Two appeals made over Texas Township prison vote

HONESDALE, PA — Residents who live around the site of the proposed new Wayne County Prison appealed to the Wayne County Court of Common Pleas to stop the building of the prison in Indian Orchard.

On February 1, the Texas Township Zoning Board unanimously approved the county’s application for a special use permit and two variances allowing a higher fence (ten feet rather than eight feet) and fewer parking spaces than zoning regulations required.

A day later, the Wayne County Commissioners made an appeal to the same court to sustain the Texas Township Zoning Board’s approval of the new prison. As part of the appeal, the county asked the court to set aside the requirement to build a dike around three sides of the proposed building, which acts to hide the site from public view.

The dike added unnecessarily to the cost of the project, the county commissioners said.

A question was raised at the March 7 meeting of the Texas Township Board whether Common Pleas Judge Robert Conway should hear the appeals since he sits on the current prison’s board.

Wayne County returns to ‘HUBzone’

HONESDALE, PA – Good news for those businesses involved with government contracting.

The Small Business Administration has reinstated Wayne County as a HUBzone (Historically Underutilized Business Zone) through 2010.

The HUBzone Empowerment Contracting program provides federal contracting opportunities for qualified small businesses located in distressed areas.

Companies that were previously HUBzone certified are once again listed on the government database and companies that were never certified can now be certified.

Group puts Catskills on ‘biogem’ watch list

NEW YORK, NY — New York’s 120-year-old Catskill Forest Preserve was designated as one of the country’s most unique and endangered natural landscapes last week by the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), a leading national conservation group based in New York.

“The Catskill Forest Preserve is an invaluable treasure owned by the people of New York. The preserve and the Catskill Park that surround it rank among the top natural places in our hemisphere, but these resources face serious trouble if we do not stop the massive attack on their borders by reckless development projects,” said Eric A. Goldstein, an NRDC attorney.

The BioGems Initiative is NRDC’s international campaign to protect imperiled wilderness throughout the western hemisphere. It mobilizes citizen action to defend extraordinary areas ranging from the Catskills to the Arctic to the southernmost reaches of South America.

For more information about NRDC’s 2005 BioGems, go to www.nrdc.org/media/pressreleases/050308.asp.

Hospital and insurer extend negotiations

ALBANY, NY — After a state call for further talks, the state’s largest insurer on March 11 reinstated the Bon Secours Charity Health System, operator of Bon Secours Community Hospital in Port Jervis and two other area hospitals.

On March 10, the insurer, Empire Blue Cross Blue Shield, had dropped the three hospitals, leaving them and policyholders whose physicians use admitting privileges at their facilities high and dry. The insurer and the provider have been deadlocked on reimbursement costs for services and tests.

State Insurance Commissioner Howard Mills called on the insurer to provide a 45-day extension for continued negotiations. The impasse reportedly impacts about 100 doctors and 26,000 Empire enrollees who live in the service area of the three hospitals.

Services have returned to normal now, but failing a settlement, Empire-enrolled patients will either pay more for care at the three hospitals, or seek another hospital.

State okays Pike crime and delinquency prevention grants

MILFORD, PA — Pike County has received more than $34,000 in newly approved state crime and delinquency grant funding.

The money was part of some $4.4 million in grants endorsed earlier this month by the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency.

Pike funding includes $24,875 for the Criminal Offenders Processing System (COPS) program and $10,000 for juvenile delinquency prevention.

Grant funding includes community crime prevention and education initiatives, training programs, approaches to treatment and offender sentencing, programs targeting juveniles and the elderly and efforts to revitalize and strengthen communities.

A complete listing of grants can be found at www.pccd.state.pa.us/pccd/lib/pccd/press/attachments/grantsawarded3-08-05.pdf

Public hearing for new code compilation

ELDRED, NY — After two years of preparation a newly created combined “Codes of the Town of Highland” is scheduled to go before an April 12 public hearing.

Councilman Joseph McDonald said the new document combines some 16 local laws and ordinances in a single document. The work was funded by a $2,800 Upper Delaware Council grant.

The new document will require some minor changes in town zoning as it will include specifications for previously approved adult-oriented businesses. A hearing will take place at the town hall at 6:30 p.m., prior to the town board’s regular meeting.

In other business at their March 14 meeting, the town board endorsed a resolution asking the Department of Environmental Conservation to end its ban on deer feeding.