News Briefs for February 23, 2024
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The Norristown High Speed Line shown crossing the Schuylkill River in 2019. SEPTA has renamed the line the “M,” because it travels into Montgomery County.
Photo: Michael Stokes (CC BY 2.0 DEED)
Philly-area homeowners stay in their homes longer than most
Homeowners in the Philadelphia-metro area are staying in their homes longer than the national average, according to an analysis by Redfin. Current nationwide trends have homeowners living in their homes for about 12 years, down from a peak of 13.5 years in 2020. In 2023, the median length of time homeowners in the Philly metro region lived in their homes was a little over 16 years and one month. A variety of reasons were cited for the increase, including market conditions and an increase in older Americans staying in their homes as they age instead of downsizing or moving into assisted-living facilities.
Source: Philadelphia Inquirer; 2/20/2024
Water bills could increase $265 a year under proposed EPA rule, Philly water department says
The Philadelphia Water Department (PWD) says that a proposed U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rule to increase a clean water standard in the Delaware River would cost it approximately $3 billion to comply — a cost customers would bear. “Without significant financial support from the state or federal government, that cost will be passed on to customers in Philadelphia’s neighborhoods through higher water bills for years to come,” PWD said in a statement issued Sunday, just days before public comments closed on the federal proposal. It estimates that the proposed regulations would cost customers an additional $22 per month on their water bills, not $1.50 per month as calculated by EPA. PWD serves over 2 million people in Philadelphia, Montgomery, Delaware and Bucks counties by drawing water from the Schuylkill and Delaware rivers and cleaning it to EPA drinking water standards. Read more here.
Source: Philadelphia Inquirer; 2/19/2024
PHL gets $20.4 million in federal funds to upgrade infrastructure
Philadelphia International Airport (PHL) will receive $20.4 million in federal funds toward upgrading the airport’s HVAC and electrical systems, elected officials announced. The funding is made available through the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Airport Terminals Program, which was created by the Biden administration’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. The program provides funding for projects that address aging infrastructure at airports across the country. Since launching in 2022, the program has allocated $1 billion to support projects annually through 2026. Specifically, the funding will be used to perform work on rooftop ventilation and space conditioning units at several terminals, baggage claims and ticket areas, and pedestrian bridges. The units help “maintain occupants’ comfort and indoor air quality,” PHL spokesperson Heather Redfern said.
Source: Philadelphia Inquirer; 2/16/2024
Watch ‘American Dream Deferred,’ an NAR policy forum
The National Association of Realtors hosted a policy forum on Feb. 8 in Washington, D.C. The forum featured numerous speakers and discussions on solutions to make housing available and affordable to all, including discussions on tax policies, technology, innovation, and more in the housing sector. Watch the forum here.
Source: Nar.realtor; 2/12/2024
Bedminster preserves 18 acres
Bedminster Township continues its land preservation efforts with the addition of another 17.7 acres of land on Log Cabin Road. The agreement for the sale and purchase of an agricultural conservation easement for the property followed approval of a resolution authorizing the township’s portion of the cost at $8,860, or about 4% of the total cost. The state is to contribute $196,000, and the county about $17,000, including closing costs. A second preservation of 36 acres is awaiting final approval by the owners. The township preserved 7,700 acres of land in 2022, one of the largest sums of protected acreage among Bucks municipalities.
Source: Bucks County Herald; 2/19/2024
Doylestown residents continue pushback over hotel project
A boutique hotel has been proposed in Doylestown at the former site of borough hall and the Central Bucks Regional Police station. The property was purchased in 2021 for $2.3 million by borough resident and developer Larry Thompson. The plan submitted by ALOK Investments LLC includes a 41,385-square-foot, four-story building that will house a hotel with 32 guest rooms, a restaurant, an event space and a parking garage. Dozens of residents attended the Feb. 15 zoning hearing board meeting to express consternation — and some support — about the project. Residents spoke of the loss of privacy, issues about the height of the building, parking, traffic, noise and public safety. Some expressed that they were not opposed to the idea of a hotel, but that their concerns over the problems they listed are being ignored. The issue was continued until April 18.
