Tag: The Mercury

Urban planners to study Pottstown’s riverfront

A group of urban planners earning continuing education credits will soon be studying Pottstown’s riverfront and coming up with concepts for the Borough to consider – all free of charge. Last night Borough Council voted 7-0 to endorse the Borough’s participation in the online class.

Rutgers University’s Professional Development Institute (PDI) offers a range of courses to urban planners and other land use professionals from all over the United States and the world. They recently put out a call for communities who had land use and design challenges that could be the focus of one of their 5.5 week urban design studios.

As The Mercury reports today in “Urban planners ‘assigned’ to Pottstown riverfront as case study,” there has been much talk in the past year about the Urban Land Institute’s 2009 report that urged the Borough to create “a place of magic” on Pottstown’s riverfront. The PDI class will look at the numerous physical constraints and possibilities along the river, while learning urban design concepts from instructor Matt Wanamaker, a principal of the Philadelphia urban design and place-making firm Brown & Keener.

Brown & Keener’s home page states its mission simply:
“Envision futures.
Raise civic expectations.
Create agendas for change.
Make great places.”

As “the client” the Borough should end up with multiple concepts along with rough sketches from the class. Local officials, such as Chris Huff from the Planning Commission and Councilor Joe Kirkland, will be able to participate in the online discussions and respond to questions as they arise. The goal for the Borough is to get some realistic and fresh ideas that will spur community discussion about its vision for the riverfront. The class was announced on the PDI blog last week and had 7 people signed up within a couple days, according to Leo Vazquez, Director of PDI at Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy at Rutgers. If all goes well, there could be other opportunities to collaborate with PDI in the future – a win-win for the professionals taking PDI courses and for Pottstown.

Wines of the Finger Lakes class this Thursday

Local wine consultants and educators, Dean and Lisa Foster, are offering a class on Wines of the Finger Lakes this Thursday, March 31 from 6:30-9:30 pm in Pottstown. The class costs $35 per person and reservations are required in advance. Call or e-mail for more info or to register: 610 469 6164 or Vintageconnections@comcast.net.

Through their blogs, “Vintage Connections Wine Info,” and “Grapevine” in the Pottstown Mercury, Dean and Lisa provide information and recommendations about wine, wine events, and the world of wine, primarily in the Montgomery, Berks, and Chester Tri-County Area of Southeastern Pennsylvania. They also focus on affordable and accessible wines, mostly priced under $20 and sometimes under $10, and available at PA Wine and Spirits stores or at wineries located in Eastern Pennsylvania.

Their consulting business, “Vintage Connections,” provides wine education, wine classes and seminars, educational food and wine pairings, wine tastings, and other customized services. If you haven’t been to one of their classes yet, you’re missing out on a very enjoyable opportunity to get over that hump of being intimidated by the sometimes overwhelming world of wine!

Sunday afternoon at the theater: The Crucible at 3 pm

I just have to make another plug for The Crucible, now running at the Tri-County Performing Arts Center. There’s a matinee show at 3 pm today, and then just four more performances after that – next weekend from Thurs. through Sunday.

Audience response has been highly positive, and The Mercury called the production “RIVETING” in its review.

I’ll be seeing it next weekend when I’m back in town, but you shouldn’t wait. If you can get there this afternoon, do it!

Tri-PAC
245 E. High Street
Pottstown, PA 19464
610-970-1199
Ticket info is here.

Remember: If you’re coming to the Positively!Pottstown Happy Hour on Friday, March 18 at the Tri-PAC, and you want to see The Crucible afterward, you can get a $2 discount on your ticket to the show! Simply call the box office at 610-970-1199 or email Beth at beth@villageproductions.org to purchase your discounted tickets. Then pick up your $2 coupon at the Happy Hour, get your tickets at the box office that night, and present the coupon at that time. Make a night of it!**

Heritage destination location: Pottstown

The Borough of Pottstown recently received a $2,000 Trail Towns and Tours Grant from the Schuylkill River Heritage Area (SRHA). Pottstown resident and biking and greenway advocate, Tom Carroll, and I have been retained by the Borough to implement this grant, and this blog post is meant to kick off that process and give some details about how it will work. Along the way, we’ll keep the community informed via this blog. For a good summary of the purpose of the grants, see Evan Brandt’s article from January 29th here.

