The Philadelphia Inquirer from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania • Page B13

THE PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER www.philly.com South Jersey B13 Thursday, July 25, 2002 Weather Weather conditions are updated throughout the day on www.philly.com Winterthur's landscape is protected Vancouver 7157 Weather at noon today a and forecast highlow temperatures Seattle 7658 CANADA Montreal 7955 Toronto Boston 7258 7867 Detroit Chicago 8269 New York 7fifi4 Pittsburgh 8264 Philadelphia Washington 7866 St. Louis 1 9274 Memphis 9274 Fronts: Stationary Warm Cold Atlanta 8570 9678 New Orleans 9276 Miami 8878 LASHINDA CLARK Inquirer Suburban Staff Walking from Winterthur's East Farm to the easement ceremony are Bert Melloy (left) and Garden Committee member Dolly Fisher. Melloy was a gardens coordinator at the estate for 1 7 years. The Brandywine Conservancy was given an easement on the estate. By Sandy Bauers INQUIRER STAFF WRITER Seated at a Queen Anne reproduction table in the middle of a pasture atop one of northern Delaware's signature rolling hills, officials of a major regional land conservancy and a prominent cultural institution yesterday joined forces to preserve nearly 1,000 acres of open space.

Winterthur, the former private estate of Henry F. du Pont, donated a conservation easement on its property to the Brandywine Conservancy, permanently restricting development. The land "will never see a housing subdivision, a big-box store or a strip mall," said Bruce C. Perkins, who chairs Winterthur's board. The donation makes Winterthur one of the state's largest single tracts of preserved open space north of Wilmington.

It will "remain an oasis" in the midst of one of the nation's most highly developed corridors, Perkins said. The action was hailed as a major victory for the conservancy, which has similar easements on more than 37,000 acres in northern Delaware and Southeastern Pennsylvania. It was also a personal victory for conservancy cofounder George A. Weymouth, who has had his eye on the Winterthur property for 35 years. Both Weymouth and du Pont, his cousin, were on the first board of the conservancy, founded in 1967.

Weymouth's was one of the first properties to be permanently protected through the conservancy. He said du Pont had wanted to have Winterthur a family estate that opened to the public in 1951 secured as well, but he died in 1969 before it happened. "I can remember having dinner with him and talking about how the suburbs were creeping out of the city" of Wilmington, Weymouth said. "He was adamant" that the estate he inherited "not be ruined, spoiled or compromised." Not that anyone plans to. Winterthur officials view selling off some of the land for residential, commercial or industrial development as something akin to cutting off a leg.

But who knows what the future may bring? After all, developers have proposed building 62 houses in a corner of Valley Forge National Historical Park and an office park next to Washington Crossing State Park in Bucks County. Winterthur director Leslie Greene Bowman said she did them are on land leased from Woodlawn. Several housing developments were built on land purchased from Woodlawn. But the land along the creek remains open space. Some have criticized conservation easements as merely a way for the rich to hang onto their estates via tax write-offs.

But Winterthur officials say there was no financial benefit for the museum, a nonprofit organization that pays no taxes. In fact, the donation of the easement "comes with a steep price tag," Perkins said. "It greatly reduces the market value of our assets." Winterthur officials hope they can now capitalize on what Perkins called the "positive impact" the easement will have. Winterthur is in the midst of developing a master plan, redefining itself as more than a museum, library and 60 acres of cultivated gardens. It now calls itself "Winterthur An American Country Estate." They haven't yet called for a return to Holsteins and chickens, but they hope to open up more of the estate and use it in its historical context.

Du Pont considered himself a farmer by profession and his now world-famous collection of American antiques merely a hobby. He paid far more for his starter herd of six cows than he did for his first antique highboy. Once Winterthur trustees decided to embark on a new course, Bowman said, they began to realize they should protect "the asset that's essential the land." not want to leave the land "vulnerable to future boards" who might face a tough decision in the event of a "financial reversal." "It's a very strong move for a board to make," said Andrew Zepp, vice president for programs with the national Land Trust Alliance, because often the best financial hedge a nonprofit has is its land. Over the years, officials have seen sprawl edge ever closer to Winterthur's pastoral borders. Just to the north is Wynleigh, a subdivision of 19 homes completed two years ago.

