Groff Thanked for 28 Years With Phillies Fire Co.

Photo by Evan Brandt

Joe Groff, right, is congratulated by Pottstown Borough Council President Dan Weand Wednesday night upon his retirement as chief of the Phillies Fire Company. Looking on are Fire Chief Frank Hand, left, and Borough Manager Justin Keller. Groff has volunteered with the fire company for 28 years.

Nothing stood out as blockbuster news at last night's Pottstown Borough Council meeting -- unless, of course, your name is Joe Groff.

Groff, who this month marks 28 years volunteering with the Phillies Fire Company, retired as the company's fire chief in December. Last night, he was recognized by a borough council resolution and hearty hand shake from Council President Dan Weand.

Here's video of the resolution being read:




Groff will be replaced in the chief's position by Chad Quinter, but will continue to volunteer with the Phillies as the safety officer.

The rest of the meeting was a little of this, a little of that.

Lydia Messinger, the executive director of Boyertown Multi-Service was on-hand to report on the agency's re-opening of the Ricketts Community Center last month.,

Jocelyn Charles, new Ricketts director.

She said visitors jumped from about 20 the first day to 68 by the end of the week. The center has been repainted, new safety equipment installed and a dance floor installed in the back room.

Summer programming is now being planned and the center is looking for volunteers to help run
programs, Messinger said.

The Pottstown Ministerium will host an open house/meet and greet on Thursday, Feb. 13, from 2 to 6 p.m. at the center and all are welcome. 

But of course readers of The Mercury already know that as we reported it Tuesday, along with the news that a new director has been hired for the center.

Borough Manager Justin Keller announced that a new finance director has been hired to replace Janice Lee, who is retiring. But I'm afraid I didn't quite catch the name, so you'll have to wait on that information until I get it right.

Of perhaps more interest, at least to residents of Johnson Street, was Keller's update on complaints about a homeowner with seven dogs, and the conditions in which they're living and how those conditions impact neighbors.

Keller said inspections by the SPCA found the dogs healthy and conditions for their care adequate, however Keller said the homeowner has also agreed to allow the borough to make spot inspections without warning.

Further, he said the local district justice has agreed that the homeowner will no longer receive warnings from the borough, but be cited immediately any time there is a problem. "We've been before the judge six times with this property," said Keller.

Keller also said that developers have expressed an interest in the "Hess lot," site of a former gas station, at the corner of South Hanover Street and College Drive. 

Long vacant, the site sits at the "southern gateway" to the borough. Keller said rather than simply put the property, which the borough owns, up for bid, that it instad may be conveyed to the Pottstown Area Industrial Development agency, which can in turn turn the property over to a developer who has proposed a use that fits with the borough's vision for that gateway.

Also on the development front, a couple who has successfully rehabilitated at least two residential properties in town has asked council to waive the need for a conditional use hearing to convert a vacant warehouse at the corner of North York and Walnut streets into four market-rate apartments.

A vote on this and other items could come as soon as Monday's council meeting.

Council will wait until March to vote on a proposed franchise agreement with Comcast to provide cable TV service in the borough. As currently proposed, the deal with be 10 years long.

Council will also consider a number of changes to borough ordinances designed to make things easier on homeowners. They include making it easier to own an inflatable "storable" pool; for homeowners to do their own plumbing repairs; and to eliminate parking requirements in the zoning code for existing buildings in the downtown area.

The Colebrookdale Railroad will apply for a $200,000 Montco 2040 grant, on behalf of the borough, to construct pedestrian improvements for crossing King Street between Pottsgrove Manor and the new rail station being built in Memorial Park.

The railroad will provide the 20 percent match, but the project is contingent on approval from PennDOT, since King Street is also state Route 663.

And with that, click here to see all the Tweets from last night's meeting, misspellings and all.

2020 Pottstown Budget Would Raise Taxes by 4.25%

Photos by Evan Brandt

If you had three hours to kill last night, you would have struggled to find a more productive way to spend it than by attending the borough council work session.

A wide variety of important topics were discussed, including the budget and the future of the Ricketts Community Center.

But first let's have some fun.

This year is the 100th anniversary of the Dana Corp, whose Spicer division plant is still going strong on Center Street in the borough.

Last night, council provided a proclamation honoring the company for its longevity, how many people it has employed and all it has done for Pottstown.

Here's the video:



Also always fun is Mayor Stephanie Henrick's monthly report, always chock full of activities and good news. Here's that video:



And what council meeting blog would be complete without the accompanying video of Borough Manager Justin Keller's gripping monthly report. Here's that video:


Now that we're got that under our belt, here's what I'm going to do.

