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By Liz Vargo, Sentinel Correspondent, March 16, 2007

Last updated: Friday, March 16, 2007 10:24 AM EDT

Supervisors of Southampton Township, Cumberland County, approved Deerfield as a 733-home cluster development off Route 11 north during a conditional use hearing Monday morning.

Developer DGK Properties LP of Lancaster purchased the former development Brimdon Hill, which was first proposed in June 2005. Plans for Deerfield will take over the 140-plus acres off U.S. 11 to the south of Route 533.

Vic Kicera, a partner with DGK Properties LP, said the tract of land was on the market and was an attractive area for their development.

“It’s a beautiful piece of land to build a nice community,” he said.

The conditional use hearing on Monday authorizes Deerfield to design a traditional neighborhood development with a mix of housing units, commercial property and open space. Clustering homes will create open space, which did not exist in Brimdon Hills.

Supervisor Tom Ginnick said the hearing went quickly. Cluster developments are promoted by Cumberland County Planning Commission and land development experts as a way to establish more open space, he said.

New plans

Deerfield will take over the former Brimdon Hill property and will be engineered by ELA Group Inc. of State College.

Previously, Brimdon Hill had received final approval with contingencies for 480 homes in several phases with a mix of single family, duplexes and townhouses.

Although Deerfield has many more units planned, Kicera said nearly 300 are included in an apartment complex and take up little space. Brimdon Hill actually had about twice as many single-family homes, which consumed more space, he said.

Kicera said the former Brimdon Hill property had a lot to offer. There were no overhead power lines, gas lines or steep slopes.

“The downside was, we did not like the Brimdon Hill design,” he said. “They didn’t not integrate anything together and it’s not what we felt to be a very good design.”

Roads and signals

Ginnick said the layout for interior roads has changed dramatically. However, plans for future traffic signals at the intersection of Route 11 and Route 533 and at Negley and Progress avenues will remain.

The traffic signals are planned as part of a much larger area of development off Route 11. Deerfield will be located near another 354 homes planned in Meadowsgreen off Route 11 to the north of Progress Boulevard and the Hollar Estate, which will include eight light commercial lots across the Progress Boulevard and Route 11 intersection.

Kicera said they will continue to work with the township and will fund a portion of the traffic signals.

Cluster development

DGK Properties LP requested a conditional use hearing to create a clustered development in an area zoned as a village center. Unlike a residential zone, the village center promotes total development within all aspects of zoning, Ginnick said.

To create a cluster development, developers must first determine how many lots can fit in a completed traditional subdivision. The plans are then reworked with the same number of units to cluster homes, or increase density. This allows greater acreage for open space.

The 733 total housing units will include 255 townhouses, 106 semi-detached single-family homes, 108 single-family homes, 264 garden apartments and two commercial lots. The apartments and stormwater retention ponds will be located in Shippensburg Township.

Unlike the previous design, Kicera said the different housing units are more integrated. For example, townhomes may be across the street from single-family homes.

There will be eight open space lots, or 33.5 acres, which did not exist in the Brimdon Hill design. Plans for open space will include neighborhood amenities like softball and soccer fields.

DGK Properties LP also proposed a health care and fitness center onsite. The two commercial lots may include day care services or a medical center.

Kicera said the neighborhood includes sidewalks and curbing for the safety of residents and to control stormwater.

“It’s very pedestrian friendly,” he said. “The focus is on keeping the street scape clean.”

Deerfield engineer Brooks Harris calls the Deerfield development concept “the new urbanism.”

He says the combination of various housing types creates a traditional neighborhood. The inclusion of two commercial sites at the development’s entrance completes the feel.

DGK Properties LP is focused on the traditional neighborhood development and has won an award for a similar development in Lititz. Ginnick said Deerfield has been viewed by the planning commission and township as a “better laid out development” for the site.

Kicera expects the development to be completely built out in about seven years.