TRR Photo by David Jackman Modtran Transportation from Liverpool, PA delivers John’s Bailey’s house to the top of River Road. (Click for larger image)

Home delivery prompts River Road concern

By DAVID JACKMAN and DAVID HULSE

MANCHESTER — Branches had to trimmed off the trees Thursday morning at the base of River Road in Manchester Township.

The township had to widen the road to accommodate the delivery of a modular home for John Bailey, one mile atop his 500 acres of property, and also to have it accessible by emergency services.

The widening has prompted some concern in the environmental community, since the road accesses Coles Flats, which is viewed as one of the last large pristine riverfront tracts. Upper Delaware Council (UDC) officials said photographs of the widened road had raised some concerns about erosion and sedimentation problems.

Bailey’s property has been family owned for over 40 years and the property adjoins an additional 300 neighbors’ acres owned by the Nature Conservancy.

UDC Resource Specialist David Soete said the Wayne County Soil Conservation District was monitoring the construction. The project is strictly outside UDC purview as Soete noted that Manchester and the three other Wayne County riverfront townships have never joined the UDC.

River-related projects in non-participating Wayne townships are monitored directly by the National Park Service (NPS). Superintendent Sandra Schultz said she has asked staff to review the impact of the work.

Manchester Township Supervisor Steve Macey contacted Roloson Excavating in Equinunk to widen River Road using a dozer and excavator at a machinery cost of $10,150. The work took three and a half days to complete.

Macey said that Bailey applied for a building permit this past spring, and David Mitchell from the Wayne County Soil Conservation District did a investigative report and wrote recommendations for the township to follow.

“We have to mulch and seed the sides of the road,” said Macey, “spending a total of $800 on grass seed, and $500 on bales of hay. That’s what we’re doing. It should be finished tomorrow [Friday, September 7],” Macey said.

Other recommendations from Mitchell included stabilizing the ditches using a “rip-rap” method, so that rock material does not fall into the stream. Macey said that final costs have not been calculated and River Road may not be completed for another year.

Mitchell told TRR he had no concerns regarding the township’s effort to follow his recommendations. Schultz didn’t see the issue as confrontational. “I’d just encourage everyone to work together to get it seeded before winter,” she said.

Project “labor is paid out of Liquid Fuels tax money which is allocated every year by the state,” said Macey.

The amount of Liquid Fuels Tax allocated to townships is based on population and miles of road, with Manchester Township maintaining sixty-nine miles. Funding for widening River Road came out of the township’s general funds and the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation [PennDOT] approved the project “as long as local forces do 51 percent or more of the work,” Macey said.

Manchester Township meets on the second and fourth Monday of the month at 7:00 p.m. at the Manchester Township Building.

For more information, call 570/224-4070.