I read with great amusement the nuanced bewilderment of [Kathy] Do and [Gregg] Linder. In my simple view, [Jeff] Hellrung did not endorse anyone. The assertion of Do and Linder that an organization “single-handedly defeated two referendums” is an insult to the majority of district voters who disagreed with their position concerning the renovation of the high school. Playing the victim is not flattering or productive and they are making politics the theme of the campaign with pronouncements such as, “once again have a strong conservative majority” and “the opposition slate.”
Do and Linder are progressive Democrats and should be proud of that fact and not try to obfuscate or devise a political “theme” to mask their beliefs from the voters. Even in their published letter they state, “We are three…Democrats and Republicans.” So there are four of you? Voters should know the political ideology of all candidates because it impacts their positions and votes. In my opinion the state law has gotten it right and provided a check and balance that aids voters in their understanding of the candidates.
As a historic note, the debt service for the high school renovation is being funded under the Act 1 cap. That 5-4 school board decision in 2008 in the face of taxpayers’ referendum rejections, illustrates the importance of electing well rounded citizens to the board. The 2008 “it’s for the children” board cabal has helped create the class size issues now facing the district. Not listening to the public and forging ahead with a risky long-term financing scheme is a true example of placing one’s head in the sand.
The Chester County Sheriff’s Office has released an updated list of Chester County’s most wanted fugitives and is seeking the assistance of the public to help track them down.
Chester County Sheriff Carolyn “Bunny” Welsh said, “The first public release of our Most Wanted list in July of 2014 resulted in the arrest of four fugitives who were featured on that list. We received a number of tips from our citizens in Chester County, as well as information from people in other states and even other countries. We are truly grateful for the public’s assistance and greatly appreciate their support.”
Welsh continued, “The Most Wanted list is the result of collaboration between all of Chester County Law Enforcement Agencies and the support of the District Attorney’s Office. We are pleased to assist them with the release of this list.”
The latest Most Wanted list can be found at www.chesco.org/sheriff and go to the “Most Wanted” link.
To submit information about any of the fugitives on the Most Wanted list call 610-344-4333, toll-free at 1-855-495-2861 or email mostwanted@chesco.org. For further information contact Lt. Suydam or Sgt. Sibley of the Fugitive Apprehension Unit at 610-344-6996.
PennDOT has announced the following road projects, which are weather-dependent and could affect residents in the greater Chadds Ford area during the week of Oct. 31 through Nov. 7. Motorists are urged to allow extra time if they are traveling through one of the construction zones.
Route 1 in both directions in New Garden Township will be subject to lane closures for bridge deck repairs. The work is scheduled from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. from Monday, Nov. 2, through Friday, Nov. 13.
Burnt Mill Road in Kennett Township is closed and detoured indefinitely between Norway and Spring Mill roads while advance work continues on repairs to the Burnt Mill Bridge, which was closed on April 24, 2014.
The Birmingham Road bridge in Birmingham Township is also closed indefinitely to repair structural damage. Posted detours will be in effect between Lambourne Road and Stoney Run Drive.
Route 52 in Kennett Township between Burrows Run Road and Pond View Drive will be closed from Nov. 13 through Nov. 16 for a railroad crossing replacement. Detours will be posted.
The road-widening project continues on Route 100 in Uwchlan and West Whiteland townships. Lane closures will be in effect between Swedesford Road and Route 113 from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. and from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. from Sunday, Nov. 1, through Friday, Nov. 6.
Utility installation will necessitate lane restrictions on Paoli Pike in East Goshen Township. Crews are scheduled to work from Friday, Oct. 30, through Friday, Nov. 6, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Work is continuing on the project to widen Route 202, which is scheduled for completion in August 2016. Motorists will experience traffic pattern shifts and lane closures in both directions in East Whiteland Township between the Routes 30 and 401 interchanges.
If you want to report potholes and other roadway maintenance concerns on state roads, call 610-566-0972 in Delaware County or 484-340-3200 in Chester County, or visit www.dot.state.pa.us and click on “submit feedback.”
On Tuesday, I will go to the polls and vote for Alan Horowitz. I will do so as a proud Republican, but also as an even prouder resident of the Estates of Chadds Ford and citizen of Chadds Ford Township. I will vote for Alan for three key reasons: His business and leadership experience; his commitment to protecting Chadds Ford from over-development; and his ability to help resolve the critical challenges that the township will face in the coming years.
This election is about our future. It is certainly not about who’s attended the most meetings in the past. As important issues like development on Route 202, the creation of a community gathering place in the historic district and the future of the loop road come before the board, we will need leaders like Alan who have the ability and guts to ask the key questions and make the tough decisions.
