Unionville falls to Bishop Shanahan...8A
Camp Dreamcatcher secures grant...5A
Chester CountyPRESS
www.chestercounty.com
Covering Avon Grove, Chadds Ford, Kennett Square, Oxford, & Unionville Areas
Wednesday, February 1, 2017
Continued on Page 4A
33.21% 33.70%
35.00% 28.37% 30.19%
30.00% 27.23% 23.66%
25.00%
21.91% 22.21% 22.58%
Tredyffrin-Easttown
Kennett
Coatesville
West Chester
5.00%
Owen J Roberts
10.00%
13.01%
Oxford
15.00%
Unionville- Chadds-Ford
19.27% 19.27%
20.00%
Octorara
London Grove Township resident Steve Zurl was selected by the four current supervisors on Jan. 26 to fill the open slot on the board left vacant when Raymond Schoen resigned from his post on Dec. 29, 2016. Zurl, 57, who had also chaired the township’s municipal authority, was chosen from a field of five potential candidates, each of whom were interviewed privately by the board in 20-minute intervals. The other candidates were Kevin Runey, 39, a director of operations for a health care organization; Douglas Ward, 42, an in-office appraiser for an insurance firm; Steven Annan, 63, a retired for-
mer federal employee; and Lee Irwin, 42, a software analyst. Zurl was chosen unanimously by the board during a public meeting that followed the interviews. He will serve on the board for the remainder of 2017, and if he chooses to extend his time on the board for a sixyear term, he will have to announce his candidacy on the November ballot. The board chose Zurl largely on his experience, which included an interim term as a township supervisor, membership on the township’s municipal authority, and as a former board member for the Avondale Borough. “Steve has past board experience both here in London Grove and in
Percentage Increase Over 10 Year Period 2007-08 to 2016-17
Avon Grove
By Richard L. Gaw Staff Writer
60 Cents
REAL ESTATE MILLAGE for Chester County School Districts
Phoenixville
Board selects Zurl to fill vacant post
Great Valley
Volume 151, No. 5
Downingtown
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A new home for Family Promise in Kennett Square...1B
0.00%
(This chart was originally used in an Avon Grove School District budget presentation) Avon Grove's millage rate has increased by 21.91 percent over a ten-year period, ranking as the fourth-lowest increase in Chester County during that time.
Avon Grove to add modular classrooms at Penn London Elementary By Steven Hoffman Staff Writer There are still more than four months remaining in the current school year, but the Avon Grove School District is already
looking forward to the new school year that will begin in the fall, when a full-day kindergarten program is being implemented in the district. Preparations for the fullday kindergarten program
continued at the Jan. 26 school board meeting as the Avon Grove School District reached an agreement with Mobilease for the installation and lease of modular classContinued on Page 4A
28th annual event takes place May 20
Kennett Run 2017: Same races, different routes By Richard L. Gaw Staff Writer For those who saw the 1973 Broadway musical “Seesaw,” perhaps the line that was most uttered by audiences after the show was taken from the show-stopping tune in the second act: “It’s not where you start, it’s where you finish.” For the hundreds of runners and walkers who will compete in the 2017 Kennett Run on May 20, however, where they start the race will be exactly
where they will finish it. In an effort to consolidate the logistics of timing, race-day registration, pre- and post-race events, and all Kennett Run events – the 5K, 10K, PoweRun, FundRun and 1-Mile Run/Walk – will begin and end this year in Anson B. Nixon Park. In addition, the 5K and 10K races will be re-routed through other parts of Kennett Square. Past races directed runners to follow North Union Street – and 10K runners through neighborhoods just north
of Route 1 – then onto East Locust Street, past the Kennett Square Golf & Country Club and onto North Walnut Street and into the park. In the 2017 race, the 5K and 10K course will direct participants out of the park and onto North Walnut Street, where they will make a right onto State Street, and follow the course until making a U-turn just east of Mill Road, and re-trace their steps from State Street Photo by Richard L. Gaw to North Walnut Street, This year’s Kennett Run on May 20 will see a realigned where there will be two course that will consolidate the event in Anson. B. Continued on Page 2A
Sanville triggers bidding war By Uncle Irvin Unionville-Chadds Ford Superintendent Dr. John Sanville, in the middle of his present contract, triggered a bidding war for his services that resulted in a 20 percent increase in his annual compensation – to the tune of $255,000. At the Jan. 23 meeting of the U-CF School Board, Sanville was unanimously voted the raise to a surprised audience. The U-CF Board has been secretly negotiating with Sanville since October because other school districts were allegedly pursuing Sanville. Continued on Page 2A
Nixon Park.
Franklin Supervisors approve Eagle Scout bridge project By John Chambless Staff Writer A bridge in Crossan Park will be rebuilt in the coming months by Andrew Delaney as part of his Eagle Scout project. The Franklin Township Board of Supervisors heard from Delaney at their Jan. 18 meeting. Delaney told the board that he chose the bridge, which
is on a trail near the lower pavilion in the park, because he and his scout troop have spent many hours hiking and orienteering in the park woods and he noticed the bridge was deteriorating. He is planning to perform the work on April 22 and 23, with possible additional work days on May 6 and 7. Board of Supervisors chairman John Auerbach reviewed the plans and sug-
gested some ways to secure the handrails. Delaney said a family friend would be overseeing the project and that members of his troop would be assisting him. He will be Continued on Page 3A © 2007 The Chester County Press