August 15, 2012

West Marlborough Township’s recent passage of a 0.5 percent earned income tax triggered a brief discussion among Unionville-Chadds Ford School District board members at their Aug. 13 work session.

Keith Knauss, director of the finance committee said the board doesn’t want to tackle the issue at the present time, especially since it was rejected a few years ago.

“The Board does not have enthusiasm to entertain a discussion of the pros and cons of an earned income tax as there is no support among school district voters to pass an earned income tax to partially fund the school district,” Knauss said. “A few years ago we had an earned income tax referendum in compliance with 2006 Pennsylvania Act 1 Taxpayer Relief Act.  The voters rejected earned income tax so there is little point in forming a new committee to study earned income tax.”

None of the board directors present at the work session were in favor of further discussion of an earned income tax study committee. However it was noted that four local townships — Newln, Pennsbury, Pocopson and West Marlboro — have enacted an earned income tax to partially fund these respective townships in conjunction with real estate property taxes.

Gov. Ed Rendell signed the Act 1 Taxpayer Relief Act into law on June 27, 2006. The bill mandated that school districts place a referendum question on the May 15, 2007 primary election ballot asking voters whether earned income or personal income taxes should be increased, or instituted for the purpose of reducing real estate taxes on qualified residential properties. All school districts in Pennsylvania, other than Philadelphia, Pittsburgh and Scranton, were required to place a referendum question on the ballot.   The board’s EIT  Study Commission issued a report in December 2006 which can be found at http://www.ucfsd.org/boff/tsc_report.pdf

Across Pennsylvania, voters in the 2007 primary almost unanimously voted against the Act 1 referendum questions on the ballot.  Of the 498 Pennsylvania districts with ballot questions, voters in only four school districts approved the tax shift designed to provide homeowners with greater reductions in property taxes.  UCFSD voters rejected the EIT referendum by more than 1,200 votes.

Other business

The Aug. 27 school board meeting will be in the Unionville High School LGI room beginning at 7:30 p.m.    This meeting is open to district residents and the school board has scheduled time for resident comments.

• Members of the Pennsbury Township Planning Commission are working on a solar energy ordinance and have announced they will meet with John Snook of the Brandywine Conservancy to help with the project. That meeting is tentatively planned for September.

• Pennsbury Township supervisors are looking to replace a member of the township Historic Commission and a representative to the Bayard Taylor Library Board. Bob and Susie MacDonnell are moving from Pennsbury. Bob is on the Historic Commission and Susie is on the library board.

 

 

 

 

 

Al Webber maintained a zest for life throughout his 104 years. He was a DuPont Co. scientist who also found time to devote to Boy Scouts and Cub Scouts, volunteered at the Chadds Ford Historical Society, served on the Unionville-Chadds Ford School Board and spent time as judge of elections in Birmingham Township.

He was also a member of the board of the Kennett Symphony and became the symphony’s first emeritus member. Webber was the photographer for the first Chadds Ford Days and was an amateur astronomer — he was a fellow at Mount Cuba Astronomical Observatory. Webber also did lapidary and played trombone

Born Oct. 10, 1907, Mr. Webber died at home on Aug. 8, according to his obituary.

In October 2007, there were two birthday parties to celebrate his, then, 100 years of living. One was a public surprise party at Jimmy John’s, during which Webber gave his secret for long life: “All you have to do is eat well and stay in the right lane.”

There was another party days later at, what his sons, Al and Dave Webber, said was their father’s favorite restaurant — Hooters.

Webber’s daughter, Judy Stark, who lives in Pittsburgh, said at the time her father still drove and had a girlfriend.

Shirley Pritchard, a past president of the Kennett Symphony, served with Webber on the symphony board for more than 20 years.

“He was a hoot,” Pritchard said after learning about his 100th birthday dinner, but she had much praise for the man.

“He was brilliant. He was always very concise in his comments regarding the symphony… He had so many interests. He loved to bring in semi-precious stones that he had made into jewelry,” she said.

Pritchard added that Webber’s knowledge and understanding of music was extensive.

“Not everyone who sits on a symphony board knows every piece of music that’s presented, [but] he did. So, when we on the board had to vote on a piece of music, Al knew that. He was witty. He was kind, always very kind and he was tremendously supportive of the symphony and the symphony family,” she said.

Webber was the first emeritus board member of the symphony and the honorary position was established for, and because of him, Pritchard said.

Pritchard’s favorite story about Webber is that he was in his 90s and said he had to get home to make dinner for the kids who were already in their 60s.

Chadds Ford psychologist Kayta Gajdos also knew Webber.

“He was a Renaissance man. He could literally show a woman the moon. That is, in his backyard with an amazing telescope. When not being an astronomer he was a gemologist or an organist or a photographer. When my mother was dying of brain cancer, Al came to our house to show her his slides of flowers he had taken at Longwood. This sounds innocuous enough until you realize he was 88 at the time, and there was a torrential downpour which made Creek Road a veritable creek itself. Al detoured his way in the dark to do as he had promised, wanting to give some comfort of beauty to my mother that he had met at our holiday parties. Of course, Al was a delight at those events, so full of vim and vigor and always a twinkle in his eye. An amazing man who seemed to take on life as an amazing adventure,” Gajdos said in an email.

There will be a memorial service on Aug. 25 at 11 a.m. at Longwood Funeral Home, 913 East Baltimore Pike in Kennett Square. Memorial contributions may be made to the Kennett Symphony Orchestra of Chester County, Mt. Cuba Observatory or Bates College.