Morgan Hill itself, the topographical feature upon which the golf course and housing development are situated, rises about 580 feet from the banks of the Delaware River, dramatically within merely about 600 yards as the crow flies. The views from the golf course and development, in all directions, across Pennsylvania and New Jersey, are absolutely spectacular.
An aerial photo from 1999 shows Morgan Hill was then mostly forested with some farmland.
The housing development and golf course now cover most of the land south of I-78, between Morgan Hill Road and the Delaware River. Here is a topographic map from 1994 of the same area.
There is no native vegetation left on Morgan Hill today. Nor, aside from a few ornamental new plantings, are there any trees at all. Morgan Hill is a tidy, bald hilltop of lawns and houses.
I wonder, who were the last owners of Morgan Hill, who sold it for development? Who were the last farmers to work its fields? Who were the last children to ramble its forest? What were their circumstances when they sold, and do they miss their home? Do they grieve because in effect it no longer exists?
Woodside Estates does not begin to meet most of the objectives of smart growth planning. It is sprawling, not compact. It is residential only, not mixed-use. Residents must commute for shopping and employment. There is no public transportation. The range of housing choices at least appears to be high-income only.
There is more immediate environmental impact as well. Most obviously, the natural habitat of Morgan Hill is just gone. More important though is the hill’s immediate proximity to the Delaware River. The hill actually diverts the course of the river and is a watershed of it. There is negligible vegetation on the hill now to hold rainwater. (The Delaware River is flooding this summer, for the third year in a row.) Instead, rainwater flows a very short distance into the river, carrying with it all the chemicals of modern suburban living and, probably worse, golfing.
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