FAC Archive May 2007

Forks Action Committee

Homepage - Last Day of the Month

May 31, 2007

Four candidates have officially announced that they are running for Forks Supervisor:
David Billings, Robert Egolf, Eri k Chuss, and James Wideman. These
four have passed through FAC’s qualification process. Each has emerged as worthy
to lead our township through the next six years. We are proud to present these fine
men for your consideration.

Please visit their new webpage and learn more about them. They are your friends and
neighbors and have stepped forward to help Forks advance into the future.

Forks voters are the lucky ones. We have four excellent candidates,
and four excellent choices!

Incumbent Supervisor John Ackerman has not made an official announcement but
has indicated to the press that he will seek reelection. - Current Board Chairman,
David Hoff, has announced that he will not run.
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Update: 3/11/07: According the Morning Call and the Express Times, both incumbent
Supervisor John Ackerman and former Forks Police Chief Leon Fisher (who was
defeated in the 2005 Supervisor race) have filed nomination petitions. Unless they
change their minds, they will be on the Primary ballot on May 15th.

Registered Republican voters will be choosing two out of the four Republican
candidates - Billings, Chuss, (and now) Ackerman, and Fisher. Registered
Democrats, have two candidates for their two votes, Egolf and Wideman.

F.A.C.'s 2007 Primary Page Is Online!

(In alphabetical order)

David Billings,

Erik Chuss,

Robert Egolf,

and...

ames Wideman

Candidates Forum - Notes Online!

Not many residents came to the League of Women Voters candidates forum on April
22nd but those who did learned quite a bit about the six candidates for Forks
Supervisor - as well as about the issues they consider important. Probing, issue
oriented questions were asked by the League, the press, and the audience. Visit the
Forks Action Committee blog to read the summary/notes from the forum.
............................................
The League of Women Voters is a non-partisan organization. Before every election,
they produce an invaluable tool for voters, the Voters Guide. A printed version is
published by the Morning Call and should be available soon. The Guide is already
online at the L o WV's website. Don't miss it!
............................................
Vote on May 15th!

Planning Commission Opening!

Planning Commission member Les Ottenwalder has submitted his resignation to the
Board of Supervisors. He is retiring and moving from Forks. His last meeting will be
on May 10th. The Board will be accepting applications through the end of May. Send
your letter of interest to Township Manager, Rick Schnaedter right away!

The Planners are just beginning work on the Comprehensive Plan update. The
Comprehensive Plan will guide the Township for a long while. It is important!

Your township needs you!

Candidates In The News!

The FAC Candidates In the News page has links to articles published by and about
the 2007 Forks Supervisor candidates! If you haven't made up your mind yet, check it
out - May 15 is just around the corner! And, don't miss the issue oriented forum notes.

Tuesday, May 15th is Primary Day! Vote!

The Primary - Act I - Independent Voters!

All registered voters can vote on ACT I - the referendum that will determine
the source of future school funding, your EIT (Earned Income Tax) or your property
taxes. To read more, see our ACT I page. And, VOTE!

On Tuesday, May 15 the polls will be open from 7 AM to 8 PM. Don't miss your chance
to be part of the solution!

This month in Forks! updated 5/20/07

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A record may have been set at the May 3rd Board of Supervisors meeting! The main part of the meeting lasted under
13 minutes. We don't think it will make the newspapers though. There was a workshop - we missed it - at 6:30 PM to review the
(ESWA) Easton Suburban Water Authority Backflow Prevention Program.

Here's the nutshell version:

