The Sanatoga Post

POTTSTOWN PA – A book fair for students at Pottsgrove Middle School, 1351 N. Hanover St., Pottstown PA, will be open to them from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. during school days this week, and to the general public Thursday evening (May 19, 2011) before, after, and during intermission of a Pottsgrove School District orchestra concert there. The concert begins at 7 p.m.

The book fair is a fund-raising event sponsored by the middle school Parent-Teacher Organization and is being held in the auxiliary gym, near the auditorium where the concert will be performed. “Please stop by, buy some books, and support our PTO,” Principal Bill Ziegler said in an e-mail distributed Wednesday (May 18).

Photo from Google Images

Don't let 'em be bored

POTTSTOWN PA – Children who currently attend kindergarten through 8th grade and who are Pottsgrove School District residents are eligible to participate in activities scheduled for coming months as part of the Pottsgrove Recreation Board’s summer program, West Pottsgrove Elementary School Principal Ruth Fisher said in an e-mail distributed Wednesday (May 18, 2011).

The program opens June 27 at West Pottsgrove, 25 Grosstown Rd., Stowe PA, and Lower Pottsgrove Elementary, 1329 BUchert Rd., Pottstown PA, and runs through July 29. Activities are scheduled Monday through Thursday from 9 a.m. to noon; trips are planned for Fridays.

Advance registration is required to participate, Fisher said. Registration forms are available online, here.

Photo from Google Images

Poll workers avoid the rain, huddled under the porch of the township municipal building

SANATOGA PA – Had they been of the mind Tuesday (May 17, 2011), voters in Lower Pottsgrove (PA) Township could have stuffed their pockets full of papers on which to create lists of things to do, jot notes to themselves, or securely hold wads of chewed gum ready for disposal.

Of course, that’s not why candidates running in the primary election to be Republican nominees for the Board of Commissioners had workers distribute those papers. The scraps were intended to serve as final reminders that people on the ballot appreciated their support.

And there were plenty of such reminders: printed in full color, spot color, and black and white; on paper plain and fancy; with logos and without. One emphasized family success, another pointed to business success, a third indicated local political success, and one even (rudely) highlighted others’ lack of success.

Sampled from among many choices, distributed by poll workers who vainly tried to shelter themselves from the day’s light but incessant rain, were:

• An 8-1/2-inch by 11-inch glossy color piece from Jonathan Spadt. It highlighted his four-year career as an incumbent commissioner, and carried a portrait photo of himself, and photos from a recent job promotion as well as of the message sign at Gerald Richards Field.

• A second glossy color piece, 5-1/2 inches by 8, from incumbent Bruce Foltz that pictured not the candidate but his extended family. “Re-Elect Our PopPop,” it said at top, revealing to the local world which nickname Foltz prefers as a grand- and great-grandfather. He would work for “all generations from babies to seniors,” it noted.

• A black-and-white, 5-inch by 4-inch postcard bearing only type that noted both Foltz and former commissioner Stephen Klotz were “The Endorsed Candidates” among Republicans, although it made no mention of also-endorsed incumbent James Phillips. The pair would “promote and protect the quality of life we expect for our families,” it said. One of Klotz’s sons was working the polls and handed out the cards; “please vote for my Dad,” he asked politely.

• A business card-sized hand-out from candidate Philip Keogh, printed in red, blue and black that simply asked for support, and reminded voters that his name appeared at Lever E-14.

• Finally, there was the odd-sized (7 by 8-1/2), green-colored “Official Republican Ballot” offered by the Montgomery County Republican Committee and carrying its logo. The committee’s job, among many, is to ensure that only endorsed candidates win favor from party voters. It therefore showed the names and electronic voting machine button numbers for 22 endorsed choices of 28 presented in all primary races being waged in the township.

For the remaining six candidates, the handout obscured their names with a black arrow whose centered white lettering abruptly announced “NOT ENDORSED.” In accompanying tiny type, the ballot noted the logo and its green color were “trademarks of the Montgomery County Republican Committee.” It said nothing about the arrows, though.

A primary election voter, whose legs show at left, votes at Berean Bible Church in Sanatoga

NORRISTOWN PA – Long-time incumbent Bruce Foltz, former office holder Stephen Klotz, and incumbent Jonathan Spadt – in that order – were the top three vote-getters in Tuesday’s (May 17, 2011) Republican primary election for Lower Pottsgrove (PA) Township commissioners, according to unofficial results posted at 11:56 p.m. Tuesday by the Montgomery County Board of Elections.

Losing candidates among five in the race for three available seats were incumbent Commissioner James Phillips and current Pottsgrove School District Director Philip Keogh.

