Ricketts Center Gets Lots of Love at Open House

Photos by Evan Brandt

ABOVE: Denise L. Williams, left, executive director of Keys 4 Success, and Tiffany Smith, career counselor for the Montgomery County Intermediate Unit, were on hand Thursday to see the upgrades and new programs at the Ricketts Community Center. 

AT RIGHT: Joceyln Charles, the new director of the Ricketts Community Center, gives a tour during Thursday's open house.

Jocelyn Charles, the new director of the Ricketts Community Center, was busy Thursday, shaking hands and giving tours.

The occasion was the open house at the center, organized by the Pottstown Ministerium, aimed to showing off the renovations undertaken by Boyertown Multi-Service, which took over operations of the center last month.

Those on the tour saw fresh paint, a new dance floor,  a new homework room, and updated refurbished restrooms, etc.

Lydia Messinger, Boyertown Multi-Service executive director

gives a tour to Audra Ross and Bronwyn DeMaso Thursday.

And despite the fact that Charles worked for the previous operator, Olivet Boys and Girls Club, or perhaps because of that fact, Charles said she views the open house as "a fresh start."

"I am pleased to see so many people from the community out today," said Charles. "I expected to see the agencies and the services."

And those included representatives from Creative Health, Montgomery County Intermediate Unit, Family Services, Mosaic community Land Trust and Cultrual Centro Latinos Unidos, to name a few.

Overall, 130 people put their names on the sign-in sheet, said the Rev. Vernon Ross, pastor of Bethel
Community Church of Pottstown, who helped organize the open house with the help of the Pottstown Ministerium.

Pottstown Police officers Zach Robinson, left, and
Ryan Guth stopped by the open house Thursday.

"But seeing the people from the community is a great indicator of how interested they are in what we're doing here," Charles said.

There was certainly lots of interest, including from the police department.

"If we have a lot of people using the center, it gives people, and kids especially, a place to go and if they're here, they're less likely to be out getting into trouble," said officer Ryan Guth.

Interest is also high in the fitness programs run by Paul Winterbottom.

Fitness instructor Paul Winterbottom with some of the

work out equipment at the Ricketts Center.

He said his "community boot camp" program, "which is open to all ages, 8 to 80, attracts 30 people to the sessions held Tuesdays and Thursdays from 7 to 8 p.m.

Sydni Gajewski, the center's program coordinator was handing out a full schedule of programs at the center in February.

"I can't wait to see how many people will come out, both to volunteer and participate. We really have a lot of potential here," said Gajewski.

Councilman Joe Kirkland, who represents the Seventh Ward, where the center is located, expressed doubt about giving the contract to Boyertown Multi Service and voted against it, saying he preferred a local Pottstown option.

The selection became necessary after the abrupt ending in August of the Olivet Boys and Girls Club's when the Berks-based club suddenly rejected a new four-year lease it has just secured from council.

Pottstown Borough Councilman Joe Kirkland chats with

Pottstown Police officer Ryan Guth at the open house.

uneven history of running the center,

Boyertown Multi-Service was selected by borough council in October out of five possible operators.

Four of those applicants, including the borough's own parks and recreation department, are in Pottstown and many, including Kirkland and Councilwoman Trenita Lindsay, had advocated to have a Pottstown-based agency put in charge.

Both Lindsay and Kirkland voted against awarding the new least to Boyertown Building Service.

But both were on hand Thursday to see how things are going and Kirkland said he was impressed with the agency's performance so far.

"They've only been here two months and hand's down, it's already ten times better than Olivet," Kirkland said.

"I've been coming by every week and it's amazing they progress they've made since January," said Ross.

Parks and Recreation Director Mike Lenhadt and Borough
Manager Justin Keller were both on hand for the open house.

Michael Lenhart, director of the borough's parks and recreation department, also seemed pleased.

"I'm honestly pleased to see the time and attention Multi-Service has been putting into the building and operation," he said.

"They seem to b e building as program to meet the needs of the community, rather than just bring their own existing programs in. That's what they said they would do and that's what they're doing," Lenhart said.

