The Caernarvon Township Board of Supervisors Jan. 13 discussed road maintenance discrepancies, plans for the new Advanced Auto location and the negotiation of a settlement for the Morelli Rental Corporation’s previous Home Furnishings Factory Outlet Mall location.
After recent snow and ice accumulation, Vice Chairman Paul Whiteman, Jr. received complaints that a stretch of Mountain View Road had not been salted.
A discrepancy arose about who is responsible for maintaining the area’s roads.
“In the past, Honey Brook Township has been maintaining Mountain View Road from Hemlock up to Plumwood Drive,” said Whiteman. “The maps that we have all show it in our township, but according to PennDOT, PennDOT has it Chester County, so Honey Brook Township is receiving liquid fuels for that stretch of road.”
Whiteman provided the board with a map that distinctly shows the separation of counties and townships.
All maps besides PennDOT’s show the roads as being within the Caernarvon Township lines. However, Honey Brook Township is receiving the money to maintain these specific roads.
Whiteman is working alongside Honey Brook Township Road Master Don Johnson to resolve the issue, but both townships will have to consult with PennDOT in order to receive a definitive answer.
“I just wanted to bring this to the board’s attention,” said Whiteman. “The issue is being resolved.”
In other news, Township Solicitor Brett Huckabee announced to the board that a settlement agreement has been reached regarding the assessment deal with Morelli Rental Corporation for the previous Home Furnishings Factory Outlet Mall property.
“Our appraisal was at $6.5 million,” said Huckabee. “Their appraisal was at $4.2 million. We ended up settling on Monday on $5,350,000, which is just about right in the middle. It’s going to result in a substantial tax decrease for you.”
Although the mall has closed, the township is in the process of sealing plans for new business endeavors, including an Advanced Auto location that is expected to be located on Route 23.
The project was granted conditional approval the previous week to the meeting.
“They wanted a parking lot reduction on a number of spaces from 46 to 25,” said Township Administrator Randall Miller. “They didn’t grant them the 25, but they did grant them a reduction contingent upon certain other things.”
One definite requirement is that the store will place its entrance directly opposite of Valley View Road, according to Miller.
Planning for this project is still under review, and it will be discussed further at upcoming meetings.
In the community, St. Thomas Episcopal Church will be celebrating its 275th anniversary next December.
Charlene Sagner, the oldest living member of the church, attended Tuesday’s meeting to request that the board take part in the celebration.
“I’m here tonight to ask the Caernarvon Township Board of Supervisors to issue a proclamation congratulating us perhaps on reaching this milestone,” said Sagner. “I certainly invite everyone to attend. I’d like to include the local government.”
The board passed a motion to issue the proclamation and requested further information from Sagner about the celebration.
The next meeting will take place on Feb. 11 at 7:30 p.m. in the Caernarvon Township building.