The Trail Towns and Tours Grant is to be used to create a 30-page Heritage Action Plan (HAP) by the end of April 2011. It’s a deliberately short time frame in order to get results and for the SRHA to meet the William Penn Foundation’s time limits for spending the funds.

The overall intent of creating the HAP and going through a planning and consensus-building process (however quick) is to identify and leverage existing cultural resources, market Pottstown as a heritage destination, and get Schuylkill River Trail users (and other visitors) into the downtown to spur economic activity. Just as important will be the chance to develop and formalize solid working partnerships among individuals, organizations and businesses committed to promoting downtown Pottstown. This is what we’ve all been talking about for quite a while, and this grant gives the community a chance to try it out – working together and presenting a new image to potential visitors, outside governmental agencies and funders, as well as residents themselves.

It should be noted that heritage tourism IS economic development, but that it should be considered just one prong of a multi-pronged economic development strategy for Pottstown. There is still plenty of room to develop and promote Pottstown as an arts community, or one that values and hosts sustainable technology companies, or whatever other approach comes out of other visioning/planning efforts.

So, what is a heritage or cultural resource? I’ll just give a few examples: the River and its trail; historical architecture, markers & walking tours in the downtown; arts organizations; restaurants, including “heritage eateries,” such as The Very Best and the diner; the Historical Society; The Hill School; Pottsgrove Manor; Riverfront & Memorial Parks; a completed Carousel & mini-golf, etc. Visitors want an authentic experience when they decide on a destination and how to spend their money. Pottstown has loads to offer and the point of this grant is to identify and package it all in a way that will appeal to these visitors.

Another key part of this planning process will be looking at what needs to be done to make it very easy for people biking or hiking on the Trail to know what’s available in town and then actually direct them off the trail and safely to High Street. This whole approach is based on the idea of making the Pottstown Business Loop – a stretch of High Street – an official part of the River Trail, since it’s unlikely a right-of-way along the river will be available from Norfolk Southern anytime soon.

We’ll be helped along in this process by using what’s known as the Heritage Towns and Tours Toolkit, provided by the SRHA and created by their consultants, Peter Johnston & Associates of Easton, MD. From a planning perspective, this Toolkit is just amazing, allowing communities (& consultants, I might add) to dive in where they might otherwise be totally intimidated. The Toolkit lays out a step-by-step process to create a HAP with the rationale, forms and examples that make it seem do-able. Even better is that the SRHA grant comes with $5,000 worth of consulting services from Peter Johnston & Associates. They will be in Pottstown at least once for a 3-4 hour workshop to help us work our way through the Toolkit. We’ll also have support from the SRHA staff, who are right around the corner at 140 College Drive.

Basically, we will go through the following 5 steps:

1. Organize & Plan – What do we want for our community as a heritage destination? Form Useful Partnerships; Create a Vision & Goals, and Define Partner Expectations.

2. Identify & Assess – What do we have to offer as a heritage destination? Identify Heritage Resources; Assess Heritage Resources; and Bring People and Ideas Together.

3. Market & Improve – What do we need to market our community and what has already been done? Create an Image; Market Your Community; Improve Effectiveness.

4. Protect & Manage – How do we get there? Build Public Support, Look at Ordinances & Other Regulations, Make Any Recommendations That Will Help Protect Resources.