"It's exciting," Matthew Hovey said of the crowd's size. Hovey is the president of the board of directors of Boyertown Multi-Service and was on hand for the open house.

"It really shows the importance of the Ricketts Center to this community and there are a lot of organizations here and I hope a lot of them turn into supporters and volunteers to serve this community," said Hovey.

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.

Dragon Boat Will Ferry Santa to Pottstown Saturday

Santa will arrive in downtown Pottstown Saturday via dragon boat, crossing the Schuylkill River to land in Riverfront Park, before riding a fire truck downtown for more holiday fun.

There was news a-plenty at last night's Borough Council meeting, which we will get to in tomorrow's post, but first I want to let everyone know how busy Santa Clause will be in Pottstown, particularly on Saturday.

Despite the fact that no one provided any of this information to the newspaper, or me, the economic development report delivered at Wednesday night's council meeting by Peggy Lee-Clark, executive director of PAID, provides the basics.

Christmas magic begins Friday night at The Alley on High Street, which is now decorated as a
"Christmas Village" and from 5 to 11 p.m. Friday, vendors including NV Donuts, will be there along with a Christmas Tree.

"But the real excitement starts on Saturday," Lee-Clark said.

From 10 a.m. to 12 p.m., Santa will be at The Pottstown Integrated Wellness Complex at 724 N. Adams Street, known to most as the YMCA, to visit with children and adults alike.

From 12 to 2 p.m., Beverly's Pastry Shop at 322 High St. will host Christmas cookie decorating.

The big man in the red suit will arrive in downtown Pottstown via, get this, a dragon boat, which will ferry him and his throne across the Schuylkill River to Riverfront Park at 2 p.m.

From there, he will ride a fire truck to The Alley on High Street to hob knob with Pottstown peeps.

From 3 to 6 p.m. is the official "Holiday Stroll" on High Street where shoppers can fill out a "bingo card" with a theme from "A Christmas Story," which, by zero coincidence, is the show that opens at Steel River Playhouse, which opens Friday and runs through Dec. 22.

Bingo cards can be obtained from the Schuylkill River Heritage Area in Riverfront Park, where Santa will stop by after his sojourn across the river, and at The High Street Terminal market, 300 High St.

But make sure you are back at Smith Family Plaza in front of borough hall by 7 because that's when the tree lighting begins.

It is also when the winners of the contest for businesses decorating the planters outside their buildings will be announced by the judge, Mayor Stephanie Henrick.

(Santa will return to Pottstown on Dec. 21, when he will ride a fire truck through town, according to Pottstown Fire Chief Frank Hand.)

And don't forget on Sunday is the Historic Holiday House tour, proceeds from which raise money to pay for July 4, 2020 fireworks at the GoFourth Festival in Memorial Park. Read more about that here.

Here is video of Lee-Clark's report:



And for those of you who can't wait for the hard news out of last night's meeting, here are the Tweets from the meeting.

Tax Hike Down, 5-Year Police Pact Gives

Council Picks Boyertown Agency to Run Ricketts

The Ricketts Community Center.

Given the choice between four Pottstown-based organizations and one based in Berks County, borough council voted 4-2 Tuesday night to go with Berks to run the Ricketts Community Center on Beech Street.

Again.

Having just weathered the fall-out from being dumped by the Berks-based Olivet Boys & Girls Club, which was repeatedly accused of being out of touch with Pottstown's needs, Pottstown Borough Council said "that pleased the community so much the first time, why not try that again?"

Council members Ryan Procsal, Don Lebedynsky, Vice President Carol Kulp and Council President Dan Weand voted to begin negotiations for a two-year contract with Boyertown Area Multi-Service, best known for its Spring Street senior center.

Those who saw Weand, Procsal, Lebedynsky, Weand and Kulp with their heads together just before the meeting started may have reached the conclusion that decision was reached before the meeting.

Councilman Joe Kirkland, who represents the Seventh Ward where the center is located and

The Hall (Wall) of Fame inside the Ricketts Center.

Councilwoman Trenita Lindsay voted against it. Councilwoman Rita Paez also opposed the choice but because she is affiliated with one of the applicants, she recused herself from voting to avoid a conflict of interest.

