Chester CountyPRESS
www.chestercounty.com
Covering Avon Grove, Chadds Ford, Kennett Square, Oxford, & Unionville Areas
Volume 152, No. 39
INSIDE
Oxford Area Sewer Authority takes big step toward sale of wastewater treatment system By Steven Hoffman Staff Writer
Landenberg Life Magazine
Schilling scores 3 TDs to lead Unionville over Oxford...2B
The Oxford Area Sewer Authority (OASA) authorized the start of a process that could result in the sale of the wastewater treatment system to the Delaware County Regional Water Authority (DELCORA) within 150 days. The Oxford Area Sewer Authority and DELCORA have started work on an Asset Purchase Agreement which, according to the agreed-upon framework, should be completed within 90 days. The closing on the purchase would then take place 60 days after the Asset Purchase Agreement. DELCORA will assume the remaining USDA loan
balance of approximately $27 million, which would clear the debt from all the OASA member municipalities and release them from the municipal guarantees. OASA will continue to pursue the sales of the building it owns on Third Street in Oxford, as well as land that it owns. If those properties are not sold before the Asset Purchase Agreement is reached, they will be transferred to DELCORA to continue to pursue the sale. The proceeds will be only applied to OASA and no other DELCORA interest. DELCORA will pay the closing costs for the transactions. Should DELCORA discontinue the use of existing spray fields, Oxford
Owens appointed to fill a vacancy on Oxford School Board
INDEX
adjust the rates using best practices. If the sale is completed, DELCORA will operate the OASA as a stand-alone entity, and will establish an advisory committee comprised of residents in the service area. For employees of OASA, DELCORA will extend employment offer letters
to each current full-time employee. Any agreement would be contingent on the United States Department of Agriculture’s approval of DELCORA’s loan application. To contact Staff Writer Steven Hoffman, email editor@chestercounty.com.
Celebrate!
Photo by Richard L. Gaw
A boisterous group of Avon Grove High School students enjoyed the school’s annual Homecoming celebration on Sept. 22, that included an annual parade on State Road, and the football team’s 34-14 victory over West Chester East. For a game summary and additional Homecoming photos, see Page 1B.
By John Chambless Staff Writer
Opinion........................7A Calendar of Events...10A Obituaries...................4B Classifieds..................6B
Photo by Steven Hoffman
Dr. Eric Owens is the new member of the Oxford School Board after being selected to fill a vacancy.
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Borough and Lower Oxford Township will have the right of first refusal to repurchase the lands. For residents who live in the OASA service area, one of the most important details about the potential agreement is that DELCORA will freeze usage rates for a three-year period. After that period, DELVORA will
Oxford family is thrust into the limelight by a movie that calls them criminals
The du Pont legacy in our region...9A
By Steven Hoffman Staff Writer Dr. Eric Owens was unanimously appointed to fill a vacancy on the Oxford School Board at a meeting on Sept. 18. He will be representing Region 1 on the board, and will serve until the next school board election, which takes place in November of 2019. Owens is filling a vacancy that was created when David Severino resigned from the board in August. After the board voted on the appointment, Owens was immediately sworn into office by District Judge Scott Massey, and then he took a seat at the table with
the other board members. Owens is an associate professor at West Chester University, where he has worked since 2011. He is a licensed professional counselor who has worked as a counselor in private practice, as well as in the collegiate and secondary school settings. He served as a school counselor and also has taught many teachers and school administrators about crisis intervention. He and his family live in Oxford Borough. Owens said that the fact that he has two young children in the district was a motivating factor for him to seek a position on the school board. Continued on Page 5A
In an era when cameras are pointed everywhere, at everyone, the Arnold family of Oxford has found themselves the subject of a film that casts them as nervous, overspending, bankrupt arsonists. And they’re thrilled. “Fraud” is a 55-minute film assembled over the internet by director Dean Fleischer-Camp in 2016. It mines the family’s home videos that dad Gary Arnold had uploaded to YouTube, and by inserting some key scenes from other sources, it seems to show them burning down their house in a case of insurance fraud. For his part, Arnold is happy to maintain that he is not a criminal. But he is a bemused, semi-movie star whose family is at the center of a little storm. “Fraud” has gotten critical acclaim as it has gradually rolled out at independent film festivals, but it has also brought some consternation from audiences who accuse the director of stealing other people’s lives
Courtesy photo
The Arnold family of Oxford has had their home movies turned into a feature film called ‘Fraud.’
and lying to the audience. Arnold said last week that Fleischer-Camp selecting his family in particular was up to chance. “Apparently, Dean found our YouTube channel quite by accident,” he said. “YouTube often sug-
gests similar styled videos to what one is watching, and this type of suggestion is how he discovered our channel. Lucky us! We feel fortunate to have been chosen. Life has a certain randomness to it, Continued on Page 2A
Part of highway named for fallen state trooper By Richard L. Gaw Staff Writer
© 2007 The Chester County Press
60 Cents
Wednesday, September 26, 2018
Beneath the cover of two large tents that protected them from the rain, the family, friends and colleagues of State Trooper Kenton Iwaniec gathered outside the Pennsylvania Troop J Avondale Barracks on Sept. 17, to not only honor a fallen colleague, but to dedicate a portion of a local
highway to him. In a ceremony filled with heartfelt remembrance and praise, it was announced that the portion of Route 41 between Route 926 and U.S. Route 1 has been renamed the Trooper Kenton Iwaniec Memorial Highway. The hour-long tribute was highlighted by the words of speakers Judge Patrick Carmody, State Sens. John Rafferty and Andrew
Dinniman, Representative John Lawrence, Corporal Steven B. Ranck, Lieutenant Michelle Swantner and Iwaniec’s parents, Ken and Deb Iwaniec. A facsimile of the road sign that appears on Route 41 was unveiled at the ceremony. Throughout the event, gratitude was extended to Corporal Chris Winesburg, Lieutenant Rob Bailey,
Dinniman, Rafferty and Senator Kim Ward for their efforts to create the idea for the signage. In June, the Pa. State Legislature unanimously passed – and Gov. Wolf signed into law – Act 61 of 2018. On March 27, 2008, Trooper Iwaniec, 24, had finished his shift at the Avondale Barracks and began driving home. Two miles from the station, an
impaired driver crossed the center line and struck Iwaniec’s vehicle head on. Iwaniec was flown to Christiana Hospital and died as a result of his injuries. In the years since, the Iwaniec family has established the Trooper Kenton Iwaniec Foundation, which honors DUI victims, raises awareness about the seriousness of impaired driving, Continued on Page 5A