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Do you agree with many Democrat, Republican and Independent voters in West Pikeland who say that the West Pikeland Home Rule Charter will lead to significant and lasting improvements in local government? If so, send us your endorsement, and we'll post it here!
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Dr. Richard Bright, West Pikeland Supervisor
My hope is that West Pikeland township residents will vote yes to Home Rule Charter. Hours of work by dedicated citizens went into researching, drafting, and revising this document with the intent of providing a framework for improved government and representation. It will help ensure, going forward, that West Pikeland residents will have maximum input and say in local government.
Suzanne Kaplan, West Pikeland Twp Communications Committee
I am pleased that the charter will result in more communication to township residents, especially regarding financial planning and decisions. Fiscal responsibility is the cornerstone of good government, and the greater transparency required by the charter will help ensure that financial decisions are based on prudent planning and are in the best interests of resident taxpayers.
Bob Shemonsky, Chairman, West Pikeland Twp Board of Supervisors
I believe that West Pikeland citizens should have abundant opportunities to actively participate in local government through township committees, meetings, and voter initiatives—but future supervisors may not share my view. That’s why voting YES to West Pikeland’s Home Rule Charter is so important. It ensures that township residents will continue to have a real voice and play an important role in local government, no matter who is elected supervisor.
Bob Barker, West Pikeland Township Supervisor
The home rule charter enables citizen participation by allowing all registered voters of the township to have a voice in local government. It also requires the township to do a better job of planning. It has been proven successful in neighboring townships, and I believe it will be a positive change for West Pikeland.
Harry Miller, West Pikeland Twp Director of Facilities
As a thirty year resident of West Pikeland Township, I am proud of the initiative shown by a concerned group of citizens who have crafted the proposed Home Rule Charter, a document uniquely designed to respond to the needs of our township. I plan to vote "YES" for the Charter in November and I hope you will too!
Bill and Lila Smith, West Pikeland Residents
A group of very dedicated citizens who were elected by the voters of the township spent countless hours over an eighteen month period developing a charter that would bring transparency, ethics and accountability to West Pikeland. We sat in on many of these meetings and saw the sincerity and concern of this group. This charter is designed for our own township, not for numerous townships in the state. We urge you to vote yes for the Home Rule Charter.
Curt Grogan, West Pikeland Resident
I'm in favor of Home Rule because from my perspective, any form of government which provides a greater voice for the citizens and requires citizen approval for new taxes can only be positive.
Wayne Freese, Chairman, West Pikeland Twp Finance Committee
"This may not be a perfect document, but whatever shortcomings may be found, the citizens can change them. With the Second Class Code we now have, we have absolutely NO ability to make changes. Great effort went into this, so I am confident we are better off approving. I'll vote yes."
Rob Kocher, West Pikeland Township Auditor
As an active citizen in West
Pikeland Township, I believe that adopting a Home Rule charter is in our best
interest. Through the course of time the state mandated township code has
become outdated. Also, the code leaves a lot up to interpretation by township
supervisors and the manager. With all of the outside pressures and special
situations that arise, the township code just does not do the job. Some of the
items I believe can be fixed by having a strong Home Rule charter are:
(1) Provides a means for more citizen input into financial and critical decision
making; (2) Stronger ethical rules which protects both elected officials and
residents; (3) Requires stronger communication of elected officials and township
management toward the residents; (4) Provides better guidance for elected
officials in performing their duties. Overall, it closes up many of the
loopholes and gaps in the Second Class Township code currently used to govern
WPT. I urge you to ask questions and discover the benefits to governance by
Home Rule and vote in its favor in November.
John Matthews, West Pikeland Arts & Culture Committee
My father's home town of Malvern Borough passed their Home Rule Charter during the primary elections in April 2008. I was born and raised in Lancaster County, also with a Home Rule charter up for approval on November 4, and spent four years living in the Home Rule borough of State College as a Penn State student. I now teach in Tredyffrin Township, where our T/E high school sports and academic teams compete with Radnor, Haverford, West Chester, and Cheltenham public schools, all located in Home Rule municipalities. It may be no wonder that I see Home Rule as a normal progression of informed citizens shaping their local government to best suit their specific needs. To me it's natural to vote YES for Home Rule.
Meg McGoldrick, Vice Chair, West Pikeland Gov't Study Commission
West Pikeland’s Home Rule Charter is all about local constituents having a voice in the complicated web of government. Home rule allows ALL residents to participate more fully in municipal decisions if they choose to do so.
Melinda Mercurio, Secretary, West Pikeland Resident
I like the fact that the Home Rule Charter makes it a priority to inform residents about local government activities via multiple channels and in a timely manner. Communication is essential for citizens to be able to participate meaningfully in their government. The current law requires only the barest minimum of communications, and I believe it is too important to be left to the discretion of even well-meaning officeholders.
Tim Tietze, West Pikeland Gov't Study Commissioner
The need for this Charter arose from the disconnect between local government and citizens. Using that need as a guideline, our Charter is all about reconnecting citizens to their government in ways that engage people in the nuts and bolts of democracy. If you want a real say in how you’re governed, then this charter is for you.
Barbara W. Miller, West Pikeland Gov't Study Commissioner
Citizen participation is the hallmark of any well functioning democracy. West Pikeland's proposed Home Rule Charter maximizes the opportunity for citizen input by requiring notice to the community prior to any decision-making on a specifically enumerated list of important issues. Participate in your local government by casting a "YES" vote this November for the Home Rule Charter.
Ernie Holling, Chairman, West Pikeland Republican Committeeman
Good governance requires leadership, sound judgments by elected representatives, and the ability for the electorate to know, understand and comment on issues before their government. West Pikeland’s Home Rule Charter definitively creates the mechanism for these requirements, and for the first time positions West Pikeland to control its own charter. As Chairman of the Government Study Commission, I urge you to consider the nearly two years of work by dedicated members and alternates that went into the creation of our home rule charter, and to vote “YES” on November 4th.
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Government Study Commission ▪ West Pikeland Township ▪ Post Office Box 152, Chester Springs, PA 19425 ▪ 610-423-6777 ▪ info@westpikeland-gsc.org
Website design, content and maintenance contributed by Melinda D Mercurio ▪ Strategic Communications Consultant, Chester Springs, PA