May 8, 2025 – ChaddsFordLive.com

Road Report May 12 to May 16

PennDOT has announced the following weather-dependent road projects that could affect drivers in the greater Chadds Ford area from Road Report May 12 to May 16. Motorists are urged to allow extra time traveling through one of the construction zones. Work schedules are subject to change.

• Tree trimming and removal will cause daytime lane closures on Creek Road between Wylie Terrace and Meetinghouse roads in Birmingham Township through May 31. The work will also cause lane closures on Brandywine Creek Road in Newlin Township between Embreeville and Strasburg roads.

• Tree trimming will also cause daytime lane closures on Route 926 between Folly Hill and Whitestone roads in East Marlborough and Pennsbury townships, and on Lenape Unionville Road between Northbrook and Haines Mill roads in Pocopson Township through the end of May.

• Other roads and municipalities affected by tree trimming work include Brintons Bridge and Creek roads in Birmingham Township, Pocopson and Parkersville roads in Pennsbury Township, Creek Road in Birmingham Township, and Spring Mill and Burnt Mill roads in Kennett Township through July 2.

• Overhead utility work will force daytime lane shifts on the Conchester Highway between Featherbed Lane and Foulk Road through July 25. Utility work will also cause daytime lane shifts on Concord Road between Station Road and Overfield Lane, and between Smithbridge and Valleybrook roads. The work will also cause lane shifts on Smithbridge between Valleybrook and Bethel Road.

• Kennett Square is reporting that the Birch Street Reconstruction Project is scheduled to end in the spring of 2026. During this time, Birch Street will experience rolling road closures where one or both lanes of traffic may be closed for a few hundred feet at a time. In general, the road will be open to local traffic, and road closures will be minimized as much as possible. When both lanes of traffic need to be closed for construction activities, access will be available on both sides of Birch Street, from South Broad Street and South Walnut Street.

• Overhead utility construction will cause daytime lane shifts on Route 52 between the Kennett/Oxford Bypass and Old Baltimore Pike and between Baltimore Pike and Cossart Road in Kennett Township now through Dec. 31.

• Overhead utility work will also cause daytime lane shifts on Baltimore Pike between the Kennett/Oxford Bypass and Walnut Street in Kennett Township through the end of the year.

• Utility and drainage installation will cause daytime lane closures at the intersection of Routes 202 and 926 in Westtown and Thornbury (Chester County) townships through Nov. 13.

• Utility and drainage installation, along with paving, will cause a daytime lane closure at the intersection of Routes 202 and 926 through Nov. 13.

• The Doe Run Road bridge on Route 82 over Doe Run remains closed through September.

• Continuing through early November, motorists should expect daytime lane closures in both directions on Route 1 between the Kennett Oxford Bypass and Greenwood Road in Kennett and East Marlborough townships. The closures are to facilitate widening that 1.3-mile stretch of roadway to three lanes in both directions.

• Construction continues to replace Twin Bridges, the South Creek Road bridge over the Brandywine between Chadds Ford and Pennsbury townships. Work is expected to continue through fall 2025. South Creek Road will be closed 1,200 feet south of Bullock Road and 1.1 miles north of Cossart Road. During the closure, motorists are directed to use U.S. 1, Route 52, Center Meeting Road, and Delaware State Route 100 (Montchanin Road). Bicyclists traveling Bike Route L will be directed to use Bullock Road, Ring Road, Ridge Road, and Delaware State roadway Smithbridge Road.

Road Report May 12 to May 16 Read More »

Boost Your Business: May is Business Success Month

Business

May is Small Business Success Month in the United States, and there’s a lot to celebrate. Small firms make up the majority (more than 99 percent) of all businesses in America and provide jobs for tens of millions of people (“half of all U.S. employees are employed by a small business,” notes a Forbes.com article.)

Small businesses range from mom-and-pop corner stores to high-tech startups run by computer nerds with dreams of becoming the next Microsoft. Small businesses can be organized as a sole proprietorship, a partnership, a corporation, or other legal entities.

To qualify as a small business, a firm must be independent and have fewer than 500 employees, states a March 2023 report from the Office of Advocacy with the U.S. Small Business Administration. A federal agency, the SBA was established in 1953 to assist small firms with loans, resources, and opportunities.

