The Sanatoga Post

SANATOGA PA – In its latest cooperative effort with Limerick (PA) Township to frame the future of development surrounding the Sanatoga interchange of U.S. Route 422, the Lower Pottsgrove Board of Commissioners authorized a consultant Thursday night (June 17, 2010) to create an official map that graphically shows builders and property owners how it expects the area’s traffic to flow.

Consultant Peter Simone talked to commissioners about traffic flow on properties surrounding the Sanatoga interchange of U.S. Route 422.

The map, already in draft form and displayed to commissioners during their second meeting of the month in the municipal building on Buchert Road, indicates much of the development on vacant land within Lower Pottsgrove’s boundaries both north and south of the interchange would be along five-lane boulevards interspersed by two-lane feeder roads and an occasional traffic circle.

The map does not commit commissioners to any particular feature, according to consultant Peter Simone of Simone Collins, a Berwyn PA-based landscape architecture firm upon which the township has relied for several years. “It doesn’t force you to act in any way,” Simone reassured the board. “But it helps them (developers) know what you want, and it gives you options to act,” he said of the map.

Limerick Township supervisors authorized their portion of the map earlier this month. The Lower Pottsgrove board followed suit, unanimously, at a cost estimated to be about $1,500 or less. The maps are being coordinated by Traffic Planning and Design Inc., the Sanatoga company that serves as transportation engineer for both municipalities. TPD will ensure “the roads line up with what Limerick is also doing,” Simone noted.

Once Lower Pottsgrove’s map is completed, the board could hold appropriate hearings and ultimately adopt it as part of its planning code.

Simone and township officials have met on several occasions with several property owners and developers known to have an interest in attracting business to the interchange. There have been “few if any discussions about the roads as they’ve been laid out,” according to Simone. “The real discussions are about what’s going to happen with the zoning.”

Proposed zoning and property usage requirements yet to be adopted by commissioners will dictate what can be built within the area, where, for what purposes, and how. Those changes, initially created in draft form two years ago, were put on hold as Limerick and Lower Pottsgrove agreed to cooperate on interchange planning.

“We would like to build in as much flexibility in the zoning as possible, so developers have options too,” Simone said. “They’re all over the place with ideas about what they want to do with their properties, because the (real estate) market’s been so crazy.”

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A sea of maroon and white mortar boards spreads out in front of senior class President Daniel Barnes Jr., as he presided over Thursday's (June 17, 2010) Pottsgrove High School commencement in its stadium.

POTTSTOWN PA – After four years filled with excitement and fun, new and missed opportunities, plenty of learning and, occasionally, personal tragedy, the Pottsgrove High School Class of 2010 graduated Thursday (June 17, 2010) amid the traditional trappings of pomp and circumstance in the school’s sun-drenched stadium on Kauffman Road, Pottstown PA.

Mother Nature’s graduation gift was nearly flawless weather for the proceedings. Sunglasses and shaded eyes were the order of the day. Pleasant temperatures allowed families and friends to dress in shirt-sleeves and, here and there, shorts. A moderate southeastern breeze kept flags fully unfurled and snapping.

• Watch a related video, here, or see it at The Post’s YouTube account.
• See a gallery of 56 photos from the graduation in the high school stadium on Kauffman Road, Pottstown PA, here.

Graduating seniors march across the athletic field toward their seats.

Teacher Ralph Werley offered a thumbs-up sign as graduates filed in.

Visitors watching the graduation tried to balance congratulatory balloons and flowers with sunglasses and other means of shading their eyes.

Vocal soloist Kendal Conrad performed a song she wrote for the occasion, "The Future Is Ours." After the ceremony, she Tweeted from her cellphone: "Officially an alumna of Pottsgrove High School :)"

Members of the high school Concert Band provided a musical backdrop.

Flags presented by the Air Force Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps.

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The Buchert Road, Pottstown PA, facade of Lower Pottsgrove Elementary School.

POTTSTOWN PA – Lower Pottsgrove police and Pottsgrove School District officials continue to investigate an accident Wednesday afternoon (June 16, 2010) at Lower Pottsgrove Elementary School, Buchert Road, in which a district grounds crew employee was killed when a lawn mower he was helping to repair fell on top of him.

The worker’s name has not yet been released “out of respect” for the family, district Superintendent Dr. Bradley Landis announced at 2:44 p.m. in a statement e-mailed to local media. That, any funeral service arrangements, and possibly other information on the incident are likely be reported sometime today (Thursday, June 17, 2010).

What Landis described as a “tragic accident” was said by police to have occurred Wednesday at around 12:15 p.m. Police responded to the school as a result of calls for an ambulance to attend to a head injury emergency there. Although the worker was rushed to Pottstown Memorial Medical Center, “he did not survive the accident,” Landis said.

According to police, several people were in the vicinity of the accident when it occurred. None, however, were elementary school children; the area in which the repairs were being made was said to be out of sight from students, and the school itself was open Wednesday for only a half-day session.

