A total lack of leadership by Mayor Bob McMahon and Media Borough Council, may now cost the borough more than the price to repair a bridge. Two years ago an agreement and the funding were in place to do something, anything; to reestablish the bridge as it once was 18 years ago. Media borough council failed to take action on a situation that State of Pennsylvania found to be one of the most hazardous situations in the state. They not only squandered an opportunity, they failed to uphold their responsibility to taxpayers by allowing costs to run out of control...FOR 18 YEARS! They don't even know if they have the money now to fix the bridge, after it was provided to them by a prior council two years ago.  |
| Plans prepared 9/26/13 |
As a candidate for Mayor, this is the last thing I want to see happen to the borough, especially to the residents on that side of town. Upon viewing the BLCC plans, I've spoken to them to see what can be done to advert this. There are options, but after 18 years, time is finally running out.
Tedman O'Hara
Candidate for Mayor of Media
Interesting tactic by BLCC. I'm not sure if they're even going to be allowed to develop that land considering that it sits on a flood plain, contains wetlands, and has houses on that plan that would be on forested slopes.
ReplyDeleteThis seems like an interesting temper tantrum / scare tactic over BLCC's ownership of the bridge and reluctance to agree to a one-way roadway.
Has BLCC as a whole, or their leadership, made any campaign contributions this election cycle?
BLCC's Board agreed to a one way road back in April of 2013. You do not know what you are talking about. The county also agreed to a one way option------guess who did not Media borough council
DeleteWhy would Council not vote for a one way one lane road? I thought that is what they wanted? What is going on here? This is a disgrace.
DeleteBecause BLCC's offer to go along with the one-way road had a major string attached - that the Borough would assume ownership and liability for the dam. Which the Borough has fought all along, for good reason.
DeleteLove the revisionist history going on here, folks. But my sympathies for BLCC totally evaporated over the summer when they blocked the lake's drainpipe with a hay bale, and then surrounded their lake (wait... isn't the lake a historic asset to the community?) with tarp on the fencing so no one could see that the water level was far higher than permitted by the DEP for safety reasons. Way to put the community at risk for the sake of this whole argument.
You don't know what you're talking about - BLCC (and the county) didn't waiver from the commitment they made in the stipulation of 2011 that they would maintain the dam. As a matter of fact it is still on the table today.
DeleteDoesn't sound like you ever had 'sympathies' for BLCC - the DEP doesn't give permission for anyone (from the club or otherwise) to touch the drainage system so how could the club have thrown a hay bale in there? Could it not have been clippings, weeds and foliage and the like which resemble hay? And please tell me, how in the world would BLCC have any control over the 'rainiest summer on record' which no doubt contributed to high water in the lake.
The community's at risk with nutjobs like you who propagate misinformation without regard to facts.
Part of the problem with the "ownership" issue now being raised by the Borough is that they are putting all of their eggs in one basket counting on a favorable court decision. Thats why parties settle litigation - so that they can take control over the situation. What does the Borough intend to do if the court rules that they are liable to remediate and or replace the dam? Nothing will have been accomplished except for wasting time and money when there was a reasonable solution ready to go.
DeleteDave Daniel
Au contraire,
DeleteAccording to All Things Media, Pa. Blog, BLCC offered the borough a one-way roadway agreement in exchange for no longer being responsible for the maintenance of the bridge, which had been agreed upon in the three-way stipulation agreement.
http://media.patch.com/groups/editors-picks/p/3rd-st-proj-parties-to-submit-briefs-feb-15
Maintaining the bridge/dam does not equal ownership. Maintaining the bridge/dam does not equal the assumption of liability. The stipulation agreement was forged under different borough leadership which sought the quickest resolution to the problem, and put the borough in a nebulous position in regard to these concerns. The quickest solution is not necessarily the best one.
DeleteBetter get ready to .....'float that bond"...... like Councilwoman Davidson stated several meetings ago. Once the appeals court rules Media is on the hook to not only repair the Dam that they own (and damaged) but replace the roadway all of these comments will turn to.......where is Media going to get the money for this? float a bond; raise taxes; float a bond; raise taxes.
