Pottstown Ward 1-2
Empire Hook & Ladder Fire Company
76 N. Franklin Street
Pottstown, PA 19464
YWCA
315 King Street
Pottstown, PA 19464
Pottstown Ward 6
Chesmont Building
13 Armand Hammer Blvd.
Pottstown, PA 19464
Rupert Elementary
1230 South Street
Pottstown, PA 19464
I believe I am the right candidate for Pottstown Council. I have no personal agenda; simply a desire to bring Pottstown (as a whole) back to greatness — not what it once was, but rather something better. Pottstown needs real jobs, ones in which people can obtain gainful employment. Industry DOES still exist — it is just different now. Although Pottstown is “built out” I do believe it is still marketable.
I enjoy attending council meetings, making a point to not miss them. I use this opportunity to learn what works and what does not work. I welcome the frustration I feel during such meetings. This frustration becomes fuel which inspires some of my best ideas and I have many, to tackle some of the tough problems facing the borough such as far too many opportunistic investors, crime, and not of any less importance, the current distance between decision making and real communication with the community.
I hold a Bachelor of Science degree in Crime & Justice from Albright College achieving highest honors. My most recent employment was working as a program specialist in a day program developing, coordinating, and implementing vocational, educational, social, health, safety, & personal client centered goals for adults with Developmental & Intellectual Disabilities. Among many responsibilities, I also accompanied and supported the individuals during community outings and community service including delivering Meals on Wheels to the elderly and reading to the pre-school children at the YWCA. I held this position for four years prior to leaving in July of 2012. Prior to my employment, I volunteered for two years at the facility.
Previously I served for two years on Pottstown area’s Montgomery County Youth Aid Panel. I also completed Montgomery County’s Victim Offender Conferencing Program.
For many years, I volunteered with several animal rescue groups. My greatest love — animals. My passion — Pottstown.
I graduated from Pottstown High School. Upon graduating I moved to Oaks for four years. After marrying (my husband is Spring Ford Alum) I told my husband I wanted to buy a house in my home town, which I have always loved. We found a nice corner property which was to be our starter home, and here we have stayed for 23 years. We will be celebrating our 25th (silver) anniversary in September.
I feel that it is of the utmost importance to stay closely connected to the community. Although I have worked and lived locally for many years, my eyes were opened even wider when I began walking door to door in my ward having the opportunity to see and hear up close and personal the many challenges we face.
And I am just getting started!!
Sheryl Miller
3rd Ward Pottstown Council Candidate
The Pottstown YMCA, a branch of the Philadelphia Freedom Valley YMCA, located at the corner of Adams & Jackson Streets in Pottstown is running a Membership Event through May 31st. Become a new member and the normal joiner fee of $75 is being waived. Join now and take advantage of access to recreational swimming year round and join as an Association member for access to outdoor pools. Hundreds of programs offered for infants though Seniors.
Next session of programs runs June 10 – August 18, with registration for members beginning May 20th. Camp registration is on-going, as well as, child care for ages 6 weeks through 12 years of age.
Call 610.323.7300 for details, stop by for a tour or visit us on the web at https://philaymca.org/
Wednesday, May 22nd, 10am-2pm
Sunnybrook Ballroom, 50 Sunnybrook Road, Pottstown
Over 80 employers!
Special thanks to event sponsors: Exelon, EDSI, J.P. Mascaro & Sons, LifeSpan,Pottstown Memorial Medical Center, The Mercury, and the TriCounty Area Chamber of Commerce.
This event is brought to you by the
TCN Exelon Nuclear Workforce Development Program
For more information, please call TCN at 610-705-3301, Ext.2.
Roy’s Rants spent a few hours this afternoon talking with two Pottstown Borough Council candidates and a Pottstown mayoral candidate running in Tuesday’s Pennsylvania Primary Election. We would like to share some of this information to help voters carefully weigh their options. The outcome of this election will be crucial in either moving Pottstown down the road to revitalization or allowing it to continue in a downward spiral.
