FALL 2000 NEWSLETTER

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Governor Ridge Visits West Bradford

On June 22nd Governor Ridge visited the Albertson-Yerkes farm near Marshallton to sign the "Growing Smarter" land use bills. The 110-acre, site was preserved in 1997 when its development rights were transferred to the Stonegate subdivision across from Bradford Heights Elementary School.

The Governor chose West Bradford Township to sign the legislation because of our successful efforts in controlling development and preserving open space. "The success of West Bradford Township in preserving the beautiful farmland behind me underscores why 'Growing Smarter' is so important," Governor Ridge said. "Through Transferable Development Rights, this community redirected planned development on this site to another part of the township - where kids can walk across the street to school and where public sewer and water systems already existed. And two farms - 110 acres of open space - were saved, preserving a spectacular view; the land where the original farmhouse sits; and the drainage area of Broad Run Creek, which is an exceptional value stream." The Township Supervisors, County Commissioners, and Chester County's legislative delegation were on hand to participate in the ceremony.

The farm was saved using a technique called transfer of development rights (TDR). It allows developers to purchase the development rights of a property, permanently preserve that property as open space, and increase the density of development in other areas of the Township where public infrastructure is available.

The new land use bills give more ways to municipalities to plan for and control growth. Two of its main tools are designated growth areas and multi-municipal TDR/fair share allocations. The bill allows for the creation of Locally Designated Growth Areas to channel growth to certain areas. The bill also expands the ability of municipalities to plan together and allocate land uses among them. If two municipalities agree, development may be legally directed from a more rural township to one with the infrastructure in place to better support it.

West Bradford Township is currently participating in a study with the other municipalities in the Downingtown Area School District to determine the feasibility of regional planning and zoning. It is a first step towards better controlling growth and planning for our future.

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New Trash Hauler

On August 16th the Township's refuse and recycling hauler changed from Waste Management, Inc. to B.F.I. The new hauler will have the Township's collection contract until September 2001. B.F.I. was the Township's previous waste hauler.

What the change means to you…

Things that will stay the same:

Things that will change:

Time of pick-up - the new hauler may pick up your trash at a different time than you are accustomed to. Please have all of your refuse and recyclables curbside on your pick-up day by 6:00AM.

We would like to thank our residents for bearing with us during the collection difficulties. It may take a few weeks to iron out any wrinkles due to the change but in the end our goal is to have an efficient and reliable waste collection and recycling system.

If you would like additional information regarding refuse collection and recycling please visit our web site at (www.westbradford.org) or call the Township at (610) 269-4174.

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West Bradford Gets New Voting Precinct

The Court recently approved a petition to split the Township's first voting precinct in half. The change was requested to decrease the amount of time that voters will have to wait to cast their ballots.

Only residents that were previously in the first district are affected. The old district was split in half to form the new first and fifth districts. The new boundary split is along Marshallton-Thorndale Road south to Strasburg Road west to Broad Run Road south to Northbrook Road to the Township boundary.

Residents east of the boundary will remain in the first district and continue to vote in Marshallton. Residents west of the boundary will now be in the fifth district. The new polling place is expected to be in Embreeville Center.

Residents should contact the Chester County Department of Voter Services at (610) 344-6410 to determine their exact voting precinct and polling location.

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Household Hazardous Waste Collection

Chester County residents will have the opportunity to dispose of household hazardous waste at no charge during two collection days in September and October. Commercial and industrial businesses may not participate in the program.

Collection sites and dates are the New Garden Township Building on Route 41 near Landenburg on Saturday, September 16th and the Government Services Center on Westtown Road in West Goshen Township on Saturday, October 7th. The sites will open at 9 A.M. and close at 3 P.M. The Township, State, and County pay for the costs of this collection.

Acceptable and unacceptable materials are:

Acceptable Materials

Paint Products

Outdoor Products

Automotive Products

Household Products

Other Products

Unacceptable Materials

* Automotive materials are recyclable. Please call (610) 344-6692 for recycling locations.