Other resources for this story:

• Worker Dies In Accident At School (WFMZ-TV, Allentown PA)
• Worker killed in accident at elementary school (The Mercury, Pottstown PA)

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POTTSTOWN PA – Pottsgrove School District taxpayers ultimately will pay $22.6 million for the more than $17 million cost of rebuilding Ringing Rocks Elementary School, under borrowing authorized Tuesday night (June 15, 2010) by the Board of School Directors.

Directors voted 5-2 to accept a borrowing option that “makes building Ringing Rocks as cheap as possible” while still preserving their ability to seek loans for other capital projects in the future, district Business Administrator David Nester said.

The “modified wrap-around” loan plan directors chose will automatically increase the district property tax rate by a total of 0.67 mills, divided equally and phased in during the 2011-12 and 2012-13 school years. The loan re-payment is estimated to take 14 years. School board President Michael Neiffer and Treasurer Fred Remelius, both of whom favored a different option of four presented, were the opposing votes; board members Philip Keogh and Patricia Grimm were absent and did not vote.

Thinking ahead to what has been discussed as the district’s next pressing building need, millions of dollars in repairs at the aging Pottsgrove High School, Remelius said he preferred “keeping as much flexibility as we could” for future borrowing. None of his colleagues seemed to disagree, but those favoring the accepted option emphasized current costs.

“We need to be as responsible with this project (Ringing Rocks) as we can,” said board member Nancy Landes. “I’m allergic to paying banks more than we have to,” added board member April Kontostathis. Among the four options offered, payback costs ranged from $21.6 million to $27 million; however, the least expensive included limitations the board said it wanted to avoid.

Bids to finalize lending terms will be sought in July by a district consultant, and the loan is expected to be settled in September. The good news in borrowing now, directors were reminded, is that interest rates continue to be near all-time lows.

Related (to the Pottsgrove Board of School Directors’ June 15 meeting):

• Borrowing Authorized For Ringing Rocks Project
• Pottsgrove Schools’ Tax Hike Official: 4.44%

Related (to Ringing Rocks Elementary School renovations):

• Borrowing Authorized For Ringing Rocks Project
• Pottsgrove Signs Pius Lease For Ringing Students
• Pottsgrove Authorizes Pius Lease For Ringing Relocation
• Call Goes Out For Ringing Rocks Construction Bids
• Board OKs Ringing Rocks’ Preliminary Plans
• School Vestibule Design OK; No Decision On Rocks’ Relocation
• Ringing Rocks Plan Approval Held Until May
• Ringing Relocation Decision Deferred Again
• Township Legal Move Saves District Time, Money
• Economic Tales, Exec Sessions, And Long Night At Pottsgrove
• Geothermal Now ‘Locked’ Into Ringing Re-Build
• How Estimated Costs For Ringing Shape Up
• Less Is More In School Project, Planners Learn
• Bids Sought For Ringing Project Asbestos Removal
• Ringing Relocation Decision Possible In Two Weeks
• Restaurant, Ringing Projects Win Conditional Uses
• Ringing Rocks, Restaurant Hearing Topics Tonight
• Pottsgrove Student Enrollment: Up? Yes. Down? Yes Again
• Green Discussion At Ringing Results In Red Faces
• Pottsgrove, Archdiocese Still Discussing Pius Lease
• Ringing Rocks Relocation Discussion Set For Tonight
• In The Ringing Rebuild, Whither Pius?
• Ringing Rocks Relocation Plan: Modulars At MS
• Ringing Rocks Construction Cost Hearing Tonight
• Planners OK Ringing Rocks Land Sketch
• District Sets Dec. 3 Hearing On Rocks Budget
• Pottsgrove Asks State Help To Pay For Ringing Re-Build
• As School Opens, Progress On Ringing Rocks’ Project
• Surprise Enrollment Spurs Demographic Interest
• District Assembles Ringing Rocks Planning Team
• District OKs Architect Negotiations
• Consensus On Ringing Renovations: $16M
• Ringing Rocks Proposals Aired Tuesday
• Ringing Rocks Re-Examined April 14
• Pottsgrove To Trust-But-Verify On Ringing Plans
• Ringing Rocks Plans Take Another Step
• No Shortage Of Ideas At Pottsgrove Meeting
• Weigh In On Pottsgrove Renovations
• Framing The Rocks Discussion
• Response Mixed To Pottsgrove Improvements
• District Invites Public For Study Results
• A Different Rocks, But Only As A Concept

Photo from Clipart.com

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SANATOGA PA – Activities for western Montgomery County residents (and anyone else!) from June 18-20, 2010, and beyond:

• These events have been added to The Post calendar.

Friday, June 18

"Ragtime" ends this weekend.

