Did You Read It In The Paper?

Park will replace blighted building in West York

PETER MERGENTHALER -- The York Dispatch

Article Launched: 09/27/2008 01:00:00 AM EDT

A park to be built in memory of two boys killed in West York will replace a blighted, burned-out building at the corner of West King Street and Overbrook Avenue, borough council President Shawn Mauck announced Friday.

Unity Park will memorialize Cody Brillhart, who was killed in a traffic accident in 2004, and Tru-Ray Barton, who died after his West King Street home caught fire in 2006.

"We want to bring the community together," Mauck said.

Neither Brillhart's nor Barton's families attended the announcement. Mauck said he could not get in touch with Brillhart's mother and stepfather, but the Bartons did send Mauck a letter saying they appreciate the project and that Tru-Ray would have loved the park.

York's Helping Hand for the Homeless previously owned the building, which has been blighted and charred for more than four years. But Mauck said the group didn't have the funding to restore the property.

With the help of the York County Planning Commission and city-based Housing Initiatives CDC, the borough secured a $68,000 community development block grant and bought the building with plans to transform the property.

"This didn't cost borough taxpayers a dollar out of the general fund," Mauck said.

The building will be demolished sometime in October, and the park should be ready for dedication by May 2009, he said.

The move fulfills a campaign promise from Mauck, who ran for a spot on the West York Borough Council last year on a platform of urban renewal.

Nearby residents greeted the news enthusiastically.

The blighted building "is an eyesore," said Brian Rojahn, whose home lies directly across the street from the future park. "I think it's going to do some good. Kids need somewhere to play to keep them off the street."

A new park "would be great," said Bobbi Miller, who lives on West King Street a block west of the site. "Do you know how many children live within a two-block radius of this place?"

The park nearest her home now is across the street from Loucks Elementary School on West Poplar Street, but Miller said it's too far away for her children.

"My daughter will be 14 (in December), and I don't let her walk there," she said.

- Reach Peter Mergenthaler at 505-5439 or pmergenthaler@yorkdispatch.com

Did You Read It In The Paper?

W. York park efforts move forward

A vacant house in West York will become a park dedicated to two neighborhood children who died.

By ANGIE MASON

Daily Record/Sunday News

Article Last Updated: 09/29/2008 01:09:03 AM EDT

A building at the corner of King Street and Overbrook Avenue in West York has been vacant for more than four years after a fire.

Neighbors said kids break in, and people sometimes sleep inside. Debris falls off in bad weather. It's bringing property values down, they said.

"Nobody wants to have to live next to that," said Juanita Lopez, who lives nearby.

By next summer, West York officials hope the building will be replaced by a place for children to play.

The borough bought the property, 1135-37 W. King St., to build Unity Park. The purchase became official Friday, council President Shawn Mauck said at a news conference.

The Housing Initiatives Community Development Corp. is working with the borough on the project. The borough paid York's Helping Hand for the Homeless, a city organization that provides services to homeless people, $15,000 for the building.

Did You Read It In The Paper?

Elm Street plan gains steam

JMT approved to provide planning services to upgrade the borough.

By JOLI HARRINGTON For the Weekly Record

Article Launched: 07/02/2008 11:33:08 PM EDT

The West York Borough Council took another step in its Elm Street Neighborhood Plan.

The council approved to hire JMT, which has an office in York, for $22,500 to provide professional planning services.

The York County Planning Commission received a Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development Elm Street Program grant on behalf of the borough.

The grant is to upgrade the southeast corner of the borough. The grant will pay for JMT's professional services for a five-year strategic plan. The plan will indicate ways to upgrade the borough.

The borough's public infrastructure in the planning area is aging. The borough's municipal tax rate is the highest in the county with the exception of the city of York, and it struggles to update public facilities and maintain services.

The neighborhood is the densest of any municipality in York County, even the city of York. The proposed planning area is less than one-fifth of the area of the borough as a whole, yet 37 percent of the borough population resides within its boundaries.

The population and housing date of the borough indicate that of the 36 boroughs in York County, West York ranks highest in need as a result of a study prepared by the county Planning Commission in 2006.

The household income and housing date indicate that the proposed project area is the highest in the borough in several distress areas related to income and housing.

There was a higher number of crime and nuisance calls,

such as public drunkenness, public disturbances, disorderly conduct and noise compared to any other part of the borough.

The development of the strategic plan is expected to take a year.