A borough park now has a new "owner,” who promises to do their best, to do their duty, on their honor.
Council has approved a request to adopt the town’s Hess Park by local Scout Troop 84B, a partnership both sides say could be just the beginning.
"Hess Park has several amenities: we do have a rain garden there, we have an observation deck, we have a playground, we have a rock wall, we have the dog water bowl, we have the walking trail,” said borough manager Christine Hart.
"We’d like to be utilizing the parks and rec (committee) for more oversight of other parks, as far as cleaning them and/or adding beatification to them,” she said.
Each year the town’s volunteer parks and recreation committee plans and hosts several events in North Wales’s parks, including cleanup events in which residents remove weeds, trash, and other debris once or twice per year. That group is also tasked with maintaining and planning any upgrades to those parks, such as those funded by the town’s parks donation program, where residents can pay for a bench, tree, or other upgrade to a park in memory of a loved one or in honor of a person or group.
Enter the Scouts, Hart told council on Tuesday night: specifically, the borough’s Troop 84B, whose committee chairman William Kopp and his son Liam, a Star scout with that troop, asked council for permission to "adopt” the park and host events there. Their event application says roughly 20 members of the troop could help with trash cleanup, clearing invasive species, and removing overgrowth of plants, twice a year if necessary,
"This is something that the troop is very capable of, fortunately, and also will be a great learning experience for the members of the troop,” she said.
Council President Sal Amato said he was ‘really excited” by the agreement, and was impressed by the detailed 110-year history of the troop posted on their website.
"The history of people who ran this troop are like a who’s who of North Wales,” he said, adding that he was also heartened to learn that the North Penn Volunteer Fire Company sponsors the troop.
"What a remarkable organization, and we’re so happy to have that organization in the borough. And it’s fantastic that you’ve volunteered to do this, and help out at this park,” he said.
Councilwoman Anji Fazio added that she’ll be able to keep an eye on the Scouts: "Hess Park is right in my back yard, and I see it every day, and I appreciate you guys coming to clean it twice a year. It’s really a noble thing.”
"People think it’s an easy thing, but to even know what to clean and what not to clean, it’s just amazing. And it’s teaching the kids the right thing to do,” she said.
Kopp, the scout committee chair, said afterward that the group hadn’t done any formal projects in the park yet, but could use it for service projects older scouts need to achieve Eagle rank, earn merit badges, and/or for younger scouts: "What I would like to see is a partnership between the troop and the community, and I look at this as an opportunity to start that.”
Library Update
Council also voted unanimously on Feb. 13 to reappoint former councilwoman Jocelyn Tenney to the North Wales Area Library’s volunteer board, and Tenney previewed several upcoming events at and around the library itself.
"Since I’m an emissary from the library, I can’t pass up the opportunity to tell you about a couple of things we’re doing,” she said.
On March 15, the library will honor the retirement of longtime Director Jayne Blackledge with a gala at the William Penn Inn, 1017 DeKalb Pike in Lower Gwynedd. That event starts at 6 p.m. and tickets are $100 per person, available through the library’s website or in person at the library, and Tenney said will honor "all of the years and all of the wonderful things she’s done for the library.”
On April 11, the library will also host its annual ‘Taste of Montgomery County’ event staring at 6 p.m. at the St. Rose of Lima parish hall, 428 S. Main Street. Tickets are $50 beforehand or $55 at the door, and the night will feature local restaurants, caterers, breweries, pubs and vineyards, along with live music and a raffle basket fundraiser.
"I would ask all of you to put your thinking caps on, because we’d like to contact people who you think might be sponsors, and could buy an ad in our magazine” or otherwise sponsor or donate to the event, Tenney said.
And on May 18, the library is planning a "bag sale” of used books: "You can bring any size bag you want, into the library, fill it up with as many books as you possibly can, and only give $5,” Tenney said. Library staff have "20 to 30” boxes of books in storage for sale that day, Tenney said, and councilwoman Sarah Whelan said she’s used that sale to reload her shelves as a teacher: "It helped out so much, restocking my classroom library, the last time you had this. Let teachers know, it’s a great opportunity, and there were a lot of children’s books.”
Tenney’s reappointment to the library board for a term running 2026 was approved unanimously, as was a request from the library to waive a $100 permit fee for the hanging of a banner advertising the ‘Taste of Montgomery County’ event.
History Event
Mayor Neil McDevitt announced that his counterpart, Ambler Mayor Jeanne Sorg, will host a "Montco Roots” event in town, acting in her capacity as the county’s Recorder of Deeds, "to talk about how you can find out your home’s history, through public records that are available through her office.”
"I was able to track my home’s history from 1925 to the present day, and it was really exciting to be able to see all these names from the past. And I’ll be ready to celebrate my home’s centenary next year,” he said.
That event will take place starting at 10 a.m. on April 13 at the borough municipal building, 300 School Street. Those interested can RSVP via https://montcoroots.rsvpify.com/ and a $10 donation is encouraged, which Borough Manager Christine Hart said will go toward the town’s historical commission and its historic marker program. Residents in eligible homes over 50 years old can apply to the borough for a plaque displaying the year the home was built; councilwoman Wendy McClure said she received such a plaque in fall 2023, and "I just love having the plaque on display.”
"In order to obtain one of those, it’s important you do your due diligence, and Jeanne is going to help our residents navigate the system, on where to obtain public information, and what other resources the county has to find the history of your home,” Hart said.
Planning Commission Chair
Council also heard an update on the borough’s planning commission, as councilman Mark Tarlecki reported on a new leader for that volunteer group and their to-do list for 2024. Former borough Mayor Greg D’Angelo has been appointed chairman of that board, after the departure of longtime chair Greta Martin Washington in late 2023, and Tarlecki is now vice-chair and Tenney recording secretary.
"We capped off a really eventful year with the finishing of the zoning text amendments, and having that complete: we’re expecting 2024 to be just as eventful,” Tarlecki said.
Goals for 2024 include an update to the town’s subdivision and land development ordinance, and audit of the "North Wales 2040” comprehensive plan adopted in 2018 to measure progress and determine next steps, Tarlecki told council, and in their Feb. 1 meeting that group welcomed new member Star Little who was appointed in January.
"She’s very excited to be part of what we’re doing,” he said.
North Wales borough council next meets at 7 p.m. on Feb. 27 at the borough municipal building, 300 School Street; for more information visit www.northwalesborough.org.
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