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APRIL 15-21, 2021
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Moore Township BOS Mattie’s Strudel Haus officially Discuss impact fees and Welcomed to the neighborhood Livestock ordinance By JASON KAMERY The Moore Township Board of Supervisors met at 6 p.m. on April 6 via Zoom to discuss impact fees for development along Route 512, a livestock ordinance and opposition to Governor Wolf ’s police proposal. The Board of Supervisors discussed the process of assessing impact fees on development done along Route 512. Township Solicitor David Backenstoe pondered the question of why the township cannot charge developers fees, whether they’re for commercial development or residential, since what follows is more police and fire protection. “The answer is, your legislator won’t allow it,” said Backenstoe, “The municipality’s planning code only allows you to assess the fees that are authorized, so you have rec fees and things like that associated with developments, but those are the only fees you can charge.” Backenstoe went on to explain that the only area where townships may collect fees for the impact the traffic will have on communities is offsite capital improvement impact fees. Backenstoe explained, “Impact fees are an assessment to a developer to the traffic which they will create. The impact fee is supposed to be used by the township to offset that traffic by improving the road, improving infrastructure, or to use those fees to put up a traffic signal.” Backenstoe said the problem, however, is it is a very involved process, “Before you can have an impact fee ordinance that allows you to assess fees on a developer, which is based on the traffic that is going to be generated by a particular development, you have to go through quite a process and create an impact fee ordinance.” Township Engineer Kevin Horvath explained to the Board of Supervisors that the impact fee is not meant to pay for the increase in traffic generally. “Traffic is going to increase all the time whether you have a development or not,” Horvath said. “The study is going to take into
account how much this traffic is going to increase, whether there is a development or not.” Horvath explained what will be determined is what the development’s impact of the township’s traffic area will have on the roadways. “If you have very little development in these areas, then you are going to have fewer capital improvements that will be triggered by this,” said Horvath. The supervisors’ biggest concern is the possible lack of revenue that the township would gain to offset the study. The Board of Supervisors decided to let Horvath and Backenstoe study the issue more and come back to them in May. Also discussed during the meeting was a livestock ordinance. Backenstoe explained that lately maintaining livestock in the township has become a problem, with goats not being penned up properly and accessing the road, “Which of course, could cause horrible automobile accidents and could hurt the goat or hurt someone driving.” Backenstoe relayed that neighboring townships do not have any regulations in regards to this, being more rural, so he drafted a regulation for consideration. The ordinance would require livestock to be fenced appropriately and housed. Matthew Flower of Scenic Drive voiced a concern that this would interfere with the Right to Farm Act, and police officers would issue citations to farmers due to an animal that would involuntarily escape. “I don’t think the Right to Farm Act includes allowing your livestock to enter onto public roads or your neighbor’s property against their will,” Backenstoe said. “Unless that happens, the police are not going to do anything with someone’s livestock. It would only be on a highway, public highway, involved with an automobile accident, and I just don’t think those are normal farming operations.” Flower expressed the concern for a man who has a 100-acre Continued on page 9
By KERI LINDENMUTH Mattie’s Strudel Haus, owned and operated by Kelly Vlasics, has been making mouths water for years. Now, they have their first official storefront in Bath so residents can pick up their favorite sweet or savory strudel any time of the year. On Tuesday, April 6, the Greater Lehigh Valley Chamber of Commerce held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the new West Main Street business. Dozens of resi-
dents, business owners, and local officials were present to celebrate this occasion, which has been several years in the making. “I am very proud of Kelly and her persistence,” said Councilwoman Carol Bear-Heckman, who is also a board member on the Greater Bath Area Chamber of Commerce. “Her business is off to a great start.” Bringing this new business to Bath was not without its struggles. Vlasics had previously attempted
to open her location in Bushkill Township, but the contractor never requested a work permit or submitted the appropriate drawings. Vlasics didn’t give up and found the West Main Street location. However, serious building issues were never disclosed and another contractor failed to follow through on their promises. Then, a vehicle crashed into the front of the business. A little over Continued on page 9
Upper Nazareth Police Department Completes Crisis Intervention Training
Submitted by SGT. MARK HERMAN Chief Cope, Sergeant Herman, and Officer Lukacz recently completed Crisis Intervention Training (CIT). This 40 hours class is an intensive, expansive look by Law Enforcement at resources provided by Northampton County and additional local agencies. CIT is a nationally recognized, evidence-based program designed to assist Law Enforcement Offi-
cers and other first responders to effectively and safely interact with persons who are experiencing a psychiatric crisis. The 40-hour certification course is an intensive, expansive look at the issues presented in the six-hour course with the addition of many modules aimed at helping the law enforcement officer understand the County services as well as a number of other areas that will enhance their knowledge and safety in the community.
Learning objectives for the class included understanding the history and beenfits of CIT, recognizing signs and symptoms Continued on page 9
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