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66 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed in Luzerne County on Sunday

The proposed 2021 Lackawanna-Luzerne Counties Comprehensive Plan is up for discussion at Tuesday’s Luzerne County Council work session.

Recommended every decade, the last comprehensive bi-county plan was released in 2012. These plans serve as a regional blueprint for transportation, land preservation/development and other issues.

The 138-page plan “provides a snapshot of regional conditions, and serves as an aspirational thought-piece for guiding land use development within the county,” county Planning/Zoning Executive Director Matthew C. Jones said in a release.

Broad goals developed through the planning process can inform changes to other future municipal comprehensive plans and county and municipal zoning ordinances, Jones said.

Michael Baker International was consultant on the project and organized community forums and online surveys to obtain public feedback and opinion.

Posted as an attachment to council’s work session agenda at <a href="https://www.luzernecounty.org/AgendaCenter/Luzerne-County-Council-2" target="_blank" rel="noopener">luzernecounty.org</a>, the proposed plan also features a future land use map where growth and in-fill development is envisioned and acknowledges the need for more affordable housing for lower-income workforce residents, Jones said.

Council may hold a public hearing and vote to adopt the final plan at its April 13 meeting, he said.

Work session

County Controller Michelle Bednar is set to present her annual report during Tuesday’s council work session. This presentation is required by the county’s home rule charter.

A link to attend virtual council and committee meetings is posted under council’s public meetings online section at <a href="https://www.luzernecounty.org/1279/Public-Meetings-Online" target="_blank" rel="noopener">luzernecounty.org</a>.

Voting meeting

As previously reported, council is set to vote Tuesday on approving a <a href="https://www.timesleader.com/top-stories/1098870/deal-to-keep-da-in-place-until-resignation" target="_blank" rel="noopener">memorandum of understanding</a> with county District Attorney Stefanie Salavantis that will avoid the need for an injunction hearing in a court complaint she filed Friday over her resignation now that she is running for county judge and which entity — council or county court — fills the vacant seat.

Also on the voting agenda: approval of a settlement in litigation Brian Hampel filed in federal court against county detectives Charles Balogh and Debbie Parker.

The settlement amount has not yet been released. It will be covered by insurance because the county paid its deductible, the agenda said. Hampel had filed a five-count complaint alleging various violations, including false arrest and imprisonment, malicious prosecution, abuse of process and intentional infliction of emotional distress, council’s agenda said.

If council chooses to reject the settlement, the county must proceed with further litigation, discovery and pretrial motions and, eventually, a jury trial with a potentially lengthy appeals process, the administration said.

Flood Authority

A vacancy also will be declared Tuesday on the county’s five-member citizen Flood Protection Authority, which oversees the Wyoming Valley Levee, council’s voting meeting agenda said.

Member William Falls recently resigned from his term, which expires the end of 2024, citing family matters, it said.

Thursday meetings

Council’s Code Review Committee is set to meet at 4:30 p.m.

The County Cares Commission has scheduled a meeting, also virtual, at 6 p.m.

Luzerne County Council has packed Tuesday meeting agenda