5. Prepare & Implement – How to complete the Heritage Action Plan?
Define Projects and Activities, Assign Costs, Manage Resources Over Long-Term

By the end of this process, Pottstown will have:
• A List of Partners and Stakeholders
• A Vision, Goals, and Objectives
• A Summary of Stakeholders and Assigned Jobs, Tasks, and Other Duties for Partners
• An Inventory of Heritage Resources, which have been Evaluated and Assessed for the Heritage Program
• A Marketing Plan Summary including an Image/Brand
• A Listing of Current Government Protections for Heritage Preservation and Tourism
• A Summary of Needed Policy and Regulatory Protections for Heritage Resources
• A Project List, Description of Projects, and Budgets
• A Final List of Recommendations or Strategic Actions including projects; and
• An Organizational Structure for the Long-Term Management and Oversight of the Heritage Program

The HAP will then be used to make another application to the SRHA for $25,000 in implementation funding to carry out the top priorities in the Plan. Those activities must be completed by May 2012.

The next step for Tom and me is to get in touch with folks from an initial list of local “Partners,” inviting them to participate in the process and start filling out a Partnership Form from the Toolkit. Please give me a day or so to get that email out. We invite others who want to participate to get in touch with us at PtownHAP@gmail.com.

Obviously, I think there’s a lot of potential here to get some solid forward movement on the economic development front. I appreciate the Borough giving Tom and me the chance to work on the project and rally the community around common goals – an improved local economy, stronger partnerships and more positive exposure and marketing of all that Pottstown has to offer.

Cheers for 2011!

I took the plunge this morning, along with about 120 other more daring Polar Bears at Pottstown’s 4th Annual Polar Bear Plunge sponsored by the Parks & Rec Department and organized by Bill & Sue Krause. Hundreds watched from the banks of the Schuylkill in Riverfront Park. Here’s a link to The Mercury’s early coverage.

I only went about thigh-deep. My feet went numb within about 10 seconds. Yes, I wore a wetsuit. With the practically balmy air temp – in the 40s – the suit was more useful as a barrier against the Schuylkill River slop that got stirred up and squished between my toes. The smell coming out of the river rivaled that of a failing septic field.  Yes, it was a uniquely charming outdoor experience.

In a surprise appearance by my younger sister and her sons, I was accompanied in the river by my brave 13-year-old nephew, Patrick, who went in a lot deeper. Thanks, you guys!! The bonfire steamed everyone dry, people continued with the tree toss, hot dogs & sauerkraut and hot chocolate warmed people up, and there were some lucky winners of a community card game. This was one more community event that drew hundreds from all around the region – an awesome start to 2011!

(If I ever figure out how to upload the video shot by my other nephew, I’ll let you know :-))

Hometown Holidays draw crowds

Last Friday night, there was so much going on downtown that there was no way I could take it all in. Fortunately the action continues this coming Friday, Dec. 10 and the following Friday, Dec. 17. Here’s what I did do…

Remembering Rev. H. L. Butler
I actually kicked off my Hometown Holiday Celebration by dropping in on the tail end of the Pottstown Firebirds luncheon at Brookside Country Club. The reminiscences were in full swing. I just love hearing stories about antics from days-gone-by and this crew had plenty of them. Later, there was more schmoozing with the team at The Gallery’s Open House. You might want to consider purchasing a poster, “Hometown Heroes,” which honors that championship team and was painted by local artist, Mary Ellen Christ. The Gallery also has a wealth of unique gift items in every price range. Last year I got my mom a stained glass cross that hangs in her kitchen window, catching the morning light. It’s something to reflect on every single day. I’ll be back in town this week to do some shopping & I can’t wait; you never know what you’ll find!

Pine Forge Academy Choir
After I left The Gallery, I heard the Pine Forge Academy Choir down at Smith Plaza and caught up with some folks – there was a very nice crowd there all night long. But before too long, my toes were going numb. No matter – I just hopped across the street to Churchill’s and got a melted cheese and tomato pannini. That hit the spot. Churchill’s is so beautifully decorated, and there was a steady crowd as people purchased tickets for the horse-drawn carriage rides. There was a line all night, so get there early this Friday, Dec. 10th so you don’t miss the chance for a charming ride down High Street.

