LIVING, WORKING & PLAYING IN 20 19 2020 Calendar 2018 Annual Report Letter from the On behalf of our Township staff and your elected Board of Commissioners, I am pleased to present our 2018 Annual Report Township and 2019-2020 Calendar. Manager I have been Township Manager for more than five years now. As a transplant In November, some of you will be electing new leaders. I wanted to mention from West Chester, where I was the borough manager for 27 years, I knew in this because almost a third of the Commissioners that started calendar year advance of Lower Merion’s stellar reputation for service and transparency. 2019 will have retired come January 2020. Cheryl Gelber (Ward 5) resigned this Nonetheless, I can’t tell you how impressed I have been at the professionalism past winter for personal reasons, after serving the residents of her ward and of the staff I now represent and the Commissioners I have worked with, on the Township, with distinction, for 15 years. Come January, three others with everything from renovating our libraries to the implementation of years-long impressive service records will step down: Liz Rogan (Ward 7 since 2004, and major projects, such as the Township’s first new Zoning Code since before past Board President); George Manos (Ward 9 since 2006); and Brian McGuire World War II, due to be adopted this year. (Ward 13 since 2011, and current Board Vice President). All have put enormous I can speak to all of that from the perspective of a resident and neighbor, amounts of time, energy, and personal resources into serving Lower Merion, too. Lower Merion truly is a wonderful place to live, work, and play—the theme and done so with poise and equanimity. They cannot be thanked enough. of this year’s calendar. It’s a reflection of the myriad ways that residents, We in the Manager’s Office have been happy to hear from many of you businesses, staff and elected officials work in tandem, every day, with the tens who each year inquire about the new Annual Report and Calendar, which you of thousands of people who may not live in Lower Merion, but who do business now hold in your hands. Here you will find information about special dates for here, get an education here, or simply traverse our many roadways. Township events and meetings; a listing of your fellow residents who served on Boards, As you’ll see from the four pages of budgetary information toward the back of this Commissions and Committees in 2018; and reminders of your trash and recycling weeks. publication, our financial performance in 2018 was once again very strong, and the Township Enjoy, and please look for weekly and daily updates to our calendar at www.LowerMerion.org has retained its Triple-A bond credit ratings from both Moody’s and Standard & Poor’s. For an and the Township’s Facebook page. I hope to see you around the Township soon. unprecedented 30 straight years now, our Finance Department has been recognized nationally for its budget document, reflecting a lot of hard work on their part, but also excellent stewardship Sincerely, among the other departments. Whether it be police and fire personnel, the refuse and recycling crews, or the staffs of our six libraries, striking the right balance of maintaining a tradition of excellent service while improving it—with prudent fiscal stewardship—is an annual challenge but one I can say is met. That standard is met thanks to dedicated elected officials and excellent Township staff. Ernie McNeely Township Manager LOWER MERION TOWNSHIP Lower Merion Township Board of Commissioners Lower Merion residents elect the 14-member Board of Commissioners who represent citizens in the enactment of policies and ordinances, which govern the Township. Daniel S. Bernheim, Esq. Josh Grimes Michael F. McKeon, Esq. Anthony C. Stevenson Ray A. Courtney Andrew S. Gavrin Elizabeth S. Rogan, Every other year, seven Board President Gladwyne and Belmont Hills, Penn Valley Ardmore and Haverford, North Ardmore, Wynnewood Rosemont and Villanova, Wynnewood, Ward 7 Commissioners are elected Gladwyne, Merion Park Penn Valley, Ward 2 and Bala Cynwyd, Ward 3 Ward 4 and Haverford, Ward 5 Ward 6 to serve a four-year term. and Penn Valley, Ward 1 Board Appointed & Anna Durbin George T. Manos V. Scott Zelov Tiffany O'Neill Todd M. Sinai C. Brian McGuire Rick Churchill Other Elected South Wynnewood and Bala Cynwyd, Bryn Mawr, Haverford Bryn Mawr, Gladwyne and Merion, Board Vice President Penn Wynne and East Ardmore, Ward 8 Ward 9 and Gladwyne, Ward 10 Rosemont, Ward 11 Ward 12 Cynwyd and Merion Park, Wynnewood, Ward 14 Officials Ward 13 Ernie B. McNeely Jody L. Kelley Edward P. Pluciennik Samuel T. Adenbaum Gilbert P. High, Jr., Esq. Michael “Sam” Quinn Karen Eisner Zucker Henry Schireson Township Manager Township Secretary Township Engineer Township Treasurer Township Solicitor Magisterial District Judge Magisterial District Judge Magisterial District Judge Augu201s9 