A win in the primary gives successful candidates the ability to run in November’s general election as official Republican Party nominees, which with Lower Pottsgrove’s strong Republican voter registration is considered an advantage. It does not prevent Phillips, Keogh or others from running as independent or non-endorsed candidates.

No candidates campaigned as Democrats.

A table showing individual results in the party contest, listed in descending order of votes received and made available from the Board of Elections website, appears below. Candidates names are displayed as provided by the county.

Photo from Clipart.com

NORRISTOWN PA – Because there were only four named candidates running for five available seats on the Pottsgrove School District Board of School Directors, and all cross-filed for Republican and Democrat endorsements, it’s assumed that each vote-getter in Tuesday’s  (May 17, 2011) primary elections for those positions will be sworn into office next January.

Still unknown is who will either be elected as a write-in candidate during the November general election, or later selected by the board itself, to fill that fifth vacancy.

Unofficial election results in the school board primaries were posted Tuesday at 11:56 p.m. by the Montgomery County Board of Elections. They show incumbent board members Patti Grimm and David Faulkner were the top two winners among both Republicans and Democrats, followed by newcomers Justin Valentine and Theodore C. Coffelt, in that order.

Tables showing individual results in the party contests, listed in descending order of votes received and made available from the Board of Elections website, appears below. Candidates’ names are displayed as provided by the county.

Photo from Clipart.com

POTTSTOWN PA – It took about a minute last Tuesday (May 10, 2011) for the Pottsgrove School District Board of School Directors to spend almost a million dollars on contractors’ bills, and less than another minute to approve $53,000 more in expenses for work at the ongoing construction site that is Ringing Rocks Elementary School on Kauffman Road in Pottstown PA.

Piles of bricks were awaiting masons late last month at Ringing Rocks

It will be months yet before taxpayers see the final result, but administrators say the school’s remodeling and expansion are making good progress.

Board members unanimously and without comment approved the payment of project invoices to:

• E.R. Stuebner Inc., its general contractor, in the amount of $641,360;
• Landmark Service Co. LLC, its heating, ventilation and air conditioning contractor, $151,830;
• MJF Electrical Contracting Inc., $85,050;
• Vision Mechanical, its plumbing contractor, $60,120; and
• TMI Commercial, $11,835.

In total, the district has already paid $5.86 million to these contractors, whose work represents the bulk of the project, and Business Administrator David Nester calculates they will be owed another $5.54million by completion. The total project is budgeted at about $16 million.

Also at Ringing, directors agreed to three new change orders.

• The most expensive, at $42,004, asks Stuebner to remove unsuitable soil in one area of the construction, and refill it with more suitable and properly compacted soil. It also was asked to underpin a footer “to ensure the stability of the mechanical room.” Neither condition could be foreseen, according to the district’s architects.
• A second spends $8,452 to install gypsum wallboard in five rooms, another unforeseen condition.
• The third calls for $3,566 to be paid for revising the sanitary sewer line that runs underground in front of the building, and installing an additional manhole for it.

Related (to the Pottsgrove Board of School Directors’ May 10 meeting):

• In Under 2 Minutes, Pottsgrove Spends A Mil Or So
• ‘I Gotta Go?’ Pottsgrove Holding Summer School (Again)
• Latest Pottsgrove Special Education Costs Questioned
• Six Pottsgrove Coaches + Five Camps = Busy Summer
• Pottsgrove 2012 Travels Include Italy, Latin America
• School Board OKs Personnel Items Affecting 25 Positions
• Does Pottsgrove Have An Administrative Cut-In-Waiting?
• Red And Yellow Items Left On Pottsgrove Budget Table
• Pottsgrove OKs 2.8% Tax Hike In Tentative Budget
• Teachers’ Contract Extension On Pottsgrove Agenda

Related (to Ringing Rocks Elementary School renovations):

• In Under 2 Minutes, Pottsgrove Spends A Mil Or So
• Pottsgrove Board Tours, And Likes, Progress At Ringing
• No Power For Ringing Library Computers ‘An Omission’
• Blasting A Possibility, But Not Yet, At Ringing Rocks
• Few Change Orders, So Far, At Ringing Rocks
• Rigs Arrive At Ringing Site To Drill Deep For Geo-Heat
• Exterior Demolition To Begin At Ringing Rocks
• Digging’s Done, Now Real Work Starts At Ringing
• Ringing Rocks Ground-Breaking Set For Thursday
• After Month’s Work, Pius Deemed Set For Ringing Pupils
• Ringing Rocks Bids Accepted, At $1.5 Million Less
• Final Words On Ringing Rocks: Okey-Dokey
• Ringing Rocks Gets Final Plan OK
• 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

Few get excited by summer school

POTTSTOWN PA – Here’s the bad news of the coming summer that every kid dreads: summer school has been scheduled in the Pottsgrove School District again this year.