Cindy Conard is running for 7th Ward Borough Councilor against incumbent Joe Kirkland. Cindy and her husband moved to Pottstown several years ago. They chose to buy a home and invest in Pottstown. After sitting on the sidelines and watching the direction Pottstown has taken and the machinations of council, Cindy saw a leadership vacuum existed and wanted to do her civic duty by getting involved.
Cindy brings considerable management experience to the table. She is paid to solve problems and look for solutions to problems that aren’t readily apparent. Critical thinking is something Cindy excels at as well as her ability to ferret out the root cause of a problem rather than to simply address the symptoms.
Cindy would like to be part of a council that would: create a shared vision for Pottstown, be fiscally responsible, collaborate with the community, encourage economic development in downtown Pottstown, reduce crime and reduce “red tape” for residents to improve their homes and properties. And most importantly, Cindy will strive to get people working together to produce results!
Former 6th Ward Councilor and “man of the people” Jody Rhoads has officially endorsed Cindy Conard!
You can check out Cindy’s official campaign Facebook page here: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Cindy-Conard-for-Council-in-the-7th-Ward/232676780206363?fref=ts
Sheryl Miller is running for 3rd Ward Borough Councilor against incumbent Jeff Chomnuk. Sheryl grew up in Pottstown and graduated from Pottstown High School. Sheryl moved away for a few years but yearned return to the “town she loves” to live. Sheryl and her husband bought a home in Pottstown and she has watched her hometown deteriorate. She also feels compelled to do her civic duty and run for borough council.
Sheryl holds a Bachelor of Science degree from Albright College in Crime and Justice. Sheryl wants Pottstown to be a safe place. She would be tough on crime issues if elected to Pottstown Borough Council. She advocates community policing and wants to promote police visibility by utilizing foot and bike patrols. She also promotes police officers getting to know residents the community.
Sheryl is concerned about neighborhood safety, clean streets, property maintenance; she advocates responsible spending and supports open government. Sheryl wants to create policies to improve the quality of life for borough residents.
Sheryl wants to improve communication and cooperation between borough council and the community which would encourage citizen engagement.
You can check out Sheryl’s official campaign Facebook page here:
https://www.facebook.com/SherylMillerForPottstownBoroughCouncil?fref=ts
Ross Belovich is running for Mayor of Pottstown against former Mayor Sharon Valentine-Thomas on Tuesday. The winner of this primary contest will go up against incumbent Bonnie Heath in November.
I did an extensive interview with Ross which you can click on here:
If you have not read this I would ask that you to take a few moments and read the article.
You can check out Ross’s office campaign Facebook page here:
https://www.facebook.com/MayorofPottstown
Ross is an articulate individual with many excellent ideas on how to move Pottstown forward. The mayor oversees the police department and acts as an official representative of the Borough of Pottstown. To many people, the mayor is the face of Pottstown. It is important that this individual present themselves in a dignified and professional manner at all times.
The mayor can be involved with PDIDA, PAID and other boards/entities in Pottstown that promote economic development and revitalization. The office of the mayor could be used as a force to help affect positive change and present council with researched ideas for their consideration during the monthly Mayor’s Report.
The mayor acts as a tie-breaker in the event a vote on council ends in a draw. The mayor should be well versed on all matters on the agenda and be able to make an informed decision if called upon. When only six councilors are at a meeting, this scenario could happen.
Roy’s Rants officially endorses these candidates!
It’s time for Pottstown voters to purge local politics of the ostriches on council and replace them with outside the box, critical thinkers who actually have a plan for Pottstown (other than status quo). In case you haven’t noticed, Pottstown is teetering on a precipice. Depending on which way the wind blows will determine if Pottstown rises from the ashes like Phoenixville or becomes the next Chester or Camden.
Frankly, I would hope residents would choose the revitalization option.