The applicant with which Paez is associated is Centro Cultural Latinos Unidos, a Latino-oriented non-profit in Pottstown which was a late-comer to the group bidding to run the center, but never a serious contender.

In fact, not only was the group unable to make a presentation last Wednesday, when STRIVE Initiative, YWCA Tri-County Area and the borough Parks and Recreation Department made their proposals, the one presented Tuesday does not yet even have the support of its board.

Board chair Edie Sheehan-Hammond instead simply offered council an overview of CCLU and its programs. Council had no questions.

The dedication plaque outside the Ricketts Center.

But Kirkland had a few statements, speaking out strongly against the motion made by Procsal and
seconded by Lebedynsky to award the job to the Boyertown agency.

"I'm leaning toward having the borough take over running the center again. It's clear that's what the people want," Kirkland said to the many speakers who have addressed council in recent months, none of whom have asked for another agency from outside Pottstown to run the center.

"The more we keep giving this out to outside parties, the harder it will be to bring it back in, we're just washing out hands of it," Kirkland said.

His assertion gained traction when it became clear that most of council did not even know how long the contract is to be, as outlined by the borough's own request for proposals.

Hannah Davis from STRIVE had to call out the answer from the audience.

"We're going to award this contract and we don't even know how long it is?" Kirkland fumed. "We're always looking for the easy way out. Let's do what's right for a change," he said.

"Everyone said the center was best when the borough ran it. The borough (presentation) had everything the others did," he said. " We can take of this ourselves."

"I agree 100 percent," said Paez. "We have to do what's best for the children."

"We should keep this in-house," said Lindsay. "I have faith in our borough. I know we can do this."

The argument against have the borough take over operations is primarily financial. Parks and Recreation Director Michael Lenhart told council it would take an additional $37,000 to have the borough run the center. That's above and beyond the $40,000 the borough contributes annually toward the center operations.

Weand said the budget draft for 2020 already calls for a 4.5 percent tax hike and adding the cost of running the center could increase that.

"My constituents tell me they're not willing to take on any more expense," Weand said.

Procsal noted that Boyertown Area Multi-Service has strong financial backing and a record of professionalism. He said there is nothing that prevents the agency from working with parks and recreation in running the center.

Procsal said before the meeting he spoke to Johnny Corson, president of the Pottstown Chapter of the

NAACP "and he understands our reasons."

Mayor Stephanie Henrick, who does not have a vote, said financially, the Boyertown choice makes sense, but she is concerned that the center and agency being in two different counties could make getting grants more complicated.

"The smart move is to bring it in-house and ask STRIVE to help guide the borough through the first year or two," she said.

It remains to be seen how much collaboration among those who expressed interest in helping to run the center will occur come 2020.

And with that, given that I had a tooth pulled this afternoon, I am calling it a night.

Here are the Tweets from the meeting:

Council Goes Back to Berks for Ricketts Role

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

Council Charts Two Courses for Ricketts Future

Photos by Evan Brandt

Pottstown Borough Council agreed on a course to keep the Ricketts Community Center open until the end of the year, and to pursue two possible options for the year to come, Wednesday night.

The decisions were made necessary by last week's surprise about face by the Olivet Boys and Girls Club that, after securing a lease to operate the center for another four years, announced instead it would walk away.

The decision, after months of negotiations with the borough, left council in the lurch, needing to decide immediately how to keep the center open until the end of the year, when Olivet's current lease expires, and what plans to make for its future operation.

A crowd filters into the council room for Wednesday night's

meeting on the future of the Ricketts Center.

First things first, council agreed on a loosely outlined plan to allow Olivet to continue to "operate" the
center, although it will not offer any fall programming.

The programming will be undertaken by three primary volunteer non-profit groups -- the STRIVE Initiative, which had made its own proposal to run the center; Hobart's Run, the Hill School's neighborhood development arm; and YWCA Tri-County Area, which made a late-in-the-day proposal to run the center.

Borough Manager Justin Keller said he had been in contract with Olivet officials and they have committed to continue to operate the center through the end of the year, and to work cooperatively with whatever groups or agencies come in to provide programming, provided those people have FBI and child abuse background checks.

