Hop Bottom town hall to be rebuilt

BY PAT FARNELLI

Hop Bottom’s borough building renovations should soon be underway, it was announced Tuesday, Aug. 7, during the regular council meeting.

The low bidder for the town hall project was Chilewski Enterprises of Fleetville at just under $50,000. The building has not been renovated since the fire truck was relocated from the garage in 1934 to the present Hop Bottom Hose Co. building.

Council members agreed that repairs are badly needed.

Plans were available for view at the meeting room, secretary Deb Norton said.

Two grants to fund the remodeling project have been in place for more than a year, and one of them is a three-year grant that will expire in October.

The project will make the entrance and restroom for the meeting room handicapped accessible, and will include a new façade, walls, doors, floor joists, floors and ceiling.

Insulation will be installed in the ceiling, and a door will be added in place of an existing window in the attached garage, which will be included into the borough hall.

Some changes are still under discussion, including whether the wainscoting will remain on the meeting room walls or be replaced by another material.

A tree nearby also will need to be removed, as its cavity is full of carpenter ants.

The borough’s downtown garage will soon have electrical lines installed, and will be used by the police for storage of a police car and other equipment.

The police chief will still use a desk with computer and phone in the borough building for his office work. During the renovation, council meetings will be held at the fire hall.

In other business, the long-awaited fence for the park is ready for installation. Ross Feeds paid for the galvanized pipe for the horizontals to be installed at the top, middle and bottom of the fence. The upright posts are already in place, the gate is in, and councilman Fred Fry has donated brackets.

The chain link tennis court fencing is heavy, so it will be quite a project to install, he said.

Councilman Ron Barankovich is waiting for a decision from Cabot Oil & Gas’s community affairs staff concerning help with rubber mulch for the playground area.

The cost of the mulch was estimated at $600-800 per ton, and more than 60 tons will be needed. Other businesses have partnered with the borough for park improvements, including weed matting.

A parade was held on July 14 during Yard Sale Day.Mountain Viewstudent Bethany Klees coordinated the parade, and the residents were delighted, many remarking that they would like to see it become an annual event.

A thank you letter to the council by Klees was read during the meeting.

The police report included 11 citations, confiscation of a crack pipe during a traffic stop, one burglary including a theft of prescription medication, six assists to other agencies, a district court hearing for a drug-related offense, and a theft  investigation.

Police Chief Ron Cosklo reported, “I met with Hal Akoa on his site (in Hop Bottom). He told me that he plans to install a septic system.  He is currently living in a campground trailer in Honesdale.”

Cosklo said that he returned Akoa’s electric guitar and laptop computer he had taken from the camper for safekeeping.

A list of about 12 proposed borough ordinances was reviewed during the meeting. Also, an Act 13 Impact Fee ordinance was read and discussed. The proposed ordinance is being drafted in order to comply with Act 13, and is an amendment of the borough zoning ordinance.

The council approved a motion to have the storm drains cleaned for no more than $300.

The sign committee reported that there is a traffic issue on north andsouth Center Street.

Truck drivers appear to be ignoring or not seeing “No Through Traffic” signs.

Council members said that the truck traffic through town has increased greatly over the last two years, and continues to increase.