"Even 20 years ago, there were a lot more farms," Bowman said. "What may not have seemed so rare and important a resource to be preserved, today has become quite rare." Du Pont himself actually sold, leased or gave away more than half of Winterthur, which once encompassed 2,600 acres. DELAWARE Brandywine Creek State Park A 'S ''id MILES PENNSYLVANIA 202 Area of detail DELAWARE NEW Wilmington 0a JERSEY The Philadelphia Inquirer More than 1,600 acres now make up the Wilmington Country Club, the Bidermann Golf Club, a portion of Brandywine Creek State Park, and the Methodist Country Home, a retirement community. He aimed for low-impact uses, creating what Bowman called "a necklace" of greenery around Winterthur, but it was development all the same. Winterthur's easement is the fourth-largest the conservancy holds and its largest in Delaware.

With the donation, Winterthur now joins the four major players in open space in northern Delaware: The conservancy holds easements on 680 other acres in the state, including the recent addition of nearly 100 acres on Winterthur neighbor Irenee du Pont's estate, Granogue. The Delaware Nature Society has worked with landowners to preserve about 105,700 acres of open space and farmland. The Delaware Greenway in June succeeded in getting Routes 52 and 100 in Delaware designated the state's first "scenic and historic highway," qualifying the corridor for public funding and limiting certain structures, such as billboards. Woodlawn Trustees, established in 1901 by cotton-milling magnate William Bancroft, controls 2,000 acres of open space in a wide swath between Route 202 and the Brandywine Creek, mostly in northern Delaware. Bancroft's twin missions were affordable housing in Wilmington and open space along the Brandywine financed oddly enough, by development.

Many of the businesses along the west side of Route 202 in northern Delaware the restaurants and big-box stores opposite Concord Mall among Portland 8260 DMNiiya a0oo San Francisco 6855 Denver 9061 Los Angeles 8865 Low High Phoenix 10283 Dallas 9778 Houston I I Rain I I Thunderstorms I I Snow Ice MEXICO Today's highs and tonight's lows Scranton 7859 1 CONN. N.Y. N-J. New York 7664 Allentown 76'58 Trenton Manasquan Harrisburg 7658 7460 7864 Philadelphia 7864 Atlantic City PA. MD.

Baltimore Wilmington 74b4 7762 Atlantic Ocean temperature: P864 Washington 7866 nci CaPe Henlopen UtL 7462 Today's Forecast It has been a roller coaster ride this summer as far as temperatures are concerned. After a hot start to the week with highs in the 90s, readings yesterday and today are below normal with highs struggling to reach 80. An easterly flow of air off the Atlantic is the reason for the cooler temperatures. Some clouds will persist through tonight, then the wind will shift toward the southeast and eventually to the south by the weekend. As a result, temperatures will moderate and the humidity will increase.

By Sunday afternoon, temperatures will probably approach the 90s and could remain in the 90s for the first part of next week. Five-Day Forecast Today 78 Intervals of clouds and sunshine; cool for late July. Tonight 64 Partly cloudy and comfortable. Friday 0 IfjO 0 Cloudy, perhaps OO a shower later. Saturday 88772 1 Some sun, humid; maybe p.m.

storm. Sunday 92774 Sun and some clouds; hot, humid. Monday 94774 Sunshine and a few clouds; hot, humid. Sun and Moon Sun Rises ...5:53 a.m. p.m.

Moon Rises 9:37 p.m. Sets 6:49 a.m. Philadelphia Almanac Temperatures High yesterday 75 (9:00 a.m.) Record high for yesterday 95 (1968) Low yesterday 72 (1:00 p.m.) Record low for yesterday 53 (1947) Normal highlow 8671 Yesterday's barometer 6 a.m 30.08 rising Noon 30.17 rising 6 p.m 30.16 steady Daylight sky conditions yesterday 90 clouds with 10 sunshine. Precipitation Wednesday Trace Month through Wednesday 1.98 in. Year through Wednesday 18.46 in.

Normal through Wednesday ...24.15 in. Deficit 5.69 in. Degree days for cooling Wednesday 9 Month through Wednesday 355 Season through Wednesday 771 Normal through Wednesday 546 Last season through yesterday 671 A degree day for cooling is an index of energy consumption for cooling. It indicates the number of degrees the mean temperature was above 65 degrees. Yesterday In Philadelphia Temp.Hum.

