Large northern facing windows brought in a lot even light for NC Wyeth. The studio is on Murphy Road in Chadds Ford Township.
Rich Schwartzman has been reporting on events in the greater Chadds Ford area since September 2001 when he became the founding editor of The Chadds Ford Post. In April 2009 he became managing editor of ChaddsFordLive. He is also an award-winning photographer.
Photo of the Week: NC’s Studio Read More »
Chester County Judge Mark L. Tunnell, Monday, upheld Westtown Township’s denial of the Toll Bros. conditional use application for a flexible development at the 320-plus-acre Crebilly Farm property on Route 926.
“(T)he Board properly denied Toll Pa’s conditional use application on four separate grounds,” Tunnell wrote in his 23-page decision. “Consequently, the appeal is denied.”
The four issues Tunnell noted are a failure on Toll’s part to include a collector road on the plan, that Toll failed to show how it would mitigate traffic at an already heavily trafficked area, that it failed to show alternative access points to the proposed development and that Toll’s application did not account for conservation design standards.
Tunnell wrote that after reviewing arguments from both sides, reading the township ordinances and citing case law, he could find no fault in the Board’s denial on each of those points.
Toll has not yet responded to a request for comment so any course of action it might take remains unknown at this time.
However, Mindy Rhodes of East Bradford Township, one of the more vocal opponents of the development sent out a message saying: “It is my hope, given this latest news especially, Westtown Township will jump on this second chance and work to negotiate a better outcome for the future of Crebilly Farm,” Rhodes said.
“For the last two years, Westtown township could have put into place an open space fund that would bring yet another piece of the puzzle to the front lines for some kind of preservation. They have not done so yet. I urge you, Westtown Township residents, to ask your BOS to get on the stick and work toward creating an open space referendum for 2019,” she wrote.
Vince Moro, of Neighbors for Crebilly, one of the parties of interest also commented saying, “Neighbors for Crebilly, LLC, are grateful for Judge Tunnell’s decision, the work of the Westtown Township supervisors and the community. We believe this process is far from over but meanwhile will pause for this victory of the people of Westtown Township and neighboring communities.
“Without a doubt, building Crebilly Farm into a colony threatens these resources and sets an ugly precedent making it easier for others like Toll to destroy significant land. We’ll continue challenging this idea of development until another plan is on the table or the Robinson Family becomes willing landowners once again,” Moro said in his note.
Westtown Supervisors denied Toll‘s application in December after an almost year-long hearing process, from February through November of 2017. The written decision was released in February and Toll then appealed the decision in March. Tunnell heard the appeal on Sept. 17.
Rich Schwartzman has been reporting on events in the greater Chadds Ford area since September 2001 when he became the founding editor of The Chadds Ford Post. In April 2009 he became managing editor of ChaddsFordLive. He is also an award-winning photographer.
Judge upholds Crebilly denial Read More »
Birmingham Township supervisors Monday made quick work of their monthly meeting for October. A light agenda had the board meeting for only 30 minutes.
The township lost one of its police officers to another township and the board voted to hire a part-time replacement, Robert A. Dowd, at the training rate of $19 per hour.
Supervisors also chose to talk with solicitor Kristen Camp before deciding on two other matters.
Anne Siemer, chairman of the Recreation and, Parks and Open Space Committee, asked the board about changing some the content on the township website regarding Sandy Hollow Heritage Park. She said the committee has had to deny use of the park for private events and wants the text changed on the website to reflect that the park may be used only for public educational events.
Supervisors said they want to talk with Camp on the wording before making any change.
The board also wants to confer with Camp before deciding on a request from Victor Leonhard who lost several large trees on his Brinton’s Bridge Road property. The board granted Leonhard permission to construct a 5,100 square foot structure and have a landscaping business on the 23.6-acre property in 2011. One of the conditions of the settled agreement was that Leonhard could not sell firewood from the location.
However, extremely wet ground caused about eight large trees to fall, one tree branch broke an electric meter on the side of the house. After talking with the insurance company, Leonhard said, more trees would have to be felled for the company to continue insuring the home. He wants to sell the firewood to help offset the cost of hiring someone to take down the trees.
