Streetscape Design Elements

WESLEY PLAZA GROUNDBREAKING.  Cheltenham Township and Montgomery County officials joined local business representatives during the November 2004 groundbreaking ceremony for Wesley Plaza in Glenside. The first major streetscape enhancement under the township’s commercial district enhancement plan, the project will transform Wesley Avenue between Easton and Bickley Roads with colored pavers, new curbing, decorative streetlights, benches and other improvements to create an area for special events. The roadway will be closed during construction, but will reopen for parking and traffic in the new year.  A $300,000 Montgomery County Revitalization Grant provided a major portion of the project funding.
   At the ceremony were (left to right) Louis Costa of LC Costa Construction; Michael Gresko of Kise, Straw and Kolodner; Maureen Haff owner of local business Sweet Magnolia; John Sweeney, board member of the Greater Glenside Chamber of Commerce (GGCC); Annie Winterbottom, executive director of GGCC; Township Manager David G. Kraynik; Township Commissioner Robert C. Gerhard; Township Main Street Manager Ruth Littner Shaw; Township Commissioner Harvey Portner, board president; David Lynch, director of the Township Engineering, Zoning and Inspections Department; County Commissioner Ruth Damsker; Township Commissioner Paul R. Greenwald; Assistant Township Manager Bryan T. Havir; Harold Lichtman, chair of the Township Economic Development Task Force and Township Public Works Coordinator Rudy Kastenhuber.

Improving the physical appearance of our commercial districts draws shoppers and helps attract and keep businesses in Cheltenham.

After 18 months and six public meetings, the Commercial District Enhancement Plan (pdf file) (CDEP), which maps out detailed strategies to improve the economic vitality of the five designated commercial districts described below, was adopted by the Board of Commissioners in 2000. The plan is the centerpiece of the Township's economic development effort.

The Township has since completed a study  evaluating the traffic calming and shared parking recommendations in the plan. Likewise, the Township partnered with SEPTA and Montgomery County to complete a feasibility study of the possible construction of a multi-story parking garage with 10,000 square feet of new retail floor space at the Glenside Train Station. Federal funding has been secured for an engineering study of the project. A second feasibility study is concluding for a parking garage at the Wyncote/Jenkintown Train Station.

Finally, all five commercial districts will begin to sport new gateway signs, banners, trash and recycling containers, planters and benches in the near future, to enhance their appeal. Implementing the entire plan will take many years to complete, but construction is already underway for Wesley Plaza,. The Wesley Avenue block near Easton Road is being transformed with a major facelift of brick pavers, decorative street paving, new trees, light bollards and ornamental street lighting to create a venue for special events that draw consumers to the area, such as the annual Glenside Street Fair.

Five Commercial Districts
Most towns have one Main Street, or commercial district. Cheltenham has five! Each offers distinctive shopping opportunities. Please patronize our local businesses and help Cheltenham continue to thrive. Click here for maps of the districts.

• Glenside - Easton Road from Arcadia University north to Mt. Carmel Avenue, and Glenside Avenue between Limekiln Pike and Keswick Avenue, and Rices Mill Road and Glenside Avenue.

• Cheltenham Village - Central and Ryers Avenues between Cottman Avenue and Old Soldiers Road, and Cottman Avenue between Hasbrook Avenue and the Church Road vicinity.

• East Cheltenham Avenue - East Cheltenham Avenue from the SEPTA train tracks to Bell Mawr Road.

• Elkins Park East - High School Road and Montgomery Avenue area. (2005 Updated Plan)

• Elkins Park West - Old York Road between Township Line Road and Chelten Hills Drive, and Church Road between Brookside Road and the train tracks.