities navigating through a military base closure, said "that type of use is available." "The movie industry is aware that the property is available," Whiteside said. But, being "available" simply has not been enough to bring would-be actors and film crews …
Wednesday, January 16, 2013
The Horsham Land Redevelopment Authority chose the Matrix Design Group to lead the next roughly year-long phase of Willow Grove air base’s future.
After several months of reviews, interviews and discussion among an ad hoc committee, the Horsham Land Redevelopment Authority picked the consultant team to guide the next step of Willow Grove air base’s lengthy redevelopment. The board voted unanimously Wednesday to approve execution of a $567,000 contract to the Matrix Design Group. HLRA Executive Director Mike McGee said he expects the contract to be finalized in the “next several days” and work to begin thereafter. Once that happens, the consultant team will begin the roughly 12-month process of leading the board in devising a business plan and pro forma. The firm’s study will encompass everything from traffic, water and sewer, stormwater management and other factors analyzed in large…
Sunday, January 13, 2013
Following zoning hearing board approval, the Horsham Township Council approved a tie-in to public sewer for the Sunoco station at Route 309 and Welsh Road.
Despite not yet submitting formal land development plans for major renovations to a Horsham Sunoco store, the project took a step forward this week. The Horsham Township Council on Wednesday adopted the sewer planning module for the 16-pump Sunoco gas station and convenience store, which is situated at Route 309 and Welsh Road. The action will allow the developer to hook up to public sewer instead of the onsite septic system, which is currently in place, according to Township Manager Bill Walker. The governing body's vote comes on the heels of a recent zoning hearing board approval. The developer, based on sketch plans, intends to knock down the current store and fully rebuild, taking the property from its current 1,300 square feet to more…
Thursday, December 20, 2012
The Horsham Land Redevelopment Authority anticipates appointing a consultant in January to lead the next redevelopment phase for Willow Grove air base.
The Horsham Land Redevelopment Authority expects choose a consultant in January to lead the next phase of acquiring - and over the next two or three decades - redeveloping the bulk of Willow Grove air base A consultant will likely be appointed from the two submissions received in October related to devising a business plan and pro forma. That process is expected to take about 10 months and is a necessary part of obtaining the land as part of an economic development conveyance. HLRA Executive Director Mike McGee explained it previously as a way to acquire the land on "layaway" of sorts. HLRA Chairman W. William Whiteside and Vice Chairwoman Joanna Furia have interviewed both of the professional firms, Matrix Design Group and Weston …
Friday, December 7, 2012
The Navy is holding a pair of open houses and is collecting comments on the shuttered Willow Grove air base.
Are you concerned about increased traffic coming in and out of what is now Willow Grove air base as 862 acres are redeveloped? Do you worry about the condition of the land where a new middle school is planned, or where more than 1,400 homes are expected to be built? If these, or other concerns are on your mind, the U.S. Navy wants you to share them. As part of the government's roughly 18-month-long environmental impact statement, which has been underway since summer, the BRAC Program Management Office is holding a pair of public open houses on Dec. 13 and Dec. 14. The meetings had originally been set for late October, but required rescheduling as a result of Hurricane Sandy. "We would very much like the public to come to the (Environmental…
Wednesday, October 24, 2012
Two firms have applied to lead the next phase of the lengthy redevelopment project.
The Horsham Land Redevelopment Authority received a pair of applications from firms vying to lead the next roughly 10-month phase of Willow Grove air base’s redevelopment. HLRA Executive Director Mike McGee said Matrix Design Group teamed with “a number of folks” in a $768,920 proposal, while Weston Solutions collaborated with RKG Associates, Inc. on a separate $475,505 submission. RKG served as the HLRA’s lead consultant during the most pivotal phase of the 862-acre redevelopment plan, which included countless public meetings and presentations ultimately leading the board to advance plans without an airport. Based on the uses the board approved last year, RKG also plotted what would go where on the base redevelopment plan, which has …
Wednesday, October 17, 2012
The Horsham Land Redevelopment Authority approved a sub-license agreement with the Delaware Valley Historical Aircraft Association to allow for the repair and relocation of a P-3 conditioned upon final federal approval.
The Delaware Valley Historical Aircraft Association will need to wait a bit longer for federal approval to relocate a plane, extend its fence line to offer greater public viewing access and carry out other upgrades envisioned for the Easton Road museum. In the meantime while the Navy reviews the four plans that were submitted in July, the Horsham Land Redevelopment Authority, during Wednesday’s meeting, approved a license agreement with the Navy, as well as a sublicense with DVHAA for repair and relocation of the P-3, currently located on Horsham Road. HLRA Executive Director Mike McGee said the license agreements were approved “just in case” the federal government OKs the P-3 repair and relocation prior to the next HLRA board meeting on …
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The Wings of Freedom Museum
1155 Easton Rd, Horsham, PA
/articles/hlra-oks-plane-repair-relocation
867927
/locations/8027194
Friday, October 12, 2012
The Horsham Township Council terminates the Horsham Land Reuse Authority and transfers the body’s assets, rights and responsibilities.
Good-bye HLRA … Hello HLRA. The Horsham Township Council this week voted to formalize the termination of the planning arm of the Willow Grove air base redevelopment. That board, the 7-year-old Horsham Land Reuse Authority, has since been replaced by the Horsham Land Redevelopment Authority. Though the board’s names and members are similar, the new HLRA is tasked with picking up where the original HLRA left off. In essence, the new body, which the council formed this summer, will act as the implementation arm for the massive, 862-acre reuse plan. During the HLRAs’ meetings last month, the boards voted to dissolve the original HLRA and transfer assets and obligations - including $340,000 in debt - to the new board, which will oversee …
Mike Shortall
10:49 pm on Friday, March 22, 2013
Well, the good thing is, if it can't be developed, there would be no need to remove the runway or worry about sewage and water infrastructure, etc. I don't think that would happen, because eventually that land will become sought after as more and more land is developed in the area. Pretty sure the Township will require any developer to pay the bulk of any infrastructure costs. more ›