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

Allentown Approves New Parking Garage Near Hockey Arena

English: City of Allentown from east side (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Allentown officials have insisted they are prepared for the barrage of vehicles that will be coming into the city from the opening of the new PPL Centerhockey arena.

Now, those vehicles will have 1,000 additional spots to park in.

Allentown planners signed off today on a new seven-story parking garage at Sixth and Walnut streets, within walking distance of the arena and other major downtown development projects.

“The traffic’s coming, there’s nothing we can do about that,” said Oldrich Focuek, planning commission chairman. “You know ‘the British are coming?’ Well, the traffic is coming, and we’re trying to deal with that.”

Read more: http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/allentown/index.ssf/2014/09/allentown_approves_new_parking.html

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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Union Township Wants Racetrack Developers To Pay For Route 724 Upgrades

Map of Berks County, Pennsylvania, United States with township and municipal boundaries (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

After months of discussing potential traffic nightmares, Union Township supervisors want the developers of a proposed motorsports park to abide by PennDOT-required improvements to Route 724.

The issue arose after representatives from Ethan Michael Inc., developer of the proposed Liberty Bell Motorsports Park, asked to remove a potential campground site from the original land development plan.

The plan was submitted more than a decade ago, and the campground site no longer meets Department of Environmental Protection requirements due to recently identified exceptional-value wetlands.

EMI hopes to continue with the motorsports park portion and potentially revisit the campground plan.

Read more: http://readingeagle.com/article.aspx?id=515096

Soon-To-Be-Restored Penn Street Bridge Is Turning 100 . . . And Looks It

Map of Berks County, Pennsylvania, United States with township and municipal boundaries (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

It’s seen a century of Reading — the good and the bad, the highs and the lows.

It’s served as the entrance and the exit to the city, the first thing people see when they come and go.

But most of all, the Penn Street Viaduct — the formal name for the 1,337 feet of concrete arches that span the Schuylkill River to connect the main thoroughfares of Reading and West Reading — has become an icon.

“When you think of the city, the first things that come to mind are the Penn Street Viaduct and the Pagoda,” said George M. Meiser IX, Berks County historian.

Read more: http://readingeagle.com/article.aspx?id=514101

Sanatoga Interchange Development Potential Explored

Location of Lower Pottsgrove Township in Montgomery County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

LOWER POTTSGROVE TOWNSHIP — As the housing and construction market begins to pick-up steam again, township leaders are turning their eyes toward the development potential of land near the Route 422 Sanatoga interchange.

Thursday night, consultant Peter Simone outlined those for the township commissioners options contained in the master plan for the region now under consideration.

Much of the development at that locale is on the Limerick Township side of the road — namely the Philadelphia Outlets and the Costco.

But the two townships have been planning together for further development in that area for several years now, Simone said.

Read more: http://www.pottsmerc.com/article/20130825/NEWS01/130829544/sanatoga-interchange-development-potential-explored#full_story

PennDOT To Start $22M Rebuild Of I-83 York Split

Five years ago, and after a string of crashes, officials pledged to do something about the Interstate 83 York split.

Each day, like clockwork, traffic builds along this vital link among Harrisburg, the West Shore, York and points south. It’s one of the most congested and dangerous stretches of highway in the midstate.

On Monday, the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation will start rolling out the first phase of a two-year, $22 million project to rebuild the I-83 York split in Cumberland County.  Nighttime lane restrictions are expected to begin Aug. 12 and last for three weeks, as work crews prepare the site for construction.

PennDOT is hosting a meeting about the project on Aug. 28 at Cedar Cliff High School.

Read more: http://www.pennlive.com/midstate/index.ssf/2013/08/i-83_york_split_penndot_conges.html#incart_m-rpt-2

Legislators: Montco, SE Pa. Need More Transportation Funding

SEPTA logo with text (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Editor’s note:  This is obvious.  Just try and drive to work in Montgomery County. Traffic is horrendous!

WHITEMARSH ­­— The House Democratic Policy Committee held a two-hour Wednesday morning at the township building to draw attention to the need to increase transportation funding in the region.

The general consensus among the experts offering testimony was that Pennsylvania, and Southeastern Pennsylvania in particular, needs more state funding for mass transit, road and bridge repairs.

State Rep. Mary Jo Daley, D-148th Dist., said Whitemarsh is a center of transportation with major roadways including Germantown Pike and Ridge Pike and six train stations on the regional rail lines.  Daley moderated the hearing.

“I have been a SEPTA rider my entire life,” Daley said. “I’m not sure what it would be like to not have public transportation.  It is a really flexible system that benefits the area.”

Read more: http://www.pottsmerc.com/article/20130731/NEWS03/130739823/legislators-montco-se-pa-need-more-transportation-funding#full_story

Survey: Chester County Residents Upbeat But Hate Traffic, High Taxes

Map of Pennsylvania highlighting Chester County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Chester County residents like the county’s open space and scenery, but also value highly its proximity to metropolitan areas. They use its libraries and parks like gangbusters, and are confident its 911 and emergency response systems.

They do not, however, like the traffic and road conditions they encounter or the taxes they pay.  They wish the county government would do more to help create job and business opportunities and manage the suburban sprawl that continues to plague the countryside.

In general, county residents see they place they live as an excellent place to raise a family, get a good education, and buy a home — even if they have a sense that it might not live up to the same expectations when looking to retire, open a business, or find a job.

Those, in part, are the results of a unique survey done to assess the quality of life in Chester County, completed earlier this summer by the Center for Social & Economic Policy Research at West Chester University.  The survey results follow up on a similar project completed in 2009 by Franklin & Marshall College in Lancaster.

Read more:   http://www.pottsmerc.com/article/20130729/NEWS01/130729442/survey-chester-county-residents-upbeat-but-hate-traffic-high-taxes#full_story