Tractor Trek Across America to include parade in Kennett Square
By Rick Marts, Staff Writer, The Times
KENNETT — Monday night’s meeting of the Kennett Square Borough Council started and ended with spirited complaints about local code enforcement in the residential neighborhood of Stenning Hill, located across Rt. 82 from Kennett High School.
Residents’ concerns about falling housing values due to unkempt properties and lack of curb appeal contrasted with a broader picture of slightly declining felony and misdemeanor statistics reported by Chief of Police Edward Zunino. Residents also objected to the direction new commercial ventures in Kennett Square were taking, saying, “We’re getting to the point where breweries and restaurants are all we’ve got.”
Council President Leon Spencer summarized his reaction to residents’ complaints by saying, “Blight in any neighborhood is unacceptable,” and he promised to take action on all concerns raised by residents.
Council member Dan Maffei also responded to the public comments by thanking the public for attending and extending an open invitation to visit him at home to discuss anything on their minds. He said he rides through the town frequently to observe conditions and promised to take action on all the concerns raised by residents.
Maffei added, “The Council works best when residents come to the meeting.”
First to take the microphone during the public comment period was Leslie Whiteside, of Wayne Avenue in Stenning Hill. Her comments were direct and succinct: “A beerfest near a residential area is inappropriate and a nuisance.” She also said that she has noticed what she believes are borough code violations, including “multiple trash cans, parking on sidewalks, wandering chickens, and old appliances discarded in yards.”
Whiteside was followed by her husband, Robert Whiteside, who testified to personal knowledge of drug-selling gangs and his efforts to chase them from the neighborhood. Whiteside said that when he put his home up for sale, his real estate agent told him that potential buyers were disenchanted by the unattractive conditions in the neighborhood.
Whiteside’s conclusion was that “enforcement is negligent, and the City Council doesn’t want things to get better.”
However, an attempt by The Times to observe and document these conditions was fruitless, as none of the described issues could be seen in the neighborhood, Tuesday.
Other residents rose at the end of the meeting to reinforce some comments raised by the Whitesides. Some also suggested that events involving drinking should be held away from schools and that all festivals and the YMCA should pay a significant fee to the borough.
While compliance with Borough ordinances governing behavior in residential neighborhoods may need closer scrutiny, Zunino’s annual report to the council showed that more serious crime in the Borough is moving in a positive direction. His overall comparison of data in 2012 versus 2013 showed that arrests declined by about 7%, as shown below:
Kennett Borough Arrest Comparison, 2012 to 2013
|
2012 |
2013 |
|
| Rape |
— |
1 |
| Robbery |
3 |
1 |
| Aggravated Assault |
12 |
5 |
| Burglary |
13 |
— |
| Larceny-Theft |
16 |
15 |
| Assault, not aggravated |
23 |
29 |
| Forgery |
1 |
1 |
| Fraud |
3 |
7 |
| Stolen Property, poss. |
5 |
— |
| Vandalism |
13 |
5 |
| Weapons, possession |
— |
3 |
| Sex Offenses |
1 |
4 |
| Drug Abuse |
38 |
35 |
| Offenses against Family |
— |
1 |
| Driving Under the Infl. |
55 |
54 |
| Liquor Laws Offense |
35 |
20 |
| Drunkenness |
22 |
16 |
| Disorderly Conduct |
25 |
39 |
| All other offenses |
29 |
37 |
| Total |
294 |
273 |
During the public comment period, Rev. Jim Olson of the First Presbyterian Church of Kennett Square informed the council of activities to support the Wounded Warrior Project, whose vision is to foster the most successful, well-adjusted generation of wounded service members in our nation’s history.
First, Rev. Olsen introduced Ivan Stoltzfus, who is planning to drive his 1948 John Deere tractor across America to raise awareness of the Wounded Warrior Project and to raise $1,000,000. To promote this journey and the Project, Olsen informed the Council that on April 27, 2014, at 2:00 pm a tractor parade will occur in the borough, led by Stoltzfus.
For more information about Stoltzfus’s journey, visit http//helpamericanheroes.com/, and write to Rev. Olsen about the parade at jimmyolsen@verizon.net.
In other business, the Council approved two events to occur April 26, 2014. The first is “Healthy Kids Day,” a YMCA-sponsored event to encourage kids to get moving and learning and families to live healthier.
The second is an annual event called “Arts in the Square and Plant Sale,” which will differ this year from last because it will be held in the street rather than on the sidewalk.