The acclaimed musical “Ragtime” concludes this weekend at the Tri-County Performing Arts Center (Tri-PAC) in downtown Pottstown PA – 245 High St. -  with shows nightly Friday and Saturday (June 18 and 19) at 8 p.m., and Sunday with a 3 p.m. matinée. A family show with a cast of more than 60 people, “Ragtime” includes acting, dancing, live music, and toe-tapping songs. Ticket prices range from $15 for children and $17 for seniors to $23 for adults. Call 610-323-6884 for more information.

Up for a challenge? The Amity Chess Club meets from 7-10 p.m. at St. Paul’s UCC Church, 1312 Old Swede Rd., Douglassville PA, for chess matches and lessons at all ages and skill levels. For more information, call 610-385-6324.

Saturday, June 19

The annual Pottstown AMBUCS All-American Soap Box Derby will be held Saturday at the corner of Wilson and State streets, Pottstown PA. Hundreds of youthful drivers between the ages of 8 and 12 will race down the Wilson Street hill, hoping for the chance to  compete in national soap-box derby events in Akron OH. Come on out and cheer for your favorite cars.

The first “Race to Shelter the Homeless,” a fund-raising 5-kilometer  (3.1 miles) run and 1-mile fun walk, opens with registration Saturday at 8:30 a.m. in Riverfront Park, 140 College Dr., Pottstown PA. A minimum donation of $30 is requested. Proceeds will benefit the ministry’s programs for the homeless.

Blast from the Past Street Rods Inc. will hold its sixth annual Open House and Cruise-In on Saturday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at its shop, 2965 E. High St., Sanatoga PA. Owner Bill Borneman said the car show event will include food, vendors, and music all day with DJ Gary. Proceeds benefit Helping Hands Inc.

The Boyertown Farmers Market, located at 100 S. Walnut St., Boyertown PA, now runs weekly on Saturday from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. through Oct. 30. All markets are rain or shine. The market occupies the parking lot of The Boyertown Museum of Historic Vehicles, two blocks south of the intersection of Routes 562 and 73.

The first Father’s Day Car Show sponsored by the Parent-Teacher Organization at West Pottsgrove Elementary School will be held Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the school, 25 Grosstown Rd., Stowe PA, as a fund-raiser to support PTO activities for students. Organizers report they hope to “show off motorcycle, street rods, muscle cars, race cars, and trucks” during the event, which is  open to the public and includes games, music, and food.

State Rep. Mike Vereb will host his Family Fun Day for constituents Saturday from 5-10 p.m. at the Pit Stop, Ridge Pike, Collegeville PA.

A fund-raising golf tournament to benefit the Montgomery County 4-H Bits And Pieces Horse Club will be held Saturday beginning at 10 a.m. at Rolling Turf Golf Course, Smith Road, Schwenksville PA. Registrations are being accepted on the day of the outing at $30 per player. Prizes are offered for individual accomplishments and for winning teams, and lunch is provided. For more information, call 610-489-4315.

Building a Better Boyertown (BBB) will host the borough’s third annual Cruise Night on Saturday from 4-8 p.m. along Reading Avenue downtown from Third through Fifth streets. Parking is available in designated areas surrounding the free-to-the-public car show. Food and refreshments will be sold on-site. In addition, a special showing of the movie “Speed Racer” will be screened  at 7 p.m. in the State Theater, 61 N. Reading Ave., Boyertown PA, at the 1950s price of $1 per ticket. The show is receiving sponsorship funding from Wal-Mart.

Sunday, June 20

It’s Father’s Day! Enjoy it doing something with a Dad you love.

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POTTSTOWN PA – The business of levying taxes, collecting revenue and finalizing next year’s spending plan for the Pottsgrove School District concluded as expected Tuesday (June 15, 2010), as the Board of School Directors voted 6-1 to approve a 2010-2011 general fund budget of $57.6 million and raise taxes on real estate by 4.44 percent.

The tax increase is essentially unchanged from the 4.5 percent tentatively approved by the board a month ago, and represents a refinement in final calculations rather than further modifications in the budget itself.

A crowd filled Pottsgrove High School cafeteria Tuesday for the school board meeting. Most, however, left after a presentation of student awards.

For Pottsgrove’s average residential property owner – whose home is estimated to have an assessed value of $120,000 – the effect will be an additional payment of $178 a year. The total tax cost for the same “average” home will amount to $4,128; an employed homeowner earning an hourly wage of $20 will work 206 hours, or about 5 weeks, to cover that cost.

Director April Kontostathis was the sole dissenter in the roll call vote; directors Philip Keogh and Patricia Grimm were absent.

“I wanted to keep us below” a state-imposed tax hike limit – known as the Act 1 index – of 3.6 percent, to which the district would have been restricted had it not sought exemptions, Kontostathis said. “Had we been a little less conservative, I think we could have found and projected more income” and lowered the tax rate as a result, she added.

Kontostathis during this year’s budget process had long suggested the board needed to recognize the deteriorated state of the local economy, and raise taxes less than the estimated 4.5 percent for which the majority seemed willing to settle. She at one point talked about only a 3-percent tax hike, and later said 4 percent probably was more realistic.

