After protest from neighbors, the Dollar General along Route 780 and Dewey Drive in Upper Burrell has cleared all township hurdles, and development of the site has begun.
The store is tentatively slated to open in late fall, said Katie Ellison, spokeswoman for Dollar General Corp.
Although the store, along Seventh Street Road, is zoned commercial, it is in front of a quiet rural neighborhood along Dewey Drive. Some residents didn’t want the store to be built.
Although they circulated a petition early in the development process, it didn’t stop construction of the store.
One of the residents not pleased with the development is Amy Cromie, 49, who lives along Dewey Drive and whose property abuts the store site.
“It will be an eyesore to Upper Burrell,” she said. “It will bring unwanted traffic and activity to the area and will depress property values.”
Cromie believes the store site is encroaching on her property. She has not taken legal action but is in the process of getting her property resurveyed.
Residents and the township asked the developer to face the exterior lighting downward to prevent light pollution and to install fencing along the back of the store to create a screen between the store and neighbors.
Supervisors Chairman Ross Walker III said the developer agreed to the extra measures to try to appease residents.
“That property was zoned commercial, and the development of the store is an allowable use of that ground,” Walker said. “It’s a piece of property that the owner wanted to use, and that’s his right to do so as long as he follows the zoning and requirements of the township. They’ve done that there.”
The store developer fulfilled the township’s requirements to proceed, he said.
The store will employ six to 10 people, Ellison said. To apply online, visit dollargeneral.com/careers.