Source: Bucks County Courier Times; 2/16/2024
Two Central Bucks School Board members resign abruptly
Two members of the Central Bucks School Board have officially tendered their written resignations. School Board President Karen Smith said a special meeting will be held Friday, Feb. 23, at 4 p.m. for the board to accept the written resignations of former board members Lisa Sciscio and Debra Cannon, who represented regions 4 and 7, respectively. The school board has 30 days to appoint new members. After that period a Bucks County Court of Common Pleas judge can appoint new members if at least 10 resident taxpayers petition the court to step in. Sciscio and Cannon were two of three Republicans on the current nine-member board. They were both first elected in 2021.
Source: Bucks County Courier Times; 2/16/2024 & 2/19/2024
Middletown approves homes and open space
Middletown Township supervisors recently approved a plan to consolidate three Jefferson Avenue lots into two. The consolidation will allow the construction of two homes at the site. The homes will connect to the public water and sewer systems, and the developer will contribute a “fee-in-lieu-of” for the cost of sidewalks. In a separate vote, the supervisors voted to preserve in perpetuity a two-acre lot adjacent to the 13-acre Firefighter Park.
Source: LevittownNow.com; 2/8/2024
Solebury limits virtual meeting access to combat ‘trolls’
Solebury Township recently began limiting access to its Zoom meetings. The move comes after two township committee meetings were targeted by “random internet trolls.” Solebury officials will no longer publish Zoom login information on the web and are instead asking residents to preregister for virtual meetings. Township Manager Chris Garges said the new regulations are “a work in progress” and will be revisited if needed.
Source: Bucks County Herald; 2/8/2024
Renovations have begun for new Target in West Goshen
Renovations are underway to build an almost 120,000-square-foot Target at the former Kmart in the West Goshen Shopping Center. “There are bigger [Targets], but it’s a big one,” West Goshen Center owner Chris Robbins told a resident at a recent township meeting. The Target will take a year to build, with a projected early spring 2025 opening, Robbins said.
Source: Daily Local; 2/20/2024
Chester County drafts heritage tourism plan
Chester County is drafting a comprehensive heritage tourism plan through which communities, sites and entities can tell local and regional stories that highlight community identity and support preservation, conservation and quality of life. The plan is intended to increase heritage tourism in the county as an economic factor, encourage preservation of heritage sites and resources, and raise public awareness of the significance of historic communities and landscapes. Comments will be accepted through Feb. 29. Learn more here.
Source: Chester County Planning; 2/2024
Classes available on planning, zoning and subdivisions
The Pennsylvania Municipal Planning Education Institute (PMPEI) offers a series of online winter and spring classes for $25 each. The classes cover topics like building a strong planning commission, the limits to zoning, and managing the subdivision review process. Additionally, in-person courses are being offered at the West Chester University Graduate Center.
Source: Chester County Planning; 2/2024
Tredyffrin won’t send streetlight bills anymore, thanks to LED upgrades
Tredyffrin Township announced in its February 2024 newsletter that it will no longer send street light bills to residents. “By upgrading our street lights to more efficient LEDs, we reduced costs dramatically,” the newsletter said. Tredyffrin also recently posted a comprehensive roadway report. Last year, the township contracted engineering firm Gilmore & Associates, which evaluated the local roads and rated each one on a scale from 1 to 10. The report will help set priorities for repaving.
Source: Tredyffrin Township; 2/2024
Collingdale passes amended budget
Collingdale Borough Council has amended the borough’s 2024 budget, which had been approved by the previous council at the end of 2023. The amended budget will re-allot funds that the newly elected council favors. Meeting attendees complained about the loss of $3,500 to the Collingdale Athletic Club. Council members pointed out that, while the athletic club supports over 200 children, there are about 2,300 children in the borough. Council members complained they have not received specifics on the club’s financial standing. Athletic club members in the audience said financial specifics are reported at each of their meetings. Other budget changes include: increases to the general expenses and maintenance budget; a reduction in highway maintenance, with plans to replace two trash trucks down to one; improvements to the borough website; building maintenance improvements; and money for a business grant program. Council also approved a pay scale for the treasurer. In other activities, Councilman Stephen Zane asked Council President Ryan Hastings to clarify statements from a previous meeting, in which it was implied that there was $540,000 missing. That money appears to be a projected revenue shortage that the former borough manager projected. In an email, Police Chief Patrick Kilroy confirmed there has been no report filed with police about any missing funds. Read more in the Daily Times.
