Regency Park is a Low-Income Multi Family community that offers 2 & 3 Bedroom Apartments.
We are conveniently located to public transportation, with easy access to dining, entertainment, & shopping.
The apartments offer a well lit private entrance and include modern appliances.
We have a very active Full-time Social Service Coordinator that provides services & programs for all Residents.
Our community includes an on-site laundry facility, community room, beautiful community garden and playground.
With our great location in Coatesville, Pennsylvania not only do we have privacy as a community but we also have the convenience of various shops, restaurants, entertainment, pharmacies, and more just minutes away.
So do the photos people in Coatesville are starting to post look nice to you?
Not to me.
I have been seeing these images increase and conversation online. Over the years, my experience has been that those who live in rent controlled or low income housing don’t really open their mouths unless it’s so bad it’s completely untenable because they fear they will be evicted or punished or worse.
Even people in regular apartments that aren’t section 8 or HUD or anything or loath to complain to a landlord especially if there’s someplace that is somewhat safe for them to live. Years ago, when I was still single and living in Lower Merion Township, I lived in a crappy apartment in a safe neighborhood and you couldn’t get the landlord to do anything unless the township had been through on a rental inspection. You had to play games just to survive.
My kitchen floor back then in my former apartment completely flexed as in you could feel it move when you walked on it because I think there was termite damage underneath. Only it was never repaired. The township back then told them to fix it, they never bothered. The floor had duct tape on it because it was bowing and everything so badly that the tiles kept popping up. Our doors in and out were not exterior grade doors. They were just interior doors and none of the windows locked in any apartments. Some tenants didn’t even have doors that actually locked properly.
So I feel for these people who don’t really have a choice they can’t just pick up and leave, they can’t just move. And where would they move to? It’s not like rentals are particularly affordable at this point even in Chester County. And is it true that this building has lots of single moms? Are they actually safe?
Apparently, Coatesville knows there are problems as in the city of so why don’t they act? How can the county turn a blind eye? It seems that a company out of Camden NJ runs the place, the Michaels Organization ?
They had me at Camden. SMH. Anyway I took a look at their executives on their website. Wonder if any of them have ever been to the property in Coatesville?
I don’t know anyone who lives in these apartments in Coatesville. But while things like the Daily Local’s “Operation Holiday” is running around why don’t they look into some folks who could use help? Or any other print or television media out there? Only a media spotlight will help and they could be the difference because the bad optics during the holiday season might mean these people will get help.
And Chester County Commissioners while you’re out raising taxes maybe do something about this? You like photo ops in Coatesville so go out with your inspectors and whomever is supposed to be in charge of affordable housing?
Ok I hope these people get attention. According to social media they are planning a peaceful protest on December 2 at 3 PM. 699 Victoria Drive Coatesville in front of “home office.”
I am not the media, just a blogger, and it should not be so hard for these people to get help. But hey, it’s a media desert out there.
So Michaels are y’all awake yet? Chester County? Coatesville? This place looks disgusting and a coat of paint will not address all that ails this complex will it? And I will note that the ONLY email Michaels lists for EVERYTHING is info@tmo.com
If I had been rescuing ducklings from an oil spill I would have been good this afternoon . But I was just getting some last minute holiday essentials delivered by Instacart.
Sigh. I went into pre-holiday meltdown over this one.
I treated myself to Instacart. I mean who likes going to grocery stores the week of Thanksgiving or any major holiday, am I right?
For me holiday grocery shopping PTSD started with a particular event in the early 2000s.
This comedically terrible event took place in the Bryn Mawr ACME before the store was rebuilt.
I had run in for a couple of things and I was right up against the shelving, reaching up on tips of my toes to get something off of the top shelf. All of a sudden it was “wham” and then “ouch”, as somebody had rammed a cart into the back of one of my heels and actually scraped it.
The cart was “driven” by angry male shopper who probably had a giant honey do list and instead of saying “Oh my gosh, are you OK?” He yelled at me that I should watch where I was going. He also told me that it was my fault.
Ummm yeah no.
Mouth flew open and I said “No, the correct response is ‘I am so sorry, I hope I didn’t hurt you,’ not ‘It’s your fault that I just maimed you.’”
