Pennsbury Township supervisors are taking a favorable view at a request for a special exception by Hillendale Elementary School. The school wants to construct a pavilion to serve as an outdoor classroom. Hillendale is the one elementary school in the Unionville-Chadds Ford School District that doesn’t have an outdoor learning space.
Hillendale Principal Joshua Leight said the need for the outdoor space became apparent when in-person classes resumed after COVID lockdowns were lifted, but masks were still mandated.
“Our students and teachers really needed a place to go where they could take a snack break, a drink break, a mask break, and also see each other’s faces and get to know each other,” Leight said.
Leight told the board that there are about 300 “Huskies” [Hillendale’s nickname] at the school and it's “truly one of the happiest places…We refer to it as ‘Happy Hillendale’ and it truly is.”
“Being outside is what it means to be a Hillendale Husky,” he added.
But there’s also educational value to having the pavilion. Leight said that there’s been declining use in those other smaller areas and teachers want a larger space where students can collaborate on projects on a flat surface.
“But they still want to be outdoors and it’s so much better doing some research outside. They spend too much time inside,” he added.
Many of the science projects students work on concern the environment and ecology, so the outdoor space would be helpful for them.
He went on to say that there are three smaller outdoor areas on school grounds, but the proposed pavilion would be larger and able to accommodate a full-sized class if not all the students in one grade.
The proposed structure is 40 feet by 24 feet. It will be covered, open on three sides, have storage space, electricity, and WIFI, and be 60 feet from the property line in the southeast area of the school property.
“Our other three elementary schools have an outdoor space, and we want Hillendale students to have the same educational experience as those other schools,” said James Whitesel, the district’s director of facilities.
Leight and James Whitesel, the director of facilities for the Unionville-Chadds Ford School District, made the presentation to the Board of Supervisors during the board’s May 17 meeting in preparation for their trip to the Zoning Hearing Board on May 31. The school is in the R-3 Zoning District where educational use is permitted by special exception and adding a new structure on the property requires ZHB approval.
All three supervisors gave a thumbs up in favor of the application and will not oppose it at the hearing.
Other business
• Supervisors’ Chairman Aaron McIntyre said the board is a month away from adopting a new ordinance regarding parking on Constitution Drive in Chadds Ford Knoll. As has been reported, “No Parking” signs were installed on Constitution in January, but residents complained. After several meetings, the board agreed to change the restrictions. A new ordinance is expected to be adopted in June to allow parking on one side of the street unless there’s a weather emergency, making Constitution Drive a Snow Emergency Route. "This will eliminate the need for year-round no parking signs," McIntyre said.
• The board also agreed to enter into an agreement with architects John Milner and Margo Leach for the restoration of the Hope House located to the west of the township property. The house dates to the 1700s. Township Manager Kathy Howley said the contracts are for up to $25,700 for Milner and $500 per month for Leach. The work involves removing the façade down to the stone and replacing windows and doors. Work is expected to take into next year.
About Rich Schwartzman
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.
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