Getting Back To Main Street: a revitalization Plan for Pennsburg
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Pennsburg Revitalization Committee Members Vicki J. Lightcap, Chairperson William C. Clinton * Lisa Hiltz * Jeanne Hopkins Matthew Kory, MCPC * Michael R. Mensch
* denotes past member i i Getting Back to Main Street: A Revitalization Plan for Pennsburg April 2010 ii ii iii iii iv iv v v Table of Contents •
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vi vi • Regional Setting. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 •
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Community Context Chapter 2 Chapter 1: Community Context Regional Setting
Pennsburg Borough is located in the northwestern corner of Montgom- ery County and is bordered by the boroughs of East Greenville to the north and Red Hill to the south. The Borough itself is located within the corporate limits of Upper Hanover Township. Together those four municipalities, along with Hereford Township, Marlborough Township and Green Lane Borough, make up what is known as the Upper Perki- omen Valley. Because of the rural character of Upper Hanover, Penns- burg, East Greenville, and Red Hill Boroughs provide much of the commercial and retail services for the area.
Transportation is vital to a community’s economic success, and accord- ingly, road access to the Borough was and will continue to be a pri- mary influence on where and how development occurs. Although it is somewhat remotely located from the more densely populated sections of the County, Pennsburg does possess an advantageous location on major northern routes. This puts it in close proximity to several impor- tant commercial and industrial centers not easily accessible from the rest of the County. Route 29 (Main Street) runs northwest/southeast through the center of the four Boroughs, while Route 663 provides easy accessibility to the Northeast Extension of the Pennsylvania Turn- pike. Southbound Route 29 carries residents to King of Prussia, Route 422, and the Schuylkill Expressway into Philadelphia. Southbound Route 29 also connects to Rts. 63 and 73, providing access to em- ployment centers in West Point (Merck) and Blue Bell. Route 663 north leads to Quakertown, a major employment and retail center in Bucks County, while Route 663 south provides quick access to Route 73 and the Metropolitan Pottstown Region, including the Route 100 corridor.
Pennsburg has always enjoyed a strategic location in the Upper Perki- omen Valley. Over 250 years ago, Henry Helig chose to make it his home, and he and his sons owned nearly the entire 305-acre portion of the land now known as Pennsburg Borough. The original Helig home, which was built in 1725, still stands at the corner of Fourth and Seminary Streets.
As the Heligs sold off portions of their land a settlement started to grow. In 1840, the village consisted of no more than ten homes, a general store, a carpenter’s shop, and a blacksmith’s shop.
The village continued to grow, fed in part by the opening of the Goshenhoppen and Green Lane Turnpike (now Route 29) in 1851. The turnpike provided important regional connections and helped fuel the area’s growth. The decades after the Civil War saw Pennsburg become an important manufacturer of cigars. The Borough’s industri- alization was energized in 1874 when the Perkiomen Railroad (later the Reading Railroad) was extended from Green Lane to Emmaus via Pennsburg. This served to connect the Borough to the major industrial
3 Getting Back To Main Street: A Revitalization Plan for Pennsburg and population centers of Allentown and Philadelphia. The nation’s heavy dependence on rail for shipping goods, as well as the success of the cigar industry, propelled growth in the Borough’s industry, com- merce, and economy throughout the first half of the twentieth century.
The Perkiomen Seminary opened in 1875 and reflected the increas- ingly prominent role that Pennsburg played in the Upper Perkiomen region. Later becoming the Perkiomen Preparatory School for Boys, today the school is a regionally renowned co-educational day and boarding institution providing education from middle through high school. The Perkiomen School has an enrollment of approximately 280 students, with approximately 30% of the student body being inter- national students.
Pennsburg incorporated in 1888, and soon after in 1899, the commu- nity’s first-English language newspaper, Town & Country, began pub- lishing. This marked a break from the area’s previous tradition of pub- lishing German-language newspapers and periodicals. By 1910 the Borough had public fire and water services as well as electricity.
Public sewer for the borough, in conjunction with East Greenville and Red Hill, is provided by the Upper Montgomery Joint Authority, while public water service is provided by the Upper Hanover Authority. In 1954, as part of a region-wide improvement program, the Philadel- phia Suburban Water Company (now Aqua Pennsylvania) dammed the Perkiomen Creek, creating the Green Lane Reservoir. Not only did this provide an important water resource for the growing region but it added to the area’s recreational amenities. During the same year, Pennsburg Borough, Red Hill Borough, East Greenville Borough, and Upper Hanover Township joined together with Green Lane Borough, Marlborough Township and Hereford Township (Berks County) to cre- ate the Upper Perkiomen School District, which continues to serve the educational and schooling needs of the area’s residents.
In the past few decades, jobs and businesses have spread across the greater Philadelphia region. A significant increase in suburban develop- ment has resulted; yet Pennsburg still retains its small-town charm through its Main Street and excellent array of historic housing stock.
