Chester CountyPRESS
www.chestercounty.com
Covering Avon Grove, Chadds Ford, Kennett Square, Oxford, & Unionville Areas
Volume 156, No. 47
Wednesday, November 30, 2022
$1.00
Regional police investigating accidental death in New Garden By Richard L. Gaw Staff Writer The Southern Chester County Regional Police Department (SCCRPD) is currently investigating an accidental death that occurred outside of a home near the intersection of Kaolin Road (Route 7) and Gap Newport Pike (Route 41) in New Garden Township
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on Wednesday, Nov. 23. The investigation began moments after a resident of Ewart Road contacted 9-1-1 to report that a fire had begun in a wooded area behind her home. At 3:41 p.m., members of the SCCRPD were dispatched to a residence located in the 9100 block of Gap Newport Pike. Upon arrival, patrol officers observed a landscape
fire that had burned out of control and was spreading to the tree line to the rear of the residence, and discovered a deceased male lying on the ground near the tree line. The Avondale Fire Department arrived to extinguish the fire which appeared to have been ignited as a controlled burn by the resident that spread to areas in the rear
of the residence. Further investigation revealed the 72-year-old victim was attempting to put the fire out with a rake and buckets of water when he fell to the ground. Detectives were called to the scene to assist with the investigation and interviewed two neighbors who were on scene when the police arrived. According to the neighbors, they
Oxford Borough Council member resigns
By Betsy Brewer Brantner to Fuller, “it is now moving Contributing Writer forward.” Borough Manager Pauline A vacancy will soon open Garcia-Allen told counon Oxford Borough Council cil that two Requests for with council member Mary Proposals (RFP), one for Laura Buchner-Hulse the active transportation notifying council of her res- plan and one to develop a A walk through ignation. Council will move five-year strategic plan for forward on the resignation finances, have been received history...1B at the next council meeting and the process for both will scheduled for Dec. 5. start in January. An RFP for Oxford Borough’s solici- an auditor will also be going tor Stacey Fuller announced out for a new firm. that there has been a Garcia-Allen emphasized breakthrough in the dis- that Kent Morey from SSM cussions regarding Frost is working on a draft for the Development, the age- MS4 Plan. That process will restricted community be moving forward in the planned for the Moran Farm. next year. A hearing on the conditional She also confirmed that the use, related to this develop- Streetscapes 4 grant is wrapment, will be held and the ping up and the final pay actual plan will be coming application will be coming in front of council with a before council in December. recommendation from the Oxford Area Historical Planning Commission. Association representaHolcroft joins exclusive The Frost Development tives Leda Widdoes, Flossie company as a KCSD has been on the books for Prewitt and Linda Hersh ‘Legend'...5B many years, but according Continued on page 4A
observed the heavy smoke and fire at the rear of the residence and heard a man yelling for help. Both neighbors walked to the residence and attempted to put the fire out until police arrived, but did not notice the resident lying on the ground while doing so. This department continues to investigate the circumstances surrounding the man’s death and the fire.
SCCRPD is being assisted by the Chester County Coroner’s Office and the township’s fire marshall. If anyone possesses information about the incident, please contact Detective Rich Townsend at 610-2682907, ext. 108 or by email at rtownsend@sccrpd.org., or Lt. Joseph Greenwalt at 610-268-2907, ext. 103 or by email at jgreenwalt@ sccrpd.org.
FROM OUR LENS In the court of basketball
Photo by Richard L. Gaw
Mikayla Kelly of the Kennett Girls Varsity basketball team drives the lane during a Nov. 29 scrimmage against visiting Collegium Charter. The Chester County Press will provide coverage of selected men’s and women’s CHES-MONT League basketball games throughout the upcoming season.
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Roe to enter race for Chester County Commissioner
© 2007 The Chester County Press
By Richard L. Gaw Staff Writer Eric Roe, who served one term as a State Representative for Pennsylvania’s 158th Legislative District from 2017 to 2018, announced his candidacy for the threeperson Chester County Commissioners, in a release posted last week. In a race that will be determined next November,
Roe begins his campaign for commissioner on the heels of a political career that saw the Republican elected to the Pennsylvania House of Representatives in November 2016 after defeating Democrat and current Avondale mayor Susan Rzucidlo with 53.2 percent of the vote. During his tenure in Harrisburg, Roe, 35, voted for $60 million in grants to
make Pennsylvania schools safer; co-sponsored antiviolence legislation that toughened firearms laws; voted to give more than $11 billion to public schools in the state; helped reform the state’s employee pension system; and appeared at more than one dozen town halls whose topics included property/school taxes, school violence and the elimination of gerrymandering in
Pennsylvania. Together with Democrat Steve Samuelson, Roe sponsored House Bill 722 to establish an independent citizens commission to redistrict Congressional as well as State House and Senate districts. In November 2018, Roe lost his bid for reelection Courtesy photo to Democrat Christina Former State Rep. Eric Sappey by eight percentage Roe has announced his points, and in a rematch with candidacy for the Chester Continued on page 4A
County Commissioners.
Thousands enjoy Kennett’s Holiday Light Parade By Chris Barber Contributing Writer So eager were local holiday celebrants to attend the Kennett Square Holiday Light Parade on Friday that they set up unbroken lines of their lawn chairs along the sidewalk a full hour before starting time. Many even crowded to watch the goings-on beyond the formal parade route onto South Broad Street down to the staging area. By the time the dancers from Longwood Performing Arts took to the street and kicked off Photo by Chris Barber The Blitz truck rolls up the street with what appeared to be thousands of Christmas the evening festivities at 6:15 p.m., the throng of lights.
spectators had grown so large they were five-deep on State Street. Not since the Mushroom Festival has the borough seen crowds of this size. For at least 10 years, Kennett Square has welcomed the arrival of Santa Claus and the start of the Christmas season with a parade or some other special event, but this year it was particularly popular. The mood was festive uptown from one end of State Street to the other. Rain that had fallen early in the day yielded to moderated temperatures and partly cloudy skies for Continued on page 3A