There was some confusion, and some distrust, about what Olivet will do going forward.

The dedication plaque outside the Ricketts Center.

"Can they even be trusted, given that they walked away after getting a new lease?" asked Councilwoman Rita Paez.

"Olivet can't be trusted," said Everett Debnam, speaking as vice president of the Pottstown chapter of the NAACP. "Get rid of them, we don't need them to turn a key."

But it was pointed out that by allowing Olivet to "run out the year," as Keller phrased it, they are bound by the terms of the lease to continue to pay utilities at the center.

Also, having them there will put responsibility for undertaking background checks on Olivet, rather than the borough, said Parks and Recreation Director Michael Lenhart.

Keller assured the audience of about 30 people that he had a "lengthy and pointed discussion with Olivet about fulfilling their obligations under the current contract."

Ricketts volunteer Hannah Davis also suggested the borough ensure that it gets a partial refund from Olivet since it is not offering fall programming, something Keller said "they are open to." She also suggested ensuring all the grant funding Olivet obtained that was allocated to Pottstown, be provided to the borough.

What happens in January?

The longer-term question for council and the community is what comes next.

After spending months on securing a new lease with Olivet, Pottstown now faces the prospect of coming up with something else in just  a few weeks.

Keller said the borough has issued a "request for qualifications" from anyone interested in running the center, noting the borough already has a proposal from the YWCA and STRIVE.

Twila Fisher, who heads up the Hobart's Run organization, said

it will do whatever it is asked to do to help the center stay open.

Anyone else who wants to apply, must do so by Aug. 30. Council will interview all those who applied on Sept. 4, starting at 5:30 with a possible vote on Sept. 9.

"We don't have to time to wait. If they're interested, they will already be tuned in to what's going on here," Keller said.

But there is also another option, said Justin Valentine, a former Pottsgrove School Board President and the pastor of Kingdom Life Church in Pottstown.

He earned applause from the crowd when he said "the model council has put forward is to keep the same model we've had for 10 years, to lease the center out. The community is not looking to continue that model, we do not want to keep the lease/tenant mentality," he said.

Rather, "we want to work with borough oversight and collaborate with the community to operate the center," which is what STRIVE's purpose has been all along, said David Charles, one of STRIVE's principals.

"STRIVE's proposal was made because we did not have time to get together with community and discuss what we want to do," Charles said. "Our proposal is to open communications and work with the community, possibly create a separate entity and board eventually to run the center."

There was some resistance from borough staff to the idea of having the center overseen and run by the borough.

"Where will we get the money?" asked Finance Director Janice Lee. Council President Dan Weand pointed out that the borough's tax base was healthier 10 years ago than it is now.

Coluncilman Joe Kirkland said the borough's contribution toward the center's operation 10 years ago was higher and it was a mistake to scale it back over the years.

Kirkland, who represents the Seventh Ward where the center is located said previously he thinks the borough should take over running the center.

"We'll figure it out," he said.

Parks and Recreation Director Michael Lenhart

addresses borough council Wednsday night.

Turns out Lenhart already has part of it figured out.

He told council he had put together a budget and outlined for running the center, should council
decide to go that way, in preparation for last night's meeting.

He said early estimates indicate it would cost the borough between $195,000 to $200,000 to operate the center, including hiring a full-time center director for a salary of $38,500.

Adding the borough's annual contribution of $40,000 to the money currently provided by other funders would still leave the budget short by $50,000, he said.

The budget information "will evolve," Lenhart said, "and I wouldn't expect that number to go down."

He said he would propose "starting moderately," to make sure the borough could fulfill its obligations, and then grow programs with the help of partners.

"If the decision is to go with the borough, we can all go home now and let staff figure it out," said Keller. "Why can't we do both?" Weand responded. "I think that's a wise option," said Lenhart.

And so that is what council decided. Lenhart will continue to work on what borough operation would look like, and meet with potential partners to explore options, while council will also hear from all those who submit proposals to run the center on a lease basis.

Longtime resident Robert Brown addresses Council Wednesday.

