DEP advises radon testing, says 40% of PA homes exceed federal action levels
Pennsylvania environmental officials are urging residents to test their homes for radon during January, which is Radon Action Month, citing data showing that about 40% of homes statewide exceed the Environmental Protection Agency’s action level of 4.0 picocuries per liter. Radon, an odorless, naturally occurring gas and the second-leading cause of lung cancer in the U.S., is responsible for an estimated 21,000 deaths annually. Pennsylvania is considered a high-risk state. Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) Secretary Jessica Shirley emphasized that while any building can have elevated radon levels, testing is simple and affordable, with do-it-yourself kits costing $20 to $30 or professional testing available through state-certified companies. Officials recommend placing test kits on the lowest level of the home during winter months, when radon is more likely to accumulate. If high levels are found, mitigation systems typically cost $800 to $1,200 and require minimal maintenance, though re-testing every two years is advised.
Source: New Hope Free Press; 1/14/2026

4,000-plus housing units proposed in Philadelphia region since Q3 2025
More than 4,000 new residential units have been proposed across the Greater Philadelphia region since the third quarter of 2025, according to the Philadelphia Business Journal’s updated Crane Watch map. The latest update highlights major housing projects alongside significant nonresidential investments, including DrinkPak’s $195 million, 1.4-million-square-foot warehouse in Philadelphia’s Bellwether District and plans for a new PhilaPort cruise terminal near Philadelphia International Airport. Residential growth spans the city, suburbs and South Jersey, with large-scale proposals, such as a 36-story, 620-unit tower along the Delaware River, hundreds of apartments tied to mall redevelopments in Plymouth Meeting and Moorestown, and major suburban projects in King of Prussia, Exton, Malvern and other parts of Chester County. Established neighborhoods like Fishtown, Northern Liberties, Center City and Rittenhouse Square also continue to see new apartment construction.
Source: Philadelphia Business Journal; 1/18/2026

New PA loan program seeks to expand affordable rentals for at-risk populations
A new, statewide program seeks to preserve and expand Pennsylvania’s supply of affordable rental housing for residents at risk of housing instability, including people facing homelessness, or escaping domestic violence or human trafficking. Launched by the Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency (PHFA), the $35 million initiative offers 0% interest, deferred-payment loans to private and nonprofit developers, municipalities and housing authorities. The deadline to apply is April 1 at 2 p.m. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development will administer the initiative with dollars from the American Rescue Plan. Under the program, 70% of the funding must go to housing projects aimed at helping vulnerable residents in Pennsylvania, regardless of their income, and those at risk of homelessness. The rest of the units must be affordable to households earning up to 80% of the area median income — which in Philadelphia equals $66,850 for an individual.
Source: PlanPhilly; 1/20/2026

White House and governors want to fix AI-driven power shortages and cost spikes
The Trump administration and a bipartisan group of governors, including Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, are urging PJM Interconnection, the Mid-Atlantic power grid operator, to move faster to add electricity generation and rein in rising costs as energy demand surges from artificial intelligence data centers. Officials want PJM to require tech companies to bid on and pay for new power plants and to extend a cap on wholesale power payments to protect consumers, warning of potential blackouts and steep bill increases if action is delayed. Shapiro said the proposal could save ratepayers across the 13-state PJM region billions and warned Pennsylvania could exit the grid if PJM does not act, a move that could further disrupt prices. In Southeast Pennsylvania, where utilities like PECO serve customers within PJM, the debate has direct implications for electricity bills and grid reliability as data center growth in the Philly suburbs adds strain to an already tight system.
Source: Philadelphia Inquirer; 1/16/2026