For the record, in other budget-related matters the board:

• Approved as final a budget of $57,653,840. The tentative budget adopted in May totaled $57,439,026, and the fine-tuned final version represents an increase of $214,814 over that amount.
• Adopted a tax levy of 34.38 mills, or $34.38 per $1,000 of taxable property within the district. The new millage rate represents a tax increase of 4.44 percent. The adopted tentative budget carried a tax increase of 34.40 mills and a tax increase of 4.5 percent.
• Adopted homestead and farmstead exclusions – tax breaks for certain categories or usages of land and property owners – similar to those in years past.
• Continued as unchanged other taxes and fees known as Act 511 taxes: a 1-percent earned income tax, a $5 per capita tax charged for every district resident age 18 and older, a local services tax of $5, a real estate transfer tax of 1 percent of the sale price of a property, and a mercantile tax paid by sellers of products and goods within the district, amounting to 1 mill for wholesalers and 1.5 mills for retailers.
• Appointed Wachovia-Wells Fargo, Citizens, Harleysville National, National Penn, PNC, and TD banks, as well as the Pennsylvania Local Government Investment Trust, as official depositories for district funds.
• Appointed as official tax collectors H.A. Berkheimer Associates for the earned income tax, delinquent per capita taxes, mercantile taxes in all townships, and for the local services tax in Lower Pottsgrove (PA) Township; the Recorder of Deeds in Montgomery County for the real estate transfer tax; and Michelle Reddick and Theresa Yost for the local services tax in Upper and West Pottsgrove townships, respectively.
• Authorized Business Administrator David Nester to make budget transfers as appropriate to close the books on the district’s 2009-2010 year; and
• Re-appointed director Fred Remelius as board treasurer, and the law firm of Fox, Rothschild as district solicitor.

Related (to the Pottsgrove Board of School Directors’ June 15 meeting):

• Pottsgrove Schools’ Tax Hike Official: 4.44%

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POTTSTOWN PA – The deal’s done.

The Pottsgrove School District announced it has officially signed on the Archdiocese of Philadelphia‘s dotted line, and agreed to an 18-month lease of the St. Pius X High School building, 844 N. Keim St., Pottstown PA, to house Ringing Rocks students during their school’s reconstruction. Terms were not immediately disclosed.

Word of success in the lease negotiations that took several months arrived by mail Monday (June 14, 2010) at most homes in the district, in the form of its “Pottsgrove Achiever” quarterly newsletter. “Ringing Rocks Students Move To Former St. Pius High During Renovation for 2010-11,” said one of four different headlines accompanying stories on its front page.

There was no question an agreement, for which Ringing Rocks parents had lobbied heavily, had been in the offing.

The district Board of School Directors, at its May 25 meeting, was told the two sides were close in settling contract terms. It authorized Superintendent Dr. Bradley Landis to sign the lease once attorneys for Pottsgrove and the archdiocese, which owns the building, were done reviewing the document. The price previously was estimated by Business Administrator David Nester at about $366,000 a year.

Pius was formally vacated Friday (June 11) with ceremonies that included a Roman Catholic Mass. Its student body will start the next school year in Royersford PA, with the opening of the new Pope John Paul II regional Catholic high school there.

Now the scramble begins to ensure the Pius building is ready to accommodate Ringing students when the Pottsgrove school year begins Aug. 30 (2010; Monday). Landis has acknowledged the lease talks, which took longer than expected, somewhat delayed the district’s ability to begin preparations on Keim Street.

“We will be working closely with staff as well as parents to ensure a smooth, safe transition” from the Ringing to Pius campuses, Landis said in the Achiever article. “The safety and education of our students is a top priority. We think they’ll be very comfortable at St. Pius and it will be a great school year for them.”

As for the Pius staff and remaining furniture, equipment and materials in its building, they are being moved all this week to the Royersford property.

Related (to Ringing Rocks Elementary School renovations):

