Somerton supports Lincoln Tech
campus on Byberry tract

By William Kenny
Times Staff Writer

The Somerton Civic Association last week gave a green light to a new auto repair facility on the site of the former Philadelphia State Hospital, commonly known as Byberry.
On Jan. 8, SCA members voted 24-6 not to oppose efforts by Lincoln Technical Institute to build a new tech school along Roosevelt Boulevard north of Southampton Road, despite concerns about the project’s potential impact on nearby homes.
The new tech school would offer auto repair among many career-training programs for high school graduates.
The Byberry site is a 130-acre tract formerly occupied by the Philadelphia State Hospital, which closed in 1990 after years of hospital mismanagement and alleged patient abuse and neglect.
While 80 of those acres have been designated for open space and a new residential community — The Arbours at Eagle Pointe — the remaining 50 acres have been earmarked for commercial development. Radnor-based Brandywine Realty Trust holds development rights for those 50 acres.
Previously, Brandywine officials proposed a corporate office park for the commercial portion of the Byberry site, which has an L-2 or light industrial zoning designation. During last week’s civic meeting, one company officer insisted that the tech school would be in keeping with the company’s initial concept.
James J. Cuorato, Brandywine’s vice president for urban development and a former city commerce director, told residents that the "original concept" as proposed by the developer was for "office or ‘flex’ space." Educational use, such as that proposed by Lincoln Tech, fits into the "flex" category, Cuorato said.
Brandywine and Lincoln need a zoning use variance from the city to open the tech school there, however. Citizens and community groups, such as the SCA, may oppose a variance application.
The new school would effectively replace two existing sites operated by Lincoln Tech in Northeast Philadelphia — including its auto repair school at Torresdale and Linden avenues and a multi-program school on Hornig Road, just south of the Byberry site. The new school would offer auto repair, medical assistant, nursing, information technology and business programs.
At the civic meeting, neighbors asked Lincoln officials about the school’s proposed hours of operation, its enrollment, the vehicle traffic it would generate, its student requirements and its security standards.
According to Marc Serinsky, director of the local tech schools, Lincoln operates in three sessions on weekdays. The most popular is the daytime shift from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. The second session is from 2:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Night school is from 6:30 p.m. to 10:30 p.m. There is no night session on Fridays and no classes on weekends.
The school will house up to 800 students at any one time. It will have 640 parking spots available. The school will issue parking stickers to legitimate students.
The school will have its own full-service cafeteria, so students won’t have to leave campus for lunch. It will have 18 bays in its auto repair instruction area. No commercial auto repairs will be performed there.
Serinsky and Scott Shaw, chief administrative officer for the West Orange, N.J.,-based Lincoln organization, described their students as a diverse group focused on getting a practical education. There is an admission screening process, and all students wear uniforms.
"It’s a teaching environment, not a repair shop," Shaw said.
Though some residents were concerned about breaking the "corporate office" concept for the Byberry site, Cuorato is optimistic that the tech school will help his firm attract other tenants for the development.
"We think this will be a great kickoff and catalyst for the rest of the site," he said. "We don’t in any way think this will affect the rest of the site negatively."
Brandywine remains under pressure to progress on the project in a timely fashion. It holds development rights by virtue of an agreement with the Philadelphia Industrial Development Corporation, which owns the land. PIDC is a publicly funded agency that facilitates business-related development in the city.
Under the agreement, Brandywine had five years to complete the development. That term began about six months ago, Cuorato said. Ultimately, Brandywine intends to buy the site outright and manage it.
The Lincoln Tech building would be the first on the site. At least three additional buildings are on Brandywine’s conceptual plan for the site, although their configuration has not been finalized.
"We need tenants before we start building," Cuorato said.
In other Somerton Civic Association business:
• Members voted unanimously not to oppose a planned wireless network installation atop an existing PECO Energy tower at 1296 Southampton Road.
The 94-foot tower carries power lines through a CSX railroad corridor. Wireless telephone service provider T-Mobile seeks to affix a series of 12-foot antennas onto the tower to improve local wireless service.
T-Mobile officials said they planned to erect a fence around the tower and two existing concrete utility "bunkers" at the site. Also, they will plant evergreen trees around the fence to shield the installation from view of nearby homes.
o The civic group also voted not to oppose an application from local shop owner John Catagnus to legalize a furniture store and martial arts school at 14230 Bustleton Ave. The furniture store is on the first floor with the martial arts studio on the second floor.
Previously, the site housed a model train shop operated by Catagnus. The property is zoned residential, although it has long been used for commercial business.
One civic group member voted to oppose the requested zoning variance.
• The civic group will sponsor a "VIP" bus trip to Atlantic City on March 26. The bus leaves the Rite-Aid on Bustleton Avenue, across from the Leo Mall, at 11 a.m. and will take riders to the Trump Taj Mahal casino. Resorts and the Showboat are within close walking distance.
The $35 cost includes a round-trip bus ticket, lunch while on board, snacks on the return trip and $22 in casino chips. There will be a bingo game on the way down and a movie during the return trip. Call the SCA at 215-464-1260 to book a seat.
• The next SCA meeting will be on Tuesday, Feb. 12, at 7:30 p.m., at Walker Lodge 306, 1290 Southampton Road. ••
Reporter William Kenny can be reached at 215-354-3031 or bkenny@phillynews.com