It's already after midnight and there is no way for me to do justice to all the things that happened last night. So I will attempt to do justice to one -- the $45.3 million budget.

Improvements to the borough budget as a result of the EIP study.

The news appears to be comparatively good, at least when you compare it with the last two budgets that brought  11 percent and 9 percent tax hikes respectively.

With property values rising, fewer assessment challenges are successful and property transfer tax revenues are more than expected because Pottstown properties are not lingering on the real estate market.

The borough even got a break in terms of tax-exempt properties, which actually went down by 13 parcels in 2019, many of them due to the return of the YMCA property on North Adams Street.

If all 313 of the tax-exempt parcels in the borough (except school district and borough-owned properties), were back on the tax rolls, the borough would enjoy another $1.8 million in annual revenues.

Bottom line? The draft budget outlined last night would raise property taxes by 4.25 percent if adopted unchanged. And it appears there is a possibility council may act on this budget at its Monday night meeting.

This chart shows that taxpayers' unfunded liability for paying health
care costs for retired police and long-time managers is $28.4 million

Good news aside, Pottstown's finances still face challenges, not the least of which are pension liabilities and the $28 million unfunded liability of health benefits for retired police officers and long-time managers.

Borough Manager Justin Keller said some progress has been on that front, with the new contract for non-uniformed workers included a clause that will put all new employees in a "defined contribution" pension plan, similar to at 401K plan, instead of the traditional and more expensive "defined benefit" pension plan.

The borough must also create a capital expense plan said Keller and Finance Director Janice Lee, advice offered both by a bond rating service and by the Early Intervention Program report offered this spring.

The proposed budget calls for $100,000 to be transferred into the fund to begin saving for things like

All but one of Pottstown's fire trucks are 10 years old or older.

new police cars, new fire trucks and, perhaps most significantly from a cost standpoint, the borough's crumbling stormwater arches.

As it does every year, the borough is going to ask owners of tax exempt properties if they would like to make a "payment in lieu of taxes." New this year, will be an offer to allow them to instead made a direct contribution to something on the capital budget list of needs.

For example, in 2017, The Hill School donated $200,000 to the borough specifically to pay for new police cars.

If adopted unchanged, the 2020 budget's tax hike would result in a $46 increase for a property  assessed at $85,000 or $54 increase for home assessed at $100,000, said Lee.

And now I will bid you all good night. If you're looking for me, check out the Tweets from the meeting here:

Dana at 100, Census, Budget and Ricketts Center

Making it Easier to Ride the Colebrookdale Railroad

Junior Woman’s Club current president Anita Zuber and past president Jane Prutzman presenting Nathaniel Guest with donation surrounded by dedicated volunteer.

Blogger's Note: The following was provided by the Colebrookdale Railroad.

The Colebrookdale Railroad Preservation Trust recently received a boost from two local community organizations.

The First Presbyterian Church of Pottstown presented a check for $5,000 and the Junior Woman’s Club presented a check for $500 to Executive Director Nathaniel Guest recently. 

The donations will help fund the conversion of the railroad’s Café Car to be accessible to persons with mobility concerns. 

Additionally, the Junior Woman’s Club donation will also go towards offering free Santa Clause train rides to Multi-Service families and Pottstown Cluster clients. 

According to sources at the First Presbyterian Church the donation was made possible by the Mary N. Porter Designated Fund of the Community Foundation of Broward County, which awarded a grant to the First Presbyterian Church.

“This generous donation supports our efforts of becoming more accessible to a diverse group of passengers,” said Nathaniel Guest, Executive Director of the non-profit Colebrookdale Railroad Preservation Trust. 

Coupled with a nearly-completed ADA-compliant boarding platform, and the construction of a similar platform and station in Pottstown early next year, the improvements to the Café Car, when complete, will make the Colebrookdale Railroad the only ADA-accessible tourist railroad serving both Berks and Montgomery Counties. 

Persons with mobility concerns will find it much easier to access the restored historic cars. “This has been a priority for the Trust from the very beginning,” said Guest.

According to Guest the work has only just begun. “We still have a way to go as the restoration costs for this project are expected to top $150,000,” he said. 

“Addressing these barriers will help us to fulfill our vision of making the country’s best tourist railroad from the Golden Age of Railroading an experience to be enjoyed by all persons, regardless of mobility.”

The Trust is seeking support to continue the conversion of the Café Car and ADA-compliance.

Donations can be to the Trust at its Boyertown office or online at www.colebrookdalerailroad.com.