Willow Grove Air Base property a hot commodity

If the Horsham Land Redevelopment Authority had ownership of the former air base today, it could get top dollar for housing and retail space, according to a study by the HLRA consultant.

“There’s an immense amount of pent up demand for housing uses,” said Dan Schnepf, CEO and chairman of the board of Matrix Design Group. “Home values are coming in much higher than expected. ... There’s a market out there today.”

Schnepf’s comments were part of a draft economic development conveyance plan he presented to the HLRA board Wednesday. The EDC application is essentially “the start of a real estate negotiation” between the HLRA and the Navy for the 862 acres of the former Willow Grove Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base, according to Mike McGee, the HLRA director.

The HLRA board is expected to move forward with the EDC at its Jan. 15 meeting. Before it does that, however, it wants to see the Navy’s environmental impact statement.

McGee said Wednesday that he expects the Navy to announce Friday in the Federal Register that the EIS is available for review. That could mean, he said, the Navy will hold public meetings in the Horsham community center Jan. 14-15 on its EIS before the HLRA board votes on the EDC.

“It looks like things are falling into place,” said McGee, who later admitted “we’re at the mercy of the Navy schedule.”

Matrix said single family homes on a small lot would sell for between $325,000 and $375,000, while those on large lots would go for between $625,000 and $675,000.

McGee said the large lots would be about a half acre in size. “Timing of the release (of the property) by the Navy is an important component of our success,” he said. “We need to be ready to execute so we can take advantage of the market.”

He suggested the board consider advertising nationwide for a developer so when the Navy agrees to the transfer “we have a partner aboard.”

McGee proposed the board find a company familiar with the Base Realignment And Closure process and their prior building experience. “I doubt there will be too many responders,” he said.

In addition, the candidates should explain how they would develop the base from a residential and retail perspective. “All those components set out in a redevelopment plan,” he said.

And they should be well financed, he added. “Bottom line, when it comes time to write a check, it’s the developer’s check.”

W. William Whiteside, the board’s chairman, questioned whether the board would lose control of the project to the developer.

Mary Eberle, the board’s solicitor, said in any contract “you will decide how much authority you will retain, how much you want to delegate.”

For McGee, who spent 27 years as Horsham’s township manager, the process to acquire the land has been a slow ordeal.

“You can’t point to anybody in the Navy and say ‘You’re holding us up.’ Who would that be?,” he said.

“We just want to negotiate. We don’t have a problem giving them value, but what is the value? We need to move forward with speed and take advantage of the marketplace now. We need to be ready for the next real estate boom.”

Source: Bucks County Courier Times