Month: November 2017

Thanksgiving Message from Nittany Valley Water Coalition to Penn State

Thanksgiving: It is time for PSU to give to its neighbors

Penn State University sits within the community and is reliant upon the community. However, it is fair to say that it has less than ideal town-gown relationships.

For almost three years the community has asked Penn State not to sell farmland along Whitehall Road near Blue Course Drive for development.

The Nittany Valley Water Coalition (NVWC) objects to a large student development in this location because of the risks to the local water supply and the quality of Slab Cabin Run, which is downslope from the development site.

A conservation easement is being placed on other land in this area, and Penn State should preserve this parcel for the same reasons.

More than 5,000 signatures on petitions opposing this development, 1,000 yard signs around town, and more than $40,000 in donations for legal costs all speak to the community’s support to protect this farmland.

NVWC also protests on the grounds that any development on farmland threatens neighboring farms because of increased run-off and flooding and pressure on other farmers to sell. There is a great deal of research showing that development on farmland increases the likelihood that nearby farms will find it difficult to keep farming.

Now the developer, Toll Brothers, has submitted a letter of intent to Penn State to purchase and build on an alternate site on West College Avenue, across from the Waffle Shop, which presents far less environmental risk.

To date Penn State’s response has been to stonewall, hoping that the Whitehall Road sale will close in a few weeks with no decision made by Penn State on the offer from Toll Brothers on the alternate site.

Penn State –

You are a Land Grant University with a strategic plan that aims to be good stewards of our natural resources. It should not require the citizens to tell you the right thing to do here.

As a show of good faith, we ask that you immediately begin to work with Ferguson Township to rezone the West College Avenue site, which would allow Toll Brothers to purchase it, and put a hold on the closing of the West Whitehall Road parcel and the escrow deposit until negotiations with Toll Brothers over the West College Avenue parcel are complete.

This does not commit you to the sale but it would show that you are acting in good faith.

In this Thanksgiving week please give us, your neighbors, something to be thankful for.

 

NVWC – Questions put to David Gray, PSU Vice President for Finance and Business

Email sent to David Gray by Kelli Hoover this morning:

Dear David:

I sent these questions to [Director of Community Relations] Charima [Young] on Friday, November 17.

Both the Nittany Valley Water Coalition and Toll Brothers would like answers to these questions before Thanksgiving.

These questions are:

A. Does Penn State have a list of what is expected from Toll Brothers to enable a decision to sell the West College Ave. parcel in lieu of the West Whitehall Road parcel?

B. Was a timeline established for Toll Brothers to respond and if so, what is that timeline?

[Penn State Senior Director of News and Media Relations] Lisa Powers’ list in the Centre Daily Times on November 17 was that Penn State needs:

C. “Written feasibility studies.” More than one?

D. “Zoning inquiries or recommendations…to Penn State.” Does this mean you want in writing what Toll Brothers was told by Ferguson Township staff about how the West College Ave. parcel might be re-zoned to permit student housing and light commercial? I.e., mixed use? [Toll Brothers Campus Living Managing Director] Charles Elliott can provide this information since Toll Brothers has had at least two discussions about this with Ferguson Township staff.

E.  “Overall analysis of the site.” What does this mean? This is pretty vague. Can you be more specific?

The information required from Toll Brothers needs to be clear, inclusive, and a timeline stipulated that would allow Penn State officials to review and make a decision about whether to take the offer to the Penn State Board of Trustees.

F. Who is the decision-maker about what is needed and whether or not to take this to the Board of Trustees?

G. Can you provide Penn State’s land purchase protocol/checklist that requires this list of written information Penn State needs from a buyer before they can enter a sales negotiation?

H. Would Penn State be willing to hold funds in escrow from Toll Brothers and postpone the close of the Whitehall Road contract while information and negotiations over the West College Ave. site continue? Richard Keyser, [Toll Brothers Vice President of Commercial Acquisition and Development] calls this “warehousing.”

I. We would still like information about the Penn State Real Estate Task Force, when it was created, who’s on it, and what their qualifications are.

J. Most importantly, we are requesting a meeting of yourself [representing Penn State], and representatives from Toll Brothers, Nittany Valley Water Coalition and Ferguson Township, using an agreed-upon mediator, to work out a solution that all parties can accept. Lara Fowler, who is an expert mediator, is willing to serve this role. She will be contacting you as well.

Thank you,

Kelli Hoover

NVWC Press Release – November 15, 2017

Toll Brothers makes offer to Penn State for an alternative site to Whitehall Road for student housing

Nittany Valley Water Coalition (NVWC) held a follow-up meeting on November 14th with Toll Brothers’ representative Richard Keyser, Vice-President of Apartment Living, to discuss their recent review of PSU-owned land that would serve as an alternative site for a student housing project currently slated for Whitehall Road.

On October 31, Toll Brothers submitted a formal Letter of Intent expressing interest in purchasing a 19-acre parcel on West College Avenue in front of the Blue Course golf course and across the road from the Waffle Shop as the alternative site. In prior meetings with NVWC, Toll Brothers expressed interest in the W. College location due to its proximity to campus, downtown, and student amenities. There is also strong community support for this property as an alternative site for the planned development.

Since August, Toll Brothers has been conducting due diligence research and design planning to determine the feasibility of this site for a mixed-use development, a combination of student housing and commercial use. Most new and proposed developments in the region have some type of mixed-use component, which is also consistent with regional planning directives and has support by the larger community.

Mr. Keyser emphasized that Toll Brothers wants to work with the community and hopes to engage in the development process and land sale with the cooperation of Ferguson Township and Penn State as quickly as possible.

However, in a follow-up meeting with a representative from Penn State, Charima Young, she cited a poorly defined “process that must be followed” that could delay or thwart any desired “land swap” even though Kurt Kissinger, Associate Vice- President for Business & Finance has previously stated in writing to the NVWC that Penn State has no plans for the West College site. According to Toll Brothers and Penn State, price is not at issue. Mr. Keyser stated that Toll Brothers wants the W. College site, not Whitehall, so the impediment to this “land swap” is a timing issue exacerbated by Penn State.

Ms. Young informed us that there is now a task force of Board of Trustees members who are charged with reviewing and making decisions on all Penn State land holdings to determine best use of these properties. She did not know when this task force was established but that question is relevant to consideration of the sale of the W. College parcel to Toll Brothers in lieu of the Whitehall parcels.

Putting this decision into the hands of a task force is a stalling tactic. PSU told the public many times that they were just the seller of land, and it was not their concern what is done with it after the sale. What changed? It appears that Penn State’s objective is to run out the clock forcing Toll Brothers to take possession of the land on Whitehall via the existing sales agreement, which is due to close in the next few weeks.

However, Toll Brothers could walk away; besides losing their funds in escrow, it is not clear that Penn State could force Toll Brothers to pay the remaining balance. Instead, they could purchase and build on any number of parcels available in the region.

The community supports Toll Brothers building student housing on West College Ave., not on Whitehall Road. upslope of Slab Cabin Run and the Thomas-Harter wells.

Although Penn State contracted with local farmers for winter wheat to be planted on the Whtehall Road site, no such planting has taken place. Therefore the risk to the Whitehall Road site for imminent development remains.

For additional information, contact:
Kelli Hoover at kxhoover2015@gmail.com, 814-883-4854, or visit nittanyvalley-eco.org