Churchill's on Friday night
After that, I dashed up to St. Al’s, looking for my mom, and caught some of the Charlie Brown performance happening in Begly Hall. But, alas, no sign of my mom. I failed her again! (Like my father, I talk too much and then I don’t show up where I’m supposed to be at the right time.)

There are so many more things I need to do in the coming weeks… look at all the decorated storefronts and vote online at The Mercury, see A Christmas Carol at Tri-PAC – it is getting rave reviews! – take a carriage ride… and maybe sit on Santa’s lap. I’ve got some pretty big wishes for Pottstown for the coming year… maybe he can help. 🙂

Inequitable distribution of housing vouchers in Montgomery County

The debate about how to best house the less fortunate has many facets and many layers. Below is my response posted earlier today to an opinion piece at The Mercury, written by Elizabeth G. Hersh, Executive Director of the Housing Alliance of Pennsylvania. My comments were posted under the name “Number5.”

“This is a long-winded version of brussell’s last paragraph!

The whole point of the First Suburbs project is to bring attention to the fiscal & underlying policy inequities among various municipalities that exist side-by-side or within close proximity to each other in a region. While I agree with Ms. Hersh in many respects, I fear that her defense of the voucher program loses sight of this very basic premise.

There are many good purposes served by the Housing Choice Voucher Program. I am a staunch supporter of its compassionate intent and believe we must be vigilant against negative stereotyping of individuals. But, like many other public programs & policies, if the voucher program is implemented inequitably, much of its good can be undone or result in unintended consequences to communities.

If I am reading Ms. Hersh’s numbers correctly, 4% of all of Montgomery County’s rental units have tenants who are voucher holders, and 12-15% of all of Pottstown’s and Norristown’s rental units have tenants who are voucher holders. Therefore, Pottstown and Norristown have 3-4 times the CONCENTRATION of voucher holders than the county as a whole. The county’s low-income residents ARE concentrated in the county’s urban areas. That is not a “negative stereotype.” That is reality, and it is unacceptable public policy. Not only is it not good for a community’s fiscal health, it is not good for the low-income people themselves, particularly the children, who benefit from being educated among a socio-economic diversity of peers. In what ways do voucher holders truly have a CHOICE to live in a suburban community?

I would also be curious to know how the “nearly half” of elderly/disabled voucher holders are distributed geographically throughout the county. Are they in the urban and suburban areas in roughly equal concentrations?

The phrase, “yes, making sure that all communities bear an equal responsibility for helping our less fortunate neighbors” is added in the last paragraph almost as an afterthought, when that is actually one of the main premises of the First Suburbs project. I have nothing but respect for Ms. Hersh and other affordable housing advocates and providers for their commitment and passion, but summary statistics can be misleading. Critical analysis will help us find more equitable AND compassionate solutions.

Sue Repko
Positively!Pottstown ”

(First Suburbs link added here.)

Rental ordinance up for vote

Although I’m having loads of fun working on the parks series, I have missed talking about public policy and revitalization issues. Actually, I have REALLY missed it. I should be able to get back into the mix a bit more because Rosemary Keane will be leading the way through the parks for the next couple weeks. Below is a copy of a comment sent a few minutes ago to the Mercury regarding their article on the new rental regulation ordinance coming before Council on Tuesday night. Personally, it’s hard for me to be on the outside of all this. Pottstown has so much potential, and I believe it is on its way to seeing better days, but there’s a lot of work to be done.

Has anyone – other than Council, I presume – seen the new ordinance? Is it on the Borough’s website? Don’t you all have mandated notice provisions that would let people see a proposed ordinance 2-4 weeks before it’s voted on? Even if it’s not required by law, it seems like that would be a good practice to put into effect.

When this issue came up this summer, I advocated looking at the existing rules to see if they could simply be enforced, rather than introducing new regs, since everyone acknowledges that enforcement is at the heart of the problems. Will this new ordinance come with a re-vamped, rapid response enforcement system that is administratively tight?

