40¢
71st Year, Issue No. 16 USPS 248-700
APRIL 19-25, 2012 A General Circulation Newspaper Serving The Community Since 1942
SERVING BATH, CHAPMAN, NORTHAMPTON, NAZARETH BOROS; ALLEN, E. ALLEN, MOORE, LEHIGH, BUSHKILL, LOWER NAZARETH & UPPER NAZARETH TWPS.
Generous donor Helps Local man By ALICE WANAMAKER The Home News
Andrew Weaver’s battle against Cerebral Palsy has left him confined to a wheel chair. Most days, Andy, 27, of Nazareth, handles his situation with a smile and upbeat attitude. An avid fan, he attends Nazareth High School’s sports games including football, baseball, basketball and many others. Andy is well known in the community and his indomitable spirit in the face of adversity inspires optimism and pride. Andy’s sunny attitude was dampened last Wednesday when the wheelchair he has been using for nearly 8 years stopped working. The wheelchair was Andy’s only way to get around his home and his community. He began to feel like a prisoner in his own home without it. Andy made a few sorrowful status updates on his normally chipper facebook page last Wednesday afternoon and by that evening he was on the 10 o’clock Continued on page 15
By BILL HALBFOERSTER The Home News
Andy Weaver, seen here in early March at a Nazareth Basketball game, received a loaner wheelchair late. – Contributed photo
Hahn endorses Power-line path Thru Delaware Gap
State Rep. Marcia Hahn (RNorthampton) is endorsing a PPL Electric Utilities plan to run a high voltage power line through the Delaware Water Gap, as opposed to Northampton County. The proposal recently received support from the National Park Service. “While concerns have been expressed by various groups, I am trusting in the conclusions reached by the National Park Service,” Rep. Hahn said. “I agree wholeheartedly with their opinion and believe that using existing power line
INSIDE THIS WEEK: Gobbler Season ….6 Konkrete Konnection ….9 Chamber Showdown …. 10
Lehigh Township joins suit Over earned income tax bite
paths for this much needed project, rather than creating new ones, will be less invasive to the environment.” PPL has proposed a 145mile transmission line from its Luzerne County nuclear power plant to the Roseland substation near Newark, N.J. One of the alternatives called for the creation of a new path, which would have included Northampton County. “We are in the midst of what appears to be a jobless recovery,” added Hahn. “This project will create an estimated 2,000 jobs during construction, and I look forward to what I hope will be project approval this fall.”The park service has jurisdiction over the project, and expects to render a decision by Oct. 1. Project completion is targeted for the summer of 2015.
Lehigh Township’s Board of Supervisors on Tuesday, April 10 voted to opt into the lawsuit in Pa. Commonwealth Court over the City of Allentown using earned income taxes from out-of-area workers for an ice hockey arena and other development in the city at 7th & Hamilton Streets. Called a Neighborhood Improvement Zone, it includes 130 acres in the city that reaches as far away as Sacred Heart Hospital and to the waterfront of the Lehigh River. Persons from other municipalities who work in that zone would find their earned income taxes, for an uncertain amount of time, going to the city and not to Hanover Twsp., Bethlehem Twsp., Hellertown, Upper Nazareth Twsp., Lower Saucon Twsp. (and now Lehigh Twsp., Lower Nazareth Twsp. and Bushkill Twsp.) and possibly others who might join the suit. Bath and Moore Twsp. have not decided yet to do so, and it is not known about East Allen Twsp. The suit, first filed by Hanover Twsp., Northampton County, contends that the Constitution does not allow the Legislature to adopt a law for one city.
Solicitor David Backenstoe said that costs to enter the suit are between $2,500 for a population under 5,000 and $10,000 for a municipality over 10,000. But he said that if the E..I.T. money is held up for 30 years, the amount withheld could be thousands of dollars, just for one person. Supervisor Cindy Miller commented that no one was ever able to express an opinion on the law written by State Senator Pat Browne (RLehigh). “It was done back door,” she said. “And it’s not just the arena, it’s the development that includes the waterfront.”
-----------------------“We haven’t been able to get numbers on how much money we would lose.”
-Darryl Snover
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Supervisor Dell Grove was concerned with an amount of time before the court makes a decision. Ms. Miller asked, too, if the lawsuit stops arena construction, would that increase the costs? There are a lot of unanswered questions, and Chairman Darryl Snover said, “We haven’t been able to get numbers on how much money we
would lose.” Supervisor Sandy Hopkins said she is “looking at the morality of the problem – what’s right is right.” In voting unanimously to enter the suit, the supervisors believed this was the only way to get information. Other Matters • The board discussed at length a recreation resolution, especially in regard to the cost of lights for night games. When turned on, the township gets a bill for $500. The board noted that it’s hard to control if the team playing falls within or outside of the billing cycle. From April 20 to July 20 it is $55 an hour; if later, they pay the full cost of $500. Hantz suggested that the high school booster teams should use fields in East Allen and Moore townships as well as Lehigh. Township Manager Alice Rehrig commented, “If all teams work together in a two-month billing cycle, it would be more economical.” Supervisor Keith Hantz said schedulers should adjust so that night games are within the billing cycle. A resident suggested using a generator and then there would be no worries about Continued on page 9
Cub Pack 43 holds pinewood derby race Cub Scouts from Pack 43, Sacred Heart Parish in Bath, raced their pinewood derby cars on Tuesday, Feb. 28 in the church auditorium. And what a race it was! The cars were all well built, carved, painted, decorated, and fast! By the end of the evening, after several rounds of competitive racing and photo finish heats, there was a clear cut-winning car and it belonged to Wolf Cub Matthew Schroyer with a fastest lap time of 2.5051 seconds. Second place went to Wolf Cub Xander Schultz, 2.5163; third place was Bear Cub Nicholas Muschlitz, 2.5216; fourth place was Tiger Cub Nicholas Bazzett, 2.5482, and rounding out the top five was another Tiger Cub, Nolan Mohry, 2.5499. These top five finishers now move on to the North Valley District finals race to be held on April 28, and the pack wishes them great success and fun at that race. Four of the Cub Scouts were also awarded special
ribbons for “Least Wood Removed” – Webelos Scout Derek Richline; “Best Looking Race Car” – Tiger Cub Antonio Mariani; “Most Cub Scout Spirit” – Bear Cub Brandon Weimer, and “Most Non-Car Like” – Bear Cub Nicholas Muschlitz. After car registration and
pit inspection, which the Cubs passed, they were given pit passes and moved on to uniform inspection. Racing action began after food and snacks were enjoyed, with Bear Leader Joe Brady, Webelos Leader Pat Nocera, Continued on page 7
WINNERS of the Pack 43 Pinewood Derby
– Contributed photo