There are more than 33 million small businesses in the U.S., versus 20,868 large businesses. More than 80 percent of these small businesses (about 27.1 million firms) are one-person operations with no staff (“non-employer firms” as the SBA calls them). “Employer firms,” by contrast, do have paid staff, though usually not many of them. Roughly 5.4 million small businesses have “between one to 19 employees,” while “only 647,921 businesses have a workforce size ranging from 20 to 499 employees,” states Forbes.com.

Small businesses generate roughly 43.5 percent of the Gross Domestic Product in America. And, minuscule as their workforces might be, small businesses are also efficient job creators. Women own only about 20 percent of all employer firms, but when it comes to very small, one-person firms, things look considerably different. Women own about 42 percent, or 10.9 million, of non-employer firms.

In a piece posted online, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce identified five major challenges currently facing small businesses: inflation, access to credit, rising interest rates, supply chain disruptions, and hiring and retention. This article was written before the onset of the new tariffs and other business changes taking place in 2025. This also does not take into consideration anything affecting businesses during or due to the COVID pandemic.

When faced with cost increases, small business owners must raise prices, which hurts consumers, and/or cut expenses, which hurts the paid staff of the small business, and the business itself, notes the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Small businesses usually have very thin profit margins and small reserves of capital.

In a similar fashion, small businesses generally have a more difficult time getting access to credit than corporate industries. In general, big banks are more receptive to pleas for cash or credit when they come from the CEO of a large corporation over, say, the owner of an independently run burger shop.

Hiring and then retaining employees remains tricky. Low overall unemployment in the United States means there’s a smaller pool of potential staff. Despite the rate slowly increasing, it is still lower than the long-term average. The most difficult part of retaining employees is being able to offer people the benefits they want.

The failure rate for small businesses is high. From 1994 to 2020, an average of 67.7 percent of new employer establishments survived at least two years. In 2020, approximately 1.07 million small businesses were launched, and 1.02 million were permanently closed, mostly due to the COVID pandemic.

Given all this, why would anyone want to own and operate a small business?

Well, as it turns out, small business ownership has its upsides too. Benefits include independence, power and control, flexibility, financial gains, and passion and creativity. The independence factor is obvious. When you own the business, you are the boss. You do not have to rely on others or discuss decisions with them.

Power and control mean the ability to set rules, hire or fire people, and establish the workplace culture. Flexibility refers to deciding your own hours. While stores and restaurants have to keep consistent, customer-oriented hours, other types of small businesses, such as tech startups, don’t face such constraints and can work through the night and close during daylight hours if they choose. This flexibility was my business lifeline during and since my diagnosis with a chronic pain disease.

Financial gain might not always be obvious, but it’s worth noting that some massive corporations originated as tiny enterprises operating out of the owner’s garage or a back room in their house. Depending on the type of small business you pursue, financial gain could be a top priority.

Finally, passion and creativity enable a small business owner to pursue their dreams. And everyone can benefit from that.

Boost Your Business: May is Business Success Month Read More »

No decision on Calvary expansion

Local News, Local News Chadds Ford

Screenshot — Phase III, the proposed addition, is circled.

Calvary Chapel must wait another month before it learns whether the Chadd Ford Planning Commission will recommend approval for the chapel’s planned expansion.

For background, Calvary Chapel received approval for the church at 500 Brandywine Drive in 2008 and was opened in 2009 after getting land use and conditional use approval. The bureaucratic process took five years because of continuances.

The church was before the commission in September with a plan for an 11,500 square foot auditorium and outdoor terrace, but commission members wanted more information. At that time, Calvary’s engineer John Eckman said the expansion, planned for the northeast side of the building, would provide flexibility and could be used for an auditorium, gymnasium, an area for offices, or possibly classrooms.

Craig Huffman, Planning Commission chairman, and member Tom Bradley had issues because there were questions about the size of the congregation, the number of students, and whether there would be any anticipated growth, because growth would affect parking, water, and sewage use.

Concerns over the growth of the church and the school continue, even after the church went back to the Planning Commission in January. Members of the commission were not satisfied with the responses then, and they are still not satisfied.