Benny Brooks Brothers then told me I was a crazy bitch and basically cart wheelied down the aisle to I guess one presumes another ankle assault in a different aisle.
And since cell phones came into existence, the other thing I don’t like about holiday grocery shopping is listening to everyone’s cell phone conversations on speakerphone in the aisles. Women are more guilty of that than men and those women really should watch the conversations they’re having in public and that’s all I’m going to say other than no one needs to hear whom Charlie is cheating with, and favorite sexual positions of strangers.
Mmmkay no thanks.
So as I have been regaling all of you with tales of why I don’t like going to the grocery store right before a holiday, have you noticed the photos I’m posting? This is very important. This means that as any kind of a shopper even delivery you cannot escape the holiday curse sometimes.
I treated myself to Instacart, especially because I wanted things from Aldi and Aldi is crazy on a normal day. I had a “platinum shopper” so I thought I would be in good hands and yet when she tried to replace white wine vinegar with white vinegar, I should’ve known…. especially because I had as my instructions for a refund if it was not available.
She also wasn’t the most communicative shopper and that could’ve just been the Internet access in the store. She dropped the order off, and I went to retrieve it.
This is when I had my pre-holiday Calgon take me away moment. She had put the Dawn dish soap in the over stuffed shopping bag upside down. this meant my order was basted in Dawn dish soap.
Because there were things in paper containers, and paper sacks like flour for baking, they had to be thrown out because they were soaked in Dawn dish soap.
That soap permeated so much!
Also because the bag was poorly packed a lot of my eggs were broken and also were coated in liquid dish soap. And the yogurt container was somewhat smashed, with the added flavor of ….you guessed it….dish soap.
Now I admit Instacart customer service was wonderful and very apologetic because I sent them photos. I didn’t want them to think I was just trying to get free stuff . I don’t think even they had seen anything quite like that before.
Note that bags if you have to buy them aren’t that much and I would rather pay for a second bag then end up with dish soap all over my grocery order two days before a major holiday.
I also think I have to find another dish soap smell now.
Thanks for stopping by.
Thanksgiving shopping trauma victim signing off 🤣
I was over at Surrey Consignment Shop this morning and realized there was a brand new store next-door to them that I hadn’t been in. I don’t think it’s been there long, but it is such a breath of fresh air and if you’re going to Surrey, you have to stop there. It’s called B Devoted.
The owner Karen is so nice and she has a true artist’s soul. It’s clothing and things for gifts. And handmade and artisan jewelry.
The crafts people and purveyors she sources are women. She had these felted wool Christmas ornaments in the front of the store. I believe she said they were Peruvian made. They’re just beautiful. There were also these Christmas pillows that were handmade that I just loved. Plus, there were all sorts of pashmina wraps and these little ponchos and all sorts of stuff.
The store is bright and alive and has a great vibe. I look forward to going there again! And a postscript would be Surrey Consignment Shop is loaded with amazing finds!
Here we are coming towards the end of year seven missing . In Chester County we are now on the third district attorney in office since she went missing.
Say her name. Anna Maciejewska.
I have lost count of how many times I have written about her on this blog, and I never met her. But I still think about her and I think about her especially around the holidays because I think of the little boy she had who is not so little anymore who has probably lost the memory of the sound of his mother’s voice.
I wonder what that boy thinks and feels? I wonder if he is happy? I wonder what his father her husband tells him about his mother? I wonder if he ever talks to his Polish grandparents and how they are?
There has been no activity on the Facebook page for Anna in forever. I went to see if the PA Crimestoppers bulletin was still up for her as a missing person and …oh it can’t be found.
I wonder if the Pennsylvania State Police still think about her because she is their missing person’s case. Or have they just put her in a dusty drawer in a dusty cupboard in a storage room somewhere?
Christmas is coming people. Let’s say her name a little. I’m going to share the old videos that I can still find on YouTube about her.
Anna Maciejewska is still missing. Here’s hoping for a Christmas miracle that the state police remember she’s one of their cases. Here’s wishing and hoping that the current Chester County District Attorney could blow the dust off the case folders and help a little.
