Rotary Club wants signs in Chestnut Hill to protect pedestrians

The Chestnut Hill Rotary Club wants three new signs to alert drivers to watch out for pedestrians at the top of the hill.

Christian Mongrain, president of the Chestnut Hill Rotary Club, is looking for community support for the idea. He presented the plan Tuesday night to the Chestnut Hill Community Association’s Development Review Committee.

Mongrain says he would like the three Rotary Club pedestrian warning signs to be posted near the top of the Hill on Germantown Avenue. One near Chestnut Hill College, a second close to the new location for Children of America daycare center, and the third on Bethlehem Pike near the bus depot.

Patricia Cove, a member of the DRC and representative of the Chestnut Hill Historical Advisory Committee, expressed concern that the signs would not fit in with Chestnut Hill’s urban design guidelines.

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She also expressed concerns that allowing the signs to be posted would act as a sort of advertisement, since the proposed sign contains the Rotary Club insignia, and that other organizations would attempt to place signs as a means of advertisement.

“We do try to limit advertising signs, so to speak,” Cove said.

Tom Hemphill, another member of the committee and a representative of the CHCA’s Traffic, Transportation and Parking Committee, disagreed. “I don’t consider this an advertisement in my mind,” he said.

Others were concerned that the signs may act as more of a distraction than anything else.

Mongrain didn’t see this as a problem “A sign, while in some people’s mind may be a distraction, does raise awareness.”

The DRC approved the signs but the full CHCA board will have the final say.

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