Attorney Dennis Dunn representing Calvary said, “We’re here seeking land development approval for Phase III, but I think I should state we are again seeking land development approval for Phase III since land development approval for Phases 1 through III was already granted in 2008.”

He said that when he was before the commission in January, there were, what he thought, misconceptions, one of which is the notion that Phase III is something new.

He continued by stating that while there were some disputes over building the first two phases, eventually approvals were granted, and certificates of occupancy were granted.

He also said that a 2015 agreement included a provision for future school use, and that Calvary Chapel needed to get approval for that, “which it did.”

Dunn said Calvary applied for a certificate of occupancy for the school in 2019, and “The township issued the CO. No land development approval was required; it was sent for conditional use. Not an additional square foot of building was built at that point. The one thing that was coming through, to me anyway, in January, was a concept that Calvary Chapel had somehow snuck the school into this location. That didn’t happen; they got the CO.”

He emphasized that Phase III is not something new since it was already approved years earlier.

Over the course of the meeting, Dunn and others spoke for about an hour, eventually addressing some of the questions left over from the January meeting about parking, water and sewer use, and a nursery.

Architect Branda Hobbs said the nursery is only planned to be used as childcare during worship services.

Regarding plumbing fixtures, Dunn said that while 14 lavatories are required by building codes, seven for men and seven for women, a total of 26 are planned, 12 for men and 14 for women. And that is to accommodate 2,661 people in the building. “That’s more than twice what we ever have in this building. We don’t even get more than 1,000 for a regular Sunday service.”

Concerning the school, Innovate Academy, Dunn said the maximum number of students, pre-K through eighth grade, would be 270, roughly 10 percent of the maximum occupancy of Calvary Chapel.

“There is no nursery school,” he added.

With regard to sewage capacity, Calvary has an agreement with the Knights Bridge wastewater treatment plant that shows the plant will take 4,500 gallons of flow per day, which he said is far more than what DEP says is needed.

No traffic study has been submitted yet, Dunn said, but traffic engineer Guy DiMartino said he is in the process of finalizing a study based on comments from Pennoni Engineers, the township’s engineering firm.

“We have coordinated the specific scope of the traffic study, and we have performed all the necessary counts, and we will be submitting that study in the very near future. I have a draft on my desk that I have to review before submitting, but, looking at the results thus far, we are showing acceptable impacts.” DiMartino said.

Noise and light pollution have also been issues. Al Pinera, the director of operations for Calvary Chapel, said some of the sound issues related to live amplified music have been addressed by tweaking speakers down so there’s less bass, and that more trees are to be planted for an improved buffer between the church and the neighbors on Harvey Lane. Light and sound pollution, along with physical trespass, have been an issue for some of those neighbors.

As he wound down, Dunn said he will be back to clear up several issues, including DEP concerns, the traffic study, and the landscaping issue.

Then it was Commission Chairman Craig Huffman’s turn to express concerns. He said originally there was to be no school except for Sunday School.

“That testimony is in writing and it’s publicly available,” Huffman said when Dunn tried to interrupt.

Huffman also said, “There’s a very credible argument to be made that the church would not have been permitted to be built in phases if there was not a knowledge of what the ultimate uses of the church were going to be over time. Meaning that if you wanted to expand, you would have had to come back with another land use application later on, but Calvary wanted to have a phased-in approval at one time, and the testimony was that there’s not going to be a school.”

He continued by saying there had been noncompliance issues between the first two phases, and that what was presented for Phase II in 2015 was different than what was originally proposed and approved. That change had several classrooms being built, which led to litigation with an agreement that the church would not operate a school without approval, but the school started up in 2019. A certificate of occupancy was granted at the time, but “That CO was not consistent with the spirit of the agreement.”

Huffman added, “If Calvary Chapel, from my perspective, had honored the spirit of the agreement that was reached with the township in 2015, we would have come in on a land use application and we would have discussed parking requirements, sewage requirements, and all other requirements when they started operating the school in 2019 and we wouldn’t be dealing with it now with this level of acrimony.”

Other issues with Calvary include the church building in a conservation area, which they should have done.

“So, if we’re going to take a walk down memory lane, let’s take a walk all the way down and look at everything.”

But the next order of business was to look at the future to determine when Calvary Chapel will be back before the Planning Commission. A date was set for June 9.