On November 11, 2014 Pamela Badolato launched a charity project and without telling anyone she knew, called Plaid Pajamas Project. She wanted to collect and distribute pajamas to people in need. They are about to hit their 10 year anniversary and in the past ten collection seasons we have donated probably 10,000 pairs of pajamas.
In her own words:
Every Christmas for as long as I can remember, my sister Kristina and I were allowed to open one gift on Christmas Eve. We received a new pair of pajamas from our grandparents, Nonnie and Poppie, and wore them that night. During our teen years we had some funny pajamas opening experiences as it was humorous to see what they would choose for us. You’ll still find us laughing till we cry when recounting a pair I got during my freshman year of college which were purchased slightly too large. How large you ask? Large enough for Kristina and I to fit in them- together!
As you can see, these pajamas played a huge part of our family Christmas memories. My parents, Mema and Pepa, carry on this tradition and give pajamas to our children each year, and even when we aren’t together it’s the only gift they open on Christmas Eve. Nonnie and Poppie sent pajamas to Jim and I through 2021. However, we lost our beloved grandmother in November 2022, but I know our pajamas are still from her heart no matter what.Â
Our family has been inspired by our tradition, one that many families share, and we’ve created Plaid Pajamas as a way to provide warm winter pajamas to people in need. Giving our children a chance to learn about the importance of being helpers and givers, not just receivers. Our pajama collection takes place from October through January, with distribution from the end of November through mid-January to various organizations.
The requests for pajamas have already begun rolling in, and she expects to have even more this year. So far they are committed once again to T&E Care, about 15 Head Start classes in Philadelphia, and will have a pair of pajamas for each child that receives a bike from Dom Fixes Bikes .
Their pajamas help keep people warm during the winter, regardless of what holidays you celebrate or not. Their mission is to provide some happiness, smiles, and warmth.
I have thought this was a good thing ever since the inception of this project. It’s simple. It makes people happy. It helps people whose holidays may not be so jolly have some good cheer. It’s just nice.
Seriously a dead chrysanthemum (mum) is just a dead mum. Would you spray paint a dead squirrel ? Probably not, right? So if you can’t keep a chrysanthemum (mum) alive and transplant it into your garden for next year, why can’t you give it a dignified exit?
I’ve been seeing this disturbing barf worthy loving hands at home craft idea since like 2018 or 2019 and I can’t believe it’s still around. It’s still ugly and it still looks like a spray paint it dead plant with some Christmas ornaments stuck in it.
People have videos on YouTube and TikTok about this. How on earth do they think that’s crafting or normal looking or festive? It looks like Morticia Adams got bored with cutting the heads off of flowers.
I’m sorry is it just me or am I being mean? There are those who like to say I am a mean blogger as some of tell me that all the time all of you lovely people out there but I might have a grinch about Christmas? I don’t think so because I actually love Christmas and I don’t see a dead mum as a Christmas decoration.
Take this TikTok from Horine Homestead:
Or this one from Lora Bo
Actually, there are tons of videos on TikTok and elsewhere about this which is just like blows my mind.
If you want to add pizazz to your front porch or front walk and more, try real greens or even something artificial and even weather resistant Christmas greenery.
I guess my point is there are so many things that you can do with so little to create Christmas magic out front of your house or even in different parts of the inside of your house and it doesn’t mean you have to spray paint dead plants.
Well it ended up being the worst kept secret in Malvern. Kamala Harris and Liz Cheyney were at People’s Light.
I watched with a friend on Facebook Live and it was impressive. And there were quite a few Republicans in the audience. People don’t want a Trump do-over. I know I do not.
I totally would have gone if invited. Even if I was a Republican.
I already did vote for Kamala. And for Republicans out there? You won’t turn to stone if you vote for her – I didn’t when I voted for Obama. And no one has to know what you do in the sanctity of the voting booth. The real Republican party, the party of Lincoln, no longer exists. That is the long and short of it. So if REAL Republicans want to turn the page? Vote Kamala Harris.
I have thought what has happened to Bob Lange and his wife who own Sugartown Strawberries abominable.
Now, probably because I am a blogger, and I wrote about this, I am being targeted from random people in other parts of the country.
