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Oley Hills Region 3.4 Oley Hills Region

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Oley Hills Region 3.4 Oley Hills Region Chapter 3.4 Oley Hills Region 3.4 Oley Hills Region 3.4 Oley Hills Region The Oley Hills Region is as diverse in its landscape as the other Existing and Recommended Recreation Acreages Berks County non-metropolitan regions. The region contains Current Acre- Projected Projected large swaths of ecological resources and agricultural lands along Municipality Est. Pop.- 2010 Pop.- 2020 Pop.- with small villages and boroughs interconnected by local roads Rec. Min. Acre Rec. Min. Acre Rec. Min. Acre 3.48- and two lane state routes. The area also contains many historic 3789- 3964- Alsace Township 3717- sites. Currently, recreational opportunities are very limited within 23.68 24.77 23.23 the region, with most of those existing in just a few of the 8.51- 1056- 1104- municipalities or supplied by the local school districts. Due to the Bally Borough 1098- 6.6 6.9 availability of land this region is seeing a steady growth in both 6.86 12.43- population and new housing units, which in turns leads to 981- 1029- Bechtelsville Borough 951- additional recreational needs for its residents and consumption of 6.13 6.43 5.94 more land. 46.62- 3892- 3975- Boyertown Borough 3927- 24.32 24.84 Recreation 24.54 1.49- Colebrookdale 5597- 5623- 5412- Township 34.98 35.14 The region contains the least amount of acreage designated for 33.83 open space and recreation of all of the regions in Berks County. 49.73- 1618- 1826- District Township 1504- Of the 15 municipalities within the region, only five meet the 10.11 11.41 recommended minimum acreage of recreational land to meet 9.4 70.95- population needs, and two municipalities provide no recreational 3298- 3424- Earl Township 3206- 20.61 21.4 acreage for their residents. While the region as a whole is only 20.04 10.57 acres deficient this is due to 3 municipalities that own 16.96- 3345- 3503- Hereford Township 3232- larger parks. Most of the facilities are small municipal or 20.91 21.89 community parks. Most municipalities rely upon the use of 20.2 31.61- school district facilities to meet the demands for organized 6137- 6490- Longswamp Township 5731- 38.36 40.56 recreation. This area also contains the least amount of federal, 35.82 state and county-owned land of all the regions. Out of the 29,800 13.25- 3871- 4121- Oley Township 3629- acres of state land in the County, only 343.6 acres is located in 24.19 25.76 the Oley Hills. Other than a few scattered opportunities within an 22.68 0- existing park, the region contains no public trail systems and no 1986- 2301- Pike Township 1842- 12.41 14.38 interconnection of trails to other facilities. 11.51 0- 4669- 5679- Rockland Township 3862- 29.18 35.49 24.14 13.22- Ruscombmanor 4386- 5018- 4042- Township 27.41 31.36 25.26 146 3.4 Oley Hills Region 10.17- 2028- 2040- to improve or expand their parks or to acquire land for parks. Our Topton Borough 1962- 12.67 12.75 survey results indicate that residents are interested in walking 12.26 9.46- trails, natural areas and children’s playgrounds; see Chapter 5.7 3724- 4200- Washington Township 3637- for additional survey results. 23.27 26.25 22.73 The Appalachian Mountain Club is currently in the process of 287.88- 50377- 54297- identifying a trail corridor for the Highlands Corridor, which is a TOTALS 47752- 314.83 339.33 nationally designated corridor of interconnecting forests and hills 298.45 stretching from Pennsylvania to Connecticut. The trail proposed Abbreviations: Rec.= Recommended; Pop.= Population; Est.=Estimated; Min.-Minimum for the Pennsylvania portion will eventually interconnect with an Sources:U.S. Census Bureau, 2004 Estimates existing trail that runs from New Jersey to Connecticut. The PaDEP 2006 State Water Plan Population Projections, 2010 and 2020 general goal of the Pennsylvania trail is to interconnect existing Population Projections National Recreation & Park Association, NRPA suggests that a park system, trails and recreational land to form both a linear trail and a at a minimum, be composed of a core system of parklands, with a total of looping trail system to meet the needs of both residents and 6.25 to 10.5 acres of developed close-to-home space per 1,000 population. tourists. Note: Municipalities in bold have sufficient acreage. Generally, recreational opportunities for the Oley Hills Region are Ecology underdeveloped for both active and passive types of recreation. Six of the 15 municipalities spend 1% or less of their annual The Oley Hills is the largest and highest valued ecological budget on recreation. Most of the municipalities are not resource in the region and is one of the highest ranking accessing recreational grants available from the County or State resources Countywide. This resource is a key habitat area for all types of birds, mammals, reptiles and fish due to the existence of large undisturbed land masses and unpolluted streams. Other important ecologic resources are the Little Manatawny, Trout Run and