My BFF, the one and only Missy Mayor Bonnie Heath thinks Pottstown is all sunshine and puppies. Anybody who dares to pull back the curtain and expose the truth is labeled a trouble maker, malcontent etc… and accused of casting Pottstown in a negative light. I think that impression has already been seared on the minds of most people and they have their opinion about Pottstown. Rampant crime, drugs, a Section 8 housing/social services overload, slumlords and a shrinking tax base speak for themselves. You can’t put lipstick on this pig and make it look good. Even with glitter and puppies. People say things like, “If you have to drive through Pottstown, roll up the windows, lock the doors and pray you don’t break down”.
The current crop of bobbleheads on council and their fearless leader Steve Toroney seem to think all is peachy is Pottstown. Look at the decisions this body has made in the last year. Look at the crime rate, look at the “for sale signs” all over town, look at your tax bill, look at the state of the downtown (it would be worse if it weren’t for a few brave souls like ArtFusion, Steel River Playhouse, the Brick House and Sheila Dugan) and the list goes on and on.
What vision has this auspicious group proposed for the betterment of Pottstown? Insert cricket sounds here. Although, if you read Evan Brandt’s interview with Councilor Kirkland you would think Pottstown is a “boom town” with new businesses springing up like mushrooms and borough council is just one big love fest of unity. For these reasons and other equally laughable ones, he thinks the incumbents should all be reelected. Councilor Kirkland can’t seem to wrap his mind around why anybody would run against him on the Democratic ticket??? Talk about a WTF moment.
If you think your vote doesn’t make a difference, you are very wrong. Sharon Valentine-Thomas lost to Teflon Bonnie by a few dozen votes. Indifference and apathy are what keep these people in office. If you would like to live in a revitalized community, a safe community and a community with an excellent quality of life, you should see what the challengers in these races are all about and what they are proposing for Pottstown. Look at the track record of the people on council. Are you better off today than you were four years ago? Are you proud to say you are from Pottstown? Can you afford to pay your property taxes? Do you feel safe walking the streets?
These are all things you should ponder before pulling any levers on Tuesday. Your well-being depends on it.
LOWER POTTSGROVE TOWNSHIP — The two suspects in a late-night shooting outside a North Charlotte Street bar on March 22 were in court again on Friday morning and each of their cases moved closer to trial.
Maurice Andrews Jr., 19, of Pottstown, and Michael Hinton, 26, of Norristown, are charged with murder in the first-, second- and third-degree for the death of Victor Enrique Bonilla Baez, also known as Vincent Taylor.
Andrews appeared in District Judge Edward C. Kropp Sr.’s courtroom for the second time at 10 a.m. for his preliminary hearing, after it had been continued once. The hearing was continued again and rescheduled for May 31 at 10 a.m. in the same courtroom.
At least 15 members of Andrews’ family and friends turned out for the hearing and were visibly frustrated when the hearing had been continued.
Editor’s note: We here at Roy’s Rants are endorsing Cindy Conard. We had the opportunity to meet Cindy a few weeks ago when we toured 716 Adams street (a disgusting rental property in 7th Ward) along with Cindy, her husband and some other civic minded folks. Mr. Kirkland was not in attendance. He was contacted, responded after four days and was more concerned about who the tenant told her story to rather than helping solve her problem.
Mr. Kirkland has had four years to do something to distinguish himself from the pack. I am still waiting to see some actual leadership. As for his being a strictly door-to-door person…why was Dan Weand going door-to-door for you, Joe? Seems like that should be something you would do for yourself. You won’t be losing 40 pounds again that way. I must say many of Mr. Kirkland’s quotes in the article made me chuckle.
We think Pottstown could indeed benefit from some leadership before it turns into Camden or Chester.
Having attended several council meetings, Conard said she feels Pottstown needs to find a way to engage in a more constructive way with borough council.
