Category Archives: Uncategorized

Sycamore Trees and the Trexler Business Center

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Lots of feedback on the Hamilton Boulevard Sycamore issue on social media. The Morning Call did a good piece that raised awareness. I wanted to reiterate to those concerned that township staff, planning committee and planning commissions position on the sycamores is that they must be preserved and protected.

The legacy of the sycamores is an invaluable asset to the corridor and the township. That cannot be stressed enough. They are without question the defining characteristic of the area. The historic tree canopy must be protected as a natural and historic resource. In this case the shopping center developer is also in agreement with us.

The problem remains PennDOTs requirement for a highway scaled deceleration lane. Beyond the tree issue the deceleration lane is also problematic on other levels as well. It directly conflicts with the vision laid out in the LMT/UMT corridor study that lays out a vision for a Boulevard concept. I’ve written alot about the need to de-stroadify the Boulevard & “bypass“. When we have PennDOT officials referring to the Boulevard as a “highway” in quotes in the papers to me that demonstrates that we have a fundamental disconnect.

In making argument against the deceleration lan, in our favor is that just down the street a we fought off a highway scaled deceleration lane associated with Hamilton Crossings. This was done to protect the LMTHS log home at Wescosville park. So here we have an almost identical situation except this shopping center is smaller.

Below, is the township planners review letter. In it you can read about a number of concerns with this project as a whole including the sycamore issue. The letter marks the beginning of the land development process. Review letters are completed by the township zoning officer, planner and engineer very early in the process to outline concerns.  We hope to work with the developer to address them.

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#PlanSWL opportunities – Take the survey! Get involved.

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1.Did you get this postcard in the mail? 
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If so your participation in planning the future of Southwest Lehigh County is needed! If you got the postcard in the mail it means you were randomly selected to participate in the ‪#‎PlanSWL‬ survey.

Unfamiliar with #planSWL? Click here – What is #PlanSWL? If you got the card, please make sure go to the link and take the <10 minute survey. It’s your future, your priorities and your community. Make your voice count! 


2. If you did NOT get the card. You can STILL participate!  (The random selection was to ensure a control group for validity reasons – please do not “stuff the valid box” – Only fill out 1 time)

To take the survey please visit www.planswl.org and click the yellow header on the top of the page that says “Click here to take Survey“.

Why does cable TV get corporate welfare pass?

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Why does cable TV get a free pass for the corporate welfare sales tax exemption they get?  I follow almost every single State Rep. on Facebook. When you do that you quickly see that a lot of the “foot soldier” reps post the same identical things verbatim at the same exact time. This weeks ‘theme of the week’ post includes this:

“During his budget address today, Gov. Tom Wolf asked to add sales tax to your basic cable TV bill , movie theater ticket purchases and digital downloads.”

This excerpt post was from Rep. Hahn’s page. But as I said it’s posted virtually verbatim on at least 25 state Rep’s walls. Naturally, it spurred lots of anger. Very effective politically. But again, I ask why does cable get the corporate welfare pass? Cable companies enjoy an totally arbitrary sales tax exception that steals a quarter of a billion dollars from taxpayers a year.

I think they get the pass because it fits nicely into a populist political narrative. Very effective. People are frustrated. Every reason to be.

We’re not served though by a dumbed down & poorly worded question. A better question would be “Do you support closing corporate welfare loopholes in exchange for dollar for dollar property tax reduction“. If that’s the question than for me the answer is YES.  I 100% support closing corporate welfare tax loopholes.

It’s perhaps a less politically expedient wording since it’s a more complicated narrative. Doesn’t fit into a nice concise bullet point or immediately illicit angry responses. It does though more closely reflect actual issues at play. The question is how do we shift revenue away from property taxes without increasing the net revenue we send to Harrisburg?

What I hope this isn’t, is a money in politics thing.  I suspect it is. Cable TV is a dying business with an ultra powerful lobby. The fact there is no sales tax on cable TV is arbitrary corporate welfare. Do the math. . So in this post Rep’s try to cash in on populist anger with the added benefit of not upsetting corporate masters. (To be clear not accusing Marcia Hahn of take cable TV lobby money. This goes way above her. This falls on leadership who give the marching orders) A theme in alot of my posts about state Gov. is that leaders from both parties are generally guilty of serving special interests. Who represents us?

For the record, to be clear so this can’t be misconstrued: For me this is not about more and more and more revenue. I do not believe we need more revenue to fix a number of PA’s issues. We’re NOT an ATM for Gov. Wolf. I think we desperately need to shift the burden away from property taxes in dollar for dollar swaps.  Closing corporate welfare loopholes is one way to do that. Problem is it’s a complicated conversation and doesn’t fit tidy in a pandering post and could upset big $$$. This is a reason why HB76, property tax elimination keeps swinging and missing.

