Salisbury Cedes Old Trolley Line to Property Owner

Property owners on an old trolley route along Lehigh Avenue in Salisbury Township may be in for a bit more real estate.

The township has decided to deed the land abandoned by the trolley line, which ceased operations years ago, to property owners on Lehigh Avenue who apply for it. The at their Nov. 10 meeting authorized the execution of a “quit-claim” deed for a 30-foot strip of land to resident Juan Carlos, who applied for a zoning variance for his property at 1350 Lehigh Ave.

Carlos recently went before the township zoning hearing board to request permission to expand his house toward Lehigh Avenue, but discovered he didn’t own the land that fronts the street.

The township investigated and found a map from 1916 showing the trolley line and its right-of-way of 30 feet on both sides of Lehigh Avenue, said Cynthia Sopka, township planning and zoning director.

The quit-claim deed gives the right to the land to the adjacent property owner. Township Manager Randy Soriano said the township will gather a list of the other property owners along the old trolley road, who could follow the same process to acquire the extra land.