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Open Space Commission - Newsletter 3 - Spring 2003
Contents:
Time is Running Out
As one drives through Charlestown the beauty and openness of our community is obvious because we still enjoy large areas of open space, woodlands, and preserved property. This is a major reason why many of us live in Charlestown, and why many new residents choose to locate here.
However, the ãclock is tickingä as developers are mounting increasing pressure to build with little regard for the impact their plans will have on the township. As development plans are brought to the township for review and adoption, it is evident that the open vistas and rolling topography that are so much a part of Charlestown as we know it are endangered and will probably disappear.
When the Pennsylvania Turnpike completes the construction of the slip ramp, scheduled in the 2006/2007 timeframe, there will be little Charlestown can do to prevent our community from becoming the next East Whiteland or Exton at the interchange. History shows that any place there is an interchange with a major highway unbridled development follows. We will see developers challenging every good ordinance we have; and we know that they will have the financial incentive to do it. In addition, there are the Home Builders Associations in the state that are lobbying heavily to severely curtail a townshipâs ability to acquire land or be proactive in preserving land. Only last minute public reaction in December 2002 stopped them from severely gutting the current open space legislation. The sneak attack failed but they will be back. As good as Charlestown's comprehensive plan and ordinances are today, they can only guide future development of available land. They cannot stop or curtail development. The only way to prevent development, is to take developable land out of play.
We are fortunate that some foresighted landowners in Charlestown have already chosen to place conservation easements on their property to preserve it. We also have some large areas of township-owned open space that will not be developed. Should we have more? Today, the land that is potentially available to be developed äby right" could yield over 750 new single family homes and over one million square feet of new office space in Charlestown. If we want to preserve our open space we must act now and have a passion to make it happen. We cannot afford to sit back and hope that developers will want to work with us. Except for a very few, developers do not think it is in their best financial interest to work with a community. The "clock is ticking." Once the land is developed it cannot be reclaimed. It is gone forever.
So what can we do today?
We can let our supervisors know that we want them to take action and that we will support them in this effort. We can volunteer to educate our residents about preservation. We can learn about the Transfer of Development Rights (TDR) and encourage our supervisors to update our ordinances to give the township another viable tool to save land while at the same time letting landowners seek value for their land. Large landowners (Ten acres +) can find out the many ways they can save their land from dense development without losing the future financial benefits of selling the land should it become necessary or desirable. Through good planning land can yield financial rewards without having to sell to developers.
We can all learn about the various sources of matching funds to help the township purchase development rights or easements; and we encourage our elected officials to go after these funds. Information is available at the Township office and from members of the Open Space Commission. Chester County and the state have made the curbing of suburban sprawl a priority. We should all learn about the hidden costs (school services, municipal services, traffic) that every new home brings to the township - and to its taxpayers.
We can learn about the Earned Income Tax (EIT) that more than 60% of our working residents are currently paying to other townships each year. Because the Charlestown has no EIT, the township cannot claim those tax dollars, so the townships in which Charlestown residents work gets the benefit. If Charlestown had an Earned Income Tax, the tax dollars we are now paying to the township in which we work would stay home in our township.
Look at your W-2! If you are paying taxes to another township, think about the impact those dollars could have in Charlestown. Only 12 townships and boroughs out of 72 in Chester County do not have this tax so chances are good that you are paying an EIT elsewhere. Preliminary estimates indicate that at least 60% of our employed residents are paying over $250,000 every year to other townships. Non working (including retired) residents do not pay an Earned Income Tax. Money from this tax could be used to fund the purchase of Conservation Easements on developable land that would 1) reimburse the landowner for the development value of his/her land and 2) preserve that land as open space forever!
Finally, we can ask the candidates seeking party endorsements from the Republican and Democratic parties for the office of county commissioner what their stance is on land preservation and then make our vote count in the May primary. The Home Builders Association will be trying to line up candidates to support their cause. If they are successful that will mean more houses in Charlestown, higher school taxes, and more traffic. The "clock is ticking." We can make a difference!
Charlie Philips, Charlestown Planning Commission
Trails in Charlestown
Will they survive or crumble as our population density increases?
Do you know that trails - informal hiking trails, horseback riding trails, deer trails and the Horseshoe Trail are all a part of the history and lore of Charlestown? Many of these trails have been obliterated as farms and open land have become residential. A shining exception to this trend is the trail encircling Charlestown Hunt and following the Pickering Creek between Route 29 and Charlestown Road. Another exception is the trail from the Great Valley Nature Center to Dickson Drive. The new walking trail in Charlestown Park is heavily used. The venerable Horseshoe Trail, on the other hand, has been closed in many areas and rerouted over heavily traveled roads. How important are trails to our township? According to "The American Hiking Society...."THE VALUE OF TRAILS" - they are very important.
