I am a resident of Summer Grove Neighborhood, Upper Pottsgrove Township, and wish to express my concerns as well as the concerns of several of my neighbors regarding the proposed building of over 400 homes in our area.
This proposed increase of population in a small area, accessible by limited roadways, will have a negative impact on the residents who already live there, and on the township in general. Developers advertise these neighborhoods as conveniently located near Rt 100. Anyone who lives in the area is aware of the dangerous intersection at the top of Pineford and Farmington Ave, and how limited it really is to travel safely in and out of our neighborhood. Residents on Farmington have made repeated complaints regarding the volume and speed of traffic on their road. These intersections and roads are not designed to support the homes that Artisan (the developer) wants to clog the area with. 400 new homes can expect 800 more cars.
The increased construction will put a strain on resources such as police, first responders, and township maintenance. We will need more resources, increasing our taxes. The debate on the new municipal will no longer be a debate at all because increased township vehicles and personnel will make it necessary. If phases 2A and 2B are approved (the name of the development plans), classrooms in the Pottsgrove School District will most likely increase in size, creating a need for more teachers, aides, supplies, computers, bus drivers, and so on even though these planned subdivisions are age qualifying. The cost to educate a child in Pottsgrove is almost $18,000. It would be reasonable to estimate that some of these new homes would have at least one child, and our school taxes will increase.
The residents in Summer Grove and the surrounding areas have lived with constant noise and disruption for the past two years. If the next phases go through, we will essentially live in a construction zone. And the negative impact will continue when the noise of building is over. Homes with yards that once faced trees now have headlights at the “improved” intersection shining into their kitchen and family room windows. Trucks and cars barrel past bus stops on the newly improved road (we’re going to need to address this). Artisan wants us to give up our small and peaceful surroundings to instead live in high traffic, high noise area as our taxes increase and our homes are devalued by high density houses. They want to make their money and leave us with the mess.
I, as well as several of our neighbors, would like to thank Commissioner Don Read, Commissioner and Vice President Hank Llewellyn, and Commissioner and President Trace Slinkerd for standing up to the developer involved and fighting this massive influx of new construction. We appreciate your efforts. We urge the commissioners who are interested in allowing Artisan to proceed with their proposals to think about the negative impact on our community, and put a stop to these plans.
Leighanne Hertzog, Upper Pottsgrove Township