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Bryan Smith

Sunday, February 24, 2013

Water Street Park Improvements Discussed

Hellertown Borough Council discussed last week a proposed plan to upgrade the popular borough recreation area.

Improvements to Hellertown's Water Street Park were part of a discussion had by Borough Council Feb. 19. The discussion followed a Feb. 12 Hellertown Planning Commission detailed review of the proposed plan to upgrade the popular recreation area, which is bordered by the Saucon Rail Trail. The park also hosts the seasonal Saucon Valley Farmers' Market, which from May through November attracts hundreds of visitors each Sunday. Creating additional space for the market's vendors and visitors--as well as room for future expansion--was part of the council discussion. Hellertown mayor and farmers' market volunteer Richard Fluck said the SVFM currently has 46 vendors, and he told the planning commission it is now the second biggest weekly farmers…

In this Article:

Water Street Park, Saucon Rail Trail, Saucon Valley Farmers Market (Seasonal, May-November), and 1 more ›

Martha Cox Popichak

7:54 am on Monday, February 25, 2013

Good for Hellertown! Forward thinking.   more ›

Tuesday, October 18, 2011

Patio Furniture Outlet Green-Lit by Borough Planners

The patio furniture business at 720 Main Street will function primarily as a warehouse, with customers visiting by appointment only, owner Andrew Panick told the Hellertown Planning Commission Oct. 11.

A site plan for a patio furniture warehouse and retail business proposed by Neighbors Home and Garden Center owner Andrew Panick won the unanimous approval of the Hellertown Planning Commission Oct. 11. If Panick is successful in seeking a variance for parking from the borough's Zoning Hearing Board, the business will be located at 720 Main Street, which is behind the former M&T Bank that will soon house a Dunkin' Donuts. At the planning meeting Panick explained that there will be limited traffic to and from the 7,000-square-foot building, which he said will house several truckloads of patio furniture. Customers will visit the location by "appointment only," he explained, and the furniture will be delivered during November and December. …

In this Article:

Neighbors Home & Garden Center, Dunkin' Donuts Expected to Open in Mid-November, and Borough of Hellertown

Monday, July 25, 2011

PennDOT Agrees to Install Walls, But Runoff Issue Remains

Engineer Bryan Smith told Hellertown Borough Council that a stormwater runoff problem made worse by the installation of new handicapped ramps near Detwiller Plaza will not be fully mitigated by the construction of "cheek walls."

A stormwater runoff issue exacerbated by the installation of new handicapped-accessible sidewalk ramps near Hellertown's Detwiller Plaza will not be resolved by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation's (PennDOT's) agreement to install low retaining walls known as "cheek walls" next to two of the ramps, Engineer Bryan Smith told Borough Council July 18. The runoff is an issue during heavy rainstorms, and was first brought to council's attention by borough resident Joe Delfoe, who earlier this month said the new ramps were diverting storm water toward the plaza and damaging it. Delfoe is a founder of the Hellertown Plaza Clock Tower Association, which maintains and beautifies the park on a voluntary basis. On July 7, Smith said he, …

In this Article:

Sidewalk Work Questioned, Criticized at Council Meeting and Borough Engineer Discusses Planned Improvements

Monday, July 11, 2011

Borough Engineer Discusses Planned Improvements

A project to improve pedestrian safety and locate amenities around Hellertown Borough Hall will take shape next year, Bryan Smith told Borough Council July 5.

A year from now, the area around Hellertown Borough Hall may look substantially different than it does today. That will be because of a significant streetscape/landscape project whose goal is to make the area more pedestrian friendly, Borough Engineer Bryan Smith told Hellertown Borough Council July 5. As part of the project, the corner of Easton Road and Main Street will be built out approximately 30 feet, in order to narrow the entrance to Easton Road and enhance pedestrian safety, Smith said. The "build out" will create a larger public plaza on the north side of Borough Hall that will be composed of porous concrete paving surrounded by rain gardens, he explained. The purpose of the rain gardens will be to help handle storm water runoff…

In this Article:

Presentation Highlights Challenges for Hellertown Pedestrians and Hellertown gets $420,000 to Improve Main Street

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Josh Popichak

11:23 am on Tuesday, July 12, 2011

Based on my understanding of its details, the centerpiece of the project will be the build-out of the Easton Road/Main Street intersection's south side, which will reduce the length of the crosswalk between Borough Hall and the plaza from its current length (something like 60 feet) to a more walkable 30 feet. This corner will become more pronounced, forcing cars to turn onto Easton Road at a …   more ›

Tuesday, July 5, 2011

Future of Three Borough Properties Focus of EPA Workshop

The two-day event was funded by a Sustainable Communities Building Blocks grant awarded to the borough earlier this year. The properties whose potential for redevelopment was discussed included The Movies, Champion Spark Plug and an old chromium factory.

The future of three vacant but strategically important properties in Hellertown was a major topic for discussion at a sustainable planning workshop sponsored and funded by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and held at Hellertown Borough Hall last week. In April, Hellertown was one of 32 communities chosen from a national pool of applicants to receive assistance as part of the EPA's Sustainable Communities Building Blocks program, which partners private sector experts in sustainable planning with local officials, residents and businesspeople. The Hellertown event, which was held over two days, attracted a diverse cross-section of residents and professonials involved in urban planning, environmental science, architecture and design, …

In this Article:

Hellertown Awarded Sustainable Planning Assistance, Mayor Richard Fluck Honored at Banquet, and Viewfinder: The Movies

Linda Dull

6:53 pm on Thursday, July 5, 2012

The old "chromium site" referred to in your article was called Steel City Chrome Plate Company, owned by the Paul Makl Sr. & Henry Makl, brothers. My brother, David Petruno, worked there for about 20 years, and left their employ around 1991. There was alot of dumping of hazardous material into pits inside the building. Was there ever any inspections done by EPA back in the l980's and l990's?   more ›

Tuesday, June 28, 2011

Council Approves Phased-In Splash Pad Project

After being told that the cost to install LED-lit fountain jets in a children's play area at the pool will be costlier than first predicted, Hellertown Borough Council members approved a phased-in version of the splash pad at their meeting June 20.

Although it won't be the size and scope that were originally proposed, the Hellertown Public Works Department will install a children's play area known as a "splash pad" at the borough pool this fall, Borough Council decided June 20. After learning at a meeting earlier this month that an initial estimate for the total cost of the project was incorrect, council members agreed to support Borough Engineer Bryan Smith's recommendation that the splash pad be installed in phases, with a Phase One layout that will permit expansion of the pad to an outer perimeter at some point in the future. Smith, of Barry Isett and Associates, said that according to the revised design, the center of the pad will include 24 fountain jets that randomly squirt …

In this Article:

Council Dismayed by New Estimate for Pool Splash Pad

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