"Trails are becoming common in residential neighborhoods. Development plans for homes, apartments, and townhouses often include footpaths to enhance recreational opportunities and property values. Despite some initial concern that trails might lead to decreased property values because of crime along the trail, studies have found the opposite to be true.
"In a survey of metro-Denver real estate agents, 73 percent of the agents found that a home near a trail would be easier to sell. A survey of homeowners living adjacent to a trail showed 29 percent felt their property value would increase and 57 percent felt their home would sell more quickly. Furthermore, 29 percent were influenced by the proximity of a trail in buying their home, and 17 percent of renters were influenced by the presence of a trail. Both residents and agents agreed that trails benefit the neighborhoods economically and socially by enhancing the quality of life.
"In fact, the Denver findings have been substantiated in other regions. Seattle's Burke-Gilman Trail has increased the value of homes near the trail by 6.5 percent. Another study of two rail-trails in Minnesota, found that 87 percent of landowners surveyed believed the trails had no negative impact on the value of their property.
"A survey of property values near greenbelts in Boulder, Colorado, noted that housing prices declined an average of $4.20 for each foot of distance away from a greenbelt for up to two-thirds of a mile. In one neighborhood, this figure was $10.20 per foot. The same study concluded that the average value of a home adjacent to the greenbelt would be 32 percent higher than the same property 3,200 feet from the greenbelt."
But what about Charlestown? Charlestown's Supervisors, Planning Commission and the Open Space Commission are interested in maintaining a viable trail system in our township. The township has recently received from Chester County a three-year commitment of $40,000 for the purchase of trail easements. Are you interested in becoming involved in this effort? If so, contact Bob Jones, 610-363-2166.
Bob Jones, Open Space Commission
Organic Farming in Charlestown, Preserving farming to preserve open space
Organic farming in Charlestown was pioneered by Dr. John Foster whose organic beef operation, Pickering Valley Beef, is well known and respected in organic farming circles. More recently, Charlestown Cooperative Farm was formed to provide fresh organic produce to Charlestown residents through a community supported farm operation where shareholders purchase a portion of the farmâs harvest at the beginning of each season. These two operations reflect a promising national trend towards the growth of small organic farming operations in suburban areas.
Establishing a sustainable agriculture community in Charlestown is a critical element in preserving open space. A sustainable farming model provides a use and need for open space and a strong justification for land owners to save their land from development. A Charlestown which includes a network of small sustainable farming operations will be a more attractive and healthier community than one entirely developed as housing.
For a farming operation to be sustainable, it must be both financially viable and environmentally sound. Due to its very low profit margins, conventional farming which in this area typically consists of field corn and soybeans in rotation requires a relatively large scale operation to support a typical farm family. The large scale requires a sizable investment in large and expensive farm equipment and a quantity of land which is becoming increasingly difficult to assemble even on a lease basis. In addition, conventional farmers' heavy use of chemical fertilizers and herbicides is clearly not good for the environment. Thus, conventional farming as practiced in this area is not sustainable.
In contrast, organic farming does not damage the environment and with its higher margins and more intensive use of crop land can be practiced on a relatively small scale on modest sized farms with small affordable equipment. This type of farming is sustainable in Charlestown and makes particular sense in this increasingly suburban area because of the proximity it provides farmers to a large affluent market for their products.
One of the primary objectives of the Charlestown Cooperative Farm is to further organic farming in Charlestown. Farmers Aimee Kocis and John Good who operate the Cooperative Farm are available to provide support or advice to residents interested in establishing organic farming operations. They can be contacted through the farm website, http://www.charlestowncooperativefarm.org. In addition, the Cooperative Farm is now working with David Griffiths, the operator and founder of Seven Stars Farm, a highly successful nationally distributed organic yogurt operation in Kimberton, to develop a model for a micro dairy operation which will be operated as a community supported dairy operation in Charlestown. David is helping to plan a small organic grass based dairy farm that could be operated on a 30 to 35 acre site. The farm is seeking to acquire or enter into a long term lease on a parcel in Charlestown with good pastures suitable for this use.
