Leg Up Farm Ready to Break Ground
4/30/2004
About every two or three weeks, Lou Castriota, Jr. sends Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell’s office an update on Leg Up Farm – just so officials won’t forget that he’s applied for capital redevelopment assistance funds.
Castriota is hoping that Rendell will match the $4.56 million he says he will raise, for a total of slightly more than $9 million, for construction of a 77,000 square-foot, all-inclusive therapy facility for children with disabilities in East Manchester Township.
“When he’s ready to release the money, we’re ready to put a shovel in the ground,” said Castriota.
Leg Up Farm would provide traditional therapies such as occupational and physical therapy, but would also include less traditional programs such as horseback riding.
The main challenge Castriota faces this year is that Rendell already has reached the ceiling in funds he can dispense this year – $1.51 billion – said Abe Amoros, deputy press secretary for Rendell.
Tough competition: Vying for the funds is very competitive – Rendell received $9 billion in requests this year, Amoros said. “Some may never get it,” he said.
The only hope Castriota has for funding this year is if the Senate approves Rendell’s bill to increase the annual amount by $640 million, when it resume its session it May. The state House approved the bill March 31, Amoros said.
Raising the money: Rendell’s staff examines all of the requests for funding, said Amoros. Some of the more popular requests are for projects such as baseball stadiums, visitors’ centers and convention centers.
Projects must demonstrate an ability to raise the matching funds, through such methods as private funding, and fund-raising campaigns. If they are chosen, they raise the first half of the funds, submit receipts to the state, and then the state will reimburse them, Amoros said.
“You have to have somebody come forward, or a list of people, you have to show the money’s going to be there,” Amoros said. “It does no good for a project to fall flat on its face because that’s a disservice to the community.”
Daughter’s inspiration: Castriota said Leg Up Farm has shown it has the ability to raise the necessary funds.
“Currently, I would say with the funds we’ve raised and our land, we already have $700,000 toward that match,” he said, “with other fundraisers planned for the near future.”
Castriota says the project also has the backing of local legislators such as state Reps. Stan Saylor, R-Windsor Township and Keith Gillespie, R-Hellam Township, as well as U.S. Rep. Todd Platts, all of whom have written letters to Rendell in support of Leg Up Farm.
Castriota began the non-profit in 1997, after realizing the difficulty in shuttling his daughter Brooke, now 7, to various therapies. Brooke has mitochondrial disease, which is similar to cerebral palsy. After talking with many parents and professionals in the industry, he decided to bring all of the various therapies under one roof.
Until Rendell releases the money, Castriota continues to move his project forward – he’s working with an architect to design the building, and hopes to have a land development plan approved by the township in June.
By TED CZECH, The York Dispatch/Sunday News