Round 4 Update

Bottom line of last night's meeting.

1. Per Robert Hoffman, a project manager for Traffic Planning and Design who testified on behalf of Weis Markets, the road is currently graded as an "F" (Failing) and will still be an "F" if Weis is built. Clearly the 10,000% projected increase in traffic will only make this intersection even worse.
2. Charlie Schemehl, a Vice President for Urban Research and Development Corporation, who also testified on behalf of Weis, claims that one benefit of this Big Box/Grocery (Weis) store is that people won't be forced to shop at Giant. This was news to us as we did not know that Forks Residents were not currently allowed to leave the town limits to shop at the 5 or 6 other grocery stores within 5 or 6 miles of Forks Township!
   
3. One thing that we do agree with Mr. Schemehl on; "This township has serious traffic problems and they are going to get much, much worse". There is a lot of blame to go around for this lack of poor planning but we can start with current board members Supervisor 60% (a.k.a. Donald "Don" Miller) who has been in office for over 20 years, Supervisor David Hoff, 12 years, as well as former Board members Tim Merwath, David Kolb and Henning Holmgaard, who all opened the flood gates for this over development and traffic nightmare.
4. Several residents made very good points last night. One of our favorites was regarding the fact that while there will be a left turn into Braden Boulevard from Sullivan Trail (115) into the Big Box/Grocery (Weis) from the Southbound direction, there will be no traffic light. Wanna guess how backed up the traffic will be in this turn lane Monday through Friday from 5-6:30 pm or on Saturdays and Sundays? Think that this is a recipe for head-on collisions as southbound traffic attempts to scoot into Weis?

So since all of the town's "experts" agree that we have a mess on our hands with traffic, congestion, overcrowding in the EASD, etc., etc., why isn't the township pursuing every possible legal avenue to put on a moratorium on building until better solutions to these problems are found? One wonders.......

Here are the accompanying news articles from the Morning Call and Express-Times. Speaking of the Morning Call, a special, and big welcome to Reporter Madeleine Mathias who is now covering Forks Township. Madeleine is known for her investigative journalism such as her 3-part series on the Kunkel Tract at Easton High School. We look forward to Madeleine shining the same light of truth on our town as she did with the Easton Area School District. Be careful Madeleine, like rats, when you turn the lights on around here those in power do the Texas Two Step very quickly and we don't want to see you get trampled as they are scrambling!