Zoning Board Hearing – Feb. 16th

I invite you and your members to join the Stoney Run community in opposition to the proposed variance to allow stadium-style lighting at the Spring-Ford Youth Athletic League fields. These fields run directly adjacent to Parkview Blvd and Deep Pond Drive in East Vincent and include 1-80 foot, 2 70-foot and 5 60-foot lighting poles. Strangely enough, residents of East Vincent are only allowed to play in the SFYAL for two years, so the lighting will have miniscule benefit to actual taxpayers of East Vincent. Additionally, as you can imagine, these poles will be quite an eyesore and will further move to destroy the property values and quality of life we enjoy in our subdivision and township.

Thanks,
Matthew Wood, CPA , MBA
237 Parkview Blvd.
East Vincent, PA

Time Out for Jane

I always try to give people the benefit of the doubt, which I had done with Jane Peronteau, candidate for East Vincent Township Supervisor, whom I only know by reputation. That was until I visited my mailbox on two separate occasions this week.

Jane Peronteau has taken the race for East Vincent Township Supervisor to a new low. Perhaps our local race is only a microcosm for what is happening across our country or maybe her campaign mailers truly reflect her personality. Whatever the reason or reasons, it reflects badly on her, her handlers, her political party and our township.

Saul Rivkin is a good man. He has volunteered his time and has done a great job as chair of the Historic Commission. He has a platform and a vision for East Vincent – one compelling community with a rural identity. Like Saul, it’s sophisticated and direct, what you see is what you get. It’s solid, honest and inclusive.

Jane’s platform is less clear. She wants to keep taxes low and will do all that’s necessary to keep us all safe and happy. She never says how.

Apparently the first thing to do to keep us all safe and happy is to dispatch Saul. When I read her mailers, they remind me of a small child covering her ears and yelling wildly so that she doesn’t have to hear the truth. It’s loud, it’s shrill and it’s mean. Her mailer is a tantrum and Jane needs a time out.

We all need a time out. We need to walk away from this kind of campaigning and remember that those running for office are our neighbors. We know them, we work with them and our kids play together. Most of us teach our children values by how we act. Our children watch everything we do and they take it all in.

Disturbingly, because of the content, Jane’s campaign mailer came addressed to my family. As a kid, I can remember anything addressed to my family was fair game for me to read and discuss. Mail is a big thing– it gets delivered and it’s official.

So now that man who always comes to my lacrosse games is a criminal?

What are we coming to? What price are we willing to pay for this calumny and slander. It cheapens and hurts all of us. What’s more it makes East Vincent look bad. We embarrass ourselves by demeaning, discounting and lying about our own potential leaders.

What’s really scary is that we are creating a “norm,” (an undiscussed way of behaving) that says that this kind of behavior is OK. We tacitly accept that campaigns are negative, politicians are ridiculed and government is useless. It’s divisive and hurts our democracy.

In contrast, Saul Rivkin has run a positive campaign in which he has put forth real ideas to improve East Vincent. Whether or not you like his idea of a village concept for Jones versus a mega mall, it’s an idea that should be debated instead of allowing a developer to come into our township and call the shots. The mature discussion of ideas is normal and natural in evolved societies and leads to the best ideas surviving. It’s the way East Vincent Township should do business.

Choosing debasement over debate is not only bad policy it is self-destructive. If you win by debasing your opponent, how do you heal afterwards? How do you work with these residents ever again?

In my mind, Jane has focused exclusively on casting her opponent in a negative light. It is like she forgot to tell voters anything positive about herself. She might have described what she actually would have done if she were entrusted with the office of East Vincent Township Supervisor but it’s probably too late to take the high road.
Meanwhile Saul Rivkin is already on it.

As an 18 year resident of this township, I suggest that neighbors and voters give Jane Peronteau a second chance by having her sit this one out and think it over. We need her energy- we need the collaboration of all of our residents- but we don’t need the anger and the hostility of her campaign approach.

Sincerely,
Todd Palmer
Ridge Road

CCOEV endorses Saul Rivkin for East Vincent Supervisor

Saul Rivkin is Dedicated to Keeping East Vincent Rural

Saul promotes local business over big box retail. He will strive to build a local economy to offset taxes and keep profits circulating here.

Jane Peronteau voted for the Jones Motor Amendment allowing a regional mall on the 186 acre site along with a possible 450 additional apartments in 5 story buildings. The added financial expenses due to traffic, increased police and fire protection, and increased educational needs will be borne by EV tax payers.    Read more about the Jones Motor Amendment

Saul Rivkin has Financial, Business, and Leadership Experience

Saul is the Vice President of a small local bank. He has the financial and business experience which will facilitate his goal to revitalize the East Vincent business community. His leadership abilities will help him create a “Keep it Local Business Task Force” to increase our tax base without becoming totally overdeveloped with Big Box Malls.