These people should be advised that I have absolutely no problem sending everything to federal and local law-enforcement. They want to vomit their First Amendment rights all over everyone and they want their rights to matter more than my rights, for example? That’s not the way the Constitution works.
We will support our local businesses around here, in spite of the craziness of election season.
Shame on any person who calls themselves a Republican, who thinks that this kind of behavior is acceptable.
It’s a shame that people are acting like this, but to the rest of you out there I say vote. Vote to preserve your rights.
Please check out todays daily local, thursday, Oct 4th. Please look under public notices for the Downingtown Borough. FEMAand PEMA are asking for bids, to KNOCK DOWN 8 properties on Brandywine Ave. The very old duplex houses. 8!!!!! Please let your readers know about this.. I believe many are rented? Owned? Very sad… Destroying history again.
Look, I hate seeing houses get torn down, but this isn’t to destroy history. This is to basically try to make sure that Downingtown doesn’t flood again like it did during Ida.
FEMA and PEMA doing that means they just flood too badly that’s not destroying history that’s trying to save people a lot of aggravation in the future. It’s unknown, whether this will work or not.
I will post the notice from the Daily Local which you can also find online a PA public notices :
NOTICE CONTENT
NOTICE TO BIDDERS DOWNINGTOWN BOROUGH PROPERTY ACQUISITION, DEMOLITION & RESTORATION PROJECT Bids for the demolition and restoration of eight (8) properties (listed below) located within the 100-year floodplain of the East Branch of Brandywine Creek and its tributary Parke Run will be received by Downingtown Borough. The project involves providing all labor, supervision, equipment and materials to complete the demolition of the existing improvements such as slabs, foundation and retaining walls, pads, walkways, ornamental vegetation, as well as the work associated with site restoration and stabilization activities, including temporary erosion and sedimentation controls and restoring the public right-of-way areas (public curbs/sidewalks, roadways, etc.). Moreover, the Work also includes streambank stabilization and revegetation, wing-wall installation and bridge scour protection, furnishing, placement and compaction of clean fill material to bring the sites to grade, furnishing and placement of topsoil, and final grading and seeding and mulching all disturbed areas. The project will also include the removal and proper disposal of demolition debris and rubble and providing all labor, equipment and materials to complete asbestos abatement/removal within the structures as well as removal and proper disposal of all waste as specified prior to the demolition of the structures. The successful bidder will be responsible to confirm that the utility services to the properties have been disconnected and terminated with the various service providers. Note: The streambank stabilization and revegetation and wing-wall installation and bridge scour protection is only required at the 128 Brandywine Avenue property. This work also requires stream diversion and protection procedures. Property List •112 Brandywine Avenue, Downingtown, PA 19335 •114 Brandywine Avenue, Downingtown, PA 19335 •121 Brandywine Avenue, Downingtown, PA 19335 •123 Brandywine Avenue, Downingtown, PA 19335 •125 Brandywine Avenue, Downingtown, PA 19335 •126 Brandywine Avenue, Downingtown, PA 19335 •127 Brandywine Avenue, Downingtown, PA 19335 •128 Brandywine Avenue, Downingtown, PA 19335 Bidders are required to comply with the Pennsylvania Prevailing Wage Act of 1961, P.L. 987, No. 442, where the project cost is twenty-five thousand dollars or above. Funding for this project is provided by FEMA/PEMA to acquire and demolish the properties that have been impacted by flooding from hurricane Ida. The bid documents and attachments can be viewed through PennBid (www.PennBid.net) or at the office of Downingtown Borough located at 4 W. Lancaster Avenue, Downingtown, PA 19335 beginning on October 4, 2024 at 10:00 a.m. local prevailing time. Sealed bids must be submitted online through the PennBid electronic procurement program prior to November 5, 2024 at 10:00 a.m., at which time they will be opened publicly and read aloud at the office of the Downingtown Borough. An optional prebid meeting and site walk-through will be held at the Borough address above for all prospective bidders at 10:00 AM local prevailing time on October 15, 2024. Bids and bid security shall be furnished in accordance with the instructions to bidders. Bidders shall submit proof of qualifications to perform the work as described in the instructions to bidders. Downingtown Borough reserves the right to waive technicalities and to reject any or all bids or items herein in the best interest of the Municipality. Technical questions concerning this work and directions to Downingtown Borough and properties should be directed to Mr. Matthew Bush of JMR Engineering, LLC at (484) 880-7342. DLN 10/4, 10/10; 1a
All of these houses have been acquired by the Borough of Downingtown for demolition because of the flooding.
