A residential development proposed for construction in Warriors Mark Township has been rejected by the municipality’s board of supervisors — a huge victory for an area environmental group.
At Tuesday’s regular monthly meeting of the Warriors Mark supervisors, the board shot down plans for the proposed “Raspberry Ridge” mobile homepark, a development that would’ve necessitated the implementation of a somewhat large-scale sewage treatment plant. The plans — introduced over a year ago by Warriors Mark developer John Gilliland were “incomplete” and “unsatisfactory,” according to the township solicitor.
“This board has already granted four 90-day time extensions for this particular proposal,” solicitor Larry Clapper explained. “To date, many of the comments submitted by the township engineer have gone unanswered by the developer.
“Tonight, Mr. Gilliland’s attorney is asking for yet another time extension. I’d advise the board that requests were made by the township engineer over a year ago for sewage and water service modules, among many other things, to which no response has been made. I’d also remind the board that, in the past, you’ve stated that no additional time extensions would be granted after a fourth extension. If granted, this would be the fifth for the Raspberry Ridge proposal.”
The Raspberry Ridge development, a planned 253-lot “trailer park,” has been labeled by the local environmental group, Save Our Streams, as a “high risk” plan, one that would potentially jeopardize the integrity of ground water and congest small, rural roads. Members of Save Our Streams, who predominantly reside in the Warriors Mark and Spruce Creek areas, were out in force at Tuesday night’s meeting and lobbied hard during the public comment period for an out-and-out rejection of the plan.
“The Raspberry Ridge subdivision has been a nightmare since its introduction,” said Dorothy Gurney, chief spokesperson for Save Our Streams. “There would be enormous amounts of storm water runoff and the risk of ground water contamination would be so severe due to the density of these lots that a municipal sewage treatment plant would be needed.”
Gilliland’s attorney, Thomas Scott, conceded that a treatment system of some sort would be required, but that it would be a “privately maintained” system.
“Routes 350 and 550 — the only roads available to accommodate this trailer park and its traffic — would be congested beyond belief,” Gurney continued. “These roads could not handle the huge increase in traffic and there’s no way to widen them. Experts from Penn State agree that if any digging is done on that ridge, there’s a very good chance we’d see a similar result as that on Sky Top. Geologists feel that the acid rock runs the entire length of that ridge. We’d see ‘severe impairment’ of our ground water, there’d be dead fish everywhere and we could say good-bye to our drinking water.
“This development goes against everything in the township’s recently adopted comprehensive plan and we feel it’s this board’s duty to reject it. According to your own ordinances, you are required to reject it.”
Throughout the meeting’s public comment period, several in the audience asked to concede their five-minute allotment to Gurney, a request that was initially granted by the board. This, at times, allowed Gurney to conduct a filibuster of sorts.
Board chairman L. Stewart Neff told Gilliland’s attorney and the crowd at hand that the board has “bent over backwards” to work with Mr. Gilliland concerning this and other proposed land developments. He expressed his frustration with this particular proposal.
“We’ve heard nothing in over a year,” Neff said. “We’ve asked for this information and our requests have been ignored. I’m speaking for myself, but I think the time for granting extensions is over.”
A motion was then made by board member Rodney Marshall to deny the request for a fifth time extension. The motion was seconded and a unanimous vote followed, rejecting the extension request.
“Since this extension has been disallowed, we are required to make a decision on whether to approve the preliminary plan for the Raspberry Ridge development,” Neff said.
Marshall again spoke up, making the motion to reject the proposal. The vote to reject was unanimous.
“This is a big victory for our group, for the citizens of Warriors Mark and those from surrounding communities,” Gurney said after the meeting. “This type of explosive rural growth with no regard for the consequences is exactly what our group stands against.”
Four other preliminary subdivision plans submitted by Gilliland — named Gillbrook I, II and III and Arbutus — were given preliminary approval by the township board.
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On The Net:
Warriors Mark Township: www.warriorsmarkpa.org