the Perkiomen Uplands, which all contain large interconnected land masses that are mostly undisturbed by development. The region also is home to a number of Natural Areas Inventory sites as designated by the Natural Areas Inventory Study for Berks County. These sites are identified due to the existence of Exceptional Value and High Quality streams, rare and endangered plants and animals (both state and federal listings), significant woodlands, and good quality habitats. The Oley Hills Region contains five of the twelve state-designated Exceptional Value streams; Bieber, Pine, Oysterville, and Sacony Creeks and the West Branch of the Perkiomen Creek. The Oley Hills is also identified as a Hub by the Pennsylvania Recreational Fishing at Hunsickers Grove Highlands, which is part of the larger Highlands Corridor. The 147 3.4 Oley Hills Region Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection recently activities such as the Oley Forge, Oley Furnace, mills of various designated the Highlands as a State-wide Significant Greenway. types and mining activity. The region contains many small This is important due to the potential for grant funds to purchase villages and crossroads, which were once stagecoach stops or development rights in the Oley Hills to protect the natural trading posts for early travelers. With the bypassing of the region resources. A major concern remarked upon by the Highlands by major road projects and railroad connections the area has Coalition is that the Oley Hills contains very important habitat maintained its rural and agricultural identity. However, with the areas, but has the least amount of protected lands. continued expansion outward of residential developments from Southeastern Pennsylvania into Berks County, many of these historic resources are endangered. The Boyertown Museum of Historic Vehicles, located in Boyertown, highlights the transportation heritage of Southeastern Pennsylvania. The Museum includes items and information about cars built by Reading automobile pioneer Charles E. Duryea and parts of the original 1872 carriage factory, which still stands. The region contains many historic sites. Most of these sites are not on an official register. However, the local historical societies that represent the area are working towards categorizing all of the sites that are potentially eligible for the National Historic Register. Goose and gosling Identified National Historic Register and eligible sites include: - 200 N. Reading Ave. - Hill Homestead Keim Homestead Heritage - Apler Stone Cabin - Bahr Mill Complex - Knabb-Beiber Mill - Barto Bridge - Long/Haweter Mill The history of the Oley Hills Region dates back to the beginning - th Bechtelsville Hotel/Bar - Mill At Lobachsville of the 18 Century with the establishment of settlements by the - Bechtelsville Store & - Nicholas Johnson Mill Swedes, Huguenots (French Protestants) and the Germans. The - Post Office - Phillip Christmans House Germans arrived in the region in 1710 and established a Borneman Mill - Pikeville Hotel settlement along the Manatawny Creek in Oley Township. The - Boyer Store - Pleasantville Bridge Germans, unlike previous settlers, relied upon agriculture as their - Boyertown Post Office - Reiff Homestead principal means of income. This influx changed the region from a - Edwin Bechtel House - Sally Ann Furnace Complex primarily trade oriented society to one based upon agriculture. - Greisemer’s Mill Bridge - Weiger-Schelly House The region is widely know for its historic farmsteads, stone - Hartman Cider Press - Yoder Mill houses, barns, cemeteries, churches and early industrial - - Henry Fisher House 148 3.4 Oley Hills Region Identified National Historic Districts include: The entire region is part of the federally designated Schuylkill River Valley National Heritage Area. The benefit of this - Oley Township designation is funding for preservation of historical, cultural, - Hunter’s Mill natural and recreational resources along with education and - Gehman, John Farm interpretation of the industrial and cultural heritage of the Schuylkill River Valley. It is extremely important to complete the inventory of known historical sites in order to try protect the area’s heritage. The local historical societies and the County Historical Society need Greenway Section to work together to officially identify and categorize these sites. Most of the municipalities do not have any type of regulations that The Greenways in this region are predominantly habitat related will protect these sites from destruction or demolition by neglect. with some historic and recreational connections. The most Oley Township is the only municipality with an Historic Review important Greenways are the ones that interconnect with the Board that regulates historic structures. While the Historic Oley Hills, Little Manatawny, Trout Run and the Perkiomen Review Board is a great tool there are other tools that are also Uplands Hubs. The Greenways that interconnect with these helpful in preserving the heritage of the region.
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