Marcus Hook

"When I fly a kite, I feel like I have no problems. " So it's no wonder that Johnny Junto, 78, is out flying kites almost every day of the year, weather permitting. Sometimes in the summer, he'll be out from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. at Market Square Memorial Park along the Delaware River in Marcus Hook. Junto, who became interested in flying kites about five years ago, likes to help get children involved in the activity. He once bought 150 small kites to give to children who wanted a kite to fly.

Each day, patrol boats from the U.S. Coast Guard Base in Gloucester City, N.J., keep an eye on the Delaware River. A northern patrol takes a crew from its base, just south of the Walt Whitman Bridge, to the Tacony Palmyra Bridge; a southern patrol goes just beyond Marcus Hook. The 122-member base has a search-and-rescue area of 79 miles - 31 miles north to Trenton and 48 miles south to the Cohansey River - and is also responsible for private- boating safety and law enforcement.

Here's what most people see when they visit Market Square Memorial Park in Marcus Hook, a tiny patch of green squeezed between two huge refineries: Jumbo tankers and cargo vessels plying the Delaware River. Washed-up plastic bottles. And lots and lots of marine debris - thick mooring rope, rusted cable, driftwood. But when John McNally, an unemployed electrician and amateur marine archaeologist from nearby Wallingford, looks out at the river, he sees something altogether different: Marauding pirates.

Gov. Corbett announced $125 million in Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program awards for 54 projects, including 14 in Southeastern Pennsylvania that received $38.8 million. The Philadelphia region received three of seven $5 million awards, the largest possible. Those awards went to Braskem America Inc. in Marcus Hook, Philadelphia Energy Solutions in Philadelphia, and the Philadelphia Museum of Art. Corbett said in a news release that the awards, which he called Economic Growth Initiative Awards, would create or retain 56,000 jobs in 28 counties.

Another day, another refinery deal. For the third time in three months, Gov. Corbett on Wednesday stood in front of the stained steel towers of a Philadelphia area refinery to unveil a state-subsidized deal to save jobs in the oil and petrochemical industry. The governor said the state would provide $15 million to support Braskem America Inc.'s acquisition of a chemical processing unit at Sunoco's Marcus Hook refinery, which will be integrated into Braskem's neighboring plant that manufactures polypropylene plastic.

Here's what most people see when they visit Market Square Memorial Park in Marcus Hook, a tiny patch of green squeezed between two huge refineries: Jumbo tankers and cargo vessels plying the Delaware River. Washed-up plastic bottles. And lots and lots of marine debris - thick mooring rope, rusted cable, driftwood. But when John McNally, an unemployed electrician and amateur marine archaeologist from nearby Wallingford, looks out at the river, he sees something altogether different: Marauding pirates.

Saying national security was at stake, Sen. Bob Casey (D., Pa.) called Friday for congressional hearings into the shutdowns of local oil refineries and their potential effect on energy prices and the economy. Joined by union officials, Casey also criticized ConocoPhillips and Sunoco Inc. as being less than forthcoming with their plans for the facilities in Philadelphia, Trainer, and Marcus Hook. Casey spoke at a briefing held outside the Oil, Chemical and Atomic Workers union hall in Linwood, near the now-closed Trainer plant.

The closing of two oil refineries could become a financial disaster for Marcus Hook and Trainer, and Delaware County officials said Thursday that they were trying to make sure it didn't also become an environmental one. "These communities can be assured we're doing everything possible to protect their safety," Council Chairman Tom McGarrigle said at a news briefing after an hour-long meeting with ConocoPhillips and Sunoco Inc. officials....