My family and I understand that Tuesday is about doing what’s best for Chadds Ford. That’s why I will gladly put partisanship aside and vote for Alan Horowitz and his vision of a walkable, driveable and livable Chadds Ford! I hope the rest of Chadds Ford does the same thing!
It is a very sad day for the UCFD school district when a sitting school board member, Jeff Hellrung, uses his position to engage in politics in an election outside his region. Jeff’s scurrilous editorial attack on Kathy Do, Bev Brookes and Gregg Lindner has no place in schoolboard dynamics. It will only poison the well of our deliberations.
I’ve been a member of the UCFCD Board for nearly two years. Kathy Do and Gregg Linder have never raised politics in any of our meetings. Both have repeatedly said to me that politics has no place in School Board deliberations. I couldn’t agree more. I have watched Gregg, who is vice chair and who sits on both the finance and buildings and grounds committees, work tirelessly to do what is best for the school district and our students. I’ve also watched Kathy, as chair of the curriculum and technology committee, give countless hours and thought to a wide range of curricular and technology issues trying to figure out what is in the best interests of our students.
Unlike Jeff, neither Gregg nor Kathy ever developed a political action committee to spread their political views about education and our public school system. Jeff’s, and his colleague Keith Knauss’, political action committee aims to promote what they called efficient education. When I first joined the board, Keith encouraged me to visit their website Efficient Education. What I found there was alarming — the use of shoddy statistical work and cherry picking of the academic literature to suit their ideological predispositions. As a practicing research economist I was appalled.
To make matters worse, Jeff’s political action colleague said at a recent board meeting that he’d like to see the UCFSD create a KIPP charter school. Except for the Hellrung/Knauss ideological predispositions, I can’t see how this makes any sense. Sad to say, I’m led to conclude that Jeff not only carries his political predispositions into his role as a school board member, now he is parlaying his political action work into a local school broad election outside his region where it has no place. Jeff, shame on you.
Michael T. Rock
Newlin Township
Michael Rock is a UCFSD School Board
director for Region B and is a professor of
economic history at Bryn Mawr College
The Chester County Board of Commissioners heard a presentation on the county’s 2016 preliminary budget at its Sunshine Meeting on Thursday, Oct. 29.
Chester County Commissioners Terence Farrell (from left), Michelle Kichline and Kathi Cozzone (right) present Recorder of Deeds Rick Loughery with a proclamation for Veterans, Record Your Discharge Date, to be observed Nov. 2.
Chief Operating Officer Mark Rupsis outlined the $525.9 million, draft spending plan, which holds the line on taxes and represents a 1.35 percent decrease from 2015. The preliminary budget calls for $439 million in operating expenses and $87 million in capital expenditures.
Rupsis predicted that the county would retain “one of the lowest tax rates in southeastern Pennsylvania. The rate would be 4.163 mills, the same as it has been for the past three years, Rupsis said. (A mill is a tax of $1 for every $1,000 of assessed property value; the 2015 median assessed value of $166,410 resulted in a tax of $692.76.)
All three commissioners thanked county employees for their roles in curbing spending while implementing the county’s strategic goals, which were updated at the commissioners’ regular meeting, which was also held several hours later on Thursday, Oct. 29. The county will hold a public budget hearing on Tuesday, Nov. 10, at 7 p.m. in the commissioners’ boardroom at 313 W. Miner St. in West Chester. Rupsis said he expected the budget to be ready for adoption in early December.
In other business, the commissioners issued proclamations to commemorate National Cyber Security Awareness Month and Veterans, Record Your Discharge Date.
Recorder of Deeds Rick Loughery explained that the state legislature designated Nov. 2 as a day to encourage Pennsylvania veterans to file a copy of their release or discharge papers with their county’s Recorder of Deeds Office. The free service enables veterans to have easy access to certified copies of their release or discharge documents, which are often needed for state and federal benefits, he said.
Loughery said about 30,000 veterans have recorded their information in the county, going back to the Civil War era. He said the county also offers veterans a free ID card, which makes them eligible for discounts at participating businesses.
Jeanne Casner, who heads the county’s Health Department, said she was pleased to announce that longtime employee Betsy Walls recently received the 2015 Pennsylvania State Nurses Association (PSNA) Lifetime Achievement Award.
The PSNA Lifetime Achievement Award is given to a PSNA member who has demonstrated leadership that has significantly impacted nursing practice, nursing education, nursing administration and/or nursing research within the state. Casner said Walls, the bureau director of Personal Health Services for the Chester County Health Department, has been involved in nursing for more than 50 years.
The commissioners reviewed and later approved a contract at their regular meeting to transfer ownership of the Chandler Mill Bridge to Kennett Township for $1. Kennett plans to renovate the bridge for use only by pedestrians and emergency vehicles, making it an anchor for a nature preserve.
