Thursday, April 25, 2013
Local governments are preparing for the start of a new West Nile Virus season.
It's that time of the year again—mosquito season. Area governments are urging residents to take precautions to avoid West Nile Virus. Both Montgomery and Chester counties have already issued out a release offering residents tips and precautions on the virus. Last year, 60 human cases tested positive in Pennsylvania and four died, according to Pennsylvania's West Nile Virus Control Program. But good news comes to the Southeastern Pennsylvania area: $727,010 in grant money was acquired for West Nile surveillance and prevention this year for Philadelphia, Montgomery, Delaware, Chester, and Bucks counties, reports the Philadelphia Inquirer. The state's West Nile Virus Surveillance and Control Program offers tips on how to prepare your home …
Saturday, April 20, 2013
Don't count the county commissioner out just yet.
As Patch previously reported, Montgomery County Commissioner Bruce Castor is still undecided on whether to run or not in the 2014 Pennsylvania governor race. Castor's run against current Republican Gov. Tom Corbett once before, and it is unclear if he'll make a run in the coming year's primary. According to TribLive.com, Castor may want a rematch of the 2004 attorney general primaries. Castor told the Trib "he doesn't want the GOP to repeat the mistake it made in 2006 by backing then-Sen. Rick Santorum for re-election." "Castor, 51, called Corbett a 'ham-handed' politician who has failed to deliver on a conservative agenda," said the Trib. "He said Corbett blew his opportunity to push through conservative priorities, such as a right-to-…
Joseph Passarella had led the county's Voter Services department since 1994. He reportedly was terminated Wednesday.
Montgomery County officials were tight-lipped Thursday about the circumstances surrounding the apparent dismissal Wednesday of Joseph Passarella, who had run the county's Voter Services department since 1994. Passarella's termination was first reported Thursday morning by The Intelligencer, which cited unnamed sources who said Passarella was called into a noon meeting by unspecified county administrators on Wednesday and informed he was being immediately removed from his post. County Commissioner Leslie Richards, who also serves as chair of the county's Board of Elections, cited the county's policy of declining to comment on "personnel issues" when asked Thursday about both Passarella's departure and whether there were issues within the …
Sunday, April 14, 2013
A gallery of the county's most wanted criminals as released by the Sheriff's Department.
The Montgomery County Sheriff's Department has released information on the 11 most wanted criminals in the county. The gallery shows photographs, along with the last known address of each individual and what crimes they are wanted for in the photograph's caption. Residents can submit an "e-tip" via this link or call 610-278-3340 to report any information about the whereabouts of any of the 11 wanted persons. The persons were still considered "wanted" as of Thursday evening. Those wanted for Domestic Relations active warrants can be found at this link. Anyone with additional questions, concerns or suggestions, can contact the Montgomery County Sheriff's office at sheriffoffice@montcopa.org.
Sunday, April 7, 2013
The effective interest rate of about 2.39 percent on the county's new debt compares favorably with other recent municipal bonds issued in the region, Uri Monson said.
Montgomery County successfully auctioned $55 million in bonds this week, garnering interest from ten banks and investment firms before agreeing to sell the bonds to PNC Capital Markets at an interest rate of 2.39 percent. Uri Monson, the county's chief financial officer, said the county did "very well" in the bond issuance, with interest costs that he said compare favorably with other recent municipal bonds sold in the region. A much larger, $950 million bond issuance by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania hit the market at the same time as the county's bonds and obtained an interest rate of about 2.9 percent. Monson said that Moody's Investors Service rated the state's debt at Aa2, a notch below Montgomery County's Aa1 rating. A $65 million …
Monday, April 1, 2013
County has eliminated switchboard operators, leaving some confused.
We've all had to handle it: You dial. You listen. You wait. You aren't sure who you need to speak with, but you really need some help. Several computer prompts later, you are still not in the right place. Phoning any business can be a challenge, and by adding governmental red tape, fancy-titled departments and a large quantity of offices in one location, navigating a phone system without the aid of a human being can be even more confusing. PhillyBurbs.com recently reported that Montgomery County has eliminated two full-time and one part-time switchboard operator positions at the courthouse. "On some systems, you can listen to the entire push-button menu and then wait for 'someone' to pick up your call," said the report. "But Montco doesn’t…
Wednesday, March 27, 2013
See what the life expectancy is for people in your area.
Does where you live in Pennslyvania impact how long your life will be? According to a new study, the answer is "yes, but really not by all that much around here." The Institute for Health Metics and Evaluation looked at the life expectancy gap between men and women cross the country, including in the Greater Philadelphia Area, and broke down the numbers based on the average life expectancy per county. The biggest disparity between the life expectancy of women and men in the area came from Philadelphia, where women outlived men by an average of 7.7 years. The closest gap between women and men in the area comes from Montgomery County, where women are only outliving men by an average of four years. Check out the full study here, and consult …
Saturday, March 23, 2013
Also, man shoots himself inside a sporting goods store, residents held at gunpoint in their home, and how we're all breaking the law.
Check out some of Patch's biggest stories from the past week in eastern Pennsylvania: A man who barricaded himself inside a Dicks Sporting Goods store shot himself after a more than three-hour standoff with police. Read the story here. An elderly man shot and killed his wife, then himself, in a hospice room at Lehigh Valley Hospital-Allentown around 1 p.m. Tuesday, Lehigh County District Attorney James Martin and a hospital official said. Full details here. A 16-year-old girl is missing and there is concern that she might be in danger, according to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children. Chester County sent out alerts about the disappearance Angela Marie Vega-Yohn, of Philadelphia. Her case is being categorized as an …
Friday, March 22, 2013
The following 11 suspects are wanted by the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office for Warrants in Child Support cases.
Do any of these faces look familiar to you? If so, you could assist the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office. These 11 suspects are wanted on warrants extending from child support cases. They each are named (see the photo caption) along with their date of birth, last known town of address and amount owed in back support. Those with information on these wanted individuals can submit an E-TIP (by clicking on the blue link) or call the Warrants Unit at 610-278-3340. Far more than just 11 are wanted in the county for similar warrants. The full list of those with outstanding Domestic Relations Bench Warrants can be found on the Sheriff's Office website here. You can also view the county's most wanted criminal warrants by clicking here. If you …
Thursday, February 28, 2013
Part four of a four-part series on the impacts of Sequestration in Montgomery County. National historic parks, such as the one at Valley Forge, will see an impact should sequester not be stopped by midnight Thursday.
If heading to Valley Forge National Historic Park is on your to-do list this summer, you might need to double check the schedule. Due to sequestration, parks like Valley Forge may have staffing and hours on the "chopping block." “Every park in the system would be affected, including treasured places like Gettysburg, Independence Hall and Valley Forge, and the local economies that depend on visitor spending would also suffer,” said Cinda Waldbuesser, senior Pennsylvania program manager for the National Parks Conservation Association in a recent release. “National parks are economic drivers for local communities. Over the last two years, Pennsylvania’s national parks have welcomed more than eight million visitors, generating $325,000,000 in …
Alex
7:31 am on Tuesday, April 2, 2013
I don't buy the argument that this is only a "miniscule percentage" of the budget. Austerity means cutting waste, and phone operators are hardly a necessity. more ›