Quality of Life, Eroding tax base, the Need for a Plan for Downtown & the continued “WAREHOUSING” in our community…
by Montgomery County:
“of people with physical, social and mental challenges. All the difficult and delicate issues in our society.” Mayor Valentine-Thomas
At Monday night’s council meeting, three women addressed council regarding the problems of housing and the dire consequences to this community of allowing the county, state & federal govts. to continue to neglect our predicament.
Each commenter, including the Mayor, spoke to similar issues from their personal experiences wherein lies truth and by virtue of truth comes strength. While there are differences in their experiences, a COMMON THEME is emerging and it is worthy of our focus as stakeholders IN PARTNERSHIP with our local government.
Pottstown resident, Jackie Miller, approached council for the first time to express the difficult challenges she and her husband have faced, over the past year, finding affordable, safe, rental housing and a landlord who is not scamming the system. As a disabled couple their income does not permit them to put $2300 – $3000 down on a sub-standard 2 bdrm apt. that will rent, Section 8, for between $950 & $1,000/mo.
Jackie also said they must move, **they don’t feel safe going out of their current home at night because they live across the street from a bar.
**A sad commentary about citizens safety that some will only call our “perception.” I guarantee, if you live in certain parts of Pottstown, you KNOW the difference between crime & perception.
The unconscious administration of Section 8 housing has elevated rents that have become out-of-reach for working people and the disabled. Compounding the predicament is the fact of the borough’s history of lax enforcement of building code & rental ordinances, crime & nusiance renters, coupled with MontCo Voucher Housing & County Commissioners credo: “look the other way” while the beneficiaries of govt funded housing create havoc & destruction.
Glutenous slumlords continue to be the only winners in Pottstown as they collect their government checks and leave desperation and strife in their wake.
I am in complete agreement that WE CANNOT SUSTAIN housing for the less fortunate on downtown High St. and a PLAN is desperately over due. Without further commentary – with permission from downtown property owner, Cathy Paretti, I publish her comments, as addressed to council, on Monday evening. Please take some time to deeply consider her profound observations:
Good Evening members of council and Madam Mayor,
I am here tonight to express my concern about the proposal to convert the third floor of the Ellis Mills building into yet more affordable housing units. Although at present the proposal limits the housing to the third floor, the current state of the downtown business district is, at best, confusing, and mixing these units with what sounds like a legitimate plan for the first and second floors will only add to the confusion. There also seems to be no clear strategic plan for the downtown district for PDIDA and PAID to follow, which increases the chance that this project will not be fulfilled as promised. Ellis Mills is one of the premier properties of the downtown district and can be a great asset to its economic development if utilized properly.
I would also like to express my concern at the fact that the county is directing yet another project to Pottstown that includes a certain type of housing that is not in the best interest of our future and with the Beech Street project promising financial support in that scenario. Low Income or affordable housing is a necessity for every community, but Pottstown already shoulders more than its fair share. Even more concerning is that on April 30th a press conference was held in Norristown announcing “The Norristown Quality of Life Policing Task Force,” which is to help “decrease fear of crime” Not only did this press conference have a fine display of Norristown’s law enforcement on hand, but Risa Ferman, the county’s district attorney, and all three county commissioners .
It occurred to me that our county seat is beefing up their efforts to revitalize, thus giving them more reasons to divert anything that may not be in their community’s best interest to their favorite dumping ground – Pottstown, and now they have a plan to follow to get to where they want to be.
I understand that council must entertain any proposal that is presented to the borough but, as I did with the Beech Street project, I am asking council to reject this proposal and send a message to the county that enough is enough. We should look at the events of the past few months as a watershed mark to make a change on how we accept and approach development. Recruiting for profit developers that can truly invest in the community should be the approach.
I must also say, as an investor in the downtown, that if there is a plan for the development of the downtown business district I was very challenged to find it online. What plan is PDIDA and PAID following and what do they have to say about specific development for business, retail, and residential opportunities? Are they following the 4 Point Main Street approach as outlined by the National Trust for Historic Preservation? These should be questions that are not hard to find the answers to. If we want this to stop and if we want the county’s image of Pottstown to change then we must show them we have a clear idea of where we are going and how we are going to get there.
In the meantime, any low-income or subsidized housing proposal should be rejected, or else the message to current investors of the downtown district will be clear: more low-income housing is what Pottstown wants. I’m sure many property owners will be happy to comply. Cathy Paretti
**************************
I appreciate the residents of Pottstown who have formed the Citizens Action Committee for Pottstown for taking their time, each month, to video tape the council meetings for other residents to view. I cannot stress enough the importance of paying attention to what is happening in Pottstown.
Clik on the link for the three part video of May’s meeting. You can contact C.A.C. on their Facebook Page – please get involved – it’s YOUR community.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMR8p2uHQQ8oHxSaY7qDcow
![th]()
Personal thanks to Jackie, Cathy and Sharon Valentine-Thomas for raising the bar on this discussion. Let this be the beginning of open, honest dialogue that also engages our elected representatives in finding solutions that work.