Supervisors were sympathetic, with Chairman Scott Boorse saying it wouldn’t be a commercial enterprise operating on a regular basis, but the board would talk with the solicitor before deciding.
Rich Schwartzman has been reporting on events in the greater Chadds Ford area since September 2001 when he became the founding editor of The Chadds Ford Post. In April 2009 he became managing editor of ChaddsFordLive. He is also an award-winning photographer.
Birmingham board checking with solicitor Read More »
Senators from both the Republican and Democratic parties are showing themselves to be equally guilty of ignoring their sworn duty to uphold the Constitution. They’d both rather promote their own partisan political agenda than do what they’re required to do. But what else is new?
The latest evidence stems from the Senate Judiciary Committee questioning witnesses during the Judge Brett Kavanaugh hearings. They are showing their allegiance to pandering for votes, not the Constitution. The political theatre on display last Thursday and Friday makes that obvious, not for what was said and asked but, rather, what wasn’t discussed.
A brief recap: President Donald Trump nominated Kavanaugh, a federal judge, to the Supreme Court. The Democrats don’t want him on the bench. Business as usual. But, in July, Sen. Diane Feinstein, a Democrat from California, received a letter from a woman alleging Kavanaugh sexually assaulted her when they were both teenagers more than 30 years ago. She was 15 at the time, Kavanaugh was 17. Feinstein waited until September to reveal the information.
Republicans want Kavanaugh on the Supreme Court with the hope he will vote and opine on cases the way the GOP wants. And since the nominee was chosen by a Republican president, they get to kiss the ring.
If the allegations of sexual assault are true, Kavanaugh shouldn’t be on the Supreme Court — or maybe any other court, either. But the thing is, he shouldn’t be on the Supreme Court anyway because he doesn’t fully support the Constitution, especially the Fourth Amendment
Brett Kavanaugh helped write the Patriot Act, that piece of post 9/11 legislation that the federal government — and some state and local governments — has been using to violate the Fourth.
The amendment reads: “The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.”
This amendment acknowledges a person’s right to be left alone, the right to privacy. It says the government needs probable cause for a warrant, meaning that there’s probable cause of a crime having been committed. But the Patriot Act allows federal agents to write their own warrants, no judge needed. Additionally, the person who’s served the search warrant isn’t allowed to tell anyone he or she was served. That’s a violation of the First Amendment.
The nominee is also on record as saying the warrantless metadata collection of all phone calls is consistent with the Fourth Amendment. Really, dude? Seriously?
If the president or his advisors cared about the Constitution (Remember that oath of office thing?), Brett Kavanaugh would never have been nominated, but they don’t care.
But neither do the Democrats. No, they’d rather go for the salacious, the allegations that a teenager might have sexually assaulted another teenager. They’d rather talk about sex, underage drinking, vomiting and flatulence than about whether a Supreme Court nominee actually understands the Constitution.
There was a time when Democrats wanted to talk about civil liberties and would challenge any Republican-sponsored piece of legislation they thought would violate due process. No more. Democrats never stood up to former President Barrack Obama when he ordered two American citizens killed without any level of due process. No charges, no trial, just a star chamber-like decision in a “kill meeting.”
The Republicans didn’t push back against that either. They didn’t care about due process in that matter, and the Democrats don’t care about constitutional guarantees when conducting hearings on a Supreme Court nomination.
So, this question comes to mind: Could it be they both like some violations of what is considered to be the law of the land? It appears the answer is yes.
We know the Democrats will be voting no on the appointment. But wouldn’t it be interesting if a number of Republican senators also voted no and said they did so because of the nominee’s position that the Patriot Act supersedes the constitutional guarantees? But I won’t hold my breath.
Again, if Brett Kavanaugh did assault the woman 36 years ago, he should not be on the Supreme Court. And even if he didn’t he shouldn’t be on the court because of his assault on constitutionally guaranteed liberties. Yet, neither of the two old, too old parties care about upholding the Constitution, and that’s disgraceful. But the majority of the voting public doesn’t care either. They’d rather wave their elephant and donkey flags and root for their team than make sure those they elected uphold their oath of office. That’s a disgrace, too.
