New Memorial Hospital Of York Plan Prompts Traffic, Noise Concerns

Related: Memorial to break ground on replacement hospital.

Memorial Hospital held a public forum at the West Manchester Township building that allowed community members to view the plans for the replacement hospital.

Here are some of their concerns:

Traffic

Deb Kauffman, CEO of White Rose Credit Union attended because her business is located near the new hospital. She is concerned about traffic but hopes the new hospital will bring in some more business.

Will there be speed bumps? Traffic lights? Reduced speed? These are all questions Doreen Lehr had after seeing the photos of the plan because she lives right at the entrance on Roosevelt Road. She says during rush hour it takes her five to 10 minutes to get out of her driveway as it is and people speed. They’ll have to expand the road, her husband, Joseph Lehr suggested.

Read more: http://www.ydr.com/business/ci_28064340/community-responds-new-memorial-hospital

Super-Size Gas Stations Stir Hostility

The typical gas station of yesterday is a shell of what one looks like today.

Gas stations are twice the size, with more pumps; some have full-service restaurants, small grocery stores and 24-hour operations.

More convenience stores sell gas, too — a 14.2 percent increase to 126,658 locations from 2005 to 2014, according to the National Association for Convenience & Fuel Retailing in Alexandria, Va.

In some communities, these mega-stations are hang-out spots on the weekends for the post-nightclub crowd — and they are attracting more opposition in the planning stages from residents who are leery of more traffic, noise, crime and bright lights.

Read more: http://triblive.com/news/allegheny/5724398-74/gas-station-stations#ixzz2wkRXN8TE
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A Place To Be Seen (And Heard) In Upper Manhattan

With the lights of the George Washington Bridge painting the Hudson River and a half-moon hanging over the Palisades, La Marina felt like the place to be last Saturday night.  At the year-old restaurant in Fort Washington Park, at the end of Dyckman Street in Upper Manhattan, two D.J.’s, working opposite ends of the property, cranked up the volume. Patrons ordered bottles of liquor, starting at $130 for rum and rising to $12,000 for a methuselah of Champagne, equal to five bottles, to secure a table on the terrace.  Dancers let loose on the “beach,” a sand-covered strip flanked with four-poster beds draped in flowing white fabric.

“The vibe is getting turned up,” Marc De Jesus, 27, a La Marina regular from the Bronx, said with a wide grin.

But that vibe has become a bit too much for many in the Inwood neighborhood, a residential area that has developed a lively night life in recent years.  They complain that La Marina, a concession on city parkland initially billed as a restaurant-lounge, has evolved into a raucous outdoor nightclub, attracting the likes of Jay-Z and Leonardo DiCaprio.  They say the hot spot snarls traffic for blocks, even backing cars up on the Henry Hudson Parkway; creates noise pollution; and regularly violates the terms of its license with the city’s parks department.

“The crowds are the worst part,” said Terrie Walters, 52, who lives a few blocks away.  “People will drive there even if they live six blocks away.  You want to pull up to the valet and be seen getting out of your S.U.V.  It’s brought an element to the neighborhood that does not fit, and there’s gridlock beyond gridlock, with people fighting and cursing and cutting each other off.”

Read more:  http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/19/nyregion/a-place-to-be-seen-and-heard-in-upper-manhattan.html?hp&_r=0

Pottstown Citizens Plan Protest Again Slumlords For Friday

Are you a Pottstown borough resident?

Are you sick of slumlords not paying their water/sewer/trash bills?

Are you sick of slumlords renting to anybody that breathes and can pay their rent (not doing criminal background checks)?

Are you ready to make a statement that Pottstown residents are ready to take back their town?

If so, a group is gathering tomorrow, Friday, August 26th at 5:30 pm in the 400 block of King Street, between Franklin and Washington Sts.  This event is for anyone who is ready to say ENOUGH!  There will be a press conference and protest to demand that these deadbeats pay up or get the hell out of Pottstown! 

Feel free to bring your picket signs!

The Weather Is Getting Warmer And Problems Are On The Rise In Pottstown’s Core Neighborhood

Now that the weather is warmer and people are involved in more outdoor activities, we are noticing that problems are starting to escalate in the Washington Street Corridor.  The Mercury reported two shootings, in the last week, in that general area as well as a self-inflicted gunshot wound to a third person. 

It appears that noise and loitering are on the rise.  Large groups of people hanging around with nothing in particular to do which is a recipe for disaster.  Idle hands….

It has come to my attention that there is a particular hot spot of activity which needs to be addressed.  If we are serious about cleaning up and stabilizing the core neighborhood through homeownership, we better start putting our money where our mouth is.  The few homeowners in that area are sick of this behavior and are prisoners in their homes.  You will never attract new homeowners with this sort of lawlessness being allowed to go on.  Confronting these people is dangerous and should be handled by law enforcement professionals.

This activity is a black eye for Pottstown and continues to reinforce the stereotype that our community is a ghetto and unsafe.  This is of course not true, but perception is hard to change.  This problem area of town needs immediate and swift attention. 

If we expect PAID to do their job, crime MUST be brought under control.  How is PAID supposed to attract business and industry to Pottstown if this Wild West behavior is tolerated??  Who the hell will invest in Pottstown if we cannot get a handle on criminal activity??  The answer is Section 8 slumlords!

We need to start enforcing the laws we have on the books and being a little more clever.  Again, I suggest cameras for problem areas and beefed up patrols.  If we cannot get the criminal element in this town under control PAID is DOA!