Lower Macungie Township Zoning Hearing Board rejected a request for a variance from a couple who wanted to have a community playground constructed on their private property without a permit.
At 773 Furnace Drive, Raja Sohail Abbas and Saima Abbasi constructed a playground, basketball court, and high fencing as part of their recreational complex.
Township officials said that those residential auxiliary uses were against existing property easement restrictions and illegal without a permission. Instead, the owners requested zoning variances and an appeal to permit the activities on the land. Abbasi and her attorney said that the absence of permissions was an honest error resulting from not understanding the process, not an attempt to circumvent any regulations.
After a pause and conversations with the township, the motions to deny the variance and to uphold the violation notice were approved 4-0, with one member voting against. The township counsel earlier stated that the inhabitants had to be within complete corrective action for the illegal construction, but no specific act of remediation has been revealed after a 30-day period for a prospective appeal.
At the June zoning hearing board meeting, a large number of locals showed out to defend the couple's illegal construction of the lot for public use. During the June hearing, Abbasi stated, "The goal was to create a secure atmosphere for every child in the neighborhood so they would not play outside."
"There were a lot of youngsters playing in the streets before the court, playing basketball and soccer. They were of all ages"." The facilities are free to use and have drawn visitors of all ages from all throughout the area, according to her. Township representatives stated during the hearing that the two enforcement notices were updated in February and dated August 2023, following an employee's observation of the changes. Situated close to Lock Ridge Park, in the Hills at Lock Ridge Overlay District, the structure is part of a development that borders Alburtis.
The situation is challenging, according to the commissioners, even though every neighbor who answered in favor of the project acknowledged that it was clearly illegal. At the first meeting, Commissioner Ron Beitler stated, "There is one objector, and that objector is the township." Make no mistake about it, though: should the township file an appeal, this will be rejected since the courts will not give them the same leeway as we do.
According to Frank D'Amore, the applicant's attorney, the building was over $20,000 in cost, and the expense of removal was probably the same.
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