Referencing a longtime conflict over plans to rehabilitate the bridge that pitted preservationists against the county and PennDOT, Steve Fromnick, the county’s director of facilities and parks, suggested the commissioners might want “to get that dollar framed.”
During public comment, Blair Fleischmann, the acting director of Safety, Agriculture, Villages, and Environment, Inc. (S.A.V.E.), said S.A.V.E. supports the county’s attention to the Route 1 corridor; however, she said recent discussions regarding an economic development study, possibly by West Chester University, have excluded the agricultural community.
Fleischmann said if the county is going to fund such a study, she would like to see more involvement from farmers and more transparency overall.
While you can ward off vampires with garlic alone, a few small changes around your home will keep vampire energy from haunting you this Halloween.
Vampire or “phantom” energy is energy used by computers, televisions, cable/satellite boxes, chargers, and other appliances and devices that continue to use power while powered off but still plugged in. These devices slowly drain energy, even when the products are not in use. The U.S. Department of Energy estimates that vampire energy costs customers in the United States more than $10 billion a year.
Minor changes around your home can add up to major savings:
Use a power strip with an on/off switch to completely power down electronics around your home, including DVD players, computers and coffee makers.
Unplug your mobile phone charger, portable music player or other electronics once they are fully charged.
When preparing for out-of-town travel, always unplug all nonessential devices.
Look for the ENERGY STAR® label on home appliances, electronics and other products, which meet strict efficiency guidelines set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Energy.
Finally, discover where energy vampires may be haunting your home by taking the PECO Smart Home E-Audit. This free, online tool analyzes a customer’s energy use and provides customized ways to save energy and money. To create your own personal profile with the PECO Smart Home E-Audit, register for MyAccount at peco.com.
If there’s one thing we can all agree on, it is that Chadds Ford is at a crossroads. We can either take a strong stand and protect our open space and scenic beauty, or we can allow development from Concord Township to overwhelm us. This is why our choice for supervisor on Tuesday is so critical. And this is why I believe Chadds Ford residents of all parties should elect Alan Horowitz for Supervisor.
It is my sincere belief that the best governance comes from the thoughtful consideration of diverse viewpoints and that Alan will be an excellent and invaluable addition to the Board. He is ready to lead and to take on the serious issues that face Chadds Ford. He is not a partisan. He looks forward to working with the current supervisors. He counts as friends and supporters Democrats and Republicans alike. He will be a supervisor for us all.
Here’s what I know about Alan Horowitz: He’s a global business leader and a lawyer who makes decisions about the environment, health, and ethics at the highest level on a daily basis. He is a critical thinker who looks at problems from multiple angles. He is someone who, with his family, spent three years living abroad gaining an invaluable cross-cultural perspective. And most importantly, he has a vision of what Chadds Ford is and should be in the future. That’s the “passion” that he is talking about in this election. It’s a passion to preserve the Chadds Ford that we all know and love.
If this election were about the past or tallying past attendance, then perhaps Noelle Barbone would be the best candidate for the job. But it’s not. It’s about the future and about making the tough decisions that will need to be made to protect our town.
Do we really want to slap the wrist of the people in our township that have younger children or demanding jobs, and exclude our most qualified decision makers from local government? Conversely, a seat on the Board of Supervisors should not be an award handed out on the basis of the number of meetings attended or work done for a particular political party.
Alan has made a commitment to serving as the supervisor Chadds Ford deserves and no one should have any doubt that he will live up to or exceed that commitment. But more importantly, I believe we should be encouraging everyone possible to participate in any way they can. Big jobs require everyone to get involved. In order to deal with the problems coming at us, we must tap into the greatest resource Chadds Ford has at its disposal…its most capable residents.
I know that everyone in Chadds Ford, whether Republican or Democrat or Independent, will benefit from having the most thoughtful, critical thinkers making the decisions that affect our township. That’s one of the reasons why, even though I am the Chair of the Chadds Ford Democratic Party, I am enthusiastically supporting Samantha Reiner for Supervisor. She is not only extremely experienced, but also someone who has always had an ear open for all sides. Like Alan, she is an independent thinker.
So yes, I will be voting for Alan Horowitz for supervisor on Tuesday and I strongly encourage all of my fellow Chadds Ford residents to do so as well, regardless of party affiliation. Ask yourself: Who do I want making the tough decisions that will have an impact on my town for years to come? The future of Chadds Ford is just too important not to have the most effective Board of Supervisors possible.
Jesse Sheppard
Chadds Ford Township
Jesse Sheppard is chairman of the Chadds Ford Democratic Party
