W-b Fire Victims Improving, Hospitals Say

Angelo F. Grasso

Wednesday, February 05, 2003 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Page: 5A 





WILKES-BARRE TWP. - Council discussed the condition of the township's fire
hydrants at Monday's meeting. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Council president Mary Yuknavich requested solicitor Bruce Phillips send a
letter to Pennsylvania-American Water Co. asking it to test township hydrants. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Yuknavich said she is concerned because dry hydrants were discovered
recently in other municipalities. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The water company should give the township a list of the hydrants and the
pressure in them so residents are protected, she said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 In other business: &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Mayor Carl Kuren read a letter he received from Mark Wende, president of
the Meadow Run/Mountain Lake Park Association, informing him the state
Department of Environmental Protection has ordered the association to
reconfigure the Meadow Run Lake Dam to accommodate a 210-foot spillway at a
cost of $800,000. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The association is pursuing funding from banks and other sources. The group
needs to secure a $600,000 loan with a 15-year term. With the anticipated
debt, the board passed a resolution to increase future property assessments
from $350 to $750 a year, of which $400 will go into a fund to pay the loan. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Members of the Shade Tree Commission were named: Cindy Dorzinsky, Paul
Williamson, Michael Mahalick, Christopher Hughes, Ted Kopec, Marnie Kopec,
Jeff Carter and Rachel Tarnalicki as an alternate. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Williamson informed township officials there will be a spring tree
planting. A newsletter outlining projects the commission will undertake is due
out in March. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Business administrator Michael Revitt informed council the township
received a $38,000 grant from the DEP for participating in the recycling
program and the fire department had received a $4,000 grant from the state
Department of Forestry. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Mahalick of Spruce Street informed council members he received a letter
from Michael Dziak of Earth Conservancy that the township will have to send a
formal resolution to Earth Conservancy regarding taking over Beech Street, an
unused road, from Mahalick. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Once they receive the proper resolution from the township, they will turn
the road over to the township and Mahalick will then be reimbursed for the
road. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Phillips stated that he will prepare a draft of the resolution for
council's review prior to being adopted at the next meeting. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Council members unanimously passed a resolution authorizing a five-year
contract between the township and the police department for the period Jan. 1
through Dec. 31, 2007. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Bernadine Elick &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

W-b Twp. Seeks Hydrant Testing The Council President, Mary Yuknavich, Said She Wants To Ensure Residents Are Protected.