Also raising the PIT without property tax reduction is certainly an issue. But the little throw in line about movie tickets, cable TV and digital media is populist trolling.

Related: I try to write about Lower Mac issues in depth and detail. Sometimes I get down into the weeds. That is because I have faith in voters intelligence. Lower Mac residents haven’t let me down. We have sophisticated voters.  State Rep’s should take some shots at having more detailed conversations instead of cutting and pasting. Don’t be afraid of the tough conversations. I think voters appreciate it.

Peak Warehouse

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Morning Call posted a story today “Upper Macungie to push for new I-78 interchange to relieve truck traffic“

“We’ve got to get another interchange in here,” township Supervisor Kathy Rader said. “In the next 20 years, they expect freight to double in this area. … The statistics are staggering.” – UMT Supervisor Kathy Radar

I generally agree. This interchange is critical. It must happen. We’ve built ourselves into a corner. But in order to avoid repeating the same mistake it must happen with the following caveats:

1. Warehouses and warehouse developers that generate the need and count on the free flow of freight should contribute to design and construction. Sounds like that’s happening to an extent with design. This offsets fact these businesses are a net drain on local economies. As I often say relating to muni budgets these land developments are fiscal parasites.

2. Zoning must be in place in combination with a farmland preservation strategy to prevent the area around any proposed intersection from building out in the same fashion as Rt. 100. 

What can’t happen is for a new interchange to induce even more warehousing further westward. This would totally negate any benefits aimed at freeing up Rt. 100.

Think of roads as a system of pipes. In the day and age of GPS more so than ever before congestion will flow to where it’s least backed up. Rt. 100 is now a severe kink in the pipe. For this to work a new interchange must clearly be the path of least resistance. If we allow sprawling growth to surround a new interchange we will be having the same conversation 20 years from now. We have to stop the induced congestion cycle. Any new intersection must be accompanied with growth boundaries.

Break the cycle.

Break the cycle.

We have to break the cycle. A new interchange should be built for the purpose for handling existing traffic on Rt. 100. It can not be seen as vehicle to induce even more warehouses west of Fogelsville. This also relates to capacity on Rt. 22. We are already spending a BILLION dollars on the current widening project. The next induced widening may be impossibly expensive. Therefore we must get land use under control.

We have reached peak warehouse. We’ve built ourselves into a corner. The next steps will determine our quality of life relating to traffic, air quality and safety moving forward.

And yes, this fundamental problem relates to Pennsylvania’s highest in nation gas taxes.

PASenate votes to reduce the size of legislature

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This week the Republican-controlled PA Senate voted 43-6 to reduce the House’s ranks from 203 to 151.  (HB 153 spons. Knowles) Back in May the house did the same. Currently, at 253 members (combined), our state legislature is the 2nd largest in the country. It’s also one of the most expensive. 

Reducing the size of the house is something I generally support along with other essential reforms including term limits and elimination of the state pension for elected officials. Initiatives that altogether are aimed at reducing the states 60 billion dollar operating budget. Term limits and pension elimination go hand in hand, since once you enact term limits you by default eliminate the sentiment that going to Harrisburg is a career. Term limit pledges unfortunately can be broken. As we’ve seen recently in our area. Mandated term limits protect politicians from human nature and convoluted justifications to make a career out of it.

I support a paid legislature but to me the pension equals a career. Going to Harrisburg to serve is a calling not a vocation. State legislators should be paid salaries but only equal to the median income for the district represented. Today, PA legislators are, you guessed it.. among the highest paid in the nation.

203 is arbitrary.
There is no magic in the number 203; in fact the final number of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives is the result of a map drawing mistake made in 1968. The number that matters is 100,000. Over that amount of voters represented districts lose local flavor.
This proposed reduction would keep State Representative districts under 100k.  (amount each represents) Right now districts stand at about 60k. Which again, was arbitrary. The proposed reduction would bring them up to around 85k. Only a 15k increase. Still in my opinion a manageable number. At this number constituent services would be maintained at a high level. High quality constituent services is the main benefit of a paid legislature. Basically we should seek a significant difference between the 250k (# a Senator represents) and the number a Representative does.

To do this requires a change of the state constitution. It’s a long process requiring both chambers approving an identical measure two years in a row. If this happens again next year the decision would go on the ballot as a statewide referendum.

Here is how local officials voted:
Senate: Boscola (D) & Browne (R) in favor of reducing size.
General Assembly: Mackenzie (R), Simmons (R), Day (R) in favor of reducing size and Schlossberg (D) against reducing size.

Update: 1/28
Having worked with both our local state Rep. and local State Sen. office I have seen no difference in the quality and level of constituent service provided. Even though Sen. Browne’s office represents 250k and Rep. Mackenzie’s 60k. Both staff’s do an outstanding job.
Question – Do you see any difference?

