A sad time for the southern Berks area

Photo: Dylan Brown


I'm very sad to report that there have been three people in the area that have died in the last couple of weeks.

Dylan Brown, an Exeter Township student, died July 14 after a two-year-battle with cancer. Brown was an inspiration to his teachers, his fellow students and community members. He would come to school even if he wasn't feeling well and was an honorary member of several local sports teams.

Accordingto police reports, A Fleetwood student, Ian Kanegawa, died just a few days ago in a tractor trailer accident along Route 422.

Also, Kenneth Lang, a Birdsboro resident and principal at High Point Baptist Academy, died in Outer Banks, N.C. last Thursday. His obituary states that he accidentally drowned. A friend said that Lang had a positive influence on students and students have been leaving messages on Facebook, a social Web site, about him.

For more information, read The Southern Berks News.

Traffic on 422

I was traveling on Route 422 through Amity and Exeter townships this Tuesday and encountered construction and delays.
In Amity, there was a short delay not far from where you make a left to go to Route 82. Then I encountered quite a delay when I reached Exeter due to a lane closure close to the Exeter Commons construction site.

Exeter Commons is a new shopping center that is scheduled to open in 2009. The center is going to be anchored by Target, Giant and Lowe’s. A groundbreaking ceremony was held at the end of May in Exeter. Officials and developers have named creation of jobs, additional places to shop, increasing the commerical tax base and fixing up roads as benefits of the center. A total of $18 million is being used to improve parts of Route 422.

In Exeter it was a stop and go situation and I felt a little frustrated since I had not even reached my destination yet. (I was probably delayed along the stretch of highway near Gibraltar Road for about 10 minutes, which seems a lot worse when you’re in a hurry.)

On the positive side, it looked like the lane was going to be widened so that will be great when it’s all done. Township officials have said that construction is also going to take place in the evenings which will definitely eliminate delays for drivers.

For updates on the Exeter Commons project, keep reading The Southern Berks News and visit the Exeter Township Web site, http://www.co.berks.pa.us/exeter/site/default.asp.

I think it’s great Exeter Township and developers are keeping the public updated through the Web site rather than leaving area residents wonder what's going on.