No decision on Calvary expansion Read More »

Chadds Ford declares emergency

Local News, Local News Chadds Ford

With the closing of Crozer Chester Hospital, Chadds Ford Township supervisors officially declared a state of emergency in the township. The vote came during a special meeting of the board on Wednesday, May 7.

“I did declare a state of emergency last week because of the closure of Chester Crozer Hospital, which is really putting a cramp in our emergency services,” said Supervisors’ Chairman Timotha Trigg. She added that other townships have also made the same declaration.

According to township solicitor Mike Maddren, “Under the Emergency Services Act, the chair of a board can declare a state of emergency for seven days. At the end of the seven days, it expires unless it’s extended by consent of the majority of the board, which is why we’re here this evening.”

Maddren explained that Crozer was providing ambulance services for many municipalities that are adapting to the situation.

“Several municipalities have contracted with third-party providers, some are doing their own ALS [Advanced Life Support services], and the county is covering some other ones for 90 days,” Maddren said

He explained that there is a two-fold problem. One part is that there will be fewer ALSO vehicles on the street making rescues, while those that are making rescue calls may have to drive further to get a patient to a hospital that may be more crowded, but then have to make another call before it can get back to its home base.

“The concern now is there may be a slowdown in services because there’s a dearth of providers right now,” he said.

He acknowledged that it’s unknown at this point whether this would become a “deleterious situation, but it’s good to declare a state of emergency in advance because if you have to react by maybe contracting with someone else for secondary services, you have that in place.”

Township Manager Lacey Faber interjected, saying representatives from Concordville will be giving a presentation on the subject at the May 14 Board of Supervisors’ meeting.

Maddren then suggested that supervisors not give the declaration a specific end date because it’s a moving situation. So, the board then voted to extend the declaration of emergency indefinitely. The vote was 3-0.

Chadds Ford declares emergency Read More »

Primary candidates on ballots

Along the Ford

Sample ballots are out for the 2025 primary election, and, being that it’s an off-year election, the focus is on local races. Most of them, though, have candidates running unopposed or, as in the case of school board races, candidates cross-file.

In Chadds Ford Township, Kathleen Goodier is running unopposed in the Republican Party primary for township supervisor. Goodier was appointed supervisor in February of 2024 following the death of Frank Murphy. Under those circumstances, she would have been required to run for her own term, but Murphy’s term would have expired this year anyway.

Also running unopposed in the Republican primary are Valerie Hoxter and Swati Patel. Hoxter is running for another term as the elected tax collector, and Patel is running for another term as auditor.

No Democrats are running for any of those seats

There is no election this year for the Unionville-Chadds Ford School Board to represent Region C this year.

In Concord Township, four Republicans are running for the township Council, with three being incumbents: Dominic Pileggi, John Gillespie, and Dana Rankin. Colleen Morrone would be up for reelection, but she is not running. James Hunt, a Republican committeeman and a retired AstraZeneca executive, is running for her seat.

In Birmingham Township, Republican Scott Boorse is running unopposed for another term as supervisor and Kay Ellsworth is running unopposed in Pennsbury.

Ellsworth was appointed earlier this year afer Dan Boyle resigned from the board to take over as township manager following the retirement of long-time Manager Kathy Howley. As with Goodier, she would have been required to run for her own term, but Boyle’s term would have expired this year.

There are no Democrats running for supervisor in either Birmingham or Pennsbury.

In Newlin Township, Democrat James H. Cornell is running for supervisor, unopposed, as is Democrat Sandra Retzlaff in Pocopson, while Republican Andrea Gosselin is running unopposed for supervisor in Pocopson Township.

William H. Wylie Jr. is the lone Republican running for supervisor in West Marlborough Township. No Democrats are running.

In East Marlborough Township, Democrats Chris Manning and Steven Peuquet. Two seats are up for election there, with no Republicans on the ballot.

For the Unionville-Chadds Ford School Board, all candidates running have cross-filed. Jim Ash, Sandra Litvin, and incumbent School Board Director Steve Simonson are running to represent Region B, while Joseph P. Everett, Susan Still Elks are running to represent Region A.

Region A represents both East and West Marlborough townships, while Region B includes Birmingham, Newlin, and Pocopson.

