Drexel Hill zoning proposal remains under July discussion

Upper Darby Township Council heard residents and a developer discuss a proposed zoning change for approximately 14 acres of privately owned open space along State Road in Drexel Hill. The proposal could allow a mix of housing and ground-floor commercial uses, but it is not a final development approval.

The request, submitted by Rockwell Drexel LLC, would create a Community Mixed-Use, or CMU, district for Parcel ID 16-11-01760-02. The application seeks both zoning-text and zoning-map amendments.

Proposal moved from planning review to council discussion

Upper Darby’s Planning Commission agenda for June 8 identified the parcel and included an illustrative future mixed-use concept showing a possible combination of commercial and residential uses. That concept is not an approved site plan and does not guarantee that every proposed use would be built.

A July report summarized by the Suburban Realtors Alliance said residents raised concerns about preserving the tract, traffic and the broader effects of additional development. Township staff and the developer presented arguments involving transit-oriented development, additional housing choices, potential tax revenue, school impacts and retaining portions of the site’s green space. Those points should be understood as arguments presented during the discussion, not as independently established outcomes.

The July 15 Township Council agenda did not list final action on the CMU amendment. The zoning change therefore remains a proposal rather than an adopted ordinance.

What the proposed district would allow

The proposed CMU rules would establish a mix of residential and commercial uses. The draft identifies single-family detached, semidetached and attached homes, along with multifamily apartments, as possible residential categories. Certain commercial uses could be located on the ground floor of multifamily buildings. The zoning text sets what may be permitted under the district; it does not commit the applicant to constructing every listed use.

The draft standards include a minimum 25% green area and a maximum density of 13.5 residential dwelling units per net acre. They also call for pedestrian circulation, at least 20,000 square feet of amenity or active recreation space, and a landscaped buffer along property lines adjoining residential or institutional uses, subject to stated exceptions.

Any project in the proposed district would also have to submit a traffic-impact study during land-development review. Parking requirements are addressed in the draft ordinance, including provisions that could allow a professional parking-demand study to support shared parking or other adjustments.

Zoning approval would not authorize construction

Upper Darby’s land-development process requires separate review after a project demonstrates zoning compliance. A future application could involve township planning and engineering review, county review where applicable, Planning Commission recommendations, Township Council consideration and additional permits or approvals before construction could begin.

For Drexel Hill residents, the next meaningful developments would be a future Council agenda item, formal action on the proposed amendment or a subsequent land-development filing. Those records should provide more detail about traffic, parking, stormwater, buffers, pedestrian connections and the eventual use of the State Road tract.

Sources

• Upper Darby Planning Commission agenda, June 8, 2026
• Suburban Realtors Alliance July 10, 2026 news brief