Council president extends olive branch in Harvest Day rift

YARDLEY BOROUGH – Yardley Borough Council President Joe Hunter said this week he would be open to sitting sit down with members from the Yardley Business Association (YBA) and the Makefield Women’s Association (MWA) in an attempt to restore control of Harvest Day to both organizations.

Hunter said he is “concerned about the image” of Yardley and the annual event, which in recent years has been organized and run by both the YBA and the MWA. Recently, a rift developed between the groups as each proposed plans to run Harvest Day exclusively.

The council president appealed to both groups to sit down with him and come up with “a mutual agreement” and asked that a representative from each side call either Hunter or Borough Manager John Boyle.

“Either way, we can all meet and discuss this issue rather than trying to find out through newspaper articles,” Hunter said. “I want to see if we can come to an agreement on working together for Harvest Day.”

YBA President Margaret Bork said her group is amenable to such a meeting.

“The YBA is agreeable to meeting with Joe Hunter to keep dialogue open with the MWA regarding 2013 Harvest Day,” Bork said.

Bork appeared before council Jan. 15 to present YBA’s plan to go it alone.

While Hunter acknowledged supporting YBA’s plan, he said there was no other plan before council to support at the time Bork made her proposal. He

said there was a consensus by council at the Jan. 15 meeting to support YBA’s plan to run Harvest Day without the MtA.

“ko one else asked us for support, so we supported YBA,” Hunter said.

“ko one’s contacted us [from MtA] that they want to do this event. I am willing to work this out and for the two parties to come to a mutual agreement.”

At press time, MtA president haren Parmalee said they had not heard from Hunter.

MtA said they learned just before Harvest Day last year that Bork had told a borough official in an e-mail that YBA might go it alone. MtA said Bork was trying to get the vendor list from the official. curther, the organization accused the YBA of underhandedly trying to take over the annual fall craft and street fair. The YBA is saying the event should be more than a fundraiser for MtA, which uses proceeds from Harvest Day to help battered women and children with cancer, other causes.

Bork said the event should be more “Yardley-centric”. phe said MtA as a non-profit organization could still participate in Harvest Day.