Weand then tried to end the meeting without hearing from the public, saying a planning commission meeting was starting in 10 minutes, but he was over-ruled.

Robert Brown was the first speaker. He said council should "focus on the community and what the community wants. Our kids are the future and if we don't make them a priority, they will become a liability," he said to applause.

Charles said STRIVE's proposal "is a highly collaborative and democratic model that reflects the voice and the desires of the community which it serves."

Here is some video of his comments:

"In the future, STRIVE will solicit the input of the community to gauge whether the community feels the center should be operated under STRIVE, or whether a new entity should be formed solely functioning to operate the center," said Charles.

There will be another meeting about the center's future tonight at 6 p.m. at the center itself, 658 Beech St., when Hobart's Run will present its plans for the area around the center and also host a discussion about what the community wants for its future.

I will cover that at least until 7 p.m., when the Pottstown School Board will meet and vote on a new teacher contract.

Until then, here are the Tweets from last night's meeting:

Envisioning a Future for the Ricketts Center

Olivet Gets Four More Years Running Ricketts Center

With a unanimous vote, Pottstown Borough Council granted a new four-year lease to the Reading-

The Ricketts Community Center on Beech Street.

based Olivet Boys and Girls Club to operate the Ricketts Community Center on Beech Street.

The vote came after a woman previously associated with a rival bid recommended to council that it chose Olivet.

Hannah Davis, who has criticized Olivet's rules in the past and was part of an alternative proposal to operate the center called the STRIVE Initiative, made the surprise recommendation just before Monday night's vote.

However, in an email issued after Monday night's vote, Davis indicated she was speaking as an individual and had not been associated with the STRIVE effort since its May presentation.

Most of her comments were captured on video here:




"Vision implies change and transition, and change and transition never comes easily," Davis said after thanking council, the community and Olivet for caring about the fate of the Ricketts Center.

Her recommendation to choose Olivet over the STRIVE Initiative "does not come without heartbreak and deep sadness for myself," she said.

"It has been challenging to bring the community together," said Davis. "Everyone has varying opinions on how best to operate the Ricketts Center. So while I care deeply about the Ricketts Center, my feeling is that perhaps in another four years, the entirety of the community will be able to bring a much stronger and fully collaborative proposal before council."

One of those opinions about how to run the center came from Jonathan Corson, who said he was speaking as president of the Pottstown chapter of the NAACP.

"The Ricketts Center is a community center. It is not a club," said Corson. "That's why I have stood up and said STRIVE and Olivet should work together. If you don't want to do that, then you should just turn the center back to the Parks and Recreation Department," he said.

The borough owns the Ricketts Community Center but for the past 10 years has leased it to Olivet as a Boys and Girls Club to run programs there. Some have complained the center is not open on weekends and in the summer evenings, when teens need it, and that as a Boys and Girls Club it does not serve the whole community, restricting adult access when children are there.



"Last week, when you asked Olivet how it would work with the community, and they said Heakth and Wellness Foundation, Hobart's Run and the school district. That's not the community. I'm the community. When (Councilwoman) Rita (Paez) asked if they had a relationship with the Latino community, they have no relationship with the Latino community. That's the community. It;s not a club and if Olivet wants to run that center and honor the Ricketts name, they should let STRIVE work with them and do their part to make it a community center," said Corson.

He said what David "poured into you tonight. That's what we feel, and I felt we're being neglected and you guys are neglecting us and don't care about us," said Corson. "We're tired of being disrespected and the Ricketts name being disrespected," he said.

"That center should be run by Parks and Rec, but because you don't want to do that, you should mandate that Olivet works with STRIVE, and that's NAACP's stance" Corson said.

Councilman Joe Kirkland, who represents the Seventh Ward, where the center is located, said he had planned to vote against the Olivet lease until Davis spoke.


He said that the borough made a mistake when it stopped running the center, and by making an annual contribution to its operation, that it created "a hand's off position."

"The borough should run that community center. Other communities can do it. Why can't we?" he asked. "Yes, we have financial issues, but if we really cared, we would find a way to make it work."

Most council members said they hoped that Olivet would be able to collaborate with STRIVE on programming at the center.

