Pike property purchase

Commissioners split 2-1 over expansion expenditures

By TOM KANE

MILFORD, PA - Generally, the Pike County Commissioners vote unanimously. But the tradition was abandoned when commissioners’ chair Richard Caridi voted against a motion to explore the purchase of a building at 221 Broad Street in Milford, which is about to come on the market.

The issue passed by a two-to-one vote.

“I, as a businessman, would not purchase this property; I could not justify it,” Caridi said. “All the more reason why I don’t want to put a burden on my neighbors and fellow citizens and make this purchase.”

The two other commissioners, Harry Forbes and Karl Wagner, did not agree and voted to direct the county engineer and counsel to investigate purchasing the two-story building.

The commissioners seemed to be split on whether the county could afford the building and how it would affect other county priorities.

“[The purchase of another building] puts into jeopardy the ability of the county to complete the construction of the emergency training center, which we have been planning for three years,” Caridi said. “We’re not going to have the latitude to build the facility unless we have adequate funding. Although we don’t know the exact costs, it will certainly cost a substantial amount.”

He said it was important for the county to support efforts to enlist volunteer firefighters and ambulance personnel. “We’re also putting the 911 center at that facility which puts additional costs on the construction.”

Forbes and Wagner advocated that the building purchase would improve the county court system and that there were enough funds to go around.

“The intent of this purchase is to make room available for our ever expanding courts,” Forbes said. “There is always going to be some disagreements among us. We do not have a lot of office space in the county or in Milford. The purchase of this property will make expansion of our courts possible.”

“We have a capital reserve fund of several million dollars which we have never used,” Wagner said. “Out of the $10 million bond issue, we have $7 million for capital projects that was to be used in this manner.”

The building at 221 Broad Street is owned by Joe Biondo.