Saul Rivkin Supports Regional Partnerships

Saul supports membership in the Phoenixville Regional Planning Committee. Saul supports collaboration with our neighboring townships and boroughs.

Jane Peronteau spoke against EVT membership in the Phoenixville Regional Planning Committee and supported East Vincent’s resignation.   Read more about leaving the Regional Plan

Saul Rivkin supports Government representative of the Residents, not the Developers

Saul believes that our zoning should be about protecting our community and our residents, not facilitating developers’ projects. We do not need the developers writing our zoning laws for their maximum benefit. Saul will strive to restore the lost trust between our residents and our township government which was all too apparent at recent township meetings.

CCOEV strongly encourages you to elect Saul Rivkin as our next Supervisor on Nov. 8.

Read Saul’s website at http://saulrivkin.com

Northern Federation Parks, Recreation, and Open Space Draft Plan Meeting

On Tuesday evening, October 11, over 32 public officials and partners came together at Warwick Township to hear the draft plan results of the Northern Federation Parks, Recreation, and Open Space Plan.

The consultant team made a detailed presentation and Jake Michael of the Chester County Planning Commission gave an introduction. Mr. Michael thought that this is great plan, that the townships have worked hard in cooperating and collaborating to create the plan, that the plan is innovative, and that the region needs to stay with the schedule for regional adoption in January of 2012. Mr. Michael noted “we want to reimburse and give the money back to the townships as fast we can.”

Once the plan presentation was given, the townships had an open discussion about the plan. There were a number of great comments to strengthen the plan such as the fact that our region has been designated as a globally significant area to preserve.  An extensive dialogue was held about how the townships can adopt the plan at no cost to them. Discussion focused on the flexibility of the implementation phases of the plan. The plan allows the townships to voluntarily work together to implement the parts of it that are of most importance to them.

Any concerns that a township or townships might not approve the Northern Federation Parks, Recreation, and Open Space Plan hopefully will be put to rest by last night’s meeting during which there were no serious objections raised to the draft plan.

The meeting was videotaped and will be uploaded along with the draft plan document in preparation for an upcoming public meeting, which is scheduled for Wednesday, November 16 at Warwick Township building, which is located on Route 23. Stay in touch with the plan by following www.northernfederation.com

East Vincent Township Votes to Break Yet Another Regional Contract

In February 2009, East Vincent Township entered into a contractual obligation through the vote of the Board of Supervisors (2-1) to accept the role of lead municipality to administer and finance a planning grant awarded to the Federation of Northern Chester County, which included providing the payments of a reimbursable grant program. The planning grant was to develop an historic joint plan for parks, recreation, and open space among nine municipalities.  (see link to the Chester County Planning Grant manual, a highly acclaimed municipal planning program)

Now at the eleventh hour, when the plan is nearing conclusion, East Vincent Township wants to break its obligation to the contract and stop all the work. Supervisors Dunphy and Funk now fear a potential but farfetched possibility that the Northern Federation communities could leave East Vincent liable for an $8,000 shortfall if two townships did not agree to the plan.  All summer long, twenty or so municipality volunteers throughout the region have been working on the preliminary draft document that will be presented to all the municipal officials on Tuesday, October 11.  The Northern Federation members have worked together to reach common ground on all the recommendations found in the plan. Neither Dunphy nor Funk has ever attended a single meeting or public presentation over the past two years and neither seems to have read the reports.   Why do Dunphy and Funk suspect that all those who worked together would suddenly not agree to fund it? And if one township actually did drop out (an unlikely event unless it be East Vincent) a surplus of funds would still remain.

What transpired Wednesday at the Board of Supervisors meeting shows that all of a sudden  Dunphy and Funk do not want East Vincent Township to live up to its contractual obligations.  Dunphy and Funk reject the concept of working with the neighboring townships and athletic leagues to reach common ground for the goal of creating a park and recreation plan for all the residents of northern Chester County.

Furthermore, Dunphy and Funk seem incapable of holding a reasonable discussion.  Funk used foul language during Wednesday’s public meeting and Dunphy talked over Supervisor McNeil, who is the EVT representative to the Northern Federation. Neither Funk nor Dunphy had the facts straight. This is another example of embarrassing behavior on the part of these two East Vincent Township supervisors. Once again, just as when East Vincent withdrew from the regional plan or when they adopted the Jones Motor zoning amendment, these two men have shown little or no ability to discuss an issue; listen to public input, reason, or facts; or to cooperate with  any other township.

