Inside the Delaware County Council Meeting: April 2026

This month's public comment included a ballot barcode civil rights lawsuit, unsubstantiated council accusations, a man running for office who will vote for himself, and one legit transparency comment

Goal: Let’s get 1,000 Delco residents to start paying attention to local politics.
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Chairwoman Joanne Phillips opened with an announcement that Delaware County Community College launched a new southeast center in Upper Darby. The center will support specialized career pathways including healthcare, biotech, and hospitality studies, and bringing technical education closer to the communities that need it most.

Councilwoman Elaine Schaefer presented the Safe Streets for Schools initiative, a partnership between the county’s planning department and local school districts in Chester Upland and the Chester School District focused on making the streets around schools safer for kids. The initiative has plans for block parties, community events, and a collaboration with the Chester School of the Arts to paint murals in the area.

Vice Chair Christine Reuther and Councilwoman Dr. Monica Taylor were absent from this meeting. Richard Womack’s announcment just wasn’t notable.

Junior Council Comments on youth civic engagement

A junior at Ridley High School delivered a presentation on youth civic engagement, sharing research he collected on how high school students participate in civic life and how they feel about politics. His findings showed that the majority of students are genuinely interested in political issues, but schools are not doing enough to channel that interest into real engagement.

The county has a few initiatives aimed at helping; the Junior County Council gives students a firsthand look at local government by collaborating on projects tied to real community issues. The county is also offering leadership academies and some other opportunities to bring young people into the civic process earlier.

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Public Comments

Media resident
This man claims to be involved in a lawsuit against Delaware County regarding absentee ballots. He claims that the county is committing wrongdoing by printing barcodes to link ballots back to their voters. He said the barcodes are a violation of civil rights for all residents.

This barcode claim has been online in election conspiracy circles for a while. Barcodes on ballots are a normal part of processing ballots and tracking (… as a measure to confirm votes, thus minimizing fraud. The irony I know.) and they help election workers manage ballots efficiently, not identify individual voters. Pennsylvania’s election code explicitly protects ballot secrecy. If there’s a legitimate lawsuit, the courts will sort it out. But the framing of regular ballot admin as a civil rights violation follows the same playbook that has used to undermine confidence in elections since 2020.

Broomall resident
The usual opening … commie tyrants, council overreach, general outrage; before pivoting to the trans pride flag that was raised at the Government Center. He said that raising the flag creates division, called trans people mentally ill, and made the claim that transgender individuals are somehow driving school shootings. No evidence provided.

He then shifted into accusations. He alleged the county is functionally bankrupt, claimed Councilwoman Elaine Schaefer took PPP loans for her nonprofit, accused Councilman Richard Womack of receiving preferential treatment from the county tax office, and alleged that Councilwoman Dr Monica Taylor’s father owns a building in Yeadon and raised rent on those properties.

None of the accusations against council members were substantiated. The bankruptcy claim is a bad faith framing of a fiscal problem that Republicans caused and are now using as a cudgel against the Democrats cleaning it up.

As for the claims about transgender people and school violence; there is zero credible evidence supporting that connection. None. It is just a talking point meant to dehumanize a minority group, and acting like its some concern for public safety does not make it anything other than dehumanization.

Marple resident
A resident raised concerns about a rumor that the county is allowing residential development on the Don Guanella property in Broomall, which is currently designated as green space. He pushed back on the idea and encouraged neighbors to show up to upcoming Broomall meetings to fight any development proposal.

If this rumor is true, it’d be a problem. Green space is finite, and the pressure to build residential developments is constant. Residents showing up to municipal meetings before a project gets too far into the process is a help.

Delco resident
This man has a litter plan. He is proposing a litter parade, with firetrucks, music, and community members picking up trash together. He also advocated for more county funding for firehouses, noting that he has friends who are firefighters and believes they could be cross trained for litter collection efforts. He closed by announcing he is running as an independent and will be voting for himself haha.

