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West Chester committee recommends adoption of Goose Creek pollution-reduction plan
Summary
The West Chester Public Works Committee on Dec. 9 recommended (3-0) adopting the Goose Creek pollution-reduction and TMDL addendum required under the MS4 permit; the plan emphasizes rain gardens, targeted stream restoration and use of the borough's stormwater fee reserves.
The West Chester Borough Public Works Committee voted unanimously in committee on Dec. 9 to recommend adopting the Goose Creek pollution-reduction plan addendum required by Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection stormwater (MS4) rules and the Goose Creek TMDL.
Borough manager Sean Metrick and engineer Kelly Goff summarized the plan, which identifies prioritized, small-scale projects such as streambank restoration and rain gardens, and relies in part on ongoing street-sweeping credits and tree planting to meet reduction targets. "We're really, really lucky," Metrick said, noting the borough's existing stormwater fee reserves provide funding for work. Goff added the revised addendum and supporting materials are posted on the borough website and that staff scheduled outfall inspections and sampling.
The plan does not commit the council to specific designs or locations. Metrick told the committee adoption of the addendum is a required five-year update that sets targets and gives staff a portfolio of candidate projects to bring back to council for individual approval. "By adopting this plan, you are not committing to any one design, any one specific location," he said, adding the council will review projects before bidding.
Committee members asked about street sweeping and whether increasing frequency would yield significant credit under the plan. Goff said street sweeping accounts for roughly 0.56% credit per current measures and that the borough has effectively plateaued that credit for existing locations. She said rain gardens and other best-management practices (BMPs) provide larger percentage reductions per location. The plan also lists planted-tree credits as a recurring BMP (about 0.7% per year as discussed in the presentation).
Several members raised feasibility questions about stream-restoration buffers. Goff said a 35-foot vegetated buffer is a typical regulatory target but acknowledged much of the Goose Creek watershed in the borough is highly developed and cannot accommodate full buffers without land acquisition or daylighting buried streams.
The committee recorded a 3-0 recommendation to advance the plan for council consideration. The committee noted the borough will continue to run public outreach and bring individual project proposals back to council for site-specific review and bidding.
