Milford Microbrewery Takes
Delivery Of Tanks
MILFORD — It was like Christmas arriving a half-year early as co-owners Ryan Scott of Milford and Joe Fisher of New Jersey eagerly removed the protective wrappings, one-by-one, from 10 brewing tanks for craft beer.
"We got a brewhouse," Fisher said with a broad smile.
"This is a big step," Scott said of receiving the shipment order that was placed in January.
The delivery of the tanks built by Sungood Manufacturing arrived on a tractor-trailer just before 9 a.m. on Wednesday last week from Port Newark, New Jersey. It has cemented the co-owners' commitment to opening Log Tavern Brewing Company, a new microbrewery being set up inside a 2,200-square-foot pole barn on East Harford Street near the southern edge of Milford Borough.
They plan to open around Labor Day as originally planned despite a bitterly cold January and a brutally stormy March that they said slowed work a bit.
"Hopefully," said Fisher of meeting the deadline. "At this point, we're cruisin"."We're in a race to get everything done," Scott said. "We're striving for Labor Day to catch the end of rafting season and for hiking and biking. And they're putting in (more) trails to link with the National Park."
Restoration of the Mott Street Bridge nearby will add options to the hiking experience.
Along with the leaf peepers visiting for the changing fall foliage, there's also the Black Bear Film Festival returning on Oct. 19-21. The recently opened Visitor Center at the Community House a short walk away also is expected to enhance business.
It's a trend that has gained popularity locally, with the Wallenpaupack Brewing Company recently opened in Palmyra Township and one in Port Jervis, and nationwide.
Scott said, after a brief pause to assess the work ahead, that the project is "65-70 percent complete."... For complete story, get this week's issue.
Switch In Workers' Comp
Coverage Will Save Thousands
DINGMAN — The Dingman Township Board of Supervisors will be advertising a potential switch in workers' compensation insurance companies.
Supervisors estimate that by switching all but the Volunteer Fire Department's coverage to a Municipal Risk Management Trust through Engle-Hambright and Davies, the township will save an estimated $4,700-$6,700 in the first year and after two years the plan will receive dividends.
The Fire Department will still be managed under the state-run State Workers' Insurance Fund.
Dingman is interested in further talks about the proposed intergovernmental cooperation to combat the lack of ALS services in the region.
Chairman Thomas Mincer said Dingman Township would like to participate in any dialogue moving forward.
The Supervisors said that any further discussion should include Milford Borough and the Milford Fire Department. Township Solicitor John Klemeyer will be submitting a formal letter of interest soon.
The Supervisors received a letter of resignation from Glen DeLeeuw, a long time alternate member of the Planning Commission and a board member on the Parks and Recreation Board.
Tom Leiper of TML Construction petitioned the board to have a stop work order removed from a project on Log Tavern Road. The sewage enforcement officer issued a stop work order after being notified that the construction company laid underground pipes that were not included in the original plans.
Leiper said the structure is very rough and is easily damaged by the weather.
He requested the Board release the stop work order so that he could "button up" the structure, and the Board agreed.
The Board approved the addition of a paint and sip fundraiser for the Dingman Volunteer Fire Department. The session will be held on August 3rd.
Roadmaster Jim Snyder notified the Supervisors that paving has been completed on Nelson and Hussson Roads.
The Board released the retainer payments held till the completion of the Park Trail and the Bridge Preserve Frank Trail.
On the recommendation of the Conservation District, the Township will hold $250 from the Park Trail retainer, releasing $1,250, while releasing the full $3,250 for the Bridge Preserve.
The Board is moving forward with a quote to fix the baseboard electric heating system in the Township Grange building. The work, done by Voltron Electric, will cost $2,380.
The next Dingman Township Board of Supervisors meeting will be held on June 19th.
Westfall Coalition Brainstorms Solutions To Drainage Problems
WESTFALL — After years of struggling with complicated stormwater issues that defied easy solutions, Westfall Township assembled federal, state, and county agencies, the township Highway Dept., and the township engineer to brainstorm solutions affecting Pond Drive, Decker Lane, and Bluestone Boulevard.
Highway Dept. Director Billy Schneider reported on the matter at this month's regular township meeting and in an interview after the meeting.
Schneider noted that the brainstorming sought solutions to all previous efforts that fell short of solving the problems. Pond Drive and Decker Lane runoff affects township roads and property owners and sends runoff into the Delaware River.
The Bluestone Boulevard problem is an embankment failure that caused Mill Rift Brook, also known as Bushkill Creek, to overflow onto a section of Bluestone Boulevard.
Last month, Schneider gave a site tour of all three roads to members of the Army Corps of Engineers, state Dept. of Environmental Protection, Pike County Conservation District and Kiley Associates (township engineer).
The purpose of the tour was to get feedback, discuss possible solutions, and give the township an assessment of the proposed solutions.
Schneider said that the assessment allows the township engineer to estimate each project cost and allows the township to establish a timeline regarding regulatory permits. Some DEP permits must be completed within a specified time.
The assessment also allows the township to establish a realistic planning timeline for each project completion.
If the township does not have funding on hand for a mitigation project, the township could schedule a permit after it secures funding. That could prevent possibly missing a DEP permit deadline, if the township had to delay completion while seeking additional funding.
In other business, Senior Health Care Solutions President Michael P. Kelly proposed building a nursing home facility and an assisted living center on a 7.5-acre parcel near Home Depot and Heritage Point on Reuben Bell Drive.
Supervisors approved referring the projects and a Kelly request for the township to rezone half the parcel from a residential (R1) zone to a Commercial (C1) zone to the Westfall Planning Commission.
Kelly said that the R1 zone is surrounded on three sizes by a C1 zone and that R1 zone uses do not include a skilled nursing facility. Since his business plan for a skilled nursing and assisted living center side by side, he wants the zoning for the whole parcel to be C1. Kelly said, "We have built 10 nursing homes and [an adjacent] assisted living centers in Pennsylvania. We have built and operated a total of 24 nursing homes, which are in Lackawanna, Carbon, Luzerne and Bradford counties."
