Construction KOs Ridley’s Fall Festival this year
RIDLEY TOWNSHIP » There will be no Fall Festival in the township this year because of a construction project that is taking place on the front lawn of the municipal building and the ongoing building for the library expansion.
The annual festival, held every September, began about 35 years ago and was sponsored by the township Recreation Department, the library and the Environmental Advisory Board. The event featured day-long entertainment, activities for children, a book sale, arts and crafts fair, flea market, food court and a bicycle auction.
“This project is going to go into January or February, including the new library,” said Board of Commissioners President Bob Willert of the construction.
The expansive front lawn is undergoing a storm water management project and rain garden installation. Curbing and sidewalks along the Morton Avenue side of the property will be added. Additional parking is also part of the project.
Willert said the library expansion means all library facilities will be on one floor. The childrens’ library is now on the lower level of the municipal building. Once space is freed up on the lower level, the code enforcement office will move there. There will also be more space for the police department. Willert noted the popularity of the library with statistics showing that 120,000 people visited the facility last year.
Willert said there will be no tax increase for the current project because the township borrowed the funds to finance it about eight years ago and the loan is almost paid off.