Government watchdog, 04.21.09

Lower Paxton Twp. supervisors will hold a meeting Tuesday evening, April 21, to vote on a series of business matters, Municipal Center, 7:30 pm. You can view a live broadcast of the meeting on Comcast cable, channel 20.

The agenda includes a vote on a proposed loan guarantee for
Koons Pool, and a series of grant application submissions for parks and recreation projects.

Check the Gazette later this week for a meeting recap.

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The township Zoning Hearing Board will hear four cases when they meet Thursday at the Municipal Center, 7 pm.

The only case of some import is a request by United Water Pennsylvania to locate a water storage tank in a residential zoning district within the Autumn Oaks development. The McNaughton Homes project calls for about 300 homes to be located east of Patton Road and west of Parkway West along the base and lower levels of Blue Mountain.

Other hearings on the agenda are on minor residential property matters.

Backyard news and links, 02.05.09

Mountainside homes approved ... The Lower Paxton Board of Supervisors gave the green light Tuesday evening for the first phase of the Estates of Autumn Oaks, a McNaughton Homes community located on Blue Mountain above Centennial Acres. The approval is for 35 of the 91 luxury homes that will eventually be constructed. McNaughton still has some administrative matters to attend to prior to breaking ground.

Before the board voted, Centennial Acres resident Ken Parmer commented that the long list of exemptions from township development regulations that McNaughton received was a sign that the mountain land should be left in its natural state and added to the Big Boyds Tree Conservation Area.

Parmer and several of his neighbors successfully lobbied township officials and McNaughton last summer to make design changes to the large stormwater detention ponds that will be constructed on the mountainside at a higher elevation than their homes. They were concerned that clearing trees and vegetation from the mountain and water draining from the ponds after big storms would worsen flooding problems in Centennial Acres.

CLICK HERE for background info on the Estates of Autumn Oaks.

Church move OK'd ... Penbrook Catholic church gets OK for move into Lower Paxton Twp.

Candidates needed ... The May primary election will be here before you know it, and that means you need to get cracking if you want to run for an office. Here are the Lower Paxton posts that are up for grabs this year: township supervisor (two seats available); tax collector; auditor (two seats available); and constable.

I've been told that Lower Paxton Twp. Supervisors Bill Hawk and Gary Crissman are running for re-election.

CLICK HERE for info on how to get on the ballot, and, if you run, please consider telling the world about your decision on Linglestown Gazette. (B² isn't running – journalistic ethics forbid reporters from holding public office.)

Piccola watch ... Gov. Eddie Rendell gave his annual state budget address yesterday, and his education priorities got little support from state Sen. Jeffrey Piccola, chairman of the Senate Education Committee. Also, Piccola plans to continue pushing for legislation to prevent the governor from furloughing state workers as a ploy to get state lawmakers to pass a state budget.

B² update ... I've been invited by The Patriot-News to give them feedback Monday night on design changes that will be made to the newspaper in the near future. They're apparently making a push to put more emphasis on local news. The changes include deploying a mojo (mobile journalist) or two who will travel around in search of stories and field suggestions from readers on what issues and events to cover.

Sunday Gazette quickies

* The Lower Paxton Twp. supervisors are meeting Monday this week at the Municipal Center on Prince Street. And, if you’re planning on attending, take note that the festivities will start at 6:30 pm.

The only item on the meeting agenda that has widespread interest is the review and most likely adoption of a revised development plan for the Estates of Autumn Oaks, which is a 91-unit luxury housing community proposed by McNaughton Homes. If you’re not familiar with this issue that has regularly been in the news since August, check out the Gazette archives for the Estates of Autumn Oaks.

* Sunday morning’s power outage in the Linglestown area had an interesting twist associated with it – according to a PPL recorded message, the loss of electricity occurred when an “animal contacted electrical equipment.” Post a comment if you know what happened. Otherwise, I’m going to try to get more details Monday.

* Are you sick of getting negative campaign ads from state Senate candidates Piccola and Hirsh? I received a total seven pieces on Friday and Saturday. The mailers are childish and loaded with half-truths. In my opinion, Piccola hit the lowest blow of the campaign by accusing Hirsh of not paying her debts.

If you’re disgusted with both candidates, consider casting a write-in vote to send a signal to the candidates that their campaign tactics are unacceptable. If you go this way, be sure to take a pen or pencil into the voting booth.