Temp.Hum. 1 a.m 7490 1 p.m 7283 2 a.m 7493 2 p.m 7380 3 a.m 7490 3 p.m 7478 4 a.m 7490 4 p.m 7478 5 a.m 7393 5 p.m 7575 6 a.m 7487 6 p.m 7478 7 a.m 7384 7 p.m 7378 8 a.m 7481 8 p.m 7375 9 a.m 7581 10 a.m 7484 11 a.m 7484 Noon 7481 Air Quality The worst pollutant in the region yesterday was ozone, produced mainly by sunlight reacting with vehicle emissions. The first column in the table shows yesterday's code and Pollution Standard Index, the second column shows yesterday's highest pollutant, and the third column shows today's forecast. Good (G) 0-50 Carbon monoxide CO Moderate (M) Nitrogen dioxide Unhealthful(U)101-200 Particulates PA Very Unhealthful (V) 201-300 Sulfur dioxide SO Hazardous (H) 301-400 Ozone OZ At a Pollution Standard Index rating of 100, the general population begins to experience irritation and other unhealthful effects. Yesterday's High Pollution Pollution Pollutant Forecast Standard Index Yesterday Today Bristol G36 OZ Burlington G18 PA Camden G36 PA Chester G41 OZ Norristown G41 OZ Philadelphia G21 OZ Trenton G21 OZ Wilmington G15 OZ Source: Clean Air Council, 21 5-567-4004.

Ozone forecast available daily at 1-800-872-7261 and at http:www.dvrpc.org Yesterday's pollen, count and discomfort levels: Minneapolis 8066 Trees 4 low Weeds 1 5 moderate Mold spores 4430 very high Source: The Asthma Center, www.asthmacenter.com Regional Forecast Poconos Partly to mostly sunny with low humidity. High 72. Partly cloudy and cool tonight. Low 52. Becoming mostly cloudy tomorrow; may be showers late.

High 70. Jersey Shore Some sunshine, windy and cool. High 74. Partly cloudy tonight. Low 64.

Mostly cloudy, breezy and cool tomorrow with a chance for showers. High 74. Delaware Clouds and limited sunshine with a brief shower in spots. High 78. Partly to mostly cloudy tonight.

Low 66. Limited sun tomorrow with a chance of showers. High 78. Marine Forecast Manasquan to Cape Henlopen Wind northeast at 10-20 knots today. Waves 3-5 feet.

Visibility mainly unrestricted. Winds east at 8-16 knots tomorrow. Delaware Bay Winds northeast at 8-16 knots today. Waves -3 feet. Visibility mainly unrestricted, but under 2 miles in fog early; under 3 miles in any shower.

Cape Henlopen to Virginia Beach Winds east to northeast at 8-16 knots today. Waves 3-4 feet. Visibility 2-4 miles in any showers. Tides Today Philadelphia (Chestnut Street) High tide 2:54 a.m., 3:23 p.m. Low tide 10:14 a.m., 10:16 p.m.

Delaware Breakwater High tide 10:12 a.m., 10:30 p.m. Low tide 4:07 a.m., 3:57 p.m. Cape May (Municipal Pier) High tide 9:25 a.m., 9:38 p.m. Low tide 3:13 a.m., 3:16 p.m. Atlantic City (Steel Pier) High tide 8:57 a.m., 9:10 p.m.

Low tide 2:53 a.m., 2:56 p.m. Beach Haven (Little Egg Harbor) High tide 8:23 a.m., 8:36 p.m. Low tide 2:25 a.m., 2:28 p.m. Barnegat Inlet High tide 9:03 a.m., 9:16 p.m. Low tide 3:09 a.m., 3:12 p.m.

NWS radio forecasts: 162.475 VHF-FM. In the Region Weather indications sunny; pc partly cloudy; sh showers; thunderstorms; snow flurries; sn snow; i ice. City Yesterday Today Tomorrow Allentown 8067r 7658pc 7666pc Atlantic City 7670r 7464pc 7467c Baltimore 8369sh 7864pc 7868sh Harrisburg 8365pc 7864pc 7567sh New York City 8068c 7664pc 7668c Pittsburgh 8463c 8264pc 8066c Salisbury, Md. 8271 7662c 7765c Scranton 7963c 7859pc 7361sh Washington 8472c 7866pc 7870sh Wilmington 8070sh 7762pc 7466sh U.S. Cities City Yesterday Today Tomorrow Albany, N.Y.