Anderson/Charlestown Coop Organic Farming
Tour Of The Township, Sunday April 27, 2003 At 2pm
Enclosed with this newsletter is a flyer advertising a tour of our township, sponsored by the Open Space Commission. We hope that you will join us on this tour to learn more about Charlestown's history and topography, to enjoy its beauty and to consider how we want our township to grow and to prosper. Our tour will be in bright yellow school mini-buses - each equipped with a guide who is well-versed in township lore and information. Beginning at the township office in Devault, we will travel from one end of the township to the other. How many of you have seen Charlestown Park? Or the Nature Center? How many of you have marveled at the view of the two churches on the hill or have viewed the township from the parking lot of those churches? Have you seen the horsefarms in the western part of the township? Or the historic Bell and Clapper and the ice dam in the east? And much, much more! When we return at the end of the tour, please plan to join us for refreshments. We hope you will come to meet your neighbors and learn more about our wonderful township. We need your reservation! Clip the bottom of the flyer and return to the township office ASAP! If you have questions, please call the township office (610-240-0316) or Sue Staas, (610-933-9766). We look forward to seeing you on the 27th - rain or shine!
Great Valley Nature Center - A Gem In Our Own Backyard!
Charlestown is full of hidden gems - some of which we hope to show you during the Open Space Commission's township tour in April (look for more information about the tour in this newsletter). How many readers of this newsletter know about the Great Valley Nature Center, located on the corner of Hollow Road and Route 29? Do you know that over 33,000 adults and children benefit from its efforts every year?!
The Nature Center is the vision come true of several thoughtful and generous township citizens who donated of their finances and their time. Why? These residents - and many others who have supported and continue to support the Nature Center and many other wonderful places and organizations in this township - all know how important it is to learn to live in harmony with the land, with nature, and with the critters who also make their livings in our neighborhoods. They know that Charlestown still has the opportunity to somehow allow people, beautiful landscapes, clean water and the critters they support to coexist; and they know that this goal is vitally important to us all!
How does our tiny Nature Center (just 10 acres in size) contribute to this vision? Its mission speaks volumes. "The mission of the Great Valley Nature Center is to educate people about the environment, to instill the desire to care about the environment, and to teach people tools for preserving the environment." As Tom Pascocello, Director of the Center said: "We want to help people, beginning with the kids, to love our environment so that they will be motivated to save open space, our streams and ponds, and our critters. If a child wades in our stream and catches and learns about a frog, or finds a violet or Jack in the Pulpit in our woods, maybe someday he will remember and will work to save our environment."
So what does the Nature Center do to fulfill this mission? It touches the lives of almost 40,000 people every year through programs onsite and in the community. Programs onsite include classes for school children. These classes are small (12 students to 1 teacher) and hands-on. Students wade in the stream, catch frogs, pound corn, or clean an animal hide as they learn about the science of ecology, or the culture of the Lenni Lenape Indians who used to live in Charlestown, or the colonial culture of our township. Offsite programs include visits to schools to present special classes about these topics. One of the most popular programs, especially to the older classes, is the program about raptors (hawks and owls). The Nature Center is a certified raptor center where injured birds, which cannot return to the wild, are cared for and used to teach about the importance of raptors in our environment. In all, over 18,000 school children from more that 190 schools benefit from these programs every year. It should be noted that these programs cost the schools only about 50% of their actual cost. As Tom Pascocello noted, the bus transportation to the Center costs each school more than the program! Homeschoolers are offered an Outdoor Enviro-School, and special needs populations are invited to benefit from the Nature Center's pioneering special needs Enviro-School.
Each summer, 1,200 campers (ages 3 and up!) attend camp sessions. These camps offer canoe and kayak training and trips for teens and adults, birding tours, camping at Valley Forge, and on and on. Every program is designed to impart love of the environment and to teach tools for preserving it.
Stop in and visit! The parking lot is located on Hollow Road, 100 yards beyond the intersection with Route 29. The Center is open 362 days per year. There is no admissions charge. Be sure to visit the exhibits in the barn, pick up literature about the programs, and become a member of this wonderful Charlestown resource!
Sue Staas, Open Space Commission Member
Charlestown Township
Open Space Commission
P.O. Box 507
Devault, PA 19432
Open Space Commission Members:
Contact Information
Andy Motel - Chair
Bob Jones - Vice Chair
Sue Staas - Secretary
Bob Roggio - Financial Officer
Bill Andersen
Alix Coleman
Frank Corcoran
Aliena Gerhard
Mary Ellen Joos
Kevin Kuhn
Rosemary Philips
Marcia Solda
To contact any member of the Open Space Comission call the Township Office at 610-240-0326.
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