“People interact with Pottstown when they have an issue,” she said. But council needs to find the leadership to bring the town together in a “shared vision, you know, what we want to be when we grow up.”
Conard is a senior manager of quality assurance with Altria.
“I’m not a politician, but I do believe that Pottstown could benefit from some leadership,” she said.
Full article: http://www.pottsmerc.com/article/20130517/NEWS01/130519285/pottstown-primary-in-7th-ward-pits-conard-vs-kirkland#full_story
“White Sphere” by Robert Koch
Pottstown, PA – Lumière Blanc: A study of white by Robert Koch opens on June 7 at ArtFusion 19464. The show will run until June 29 and there will be a meet the artist reception June 7 from 6-8pm. Light refreshments will be served. All receptions are free and open to the public. Robert Koch, a Boyertown native currently living in New Jersey, produced all new work for this innovative show.
Robert talks about the inspiration behind this work: My approach as an artist has always been to make work that is as much about the materials themselves as the application of the materials. With my ceramics I have always kept my forms simple and functional and allowed the glazes to be the main focus. My welded steel sculptures are more about the welds than the steel. With my paintings I use the fluidity of the paint to dictate what happens on the surface.
Building up layer after layer of paint it became apparent to me that color was no longer important. In fact the less color there was applied to the surface the more the paint itself because the primary focus. After stripping away most or all of the other colors the interaction light combined with the layering of paint revealed very subtle complexities.
For this show the artist was also inspired by the way water moves in a river. “With my paintings each layer is like the surface of the water. After each layer dries and more layers are added the light has more texture to interact with. As the light changes throughout the day the surface of my paintings changes as well,” Robert said.
While working on this show, Robert was also faced with some serious health challenges, undergoing heart bypass surgery. “I was forced to take a break from art and life to allow my body to heal from coronary bypass surgery,” Robert explains. “Life’s unexpected events have made it even more exciting to have the opportunity to share this work.”
ArtFusion 19464 is a 501(c)3 non-profit community art center located at 254 E. High St. in downtown Pottstown. The school offers day, evening and weekend classes to all ages. The goal of these classes is to help students develop their creative skills through self-expression and independence. ArtFusion’s gallery hosts rotating shows featuring local artists. The gallery also sells handcrafted, one-of-a-kind gift items. The gallery is open Tuesday through Friday from 10am-5pm and Saturday 10am-3pm. The gallery is closed Sunday and Monday.
Hi All,
Spring is officially here, I’d I like to invite you to the 4th Annual Garden Party held at the Washington/Chestnut Street Park this Saturday, May 18.
It will be a morning of beautifying the park with annuals and mulch donated by Colonial Gardens and light refreshments courtesy of Genesis Housing Corp. Details are below and don’t forget you gardening tools! SHOVELS, RAKES and GLOVES!
WHAT: 4TH ANNUAL GARDEN PARTY
WHERE: WASHINGTON/CHESTNUT STS. PARK
DATE: SATURDAY, MAY 18, 2013
TIME: 9AM – 11AM
Hope to See you there!
Anna
Map of Pennsylvania highlighting Montgomery County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
NORRISTOWN, PA — A Limerick woman who allegedly was attacked by dogs and a Lower Pottsgrove man who was injured as he came to her rescue outside a Wilson Street residence in Pottstown have sued the borough man who owned the dogs.
Kaitlyn Fadely, 19, of Major Road, Limerick, and Kurt Buchler, 44, of Foxtail Drive, Lower Pottsgrove, filed separate lawsuits in Montgomery County Court against Robert Schrack, of the 600 block of Wilson Street, Pottstown, alleging they were “violently attacked without provocation” by dogs owned by Schrack about 4:11 p.m. March 15. The suits each seek damages in excess of $50,000.
“At all times…relevant, the defendant knew that the dogs were of a ferocious, vicious and mischievous nature and accustomed to attack and bite humans,” Skippack lawyer Gerald J. Mullaney Jr. alleged in the lawsuit filed on behalf of Buchler and his wife, Michelle.
