Letter: Keep Montco Parks, Trails and Historic Sites Open

Editor's Note: The following is a letter to the editor. To submit your own letter, e-mail me at lynn.jusinski@patch.com. Also, though Mr. Hicks is from outside of the Phoenixville area, the issue he is addressing , as well as portions of trails that people in the Phoenixville area may use.

I am writing this letter to address the commissioners, local township and borough officials, and both residents and non-residents of Montgomery County to express concern over eliminating the Parks and Heritage Services as part of the 2012 budget.

According to the Montgomery County website, this means eliminating more than 6,000 acres of public open space, including eight parks, five historic sites, four county greenways and approximately 60 miles of trails connecting all of these throughout the entire county. My concerns are plentiful.

First, the elimination of parks and trails affects a variety of people, including families, athletes and wildlife enthusiasts. I personally frequent several of these parks and can attest that they are well used and liked by both county residents and non-residents. What better way is there to stay local and get outside and exercise to stay healthy and keep health care costs down? Families can have a picnic with locally purchased food and keep their own gas costs down by not having to travel to other counties or even other states to find a nice place to recreate and spend quality family time that’s not in front of a television or computer.

Green Lane Park offers boating and fishing, providing parents the ability to teach their children how to safely participate in these activities and respect nature. Lower Perkiomen Valley Park is a central hub for connecting our counties various trails, providing the ability for people to walk or cycle to their jobs, helping to alleviate even some of the major traffic problems on Route 422 and other local roads.

Connecting these two parks I’ve mentioned is the 20-mile Perkiomen Trail. I’m a frequent user of the trail, for walking and biking. This trail specifically offers several benefits to residents. I personally can walk from my house in Lower Providence to local businesses in downtown Collegeville. I can ride my bike to Schwenksville to get it serviced at a local bike shop.

Residents of any township or borough along this trail can use it to commute to their jobs, as the trail not only passes by local retail shops but large businesses such as Pfizer, GlaxoSmithKline, and SEI. I can attest, as a former employee of Wyeth, now Pfizer, that a large portion of their local employees walked or cycled to work on this trail, or used it to exercise during their lunch hour.

My second concern is the elimination of the county’s historic sites. The county website states it perfectly: “There is an historic site within minutes of your home, each representing a unique aspect of Montgomery County history.”

Montgomery County is the most historically rich area outside Philadelphia. These historic sites enrich our lives and make us proud we live in an area that was so vital to this state and nation in its early years. The tours and special events held by the extremely dedicated and knowledgeable staff bring in people from not only our county, but from other counties and states. While these tours and events are free or donation-based, these patrons are now within our county to also do other activities like shopping, dining out and realizing the wonderful resources we have in the area.

Area schools take field trips to these locations so children can see the actual places and time periods their history lessons take place. As the location of Valley Forge National Historical Park brings in visitors from around the world, what better reason is there to offer more historical activities within a short distance and keep these visitors local to us? We need to continue to impress not only county residents, but use the benefit we have of worldwide visitors and show them this is a great place to visit or consider living.

It’s important to show our roots, whether it be Mill Grove, the first home of John James Audubon, or Pennypacker Mills, showing the vast history of our great state. Also, what will happen to the large amount of artifacts contained in these historic sites? Pennypacker Mills, for example, has a large collection of antiques and artifacts collected by Gov. Pennypacker himself. Will these items simply be put into storage and the insurance policies covering their value cancelled, so we may permanently lose pieces of our state history?

My third concern is safety. How can trails be closed, especially the 20-mile Perkiomen Trail? I’m sure it’s not going to be fenced off. Without proper upkeep, the trail will fall into disrepair and cause a major safety hazard for anyone that uses it, whether from disrepair or potential crime. Even with signage, people will continue to use it. This gives the county and the Natural Lands Trust a major liability.

Green Lane Park has a large lake with several dams in place to support the local fish habitat. Will the entire lake be fenced off to keep people from fishing and boating, causing dams to fall into disrepair and disrupt the local habitats? Any of these parks and trails could never be re-opened in a future budget year without allocating much more money to bring them up to codes and safety standards.

It’s my belief that closing our parks, trails and historic sites is a mistake of grand proportions that will negatively affect our county. If a resident is presented with the option to move, what reasons would they consider for staying when our recreation lands and historic sites are closed and in disrepair?

If a non-resident is presented with the option to move within our borders, what reasons would they consider for coming here when our recreation lands and historic sites are closed and in disrepair? If a visitor to Philadelphia travels outside of the city to visit Valley Forge, or shop at King of Prussia Mall, what reason would they have to stay in the county longer, contributing to our economy, when our recreation lands and historic sites are closed and in disrepair?

If a child visits a historic site and finds an appreciation for our local history, upon becoming an adult he or she may have a reason to remain a resident. Our parks and historic sites are not bonus services for residents. They are encouragement to remain a resident and advertising for future growth. They should not be a chopping block of a political agenda—Republican, Democrat or any other political affiliation. They are vital aspect of continuing income to our local economy.

I sincerely appreciate your time and attention in this matter, and encourage you to find ways to cut budget excess rather than important services.

Daniel Hicks

Lower Providence Township