The Sanatoga Post

SANATOGA PA – Sunday (July 31, 2011) is the day to put a little Jimmy Buffett into your summer.

Enjoy lawn at the Sanatoga Park band shell

The 2011 edition of Lower Pottsgrove (PA) Township‘s series of summer musical concerts continues Sunday with a return performance by The Mango Men, beginning at 6 p.m. at the band shell in Sanatoga Park, 223 S. Sanatoga Rd., Pottstown PA. The concert is free and open to the public.

• Watch a video, above, of one of the band’s numbers performed during an Independence Day concert, or see it at the YouTube user account of The MangoMenBand.

The group with a Caribbean feel, an island sound, and a passion for the music of popular singer-songwriter Buffett frequently plays across southeastern Pennsylvania. They’ve performed in Sanatoga several times in recent years.

The grounds of the slope surrounding the band shell are comfortable on most evenings; concert-goers are urged to bring their own seating in the form of lawn chairs or ground blankets. The acoustics are good, too, and guests who position themselves just right can enjoy the show while watching nature’s progress on the nearby lake.

In case of rain, the concert will be re-scheduled to Monday (Aug. 1) at 7 p.m. Again this year, the series is sponsored by Exelon Nuclear, and conducted by the township Parks and Recreation Board.

Following The Mango Men on the schedule is the series’ final show, featuring the Pottsgrove Community Band on Aug. 7 (Sunday) at 6 p.m.

Rake 'em in and recycle.

SANATOGA PA – Sure, it’s been a dry summer so far, but you’ve probably wandered out in the yard anyway.

Many Lower Pottsgrove property owners have taken advantage of cooler evening temperatures during July to do those chores they love so well: collecting unraked leaves, picking up fallen branches, and otherwise preparing yard debris for disposal on Monday (Aug. 1, 2011).

• This event has been added to The Post calendar.

That’s when the next leaf and landscape waste collection in Lower Pottsgrove (PA) Township will be held, as it is on the first Monday of each month. Leaves cannot be collected on any other day as a result of state requirements to recycle organic material.

Leaves must be placed in bags acceptable for recycling and set at the curbside. Branches and twigs must be bundled and tied. Bags can be purchased at minimal cost from local supermarkets or the township municipal building, 2199 Buchert Rd.

Photo from Clipart.com

HARRISBURG PA – Tolling highways like U.S. Route 422 between King of Prussia PA and Berks County “is not something that is going to happen immediately,” according to Pennsylvania Secretary of Transportation Barry Schoch, but he acknowledged Thursday (July 28, 2011) in an interview with The Pennsylvania Independent online news service that tolls represent “one of the possible solutions long term” for funding repairs to the state’s road system.

U.S. Route 422, as seen from Armand Hammer Boulevard in Lower Pottsgrove, looking west to the Route 724 interchange

Schoch made it clear the Transportation Funding Advisory Commission, which he heads and which was appointed several months ago by Gov. Tom Corbett, will not recommend new tolls when it submits its report to the governor today (Friday, July 29, 2011). “But the specter of tolls on state roads and interstates in the next decade is clearly present,” The Independent reported.

• Read a story by reporter Eric Boehm, titled “PennDOT Secretary: Tolling state roads a long-term solution” and published Thursday by The Independent, here.

The commission, charged with finding more than $2.5 billion annually for transportation infrastructure projects, will suggest the state House and Senate pass “enabling legislation” to provide the groundwork for tolls on state roads at a later time. The legislation would make it easier to toll roads.

A similar law has been advocated by the Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission during the past 18 months as it suggested tolls as a revenue source for 422 improvements.

The highway that passes through Limerick, Lower Pottsgrove and Pottstown on its way west to Reading and beyond is notorious for traffic congestion during peak morning and evening travel times, as commuters head to and from work.

Among the report’s official recommendations are to increase driver’s license and vehicle registration fees, allowing the state’s gasoline tax to rise, and changing how the state pays mass transit agencies. The Legislature and governor must approve those recommendations before they could take effect.

Related (to U.S. Route 422 Corridor planning):