Also listed as a defendant in each of the lawsuits was Glenn Waldt, of the 2800 block of East High Street, Lower Pottsgrove, who owned the Wilson Street residence and who rented it to Schrack, according to court papers. A lease agreement was established between Schrack and Waldt in November 2011, court papers alleged.
Location of Pottstown in Montgomery County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
POTTSTOWN, PA — Residents in the 300 block of Lincoln Avenue may have been woken up by the sounds of police sirens and K-9 units early Tuesday morning after a traffic stop resulted in a foot chase.
Rickey Walker, 56, of Pottstown was the passenger in a tan Buick LaSabre that was stopped at 2:44 a.m. when borough police noticed the car had a broken taillight.
According to police, there were a large number of air fresheners in the car, which police said can be a common way to mask the odor of drugs.
Walker refused to give his name to police and ran east on Lincoln Avenue toward North Franklin Street while being pursued by officer Unruh and officer Sheehan from the borough police department, police said.
Read more: http://www.pottsmerc.com/article/20130514/NEWS01/130519659/pottstown-man-arrested-after-foot-chase
The TCN Youth Development Committee in partnership with the Pottstown School District will hold a Youth Leadership Conference at Pottstown Middle School on Wednesday, May 15. There will be several workshops on topics such as banking basics, social networking, safe dating, emergency preparedness, healthy lifestyles, drug and alcohol abuse, and stress management.
The Conference will also include brain break activities, an educational movie, and a resource fair for students to learn more about after school programs. Students from both Pottstown and Pottsgrove Middle Schools will participate.
Special thanks to event sponsors: Pottstown Area Health & Wellness Foundation, Susquehanna Bank, Coqui Studio, Wawa, Freshstart Fitness, Rita’s Water Ice, and Giant. For more information, please contact TCN at 610-705-3301.
Map of Pennsylvania highlighting Chester County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
EAST COVENTRY TOWNSHIP, PA — In its heyday, Frick’s Lock Village was one of dozens of stops along the Schuylkill Navigation for coal making its way from the coal regions and the river’s headwaters to energy-starved industrial cities like Philadelphia.
But it lost its economic lustre when the railroads took over the job of carrying the coal and it slipped from public view entirely in 1969, when it was purchased by PECO as part of the construction of the Limerick nuclear plant.
But it never slipped entirely from memory, at least not for people like Bill Carl, who lived in the former locktender’s house in the late 1930s, when it had no electricity and no plumbing.
“We rented this from the Reading Railroad Co. for $5 a month,” he said.
Location of Pottstown in Montgomery County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Editor’s note: Let me guess….another rental property.
POTTSTOWN — Police had to use pepper spray to break up an altercation after an alleged domestic disturbance escalated on Friday afternoon.
Around 1 p.m., borough police responded to a call for a domestic dispute in the 500 block of Chestnut Street but when police arrived, the situation moved into the street.
Pottstown Police Chief Richard Drumheller said a man at the residence hit the windshield of a car multiple times, possibly with a baseball bat, and kicked in the front door of the three-story home. The residents locked themselves in the basement.
Editor’s note: Replacing this bridge won’t happen soon enough!
POTTSTOWN — After being closed to traffic for nearly three years, the Keim Street Bridge project is seeing signs of life.
A letter sent to the borough council invites it to choose a volunteer to participate on a committee that will look at the historical significance of the area surrounding the Keim Street Bridge.
The letter was sent Lansdale based CHRS Inc., a company that specializes in making sure building projects comply with state and federal laws on behalf of the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation.
For residents and businesses on both sides of the bridge looking for an end to the waiting period, some movement on the project could finally begin.
Pottstown, PA – The mission of non-profit ArtFusion 19464 is to make the arts accessible to everyone in the greater Pottstown community. As part of their ongoing efforts to live that mission, ArtFusion will be offering three free art programs this summer for children ages 7-12.
