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 Where once hundreds made a living, soon hundreds will be living. Rising from the dust and rubble of the old Anchor Glass property in Royersford are 330 new dwelling units, to be known as Riverwalk at Royersford.
The first building, interlocking townhouses, is nearly complete. The first unit is scheduled to be furnished and opened around July 1, according to Marshal Granor, a principal in Granor Price Homes, the parent company of The Riverfront at Royersford LP, developer of Riverwalk.
Granor explained Riverwalk includes four different types of buildings.
Besides the five interlocking townhouse buildings, the development will include eight traditional townhouse buildings.
All of the townhouses feature three bedrooms and two and a half baths. Each has at least a one-car garage, and some will have a two-car garage, Granor explained.
Also to be built are midrise elevator condominiums with parking underneath. Each of the five buildings will house between 24 and 40 single-level, two- and three-bedroom homes.
The fourth type of building planned for Riverwalk is a “two-bedroom loft unit, which is a unique building style which looks like an old industrial conversion, but it is, in fact, all new construction,” Granor revealed. These buildings also will be three stories with elevators on top of parking. Three loft buildings are slated to be built.
“The Riverwalk community is specifically created with a variety of types of homes, so we expect to have a variety of types of people,” Granor said. Some families with children are expected to choose Riverwalk, while the elevator buildings are more likely the choice of young professionals or “move down buyers.”
Royersford’s proximity to the pharmaceutical companies and other employers in Upper Providence and the King of Prussia areas “means we should have a good mix of residents within the community,” Granor noted.
The story of Riverwalk began in April 2002, when Granor spoke at a Smart Growth conference sponsored by 10,000 Friends of Pennsylvania. Royersford Borough Manager Robert Umstead was impressed with the presentation, Granor said, and invited Granor Price Homes to look at the waterfront property, formerly occupied by Anchor Glass Co., which was in bankruptcy, according to Granor.
After dealing with Anchor’s bankruptcy and purchasing the property, Granor Price was able to proceed with demolition of the old buildings. The next step, according to Granor, was “to work with the owners of the Atoll/Clover Lamp Co. to come to terms with them so we could have the entire street frontage for redevelopment.”
Granor noted the developer is just beginning the demolition of the Clover Lamp building, which will complete the demolition and restoration of about 1900 feet of frontage along First Avenue between Main and Arch streets.
First Avenue itself will receive a rebuilt foundation, old railroad tracks and ties will be removed and the road will be topped with a new surface. Sidewalks, street trees and “other amenities” will be added.
On the other side of the property, which borders an active railroad track, solid vinyl fence and some trees and shrubs are planned.
Some aspects of preparing for Riverwalk were “not typical suburban construction issues,” Granor admitted, but “all of these were handled in normal course.” He noted, “While the property was not heavily contaminated, there was industrial use there and, therefore, we had lead paint, underground tanks and other environmentally sensitive issues to address.
Also, he noted, “any time one builds along the river, there are FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) and DEP (Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection) approvals that must be obtained.”
Granor remarked, “Working with Royersford Borough was a pleasure, as it was a very cooperative effort between the parties to develop a riverfront community with varying housing types and affordable prices.”
Prices of the homes at Riverwalk begin at $239,900 and go up into the low $300s. The sales office is in the Royersford Train Depot on the other side of Main Street. It is open seven days a week from noon to 5 p.m. Phone number is 610-917-9090.
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