Flagship Pennsylvania Propco, a car wash company based in Virginia, is appealing the enactment of an ordinance adopted by the Whitpain Township Board of Supervisors in August 2024. The ordinance amended the township’s code to provide “specific definitions, standards and criteria for a drive-through vehicle care facility as a special exception.” The Notice of Land Use Appeal was filed with the Montgomery County Court of Common Pleas on September 4, 2024.

In its appeal, Flagship claims that it made a presentation during an April 3rd meeting of the township’s planning commission about a proposed car wash at 901 Dekalb Pike in Blue Bell (Whitpain Township). During that meeting, Flagship’s representative inquired whether a car wash was allowed within the current code and was told that the matter would need to be reviewed.

The property involved is the former home of Reed’s Country Store at the corner of DeKalb and Skippack pikes.

According to the complaint, the following month on May 21st the township’s board of supervisors voted to advertise a change to the ordinance that Flagship claims would “effecitvely prohibit” a car wash on the property. Flagship goes on to say that it was not told of a potential ordinance during the planning commission meeting, nor leading up to the May vote to advertise the ordinance being considered.

In June, the township’s manager replied to an email from late May that Flagship had sent in followup to the April meeting and inquired whether there was a determination on whether a car wash needed zoning relief. Flagship claims it was told that it would need to seek a special exception from the township’s zoning hearing board and that the township was considering making a zoning change and was provided a copy of the draft ordinance.

The day following the receipt of this email (which was sent at 11:09 p.m.), Flagship attended a second meeting of the planning commission, but had not yet reviewed the proposed ordinance. During this meeting, Flagship was told that it would need to seek a special exception from the township’s zoning hearing board for a car wash use. Flagship states in the appeal that it was not told that the proposed ordinance would effectively prohibit a car wash use based on the size of the property involved and its being a corner lot.

The previous ordinance required a minimum lot area of 6,000 square feet, while the new ordinance requires 1.5 developable acres.

Flagship contends that the township did not follow the law when adopting the ordinance due to its not resubmitting the ordinance for review to the planning commission as it was altered during the consideration process. According to Flagship, the planning commission only reviewed the second version, while there were multiple drafts of the ordinance before it was voted on.

Flagship also claims that “The Board of Supervisors clearly enatacted Ordinance No. 4-265 to single Flagship out for particularized treatment in order to prevent its proposed car wash on the Property.”

Whitpain Township has not yet responded to the appeal. You can read the full appeal here.