2022 Realtor legislative priorities
Owning real estate is a foundational bridge to financial security that should be open to all. The National Association of Realtors (NAR) has posted a list of its 2022 legislative priorities, which are designed to help the millions of Americans who aspire to join the nation’s 83 million property owners. NAR members can also tune into live streams of legislative meetings taking place in Washington, D.C., from May 2 to 6.
Source: Nar.realtor

It’s election time again in Pennsylvania
The 2022 Pennsylvania primary election will be held Tuesday, May 17, and in the weeks before as voters cast ballots by mail. Parties are nominating candidates for U.S. Senate, governor, U.S. House, and state legislative seats. In Pennsylvania, you can only vote in a party’s primary election if you are registered to vote with that party — not if you are registered as an independent. You can check your voter registration status on the state’s website by entering your name, zip code and date of birth. The deadline to register to vote in the primary is May 2. If you have a license or PennDot ID, you can use the number to find your status. You can also direct questions to your county’s election officials. Polls are open from 7 a.m. until 8 p.m. on election day. As long as you are in line by 8 p.m., you’ll be able to vote. Read more here.
Source: Philadelphia Inquirer; 4/26/2022

What’s the state of your air? American Lung Association releases annual report
The American Lung Association recently released its annual State of the Air Report. For 23 years, the American Lung Association has analyzed data from official air quality monitors to compile its annual “report card.” The report tracks and grades Americans’ exposure to unhealthy levels of ground-level ozone air pollution (also known as smog), annual particle pollution (also known as soot) and short-term spikes in particle pollution over a three-year period. The recently released report covers 2018 through 2020. Click here to view the air quality grades for each Pennsylvania county.
Source:  York Dispatch; 4/21/2022

Pew report: PA is one of the five slowest-growing states
New data compiled by the Pew Charitable Trusts shows that the pace of population growth nationwide was five times slower in 2021 than in the previous decade. Population growth nationwide has been slowing for years, but according to Pew, it was exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Pennsylvania avoided population loss in 2021, but it is among the five slowest-growing states over the past decade. The slow growth led to the loss of a congressional seat, and it also shrinks the state’s Electoral College votes from 20 to 19. Why does it matter? States with stagnant, slow-growing or declining populations can see weakened economic activity and less revenue. Read more from the Pennsylvania Capital-Star here.
Source: Pennsylvania Capital-Star; 4/26/2022

Redevelopment at Richland Superfund site is moving forward
A proposed 104-townhome development adjacent to the Watson-Johnson Landfill Superfund Site in Richland Township has moved past the revised sketch plan phase. The site has been held up as a model for effective cooperation among local, state and federal governments. Groundwater remediation at the site was deemed completed in 2019, and the project moved to the maintenance stage, which features ongoing groundwater monitoring. A separate operation was conducted to cap the landfill, to contain contaminated soil. The proposed townhome redevelopment itself is not to be over the cap, but adjacent to it, while trails that are part of the proposal are to be allowed on the cap. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the state Department of Environmental Protection “recognize that Richland Township has the lead on reviewing and approving redevelopment plans within its community,” and that the role of the agencies is to ensure the redevelopment “will not impair the integrity of its remedy at the site.”
Source: Bucks County Herald; 4/21/2022

Bucks County Board of Elections issues advisory on confusing mailers
The Bucks County Board of Elections wants voters to know about confusing mailers distributed to some residences. In past elections, mailers from the Voter Participation Center and Center for Voter Information (VPC/CVI) have caused confusion among the public. The mailers have previously featured official-looking packets with a genuine voter registration form and envelope to submit the completed voter registration document. County officials said they have received calls from residents who are confused about the mailings in the past and want to avoid confusion this year. “VPC/CPI is not affiliated with the county, and the Board of Elections plays no role in developing or distributing these items,” the county office said. The primary election is Tuesday, May 17, and the general election is Tuesday, Nov. 8.
Source: LevittownNow.com; 4/22/2022

Poll workers still needed for May primary
Bucks County needs some extra hands on deck for the upcoming primary election on Tuesday, May 17. The county is looking to hire an extra 60 poll workers to help out in four municipalities where there are shortages: Falls, Middletown, Warminster and Bristol townships. People signing up to help out don't need to live in those municipalities, they just need to be registered voters in Bucks County. The workers will get $195 for a full day's work from 6:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m.; or $97.50 for a half-day, either from 6:30 a.m. to 2 p.m., or from 2 to 9:30 p.m. Anyone who signs up to be a judge of elections will receive $200. The workers will also receive $10 for attending a training session, either online or in person at sites the county is establishing. Click here for more information.
Source: Bucks County Courier Times; 4/22/2022

Progress continues at Keystone Trade Center in Falls
The redevelopment of the former U.S. Steel site in Falls Township continues to move forward. Falls supervisors approved an amended final land development plan for the first phase that allowed for the consolidation of two buildings into one 1.16 million-square-foot warehousing building. The plan also calls for a 10,200-square-foot vehicle maintenance garage and a roughly 1,200-square-foot salt-storage building. Developer NorthPoint plans for three phases of development for 1,800 acres of the site. The $1.5 billion investment includes construction of 20 or more state-of-the-art industrial warehouse buildings totaling 10 million square feet, with the potential for 15 million square feet, as well as remediation of the site. It is anticipated that the redevelopment, once complete, will create 5,000 to 10,000 light industrial jobs.
Source: The Reporter; 4/19/2022