t TOWNSHIP EVENTS From traditional holiday lighting ceremonies to the Cardboard Boat Races at the Belmont Hills Pool, to the One Book One Lower Merion events, there are happenings throughout the Township all year long. Check out our official Facebook page (facebook.com/ LowerMerionTownship) on a regular basis to see the date of the next Bryn Mawr Summer Concert Series gig, or the Township calendar on LowerMerion.org for events like National Night Out, the annual Township Open House, the Memorial Day Parade and Ceremony, and more. Now and then, a new event takes place and catches on. That was the case in 2017 with the first Main Line Bike Race, benefitting Narberth Ambulance, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that provides 24/7 service to Lower Merion and Haverford townships, as well as Conshohocken, West Conshohocken, and Narberth boroughs. The criterium-style races take place throughout the day in a one-mile loop through downtown Ardmore. This year’s race day is August 11th. More: mainlinebikerace.com. Sunday Monday TueSday WedneSday ThurSday Friday SaTurday 1 23Bryn Mawr Concert Series All official Township meetings, along with significant Township-involved events, are 7 p.m. (David Wilcox with posted to www.LowerMerion.org, with links to agendas as soon as they are available. Rebecca Fox Starr, Bryn Mawr Gazebo at Ludington Library) 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 National Night Out Board of Commissioners Meeting, 7 p.m. All Libraries are closed 6—9 p.m., Wynnewood on Sundays through Sept. 1. RECYCLING WEEK B Shopping Center 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 Main Line Bike Race of Ardmore 9 a.m.—5 p.m. RECYCLING WEEK A 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 RECYCLING WEEK B 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 RECYCLING WEEK A For more than 30 years now, the Rosie’s Senior Jamboree cookout for senior citizens in South Ardmore Park has been happening on the second Wednesday in July. And next month, a newer tradition continues— Bryn Mawr Day (brynmawrday.com), going on a decade now, is held the first Saturday after Labor Day in the municipal lot across from Ludington Library. Bryn Mawr Day Rosie’s Senior Jamboree 2019 September PLANNING A COMPREHENSIVE FUTURE For more than a decade, the Township’s Building & Planning Department—in consultation with the Township Engineer, the Board of Commissioners, various outside consultants, and much public input—has tackled an extremely ambitious dual undertaking: Completion of the Comprehensive Plan for the Preservation, Infill, and Redevelopment of Lower Merion Township (adopted in 2016), and the first entirely new re-write of the Lower Merion Zoning Code since before World War II, set to be completed in 2019. Both documents can be read in full online at www.LowerMerion.org. Sunday Monday TueSday WedneSday ThurSday Friday SaTurday 1 RECYCLING WEEK B 2 3 4 5 67 Libraries closed Holiday Week Refuse & Recycling Bryn Mawr Day September is 7 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Bryn Mawr & Lancaster Avenues, National Library Card Libraries & all Township buildings closed Committee Meetings 9 a.m.—2 p.m. Sign-up Month Labor Day (Budget Workshop), 6 p.m www.brynmawrday.com 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 Lower Merion Library System (LMLS) Committee Meetings, 6 p.m. International Literacy Day RECYCLING WEEK A Board Meeting, 7:30 p.m. Patriot Day 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 Board of Commissioners Meeting, RECYCLING WEEK B 7:30 p.m. 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 Banned Books Week through Sept. 28th RECYCLING WEEK A 29 30 Learn more about the Comprehensive Plan Rosh Hashana www.lowermerion.org/services/building-and-planning-department/planning-division/comprehensive-plan begins at sundown RECYCLING WEEK B The new Zoning Code was built upon the Comprehensive Plan process that resulted in a consensus-driven, solution-oriented vision for the future. This project launched in January 2017 with the Board of Commissioners’ selection of the nationally renowned dPZ Partners, LLC as consultant. The process included stakeholder interviews and dozens of public meetings—not only with the Board of Commissioners, but with the Civic engagement Committee, Township civic associations, and other groups. 2019 October VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES Chances to give back to the community abound in Lower Merion, from helping out at our elder care facilities to the local Home and School Association to the Boy Scouts and Girls Scouts. There’s the Community Watch, which works with Lower Merion Police, and a special subset of folks known as the Dog Walker Watch—go to lmcommunitywatch.org to learn more about both. At Narberth Ambulance, you can join more than 90 fellow volunteers. Go to narberthambulance.org to see 10 reasons to do so, just for starters.