Also an at large county Commissioner represents about 70,000 people. So a state rep. office represents less today.

Do you have an Ash Tree on your property? If so PLEASE READ.

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QUESTION:
Do you have an Ash Tree on your property? If so read carefully.
Unsure? How to identify an Ash Tree.

THE ISSUE:
The emerald ash borer is a half-inch long metallic green beetle. Larvae of this beetle feed under the bark of ash trees. Their feeding eventually girdles and kills branches and entire trees. Lower Macungie carried out an ash tree survey and found about 1,100 of them along the streets of township developments. Recently we have completed a management plan. Information on the public meeting is below. Since the Ash borer is coming to the Lehigh Valley. Residents have to prepare.

Because dead ashes are so dangerous to cut down, arborists charge steep fees to remove them. So while the cost of prevention can be steep, it’s cheaper in the long run. It’s critical we as a community stay ahead of this issue. 

Morning Call – Warning to Lehigh Valley: Prepare for the Ash Borer

The ASH Borer!

The ASH Borer!


WHAT CAN YOU DO – ASH STREET TREE PROGRAM:
Lower Macungie Township will hold a public meeting on February 22, 2016 at 7PM at the Lower Macungie Community Center, 3450 Brookside Road. See link below. The purpose is to inform residents of the emerald ash borer, an invasive bug species killing 99% of ash trees. The program will include information on a street tree removal and replacement program. Residents facing the expense of ash tree removal and street tree replacement are encouraged to attend.
More information: LMT FACEBOOK GROUP

Locations of Ash Trees in Lower Macungie based on recent township survey.

Locations of Ash Trees in Lower Macungie based on recent township survey.

 

Lower Mac – Agenda Preview 1/21/16

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Link to agenda with detail.

Last meeting video –1/4/16 – reorganization. 

Announcements & Presentations:
Dr. Harry R. Carter – Lower Macungie Twp. fire study. The study will be previewed tonight by the consultant.  Having had the chance to read through it once, I wanted to share one paragraph. While the study identifies a number of growth related concerns – specifically unplanned growth west of Rt. 100 – The opening paragraph is something all residents should be extremely proud of:

Screen Shot 2016-01-21 at 3.55.50 PMA power point summary of the study including an outline of concerns with growth is here on agenda detail link.

Hearings & Approvals: 
Mack Truck parking lot expansion – Specifically this plan is pretty basic. So I want to talk more in general.

The township is very proud to have the primary manufacturing facility for Mack Trucks. Although the news recently has been of layoffs, those who follow Mack closely (I have relatives who have worked for Mack over the years including my dad) know that the business has always been cyclical. The good news is this parking lot expansion signals continued investment in the Macungie Plant. And a renewed commitment to the Lehigh Valley.  The layoffs are disappointing for many in the short term but investments in the facility are a great long term indicator. Hope is when the rebound comes and history tells us it will – the employment numbers will reach new record highs at the Macungie plant.

 

Ordinance amendment for East Texas – I posted this on my FB page earlier this week: “The question I’ve gotten the most is about the smooth-on parking lot. First understand today the parking lot is zoned for development under the current ordinance. Smooth on however doesn’t want to development the max # of units they are allowed to today. (that is a good thing!).

There is a sketch plan the township has seen. The plan proposes under 20 units + a daycare. That is less than what they could develop today ‘by-right”. Their intention isn’t to shoe-horn as many units as they could. Smooth-on is very conscientious as to what made sense for the neighborhood.

The other big benefit right now is that today the parking lot is over 70% impermeable surface. The plan actually reduces impermeable surface to under 35%. The reason is that the units would mostly be clustered around and facing a very large central green area.

The other part folks should understand is why Smooth-on wants to do this. The parking lot (and tunnel under Lower Mac Rd.) was built for Daytimers when it had 1000 employees working 3 shifts. At the time they needed all the new parking. Smooth-on today only has about 200 employees. And they don’t plan to grow much larger.

So Smooth-on wants to build some units but only for their employees only. The idea is that folks have the option of living right across the street from where they work. This actually reduces daily car trips into East Texas if employees lived out of town. And it will always be far less than what daytimers was at peak. Or what if could have been again if another larger company bought the property.

In my opinion smooth on has a neat old company town mentality. If anyone has any questions or would like to see the sketch plan let me know.”

Aside from ensuring any parking lot development is township serving, this exercise is primarily about preserving the character of the Village.  We want to protect the villages unique sense of place. This is the oldest neighborhood in the township aside from maybe Wescosville.

Here is an article from the morning call 

Here is a portion of the letter we rec’d from the LVPC. We also got positive letters from all our municipal neighbors who responded.

