Chester County Press 8-02-2017 Edition

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Chester CountyPRESS

www.chestercounty.com

Covering Avon Grove, Chadds Ford, Kennett Square, Oxford, & Unionville Areas

Volume 151, No. 31

INSIDE

60 Cents

Wednesday, August 2, 2017

A new start for the Chadds Ford Barn Shops A local family buys the shops, with big plans for the future By John Chambless Staff Writer

Standing in the middle of the Chadds Ford Barn Shops, a cluster of historic buildings at the heart of Chadds Ford, Bri Brant beamed as she said, “I can’t believe I get to be here. It’s A candy shop is coming like a dream come true.” The shopping village to Oxford...5A seems like it’s always been in Chadds Ford, but in recent years it has suffered an identity crisis. Without much advertising or excitement -- aside from the consistent efforts of the Chadds Ford Gallery -- the shops came and went, and the place no longer felt like the destination it was in the 1970s, when 17 businesses packed the site. That’s going to change, beginning now. Brant’s father, John A new season of the arts Anderson, purchased the at Longwood...1B shops in February, and is overseeing some renovations here and there, but it’s Brant who is leading the way in boosting the profile of the businesses and moving her distinctive handmade bags and furniture into the front of what used to be the Chadds Ford

State Road sidewalk project unveiled...6A

INDEX Opinion........................7A Police Blotter..............9A

By Steven Hoffman Staff Writer

A new Facebook page connecting people with an Classifieds..................4B interest in the Oxford area is earning very positive reviews. According to Bruce Mowday, Jr., one of the administrators of the Facebook page, the “O-Town Speak Up New & Improved Message Board” is a grass-roots effort at Calendar of Events......3B

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Blue Line White unveiled at New Garden event

Proceeds from winery’s new label to be given to memorial for slain Corporal Photos by John Chambless

Bri Brant and her father, John Anderson, have been renovating the Barn Shops and setting a path for the future of the complex.

Gallery. Brant lives in Chadds Ford with her husband and young children. Her studio – where she crafts leather bags under the Arden + James brand – is in her

home. She has grown up in the village, and worked for five years as the sandwich girl as “the wooden Wawa,” as she called it, making lunches for local artists, Continued on Page 2A

By Richard L. Gaw Staff Writer To most of the 150 people at last week’s Wine & Wheels event at New Garden Township Park, the event was a wonderful excuse to unfurl a blanket on the grass, order a taco or a pizza freshly made by a food truck chef, pop open a

bottle of wine and listen to live music by Dan and Dan, as the sun slowly set over Landenberg. To those who stopped by the Harvest Ridge Winery tent to purchase a glass or a bottle of the winery’s new Blue Line White label on July 26, however, the evening took on a new Continued on Page 4A

New Facebook Oxford plans ‘Rock the Block’ page dedicated and Downtown Divas to the Oxford event this week area embraces community pride

Obituaries..................2B

establishing a local message board that embraces community pride. The message board aims at connecting people—to each other and to their community. In this case, the Oxford community includes not just Oxford Borough and the surrounding townships in Nottingham and Lower Oxford, but also the communities of West Grove, Cochranville, New London, Continued on Page 4A

‘All One Under the Sun’ Sept. 23 LCH fundraiser will be a race of inclusiveness

Photo by Richard L. Gaw

La Communidad Hispana will sponsor its second annual 5K, Family Walk and Kid’s Dash event on Sept. 23 in Anson B. Nixon Park. Pictured are race director David Berger, 5K coach Janet Rodriguez, and Laura Mackiewicz of LCH.

By Richard L. Gaw Staff Writer

© 2007 The Chester County Press

Courtesy photo

Louise Cummings, the widow of Delaware State Corporal Stephen Ballard, accepts a bottle of Blue Line White from Southern Chester County Regional Police Sergeant Joseph Greenwalt, officer Mario Raimato, police administrator Sandra Lutz and Harvest Ridge Winery’s events coordinator Laura Bienkowski.

The spiritual, emotional and physical journey of Kennett resident Janet Rodriguez began a few years ago, when she discovered that even a slow walk quickly exhausted her. Eventually, those first

steps became a jog, and the jog eventually turned into a run, and the run led to her participation in several road races, including an entry in the 10K race at this year’s Kennett Run. On average, she now runs ten miles a day, scissoring her way through the Continued on Page 3A

Photo by Steven Hoffman

The fourth annual Oxford Car Show returns on Friday, Sept. 1.

By Steven Hoffman Staff Writer If you’re looking to enjoy some food, fun, and shopping this week, Oxford has two special events planned. The ‘Rock the Block’ First Friday event will take place on Friday, Aug. 4 from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. Then, on Saturday, Aug. 5, the Downtown Divas event returns with a summer sidewalk sale from 10 a.m. to

2 p.m. Both events will offer plenty of food, fun, and shopping for visitors to enjoy. The “Rock the Block” First Friday will feature classic rock by DJ Kevin Broderick, a variety of bands performing on Broad Street and free hot dogs (donated by C. W. Boyd Trucking) and Herr’s chips to the first 300 visitors. With all the food and fun, it will be a perfect way to

spend a summer evening. “The weather will be perfect so everyone should come out and join in the fun,” said Donna Hosler, the executive director of Oxford Mainstreet, Inc. Mayor Geoff Henry proclaimed Aug. 4 as Jerome Rodio Day in Oxford to coincide with the First Friday activities. Rodio, a beloved business owner and chamber of commerce Continued on Page 2A

East Marlborough supervisors out of line By Uncle Irvin The East Marlborough supervisors recently turned down a legitimate application for a medical marijuana facility in the township. The medical marijuana industry is completely legitimate, and authorized by state legislation and rules. The petitioners are local, and part of the

community, as mushroom growers. If this petition was turned down by patrician West Marlborough, we would know the reason why: Hotshot local horsemen don’t approve. But East Marlborough is supposed to be more mundane, and growing medical marijuana is no different than horse corn, hay or pots of roses at Longwood Gardens.

I doubt the Avello family will appeal to the Court of Common Pleas; it may not be economically feasible. But horseman Richard Hannum, Jr., and his cohorts on the Board of Supervisors had no real reason to turn this project down. (Uncle Irvin’s column is his opinion only, and is not a news story.)


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