August 15, 2016

At its Sunshine meeting on Monday, Aug. 15, the Chester County Board of Commissioners reinforced the many accolades the county has received for good health with proclamations for National Recovery Month and National Preparedness Month.

Vincent H. Brown, executive director of the county’s Drug & Alcohol Services said an estimated 33,000 Chester County residents are in need of treatment. He said the ongoing opioid epidemic has focused attention on the problem, but he said he wanted to spotlight the positives. “Recovery continues to happen every day as well,” he said.

Brown introduced two people who have benefited from the county’s programs, John Gailey and Christine Sledd. They are also the chair and vice-chair respectively of the Chester County chapter of Pennsylvania Recovery Organization – Achieving Community Together (PRO-ACT), a grassroots advocacy and recovery support. PRO-ACT works to reduce the stigma of addiction.

Both represent success stories, Brown said. Gailey said he and his family struggled with the addiction of a loved one, who finally responded to an inpatient treatment program five years ago. Sledd said both she and her husband graduated from the county’s Recovery Court, a drug and alcohol treatment-based prison alternative program.

“I’m now the mother I always dreamed of being,” Sledd said, adding that she and her husband have been clean for five years. “We’re really grateful for the support of the county.”

To commemorate National Preparedness Month, the commissioners heard from Tom Glass, deputy director of emergency management for the Department of Emergency Services. Glass urged the audience to take simple steps to prepare for an emergency, whether it is a natural disaster or a terrorist scenario.

Highlighting the importance of advance planning, Glass pointed out that a family might not be together when an emergency occurs so it’s vital to ensure that everyone can contact one another and knows how to reconnect. He said families should have kits that include essentials, including food and medications, for three days. More information on emergency planning is available at http://www.readychesco.org.

In other business, the commissioners heard recommendations on two resolutions that will appear on the agenda for a vote at the commissioners meeting on Tuesday, Aug. 16.

Gary W. Smith, chairman of the Chester County Industrial Development Authority, endorsed the approval of up to $20 million in financing for expansion at the Hickman Friends Senior Community, a nursing home in West Chester. Smith noted that the project meets the eligibility requirements of the Pennsylvania Economic Development Financing Law.

Bill Gladden, director of the county’s Department of Open Space Preservation, urged the commissioners to approve a resolution that would result in a Hibernia Trail easement agreement for the Miller Farm in East Nantmeal Township.

Applauding the efforts of Steve Fromnick, the county’s director of facilities and parks, and David Ward, who heads the county’s Planning Commission, Gladden explained that by working with the other departments, the trail easement could be accomplished before the farm is preserved.

Once a property is accepted for preservation under the county and state farm preservation program, state law precludes the addition of trail easements, Gladden said, stressing the importance of advance collaboration.

Gladden also recommended that the commissioners approve an open-space contract for a farm in Honey Brook Township. He said the 43.4-acre property, which is owned by Isaac E. and Ada S. Stoltzfus, is being recommended for preservation by the county’s Agricultural Land Preservation Board. He said the project’s total cost would be $195,345, but the county will pay $107,439.75, after reimbursements of nearly $44,000 each from the Brandywine Conservancy and Honey Brook Township.

Noting that a number of people have inquired about the preservation of Barnard’s Orchard, a 74-acre family farm in Newlin Township, Gladden said the county is playing a role. “It’s being funded,” Gladden said of the project. “Things are going well.”

Gladden said the county is contributing $402,000 toward the acquisition of an easement, an initiative that is being spearheaded by The Land Conservancy for Southern Chester County.

Gwen Lacy, TLC’s executive director, said last week that $27,000 of the project’s $901,000 cost needs to be raised before the fall to qualify for matching grants. For more information, visit http://tlcforscc.org.