Source: Daily Times; 2/14/2024
Parkside council members hit with state ethics violations
The Pennsylvania Ethics Commission has issued final adjudications on Parkside Councilman Robert Powers and Council Vice President Dominic Capobianco for various violations of the state ethics code. Powers — who is being charged criminally for allegedly shoplifting last year — had served as a councilman from 2016 to 2020 when he lost reelection. He was elected again and began serving his current term in January 2022. He has also served as the borough fire marshal since 2016, the borough emergency management coordinator and borough health inspector from 2016 to 2022. Powers was additionally employed on an “as-needed” basis for the Parkside Department of Public Works. Powers voted for an ordinance in March of 2018 that increased fire inspection fees from $100 to $150. The ordinance allowed an inspector to keep half of the fee collected. Powers performed 77 such inspections between 2018 and 2022. Powers had been made aware in 2022 that per the state Ethics Act he should abstain from voting for any portion of the budget pertaining to his payment as a borough employee, but he did cast a vote for the budget in December 2022 that included a negotiated salary increase for himself. Council voted unanimously in August of 2023 to strip Powers of his paid positions in the borough. He was also removed as president of the Parkside Fire Company at that time. Capobianco has served as a council member since 2013, and he worked as a code enforcement officer for the borough from 2018 to 2023. In his code enforcement capacity, he received a salary as well as additional compensation for completing annual use and occupancy and rental license inspections. Capobianco seconded a motion to pay himself for cleaning services without abstaining. Among other issues relating to financial statements, there has also been some issue with the level of detail provided on invoices for cleaning supplies. Capobianco was stripped of his duties as code enforcement officer. Read more in the Daily Times.
Source: Daily Times; 2/16/2024
Eddystone to consider volunteer service credit
Eddystone Borough Council will consider draft Ordinance No. 684-2024, establishing a volunteer service credit program. The ordinance would enact tax credits for volunteer members of the Eddystone Fire Company and nonprofit emergency medical service agencies. The ordinance will be considered on Monday, March 11, at 7 p.m. at the Eddystone Firehouse, Joe Hughes Hall, 1112 E. 7th St.
Source: Daily Times; 2/14/2024
Delco conducts survey as part of traffic safety initiative
The Delaware County Planning Department is working on a countywide Vision Zero Action Plan to help build a safer transportation system. The goal is to eliminate all traffic fatalities and severe injuries and increase safe, healthy, equitable mobility for all. Residents can provide input by taking an online survey.
Source: Delaware County Planning Department
SEPTA renames Norristown High Speed Line to the ‘M’
SEPTA is working to unify a disparate collection of subway, elevated and trolley lines to make it easier to navigate, but the result has some riders confused. In the new wayfinding system, the Norristown High Speed Line will be known as the "M" — for Montgomery County. The system maps will use the color purple to mark the route of the Norristown High Speed Line. The Media-Sharon Hill trolley lines will also see a change to “D” for Delaware County with a bright pink color to mark the route. According to Lex Powers, director of service information design, “Our research showed that the Norristown High Speed Line and Media-Sharon Hill line have very low brand awareness, even by the people who use them on a day-to-day basis.” Get to know the SEPTA Metro here.
Source: Philadelphia Inquirer; 2/19/2024
Upper Pottsgrove residents look to have a say in open space use
Upper Pottsgrove Township supervisors were presented with two ways to allow the public more say in a controversial use of open space in the township. The township has proposed building a township municipal complex on land purchased as protected open space. Former commissioner Martin Schreiber told the commissioners he has a petition opposing the project with more than 400 names. The commissioners did not respond to Schreiber’s comments. Al Leach, a former Pottsgrove School Board member, suggested commissioners put the question to the voters as a voter referendum. Leach said it would give the township “eight months to explain to the people why this is important.” In other open space news from Upper Pottsgrove, the commissioners held a public hearing on the purchase of a 2.8-acre property at 772 Gilbertsville Road that will allow for the expansion of the neighboring 17-acre Althouse Arboretum property. State grant money is involved, and therefore the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources requires that the deed for the property contain legally binding language restricting its use to compliance with open space uses, including the township open space plan adopted in 2020. The same plan that has identified the Smola Farm — that land Upper Pottsgrove hopes to build a municipal complex on — as “permanently protected open space.” The township maintains that the deed for the Smola property lacks legally binding language restricting its use, so a portion of the property can be used for the construction of the municipal complex. Upper Pottsgrove recently announced it will begin site preparations for the municipal complex. A public hearing has been scheduled for Monday, March 18, for a series of zoning changes being proposed, including language that would allow the township to build a municipal complex in any kind of zone, “including open space.”
