Please join Terence Farrell, the endorsed Republican candidate for County Commissioner this Thursday, May 10th from 5:30PM till 7:30PM for a fundraiser.

Tickets for this great event are $250.

Please RSVP via MIDiesel@comcast.net or call 610-430-0271.

Location:
West Side Entertainment Complex
430 Hannum Avenue
West Chester, PA 19380
 

Election Day is a little over a week away and we have many great opportunities to help with the campaign.

Before Election Day:
Many of the major roadways have my campaign signs but we still need help to distribute signs around the county. Whether you can put up a sign in your lawn or around your neighborhood this is vital to our success.

Election Day:
If after voting you can spare even an hour or two to hand out literature at your polling place this would help us tremendously.

 

Daily Local News
4/19/07

GOP Candidates for Commissioner Value Open Space
by R. Jonathan Tuleya
Staff Writer

WILLISTOWN - All three Republican candidates for Chester county commissioner have laid out their campaign platforms for preserving open space.

Each says he or she wants more money poured into the program; however, the sources vary.

Last week, Sandy Moser called for the county to increase the money spent annually to preserve natural land form $15 million to $25 million.

The GOP's endorsed candidates, incumbent Commissioner Carol Aichele and hopeful Terence Farrell, say they will seek more matching funds from land trusts, endowments, local governments, and private individuals.

On Wednesday, Aichele and Farrell stood on the edge the rolling grasslands of the 83-acre Kirkwood Preserve to discuss the topic.

"In 2003, I told Chester county's families that I would make land preservation a top priority if elected," Aichele said. "I am proud to report to you today that I have done exactly that."

The Tredyffrin resident said more than 5,000 acres of land have been saved form development since she took office. She also spoke about following through on her promise to create an open-space task force and having a role in hiring the county's first director of open-space preservation, Bill Gladden.

Aichele and Farrell said for each $1 the county spends on its land preservation program, another $1.41 in contributed from sources outside county government. They want to increase the matching value to double the county's amount.

"The better we are as stewards of the land, the more we all benefit," said Farrell who currently holds office as the county's recorder of deeds.

He spoke of the tax benefits of preservation specifically reducing the need of the county and municipalities to pay for more infrastructure improvements, like additional roadways.

Farrell, of Lower Oxford, said the county should push for SEPTA to expand the coverage of its R5 regional rail to serve Parkesburg and Atglen and look to copying public transportation programs like the SCCOOT Bus, serving Southern Chester County, to other parts of the county.

"Better public transportation," Farrell said, "means less traffic congestion, less need for more roadways, and the production of less greenhouse gases."

Moser said Wednesday evening she was disappointed but not shocked that neither of her opponents called for the county to commit more funds, like her plan does.

"I'm amazed. I was hoping I had raised the bar for them," said Moser, president of the Pennsylvania Chapter of Republicans for Environmental Protection. "If this is the best that they can do, it really doesn't surprise me. They really want to stay with the status quo."

The East Brandywine resident railed against developers, saying, "It is much better to preserve the farms than to let the developers get their hands on it and drive our taxes up," and describing the rate of new homes being built in the county as "exploding growth."

"We can easily afford to invest more in stopping sprawl," she said.

Aichele argued Moser's plan to contribute $25 million a year would result in an increase in the county's debt service and, as a result, she said, higher taxes for residents.

Moser said the additional debt payment would amount to less than 0.5 percent of the county's annual budget, and she said in turn it would help lower residents' taxes.

"It is a great investment to keep all of our taxes down," she said.