The Cemetery Plot Thickens

This appeared from Patrick Murphy in the Bucks County Courier Times yesterday...

In the May 29th edition of the Bucks County Courier Times, a statement I made was taken out of context on an issue that is extremely important to me personally and to many families in our community. I want to set the record straight: I am fighting for the national veterans’ cemetery to be here in Bucks County.

The Courier Times suggested that I am open to other sites. That is false. I said that I don’t want to “force so many brave patriots to wait any longer for the resting place they deserve.” That statement was about getting the Dolington site built quickly – as this honor is long overdue.

I am working very hard to make this cemetery in Bucks County a reality. The quiet, peaceful fields of Dolington – close to where George Washington led the first American veterans across the Delaware River – is the perfect place. We can give the veterans of World War II, Korea, Vietnam, the Persian Gulf and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan a final honor they – and their families – can be proud of. This is something that we have been working on in a bipartisan manner since I was sworn in.

In a recent letter, Veterans Administration Secretary Jim Nicholson restated that the Bucks County site in Dolington was the VA’s first choice but also said that they would look at other options. The other option he was referring to in that letter is the site in Chester County in Pennhurst.

The Pennhurst site has been fraught with delays, rising costs, shrinking land and a much less favorable location. Secretary Nicholson said that he remains committed to opening a new national cemetery in Southeastern Pennsylvania and continues “to believe that the VA will succeed in securing the Dolington tract.” He also described Pennhurst, and the terms that would allow for a cemetery in Chester County, as “decidedly less favorable” especially when compared to the Dolington site in Bucks County.

Building a cemetery here is good for veterans and our community but it is also good for the Council Rock School District – a major decision maker in these ongoing negotiations.

Presently, the Council Rock school board has approved in principle an option to sell a piece of land called the Melsky tract. If that sale is made and the zoning amendments agreed to by Newtown, Wrightstown and Upper Makefield townships go into effect, the cemetery that all of us want could become a reality in the not-too-distant future.

The school board will vote Thursday, June 7. They have a lot to consider, but this sale is good for the school district and the residents.

Former Council Rock School Board member and current Upper Makefield Supervisor Dan Worden said (when he was on the board nine years ago) that the Melsky tract was a thorn in the side of the school district. It still is today. The difference now is that Council Rock has a great opportunity to sell the land for a fair price. Council Rock could use funds from the sale to provide more opportunities for Council Rock students. Also, Wrightstown has agreed, in writing, to set aside land if Council Rock needs to build an additional school in the future.

This plan makes economic sense in the present and keeps an eye out for the future. Making this deal and building the cemetery also helps us fulfill a great moral obligation to our veterans to whom we owe so much.

For months, I have been meeting with each of the parties and organizations and have pledged federal dollars to make the cemetery here in Bucks County a reality.

I am cognizant of my role as an advocate and remain respectful of the role of local governments in settling this matter. I remain determined to build this cemetery because the site in Bucks County is preferred by veterans in our community and also by the VA. We must act quickly for these brave patriots, as the VA’s patience is not unlimited.

Heroes from World War II to present day conflicts have done much to ensure our freedom. By securing a final resting place here in Bucks County that is both picturesque and meaningful, we can ensure some measure of peace for those brave veterans and their surviving relatives.

This prior post describes how U.S. House Repug Jim Gerlach of the 6th District (along with Senate PA Repug lapdog Arlen Specter) are trying to secure the cemetery for the Pennhurst site, which of course would be a big-time coup for Gerlach and a major black eye for Patrick. More importantly, though, if Pennhurst were to be selected, it would be a vastly inferior selection as opposed to Dolington, partly because of the site cleanup that would be required, along with construction of an armory.

But more importantly, as I noted last March, Pennhurst wouldn’t even be raised as a potential site versus Dolington if Mikey Fitzpatrick were still representing the 8th district. Fortunately, that is no longer the case (though Fitzpatrick did work on trying to secure the Dolington site also – I have to be fair and point that out).

It sounds like the Council Rock School District is "in the driver's seat" on this issue, however. Let's hope they do the right thing and don't end up driving the whole thing right off a cliff, as they say, instead.

Update 6/23/07: This happened just as we were getting out of town, but the Melsky tract was sold in accordance with everyone's wishes, so, though this isn't a done deal yet, it looks like the biggest obstacle has been overcome (Above Average Jane has more here).