PA pushes data centers despite local opposition
Many Pennsylvanians are wary of the rapid spread of energy- and water-hungry data centers, but state leaders from both parties, led by Gov. Josh Shapiro, are largely embracing them as essential to economic growth and the race to develop artificial intelligence, according to a Spotlight PA report. Pennsylvania residents across the state, from Allegheny to Lackawanna Counties, have expressed concerns about planned data centers and their impacts on energy prices, water usage and pollution. In a recent poll, 42% of Pennsylvanians said they do not want one built in or near their community. Yet many state and local lawmakers — even skeptics — have accepted the proliferation of data centers in Pennsylvania as a fact of life. Residents in places like Chester County’s East Vincent Township, where wells have already run dry during droughts, fear the projects will drive up utility costs and strain water supplies, even as companies like Amazon Web Services and Blackstone pledge tens of billions of dollars in investment and thousands of jobs. Lawmakers are weighing bills to speed permitting while adding oversight, fees and environmental reporting, and some, including state Sen. Katie Muth (D-44), have called for a temporary moratorium. However, party leaders say data centers are inevitable and Pennsylvania must be prepared to meet the soaring demand for power and water.
Source: Spotlight PA; 1/15/2026 

Solebury receives $800K grant for nuisance quarry purchase
Solebury Township will receive an $800,000 state grant to help offset the cost of purchasing a 166-acre former quarry that has long been considered a local nuisance. The grant was part of more than $1.8 million awarded to Bucks County communities through Pennsylvania’s Conservation and Recreation Program. The funding supports Solebury’s 2025 joint purchase with Solebury School of the former New Hope Crushed Stone and Lime Co. property for $3.2 million, with plans to reclaim the site as a protected lake, future public park, and public safety resource, including a Central Bucks EMS station, a training site for the Bucks County Public Safety Dive Team, and emergency water access for fire departments. Lawmakers estimate the grant will reduce the township’s net cost to about $500,000, aided by cost-sharing with the neighboring private school, while officials continue to develop a long-term reclamation plan for the property, which includes a 70-acre lake.
Source: Bucks County Courier Times; 1/15/2026

Revised sketch plan to be presented in Durham
Sixteen months after residents strongly objected to an initial proposal for the Durham Springs property, the owners have submitted a significantly scaled-back sketch plan for the former Cascade Lodge site in Durham Township, which will be presented at a special public meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 17, at 7 p.m. at the Springtown Firehouse. The revised plan calls for adding just two small cottages, each with five rooms, to the existing buildings on the 30-acre property — a sharp reduction from the original 2024 proposal that included 44 tightly clustered micro-cabins and raised concerns about traffic, noise, environmental impacts and the site effectively becoming a hotel. Township officials expect strong public interest again, given the property’s history, environmental sensitivities, such as steep slopes and wetlands, and its location along Lehnenberg Road, even as the venue continues to operate legally as a wedding site.
Source: Bucks County Herald; 1/16/2026

Battle over redevelopment of Buckingham tract ends with new agreement
A years-long dispute over redevelopment of the 58-acre DiGirolamo Tract in Buckingham Township appears to be resolved under a new agreement that permanently withdraws plans for a large warehouse and replaces them with a proposal for up to 42 single-family homes and the preservation of about 26 acres of open space along Cold Spring Creamery Road. Approved by a Bucks County judge and supported by township officials, developer J.G. Petrucci, the Bucks County Airport Authority and the No Buckingham Warehouse residents’ group, the deal also includes walking paths, a $750,000 contribution for township recreational improvements, and restrictions preventing home construction under the airport’s immediate flight path. The agreement follows prolonged legal battles and community opposition centered on traffic, safety and environmental concerns, and is expected to go before township supervisors for ratification at the Wednesday, Jan. 28, meeting. “All parties have worked collaboratively to come up with a use that is good for the community,” said Greg Rogerson, principal for J.G. Petrucci. Formal plans may be presented within the next few months, which will then be subject to the land development approval process.
Source: Bucks County Courier Times; 1/15/2026

Bristol Borough secures $1.5M federal grant for boat dock expansion
Bristol Borough has secured $1.5 million in federal funding — the maximum allowed — through the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Boating Infrastructure Grant Program to expand its boat docks along the Delaware River. The project, administered through the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission, will add a new dock extending from the opposite side of the existing fixed pier, though officials noted the expansion must clear extensive regulatory hurdles. Longstanding grant-related restrictions limiting dock use to recreational vessels over 26 feet will remain in place, as federal and state agencies have declined to grant waivers. Borough leaders said the docks, which opened in 2017 and have become a focal point for community events and downtown economic activity, are also the subject of additional funding efforts, including a pending $1 million state grant application.
Source: Levittown Now; 1/14/2026