7956pc 8055s 7660pc Albuquerque 9068pc 8965c 8763sh Anchorage, Alsk. 6458r 6454pc 6353sh Atlanta 8969pc 8570pc 8773c Billings 9661 pc 9363pc 8760pc Boston 7262pc 7258s 7460c Buffalo 7458pc 8062s 7864sh Charleston, S.C. 8873r 8875pc 9175c 8271sh 8369c 8768pc Chicago 7963pc 8469pc 8872pc Cincinnati 8666pc 8768pc 9070c Cleveland 7865pc 8170pc 8468pc Dallas 9977pc 9778s 9980s Denver 9563pc 9061pc 9059pc Des Moines 8464pc 8669pc 8973pc Detroit 8057pc 8269pc 8469pc Honolulu 8773sh 8775s 8874s Houston 9778pc 9678s 9874s Indianapolis 8568pc 8669pc 9272pc Jacksonville 9273t 9274pc 9274pc Kansas City, Mo. 91 67pc 9270pc 9076pc Las Vegas 10088c 1 0281 pc 1 0481 Is Los Angeles 9966s 8865s 8265s Memphis, Tenn. 8773t 9274pc 9674s Miami 8882t 8878t 9078t Minneapolis 7463t 8066c 8466pc New Orleans 9276t 9276t 9177pc Orlando 9277pc 9276pc 9276pc Phoenix 10376c 10283pc 1 0083pc Portland, Maine 7354s 7454s 7154pc Portland, Ore.

8861pc 8260pc 7856pc Richmond 8473c 7968c 8069sh St. Louis 8868pc 9274pc 9478pc Salt Lake City 10176pc 9267pc 9064c San Diego 8068pc 7666s 7468pc San Francisco 7056s 6855s 6652pc San Juan 9177pc 8876pc 8777c Seattle 8258pc 7658pc 7256pc Tampa, Fla. 8978c 9177pc 8978sh Cities Abroad City Yesterday Today Tomorrow Acapulco 9168c 9176pc 9377pc Amsterdam 6655sh 6558c 7161c Athens 9372s 9172pc 8770s Auckland 6250c 5647pc 5648c Bangkok 9379pc 9080c 9381pc Barbados 8777r 8577c 8578pc Beijing 9170pc 9172s 9573pc Beirut 8871 pc 8166s 8268s Berlin 7156sh 6353sh 6958c Bermuda 8679pc 9078pc 9076pc Bogota 6848pc 6948c 6647sh Brussels 6856sh 6658c 7162c Budapest 8461 Is 7055sh 7457pc Buenos Aires 5944r 5535s 5634pc Cairo 9770s 9670s 10074s Copenhagen 6757c 6651 pc 6659c Dublin 6250c 7060sh 7359pc Geneva 7353pc 6352sh 6755c Havana 9373pc 9375pc 8775c Hong Kong 9077pc 8979pc 8979c Istanbul 8467pc 8668pc 8770pc Jerusalem 8364pc 8357s 8559s Johannesburg 8044s 7038s 7144s London 7057pc 6762sh 8063pc Madrid 9055s 9359s 9360s Manila 8975c 8674sh 8778sh Melbourne 5645sh 5644s 5646pc Mexico City 7745pc 7755pc 7755c Milan 8863pc 7855pc 7756pc Montego Bay 9076pc 8876pc 8975pc Montreal 7355pc 7955s 7357c Moscow 8963s 7562r 7964pc Nairobi 7948pc 7548pc 7449pc Nassau 9172pc 9176pc 9178pc New Delhi 1 0083pc 9882pc 10286pc Oslo 6355r 6853c 7152c Paris 7557c 6855c 7260c Perth 6551 6249pc 6248pc Prague 7057sh 6447c 6950c Rio de Janeiro 7865pc 8265s 7764pc Rome 8464pc 8060pc 7354pc St. Petersburg 7355pc 6762r 7258pc Seoul 8573r 9175s 9075c Singapore 9078pc 8678sh 8977pc Stockholm 6956c 7156c 7155pc Sydney 6047r 6039pc 6640s Taipei 9377pc 9277s 9279pc Tokyo 8774pc 8776c 8775sh Toronto 7657pc 7867s 7456sh Vancouver 8059s 7157pc 6956s In the Region Missing Pa. woman's car found at a Va.

auto shop Contact Sandy Bauers at 610-701-7635 or sbauersphillynews.com. "It wasn't there for service, so they contacted police," Vizi said about the Fairfax County mechanics. "They realized it had no business on the lot." She added that the FBI's Washington field office was searching the car for leads: "We'll take what-ever's in there, information, a timeline of where she's been the last week." Yesterday, Chamberlain's family put up a $10,000 reward and set up an account for donations. On July 15 around 9 a.m., Chamberlain telephoned her current boyfriend to tell him that she would soon meet him at his Bristol Borough home to go fishing at the Shore. Chamberlain never showed up, and calls to her cell phone have gone unanswered.