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Rt. 100 study- Another critical presentation tonight is under the Engineers report. A few months ago we authorized a study of the Rt. 100 corridor. This is so we can better prepare for – and deal with past deviations from the comprehensive plan that occurred by the prior board – and also plan for future build or no build scenarios on certain sites. This demonstrates in alot of ways the costs of certain types of sprawling development. It also reinforces the need to targeted preservation whenever possible.

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List of State Roads in Lower Mac

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Below is a list of state roads within Lower Macungie Twp. Roads not on this list are township roads. 

As always please let us know about issues on TOWNSHIP roads. Especially during the snow events in the winter. To report issues on TOWNSHIP roads call Lower Macungie at 610-966-4343.

Many roads within the township however are state owned and the responsibility of PennDOT. In which case for faster responses about concerns on state roads you should contact PennDOT directly using the information below. Or if your not satisfied with the response you can contact the office of our area State Representative at 610-965-9933

The following roads run within Lower Macungie Township but are STATE ROADS. Contact PennDOT about issues on these roads. 

Alburtis Road
Brookdale Road
Brookside Road
Buckeye Road
Butz Road
Cedarbrook Road
Cedar Crest Boulevard
Chestnut Road (Between Hensingersville Rd and Alburtis Boro)
East Texas Road (Between Brookside & Lower Macungie Rd)
Hamilton Boulevard (Route 6222)
Hensingersville Road (Btween Chestnut and Mountain)
Hill Top Road Indian Creek Road
Lehigh Street
Little Spur
Long Swamp Road
Lower Macungie Road
Mertztown Road
Minesite Road
Mountain Road
Riverbend Road (Between Cedar Crest and Little Spur)
Route 100
Schantz Road
Spring Creek Road
Trexlertown Road
Walnut Street (Between Brookside and the Boro of Macungie)
Weilers Road (Between Spring Creek and Brookdale)
Willow Lane

Please visit these additional links for more snow information!
FOR SNOW EMERGENCY INFORMATION VISIT THE TOWNSHIP WEBSITE. www.lowermac.com

LMT SNOW GUIDE

WEATHER EMERGENCY RULES

#‎planswl‬ – Thoughts on 2 day charette

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How has Southwest Lehigh County (SWELCO) changed in the last 10 years? What will Southwest Lehigh County look like 25 years from now? Where should new development occur?What kind of development should it be? What will happen to existing neighborhoods and local character?

SWELCO includes Emmaus, Lower Macungie, Macungie, Alburtis & Upper and Lower Milford. Together we are beginning a process to determine the answers to these questions and more with the development of a new comprehensive Plan.

I attended 3 small groups yesterday and caught the end of another today. Here are (just a few of many!) key takeaways from my perspective:

1. Always interesting to hear from the farmers who were well represented. Its important to not only preserve the soil (an irreplaceable natural resource) but also ensure we give farmers the tools they need to keep farming market viable. Critical for a place like Lower Mac where large scale farming is probably no longer in the cards. However, smaller scale and different types definitely still are. This means CSA’s, vegetable production, agri-entertainment, etc. There is a future for farming in Lower Mac. It just won’t look exactly the same as it has in the past. It’s a change for sure. But in my opinion an exciting one. Huge topic over the next year.

2. Density. There are still some who snap-back against density. For the most part however folks acknowledge that targeted density is OK in appropriate (key appropriate!) locations. In Lower Macungie Twp. that is Hamilton Blvd corridor. A place where taxpayers already made significant key and costly investments in infrastructure. Density is how we cash in on those investments. Density in other poor locations like for example west of Rt. 100 will cost taxpayers over the long run.

3. We (the SWELCO region) have to better consider cost of municipal services. Meaning, when a zoning area or land development is proposed we must #dothemath to truly quantify if a particular plan or change makes financial sense for a resilient tax base. I worry that the township has lost some balance with our % of warehouses. We are more than shouldering a fair share. We now need to quantify the liabilities and work towards counteracting by attracting more productive, high quality and property located development to “balance the books” so to speak. It’s not enough to chase economic development. We have to instead foster productive economic development. We need an economic gardening mindset on the Boulevard. An incremental approach.

4. Transportation. One of the most popular sessions both days. For obvious reasons. Our problems are well defined. Sprawl has led to what I call a system of “traffic sewers” or a hierarchy of roads that funnel all traffic our volume to the highest classification roads as opposed to a more efficient grid system. Now, this is in some ways the nature of the beast in suburbia. The problem is (or opportunity rather) is not to double down on your typical “solutions” mostly dealing with band-aid fixes and endless capacity increases. (which actually induce more traffic) This is both inneffective and also vey expensive.

Lastly, Freight of course is now our new reality. And focus of much intense discussion. Not something easy to encapsulate. Of all items talked about the toughest to solve.

Are you interested in these issues? Do you want to have a voice in the conservation?  Please consider attending and contributing your ideas at the January 14th public meeting for plan south west Lehigh.Screen Shot 2016-01-06 at 11.09.56 AM!