4 Chapter 1: Community Context Community Analysis
Pennsburg Borough shares many of the same demographic character- istics with other older boroughs and village centers in Montgomery County. This section will outline some of the main points regarding Pennsburg’s population, housing, and economic trends, in an effort to illustrate the community’s strengths, as well as its weaknesses. The majority of the information is drawn from the 2000 U.S. Census which is still applicable in terms of major trends and characteristics. More current information has been used wherever possible.
The population of the Borough in 2000 was 2,732, as illustrated in Figure 1.3. While the next actual population count will not occur until 2010, the U.S. Census Bureau does issue annual population estimates. According to the Bureau, Pennsburg’s most recent population estimate was 3,319 persons in 2007.
The rate of population change is a primary concern when crafting a plan for economic revitalization. Figure 1.4 shows the population over time from 1990 to the present, as well as the predicted trends in Pennsburg from the present time to 2025, as determined by the Dela- ware Valley Regional Planning Commission (DVRPC). After an in- crease of eleven percent between 1990 and 2000, the Borough’s population growth is estimated to have risen by a larger twenty-two percent between 2000 and 2007. That growth is expected to tail off in the future as the lack of land available for new housing projects in the Borough combines with a tough national economy. Current pro- jections between now and 2025 show a population increase of seven percent, a smaller rate than in the previous decade.
However, Pennsburg’s growth is atypical, as many smaller cities and boroughs in Pennsylvania have experienced population decreases over the past two decades, particularly regarding younger segments of the population. Continued growth in the Borough’s population, such as that shown by DVRPC’s forecast, will place a greater demand on Figure 1.3. Population, 1990-2007. Figure 1.4. Future Population Forecast. Population 1990 2000 2007 (estimate) Percent Change (1990-2007) 2,460 2,732 3,319 34.9% Source: U.S. Census Bureau 0 500 1,000 1,500
2,000 2,500
3,000 3,500
4,000 1990
2000 2005
2010 2015
2020 2025
Source: Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission population fore- casts, July 2007 5 Getting Back To Main Street: A Revitalization Plan for Pennsburg Pennsburg’s existing community services and facilities in proportion to the actual increase in population. In other words, the more Pennsburg grows, the greater the demand for facilities and services will be.
While Pennsburg is not exempt from the loss of young age groups (the 18-24 age group and the 25-34 age group experienced the largest decreases from 1990 to 2000), population age trends show the Bor- ough becoming a magnet for families. The age groups with the largest increases were 35-44 and 45-54 (Figure 1.5), two age groups that frequently have children. This is reinforced by the number of residents under the age of 18 increasing from 25.8% of the total population to 27%. Moreover, older age groups, particularly those over 65 years of age, decreased as a percentage of the total population. This illustrates that the primary growth in population is stemming from an influx of young families.
Despite the widespread diversification of household types throughout the country as well as the County, the largest household type for Pennsburg has remained “Married Couples with Children,” as Figure 1.6 illustrates. The ability to consistently attract married couples seek- ing to start a family or those already with children, can work in the Borough’s favor as it pursues revitalization.
Figure 1.7 details Pennsburg’s housing stock, broken down by type. The total number of housing units in 1990 was 902. By 2000, that number had increased by 19.5% (176 units) for a total of 1,078 hous- ing units. The largest individual group of housing units in the Borough was single-family detached units in both 1990 and 2000, which in- creased by 15% over the decade.
Like many other communities in the Upper Perkiomen Valley, Penns- burg is seeing more dense development. As such, the greatest in- creases during the decade from 1990 to 2000 were seen in single fam- ily attached units, which grew by 40.7% from 263 total units to 370, and multi-family units (2-4 units), which grew by 33.6% from 116 total units to 155.
1990 % Total 2000 % Total % Change
Number
Married Couples with Chil- dren
260 29.2% 289
28.6% 11.2% Married Couples with No Children 254
28.6% 268
26.6% 5.5% Single Parent 78
95
9.4% 21.8% Other Family 45
53
5.3% 17.8% 1 Person Non-Family House- holds 215
24.2% 242
24.0% 12.6% 2+ Person Non-Family Household 37
4.2% 62
6.1% 67.6% Total No. of Households 889
1,009
100% 13.5% Average People per House- hold 2.61
2.59
-0.8%
Figure 1.5. Age-Sex Pyramid, 2000. Figure 1.6. Household Types and Percent Change, 1990- 30% 20% 10% 0% 10% 20% 30% 0-4 5-17 18-24 25-34 35-44 45-54 55-64 65-74 75+ A g e G rou ps Percent of Population Female
Male Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, Census of Population and Housing, 1990, 2000. 6 Chapter 1: Community Context 29.2%
12.9% 13.3%
39.8% 4.9%
34.3% 14.4%
12.8% 38.5%
0.0% 0% 10% 20% 30%
40% 50%
Single Family Detached
Single Family Attached
Multi Family (2-4 Units)
Multi Family (5 or More Units) Mobile Home/Trailer/Other 2000 1990
Figure 1.7. Percentage of Total Housing Units, By Type, 1990-2000. Not only did these denser housing types grow individually, but cumula- tively they became a larger percentage of Pennsburg’s total housing units. In 1990, 55.4% of all houses were either Single Family At- tached homes, or Multi-Family (greater than 2) units. In 2000, that number grew to 61.5%. This is particularly relevant since the Upper Perkiomen Regional Comprehensive Plan suggests that development in the region should be directed towards the boroughs, which have historically been the economic and population bases for the valley.
