Hawley

Lines were drawn and battles were waged to the point where an incensed Hawley Planning Commission member stormed out of the meeting on January 1 amid angry words from the public and the commission. While the fiscal cliff in Washington was averted New Year’s Eve, and still with unanswered questions, Hawley seems poised on its own fiscal cliff, with no answers in the foreseeable future.  Read more

Learn how to make herbal medicine preparations at home, about herb selection and formulating and about dosage and safety at Northern Light Natural Foods, 1pm. www.nathanielwhitmore.com or 570/226-5858.

Fundraising event benefiting the Dessin Animal Shelter, held at the Inn at Woodloch, 6pm. Fine dining, dancing, music, raffles and a live auction. Tickets: $50. 570/647-0620.

Presenter: Rick Koval, Pocono naturalist, PPL Wallenpaupack Environmental Learning Center, 1pm. 570/253-7001 or pplpreserves@pplweb.com.

Join Sue Thompson, Proprietor of Mariposa Gardens, a local native plant nursery, for her informative presentation at the PPL Wallenpaupack Environmental Learning Center, 2pm. 570/253-4006. No registration required.

This free program will begin at the PPL Wallenpaupack Environmental Learning Center, followed by a guided eagle-viewing bus tour of the Lackawaxen River that leaves from the center. Two time slots: 8-11:30am or 12:30-4:30pm. Transportation provided. Dress for the weather and bring binoculars. This program is free, but space is very limited. Registration is required. Register: 570/253-7001 or pplpreserves@pplweb.com.

Presenter: Bill Streeter of Delaware Valley Raptor Center at the PPL Wallenpaupack Environmental Learning Center, 1pm. Email pplpreserves@pplweb.com or call 570/253-7001.

Penn State Extension in Pike County will hold the first of 5 weekly sessions of a free Quit Smoking Course, 3–4pm; Pocono Lake Region Chamber of Commerce Visitors Center, 2512 Route 6, Suite 2. Pre-registration is required. Nicotine patches available while supplies last. Individual counseling and group sessions available by appointment; call 570-296-3400 or 570-253-5970, ext 4110 or e-mail PikeExt@psu.edu.

The food and wine festival proposed to be held in Hawley has been nixed because a majority of the Hawley Borough council thought it was not a good fit for the town. The council vote four to three on December 12 that the event would not go forward.

Opponents said they were concerned with liability issues with allowing alcohol to be consumed in a public park should something go wrong.  Read more

The question of whether or not Hawley is an impoverished town was food for discussion for the approximately 50 people who attended the Hawley Borough Council meeting on December 12.

Investors in the Hawley Silk Mill want the borough to designate an area around the Silk Mill and the downtown area as “distressed,” which would allow the borough to adopt an ordinance that in turn could take advantage of the state’s Local Economic Revitalization Tax Assistance Act (LERTA). The investors are asking that the borough then approve tax abatements for the Silk Mill over five years.  Read more