Now the good news: the first full day of summer vacation starts June 18 (2011) and the Big Break runs through Aug. 28. Sorry, guys, but the schools reopen on Aug. 29.

Summer school, on the other hand, operates only for a limited period between July and August.

Although students involved sometimes consider it drudgery and an interruption of their vacation, teachers say summer school provides valuable remediational learning and offers an important jump on concepts to be taught this fall.

The district Board of School Directors last Tuesday (May 10) unanimously and without comment approved the operation of both elementary and secondary summer school programs.

Superintendent Dr. Bradley Landis noted that operation of the summer school program at Pottsgrove High is self-supporting, and does not require district financial support. Its staff will be hired based on enrollment, he said. The elementary program, which this year will focus on reading  (but not math, a last year) for eligible students, is paid for by federal funding without direct district cost.

Related (to the Pottsgrove Board of School Directors’ May 10 meeting):

• ‘I Gotta Go?’ Pottsgrove Holding Summer School (Again)
• Latest Pottsgrove Special Education Costs Questioned
• Six Pottsgrove Coaches + Five Camps = Busy Summer
• Pottsgrove 2012 Travels Include Italy, Latin America
• School Board OKs Personnel Items Affecting 25 Positions
• Does Pottsgrove Have An Administrative Cut-In-Waiting?
• Red And Yellow Items Left On Pottsgrove Budget Table
• Pottsgrove OKs 2.8% Tax Hike In Tentative Budget
• Teachers’ Contract Extension On Pottsgrove Agenda

Photo from Clipart.com

POTTSTOWN PA – More than $53,000 in contractual costs for special education services that benefit six students for only several months each were approved by the Pottsgrove School District Board of School Directors during the past three weeks, causing at least one board member to question the expense.

Last Tuesday (May 10, 2011), directors authorized the administration to enter into an agreement with Wordsworth Academy, which has campuses in Fort Washington PA and Philadelphia, to educate one student at a cost of $14,800 for the remainder of the current school year.

Earlier, during its April 26 meeting, the board also approved contracts with Valley Forge Educational Services of Malvern PA for four students to be taught this summer at a total of $27,480, or $6,870 per student; and with the Camphill Special School of Glenmoore PA for one student, also this summer, at a cost of $11,149.

“Is there no leverage for special pricing for these students because Pottsgrove is a member of the (Montgomery County) Intermediate Unit?,” board Treasurer Fred Remelius asked during the April 26 gathering.

“No,” Superintendent Dr. Bradley Landis replied. “It’s usually at the whim of the school, and if using the school is required in a student’s IEP (individualized educational plan), then it’s required by federal law,” he said.

Related (to the Pottsgrove Board of School Directors’ May 10 meeting):

• Latest Pottsgrove Special Education Costs Questioned
• Six Pottsgrove Coaches + Five Camps = Busy Summer
• Pottsgrove 2012 Travels Include Italy, Latin America
• School Board OKs Personnel Items Affecting 25 Positions
• Does Pottsgrove Have An Administrative Cut-In-Waiting?
• Red And Yellow Items Left On Pottsgrove Budget Table
• Pottsgrove OKs 2.8% Tax Hike In Tentative Budget
• Teachers’ Contract Extension On Pottsgrove Agenda

Photo from Google Images

POTTSTOWN PA – Mention the word “court” in the context of a school building, and most people think of “basketball.” Mention it next Wednesday (May 25, 2011) at Pottsgrove Middle School, 1351 N. Hanover St., Pottstown PA, says school district spokeswoman Beth Trapani, and you’ll be talking about a court of law and the induction of more than 70 people as new Americans.

A total of 73 immigrants from 32 different nations across the globe will become U.S. citizens in a federal naturalization ceremony beginning at 1 p.m. in the Middle School auditorium, Trapani announced Monday (May 16) in an 11 a.m. e-mail. Because naturalization is a legal procedure, the auditorium – for about an hour – will formally be recognized as a courtroom. A Montgomery County Court of Common Pleas judge, the Hon. Carolyn T. Carluccio, will preside.

The district is excited by the opportunity, Trapani indicated. Students and organizations from several schools will participate in the event – akin to a eye-witnessed lesson in Civics 101 – with speeches, song, and instrumental music.

