New Milford boro leases land to Southwestern

BY STACI WILSON

Over $67,000 will soon be added to the strugglingNew Milfordcoffers thanks to a natural gas lease the borough recently entered into with Southwestern Energy.

The lease agreement, which has been a topic of discussion for several months, was announced at the Thursday, April 5 meeting.

The borough leased its nearly 17 acres of property to the natural gas company at $4,000 per acre.

The revenue should help the borough pay mounting legal fees.

Council voted to pay its solicitor and the zoning hearing board attorney each $1,000 as a gesture of good faith.

Solicitor Michael Briechle met with council for nearly one hour about the borough’s ongoing litigation with Wayne Bradley, of New Milford Twp., regarding the rezoning of the former Southern Tier Plastics building onChurch St.

Briechle said Susquehanna County Housing and Redevelopment Authority has asked the borough to modify its zoning ordinance to allow for apartments as a permitted use under the Development 1 zone.

Council asked the solicitor to speak with the SCHRA attorney for greater clarification on the matter and report back to council.

Council is continuing to fight Bradley’s appeal. He had challenged the zoning hearing board and council’s decision to rezone an area onChurch St.which would then allow Susquehanna County Housing and Redevelopment to build a 24-unit senior apartment complex on the 2.77 acre site of the former Southern Tier Plastics building.

Although the case was dismissed by Susquehanna County President Judge Kenneth Seamans who found the appeal of the borough’s rezoning to be frivolous, Bradley is appealing the court’s decision.

Judge Seamans also ordered Bradley post a $1 million bond to cover the cost a one-year delay in construction would cost the Housing & Redevelopment Corporation if ground breaking for the project did not occur by April 1. The bond had not been posted when the judge dismissed the case.

Kathy Wages was appointed to fill a vacant seat on the borough council. She was sworn in at the meeting by Mayor Joe Taylor.

The mayor also reported on work needed to repair damage from the Sept. 2011 storms. The approved work would be reimbursed by FEMA, he said.

Council will also be taking another look at the possibility of enacting an earned income tax in the borough. Councilman Ken Carey will present information on the topic at the April 19 work session.

Council is also revisiting the option of sharing a garage with its municipal authority.

It was also announced that theBlue RidgeHigh Schoolband will be performing a concert inMid-TownParkon May 23. The public is invited to attend. Council said people should bring their own chairs.

The Mid-Town Festival is slated for June 2.