• Pottsgrove Signs Pius Lease For Ringing Students
• Pottsgrove Authorizes Pius Lease For Ringing Relocation
• Call Goes Out For Ringing Rocks Construction Bids
• Board OKs Ringing Rocks’ Preliminary Plans
• School Vestibule Design OK; No Decision On Rocks’ Relocation
• Ringing Rocks Plan Approval Held Until May
• Ringing Relocation Decision Deferred Again
• Township Legal Move Saves District Time, Money
• Economic Tales, Exec Sessions, And Long Night At Pottsgrove
• Geothermal Now ‘Locked’ Into Ringing Re-Build
• How Estimated Costs For Ringing Shape Up
• Less Is More In School Project, Planners Learn
• Bids Sought For Ringing Project Asbestos Removal
• Ringing Relocation Decision Possible In Two Weeks
• Restaurant, Ringing Projects Win Conditional Uses
• Ringing Rocks, Restaurant Hearing Topics Tonight
• Pottsgrove Student Enrollment: Up? Yes. Down? Yes Again
• Green Discussion At Ringing Results In Red Faces
• Pottsgrove, Archdiocese Still Discussing Pius Lease
• Ringing Rocks Relocation Discussion Set For Tonight
• In The Ringing Rebuild, Whither Pius?
• Ringing Rocks Relocation Plan: Modulars At MS
• Ringing Rocks Construction Cost Hearing Tonight
• Planners OK Ringing Rocks Land Sketch
• District Sets Dec. 3 Hearing On Rocks Budget
• Pottsgrove Asks State Help To Pay For Ringing Re-Build
• As School Opens, Progress On Ringing Rocks’ Project
• Surprise Enrollment Spurs Demographic Interest
• District Assembles Ringing Rocks Planning Team
• District OKs Architect Negotiations
• Consensus On Ringing Renovations: $16M
• Ringing Rocks Proposals Aired Tuesday
• Ringing Rocks Re-Examined April 14
• Pottsgrove To Trust-But-Verify On Ringing Plans
• Ringing Rocks Plans Take Another Step
• No Shortage Of Ideas At Pottsgrove Meeting
• Weigh In On Pottsgrove Renovations
• Framing The Rocks Discussion
• Response Mixed To Pottsgrove Improvements
• District Invites Public For Study Results
• A Different Rocks, But Only As A Concept

Photo from Clipart.com

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Being worried is no way for senior citizens to spend their golden years.

POTTSTOWN PA – We get our first lessons about saving and spending our money from our parents. That’s why it can be particularly difficult for adult children to recognize when their own parents have financial troubles. Many Americans, however, have had to do just that, as the older generation and their retirement nest eggs were particularly hard hit when the markets melted down in 2008 and 2009.

The Pennsylvania Institute of Certified Public Accountants (PICPA) offers advice for those trying to cope with their parents’ financial questions and concerns.

Acknowledge the Problem

It can be embarrassing for parents to turn to their children for help, so they may conceal a problem until it’s too late. Don’t be afraid to raise the issue yourself by asking if your parents have been affected by the bad economy and what hardships it may have caused them.

Also, look for warning signs of money troubles, including unpaid bills, bounced checks, calls from creditors, or indications they are cutting back on meals or other necessities. Once you have the facts in hand, you will have a better chance of solving whatever problems your parents are facing.

Ensure They Don’t Panic

When things go wrong, people too often are tempted to do something in a hurry. If your parents are grappling with financial problems, try to reassure them that it’s best to take a deep breath and consider the options before making any moves.

If they lost a great deal of money in the stock market, for example, urge them not to immediately put all their existing savings into a new investment they hope will be safer. Instead, take the time to study a number of possibilities, and pick the one that seems the most prudent now and for the long term.

Reconsider Retirement

If your parents are not yet retired, talk to them about the possibility of remaining in the workforce longer.

With lengthening life spans and improving health, many people are working well past the traditional retirement age of 65. Postponing retirement provides two benefits: it gives you parents more time to bulk up their retirement nest egg and it can help ensure there are more funds available when they are ready to stop working.

Look for Smart Fixes

If your parents are scrambling to find ways to meet expenses, there may be some simple solutions available to them.

• For example, if they haven’t refinanced their home mortgage recently, it might be possible to cut their monthly payments by getting a new loan with a lower interest rate.

• If they have gone into debt because of financial problems, a home equity loan might be the answer because they usually carry relatively reasonable interest rates, and the interest on this loan may be tax deductible as well. Your parents can use the money from a home equity loan to pay off high-interest-rate credit cards or other costly financing, once again lowering their monthly outlays.

• Transferring debt from a high-rate card to a low- or no-interest card is another good way to bring down fixed costs.

• Be wary of reverse mortgages, one option often marketed to seniors. This type of loan is available to seniors, and is used to release the home equity in one lump sum. These may be appropriate in certain circumstances, but often the fees associated with this type of mortgage are high. Other options should be explored first.

Helping your parents navigate their way through a financial crisis can be daunting, but remember that help is available.

Editor’s Note: This article was prepared by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA), and reviewed and distributed by the Pennsylvania Institute of Certified Public Accountants (PICPA). To find a CPA in Lower Pottsgrove or Limerick (PA) townships, the borough of Pottstown, or elsewhere visit www.IneedaCPA.org.

Photo from the American Academy of Family Physicians

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SANATOGA PA – The East High Street bridge is officially closed.

Barricades at either end – on the east, at Sanatoga Road, and on the west, near Allison Drive – went up shortly after 7 a.m. today (Monday, June 14, 2010). By 8 a.m., crews had already torn up and removed the road surface on portions of both the east- and west-bound lanes. Drivers must now find alternative ways to get around the work, which will continue through late August.

The detour endorsed by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation takes drivers mostly over U.S. Route 422, between the Sanatoga interchange at Evergreen Road and the Armand Hammer interchange at Armand Hammer Boulevard.