Rich Schwartzman has been reporting on events in the greater Chadds Ford area since September 2001 when he became the founding editor of The Chadds Ford Post. In April 2009 he became managing editor of ChaddsFordLive. He is also an award-winning photographer.
Musings: Congressional disgrace Read More »
A year ago, the October observances for Breast Cancer Awareness Month and Halloween spawned a smattering of pink pumpkins at the Wyeth homestead on Creek Road in Chadds Ford, but that was just the beginning.
The creator of the inaugural pink display was Victoria Browning Wyeth, who had faced a double mastectomy right around Halloween. Even though she wasn’t feeling particularly festive, she didn’t want to disappoint the schoolchildren who eagerly view her roadside pumpkin display at her famous grandparents’ home. So she decided to add a splash of pink to the mix.
This year, she set a higher-profile goal. Equipped with six cans of Candy Pink spray paint – emptying a shelf at Home Depot – and 36 pumpkins, she opted for an exclusively pink look. She also enlisted a small posse of neophyte pumpkin-painters, who caught on quickly.
“No, I’ve never painted a pumpkin pink before,” admitted Alan Maringer as he deftly dodged the pink haze from the spray.
As the painters scurried from one fence post to the next on Sunday, Sept. 30, 2018, they attracted some attention from passing drivers, many of whom slowed to view the activity.
Jesse Migdal and his 4-year-old son Alex, who live nearby, walked over to get a closer look, and Alex got drafted to help. The father and son left with a spray can and fond memories of watching Wyeth paint Alex’s name on the grass.
“Alex couldn’t wait to go home and paint his own pumpkin and put it out on our own ‘fence’ by the road,” Migdal said later.
That’s exactly the response Wyeth wanted.
“I hope it catches on; I really do,” she said. “It’s such a great way to combine Halloween with something so important: Breast Cancer Awareness Month.”
Wyeth said the monthlong pumpkin adornments began a few years ago as a natural outgrowth of her upbringing. The orange squash feature prominently in paintings by her grandfather, Andrew Wyeth. In addition, a whimsical self-portrait, her uncle, Jamie Wyeth, depicts himself as a pumpkin head.
The display, initially a way to celebrate her family’s favorite season, became more special after Wyeth, a popular lecturer at area elementary schools, learned that the decorations came into view on many of the school bus routes. Even better, she heard about how much the children enjoyed seeing them, making the assembly even more fun.
Last year, the significance intensified when she added the pop of pink in tribute to others battling breast cancer.
“It’s so wonderful that she wants to do this,” said Lynn Wachman, one of the painters as well as a cancer survivor. “She’s a beacon of light, and she really cares about all of the people she met during her treatment.”
Wyeth’s quest to spread awareness and advocacy seemed to get a foothold in her crew.
By the time Maringer had perfected his painting technique, the pumpkins were finished, and he was ready for bigger challenges. So he turned the can loose on his t-shirt, producing a colorful burst. Once Wachman saw the results of his artistry, she requested – and received – the same look.
Then she and her husband, Michael Guttman, eagerly accepted a leftover paint can and got in their car. Several minutes later, they were spotted at the SIW farm stand. Their purchase: soon-to-be-pink pumpkins.
Wyeth working to promote pink-pumpkin trend Read More »
Elizabeth A. Armstrong, 63, of West Chester, died Thursday, Sept. 27, at Pembrooke Nursing and Rehabilitation in West Chester.
Born in Wilmington, , she was the daughter of the late John H. Armstrong and the late Mary Horty Armstrong.
She was a food service worker Aramark.
Elizabeth enjoyed playing Bingo, bike riding, sports, computer games and reading.
She is survived by one brother, John H. Armstrong Jr. and one sister, Mary Catherine Armstrong.
A graveside service will be held at 2 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 4, at Union Hill Cemetery, Route 82, Kennett Square.