The athletic leagues, the park and recreation committees, the members of the conservation community, the O.J. Roberts school district, and the planning commissioners and supervisor members of the Northern Federation of Chester County all have diligently provided leadership to create a plan that is innovative, relevant, and fiscally sound for our families and our children. Yet, these two men sit back in isolation and harshly judge the good work of their neighbors and their own township volunteers. That’s just downright embarrassing. It’s time to vote for a change in East Vincent Township.  Let’s vote for someone new who won’t exclude working regionally as part of creating a township we can be proud of.

Pennhurst Zoning Amendment

A request to amend the Zoning Amendment Application for Pennhurst to include a rental residential reuse of 11 buildings of the historic core* has been made to the Planning Commission and the Board of Supervisors of East Vincent Township.

There is a recent market and financial feasibility study undertaken by Urban Partners and supported by the Community Design Collaborative that documents a market demand to preserve the core historic buildings at Pennhurst. This amounts to 11 out of over 20 buildings at Pennhurst.

The analysis shows that there is a market demand for 250 units of housing in the area that could be provided in the 11 core buildings using 25% of the site and leaving the remaining 75  acres to be developed for other types of uses.

The project cost for the historic adaptive reuse of the 11 core buildings is slightly above $88 million, or approximately $308,000 per unit. The report documents $77.6 million from three funding sources — federal historic tax credits, investors seeking the tax credits, and net operation income supporting mortgage debt and economic equity. This leaves a $10.5 million financing gap that would need to be met through grant funding, real estate tax incentives, a state historic tax credit program, and/or other sources. (http://www.preservepennhurst.com/)

The Pennhurst State Hospital and School buildings are constructed in the Jacobean Revival Style. They are not only eligible to be listed on the National Register of Historic Places but also eligible as a National Historic Landmark (of which there are only 2,400 in the country). The site is also under consideration for inclusion on the World Monuments List. Given the substantial historical significance of these buildings it is imperative that East Vincent Township provides every opportunity to facilitate the adaptive reuse of the historic core.

The inclusion of language that allows for an adaptive reuse of the 11 historic core buildings as residential to support 250 units is essential. On Wednesday, September 7, the East Vincent Board of Supervisors agenda includes scheduling the public hearing date for the Pennhurst zoning amendment. As the amendment stands now, no provision for a residential adaptive reuse of the 11 historic core buildings exists.

Please come to the September 7^th Supervisor’s meeting to urge the Board of Supervisors to direct that this provision be included in any amendment that would come before them in a future public hearing.

The East Vincent Planning Commission, at its last 3 meetings, has requested numerous changes to the Pennhurst Acquisitions’ petition to amend the zoning ordinance. Pennhurst Acquisitions has neither made those changes nor has even attended the last two PC meetings, even though discussion of the amendment was on the agenda. At its August meeting, the PC voted to advise denying the amendment and agreed to support a mixed use amendment for the site.

*The 11 core historic buildings are the following:

Administration
Limerick
Mayflower
Industry
Philadelphia
Quaker
Tinicum
Hershey
Rockwell
Penn
Devon

The Rape of East Vincent Township

The zoning petition now before the Planning Commission represents one of the most egregious attempts by a landowner to flaunt against the will of the residents of East Vincent in her long history.

Seemingly without faith in the EVT Zoning Hearing Board’s May 2011 decision being upheld by the Chester County Court of Common Pleas, the landowner, Richard Chakejian, is trying to subvert the legal system by petitioning for a change to just his property within the LR zone that includes the former Pennhurst Hospital, as well as land owned by the Pennsylvania Department of Military Affairs, the Owen J. Roberts school system and East Vincent itself.

The introductory letter joining the petition submitted by Mr. Chakejian’s attorney, Michael Murray, Esq., states: “Due to the Property’s location, condition of existing structures, and buildings…and environmental conditions, the Property is not conducive for development with Single Family Residential uses …”

Further, Mr. Murray continues: “…the Property…would be more appropriately utilized to be redeveloped for the uses permitted in the General Industrial and the Professional Office / Research district…”

No plan describing a possible redevelopment scenario was submitted to the Township. In essence, Mr. Chakejian wants East Vincent to change the zoning of his property so that he can do anything with it he wants, regardless of any appropriateness to the surrounding residential area. And for insurance, the following new use by right is included: LL – Recreation Building, including but not limited to use for entertainment, historical and amusement-oriented tours and events, such as but not limited to a haunted house and other theme-oriented uses.

At last month’s PC meeting, the Commissioners seemed to agree to a one that the road network leading to Pennhurst is not able to handle the traffic that would result from the alleged development of the commercial nature that would be permitted by the petitioned change.

