About Friends of Worcester Our Organization Friends of Worcester is dedicated to preserving the rural heritage of Worcester Township by preserving open space, working farms, villages, and historic buildings. We work with our elected and appointed township officials to focus their efforts on these goals. We keep township residents informed of current issues that impact these and other important issues through our website, our newsletters, and our e-mail notification list. The annual President's Report describes the work we have done over the past year and outlines current projects as well as our goals for 2005. Click HERE to read the Presidents' Report for 2004. Friends of Worcester is a Pennsylvania nonprofit association and a federal 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization. Donations and sponsorships help FOW carry out our community mission. Once it's gone, it's gone forever! Contact Us We encourage you to get involved! Contact us at info@friendsofworcester.org Historical Perspective Before FOW -- Several community groups were organized over the past 100 years in Worcester. Click HERE to read about the Fairview Village Assembly and the Worcester Township Civic Association. Fall, 1996 - Friends of Worcester held its first meeting. There were 15 attendees. Click HERE to read more about the issues they faced. August 1997 - FOW's first newsletter, The Worcester Watchman, was printed. It was just one page! Click HERE to read it. Late 1997 - Amoco announced plans for a gas station and convenience store at Township Line & North Wales Roads. Click HERE to read more about the fight and eventual victory. 1999 - The Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission was considering Worcester as a possible location for a slip ramp. The fight may not be over yet. Click HERE to read more. October 1999 - FOW was organized as a Pennsylvania nonprofit association. 2002 - CVS proposed a 14,800-square-foot pharmacy at Trooper Road & Germantown Pike. Click HERE to read how FOW organized the effort to drive CVS out of Worcester. October 2004 - FOW hired a part-time Administrative Assistant. August 2005 - FOW received final approval of its tax-exempt status from the IRS. Current Issues Open Space Since its inception in the late 1990s, Friends of Worcester has been urging our supervisors to conserve our township's rural atmosphere by preserving open space through land preservation and conservation zoning. Regional studies have shown that every acre of land that is preserved from development saves taxpayers money in the long run, because residential development costs more for services - schools, road maintenance and improvement, sewers, police and fire protection - than it generates in taxes. (For more detailed information, click here to find out how "Saving Land Saves Money.") Although Worcester has contributed to the preservation of several farms in partnership with the state/county Farmland Preservation Program, our supervisors have yet to ask township residents to authorize a bond issue to preserve undeveloped land before it's too late. In that time, land prices have more than doubled. FOW continues to urge our supervisors to place an open space bond issue on the ballot for residents' approval. In addition to preserving land outright by purchasing the development rights, we can also control how development happens, by adjusting our zoning and land development ordinances so that builders will be required to preserve at least 50 percent of a tract as open space. The technique for doing this has been proven effective in surrounding communities. The Planning Commission has been working with a consultant from Natural Lands Trust to draft such ordinances. Now we need our supervisors to approve them. Development has gobbled up hundreds of acres of land in the township, and more is under threat as large landowners bow to the pressure of acquisitive builders. If we are to preserve Worcester's rural atmosphere, the time to act is now. Historic and Village Preservation Worcester's villages, especially Fairview Village and Center Point, are in danger of disappearing completely under the threat of commercial development. Last year, the Zoning Board approved variances for Eckerd to build a drugstore that dominates an entire corner with its huge building and 50+ parking spaces. In the process, Eckerd was allowed to tear down one of the most significant pre-Revolutionary structures in the county. Even worse, nobody knew about it until it was too late! Because Worcester has no historic preservation ordinance that would require a developer to identify historic resources on a site and design around them, Eckerd was allowed to demolish the building before anyone knew it was under threat. The township needs a Historical Commission to start writing such an ordinance, to make sure that we don't lose any more of our historic resources. We also need to improve the commercial zoning in our villages. We can and should require developers to preserve historic structures and design commercial buildings to blend in with our villages, not dwarf them with big box development. Worcester's historic buildings and villages should not be subject to a developer's every whim. President's Report for 2004 It is clear from the support Friends of Worcester receives and the words of appreciation we hear that Worcester residents value open space and support our efforts to preserve it. The evidence is overwhelming. People in Worcester want to see farms, meadows, and woodlands dominate our township. We prefer a landscape that recognizes our historic past and integrates it into our future through intelligent land planning and sensitive historic preservation. Friends of Worcester is able to promote these objectives through the generosity of our supporters and an informed citizen constituency. During the past year, FOW representatives have attended Montgomery County Planning Commission meetings to advance Worcester's interests on a regional basis as the broader community struggles with issues related to traffic, flooding, open space and historic preservation. We are currently improving our website in order to better inform township residents as we endeavor to protect our township from inappropriate development and suburban sprawl. We recently published a new brochure. Members attend township meetings and communicate our position. We were present at the polls in the fall to encourage residents to come to the township's very successful open space and historic preservation "mapping" meeting. Our spring photo contest for locals high school students, our flea market/yard sale, and running the food tent at the Farmer's Union Horse Show are becoming annual FOW friend-raising events. Our goals for the coming year include continuing our outreach efforts through our newsletter, website, brochure, and sponsorship of several events aimed at attracting