But drivers who either failed to heed or did not see the bright orange detour signs were somewhat bewildered when they arrived at the bridge and didn’t know where to go next. On the west end, most turned back toward Armand Hammer Boulevard.

A few headed west illegally tried to circumvent the problem by turning left and north through the Berean Bible Church parking lot, down Skytop Road to North Sanatoga Road, and right and south on North Sanatoga Road to East High Street. Don’t attempt this, Lower Pottsgrove Police warn; it’s the same as trespassing on private property, and they, the church, and the adjacent Sanatoga Ridge Community all intend to pursue violators.

A majority headed east who wound up at the closure turned right and north onto North Sanatoga Road, drove to the end and its intersection with Pleasantview Road, then turned left and south down Pleasantview to East High Street.

A longer alternative from the same point is to turn left and south onto South Sanatoga Road to its end and intersection with Linfield Road, turn right and west past the Sanatoga Trap Rock Quarries to the “Y” intersection at South Pleasantview Road, then turn right and north onto South Pleasantview and continue past K-Mart to East High Street.

No alternative is perfect; each has its own set of cautions. The wise driver, PennDOT reports, will stick to the designated by-pass over 422.

Related (to the East High Street bridge):

• Sanatoga Bridge Torn Up; Choose Alternate Route
• Bridge Closing Affects School Buses This Week
• Plans Ready For 422 Emergency When Bridge Closes
• Bridge Work Started, But You Might Miss It
• PennDOT To Fine Contractor For Bridge Work Delays
• Traffic Pattern Shifts Ahead At High Street Bridge
• State Says High St. Bridge Repairs To Cost $2.2M
• PennDOT Offer Sanatoga Bridge Work Timeline
• Details Are In That Pesky Paperwork
• PennDOT Set For Meeting On Bridge Work
• Missing Walks Latest Bridge Complaint
• Will Road Be Closed When School Re-Opens?
• State Says No To Keeping Bridge Open
• Township Looks To Pols For Bridge Help
• Bridge Closing Threatens Businesses, Board Says
• Sanatoga Bridge Closing This Spring
• Bridge Repairs Next Year

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Detours for East High Street are scheduled to take effect today.

SANATOGA PA – Only a few days remain on the Pottsgrove School District’s calendar, but several changes are in store for students who ride buses on routes affected by the scheduled closing Sunday (June 13, 2010) of the East High Street bridge crossing Sanatoga Creek between Allison Drive and Sanatoga Road, near Cutillo’s Restaurant.

Friday (June 18) officially is the last day of school. Until then, CMD Services Inc. – the company with which Pottsgrove contracts to provide student busing – has announced that pick-up times will change along routes of eight different buses traveling to the high, middle, and Lower Pottsgrove Elementary schools as a result of structural repairs being made to the bridge for the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation.

The aging, deteriorating bridge is scheduled to remain closed through late August, so it can be rebuilt from bottom to top. A primary detour established for most vehicular traffic uses U.S. Route 422 between the Sanatoga and Armand Hammer Boulevard interchanges to get around the bridge. CMD said its route changes are necessary for buses that pick up children along the length of East High, which will need extra time to follow different detours.

The new pick-up times for stops along each changed route are identified below by school and bus number. CMD reminds parents that students should be at their stops at least 5 minutes before their scheduled pick-ups. The complete, four-page schedule of changes is available for download here from the district website.

Lower Pottsgrove Kindergarten

Bus 42
AM Kindergarten Going Home

• Lower Pottsgrove Elementary, 11:45 a.m.
• Randy Drive and Doris Drive, 11:48 a.m.
• Bahr Road and Glen Eagles Drive, 11:52 a.m.
• 1019 Kepler Rd., 11:56 a.m.
• High Street and First Avenue, Noon
• 2120 High St. and Maple Glen, 12:01 a.m.
• Pleasantview Road and Village Lane 12:04 p.m.
• 608 N. Pleasantview Rd., 12:05 p.m.
• 2573 E High St at Wee Care, 12:10 p.m.

Bus 42
PM Kindergarten Going to School

• 12:28 p.m., 2573 E. High St. at Wee Care
• 12:32 p.m., Sunnyside and Heritage
• 12:35 p.m., Welsh Drive and East Court
• 12:38 p.m., Rolling Hills at Richards Field
• 12:42 p.m., Lower Pottsgrove Elementary

Bus 33
AM Kindergarten Going Home

• Lower Pottsgrove Elementary, 11:45 a.m.
• 1540 Buchert Rd., 11:48 a.m.
• Laurel Way and Deer Ridge, 11:50 a.m.
• Foxtail and Falcon Circle, 11:51 a.m.
• Heather Lane and Bradley Way East, 11:54 a.m.
• 1155 N. Sanatoga Rd., 11:58 a.m.
• Sanatoga and Clearview, Noon
• High Street and South Park Road 12:04 p.m.
• 3000 E. High St. at Shaner’s 12:05 p.m.