Source: Pottstown Mercury; 2/21/2024
Upper Dublin eyes plastic bag ban
Upper Dublin commissioners have scheduled a hearing to consider a draft ordinance prohibiting single-use plastic bags. The proposed ordinance is only for plastic bags, and does not prohibit polystyrene or straws. If approved, it will take effect after six months. According to a study published in January by PennEnvironment Research & Policy Center and Frontier Group, on average, bans on single-use plastic bags can eliminate nearly 300 plastic bags per person per year. The proposed ordinance notes “approximately one hundred billion single-use plastic bags are discarded by U.S. consumers each year,” with less than 1% returned for recycling. The hearing will be held on Tuesday, March 12, at 6:30 p.m.
Source: Main Line Media News; 2/19/2024
Limerick nuclear plant to make additional tax payments
The Limerick nuclear power generating station will continue to make tax payments to Limerick Township, the Spring-Ford Area School District and Montgomery County under a settlement approved recently by all three taxing bodies. A previous agreement that expired in 2023 had set the assessment for the power plant property and buildings at $20 million. The new settlement increases the plant’s property assessment to $21.2 million and does not expire until 2033. Not only will the power plant make property tax payments based upon the assessment, but it will also make annual “payments in addition to taxes,” or PATs. Spring-Ford Area School District will receive $1.8 million from 2024 to 2026, provided the tax rate does not exceed a 3.5% annual increase. In 2027, those payments will increase by $50,000, with the same caveat, and by another $50,000 in 2030. Limerick Township’s PATs will begin at $88,507 in 2024; increase to $91,162 in 2027, and then again to $93,897 in 2030; all with the same 3.5% tax hike caveat. The PAT to Montgomery County has remained the same through both agreements, at $345,720.
Source: Pottstown Mercury; 2/19/2024
Philly among nation's noisiest cities, new study says
Philadelphia is a loud city. From car horns honking in traffic to the seemingly ubiquitous construction projects, the city has a lot of sounds going on. And all the noise in Philadelphia puts it among the nation's 10 noisiest cities, according to a new study. Steel Guard Safety, which manufactures industrial fabrics, examined various factors in cities across the country, including population density, traffic density, public transportation, construction projects, number of flights per day and more.
Source: Media Patch; 2/20/2024
Fairhill to net more public housing, plus a rehabbed rec center with indoor pool
The Philadelphia Housing Authority (PHA) revealed plans to preserve both its two high-rise towers at the Fairhill Apartments in North Philadelphia, a remnant of the traditional — and now much maligned — public housing style that has largely been slated for demolition. The two towers will undergo a three-phase rehabilitation project that will create a combined 202 senior units, along with 150 newly constructed townhouses, and the reopening of the shuttered Hartranft Community Center. Former tenants who were relocated will be given the right to return to the new properties when they are complete. In 2019, the housing authority planned to demolish one of the Fairhill towers along with the accompanying low-rise housing around it. A WHYY report from the time noted a repair backlog of $31 million. The plan at the time called for a one-for-one replacement of the existing 264 units. Two years ago, the last residents were vacated from the Fairhill apartments, and in 2023 demolition began on the low-rises. At the same time, the housing authority filed for condemnation of 89 parcels of empty lots and vacant homes around the site. With that additional land secured, the new plan now calls for 352 units, built or rehabbed across three phases. The project will also include the rehabilitation of the long vacant Hartranft Community Center. PHA is rehabilitating the building and its grounds with a mix of federal, state and local funds. It will include outdoor space, a basketball court and an indoor swimming pool.
Source: Philadelphia Inquirer; 2/20/2024
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