Mozino Tract campaign seeks $8 million; 56-home plan is already allowed

Upper Darby residents and environmental advocates are seeking $8 million to buy the 15-acre wooded Mozino Tract in Drexel Hill for open-space preservation. Developer Greg Lingo told The Philadelphia Inquirer he had abandoned a mixed-use development plan and would give organizers an opportunity to purchase the property.

If organizers cannot raise the purchase money, Lingo said he plans to pursue 56 single-family homes. The Inquirer reports that the homes are permitted under current zoning and require no special approvals. The $8 million fundraising target is roughly the reported price of the land.

As of the Inquirer’s Oct. 2 report, the property was owned by the Peter S. and Catherine G. Mozino Deed of Trust and under contract to be sold to Lingo’s Rockwell Drexel LLC.

Mixed-use zoning proposal was tabled

The abandoned mixed-use proposal would have required a zoning change. Upper Darby Township Council unanimously tabled the proposed zoning ordinance in August rather than approving it. The council also expressed openness to a purchase if funds could be raised, but the township had not agreed to serve as the property’s title holder, the Inquirer reported.

At an August council meeting, residents urged preservation and raised concerns about development and environmental effects. Township staff had said the mixed-use proposal could advance goals including increased tax revenue and more diverse housing options. The wooded parcel is used for walking and hiking by people in the surrounding area.

Organizers had submitted a grant application and were pursuing other funding avenues. The report did not state how much had been raised or set a fundraising deadline. The next step for the preservation effort is securing the money to buy the tract; the 56-home plan remains the developer’s stated fallback, not a certainty.