Grand View labor and delivery unit in West Rockhill remains closed
The Grand View Campus of St. Luke’s University Health Network shut down its labor and delivery unit on Dec. 1, 2025, saying it was a temporary measure due to “unanticipated physician resignations.” Since the closure, all births have been redirected to St. Luke’s Upper Bucks Campus. Grand View is a 207-bed facility in West Rockhill Township that has been in existence since 1916. It joined the St. Luke’s network last July. St. Luke’s spokesman Samuel Kennedy said he could not provide a timeline for the reopening of the Grand View labor and delivery unit.
Source: Bucks County Herald; 1/13/2026 

622-unit project in New Garden would help meet housing demand, officials say
A developer has closed on its acquisition of an initial tract of land for a sprawling $300 million, mixed-use project in New Garden Township, and local officials say it represents a chance to add much-needed housing to the area. Baltimore-based Stonewall Capital plans to add 622 residential units, 115,000 square feet of commercial space, a Wawa and office space to over 220 acres. Stonewall's recent completion of a $15 million purchase of 187 acres at 9060 Gap Newport Pike brings the vision a step closer to fruition. The project, called White Clay Point, will be constructed on a swath of land that was previously the site of an industrial facility for mushroom compost, situated about two miles from the Delaware border. The township has long identified the large plot of land as a possible development site due to its location in a "prime hub area" near the corner of Route 41 and Route 7, according to New Garden Township Manager Christopher Himes. The Chester County Planning Commission's comprehensive plan identifies the land as an area of suburban growth where it wants to encourage more density. Matt Edmond, executive director of the commission, said the sheer size of the project may be a "shock" in a rural area, but the proposal is evidence of "where our region is moving."
Source: Philadelphia Business Journal; 1/15/2026

South Coatesville set to vote on dissolving police force
South Coatesville is considering a proposed ordinance that would disband the borough’s police department and shift all law enforcement duties to the Pennsylvania State Police, according to a public notice. Borough officials say the move is intended to provide comprehensive police coverage in a more efficient and cost-effective manner, citing potential savings for residents, and they note that the state police have been notified of the borough’s request for protection. Borough council will hold a public hearing on the proposal on Tuesday, Jan. 27, at 7 p.m. at Borough Hall, 136 Modena Road. If adopted, the ordinance would dissolve the local department at 11:59 p.m. the same day, with the Pennsylvania State Police assuming responsibility beginning Jan. 28. Residents will have an opportunity to comment before the council votes.
Source: Daily Local; 1/17/2026

Oxford Area Historical Association gets state funding to buy Union School Building
The Oxford Area Historical Association has been awarded a $700,000 grant to purchase the historic building in which it is headquartered. The association will use the funds, which come through the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development’s Local Share Account Program, to buy the former Union School Building at 119 S. 5th St. in Oxford Borough. The nonprofit organization has been leasing the building and currently has an agreement of sale for the property. The plan is to continue to develop the building into a gateway for regional tourism, welcoming visitors to the area and directing them to nearby historic sites.
Source: Chester County Press; 1/14/2026

Long-range changes planned for U.S. 30 interchanges in Chesco
Changes are coming to several interchanges in Chester County that could affect commuters in roughly a decade, under projects aimed at improving a 7.5-mile stretch of U.S. Route 30. Pennsylvania’s Department of Transportation is nearing the end of the conceptual design period for proposed changes to interchanges affecting Caln, East Brandywine, Easttown, West Brandywine, Uwchlan and Downingtown in a project that seeks to reduce traffic congestion and collisions. “The purpose is to provide a safe and efficient transportation system by improving safety, reducing future congestion, accommodating planned growth, and improving deficiencies,” said Bruce Masi, consultant project manager with GFT, an engineering consulting firm. Construction is expected to start in spring 2034 and cost roughly $874 million. The federal government is slated to pick up the bulk of the cost, with the state taking a sliver, officials said. Learn more about the proposed changes at PennDOT’s project website.
Source: Philadelphia Inquirer; 1/21/2026