Move comes as deal announced Wednesday for neighboring parcel
By Kyle Carrozza, Staff Writer, The Times
COATESVILLE – Long stalled, it appears that redevelopment plans in the city’s Lincoln Highway corridor are beginning to pick up steam, as City Council announced the sale of a property to the city’s Redevelopment Authority (RDA), which may have a developer lined up for it, and the RDA announced Wednesday it had an agreement for a mixed-use development on the corner of First and Lincoln.
Tuesday night, City Council passed the first reading of an ordinance authorizing the sale of the 105 East Diamond Street garage to the city’s Redevelopment Authority at Tuesday night’s meeting.
Related:
Council members say they are hopeful that the $1 sale is the first step in selling the property to an unnamed investor who has shown interest in purchasing it. The same investor has also recently shown interest in the building at 117 East Lincoln Highway, commonly referred to as the Lipkin building.
City Council President Joseph Hamrick said that the RDA will hear a decision from the potential buyer in coming months.
He also said that the buyer will possibly look into placing a retail business and apartments into the property.
“Nothing’s a done deal,” said Hamrick, noting that the potential buyer will still be looking into business plans that they will present to the RDA.
With three members absent due to illness and deaths in the family, two items on Tuesday night’s agenda were contested among the four members present.
Council passed a motion to consider giving a budget of $1,000 to the Parks and Recreation Commission, so that the commission could hold 10 events throughout the year.
Council Member Ingrid Jones opposed the item, saying that the city needs to save every dollar it can. She said that when she first joined Council, the city had a recreation director, a position they decided to terminate to save money. Their justification was that the city already has recreation organizations. She also said that parents could spend more time with their children, which would not cost the city any money.
Though the reception and consideration motion was passed, Council will still have to vote in a future meeting to officially make a budget amendment allocating the $1,000.
Jones was also the sole voice in opposing a motion to receive and consider a policy statement calling for prayer before meetings. The item comes after a recent federal government decision allowing prayer before government meetings so long as it meets certain guidelines such as taking place during the ceremonial portion before the meeting technically starts and not dictating a specific type of prayer.
“It has nothing to do with the separation of church and government,” said Hamrick.
Council Members Arvilla Hunt and Linda Lavender Norris both said that they can always use prayer.
“I don’t know about you, but I can use prayer all the time,” said Hunt.
Jones said that prayer was another practice that occurred when she first joined Council that has since stopped. Among other reasons, she cited the diversity of religions in Coatesville as a reason she was opposed to praying before meetings.
With a 3-1 vote, the motion carried.
