Board of Commissioners: Township Outperforms 2010 Projections, Fire Chief Honored

In the final presentation of a marathon meeting Wednesday night, township CFO Dean Dortone informed the Lower Merion Board of Commissioners that the township had run only a $300,000 deficit rather than the $1.7 million deficit the original budget was slated to run in the fiscal year 2010.

The township took in $51.3 million in revenue against $51.6 million in spending.

According to Dortone, the main drivers of the better-than-expected fiscal performance were building permit revenue --the Lankenau Medical Center Project alone accounted for $1.1 million in revenue-- and housing sales.

The committee also, to applause, recommended the township apply for a waiver exempting them from a federal law that, in practice, would mandate it replace all historic street signs. The vote came after a series of presentations from the Lower Merion Conservancy, Historical Architecture Review Board, and Historical Commission emphasising the signs' rich history and the centrality of that history to Lower Merion's understanding of itself.

Earlier in the evening, the board approved a hearing on whether to change Palmer Theological Seminary's zoning status from R3 to R7, enabling a plot of their land to be developed into a 132-unit apartment complex.

Though they approved the application, Ward 6 representative Philip Rosenzweig cautioned that "a rezoning is a significant action of this board," and urged the board to consider the precedent a vote of approval would set."We have to take this application with great gravity, not just what it means for that particular property," he added.

The hearing will be held on April 20th, though the board reserves the right to leave the issue open if they deem additional testimony necessary.

Also on Wednesday, township Fire Chief Charles "Chaz" McGarvey was honored by the Montgomery County Municipal Fire Officers Association for his dedication to fire service.

"I believe in doing things the right way, and not the most popular way. And sometimes that gets in the way," McGarvey said upon receiving the award, before proposing a new 20-year, $15.8 million fire equipment replacement plan. The board approved a hearing on the plan, which would be non-binding.

The board also voted to allow Smith Cottage, a township owned site in Lewis J. Smith Park said to be in a state of "severe disrepair," to be auctioned off in May, approved price increases for Ardmore and Belmont Hills public swimming pools, and approved a hearing to make permanent a pilot program that allows residents with a permit to allow their dogs off the leash at certain hours at Mill Creek and Rolling Hill parks.