First Ward Councilman Ryan Procsal said the people he met with who use the center "are happy with Olivet."

Council President Dan Weand said he had "heard from STRIVE that they are willing to help" and he said he would like to see more borough involvement with the center.

Borough Manager Justin Keller said he has already arranged for Parks and Recreation Director Michael Lenhart to participate in decisions at the center.

"Hopefully,  in the next four years, we will have the best community center in the area," Weand said.

And with that, here are the Tweets from last night's meeting:

Olivet Gets Ricketts for Another Four Years

Pottstown Gets New Officer, Delays Ricketts Vote

NEWEST OFFICER: Robert Seanor pinned on his son's police badge for the first time Monday night after Adam Seanor was sworn in as the Pottstown Police force's newest officer.

Seanor was sworn in by District Judge Scott Palladino because Mayor Stephanie Henrick is still recovering from surgery and was absent from Monday night's meeting.

Here is video of Seanor's swearing in:

Ricketts Center Vote Delayed

The other news looming over Monday's meeting evaporated when a motion on the agenda to extend for another four years the Olivet Boys and Girls Club's contract for running the Ricketts Community Center.

Regular readers will recall in May that another organization, the STRIVE Initiative, also applied to run the center.

"The borough has to do better," said Bill Robertson.

For the past 10 years, the center has been run by Olivet, which is based in Reading and, by their own admission, not always smoothly.

STRIVE, which is an acronym for Strengthening Tomorrow Requires Initiative and Vision, is a Pottstown-based organization and said they would return the center to its original mission.

Bill Robertson, who is one of the principals in STRIVE, chided council for not being transparent about the decision.

He said STRIVE sent the borough an email in late June asking about the status of the decision and whether any additional information was needed. "We received no answer," he said.

Robert Brown

"The borough has to do better," Robertson said. "If you vote tonight without some kind of explanation for your reasoning, it's going to be another example of why we have a problem in Pottstown."

Robertson was not the only person critical of the borough's record of making Ricketts available to the public.

Robert Brown, who said he was program director at Ricketts in the 1980s, questioned why the gates at the outdoor basketball court at the center were locked at 8 p.m., when it is still light out in the summer.

"I'm throwing up a red flag," said Brown. "I need answers about why things always get cut there."

Terrence Shawell, left, and teens who want to play basketball
into the evening at the Ricketts Center address council Monday.

Terrence Shawell brought the teens from his mentoring class to the meeting to raise the same concerns.

He said the problem was first identified on Memorial Day.

"My biggest concern is having these kids on the streets, riding in the bike lanes getting hit by cars," Shawell said. 

"We just want to be sure the center is not the only placing that is being locked up, and closed at 8:30 because that's very detrimental to do all summer. It's very detrimental to put kids on the street at 8 o'clock," Shawell said. "That's one of our big issues."

Andy DeJesus

Adding his voice to the chorus of concern about summer nights with nothing to do was Andy
DeJesus, who told council he is a federal officer, but grew up in Philadelphia.

"What saved me is there was a park behind my house. We played basketball, we played baseball, we played whatever we could," he said, adding it was those activities which kept him out of trouble.

"If you don't give these kids some way to burn off all that extra energy they have, it's going to go into things none of us want," DeJesus said.

Representatives of Olivet Boys and Girls Club were in the audience, but did not publicly respond to the issues raised by the other speakers.

When it came time on the agenda for the vote, Councilwoman Trenita Lindsay made a motion to table the vote. It was seconded by Councilwoman Rita Paez.

Lindsay said because Ricketts is in the Seventh Ward, Councilman Joe Kirkland, who monthly provides a report from the Olivet Boys and Girls Club about operations at the center, should be present for the vote. He was absent Monday night.

Tracy Daywalt

Mascaro Complaints

Another theme that ran through public comments Monday were complaints about Mascaro trash
service.

The Berks County-based company has held the borough trash contract for several years, and it expires this year.

Tracy Daywalt told council that half the time her trash is not picked up and she has grown frustrated with the excuses.

She said he won't pay her trash bill any more and, as a result, the borough has sent her a water shut-off notice.