a broad community audience. We plan to educate township residents on issues related to Growing Greener conservation land development, historic preservation, stormwater management, village commercial zoning, and the benefits of horse farms and equestrian trails in preserving open space. We are always interested in increasing the involvement of our supporters, and we encourage all township residents to attend our meetings and special events whenever possible. Your voice is always welcome. Given the increasing number of demands on our organization and the need to carry on our business in a timely manner, in the fall of 2004 the officers hired a part-time administrative assistant to handle the routine office work, so that our volunteers can spend all of their time developing our interest in educational programs. Our final event of 2004 was the Holiday Party graciously hosted by Rob and Wini Hayes. A wonderful community spirit was fostered as so many gathered to enjoy one another's company. The combined energy and enthusiasm of our supporters and the understanding that "Once it's gone, it's gone forever" contribute to my excitement and enthusiasm in continuing as President of FOW. I appreciate the opportunity to work on our goals in a community where so many care. R. Kimber David, President (Click here to return to top of page.) Before FOW In 1916, the Fairview Village Assembly was organized "to promote sociability and cooperation, and ... to advance the interest of the community." Three years later, the Assembly built a meeting hall in Fairview Village in which they held suppers, bazaars, square dances, and holiday gatherings. In 1952, over 100 Worcester residents gathered in the Fairview Village Assembly Hall (now known as Worcester Township Community Hall) to form the Worcester Township Civic Association. The purposes of the group were to foster public interest in government; to assist in the maintenance of good mutual understanding between the citizens and public officials; to inform, arouse, and lead public opinion toward the solution of the township's problems; and to promote friendship and sociability among the residents of Worcester Township. (Click here to return to Historical Perspective.) FOW's First Meeting In 1996, Friends of Worcester grew out of a group of residents concerned about the stepped-up pace of residential development and the attendant loss of open space. The group quickly realized that many residents had similar interests and concerns about the loss of Worcester's rural heritage. Therefore, we formed a civic organization for the betterment of our community. In 1999, FOW was officially organized as a Pennsylvania non-profit association to improve the communication and involvement between residents and our elected officials. (Click here to return to Historical Perspective.) Amoco In 1997, residents were anxiously watching a proposal by Amoco to build a gas station and convenience store on the Worcester corner of Township Line and North Wales Roads. Friends of Worcester received the support of hundreds of residents in its effort to resist this development of the site. By 1999, Amoco was ready to appear before Worcester's Zoning Board to secure the necessary approvals. Despite overwhelming opposition from Friends of Worcester and individual residents, however, the Zoning Board approved the variances, allowing the development to go forward. The Board of Supervisors and two residents appealed this decision, and eventually Amoco abandoned the fight. (Click here to return to Historical Perspective.) Slip Ramp In the late 1990s, Worcester residents became aware that the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission was studying ways to relieve traffic congestion along the turnpike and local feeder roads between the Lansdale and Plymouth Meeting interchanges. The Commission proposed the creation of "slip ramps" that would allow traffic to enter and exit the turnpike between these two interchanges. Three of the proposed slip ramp locations were in or on the edge of Worcester Township -- Schultz Road near Morris Road, Valley Forge Road just north of Morris Road, and Morris Road between Schultz & Valley Forge Roads. A series of public meetings was held, and Friends of Worcester kept township residents informed through our newsletter as plans for the slip ramp were alternately sidelined and then resumed. In 2002, the Commission presented a plan to build two slip ramps on Schultz Road, one in each direction. Friends of Worcester mounted a public information campaign through our newsletter and word of mouth to encourage residents to attend the Turnpike Commission's public meetings and to contact local and state elected officials about the slip ramp. "Stop the Slip Ramp" signs sprouted on residents' lawns. At one public meeting, FOW officers presented a petition against the plan which had been signed by hundreds of township residents. Lansdale Borough, the Montgomery County Planning Commission, and many area businesses such as Ford Electronics and Merck voiced their support for the slip ramp, but Worcester residents argued that our township's rural roads are ill-equipped to handle the expected increase of 4000 to 5000 cars per day. Even worse, easy access to the turnpike would encourage still more residential development in Worcester. In 2004, the proposed slip ramp still appeared on Montgomery County's draft Transportation Plan, and once again Friends of Worcester sent representatives to public meetings to oppose a slip ramp in Worcester. The Turnpike Commission has now announced the cancellation of its plans for the slip ramp, but given the history of this proposal, Friends of Worcester will continue to work with our local and state elected officials to make sure that a slip ramp will never be built in Worcester. (Click here to return to Historical Perspective.) CVS In 2002, CVS decided to build a 14,800 square foot drug store at the corner of Trooper Road and Germantown Pike, opposite the tiny, historic Norriton Presbyterian Church. The proposal included drive-through service, 24-hour operation, an oversized parking lot, and large, illuminated signs, all of which required numerous zoning variances. The building alone was more than twice the size allowed by Worcester's commercial ordinance. Friends of Worcester mounted a petition on our web site for residents to register their outrage at a development proposal that was so out of keeping with the other historic buildings at that intersection. Comments by residents included this one: "Build it, and I will NEVER use it!" FOW attended meetings, reviewed drawings, distributed flyers and yard signs, and encouraged residents to attend public meetings. By the fall of 2003, CVS had abandoned its plans for a mega-pharmacy on this site. (Click here to return to Historical Perspective.)

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