Lower Merion Township Building and Planning Department has been analyzing the historical role that multifamily housing has played in the development of the Township, the effectiveness and impacts of Township commercial area zoning, and the broad economic and public school impacts of recently constructed multi-family housing using readily available data from Township records and Montgomery County sources, several of which are found below:

May 17, 2021 Community Meeting:

• Meeting Recording
• Presentation

Regional:

• Community Impacts of Multifamily Development: Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission (DVRPC)
  • DVRPC's Office of Smart Growth has conducted research and analysis on a variety of topics related to multifamily housing in Greater Philadelphia. This multifaceted research investigation included documenting housing and real estate trends, generating localized demographic multipliers for multifamily housing, and site-specific trip generation analysis. DVRPC's research focused on market-rate apartments. Rental apartments are the most common form of multifamily housing, a category of housing that also includes condominiums, duplexes, and townhomes.

County:

• Multifamily and Attached Housing Inventory, Montgomery County Planning Commission.
  • The MCPC multifamily and attached housing inventory sheds some light on the housing preferences of the county’s residents. For inclusion in this inventory 1) a development must have at least ten (10) dwelling units, and 2) in most cases, a common element to unify the development, such as open space, lobby, parking area, or clubhouse. This inventory includes market-rate housing as well as homes which meet special needs, such as subsidized or age-restricted developments. All information provided is accurate to December 2019. 
• Montgomery County Comprehensive Plan: Montco 2040: A Shared Vision.
  • This nationally awarded plan, which is a complete update of the 2005 comprehensive plan, focuses on the future of Montgomery County until the year 2040. The plan, which contains goals and a future land use plan, will guide overall growth and development in the county.
  • Montco 2040 Implementation Updates

Local:

• Multifamily Development in Lower Merion- Understanding Benefits and Impacts, a storymap
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• Self-guided Tour of Multifamily Development in Lower Merion.
  • Planning staff has laid out a route through the Township which highlights many (but not all) multifamily developments. Staff anticipates that it would take approximately two hours and starts and ends in Ardmore. The guide book provides a brief overview of each development highlighted. 
    • We have printed copies of the tour booklet and placed them in Linwood Park for residents to use and return upon completion. 
      
      
• Land Development Activity Update: 2020
  
  
• History of Apartment Buildings in Lower Merion, 1900-1970: A History of Development in the Township, Lower Merion Conservancy

  • Since the early twentieth century, apartment buildings have been prominent features of the landscape in Lower Merion. This presentation features representative building types erected in the township between 1900 and 1970. 

• Housing Element, Lower Merion Township Comprehensive Plan, 2016
  
  
• Lower Merion School District Enrollment Projections 2019-20 Update, Prepared by the Montgomery County Planning Commission, November 18, 2019 

• Commercial District Studies:
  • Ardmore Commercial District
  • Bryn Mawr Commercial District
  • City Avenue District