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Official: Focus funds on river

Wed Oct 28, 2009 / Watershed Land Collaborative

By: MARGARET GIBBONS The Intelligencer Citing Montgomery County's current budget constraints, the head of its open space board Thursday recommended that the commissioners shelve the county's popular municipal open space preservation grant program and channel any available open space dollars to riverfront projects along the Schuylkill River. "With this budget crisis, we should stop giving money to municipalities and spend that money on the Schuylkill River," open space board Chairman Elkins Wetherill told the county commissioners. "The Schuylkill River unites the entire county." The river shares a 42-mile border with the county, touching 16 municipalities. It is no more than a half-hour drive from any other municipality in the county. The municipal open space grant program has become very popular during its 14 years in existence, said Wetherill. However, he said, during those 14 years, most of the properties designated by municipalities as primary for their open space needs already have been acquired. Municipal applications "in the pipeline should be the last while we again turn to the Schuylkill," said Wetherill. The county began exploring the development of the riverfront property as a linear park in 1999 but, in 2000 with a new administration, the county's focus shifted to the development of the Perkiomen Trail. Others urging the county to re-focus its efforts on the riverfront were representatives from the county's parks and economic departments who cited recreational, economic development, tourism and environmental opportunities. Advertisement The recommendations come at a time when the county commissioners are considering new borrowing to fund the open space program. Voters in a November 2003 referendum authorized the commissioners to borrow up to $150 million to fund a new 10-year program. With that approval in hand, the county made an initial borrowing of $60 million. Those funds have since been distributed, primarily as grant funds to municipalities and nonprofit environmental organizations to acquire land and easements to preserve open space. The county this year has borrowed $13 million to $14 million from its capital fund and other programs to fund additional open space grants. Also, the open space board has recommended approval of another approximately $5 million in grant applications but has not yet forwarded those recommendations to the commissioners for funding. County officials Thursday were uncertain how many other grant applications are pending before the open space board. County staff members earlier this year had recommended that the commissioners borrow another $60 million to fund the program. However, the commissioners have said they do not believe the county can afford the approximately $4.2 million in debt service that would have to be paid next year on that borrowing. Margaret Gibbons can be reached at 610-279-6153 or mgibbons@phillyBurbs.com.