Chester CountyPRESS
www.chestercounty.com
Covering Avon Grove, Chadds Ford, Kennett Square, Oxford, & Unionville Areas
Volume 151, No. 12
60 Cents
Wednesday, March 22, 2017
Leon Spencer named Chamber’s Outstanding Citizen of the Year Seven candidates INSIDE enter Kennett ‘We all breathe the same air’ Square Borough Council race
So far, four democrats and three Republicans have filed for the May primary election. Four seats will be filled in the general election Sharing the power of ‘Thank You’ in Kennett Square...1B
By Steven Hoffman Staff Writer
There are seven candidates—four Democrats and three Republicans—who have already filed for the primary election in May. With four seats up for election, all those who have filed for the primary election may earn a spot on the general election ballot, but voters will have some difficult choices to make come November, when seven or eight candidates will be vying for four seats on council. Examining the life of Borough council presiBayard Taylor...8A dent Dan Maffei is seeking his third term on council. Maffei, Matthew McGill, and Gregory Deveney are all Republicans who have filed for the primary election.
Sculpture exhibit shines at Oxford Arts Alliance ...1B
INDEX Opinion........................7A Calendar of Events.....2B Obituaries....................4B
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Classifieds..................7B
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LaToya Myers, Ethan Cramer, Peter Waterkotte, and Brenda Mercomes are making a bid for the Democratic nomination. Myers and Cramer both currently serve on Kennett Square Borough Council after being appointed to fill vacancies at the start of 2016. One incumbent council member, Geoff Bosley, decided not to seek another term this year. During his tenure, Bosley has served on the borough’s Finance and Budget Committee, which has kept a tight rein on expenditures. Maffei pointed to the stewardship of the borough’s financial resources as a reason that he is seeking a third Continued on Page 6A
Photo by Richard L. Gaw
Leon Spencer, the recipient of the 2016 Outstanding Citizen of the Year award by the Southern Chester County Chamber of Commerce, stands with Chester County Technical High School at Pennock’s Bridge vice principal Paul Siever and school principal Dr. Brian Hughes. Spencer is a School to Careers specialist at the school.
By Richard L. Gaw Staff Writer When Leon Spencer, the Southern Chester County Chamber of Commerce’s Outstanding Citizen of the Year recipient for 2016, was informed of his distinction, it was not through the usual channels of communication. There was no congratulatory letter in the mail, no
Forum to help navigate school-to-future path for students and their parents By Richard L. Gaw Staff Writer The following kitchen table scenario takes place every day, from Chadds Ford to West Chester to Downingtown to Oxford to Kennett Square, and everywhere in between. After dinner, a husband and wife sit down with their teenage son or daughter, to begin to lay the foundation for his or her future. They’ve read the tea leaves; while the concept of marching off to a four-year college immediately after high school may not be appealing to their son or daughter, he or she has demonstrated an early aptitude for computers, or electronics, or automotive repair, or cosmetology or engine technology, or early childhood care and education.
Photo by Richard L. Gaw
The Chester County Technical High School Pennock’s Bridge Campus will host “Bridging High School to Future,” on March 30.
So the process begins, to find a place where these students can pursue their passion while also receiving real-world experience in their field of choice, a full high school education, and certifications that can serve as a springboard to either higher education, or directly into a
career. At thousands of kitchen tables across southern Chester County, the solution has often been the pursuit of another option: Chester County Technical College High School, at its branches in Downingtown, Phoenixville Continued on Page 6A
phone call from Chamber president and CEO Cheryl Kuhn, and certainly no dinner; that will take place on March 24 at Longwood Gardens, before hundreds of the community’s top movers and shakers. Rather, Spencer learned of his honor another way. The people he works with at the Technical College High School’s Pennock’s Bridge
Continued on Page 3A
U-CF School Board approves expenses for renovations By John Chambless Staff Writer Some big-ticket items were quietly and unanimously approved at the March 20 meeting of the UnionvilleChadds Ford School Board, which was held at Chadds Ford Elementary School. After a presentation about student involvement in a STEM science fair at the elementary school, district superintendent John Sanville said, “It’s clear from the kids’ work in those projects why Chadds Ford Elementary is a national Blue Ribbon School of Excellence. There’s some really tremendous work being done by the kids and the staff.” Voting was swift and unanimous for a list of items related to ongoing renovations at district schools: A mower purchase for
Canine Partners for Life breaks ground on major expansion project The Marian S. Ware Program Services Center is the first phase of a planned $8.5 million expansion By Steven Hoffman Staff Writer Canine Partners for Life (CPL), the Cochranville nonprofit organization that trains service dogs to provide life-changing assistance for people with a wide range of disabilities, broke ground on phase one of a planned $8.5 million expansion on Thursday, March 16. The Marian S. Ware Program Services Center will be the hub of CPL’s program activities, according to executive director and founder Darlene Sullivan. The renovated and expanded facility on Faggs Manor Road will house all the staff except for the kennel staff, and will include interview rooms for both applicant and volunteer interviews, multiple accessible restrooms,
campus in West Grove, in conjunction with the SCCCC, simply set him up. It was a diversion carved from genius. Several staff members at the school took Spencer on an unnecessary tour of the school’s engine technology center, cornered him with pressing questions, and created a mock situation that called for his mediation.
$24,645.75; Replacement door hardware throughout Hillendale Elementary School for $39,540; New carpeting for Hillendale Elementary for $31,339; New carpeting for Unionville and Pocopson elementary schools for $14,634.30; Exterior lighting for Hillendale Elementary and Patton Middle School for $17,689.72; Repair and resurfacing of tennis courts for $31,000; Roofing repairs for Chadds Ford Elementary, Patton Middle School and Unionville High School for $318,983.13; Replacement of lockers at Patton Middle School for $89,568. In addition, the board Continued on Page 6A
The Route 1 and Route 796 intersection looks rosier By Uncle Irvin
Photo by Steven Hoffman
Canine Partners for Life held a groundbreaking for the Marian S. Ware Program Services Center on March 16. Participants in the groundbreaking included (from left): State Representative John Lawrence; campaign chair Tory Kitchell, executive director and founder Darlene Sullivan with Cal, a service dog; Janie Cramer with Mischief, a service dog; chief operating officer Susann Guy; architect and project manager Jerry Childers; and director of development Daniel P. Smith.
accessible entrances and exits, and a larger harness shop. The entire building will have improved effi-
ciency and will be designed The project includes a renoto better accommodate the vation of existing space as CPL clients who utilize well the construction of an Continued on Page 2A wheelchairs and scooters.
Penn Township has recently turned to PA Act 209 to guarantee costs for the widening of the intersection near Route 1 and Route 796. Act 209 permits municipalities to offset costs of extensive reconfiguration by charging an impact fee against new development in order to generate revenue for funding costs of capital improvement. According to Curtis Mason, the chairman of Penn Township Board of Supervisors, the adoption of Act 209 forces stakeholders to fund their share of the intersection improvements. Continued on Page 3A