Bus 33
PM Kindergarten Going to School

• 12:23 p.m., Oakdale and Woodmere South
• 12:24 p.m., Woodmere and Kristy
• 12:25 p.m., Woodmere and Duckworth
• 12:26 p.m., Oakdale and Woodmere North
• 12:27 p.m., Oakdale and Karen
• 12:28 p.m., Pruss Hill and Rupert
• 12:35 p.m., 3013 Linfield Rd.
• 12:38 p.m., 244 S. Pleasantview Rd.
• 12:41 p.m., Pleasantview and King
• 12:44 p.m., Lower Pottsgrove Elementary

Lower Pottsgrove Elementary

Bus 5

• Pick up 8:18 a.m., 2304 E High St., return 3:55 p.m.
• Pick up 8:19 a.m., High Street and Brown Street, return 3:56 p.m.
• Pick up 8:20 a.m., High Street and Sanatoga Commons, return 3:57 p.m.
• Pick up 8:28 a.m., High Street and Liberty Hills, return 3:59 p.m.
• Pick up 8:35 a.m., 2805 E. High St., no return listed
• Pick up 8:37 a.m., 2573 E. High St. at Wee Care, return 4:03 p.m.
• Pick up 8:41 a.m., 2279 E. High St., return 4:06 p.m.
• Arrive 8:45 a.m., Lower Pottsgrove Elementary

Bus 17

• Pick up 8:15 a.m., 2291 Pruss Hill Rd., return 3:44 p.m.
• Pick up 8:16 a.m., 2425 Pruss Hill Rd., return 3:45 p.m.
• Pick up 8:19 a.m., 2875 Pruss Hill Rd., return 3:47 p.m.
• Pick up 8:22 a.m., High Street and South Park Drive, return 4:01 p.m.
• Pick up 8:23 a.m., 3000 E. High St. at Shaner’s, return 4:02 p.m.
• Pick up 8:24 a.m., Pruss Hill Road and Rupert Road, return 3:50 p.m.
• Pick up 8:25 a.m., Oakdale and Woodmere South, return 3:51 p.m.
• Pick up 8:26 a.m., Woodmere and Kristy, return 3:52 p.m.
• Pick up 8:27 a.m., Woodmere and Duckworth, return 3:54 p.m.
• Pick up 8:29 a.m., Oakdale and Woodmere North, return 3:55 p.m.
• Pick up 8:31 a.m., 839 Rupert Rd., return 3:57 p.m.
• Pick up 8:32 a.m., 729 Rupert Rd., return 3:58 p.m.
• Pick up 8:35 a.m., 157 Evergreen Rd., return 4:05 p.m.
• Pick up 8:36 a.m., 363 Evergreen Rd., return 4:07 p.m.
• Pick up 8:38 a.m., 3033 Linfield Rd., return 4:08 p.m.
• Pick up 8:40 a.m., 244 S Pleasantview Rd., return 4:15 p.m.
• Pick up 8:41 a.m., South Pleasantview and Princeton, return 4:16 p.m.
• Arrive 8:45 a.m., Lower Pottsgrove Elementary

Pottsgrove Middle School

Bus 8

• Pick up 7:35 a.m., 2360 N. Pleasantview Rd., return 3:31 p.m.
• Pick up 7:36 a.m., 2293 N. Pleasantview Rd., return 3:32 p.m.
• —- 1526 Sanatoga Rd., return only 3:33 p.m.
• Pick up 7:37 a.m., Sanatoga and Clearview, return 3:34 p.m.
• —- Sanatoga and Skytop, return only 3:35 p.m.
• Pick up 7:38 a.m., Sanatoga and Saylor, return 3:36 p.m.
• Pick up 7:39 a.m., High Street and South Park Road, return 3:37 p.m.
• Pick up 7:40 a.m., 2848 E. High St., return 3:38 p.m.
• Pick up 7:41 a.m., 3000 E. High St. and Shaner’s, return 3:39 p.m.
• Pick up 7:42 a.m., 839 Rupert Rd., return 3:40 p.m.
• Pick up 7:43 a.m., 1120 Rupert Rd., return 3:41 p.m.
• Pick up 7:44 a.m., 1320 Rupert Rd., return 3:42 p.m.
• Pick up 7:45 a.m., Pruss Hill Road and Prospect Hill, return 3:43 p.m.
• Pick up 7:46 a.m., 2875 Pruss Hill Rd., return 3:44 p.m.
• Pick up 7:49 a.m., 1342 Snell Rd., return 3:47 p.m.
• Pick up 7:51 a.m., 1559 Pleasantview Rd., return 3:48 p.m.
• Pick up 7:55 a.m., Julie Road and Pebble Beach Lane, return 3:27 p.m.
• Pick up 7:56 a.m., Julie Road and Danny Drive, return 3:26 p.m.
• Pick up 7:57 a.m., Kepler Road and Pebble Beach Lane, return 3:25 p.m.
• Arrive 8:05 a.m., Pottsgrove Middle School