Yes this is unpleasant, but so is the flooding and it’s not the first time it flooded badly there. All you have to do is go to the Downingtown Historical Society website. 
No one wants to lose homes in a community. No one wants to lose historic homes that means something to people in a community, but sometimes the truth of why something is happening is not so simplistic as “it’s wrong.”
DOWNINGTOWN — The damage wrought by a summer disaster continues to break hearts in the borough.
Efforts for the recovery from the damaging floodwaters of Ida, a tropical storm which struck the Northeast on September 1, inspired citizens to share their stories — from fears and woes to concerns and hopes for the immediate present and near future — at the Downingtown Borough Council on Wednesday night which lasted nearly three hours….Residents who spoke of personal and local devastation suffered from the floodwaters of Ida included Randall Scott, John McMichael, Megan Stellfox, Dawn McMichael, Sara Brown, Lorraine Geiling, Patrick Moffitt, Patricia Moffitt, Gina Curry and Joann Widener, among others.
The United States Department of Homeland Security Federal Emergency Management Agency sent representation to the Downingtown Council meeting to share information.
“It breaks my heart,” said Dague upon listening to the residents who spoke up on Wednesday, many sharing they needed help still in wake of the storm. “A lot of people were upset that FEMA was turning them down.”
The mayor added that there was a FEMA representative at the meeting who hopefully shared resources with the residents who attended. FEMA has been in Downingtown every day for the past three weeks or so.
Now, a month and one week since Ida struck Downingtown, a storm that also resulted in the death of one borough resident, many people remain unable to return to their homes, even as winter months swiftly approach…”It’s weeks later. It’s better. We’re living our lives because we don’t have a choice,” said Downingtown resident Gina Curry while addressing elected officials at the Borough Council meeting on October 7.
A resident who suffered considerable flood damage to her home and property, Curry said she begged for help, and received the support that she had desperately sought when she reached out to the borough and asked.
“But a lot of people can’t. They won’t,” Curry said of fellow residents suffering in silence still from damages to their homes caused by Ida.
Floods are common occurrences in Downingtown when there is rainfall.
Curry said, “I am terrified every time it rains.” …..Downingtonian John McMichael said there are so many dams in the community, which creates an excess amount of waterflow to the borough.
“Eighty percent of Chester County floods out because of over-development,” McMichael said.
Many people who spoke during public comment Wednesday night concurred that some people in town remained without electricity while others had suffered in want of food because of ongoing power outages first sparked during the storm.
Dague estimated that at least 30 homes still remain completely unoccupied.
That man quoted above said 80% of Chester County floods because of over development. I don’t know if his percentage is correct but it is a huge contributing factor along with climate change. So if people want to get upset, get upset with your state legislators, who won’t update the Municipalities Planning Code to preserve our communities and stop the rampant march of development in our county and region and statewide.
The people who owned these properties chose to sell to FEMA and PEMA. and I can tell you, I know if neighborhoods in North Wayne, who maybe wished they had had the option after a hurricane years ago to sell out to FEMA or PEMA except they listened to a commissioner who told them it would be fine. And it’s not fine on some of these streets in Radnor Township in North Wayne every time there’s a bad rain storm. And maybe if those homeowners had been bought out back then they would’ve had the ability to be able to afford to stay in their communities. I don’t know that most of them would have that affordability or option today.
We have to hit the brakes on development, especially in light of climate change because we all know that these storms were getting that used to be reserved. The lofty titles like 100 year storm or 200 year storm or 150 year storm or whatever are happening toooften.
These old houses in Downingtown are sadly what is known as collateral damage, and so are the renters in them. I don’t know that they’re all rental properties but I suspect a lot of them were.