* Backyard news from The Patriot-News ...

– Challenging U.S. Rep. Holden doesn't faze ex-state trooper Toni Gilhooley of Lower Paxton Twp.

– Patriot-News editors say energy audit in the works for Central Dauphin schools holds promise.

– Armed robbery reported near Central Dauphin Middle School.

* Preview of Gazette posts this week …

– I’ll be reporting on activities of the Linglestown Fire Company, including a video about an amazing vacation raffle.

– Watch for a link to an audio interview with the musician who will be performing this Friday at St. Thomas Roasters coffee house.

– The winner of the Gazette mowing contest will be announced this week – probably on Wednesday.

– And last but definitely not least, a new Gazette trivia contest is on the way. Be sure to stop by on a daily basis so you don’t miss a chance to win a prize.

Backyard news, 10.21.08

Updated at 10:01 pm ...

* Attention all bloggers, podcasters and video bloggers – There are rumblings on the Net about a podcamp coming to Harrisburg early in 2009. Kewl!

* I received word today that the Lower Paxton Twp. supervisors will take a final vote on the revised plan for the Estates of Autumn Oaks on Nov. 3, 2008.

* The prize package for the Linglestown Gazette Mowing Contest grew by leaps and bounds over the last 24 hours. Check back for details.

*** UPDATED *** Project No Drive update: Today I rode a bicycle about five miles to attend a meeting at New Hope Church. Normally I would have used my trusty 1998 Saturn SW1 for this trip, but I stayed loyal to this green experiment by allowing enough extra time to make the trek with my two-wheeler.

I did drive my car 11 miles to attend tonight's Lower Paxton Twp. supervisors meeting at the Municipal Center on Prince Street. The project has been under way for three days, and I've logged 15.5 miles behind the wheel.

* Last but not least, the readership of this blog has grown to a point that it can offer value as an advertising medium for local businesses. I’ll be announcing a dirt-cheap ad program later this week.

B² editorial: Citizen activism pays off big time

I’ve been impressed with the interaction of township officials, a housing developer and citizens in dealing with a controversial plan called the Estates of Autumn Oaks, a 91-unit luxury housing community on the slopes of Blue Mountain.

The development proposed by McNaughton Homes was nearly signed, sealed and delivered in early August. But last-minute appeals by residents of Centennial Acres, the development that borders the Estates of Autumn Oaks, convinced a majority of Lower Paxton Twp. supervisors to delay approving the plan even though the township’s engineering firm said that it met or exceeded all regulations. The residents objected to the location of storm water facilities and feared the new development would worsen existing flooding problems.

Fast-forward to mid-October and a resolution to the citizens’ concerns appears to be in the works. The revised plan, which probably will be tweaked a bit more based on citizens’ comments offered last week, appears to be much improved over the one that was nearly enacted a couple months ago – a pair of storm water detention ponds will be pushed back from the property line of Centennial Acres, and the design of the ponds has been changed to prevent water from seeping into ground. I expect the supervisors to approve the plan during their meeting on Monday, Nov. 3.

Gazette kudos go out to …

– McNaughton Homes for their willingness to meet with citizens and to act on their suggestions.

– Lower Paxton Twp. Board of Supervisors chairman Bill Hawk for working with all parties involved in the dispute.

– Citizen watchdog group SWAN chairman Eric Epstein for assisting with negotiations and retaining an engineer to review the development plan.

– Centennial Acres residents who took the time to school themselves on the technical issues in play instead of merely crying the blues.

The moral of this story: The key to good government is a vigilant citizenry.
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Be vigilant by attending local meetings:

Tonight ... SWAN citizen watchdog group meeting, Epiphany Lutheran Church, 7:30 pm. The meeting agenda includes a discussion of the Estates of Autumn Oaks, and Bill Hawk, chairman of the Lower Paxton Twp. Board of Supervisors will be attending.

Tuesday, Oct. 21 ... Lower Paxton Twp. board of supervisors meeting, Municipal Center, 425 Prince Street, 7 pm – meeting will be televised on Comcast cable channel 20. (meeting agenda)

LP supervisors to discuss key issues at workshop

Updated at 7:01 pm ...