The primary is Tuesday, May 20.

Primary candidates on ballots Read More »

Around Town May 8

Around Town

The Chester County History Center is having its first ever beer garden on May 15.

• During the first era of prohibition, when alcohol was the outlawed drug, a speakeasy was the place to go for an illicit drink with the crowd, if you knew the password. The Chester County History Center brings back those thrilling days next Thursday, May 15, but without the need for a password or worrying about a raid from the feds. It’s the center’s first-ever beer garden and will be on the center’s terrace from 5-8 p.m. This free community event invites you to enjoy the present while raising a glass to the past, right in the heart of historic downtown West Chester, with food and drink provided by Saloon 151. A portion of all purchases supports the Chester County History Center’s mission. No tickets. No cover. Just fun, music, and merriment in true Chester County History Center fashion. Please bring a friend (or three) and raise a glass to the past.

2024 Decoration Day Event with tombstone posters naming Black Civil War Veterans, Chester County Courthouse. Photo by Shirley Whyte.

• For the second year in a row, the 14 Civil War USCT veterans buried at Westtown’s Shiloh AME Church will be recognized during Shiloh Decoration Day, Saturday, May 17, from noon to 1 p.m. at Chester County’s Old Courthouse, 2 North High Street, West Chester. This event is coordinated by the Friends of Shiloh AME Church Cemetery. The public is invited to attend this event to learn about these Chester County heroes and the efforts being made to recognize them and their long-neglected place of rest. Besides speakers on the history of the church and the service of the veterans, mock-ups of the lost gravestones of veterans buried at Shiloh AME will be displayed, and the Sons of Union Veterans will present the Colors.

Amanda Marchand & Leah Sobsey, Herbarium Plate 1 – Wild Strawberry, printed 2025, archival pigment print (from original anthotype), 50 x 40. Courtesy of the artists and Rick Wester Fine Art, NYC. © Amanda Marchand & Leah Sobsey.

• A new exhibit is coming soon to the Brandywine Museum of Art. “This Earthen Door: Nature as Muse and Material” opens May 24 and runs through Sept. 7. The exhibition is the culmination of an almost five-year project of artists Amanda Marchand (b. 1972) and Leah Sobsey (b. 1973). Combining natural materials with historical and contemporary photographic processes and inspired by a book of pressed flowers—known as a herbarium—created by renowned poet Emily Dickinson in the mid-nineteenth century, Marchand and Sobsey utilized pure pigments extracted from flowers to make a vibrant series of plant-based artworks. The resulting exhibition is a kaleidoscope of colors comprising over 50 works, including two site-specific commissions.

• On Thursday, May 29, Yoga in the Park returns to Concord Township. It starts at 6 p.m. at the township park on Smithbridge Road and is suitable for all ages and all levels. It’s part of the Summer Sunset series of events. Other dates for Yoga in the Park are July 16, Aug. 14, Sept. 10, and Sept. 25.

The Mikado comes to Longwood on May 30 and 31.

• The Savoy Company is coming to Longwood Gardens on May 30 and 31 with a production of Gilbert and Sullivan’s The Mikado, considered one of their most popular works since its premiere in 1885. Show times are 8:30 p.m. both nights. Before each performance, join us for a talk with the creative team for The Mikado in the Visitor Center Auditorium from 5 to 6 p.m. about how this classic comedic opera was reenvisioned for a modern audience. Reserved seats range in price from $29-$39. Go here for more information or to buy tickets.

• Is anyone interested in learning to build and use a catapult? If so, check out Science Saturday at Hagley Museum on May 24. Use Newton’s laws of motion to build a catapult and test out how far you can launch a projectile. Visitors of all ages are invited to discover solutions to science and engineering challenges. This is a drop-in activity; feel free to join the fun at any time. Activities are included in admission and are free for Hagley members. Go here for tickets.

**Brush fires.** Members of the Concordville Fire. Co. demonstrate how they use a small truck to put out brush fires. The demonstration was Saturday, May 3, when members of the Chadds Ford Open Space Committee and other volunteers placed No Hunting signs and cleared invasive plants from the Sunset Hill Preserve off of Heyburn Road.

Around Town May 8 Read More »