Passmore was last heard from on July 16. Bucks County District Attorney Diane Gibbons said he had contacted Chamberlain before she vanished. Last week, investigators were searching areas where he had friends or family, including Berks County, the Pittsburgh area, suburban Columbus, Ohio, and Tennessee. Passmore served time in prison last summer for assaulting Chamberlain. The attack prompted her to end the relationship.

He was convicted this year of a Berks County attack, and was released from Montgomery County jail on July 11. He had been charged with possession of a stolen vehicle. Contact Zlati Meyer at 215-702-7807 or zmeyerphillynews.com. Rendell leads by 13 points in Pa. governor's race HARRISBURG A fresh wave of support from Democrats and marquee-level name recognition have helped Ed Rendell widen his lead over Republican Mike Fisher to 13 points in the race for governor, according to a new poll.

With less than four months until the election, Rendell leads Fisher, 49 percent to 36 percent, according to a poll released yesterday by Quinnipiac University. In a June poll by the Hamden, university, Rendell led Fisher, 45 percent to 37 percent. The poll reflects new support from Democrats who had backed Bob Casey Rendell's opponent in the May primary. Those voters helped expand Rendell's lead from 69 percent to 75 percent among Democrats, edging him toward "the magic" 50 percent mark overall, said Clay F. Richards, assistant polling director for Quinnipiac.

The poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 2.9 percent. Hatfield worker suffocated in fall into chocolate vat NORRISTOWN The Montgomery County Coroner's Office said yesterday that a Hatfield factory worker suffocated when he fell into a vat of chocolate Tuesday afternoon. Yoni Cordon, 19, of Olney Avenue in Philadelphia, died of asphyxiation, and was pronounced dead at the scene after coworkers at Kargher Corp. found him in a vat that is used for mixing and melting chocolate. The accident at the factory, in the Line Lexington Industrial Park in Hatfield, is being investigated by Hatfield Township police and the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration.

"It's still under investigation, but at this point everything seems to point to an accident," said Hatfield Detective Keith Bell, adding that an OSHA representative was at the one-story plant yesterday. Incarcerated councilman resigns Norristown post Ernest W. Scott the councilman in prison awaiting trial on drug, insurance fraud and racketeering charges, has resigned from his elected office in Norristown Borough, Montgomery County. Since his arrest in April on charges of masterminding a family marijuana ring, critics have been calling for the first-term Republican to relinquish his council seat. Scott, 52, finally satisfied their calls Tuesday evening.

His attorney, Tim Woodward, said Scott's imprisonment had made it difficult for him to carry out his duties as an elected official. He is being held on $1 million bail, and a lengthy legal process looms. Scott's mother, 68-year-old Anita Johnson, and his three sons Ernest 3d, 25; Sean, 28; and Theodore David, 26 will also face trial. The family allegedly peddled fake insurance cards and marijuana in Norristown, according to authorities who electronically eavesdropped on them for two months at Scott's notary and tag business. By Zlati Meyer INQUIRER SUBURBAN STAFF MIDDLETOWN Law enforcement officials found the car of a missing Bucks County woman at an auto-care service station in northeast Virginia yesterday, FBI officials said.

Melissa Chamberlain's 1995 four-door, black Chevrolet Cavalier with a damaged driver's-side mirror was being combed for evidence, FBI spokeswoman Linda Vizi said. While police would not release information on what was found in the car, the woman's family has indicated that there were no signs of violence. "The fact there's no sign of violence in the car and no blood found is a positive sign our daughter is still alive, but then again we always think that," Chamberlain's father, Jeff, said. "This is really the only kind of news we've had in 10 days now." The 21-year-old Middletown woman disappeared July 15. Investigators were looking for her ex-boyfriend, John F.

Passmore 3d, 23, whom officials consider dangerous. Passmore and Chamberlain started dating when they were students at Kutztown University. On Friday, Passmore was charged with one federal count of kidnapping. In addition, the Heath, Ohio, resident faces a charge for violating the terms of his probation, which included not contacting Chamberlain. He had pleaded guilty last July to assaulting her.

Officials were called to a New-ington, repair shop yesterday by mechanics who could not identify the car..