Several key items are listed as agenda items for Tuesday night’s workshop meeting of the Lower Paxton Twp. supervisors at the Municipal Center, 425 Prince Street, at 6 pm.

Topping the list is a continuation of talks regarding the Estates of Autumn Oaks, a 91-unit luxury housing community proposed by McNaughton Homes on the slopes of Blue Mountain in the area of Patton Road. You may remember form earlier posts that residents of the Centennial Acres are concerned that storm water runoff from the planned development could exasperate existing flooding problems.

Another big item of discussion, especially for Linglestown merchants, is a proposal by the township Planning Commission to create three business improvement districts in the township.

One thing not listed is a follow-up discussion on a request by the group operating Koons Pool for a $5,000 township grant to offset the pool's budget deficit.

There are a couple abbreviations used on that agenda that are foreign to me – SALDO and LOSAP. If you know what this code language means, please post a comment.
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Workshop meetings are not televised but the public is welcome to attend. The meetings are held once a month and feature in-depth discussions of issues before the township. The supervisors usually do not vote on issues during these meetings.

Backyard news, 09.24.08

* Longtime Linglestown barber Ron Stine gets some press thanks to T.W. Burger of The Patriot-New.

* FiOS TV watch: It looks like Derry Twp. will be the first East Shore municipality to approve a cable TV franchise agreement with Verizon.

* Central Dauphin Area Basketball Association programs for boys and girls in grades K–12 (including private schools and home-schoolers) are now open for registration. CLICK HERE to register online.

* "Water… Water… EVERYWHERE!" screams a front-page headline in this week’s Paxton Herald. Annette Antoun, the paper’s publisher, reports that Centennial Acres residents are “terrified” that existing water runoff problems will be exasperated if McNaughton Homes gets approval to build 91 luxury homes on the slopes of Blue Mountain. Centennial Acres residents plan to file a lawsuit if McNaughton's proposal is not amended to provide a significant buffer of existing trees and vegetation between their development and the new homes, according to Antoun. She ends the article with this message for Francis McNaughton, the development company’s head: "Hey, Fran, pull back your plan, reconfigure it, and give these residents a break!"

After McNaughton met with residents in late August to hear their concerns about the housing project, company officials agreed to give the township more time to review the plan known as the Estates of Autumn Oaks. Earlier this month, McNaughton made a few changes to the plan but decided to stick with a 10-foot buffer between the two developments.

Lower Paxton Twp. supervisors need to vote on the plan no later than November 10. The township’s consulting engineering firm, HRG, has determined that the current plan meets all township requirements.

Backyard news links, 08.06.08

Updated Thu., 08.07.08, at 4:59 am with news link about Autumn Oaks ...

* LP considers business-improvement districts, including one in the area of the Linglestown square. (The Patriot-News)

* LP supervisors Tuesday night delayed approving the Autumn Oaks development plan, a McNaughton Co. housing community that could eventually bring hundreds of homes to farm fields off Patton Road. Amazingly, residents near the proposed development told township officials that they just learned about the plan last weekend even though it has been in the pipeline since 2007 – I guess they haven't been reading the Gazette. The delay was approved to allow time for McNaughton officials to meet with residents to overview the plan. Township officials said the plan meets all township requirements. Supervisor David Blain cast the lone vote against the delay because the planned meeting most likely will not result in changes to the plan.

More from The Patriot-News >>

* Watch for a Linglestown TV report on last night's heavily attended Night Out for Public Safety that was held at Koons Park. The highlight of the event for me was finally getting a chance to meet-and-greet longtime Gazette contributor Q.

* New sign goes up on Vartan tract in Susquehanna Township at the corner of Linglestown Road and Progress Avenue. (The Patriot-News)

TGIF Linglestown

Gigantic housing plan takes step forward …

Lower Paxton planners have given their stamp of approval for Autumn Oaks, a McNaughton Co. housing community that could bring 300 homes to farm fields off Patton Road. The plan is in the early stages of the township's review process, and McNaughton has put the project on hold due to the shaky condition of the housing market. CLICK HERE for more from The Patriot-News.

Kiss stress goodbye ...

Camp Hill woman offers formula for a stress-free life.

Church celebrates new location ...

LifePoint Church held a grand opening celebration last Sunday for its new facility in West Hanover Township, 7733 Hillcrest Avenue, just off Route 22. Below are a couple photos taken during the worship service.