I have heard buzz about the new ordinance and the landlord threats to sue the Borough en masse. On the flip side, property owners are threatening to sue other property owners. Again, PROCESS MATTERS. Why was there not a public process before getting this to a vote? Where is the leadership to bring people to the table to solve their own mutual problems? Each side knows what the stumbling blocks are on their end. Why can’t they face each other across a table in Borough Hall and come to some mutual solution? Why does it seem that people are afraid to talk to each other or that they are cut out of the problem-solving by their own government?

This is symptomatic of what the ULI report noted as a major hindrance to change – people not working together. There has to be a new way of doing things. Now. Or you will never get over the major hurdles in front of you.

Sue
Positively!Pottstown

Blog series to promote area parks

Positively!Pottstown has teamed up with the Pottstown Area Health and Wellness Foundation to run a series of articles about the parks and recreational opportunities in the Foundation’s service area, which includes the Borough of Pottstown and municipalities within a ten-mile radius.

Riverfront Path
Bloggers Sue Repko and Rosemary Keane are visiting all the parks in a recent study commissioned by the Foundation and conducted by the School of Architecture and Landscape Architecture of The Pennsylvania State University. They will be posting their experiences and photos here at Positively!Pottstown, beginning tomorrow and continuing through the first week of November. Each week the blog will feature the parks in one municipality or geographic area.

The posts will also appear in the print edition of The Mercury, as space allows, and will otherwise employ new social media, such as the Foundation’s Mission: Healthy Living website, the online edition of The Mercury, Facebook and Twitter, to get the word out about the types and locations of recreational facilities in the Pottstown area.

This series is a direct response to some of the findings from Penn State’s two-phase study. Phase I identified critical issues facing the Pottstown area in terms of growth, sprawl, active living and access to parks, while Phase II linked the conclusions of Phase I to planning objectives, recommendations, design guidelines and implementation strategies.

Wellness trail sign

One of the key planning objectives to come out of the Phase II Report was to build awareness of nearby parks. The first question a potential park visitor is going to ask is, “Are there any parks nearby?” Surprisingly, one of Penn State’s findings was that more than a third of residents in higher-density areas, such as Pottstown, are not aware that they have a park within a 10-minute walking distance of their homes. Residents’ next questions typically revolve around how convenient it is to get to a park and whether the park has amenities of interest.

While the Penn State study mentions public and private school playgrounds, the series will not cover those facilities under the assumption that families – the primary users – will already know about them. But the bloggers will use the study as a guide to other community facilities and then will share their own experiences, tips and photos to make it easier for readers to decide what park might suit them on any given day and how to get there.

“We wanted to try this approach, to make this fun and engaging for readers, so that they will be inspired to get outside and explore the recreational opportunities in their own backyards and in neighboring towns,” said Dave Kraybill, Executive Director of the Foundation.

Maple Street Park
This project complements the Foundation’s efforts to create an online community, Mission: Healthy Living, where residents can learn and share information among themselves about health and wellness topics that interest them. All of the articles will be permanently available at Positively!Pottstown under the “Parks & Rec” tab at the top of every page, as well as in the “Parks & Rec Series” subject category.

Readers are encouraged to share their tips, insights and experiences (both good and bad) in the comment section at the end of each article. It is through this kind of real-life feedback that municipal officials, parks and recreation departments, non-profit sports and recreation organizations, and the Pottstown Area Health and Wellness Foundation can better understand how to encourage and strengthen the opportunities for physical activity and healthy living in their communities.

Schedule of Parks & Recreation articles
Pottstown – Week of Sept. 27
West Pottsgrove, Upper Pottsgrove, Lower Pottsgrove – Week of Oct. 4
North, South & East Coventry – Week of Oct. 11
Boyertown/Douglass/New Hanover – Week of Oct. 18
Amity & Douglass (Berks County) – Week of Oct. 25
East Vincent & Spring City – Week of Nov. 1

Follow the parks series at Mission: Healthy Living, Positively!Pottstown, Twitter (follow PositivelyPtown), Facebook and The Mercury.