This growth has increased even more since the Census was taken eight years ago, as favorable lending conditions fueled a nationwide housing boom. However, this rapid pace of development has slowed considera- bly as Pennsburg is running short of places in which to put new devel- opment. Most of the remaining opportunities for development in Pennsburg Borough involve either infill development or redevelopment of existing properties. Overall, the borough’s housing stock is in good condition and no areas are in need of significant improvement.
7 Getting Back To Main Street: A Revitalization Plan for Pennsburg Figure 1.10. Educational Attainment, 2000. 5% 16% 43% 23% 10% 3% Less than 9th grade 9th through 12th grade, no diploma High school graduate (includes equivalency) Some college or Associate degree Bachelor's degree Gradute or Professional degree
In terms of land use, Pennsburg is similar to most of the other small boroughs in the County; over 51% of its land use is residential, and as pointed out, most of that is single-family. The second most common land use is commercial, at 18%. This reflects not only the traditional commercial character of Main Street, but also some of the less dense commercial development happening within the interior portions of the Borough. Figure 1.8 shows the current land uses in Pennsburg.
Through the 1990s Pennsburg saw an increase in residents who achieved higher levels of education. This increase was due, at least in part, to young families moving into the Borough. For example, the percentage of residents age 25 or over who attended at least some college increased from 28.5% in 1990 to 35.4% in 2000, and the percentage of residents 25 or over with at least a high school diploma increased from 64.5% in 1990 to 78.7% in 2000. During that same period the number of residents 25 years and older with less than a ninth grade education decreased 46.4% from 179 to 96. Employment
At the time of the 2000 Census the 1,409 employed Pennsburg resi- dents worked in a wide variety of occupations. The top occupational group was Production/Transportation (as seen in Figure 1.11) followed by Clerical/Office jobs, and then employment in the service industry.
Typically, income is measured both by a municipality’s per capita in- come and median household income. Per capita income is an average derived by dividing the total income of a given area by that same area’s total population. Median household income is the point at which half the households of a given area have a higher income and half have a lower income.
Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, Census of Population and Housing, 2000. 8% 13% 8% 17% 13% 26% 0% 15% Management Professional Sales
Clerical/Office Construction Production/Transportation Farming
Services 8 Chapter 1: Community Context Figure 1.12. Income Trends, 1989-1999. Sources: U.S. Census Bureau; Census of Population and Housing, 1990, 2000. Pennsburg saw increases in both the per capita and median household income levels from 1989 to 1999. In 1989, Pennsburg’s per capita income was $13,261 and its median household income was $31,729. By 1999 both of those numbers had increased. In 1999, Pennsburg’s per capita income was $18,977 and its median household income was $46,715. This can be seen in figure 1.12. However, the difference between these figures is exaggerated, because for a truer comparison, the 1989 figure should be adjusted for the inflation that took place between then and 1999. Taking inflation into account, per capita and median household income both still grew by 6.8% and 9.9%, respec- tively.
The County as a whole had a per capita income in 1999 of $30,898 and a median household income of $60,829. Yet the statewide figures are much lower, at $20,880 and $40,106, respectively, illustrating that although Pennsburg falls below County averages, it is still above average compared to the state. Economic Development Since the previous plan in 2001, there have been some new develop- ments in and around Pennsburg which will affect the Borough. The construction of the Rite Aid at the corner of routes 663 and 29 has provided the Borough with both a new commercial establishment with a historic flair to its design, as well as a municipal parking lot. Across the street, a Dunkin Donuts has also been constructed. Both develop- ments will add to the municipal tax base. Building upon these develop- ments and past revitalization efforts, the borough should seek to com- plete their streetscape improvements along Main Street and Rt. 663, including traffic calming measures at the intersection of Rts. 29 and 663. Coordinating these streetscape efforts with a façade improve- ment program will establish a more consistent appearance along the main downtown corridors.
Somewhat farther afield, a Wal-Mart has been built on Route 29 in Upper Hanover Township, just beyond the border with East Greenville. This development will give Borough residents a new place to shop, but at the same time could potentially compete with current and new businesses on Main Street in the Borough. The borough should conduct a market study that will allow for the Borough to rede-
$13,261
$18,977
43.1%
Median Household (Unadjusted) $31,729
$46,715
47.2%
Per Capita (Adjusted) $17,767
$18,977 (no adjustment nec- essary) 6.8%
Median Household (Adjusted) $42,511
$46,715 (no adjustment nec- essary) 9.9%
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