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HELP STOP LOCAL THIEVES…New Meetup: March & Rally to Support the Property Rights of an 80-Year-Old Widow

Tuesday, October 13th, 2009

March & Rally to Support the Property Rights of an 80-Year-Old Widow

Join your fellow freedom lovers to stand up for property rights. We have three goals:

1) Block the theft of Elizabeth Patane’s property by Abington Township Commissioners
2) Save taxpayers millions of dollars
3) Send a strong message to other politicians considering eminent domain land grabs

Saturday, October 17, 2009

10:00 AM: Meet at Roychester Park
Parkview Ave & Harding Ave, Roslyn, PA 19001
Directions: http://tinyurl.com/yle8rfq

From here, we will visit the homes of homes of three of the eight commissioners who voted to take Mrs. Patane’s property.

12:00 Noon: Rally at Mrs. Patane’s property
1180 Easton Road, Roslyn PA, 19001
Directions: www.tinyurl.com/TheStolenProperty

1:00 PM: March & Canvass
March to the Township Building (no torches or pitchforks, please) with stops at the homes of two of the eight commissioners who voted to take Mrs. Patane’s property.

3:00 PM: Main Rally
Abington Township building, 1176 Old York Road, Abington, PA 19001
Directions: http://tinyurl.com/yz84usn

4:30 PM: March & Canvass
March to the homes of of three more of the eight commissioners.

Full map: www.tinyurl.com/RallyForPropertyRights

The Abington Township Commissioners have begun unjustified legal proceedings to seize the property of Elizabeth Patane, an 80-year-old widow who has made it clear she will fight the taking to the last inch. A rally in support of Mrs. Patane’s property rights will be held rain or shine on Saturday, October 17, 2009, featuring a march on the Abington Township building (but please no torches or pitchforks!).

Supporters will begin gathering at noon on Saturday in the parking lot of Mrs. Patane property, 1180 Easton Road, Roslyn Penna, 19001 (www.tinyurl.com/TheStolenProperty). The rally will be called to order at 1 PM, and at 1:15 will begin a march on the township building, making two twenty-minute stops along the way. The first will be at the home of Commissioner Lori Schreiber who first proposed the taking, and the second at the home of Commissioner John Carlin who voted in favor of it. The route will follow sidewalks through residential neighborhoods all the way, so it’s alright to bring the kids and strollers along.

By 3 PM the rally is expected to arrive at the Abington Township building, 1176 Old York Road, Abington Penna. 19001. Numerous dignitaries will be on hand to address the citizens, including Dick and Nancy Saha of Coatesville, who successfully fought back efforts by that town to seize their family farm. Also speaking are Pat Sellers of Chester County, a veteran of the Saha victory, and Ken Krawchuk, former Libertarian candidate for Pennsylvania Governor and a long-time Abington activist. In addition to members of the Patane family, every Abington Township Commissioner has also been invited to briefly address the rally (although few are likely to accept). Ceremonies are expected to conclude around 4 PM.

In addition to the big march on the township building, there will be two roving rallies, one before the march and one afterwards. The morning rally begins at 10 AM in Roychester Park, and will pay visits to the homes of three other commissioners who voted in favor of taking Mrs. Patane’s property: James Ring, Les Benzak, and Carol DiJoseph. The afternoon rally begins at 4:30 PM to visit the final three: Michael O’Connor, Steven Kline, and Ernie Peacock. A detailed itinerary can be found at www.tinyurl.com/RallyForPropertyRights, but it is subject to change. Commissioners have until midnight Thursday to recant their vote in order to be dropped from the agenda.

According to official minutes posted at www.Abington.org, the Abington Commissioners voted in February to use eminent domain to seize Mrs. Patane’s storefront property for use as a neighborhood library, even though the main township library is approximately one mile away and no other neighborhood has its own library. Further, there was another building already for sale across the street from Mrs. Patane’s property which could have been purchased instead, and without litigation. Township officials have admitted that Mrs. Patane’s taxes were current and that there were no code violations or safety concerns. Still, Commissioner Peacock is on record saying, “Taking it is the right thing to do.” Initial outlays for the Patane property are anticipated to be almost $2 million (not counting litigation), but the Abington Commissioners have stated on record that they cannot say what the final cost might be, and that there is no fixed dollar amount or cost estimate for the project, nor any guarantee of success. The last high-profile taking in Abington ended up costing almost three times the property’s value due to costs of litigation, and Coatesville squandered $7 million attempting to seize the Saha farm before finally admitted defeat.

Learn more here:
http://www.meetup.com/pacampaignforliberty/calendar/11613674/