DeleteTalk about your plenty talk about your ill's Borough council is gonna gather what another man spills.
The county and broomalls have agreed to the maintenance of the dam and one way road still waiting to hear back from media. Anon 5:57 you are stone cold misinformed. Go ask council tomorrow night at the meeting. Why aren't they responding to the offer?
DeleteWhatever will the NIMBY-oops- friends of the park group do about this? Will they start a campaign to save the same turtles they were flicking their middle fingers towards?
ReplyDeleteIt would befitting to call this new development...........Rumsey's Reserve!
ReplyDeleteHA! At least this plan will remove Rumsey's self proclaimed parking spot on 4th street!
DeleteWouldn't it be wonderful if the main entrance to this affordable housing plan is right there at the end of 4th street?
amazing MM is so misinformed yet can't help commenting on every thread. The responsibility on the delay is squarely on the shoulders of davidson, hall, simpson and stein. These 4 no nothings have made a mess of situation that was settled years ago. Guys like MM are the reason why this town has changed and not for the better. Go post on davidson's pathetic blog thats where you belong
ReplyDeleteThanks James, but I'll post here if that is ok with you. It doesn't seem to bother the moderator of the blog. "Misinformed" is an interesting term to throw around however. I was unaware this issue was "settled" when the BLCC has yet to assume full responsibility for ownership of their dam. According to the timeline on the issue, stories in the Media Patch, and stories in the Delco Times on the disagreement, Borough Council seems to be interested in making sure the Borough (and the taxpayers here as a result) aren't left holding the bag for ownership of that dam.
DeleteAlso, I'm not sure how this town has changed in ways other than "the better." What drew me to this town was a vibrant downtown, low taxes, safe neighborhoods, and elected officials for whom I'd actually vote. Talk to any realtor about how quickly and how close to list houses in Media sell. Check the real estate listings and see how well houses in this town held value through the housing crisis, especially in relation to almost every other community in the Greater Philadelphia Area.
If you'd like to badmouth the elected officials here on style points, not being of a build baby build mentality, or any other reason; feel free. Trying to paint a picture of Media as anything less than a great community is wholly inaccurate.
MediaMike is smarter than you think. If he ran for Council I would vote for him. So would many others.
DeleteInteresting that the borough, county and BLCC didn't need ownership determined to enter into a settlement in the courts, did they? By the way, the original intent of the CAC was to be for nothing more than things like finishes on the bridge.
DeleteI don't know but it seems to me that if the dam is breached, the water flows away and what may now be wetlands suddenly is not (or at least a large portion is not)and thus, could be developed. Wonder how those 3rd Street residents will feel about that.
ReplyDeleteDo to the way that land is situated (and Tedman's map does an excellent job showing the topography) a lot of water would be pouring down through those house locations and frequently spilling over the banks of any legal method of restoring the stream channel.
DeleteDavid - I think a naturally re-emerging stream and woodland marsh would take the place of the lake. The real question is why does the lake continue to appear in BLCC development plan if they're "responding" to DEP removing dam?
DeleteAnon851 MM would be a perfect candidate for media democrats as he has the same amount of knowledge as their other candidates which equals zero on issues. Anyone who supports what this council has done with 3rd street dam is as clueless as the mayoe and current council. They have lied, personally gone after a non profit board, who only wanted a deal that was agreed to by council a year earlier, and have changed votes to appease a NIMBY group that is so obviously lead by davidson and should be barred from voting on the issue. Shamefull behavior but no surprise the sheep in this town would support the thought provoking and clueless MM.
ReplyDeleteRest assured I'm not running for anything Harry, but thank you for the personal attack none the less. Aggressiveness on the 3rd street situation aside, several consecutive Borough Council elections seem to indicate that the electorate here in Media Borough is either not in agreement with your view of 3rd street or not prioritizing your view of the issue anywhere near the top of the list when it comes to voting.
DeleteYes, the electorate in the Borough clearly prioritizes the blind election of D candidates above any substantive, non-ideological issues.
Delete@anon 2:57 PM:
DeleteThat is a wonderful way to show a true level of respect towards voters who you wish to vote for your side rather than the current majority.
