Cedar Street Pocket Park Readied for Grant Proposals

The third meeting to discuss the proposed Cedar Street pocket park was held at Jenkintown Borough Hall last night. The plans currently include designs for a “passive” playground, a pergola, and bench seating.

The purpose of last night’s meeting was described as the last stage of the planning before submitting it for tax-payer funded grants. According to Borough Manager George Locke, the Environmental Protection Agency will fund the demolition of the buildings currently on the site and for soil remediation.

Council Member Christian Soltyziak points out details in the layout to the gathering.

Attending the meeting were Borough Council members Deborra Sines-Pancoe, Kimberly McGlonn, Christian Soltyziak, Anne MacHaffie and Mayor Alyson Dobbs. They were joined by about 26 residents and their children.

The presentation provided further details about layout, materials, and plantings and the discussion further involved demolition plans, expected timeliness, and how the construction would impact the already tight parking in that area.

Current proposed layout of the park.

Mayor Dobbs suggested the Borough ask the postal employees working at the office at the corner of Cedar and West Avenue find other places to park.

The plans will then be presented to the planning board in April and then submitted for full Council consideration after that.

There was no discussion about final costs to the project. The park is considered highly controversial, primarily for the absence of a transparent process used to acquire the property. At least two Council members (not present last night) have previously expressed their concerns about the process, saying that they were not informed of the meetings held to vote on the issue.

cedar street jenkintown
The above photo shows the site as it looked last year.