In lieu of flowers a contribution may be made to Pembrooke Nursing and Rehabilitation Center, 1130 West Chester Pike, West Chester, PA 19380, Attn: Sherry Urban or to Handi-Crafters, Inc., P.O. Box 72646, Thorndale, PA 19372, Attn: April Ennis-Pierson
To view her online tribute and to share a memory with her family, please visit www.griecocares.com
Arrangements by the Kuzo & Grieco Funeral Home, Kennett Square.
Elizabeth A. Armstrong of West Chester Read More »
Ida A. DiNorscia, 91, of Kennett Square, died Thursday, Sept. 27, at the Jennersville Hospital. She was the wife of the late Anthony O. DiNorscia, who died in 1994, and with whom she shared 45 years of marriage.
Born in Coatesville, PA, she was the daughter of the late Salvatore Dazio and the late Bridgetta DiLulius Dazio.
Ida was a homemaker.
She was a member of St. Patrick’s Church in Kennett Square, where she was involved in various positions. She served as President of the Ladies of St. Patrick’s Church, The Altar Rosary Society, where she was involved for many years cleaning the Church. She also volunteered for 28 years as the Tuesday librarian at St. Patrick’s School. She also worked at the polling places each election year.
She enjoyed volunteering, cooking, reading, watch westerns, the Food Channel on TV, playing trivia games, and being with her family and friends.
The family would like to thank the aides and staff at Brandywine Senior Living for the excellent care that was given to her while she was there.
She is survived by one son, Richard A. DiNorscia and his wife Lynn of Parkesburg; three daughters, Marlene Reinhart of Coatesville, Antoinette Isaacs of Oxford, and Diane DiNorscia Green and her husband Eric of Newark; one sister, Lena Kluckowski of Baltimore, Md.; seven grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.
She was predeceased by six brothers, Dr. John Dazio, Quincey Dazio, Joseph Dazio, Anthony Dazio, Nicholas Dazio, and Albert Dazio; three sisters, Mary Scamuffa, Bessie Rudy and Emma Dazio, and one great-granddaughter, Ashley Marie Sagers.
You are invited to visit with her family and friends from 8:30 to 10:30 a.m. on Thursday, Oct. 4, at the Kuzo & Grieco Funeral Home, 250 West State Street, Kennett Square, PA. Her funeral mass will follow at 11 at St. Patrick Church, 212 Meredith Street, Kennett Square. Burial will be in St. Patrick’s Cemetery, Route 82, Kennett Square.
In lieu of flowers a contribution may be made to St. Patrick Church, 205 Lafayette Street, Kennett Square, PA 19348or to the Autism Society of America, 18 Watkins Avenue, Chadds Ford, PA 19317
To view her online tribute or to share a memory with her family, please visit www.griecocares.com
Ida A. DiNorscia of Kennett Square Read More »
Frances Arlene Samms, 93, of Garnet Valley, formerly of Orange, Texas, died on Sunday, Sept. 29, at Naamans Creek Country Manor, Garnet Valley. She was the wife of the late Leslie D. Samms, who died in 1998, and with whom she share 55 years of marriage.
Born in Grenola, Kan., she was the daughter of the late Roy H. Dory and the late Etta Moore Dory.
She was one of the first members of the First Christian Church in Orange, Texas.
Mrs. Samms was a homemaker, and she enjoyed square dancing and being with her family and friends.
She is survived by one daughter, Linda D. Porter and her husband Larry of Garnet Valley; one son, Larry D. Samms and his wife Joanie of Hemphill, Texas; three grandchildren, Bryan Porter and his wife Debbie, Christy Holbert and her husband Dean and Joshua Samms and his wife Ashlee, and five great-grandchildren.
In addition to her parents, she was predeceased by one daughter, Sheila Lynn Samms, two brothers and two sisters.
Her graveside service will be held in Orange, Texas at a later date.
In lieu of flowers. A contribution may be made to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, 501 St. Jude Place, Memphis, TN 38105
To view her online tribute and to share a memory with her family, please visit www.griecocares.com
Arrangements by the Kuzo & Grieco Funeral Home, Kennett Square.
Frances Arlene Samms of Garnet Valley Read More »