• State Road Tolls A Future Funding Solution, Official Agrees
• Report Expected To Suggest Law For Road Toll Authority
• I-95 A Big Problem; 422 A Solvable Problem (With Tolls)
• Even With Tolling, 422 Might Be Free (For A Few Miles)
• County Candidates Brown, Castor Oppose 422 Tolling
• Quigley, Other Reps Questioning 422 Tolls Proposal
• 422 Toll Proposal Wins Some PA Commission Backers
• Exec Highway Group To Hear Rt. 422 Tolling As ‘Model’
• 422 Questions Answered, For Your Viewing Pleasure
• In 422 Tolling, Planners Say, Studying Doesn’t Make It So
• Former Reporter Asks Commissioners To Support 422 Tolls
• Online Survey Seeks Opinions On Local Road Congestion
• 422 Plus Project Plays Offense With FAQs Debut
• Peering Into The Future? Gov’s Bridge Proposal And 422
• Another Township Endorses 422 Master Plan
• Neighboring Limerick Supervisors Endorse 422 Master Plan
• Understand 422 Plan Endorsement, Lower Pottsgrove Advised
• Lower Pottsgrove Holds On 422 Plan Endorsement
• Engineers Claim PA Roads Worse Now Than In 2006
• Tuesday Session Tackles Funding For 422 And Elsewhere
• Tolls, Lower Pottsgrove Station Part Of 422 Plan
• Pending Decision May Affect Route 422 Projects
• Last Day For Your Say On Route 422 Plan
• Notebook Worthy (Aug. 24, 2009)
• Consultants Express Interest In Studying 422
• Don’t Like 422 Tolling? Website Wants Your Alternative
• Truckers Alerted On Highway Partnerships Bill
• In 422 Debate, Time A Hindrance And Help
• Notebook Worthy (June 29, 2009)
• Growth, Planners Say, Is 422’s Growing Problem
• Tech Used To Draw For 422 Meetings
• Route 422 Toll Meetings Next Week
• 422 Repairs, Delays Start Tuesday
• 422 Proposal, Like Traffic, Creeps Ahead
• Got A Route 422 Idea? Time To Air It
• Train Service On The Front Burner Once More

A PennDOT bridge inspection crew at work in the Lehigh Valley

KING OF PRUSSIA PA – The right lane of westbound U.S. Route 422 between Valley Forge Road and Trooper Road in Upper Merion (PA) Township will be closed Monday and Tuesday (Aug. 1-2, 2011) from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. for a series of bridge inspections, the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) announced Thursday (July 28).

For the same reason, the right lane of eastbound 422 in the same area will be closed next Wednesday and Thursday (Aug. 3-4) during the same times, according to PennDOT Community Relations Coordinator Charles Metzger. Finally, he added, a right lane of 422 between Pawlings Road and Egypt Road in Upper Providence (PA) Township will close Aug. 8 (Monday), also from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Motorists might anticipate traffic slow-downs, delays or interruptions as a result. They can visit 511pa.com or call 511 from any phone to check traffic conditions on major highways.

Photo from LehighValleyLive.com

West Pottsgrove Elementary School in Stowe

STOWE PA – Volunteers of the West Pottsgrove Elementary School Parent-Teacher Organization (PTO) are still collecting donations of clothing and shoes to help the family victims of a fire that gutted a house in Stowe earlier this month.

The family, whose children are Pottsgrove School District students, are in need of specific clothing items, PTO Co-President Kim Gleason said Thursday (July 28, 2011). Boxes to receive the donations have been set up in the front office of West Pottsgrove Elementary, 25 Grosstown Rd., Stowe, she said.

Particularly needed are items for a:

• Girl, age 13 – pants, women’s size 9-11; shirts, women’s L-XL; shoes, 8;
• Boy, 11 – pants, kids 10-12; shirts, kids 14-16; shoes, 5-1/2;
• Girl, 10 – pants, kids 8-12; shirts, kids 10-12; shoes, 3-1/2;
• Man of the house – pants, 34 X 34; shirts, XL; shoes, 12; and
• Woman of the house – pants, 11-12; shirts, XL, shoes, 8.

“Also, restaurant and fast food gift cards would be greatly appreciated,” Gleason said. For more information, send an e-mail, here.

POTTSTOWN PA – Greater Pottstown area consumers have had a say. Now area business owners are being asked for their opinions too.

A consultant for the Pottstown Metropolitan Regional Planning Committee, of which Lower Pottsgrove (PA) Township is a member, has already asked shoppers about what motivates them to buy from local merchants. It is turning to merchants themselves to inquire, “what do you need to grow your operations?”

A survey intended to help Pottstown and surrounding municipalities grow economically is now being conducted on behalf of the Metropolitan Regional Planning Committee

The TriCounty Area Chamber of Commerce, the area’s largest business advocacy organization, on Wednesday (July 27, 2011) distributed to its members a survey form created by the Maryland-based economic and planning consulting firm, TischlerBise. It’s conducting a regional market assessment and fiscal impact study for the committee to learn how municipalities “can work together to encourage economic development, create jobs, and stabilize the tax base.”

In the study’s latest phase, TischlerBise said, “we are asking for direct input from business owners in the region.” And although the chamber took the lead in distributing the survey, business owners who are not chamber members and even those who are located within a 20-mile radius of the borough are urged to speak their minds.

• If you own a business locally, your opinion counts. A copy of the survey, which is an interactive Adobe Acrobat document, is available for download from The Post’s server, here. Complete and save it in Acrobat, or print it out and complete it by hand. Return your Acrobat document as an e-mail attachment to chamber President Eileen Dautrich, or mail the printed copy to the chamber at 152 High St., Suite 360, Pottstown PA 19464.

The survey is short; it consists of only 31 questions, and can be finished in about seven minutes. It asks business owners to identify themselves and their company, and then looks for information on location, employment, growth and, maybe closest to an entrepreneur’s heart, specific ways in which the local business environment could be improved.