Lower Southampton offers sanitation rebate program
Lower Southampton Township offers a sanitation/trash rebate program for residents aged 65 or older and veterans who are 50% disabled or greater. Eligible residents must be the homeowner for the entire year of 2021. The rebate is $50 per household, and the program runs from through May 31. Visit the Lower Southampton Sanitation/Trash Rebate page for full criteria and rebate information.
Source: Lower Southampton Township

Newest section of Schuylkill River Trail opens in Chesco
A new $6 million, four-mile section of the Schuylkill River Trail has officially opened. The new section is located between Linfield Road and Fricks Lock Village within East Coventry Township. The remaining two miles to the Route 422 bridge that will carry the trail back over the Schuylkill River to Montgomery County near Pottstown is nearly complete, according to County Commissioner Josh Maxwell. Chester County regional trails draw 896,000 users per year. When the section to Pottstown is finally opened, Chester County’s share of the Schuylkill River Trail will stretch 12 miles from the bridge linking Mont Clare and Phoenixville to the Route 422 bridge carrying the trail back over the river into Montgomery County, through Pottstown and West Pottsgrove, and on to Berks County. A recent study of trails similar to the Schuylkill River Trail estimated an annual economic impact of $121 million.
Source: Daily Local; 4/25/2022

Exton Square Mall set to be acquired by Brandywine Realty Trust
Brandywine Realty Trust is set to buy Exton Square Mall from Pennsylvania Real Estate Investment Trust (PREIT) for $27.5 million, according to U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) documents. While the sale of the mall and price had previously been disclosed by PREIT, the buyer who put the property under agreement had not been made public. Brandywine was named as the prospective buyer in proxy documents PREIT filed April 22 with the SEC.
Source: Philadelphia Business Journal; 4/25/2022

Oxford theater project gets $2 million in state funding
A decades-long dream to bring a performing arts space to downtown Oxford is one step closer to reality. State funding in the amount of $2 million was awarded to Oxford Mainstreet Inc. for the reconstruction of the historic Oxford Theater on Third Street in the heart of the borough. Originally constructed in 1922, the theater closed in 1956 and was partially converted into retail space. Much of the old theater infrastructure remains behind the retail area. Oxford Mainstreet will lead efforts to completely renovate the old theater building into a 12,000-square-foot multipurpose facility. Plans include a state-of-the-art auditorium for films and live performances. Classrooms and studio spaces will be available for rehearsals, classes and community use. Work has already begun on The Shoebox, a smaller secondary theater within the site that is set to open soon. Plans also include a small café to cater to theatergoers and other patrons. In recent years, Oxford Borough has also received millions of dollars in government grants to support infrastructure improvements, including new water lines, sidewalks near the school complex, and the multimodal transit center and parking deck near the post office.
Source: Chester County Press; 4/25/2022

Kennett Township purchases 107 acres for conservation, trails
On April 20, Kennett Township supervisors voted to authorize the execution of two conservation and trail easements that will add 107 acres of open space in the township. Both parcels were brokered between the property owners and The Land Conservancy for Southern Chester County (TLC) — a conservation agency that will merge with The Brandywine Red Clay Alliance at the end of April. The first easement — for 901 Sills Mill Road — passed the board easily and unanimously. The easement for the 7.1-acre property was purchased by the township for about $77,900 plus an additional county grant from TLC totaling $57,400. TLC executive director Abby Kessler said that the easement eliminates every other development right for the property while protecting more than seven acres of riparian buffer, woodland and stream corridor of a branch of the Red Clay Creek. The second hearing, however — which finalized a 100-acre conservation and trail easement agreement at 251 Old Kennett Pike in Kennett Square for a price of $1.7 million — became a 90-minute verbal slugfest between township representatives and neighbors who complained the proposed trails would run too close to their property lines. The parcel — identified as the Miller property — represents the largest protected space in the township’s history, and one that will leave the property’s remaining 25 acres to the seller. Kessler said the protected property includes 60 acres of active cornfields, 34 acres of high-protection area that includes freshwater wetland stream corridor, and significant woodlands. The agreement also calls for the eventual construction of a trail easement that will be built on the eastern side of the parcel.
Source: Chester County Press; 4/26/2022

Phoenixville school board declines to reconsider sale of former kindergarten center
A month after the Phoenixville Area School Board voted to sell the 7.4-acre former kindergarten center site to a developer for $4.6 million, Board Member Ayisha Sereni and several members of the public urged the board to reconsider. Sereni, who has been a real estate broker for 26 years, questioned why no Realtor was used for the sale, and also the veracity and timeliness of the appraisals obtained by the school district. Sereni suggested the board may have voted without having the most current appraisal, and thus without complete information. She made a motion to hold a special public hearing to review the three appraisals, but the motion failed to get a second, and so died without a vote. Superintendent Alan Fegley said most of the recent appraisal was made on March 2, and the appraisal for the property value was $3.84 million, which is less than the sale price of $4.6 million. As for using a Realtor, Fegley replied that when the school board decided to look into selling the property in August 2020, the district issued a “request for proposals,” in essence asking interested real estate agents to make a bid for the job. He said only one responded and the fees for that broker would have been between $400,000 and $600,000. The school board took no action on the matter.
Source: The Mercury; 4/26/2022

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