Also, they spoke of the long-standing analysis of the “724 corridor” and how any changes to the Pennhurst property must be considered in a global sense.

Is all of that to be left behind in order to let the opportunistic Mr. Chakejian operate his haunted house attraction? Because if any casual observer examined the real issue at hand, what truly matters to the property owner is the Asylum – an extraordinary cash cow that wreaks havoc for seven weeks upon those living near Pennhurst, and, determined by the EVT Zoning Hearing Board, can now operate all year round.

By approving the exploitive zoning change, the Planning Commission and the BOS would be signing East Vincent’s death warrant. By allowing the continuing carpetbagging of Richard Chakejian, who by the way lives in WEST Vincent, our lifestyle as we know it disappears forever.

This is the desperate desire of the current and soon to be retiring Board Chairman, John Funk. It is his intent to leave what he believes to be a legacy of creating rateables and ensuring East Vincent’s future financial stability. What his myopic vision will actually leave behind is the utter destruction of what is our home. The place where our children grow up in safety and away from the problems of urbanization.

I fear the time has come to take off the gloves. To call things as they appear. To let the citizens of East Vincent see that they are being sold out for a 1,000 daffodil bulbs. To scream as loudly as I can that changing Pennhurst to a new GI/PO will not bring about any sustainable value driven changes. It will simply let Mr. Chakejian continue with his Pennhurst Asylum “amusement” at the cost of everything we hold dear. And bear in mind that if this change is approved, it will apply to the Jones site as well.

Our township could boast of a mini-Great Adventure in the Jones 186 acres. Dorney Park is 200 acres. Hershey Park is 110 acres growing to 140 acres. The Magic Kingdom in Orlando is 107 acres. EPCOT is a little over 300 acres, much of which is the lake.

I invite any resident who thinks this is bombast to visit the Penn Organics commercial composting site. See for yourself how a Chakejian business is operated. See how pre-compost material and finished compost material is placed against old, stately buildings accelerating their demise.

See the missing windows and roofs with holes large enough to drop a car through. Demolition by neglect is the technical term, a violation of ordinance.

Understand that the site is riddled, by Mr. Chakejian’s own words, with asbestos and PCBs. Yes, Mr. Murray is correct when he refers to environmental conditions that preclude residential development. One must ask how that would not apply to any commercial development.

Come to Pennhurst Road, Brown Drive, and Old Schuylkill Road, and Church Street in Spring City, and judge for yourself as to the capacity and appropriateness of those feeders.

While the Asylum in is operation, go to the WaWa on Bridge and sit in the parking lot for a few minutes and watch the pandemonium at the Jones site being used as parking for the “amusement”. Then stay there until 1:30 – 3:00 AM and watch the continuing parade of buses bringing patrons out of Pennhurst and to their cars.

Here are some consequences of the approval of this zoning change:

• We will see this year, as we did last year, bonfires lit on the Pennhurst site in absolute violation of East Vincent’s open fires ordinance.
• We will again hear live bands and the raucous noise from the amplified radio station presence, helping to market the “amusement”.
• We will see large-scale food kiosks come to feed and nourish the patrons standing on line for 3-4 hours as they await their 15-20 minute “amusement”.
• We will hear diesel buses running on Brown Drive and Bridge Street until 3:00 AM or later ferrying Asylum attendees from the “amusement” to their cars.
• We will see T-shirts, hats, sweatshirts and other merchandise sold to additionally line Mr. Chakejian’s pockets with no value to East Vincent since it does not benefit from sales tax.
• We will again have beer cans in our yards and Asylum patrons urinating on our lawns at all hours.
• We will again watch this “amusement” drain our township police services – at the resident’s expense, for while Pennhurst Asylum grossed $985,000 last year, East Vincent has no amusement tax to compensate us.
• We will see Spring City memorialized, as the home of what Chakejian’s Pennhurst Asylum business partner, Randy Bates, says will be the premier haunted house attraction on the East Coast.

And what if, as the proposed ordinance would allow, the property is split up into individual 3-acre subdivisions? What other menacing commercial “amusements” would come about playing off of the Asylum?

Mr. Chakejian is holding interviews for actors and has be seen driving around town in a PT Cruiser that has Pennhurst Asylum logos affixed to its body. As I have been accused of having, what hubris!

Now is the time to say “NO!” Now is the time for East Vincent to come together and stop this madness. Mark Dunphy has said to me that he will not permit any residential development at that site. John Funk believes that commercial ventures will add to East Vincent’s treasury with no proof offered by him. This is what we are up against. They did it last week. They’ll do it again.

For God’s sake tell them all “NO!”

Attend the Planning Commission meeting and say “NO!”