In addition to Lower Pottsgrove, committee members include Pottstown borough, and Douglass, New Hanover, Upper Pottsgrove and West Pottsgrove townships in Montgomery County; and East Coventry and North Coventry townships in Chester County. During their last meeting, Montgomery County planner Darlene Wynne told committee representatives TischlerBise was “making good progress” in hearing from business and consumer constituencies.

The study team also has been visiting each of the member municipalities to learn about their opportunities for business assistance and expansion. Lower Pottsgrove Manager Rodney Hawthorne provided the township’s tour on July 15.

A public meeting on the study results could be scheduled sometime during September, Wynne said.

Related:

• Survey Now Looks For Local Business Owners’ Opinions
• Wanted: Your Opinions On Where And Why You Shop
• Study To See If Townships, Borough Can All Prosper

STAMPING OUT THE ASPHALT, FILLING THE AIR WITH MUSIC – Members of the Pottsgrove High School marching band were out on the Kauffman Road, Pottstown PA, school parking lot Tuesday (July 26, 2011), participating (above) in what was called their last rehearsal before two weeks of annual band camp begin Aug. 8. As a motivator, band members are planning a pennies-only fund-raiser among themselves during camp, with prizes to be distributed during a final-day cookout in mid-August. The award-winning band has been busy washing cars (below) and tackling other chores to collect enough money to support its competitions this year. Its next open-to-the-public car wash is scheduled for Aug. 13 (Saturday) beginning at 9:30 a.m. at Lower Pottsgrove Elementary School, Buchert Road, Pottstown.

Photos by Fred Remelius and the Pottsgrove High School Marching Band

NORRISTOWN PA – Montgomery County should ask its voters whether spending $50 million to upgrade the county police radio system is a good idea, county commissioner candidates Jenny Brown and Bruce Castor suggested Monday (July 25, 2011).

Bruce Castor and Jenny Brown

Castor claimed the expense would put the county further in debt. “Police and the taxpayers both deserve the best” protection available, he said, but added that the public should be allowed to voice “opinions on the single most expensive project in county history.”

Lower Pottsgrove (PA) Township Police Chief Michael Shade and Manager Rodney Hawthorne both favor the upgrade, but the Board of Commissioners has yet to take an official position on the topic. Borough councils in Pottstown and Collegeville have voted against it as being too costly.

The county must change its radio system under an order from the Federal Communications Commission. The proposed upgrade is one option, but not the least expensive, available to meet the requirement.

“We can put our radio system into compliance with new federal guidelines at no cost to the county, then revisit the issue of upgrading the entire system when county finances improve,” Castor contended.

LIMERICK PA – The annual “Back-To-School and Fall Preview” event at the Philadelphia Premium Outlets, West Lightcap Road, Limerick PA, officially opens Friday (July 29, 2011) with Pottsgrove High School graduate and country music singer and songwriter Kendal Conrad as the opening entertainment from noon to 4 p.m. in its Food Court courtyard, outlets Assistant General Manager Keri Branch said.

Philadelphia Premium Outlets at Limerick

Also scheduled to perform, at the same times and location, are the country music duo Left Lucy on Saturday (July 30), and the Philadelphia String Quartet on Sunday (July 31). All performances are weather-permitting, and may be subject to change, Branch noted. The event continues through Monday (Aug. 1).

The outlets are a retail sopping venue with about 150 stores. During the event, certain merchants are offering discounts of between 25 ad 65 percent on specific items, according to Branch. The center’s retailers include Adidas, Banana Republic, Coach, Cole Haan, DKNY, Guess, Kate Spade, Lucky Brand, Last Call by Neiman Marcus, Nike, Polo Ralph Lauren, and Restoration Hardware.

For more information, call 610-495-9000.

Principal Ruth Fisher

POTTSTOWN PA – Ruth Fisher is in ‘da house! (and, as an educator, hopefully she won’t mind the less-than-scholarly wording of that proclamation).

It’s true, though. Fisher, who beginning this year will serve as principal of the Pottsgrove School District’s Lower Pottsgrove Elementary School, Buchert Road, Pottstown PA, has settled into her offices there and with other staff members is busily preparing for the Aug. 29 start of school, she said Monday (July 25, 2011) in an e-mail to parents and others.

Fisher was principal at West Pottsgrove Elementary School for 12 years before taking the assignment at Lower, and before that she worked for seven years as a principal in Berks County. She succeeds Ellen Siegel, who retired in June.

“Our custodians have been very busy cleaning every room and each hallway” to ensure the school will “be a very inviting school for your child,” she wrote to parents. “Our teachers have started setting up classrooms, and are also eager for the start of the new school term … Let’s hope it won’t be as hot and humid then as has been these past two weeks,” she added.

Class lists, which Fisher said were created by Lower Pottsgrove team members before the end of last year’s term, will be available by next Monday (Aug. 1). She also noted it’s not too late to have new or incoming students be registered for school; those needing registration packets or other information should call Bobbi Oxenford at 610-327-2277, Ext. 1040, she said.

Fisher specifically credited staff members Suzanne McCarrick, Maryann Johnson, and Sue McGroarty with “helping me learn about Lower.”

The Lower Pottsgrove office, until school resumes, is open Monday through Thursday only from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.