TimesLeader.com

Council weighs settlement options

By Gerard Hetman ghetman@theabingtonjournal.com

CLARKS SUMMIT- As Clarks Summit Borough Council evaluated options in the ongoing proceedings involving the closure of Grandview Street, it heard from an expert at the monthly work session last Tuesday evening, Oct. 27.

Michael Noto and Peter Amato originally filed suit against Clarks Summit Borough in November 2003, after the borough closed a section of Grandview Street that provided access to property owned by Amato. A recent verdict jury decision in Lackawanna County Court awarded them more than $2.3 million in damages, plus interest due from Clarks Summit Borough.

Brian Koscelansky, an attorney with the law firm of Stephens & Lee, spoke to council to explain the policies and regulations required by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania if a borough seeks to borrow funds to pay debts. If council chooses to reach a financial settlement with land owner Amato, Koscelansky explained that the borough would need to work under the Pennsylvania Local Government Unit Debt Act in following procedures.

Koscelansky added that in similar cases, municipal agencies work through a 90-day window to complete required processes. This includes having borough council enact an ordinance to start procedures, as well as purchasing newspaper advertising to give notice of the meeting where council will vote on the issue. The borough will need to have the process approved by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, which will require paperwork to be filed after the borough reaches a tentative agreement with a prospective lender.

“Everything we’ve discussed is procedural stuff in situations like this,” Koscelansky said. “The 90-day window is a typical timeframe for a borough to work with from start to finish in order to get approval for the borrowing of funds under the Pennsylvania Local Government Unit Debt Act.”

In other business, debate continued among council members and citizens regarding the trial use of a certified stenographer to provide an official transcript of each monthly meeting. At its September meeting, council voted to accept the services of stenographer Lisa Graff on a trial basis for October and November. After reviewing the October transcript prior to the work session, Councilman Herman Johnson praised Graff’s efforts, saying the transcript provided an accurate record of the proceedings invaluable to council and citizens. Johnson met with criticism from Councilwoman Kathy Drake, who said she was inaccurately identified in the transcript as having voted on an issue on which she did not cast a vote. Drake later said she deliberately took no action during the vote to test the accuracy of the stenographer, at which point borough solicitor Ernest Preate Jr. explained the procedures and operating habits of court stenographers, including an often-used review policy that allows participants in such proceedings to make corrections for accuracy.

Another issue discussed was cost. Cost to the borough for Graff’s services at the October meeting came to $479.50 for the transcript. Current council candidate Ray Davis said that the October meeting was the first after the Grandview Street verdict, and that large amount of public comment led to the lengthy transcript and subsequent bill, which is charged on a per-page basis. The issue was contested by numerous citizens and council members, who insisted that the cost was more than the borough could afford at present.

Present for the start of the meeting were several members of Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 7069, who donated a check for $500 to the borough that will be used in the construction of a new war memorial in the borough.

Following the work session, council adjourned to an executive session. The next scheduled meeting of council is set for Wednesday, Nov. 4, at 7 p.m.