** Latex paints should be dried out before being disposed with your regular trash collection. You may either place open cans out until they dry completely, spread the paint onto old newsprint and dispose after drying, or pour into bag with kitty litter or sand and put in your trash.

More information on recycling and household hazardous waste is available from the County at www.chesco.org/health/dswm1.html.

Important Recycling Note - Please do not attempt to recycle any container that has held any type of household hazardous waste.

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2000 Leaf Composting Program

This year's leaf collection dates will be on Friday's. Four pick-ups are planned for township residents only. Leaf bags will be picked up curbside on the following dates:

Friday - October 27
Friday - November 3
Friday - November 17
Friday - December 8

Your bags must be out by 6 AM on the scheduled dates. Leaves must be placed in special bio-degradable bags purchased from the Township. Bags may be purchased at the Township Administration Building, 1385 Campus Drive, during regular business hours - Monday through Friday - 8 AM to 4:30 PM. Bags will be available for purchase beginning September 18th. The bags are provided to residents at cost, 3 bags per $1, the fees for the actual collection are already factored into your quarterly trash bill.

Leaves will be picked up only in the special bags sold by the Township. Do not use your toter, recycling bins, other municipality's bags, or any other bag or container. Leaves in other bags, containers, or your toter will not be collected. To avoid damaging the equipment used to compost the leaves, the leaves need to be free of plastic, trash, and other debris. Please do not include grass clippings or other yard waste.

Yard waste and larger brush cannot be placed in your regular trash. Shrubbery and tree trimmings up to 6" in diameter may be taken to the Lanchester Landfill in Honey Brook for composting or shredding. There is a charge for this. Please call the landfill at (610) 273-3771 for more information.

You may compost your yard waste yourself instead of placing it out for pick up. We encourage all of our residents to compost or mulch their yard waste if they can. This reduces the amount of waste that has to be collected and helps the environment. Yard waste includes leaves, clippings, grass cuttings, and even food and vegetable scraps and coffee grounds. Compost can be used as fertilizer and mulch around your yard.

If you would like further information on composting, contact the Chester County Health Department - Division of Solid Waste Management at (610) 344-5937 or visit their website (www.chesco.org).

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Part-time Park Help Needed

Our Parks Department is looking for park help this Fall. Duties include light maintenance and clean up tasks. The schedule is flexible and 10-20 hours per week are available. The job is perfect for students or retirees.

Contact Gary Schmidt, Parks Director at (610) 269-4174 or for more information.

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West Bradford History - John Beale Bordley House

The John Beale Bordley house is located off of Broad Run Road near its intersection with Strasburg Road. The Georgian Quaker stone farmhouse was built around 1702 and expanded a century later. It is currently being restored as a clubhouse for the Tattersall golf course.

The house was part of the Como Farm: one of the first "model" farms in the nation. Its owner, Judge John Beale Bordley, was a prominent Philadelphian and 18th century agriculturist. He conducted experiments on crop rotation and soil fertility, developed new farm machinery, and wrote many works on agriculture.

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Tattersall Golf Course Open

The Tattersall golf course opened in mid August. The 72-par course is located on the former Como farm and straddles Broad Run Creek. The historical Bordley farmhouse on the property is being renovated to serve as the clubhouse. The developer has worked with the Township to protect much of the "rough" area and stream corridor with conservation easements.

The project is the first part of the Tattersall development to be completed. The entire development is on 450 acres, 335 (80%) of which will be open space - including the playing area. One hundred fifty-eight single-family homes divided into four "pods" have been approved. This part of the development will be phased in over time and a restaurant will be added to the course. The development will receive sanitary sewer service from the Marshallton Sewer Project, currently under design.

Please be aware of the new golf cart crossing on Broad Run Road near the intersection with Strasburg Road.