Details of the day have yet to be finalized, but accompanying Trapani’s rushed electronic note was a preliminary program for the afternoon observance. It includes:

• Musical prelude, “Sing A Song of Peace (This is My Country)”, arranged by Galina;
• Greetings from district Superintendent Dr. Bradley L. Landis;
• Opening of Court by Judge Carluccio;
• Motion For Admission of Applicants by Melvin Roby, and examiner for U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services;
• Administration of the Oath of American Citizenship by Mark Levy, prothonotary of the county Court of Common Pleas;
• The song, “We Are The World” by Jackson and Richie, and arranged by the Emmerson Choir;
• “I Am Immigration,” a poem written by a student at Seven Generations Charter School;
• Presentation of citizen certificates to each of the new Americans;
• The song, “God Bless America,” arranged by Jennings;
• Remarks by yet-to-be-named guest speakers;
• Student speeches by 6th-grader Maya Stehle and 7th-grader Olive Hernandez;
• A violin solo by 8th-grader Kristina Nazaryk;
• Presentation of the Colors by the Pottsgrove High School Air Force Junior ROTC, and an accompanying tribute to the flag;
• “The Story of the Pledge of Allegiance,” as offered by members of the Middle School’s Student Government;
• Playing of “The National Anthem” by the combined Middle School Choir and Instrumental Ensemble;
• Adjournment of the court; and
• As the recessional, the song “God Bless The USA,” as arranged by Sebesky and played by the Instrumental Ensemble.

The Women’s Club of Montgomery County, Trapani said, is sponsoring a reception and providing refreshments to the new citizens and their guests following the ceremony.

POTTSTOWN PA – Tuesday (May 17, 2011) is Primary Election Day.

Not all registered voters are allowed to cast ballots in Pennsylvania primaries – they’re usually limited to voters with specific political party affiliations – but for those who can the Montgomery County (PA) Voter Services Department reports that hundreds of polling places will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. to determine candidates who could run for local and state offices later this fall during the municipal general election.

In Lower Pottsgrove (PA) Township, polls are located at:

• Ringing Hill Fire Company, 815 White Pine Ln., Pottstown PA (District 1),
• Berean Bible Church, 2675 E. High St., Sanatoga PA (District 2),
• Wesleyan Christian Church, 1301 Hilltop Rd., Pottstown PA (District 3), and
• Lower Pottsgrove Township Building, 2199 Buchert Rd., Pottstown PA (District 4).

Read a story by reporter Evan Brandt about primary candidates for the Lower Pottsgrove Board of Commissioners, titled “Five candidates fighting for commissioner” and published today (Tuesday) in The (Pottstown PA) Mercury newspaper, here.

Read another story by Brandt, about primary candidates for the Pottsgrove School District Board of School Directors, titled “Pottsgrove: 5 seats, 4 candidates” and published last Thursday (May 12) by The (Pottstown PA) Mercury newspaper, here.

In Limerick (PA) Township, at:

• St. James United Church of Christ, 321 S. Limerick Rd., Limerick PA (District 1),
• Limerick Township Building, 646 W. Ridge Pike, Limerick PA (District 2),
• Linfield Fire Company, Main Street, Linfield PA (District 3),
• Brooke Elementary School, 339 N. Lewis Rd., Royersford PA (District 4), and
• Evans Elementary School, 125 Sunset Rd., Limerick PA (District 5).

In Royersford (PA) Borough, at:

• Grace Evangelical Lutheran Church, 575 Main St., Royersford PA (District 1), and
• Golden Age Manor, Fourth and Walnut streets, Royersford PA (District 2).

In Pottstown (PA) Borough, at:

• YWCA, 315 King St., Pottstown PA (District 1-1),
• EH&L Fire Company, Franklin and Chestnut streets, Pottstown PA (District 1-2),
• Invictus Church, 79 N. Hanover St., Pottstown PA (District 2-1)
• Montgomery County Community College, South Hall, 101 College Dr., Pottstown PA (District 2-2),
• First Church of the Brethren, 371 N. York St., Pottstown PA (District 3),
• Grace Evangelical Lutheran Church, Charlotte Street and Nightengale Avenue, Pottstown PA (District 4),
• Pottstown Middle School, Franklin and East streets, Pottstown PA (District 5),
• Rupert Elementary School, 1230 South St., Pottstown PA (District 6),
• Olivet Boys and Girls Club, 640 Beech St., Pottstown PA (District 7-1), and
• St. James Lutheran Church, 1101 High St., Pottstown PA (District 7-2).

Most voters will cast their ballots using an electronic voting machine. Polling locations were deemed current by the department as of May 9.

Photo from Montgomery County Voter Services