Two of these fun and engaging programs are sponsored by the Greater Pottstown Foundation. Kids Art Academy is a general arts exploration class, where students explore two- and three-dimensional arts. Students in Clay Academy delve into all aspects of creating with clay. Participants will work on handbuilding and also have a chance to work on a pottery wheel.
Local young artists will also have a chance to expand their drawing skills while learning about a new language. Drawing with Hebrew Letters, sponsored by Sager and Sager and The Jewish Women’s League of Congregation Mercy and Truth, will introduce students to drawing using a creative language of letters and shapes. This free program is open to artists of all faiths. No prior drawing experience or knowledge of the language is required, just a desire to learn and create. Students will create with ink, paper and color, learning to express with their hands what their imaginations see.
Applications can be picked up at ArtFusion’s 254 E. High St. location or downloaded from their website at artfusion19464.org/classes/scholarshipsprograms/. Applications are due by May 31. While preference is given to those students who qualify for free or reduced lunch, all students are strongly encouraged to apply.
ArtFusion 19464 is a 501(c)3 non-profit community art center. The school offers day, evening and weekend classes to all ages. The goal of these classes is to help students develop their creative skills through self-expression and independence. ArtFusion’s gallery hosts rotating shows featuring local artists. The gallery also sells handcrafted, one-of-a-kind gift items. The gallery is open Tuesday through Friday from 10am-5pm and Saturday 10am-3pm. The gallery is closed Sunday and Monday.
Location of Pottstown in Montgomery County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Editor’s note: The social media aspect doesn’t really strike me an a great crime fighting tool; however, crime mapping and focused patrols in problem areas are certainly a good start. We can only hope things move in a positive direction with the police department. Unless crime can be brought under control, revitalization and economic development cannot happen on a large enough scale to truly have a transformative impact on the Borough of Pottstown.
POTTSTOWN — Even before taking the oath Wednesday night as the borough’s new police chief, Richard Drumheller had some ideas to help make the community safer, even if it means using unconventional tactics.
Drumheller plans on using Facebook and Twitter to create a better connection with residents, increase patrols in high-crime areas and streamline the way police calls are dispatched.
One of the first changes he wants to make as the new chief is creating a department presence on social media as a way to engage with the residents of Pottstown.
He said people want to know what is going on in the borough and he wants to use Facebook and Twitter as a way to keep them informed.
Location of Pottstown in Montgomery County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Both Pottstown and Phoenixville will be split into two different legislative districts under the legislative re-districting approved Wednesday by the state Supreme Court.
The new districts will take effect in the 2014 election cycle and shift legislative lines for the state House and Senate seats throughout Southeast Pennsylvania and may change who is representing you in Harrisburg.
In Pottstown, the plan unanimously approved by the court, puts the first, second and part of the seventh wards of Pottstown into the 26th District, currently represented by longtime Chester County Republican Tim Hennessey.
The third, fourth, fifth, sixth and other half of the seventh wards will continue to be represented by the 146th District, a seat currently held by freshman Democrat Mark Painter according to the plan.
Location of West Pottsgrove Township in Montgomery County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
WEST POTTSGROVE TOWNSHIP — In the day following the shocking murder of a 19-year-old taken by gunpoint from his West Pottsgrove home, who exactly that young man was remains a complicated question.
Kareem Ali Borowy died in the grass at the side of the 2100 block of Sanatoga Station Road Sunday around 2:30 p.m., not long after the abduction from the house on the 1200 block of Manatawny Street.
Montgomery County First Assistant District Attorney Kevin Steele said an autopsy conducted Monday morning determined Borowy died from a gunshot wound to the back.
The manner of death was ruled a homicide, he said.
Several readers told The Mercury that Kareem was the adopted son of Ruth Borowy, who reportedly adopted Kareem and his three siblings — two sisters and a brother — out of Philadelphia and brought them to the Boyertown area.