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West Bradford Parks Have A New Logo

Keep an eye out for West Bradford's new parks logo. As part of our efforts to "spruce up" our parks and provide uniform signage for visitors, West Bradford Township has created a park logo. Each of our park facilities will begin getting a new look as their signs are scheduled for replacement. Our goal is to direct visitors to park attractions while avoiding sign clutter and maintaining the attractiveness of our facilities. The logo may also appear on parks stationary, vehicles, and uniforms.

The logo was designed to depict some of the various things our parks mean to our residents: individual fitness, team sports, family activities, and the variety of wildlife found in West Bradford Township.

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"Summer Events 2000" - Wrap Up

The annual "Concert on the Green" featuring the extraordinary sounds of the "Lukens Steel Band," was held on Saturday, July 8th, on the lawn outside the Marshallton United Methodist Church. All those in attendance agreed that this year’s performance by these talented musicians was again a rousing success. Many thanks go out to Nancy Busby and all of the other volunteers for organizing such a successful and wonderful community event for almost twenty years.

The Chester County based "Barbone Street Jazz Band" took time out from their busy schedule of performances in many Philadelphia area country clubs, hotels, restaurants, festivals, etc. to put on our first ever concert at Broad Run Park on Thursday, July 20th. Over 125 residents and visitors came to the Pavilion "A" amphitheater and enjoyed live music and dialogue depicting the happy atmosphere of the 50’s New York Jazz clubs and a unique brand of New Orleans Jazz, Hot Dance, and Swing.

On Thursday, August 3rd, "HavaVision™" and "Anteaks" of Downingtown sponsored another "first" at Broad Run Park - a "Movie Night". Over 250 family members brought blankets and chairs, braved the threatening weather, and enjoyed the classic family film, "E.T. - The Extra Terrestrial" on the world’s first mobile video billboard. All the "Moms" were treated to a gift from "Anteaks" and one lucky resident won the grand door prize of an extremely valuable antique wooden mirror. On behalf of the other residents of WBT we would like to express our sincere thanks to Hugh & Eileen Richards for their incomparable generosity.

As this newsletter goes to press, final preparations are in progress for our final summer event at Broad Run Park on Thursday, August 17th, sponsored entirely by "Comcast Cable Communications, Inc." This concert at Pavilion "A" promised to be an evening of live music featuring "Off The Charts" - an 8-piece, high-energy "horn band" that cultivates sounds from the Swing/Sinatra era to today’s "Top 40". This group that performs primarily in Philadelphia, Bucks, and Montgomery Counties, chose Broad Run Park to make its Chester County debut!

Tantalizing refreshments for all the summer events were provided by the "Brandywine Ridge Neighbor’s Foundation" with the proceeds going to help needy families in Chester County. Special thanks also to the West Bradford Fire Company and Fire Police for all their efforts in ensuring the evenings ran smoothly and safely.

The WBT Recreation Commission greatly appreciates the overwhelming support of the West Bradford Township Board of Supervisors as well as the hard work of the entire township staff in these endeavors. We would especially like to express our sincere and heartfelt gratitude to the many volunteers who helped to make the "Summer Events 2000" series such an overwhelming success. Please call Gary Schmidt, Parks Director at (610) 269-4174 if you'd like to help out at future events. We’re planning to expand our events next summer - look for details in upcoming newsletters!

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Did you know?

Where was the first shopping center in West Bradford Township?

Answer to Did you know?

According to a historical researcher, In the 1700’s Marshallton was a bustling center with all kinds of shops and businesses. Among the types of shops were a seamstress, blacksmith, cabinetmaker, barber, tobacconist, hat maker, machinist and a cigar maker. With the village being on a drover’s road between Lancaster and Philadelphia there were several inns in and near the village.

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Historical Springhouse Rehab

The rehabilitation of the historical springhouse at Broad Run Park is completed. New concrete supports, a new roof, windows and doors were put on. Jack Hines, Township Manager, designed the roof, and Tom Newlin of Newlin Builders did the carpentry.

Broad Run Park was originally Hedrick's Dairy Farm. The springhouse provided water for the farm and kept the milk cool before it was sent to market.

The Township is pleased to preserve this piece of our history and beautify our parks.

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