Nicolette Sambrick

Nicolette Sambrick complained about Mascaro's service last month and was back again Monday with similar complaints.

"I keep shelling out money for a service I'm not getting. I am so sick and tired of excuses," Sambrick said. 

From now on, she said, she will deduct trash billing from her payments to the borough if it is not picked up on the proper day. "I'll put the money in an escrow account," she said.

During his report, Borough Manager Justin Keller said some of the problems being raised may be addressed in the new trash contract, whoever the successful bidder may be.

"One of the things we're working with the Housing Coalition on are penalties and how do we keep whoever we get here with the next contract hones," Keller said. 

"We're working on creating an escalating penalty schedule for missed pick-ups, that will put you into specific categories and in order to get out of the penalty system, you'll have to have perfect pick-ups for six months," said Keller.

"And just to remind residents, if you have a trash complaint, please call Public Works (610-970-6527), Mascaro has an individual who has been assigned to essentially come in and clean-up after the regular trash crew and essentially take care of any missed pick-ups, put the cans back where they belong, that sort of thing," Keller said.

Here is the full video of his report:



Finally, council also approved a number of temporary street closings; two for block parties, one for a church service to be held out in the street; one for National Night Out; two for Red Horse Motoring Club car shows and biergartens and one for a Sly Fox Brewery half-mile run.

And with that, here are the Tweets from the meeting.

New Officer and Delay of Ricketts Decision

Future Finances and Ricketts Center On the Table

Two subjects of extreme importance to Pottstown were on the agenda of last night's council meeting.

The first was the month's long deep dive into Pottstown's finances, and whether they are sustainable.

The second was the lease to operate the Ricketts Community Center, which expires at the end of the year.

On the first matter Econsult Solutions Inc. offered the following conclusions:

• Despite the fact that recent tax hikes have offset revenue losses due to decreased property assessment, the borough should nevertheless limit property tax increase to about 1 percent to encourage economic development;
• The borough needs more economic development;
• Without changing anything, borough deficits will reach $1 million by 2024;
• The police department does not need to be reduced;
• Nevertheless, personnel costs, including police, are killing the budget and raises, health and retirement benefits should be limited and reduced;
• The borough authority is well run and the water and sewer systems should not be sold;

We'll have more on this report once we actually read the report and it is analyzed by our sizeable and knowledgeable analysis and research staff....

As for the second topic, that is an interesting development.

For 10 years, the Ricketts Community Center has been operated as a branch of the Reading-based Olivett Boys and Girls Club, to varying reviews from the community.

Issues raised in the past have been no weekend hours and the club rules which prevent adults who do not have background clearances from spending time there while children are there.

A second community-based organization called STRIVE, which has risen up in the wake of increasing concerns about behavior problems among middle school-age children has put in a competing proposal to run the club once Olivett's five-year lease expires on Dec. 31.

Olivett has recent begun opening the center on Saturday's on a volunteer basis by the staff, and is seeking funding to continue doing so.

STRIVE, which stands for Strengthening Tomorrow Requires Initiative & Vision Everyday, plans on being open seven days a week and has a budget $265,000 more than the Olivett budget, but will not cost the borough any more than it currently pays Olivett.

Council gave no evident preference after hearing presentations from both groups.

Again, we'll have more once we know more.

Here are the Tweets from the meeting:

Ricketts Competition & Borough's Fiscal Health

Olivet Offering Spanish Classes at Ricketts Center

Pottstown-a-Palooza

Photo by John Strickler

If you couldn't find something to hold your interest in Pottstown Saturday, then you just weren't
trying.

From the May Fair at Pottsgrove Manor, to the Pow Wow at Memorial Park; from the Community Health Fair at Ricketts, to the Re-dedication of Rupert; to the car show and the scholarship award at the car show.

When Pottstown leaders unveiled the creation of a tourism and recreation district last October, this is the kind of thing they were talking about.

Cultural and entertainment events that draw people into Pottstown, introduce them to what we have, and convince them to come back.

You didn't need to be a rocket scientist Saturday as I sat inside the Ice House to notice that it was overflowing with customers who seemed to have walked over from the Pow Wow across the Manatawny.