Media Borough voters are yellow dog democrats, similar to the mindless types in Philadelphia who go into the poll and pull the lever without exhibiting an ounce of independent thought . If they can vote for candidates so intertwined with that urban terrorist group, if they can vote for a mayor who sleeps st meetings, they 'll vote for anyone they're told to.
DeleteMost of the time, I vote independently with thought given to individual platforms rather than party. When the candidates indistinguishable or I just have not learned enough about their platform, I tend to vote Democrat. While this sounds a little like the mentality of the "mindless types", its mostly a reaction to the horrible job by Republicans in recent past - not necessarily local Republicans, but on the State and Federal level. It's unfortunate for the local Republicans that some high profile Republicans and even some fringe nut-jobs (Tea Party) have soiled the reputation of the old-school GOPs. The GOP is having an identity crisis - perhaps this problem is starting to affect local elections too.
Delete@ Steve: The name calling and insults directed at the majority of voters in the borough is doing wonders for convincing folks to cross party to vote Republican, I'm sure.
Delete@anon 9:51 AM: I think you fit in with most independent voters in that regard. I guess Steve believes name-calling and insults to your intelligence will get you to vote Republican.
MediaMike - Someone chose to use your name in Daily TImes comment. Content sounds like Steve - guess he's starting to understand how offensive he sounds.
DeleteNew readers on ATM during campaign will not be impressed with his language or positions on major issues.
@MediaMike - no name calling or insults, the term is100% accurate and backed up with years of seeing voters pull the lever for the regular fools running for office without considering options. I'm convinced that a prospective candidate in this town could be on Megan's list and get elected as long as they have a "D" next to their name - prove me wrong.
DeleteBy the way - FROGS = Urban Terrorists? I can't deny the reality of this group.
Anon @ 3:00pm - I appreciate the assumption, but I don't have time for more than one account at the DT, however, thanks for being a part of my fan club.
@ anon 3:00 PM: If you downrate and flag the posts of the person using a copy of my name it will help eliminate their use of it. In fairness to Steve, he has his own name and ideas and isn't bashful about putting them out there. That type of trolling is beneath him and I'll assume the person doing it is one of the pro-Republican anons on here.
DeleteAccording to the pundits, negative campaigning works. Especially if you use your blog to instigate controversy rather than to provide factual information.
DeleteThe park belongs to the County, who should be front and center on the issue, not the FROGS, who have got all the headlines.
ReplyDeleteWho is MediaMike? He is a wild and funny guy, for sure. But does he really mean what he posts on this blog? I doubt it.
ReplyDeleteSo lets see? New houses...enter via 4t h St.new street on other side right up third with a nice tee intersection in front of frogman Davidsons house..I love it.Maybe we can even make it public housing..
ReplyDeleteFrank Daly lives next door to Davidson. So you want to knock down two birds with one stone.
DeleteWow, there are really some tasteful, smart commenters on this blog [insert sarcasm here]!! As was stated above, the name-calling (really guys, "urban terrorists"?!?!), finger-pointing and ignorance is an embarrassment to you/the GOP. It's sad to read Tedman's posts and the comments that ensue, especially while imagining being someone new to Media/a prospective resident who would not know the history of the town's issues, politics, etc. People live/move here because of all the wonderful things about this community. I hate to say it, but if you're so angry/mean/unhappy with the state of affairs in Media Borough perhaps it's time to relocate yourselves, even if in another township within 19063. Obviously there are 1000s of us who are happy to continue to make Media an even nicer place to live.
ReplyDeleteLove Thy Neighbor
I don't quite get this...why should anyone care that the swim club might need to sell part of their land (or go into the development business) to pay their own expenses? Especially when they have basically ruined any chance of getting government assistance for themselves by 'biting the hand that feeds'. I live in that area, and the Swim Club has been a HORRIBLE neighbor--I'll look forward to getting a nice development and some decent neighbors down there--the sooner the better!
ReplyDeleteYou're right. It's been the local republicans who have used this as a threat. Weird.
DeleteHorrible? Elaborate.
ReplyDelete