Letter to the Hank Mahoney, President BOC October 7, 2007

[johnfisher]

I have been working on a new initiative over the past several months in
the 7th Ward to resolve a long-term issue with the SEPTA Spillway.
This is the area between the SEPTA RT100 trolley line (East Bound) and
the 900 block of Conestoga Road that is in desperate need of
green-scape.

To make this project a success for the community, I have been working to
align volunteers who can bring expertise and energy to this project as
well as locating a source of funding through grants. To date I have
commitments from the Girl Scouts of USA - Radnor (Lori McCarron), Lara
Kaiserian, a Girl Scout Gold Award Candidate, The Cub Scouts of America
-Radnor (Rick Eulo), Bill Thomas from Chanticleer, neighbors of the area
and have opened dialog with SEPTA. I also have a signed petition
from all of the residents on Locust Grove Terrace, and Locust Grove and
Conestoga roads who are asking for help from the township in this
project.

The good news is that we have discovered a PECO Green Region grant
opportunity and have taken some time to write a draft application. The
grant award can be as much as $10,000 and key stipulation is that the
municipality pledge matching funds by way of a written resolution and
that the application be filed by November 1, 2007 (not much time).
In this case the township would need to pledge 51% of the project cost in
order to qualify for the grant award. I am asking that the township
pledge at least $10,000 to this project so we can maximize this
award.

I am asking that a resolution to pledge funds and submit the grant
application be put on the agenda for the October 22n'd BOC
meeting, I will make this plea tonight during public
comment and welcome it be brought up as new business so the resolution
can be voted upon at the next meeting.

[johnfisher]

During the public conversation the board president, Hank Mahoney
correctly pointed out by saying the land is not the township's and because of that, the grant will not qualify for funding.

One thing I never settle for is "NO" getting in the way of a good idea so I will keep working on getting this project started.

What I do know is that we need to get approval from SEPTA to access the land. We either get approval to gain access or we negotiate a long-term lease agreement so in effect the township will qualify for the grant. I will pursue the latter so we can keep the grant in our sights. I spoke with Matt Baumann (Township Planner) and Tom Blomstrom (director of Radnor Parks and Recreation) after the meeting and got some some clarification on the issues. The interesting point here is that the township is currently leasing about 2.5 miles of PENNDOT land and has built a trail on it. The lease is likely $1 per year and the township has assumed all responsibilities for the land including maintenance and insurance costs.

The spillway is likely 70% SEPTA, 20% PENNDOT and 10% PECO owned. I am still waiting to hear back from the SEPTA engineering on the site plan to clarify this point so we can proceed with negotiations on the access or leasing. This plan is a win-win for all parties so i am hopeful all parties will help make this happen. My goal is to resolve this issue as quickly as possible but it is not likely to occur for the next BOC meeting on October 22nd. I will try my best.