Delco resident
She called for a county ordinance that would require medical providers to give patients their privacy policy and financial responsibility documents in hard copy or by email, with a signature required, before any appointment takes place. Her argument is about informed consent and making sure people know what they’re agreeing to financially before they walk into an exam room.

Another reason why healthcare should NOT be for profit.

Medical billing is one of the most predatory systems in we have here in America. People regularly get hit with bills they had no idea were coming because nobody was up front with them before the appointment. A county level ordinance would obviously be seriously limited in reach, but pushing for this is right.

Concord resident
She complained about the number of law enforcement officers present at county council meetings, arguing that it felt excessive. She also raised an objection to election equipment being stored anywhere aside from the county seat in Media. She ended critiquing recent Dem governance as a slide from limited government toward what she called a nanny state with less liberty and freedom.

If the county is using a significant number of officers at routine public meetings, residents have a right to know why and how much it is costing taxpayers. The nanny state framing is where she falls apart. Expanding public health infrastructure, tenant protections, and community services is NOT government overreach, it is exactly what government is for…

Delco resident
She voiced frustration with how difficult it is to file a Right to Know request and get a real response from the county.

This definitely deserves more than the three minutes allotted. Right to know requests going unanswered or getting buried is a documented problem in Delco. The budget task force that the county created last year after numerous double digit tax increases held meetings throughout the year without publicly posting notices or agendas. The county also sat on questions about a $7.6m budget transfer for ten months before acknowledging where the money came from. There seems to be a bit of communication problem with the county council right now.

Delco resident
He opened by comparing the Junior County Council program to what Charlie Kirk did, then pivoted to saying young people need to engage with government through “an unbiased lens.” He described public schools as indoctrination camps and Marxist training centers, and accused teachers of being activists rather than educators. He then suggested that Upper Darby students should not be afraid of ICE, and that people need to educate themselves on why immigration laws exist and why they need to be enforced.

There is A LOT happening here lol … the comparison to Charlie Kirk as a positive reference tells you most of what you need to know about the kind of civic education they have in mind. Calling public schools Marxist training camps makes no sense. On the Upper Darby students and ICE — those kids walked out because some of them go home not knowing if their parents will even be there. That is a completely normal response to the threat of ICE. Telling scared kids to educate themselves about immigration law is not realistic.

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Executive Director clarified for the record that if a grant does not come through, the county will not move forward with the project. The county will continue to pursue funding but will not commit to spending that isn’t secured.

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Consent Agenda Items (Quick Summary)

All of these were covered in detail at Tuesday’s preliminary agenda meeting, but here are the quick hits.

Additional grants & funding:

• $250K grant (no county funds required); deadline May 8. Term: May 1, 2026 – April 30, 2027.

• $208.2K to support medication assisted treatment in county correctional facilities.

• $684K Juvenile Court Judges Commission (JCJC) grant.

• $107.2K PCCD Indigent Defense Grant, plus modification funding bringing the total to $144.7K.

• $150K grant for the Emergency Services Center LED retrofit project.

• $475K federal HUD Community Project Funding grant.

• $250K IBX Foundation Community Health grant to expand primary care services in Chester.

• $162.9K Immunization Grant supporting vaccination programs and staffing.

Agreements, contracts & purchases:

• Renewal of Thomson Reuters Westlaw subscription for $321.9K (3 year contract).

• Letter of intent for a $2.42M HOME-ARPA funded grant to support shelter development.

• Renewal of Microsoft 365 licenses for Fair Acres, $151.8K annually (3 years).

• Generator maintenance contract with Cummins Inc. for Fair Acres, $130.7K annually (5 years).

• Fire alarm service contract with Johnson Controls, $78.3K annually (3 years).

Infrastructure & capital projects:

• County contribution of $94.3K toward roof repairs at the Emergency Services Training Center in Sharon Hill.

• Change order for the 1724 Chester Courthouse Rehabilitation Project, not to exceed $205.3K.

• Award of contract for George W. Hill Correctional Facility security checkpoint building, $282.6K.

Human services & program support:

• Approval of Administrative Entity Operating Agreement with PA Department of Human Services, not to exceed $2.32M.