I apologize to people who might not understand why I’m writing this post and think that I should be fighting to save these houses. I can’t save these houses, it’s literally not my place, and having seen the damage that water can do, you sadly come to the realization we can’t save everything because people can’t keep losing everything they own every time it rains.
Alice down the Air BnB and VRBO rabbit hole continues. Mostly Chester County and crazy to reasonable prices, so many municipalities. Most, but not all municipalities, have provisions for these “short term rentals.“ However, I still think that in a lot of cases, they don’t know where all of these “short term rentals” are within their municipalities.
Then you have to wonder if municipalities are leaving money on the table? Do they charge these “short term rentals“ annual fees? Are there more frequent inspections? Do they see if these properties are carrying extra insurance that one would think they would need?
It’s not just a cottage industry for people who don’t know what to do with properties, you also have the speculative don’t you? So how does this affect the overall health of the community? I’m not saying they’re bad, but it seems like there is a glut of them doesn’t it?
They are limiting Air BnBs and VRBOs in Europe. They’re doing it to preserve the character and history of places among other things.
I found an interesting BBC article from this past July:
And that’s the thing isn’t it? These are another form of flipper these people that do these short term, rental places, and they are competing with families and individuals looking for a place to live that’s somewhat affordable.
I think, given the glut of these short term rentals on the Main Line and Chester County and other places like Chadds Ford or Edgemont, etc. we probably need some rules. Could short term rental properties like this also be yet another reason why the Municipalities Planning Code of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania might want to be updated since it hasn’t really been done since 1969?
Well, this is just some more to think on. At the bottom are the two other posts I have written this week on this topic.
This was a topic of discussion, apparently in Harrisburg this summer :
Policy hearing examined impact of short-term rentals on housing availability, tourism
Pennsylvania House Democratic Caucus July 29, 2024 | 2:44 PM
PITTSBURGH, JULY 29 – The number of short-term rental properties are on the rise in Pennsylvania, and testifiers at Monday’s House Majority Policy Committee hearing on the topic detailed the need to introduce regulations to address ongoing concerns.
The hearing, hosted by Rep. Lindsay Powell (D-Allegheny), examined the increase of short-term rental properties and its impact on tourism and housing availability. In 2022, there were 107 active short-term rental properties in Lawrenceville, but that number has since doubled and continues to increase. This increase in rental property ownership comes amid a housing crisis facing residents across the state.
“We have a growing need to make sure we have affordable, accessible, and dignified housing. We also have a need to expand our tourism efforts in Western Pennsylvania,” said Powell. “We need to explore ways we can expand tourism while creating more opportunities for affordable housing in a way that they are not diametrically opposed.”
Testifiers noted a disturbing trend of out-of-town entities purchasing homes for the sole purpose of turning them into a short-term rental properties. A recent Corporate Housing Studyshowed an 18% increase in houses sold to corporate entities in Allegheny County.
“There’s strong evidence that short-term rentals exacerbate our affordability crisis by reducing the overall supply of rental housing through conversions into short-term rentals and by boxing out prospective homebuyers,” said Dave Breingan, Executive Director of Lawrenceville United. “This will disproportionately impact low-income and elderly homeowners, families with children and first-time homebuyers.”
Testifiers agreed that local, responsible short-term rental operators can and have helped positively impact the area. However, many out-of-town entities purchase property for short-term rental use, then neglect their responsibilities. This has led to massive late-night parties that come with disruptive noise, public drunkenness, fighting and littering.
With the impacts on housing affordability, public safety and tourism, testifiers detailed the need for more regulations on short-term housing ownership. Recommendations include preserving housing stock for traditional homeownership, introducing efforts to minimize public nuisance complaints and reducing heavy concentrations of short-term rentals in residential areas.
I don’t know why our communities aren’t having more conversations about the short term rentals. Actually, I do know because look what happened in Willistown when they were almost discussed a while back, and it’s like everything goes underground. It’s a very contentious in West Chester borough right now. It was an issue in West Vincent.
This is a curious issue. I think perhaps it would be less curious if communities would discuss this openly. And I don’t think it’s for in a lot of cases a lack of residents trying. I really think it goes back in the end to each municipality, and how they are approaching the topic, if they have approach the topic, and maybe if they need to discuss the topic some more. 