Low vs. Moderate-income Housing: Know what you’re voting on

Thanks to bikerowen, whose comment at the Mercury opinion page today caused me to make a phone call to the Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency (717.780.3800).

I have heard that the Partnership for Income Restricted Housing Leadership (PIRHL), the developer of the proposed age-restricted, rental project near the river, has never directly answered the question in public, “What tax credit program is this?” Could it be that it is the Federal Low Income Housing Tax Credit Program and the name is not very attractive, especially for Pottstown’s efforts to change its image? It includes the term “Low Income” in its name because that’s who it serves. I am not aware of any moderate- or middle-income tax credit programs and would be glad to hear about them if they exist.

Here’s a program definition from an overview at the Pennsylvania Housing Agency’s website: “The Low-Income Housing Tax Credit Program (“Tax Credit Program”) is a federal program created by the 1986 Tax Reform Act and amended pursuant to several subsequent Budget Reconciliation Acts. The Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency (“Agency”) is the Commonwealth agency responsible for the administration of the Tax Credit Program. The purpose of the Tax Credit Program is to assist in the creation and preservation of affordable housing for low-income households.” (my emphasis added)

Preliminary applications for the Federal Low Income Housing Tax Credit Program are due on or before Nov. 5, 2010. (The only deadline coming up for a tax credit application.) If the Preliminary Application is approved by the Agency, applicants may submit a full Underwriting Application for Tax Credit consideration on or before March 1, 2011. On the Agency’s Program Notices page, under the Multifamily Rental Housing Programs section, click on the Draft Housing Allocation Plan link to see the programs and guidelines for the Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency Allocation Plan for Year 2011, Low Income Housing Tax Credit Program. (The Agency is using the Draft Plan until the final approval of the plan at its October meeting.)

The income and rent limits that apply to this program appear in this chart. Scroll down to Montgomery County.

The Montgomery County figures on this chart present a discrepancy among the $500-$800 estimated rents; the 60% of median income, which is what has been reported; and/or the one- and two-bedroom units being proposed.

One- and two-bedroom rents in the $500-$800 range coincide with persons at the 40-50% of median income levels. By virtually all affordable housing standards, this is considered “low income,” not “moderate income.” 60% of median income is the maximum allowed under the Federal Low Income Housing Tax Credit Program. I believe you get more tax credits if you elect to peg your rents below 50% of median rather than 60% of median.

According to the chart, if these 1- and 2-bedroom units are pegged for “moderate-income” seniors, you’d be looking at 60% of median income and the rents would be in the range of $800-$1000.

So, which is it?
1- and 2- bedroom low-income rentals at $500-$800
OR
1- and 2-bedroom moderate-income rentals at $800-$1,000

Please note on Page 7 of the Tax Credit Program General Overview Requirements that, “A prospective tenant may not be denied admission into a Tax Credit property because of holding a voucher or certificate of eligibility under Section 8 of the Housing Act of 1937; if they are otherwise eligible.”

All of PIRHL’s featured projects at their website have used Low Income Housing Tax Credits or LIHTCs. There shouldn’t be any confusion about the rent ranges for low-income vs. moderate-income, 1- and 2-bedroom rentals in Pottstown, unless The Mercury got it wrong twice. If that’s the case, then please accept my apology and disregard this post.

Having cut my teeth in affordable housing and still considering myself an advocate across the board for the less fortunate in society, I’m not usually on this side of this argument. But Pottstown is bearing more than its fair share of affordable housing in this region.

I know full well that no one ever asked me to be Pottstown’s “advocate,” but I feel strongly that “knowledge is power,” and Pottstown as a whole seems to operate at the mercy of those with more information or knowledge, whatever you want to call it, or to simply not engage with them. I’m simply urging Council and members of the public to ask questions and demand answers. In the meantime, I will keep putting my knowledge out there in service to the public as best I can.

Blog at WordPress.com.

Up ↑