While walking down High Street during the car show, I saw diners in Juan Carlos and the Milkman Cupcake folks out on the sidewalk vaunting their wares.

(Here's the compilation video from the May Fair)



Certainly, ticket-holders for "Who's Afraid of Virginia Wolf" at the Steel River Playhouse could not have helped but notice that High Street was packed with both people and classic cars.

All of this and the Carousel was not even open, and the Colebrookdale Railroad not even running.

Photo by Dominick Armato

From left, Judy Zahora, Matt Moyer, John Armato, Jeff Sparagana

at the Rupert re-dedication Saturday.

Imagine what kind of crowds (customers, future residents) the town might have hosted if those attractions had been running as well.

Perhaps some of them might even have gotten lost, and had a look at what was going on at Rupert and said, "hey, that looks like a pretty active school."

They might even have done a little research and found out that when it comes to school profile scores among urban districts in Pennsylvania, that Pottstown ranks second in the state.

If we want people to return to Pottstown, people who want to build lives, spend money and appreciate the town for its assets, we have to get them here, and show off those assets.

As you will see in the Tweets below, links to the videos are included, but with the exception of the YouTube video, which can be watched right here, the Touts bring you to a new page, so, as I'm sure you noticed above, I have embedded some videos so you don't have to leave the page.



And here is the video shot by Michilea Patterson at the Community Health Fair at the Ricketts Center, which also looked like a lot of fun.


And, as always, here are the ever-present Tweets, including some from the ever-present John Armato.

A Busy Spring Saturday in Pottstown

Photo by John Armato. Who else?
Franklin Elementary School Principal Kevin Downes, left,
consults with his school's namesake about Saturday's re-dedication.

So, as our readers like to remind us with alarming regularity, neither The Mercury nor the Digital Notebook team, can be everywhere all the time.

And this Saturday was just one of those spring days when everyone was out and everything was going on all the time.

Luckily for Pottstown, John Armato often IS everywhere all the time.

So although, we couldn't cover the re-dedication of Franklin Elementary School Saturday because we were covering the youth anti-violence summit at the Ricketts Center, John could.

Photo by Evan Brandt (Yeah, I do some of my own work sometimes)

Mosaic Community Garden Manager Laura Washington Saturday.

And although we couldn't make it to the track meet at Pottstown High School, because fit for life reporter Michelea Patterson was covering the YMCA Healthy Kids Day in Boyertown, John could.

And although I had a mountain of laundry to do, and was up until 3 a.m. putting together the blog post from the Jazz Band Championships, I did manage to stop by the Moasiac Community Land Trust community garden.

There, I spoke with manager Laura Washington about a program Saturday teaching gardeners how to plan for the frost when planting, and about their efforts to use all organic, non-GMO seeds in their gardens.

Here is some video of what that was all about.



In the meantime, here are some Tweets and video stolen from lots of other correspondents, about a very busy Saturday in Pottstown.

A Day of Service Aimed at Education

Some of the 100 SAT prep kits packed during the day of service in Pottstown.

The packing underway.

Before the memory of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day fades too far into our memories, let's take another look at one of the service projects undertaken in his honor.

Members of United Way of Greater Philadelphia "Girls Today, Leaders Tomorrow" program undertook a program at the Ricketts Community Center that day.

They packed 100 SAT prep kits and 600 literacy kits for youth in Philadelphia and Pottstown in honor of the 2015 MLK Day of Service.

Other service projects in the area including community work by a number of Hill School students.

They: 

-- Assisted with small jobs at the Ricketts Center;

Hill student cleans up around Ricketts.

-- Built book shelves for the Ricketts Center;
-- Painted, cleaned and performed other small tasks at the Steel River Playhouse;
-- Baked cookies and muffins for the Pottstown Cluster;
-- Made cards for children who are in the hospital.;
-- Addressing envelopes for an upcoming Pottstown Police Athletic League mailing.

Another project involved several days of organizing donated shoes at the new warehouse for the non-profit In Ian's Boots which provides footwear to the needy.

Literacy kits for youth included this Dr. Seuss classic.