Bus 31

• Pick up 7:32 a.m., 2304 E. High St., return 3:25 p.m.
• Pick up 7:33 a.m., High Street and Brown Street, return 3:26 p.m.
• Pick up 7:34 a.m., High Street and Sanatoga Commons, return 3:27 p.m.
• Pick up 7:35 a.m., High Street and Terraced Hills, return 3:28 p.m.
• Pick up 7:37 a.m., 2573 E. High St. at Wee Care, return 3:32 p.m.
• Pick up 7:38 a.m., 2481 E. High St., return 3:33 p.m.
• Pick up 7:39 a.m., 2249 E. High St., return 3:34 p.m.
• Pick up 7:42 a.m., 2144 Sunnyside Ave., return 3:36 p.m.
• Pick up 7:43 a.m., Sunnyside Avenue and Byron Way, return 3:37 p.m.
• Pick up 7:44 a.m., Pebble Beach and Green Briar, return 3:38 p.m.
• Pick up 7:46 a.m., Pinehurst and Raleigh, return 3:39 p.m.
• Pick up 7:47 a.m., Pebble Beach and Pinehurst North, return 3:40 p.m.
• Arrive 8:05 a.m., Pottsgrove Middle School

Pottsgrove High School

Bus 14

• Pick up 6:51 a.m., Keim Street and Ivy Lane, return 2:20 p.m.
• Pick up 6:52 a.m., Keim Street and Mulberry Street, return 2:21 p.m.
• Pick up 6:56 a.m., High Street and First Avenue, return 2:25 p.m.
• Pick up 6:58 a.m., 2120 E. High St. and Maple Glen, return 2:27 p.m.
• Pick up 7:01 a.m., High Street and Brown Street, return 2:30 p.m.
• Pick up 7:03 a.m., High Street and Sanatoga Commons, return 2:32 p.m.
• Pick up 7:04 a.m., High Street and Liberty Hills, return 2:33 p.m.
• Pick up 7:07 a.m., 2397 E. High St., return 2:36 p.m.
• Pick up 7:08 a.m., 2261 E. High St., return 2:37 p.m.
• Pick up 7:10 a.m., High Street and Willow Road, return 2:39 p.m.
• Pick up 7:12 a.m., Sunnybrook Road and Creekside Drive, return 2:41 p.m.
• Arrive 7:25 a.m., Pottsgrove High School

Bus 49

• Pick up 6:46 a.m., 1934 Bleim Rd., return 2:34 p.m.
• Pick up 6:50 a.m., Pleasantview and Schaeffer, return 2:38 p.m.
• Pick up 6:54 a.m., 2209 N. Pleasantview Rd., return 2:40 p.m.
• Pick up 6:56 a.m., 2585 Pruss Hill Rd., return 2:42 p.m.
• Pick up 6:58 a.m., Oakdale and Mirkwood, return 2:45 p.m.
• Pick up 7:00 a.m., Oakdale and Rivendell, return 2:46 p.m.
• Pick up 7:02 a.m., Shire and Duckworth, return 2:47 p.m.
• Pick up 7:05 a.m., 3015 E. High St., return 2:50 p.m.
• Pick up 7:07 a.m., 2855 E. High St., return 2:51 p.m.
• Pick up 7:08 a.m., 2805 E. High St., return 2:52 p.m.
• Pick up 7:10 a.m., High St. and South Park Road, return 2:55 p.m.
• Pick up 7:11 a.m., 3000 E. High St. at Shaner’s, return 2:56 p.m.
• Pick up 7:14 a.m., 243 Evergreen Rd., return 2:59 p.m.
• Pick up 7:15 a.m., 2985 Linfield Rd., return 3:00 p.m.
• Pick up 7:16 a.m., 288 S. Sanatoga Rd., return 3:03 p.m.
• Pick up 7:19 a.m., South Pleasantview and Princeton Avenue, return 3:06 p.m.
• Arrive 7:25 a.m., Pottsgrove High School

Related (to the East High Street bridge):

• Bridge Closing Affects School Buses This Week
• Plans Ready For 422 Emergency When Bridge Closes
• Bridge Work Started, But You Might Miss It
• PennDOT To Fine Contractor For Bridge Work Delays
• Traffic Pattern Shifts Ahead At High Street Bridge
• State Says High St. Bridge Repairs To Cost $2.2M
• PennDOT Offer Sanatoga Bridge Work Timeline
• Details Are In That Pesky Paperwork
• PennDOT Set For Meeting On Bridge Work
• Missing Walks Latest Bridge Complaint
• Will Road Be Closed When School Re-Opens?
• State Says No To Keeping Bridge Open
• Township Looks To Pols For Bridge Help
• Bridge Closing Threatens Businesses, Board Says
• Sanatoga Bridge Closing This Spring
• Bridge Repairs Next Year

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