Chairman Hoff reported that the Board has been invited to the American Legion parade in Nazareth on May 28th.
New DPW Director Mark Roberts began his duties on April 30 and was immediately immersed in 2 days of orientation.
The annual doll show at the Community Center will be held Sunday, May 6th from 10 AM - 4:00 PM.
The Finance and Administration committee met with the Principal Group and received (from PG) the 2006 financial report
of the police department pension plan.
A new mail-drop box is being investigated. The current one has proved inadequate at tax time.
Honor Society students from C.I.T. spent three days helping to landscape and mulch in the Municipal Complex area.
Zoning Officer Tim Weis announced that the fire department is holding an open forum for Supervisor candidates on
Monday, May 14th at 8:00 PM. One of the four candidates present told us that he had neither been asked nor invited???
Weis also told the Board that he has letter of interest from three residents for the Planning Commission opening. The
Board will hold interviews and make a selection on Thursday, June 7th.
A mini-spec is being prepared for the Arndt/Bushkill flashing lights. Bids will be opened on June 1st, reviewed by the
engineer and solicitor, and presented to the Board (with recommendations) at the June 7th meeting.
The ESWA will prepare a draft ordinance for review by Solicitor Kline. After review, it will be presented to the Board.
The Riverview Recreation Center developer's agreements were accepted by the Board after confirmation from Kline that
$24,000 of escrow money had been received and that all other documents, including the irrevocable letter of credit, were in
order. The vote was 4:0. Nicholas was absent.
Kline, Township Manager Rick Schnaedter, and Township Engineer Fred Hay met with the developer (Strausser
Enterprises), some of Strausser's staff, and Strausser's attorney at 5:30 PM before this night's BoS meeting to review the
resolution for Riverview Estates (conditions of a time extension). Kline said that a few minor changes were agreed to and
that the final document will be ready for the Board's May 17th meeting.
There was an executive session to discuss a personnel matter and the collective bargaining negotiations for the non-
uniformed employees. - No action was taken at the executive session.

Please read the FAC blog for more a few more meeting details! Don't forget to read some of the other posts there... and the
Comments too. Don't be afraid to join in the discussion(s) and add your own Comments.

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The May 17 Board of Supervisors meeting was indeed a business meeting. One sketch plan was reviewed and one
project's phasing plan was amended. Time was spent discussing both the T-Mobile request to put a cell tower in the Community
Park and the purchasing and bidding proposals. Courtney Lomax (Express Times) and Madeleine Mathias (Morning Call)
covered the cell tower discussion. Please read their articles for more.

The meeting in brief:

The Board gave Solicitor Kline the go ahead to prepare a draft lease for the Township to lease the 200 year old stone
springhouse along Bushkill Creek from Lafayette College. The Historical Society will sublease it and restore it with a
possible $5,000 grant. Senator Wonderling has helped with the grant process.
Bill Keifer, President of the Forks EMS gave his first monthly report to the Board. Things are going well. Money is coming
in. Bills are being paid. Financing has been secured. He will meet with the Public Safety Committee Tuesday at its
regular meeting to discuss more details and answer more questions.
The house being used by the fire department for training (on the corner of Newlins and Richmond) will be torn down
sometime after June. The fire company has classes scheduled there for the month of June. They are working towards
accreditation.
A data disaster recovery proposal by Hodges Technologies is being reviewed by the Finance and Administration
Committee.
The T-Mobile cell tower is still being considered. The proposed park site is to be staked out for Supervisor review. For the
record, one Supervisor is definitely against it. Howell said that it does not belong in the public park and should be on
private property. Miller said he doesn't mind taking down a few trees since the money that it would bring in would buy a lot
more trees. Ackerman wants a workshop. Howell, Miller, and Ackerman all want a public meeting. Nicholas said that she
had no information and could make no decision.
A police cruiser and its $5,000 camera were totalled in last winter's accident on College Hill. No one knows yet if the
camera was insured or if any of the camera's in the police vehicles are covered. It will be looked into by Township Manager
Schnaedter.
Met-Ed has proposed a 5-1/2% rate increase for municipal street lighting.
Resident Ken Nagy urged the Board to consider telling Northampton County that it will no longer contribute to the open
space fund. He said that the Township is just a cash cow for the program. Finance Manager Farley said that the .5 mill
that the Township gives every year is valued at $300,000 to $400,000. That could be used in Forks, Nagy said.
A resolution to compel Strausser Enterprises to complete portions of his Riverview obligations in exchange for a deadline
extension was adopted in a 5:0 vote.
Penn's Ridge phases 13 & 14, will have 102 condominiums. Unique, though, will be 4 three story buildings of "flats" -
that's one story living per condo and there will be ten in each building. The site will take advantage of the "corridor view"
and be higher end than the rest of Penn's Ridge. The developer was asked to make the convenience store look "natural."
A new, larger and more rain resistant drop-box will installed soon in front of the Municipal Building.

Please read the FAC blog for more a more meeting details! Don't forget to read some of the other posts there... and the
Comments too. Don't be afraid to join in the discussion(s) and add your own Comments.