4 The Dallas Post Dallas, PA Wednesday, June 12, 1996 = CE — EDITORIALS Before protest goes too far, Franklin Twp. parties should talk The zoning battle that won't end continues to fester in Franklin Township, with property owners now suing the town- ship over revisions that raised the minimum lot size in agricul- tural areas. The argument is basically this; by increasing the minimum lot in agricultural zones from two to three acres, the township has infringed on property owners’ ability to make the ‘best use of their land, and, absent a compelling reason to do so, the change is unjust and unwarranted. Common sense would ‘also lead one to believe property owners would feel the change ‘has decreased their lands’ value. The arguments might have some validity. The owner of 50 acres could subdivide the property into only 16 lots under the new zoning, instead of 25 under the old. While larger lots usually attract a higher price, the difference might not make up for the fewer number available for sale. That is not a certainty, since a given parcel of land could be better suited to larger lots or could offer attractions that would command a high price. - Township officials have said larger lots are needed to avert ground water contamination by septic systems, since there are no sanitary sewers to tap into. They say contamination has been a problem before, and could be again. There's also a political dimension to the tussle, since the zoning revisions were put in place by a new board of supervisors which swept into office last November. We don't like to see a small town torn by dissension, nor is it useful to drain government coffers in a court case. The proponents of the larger lot sizes say they are supported overwhelmingly by the citizens of Franklin Township, and can point to the election results as proof. Opponents claim the size was changed for no good reason, other than to prevent more people from moving to the township. It would be unfortunate if it turns out this is a political fight, “and not one of real principle. Before either side spends a fortune on legal fees, the township supervisors and land ~owners should sit down together to find common ground, if there is any, and the public should be privy to each side's arguments. If that fails, a court may be the proper place to “settle the dispute. | Publisher's notebook [Ron Bartizel___ “lift all boats.’ There is a fundamental disconnect between some political rhetoric and the facts of American economic life in the 1990s. ‘One of the tenets of conservatism is reduced government interference, particularly regulation and oversight of business. The result, they say, will be a vibrant market economy that will But it doesn't always work that way. Left “unchecked, some large businesses, rather than compete on a level playing field, will do their utmost to drive competitors out of the market. They can use “synergy,” drawing on various “divisions to support one another's activities, and often do so to “hammer a weaker competitor into submission. And when they do, employment declines, prices rise, and choices diminish. .+-Once they hold sway, large organizations can pool talent, “share resources and eliminate whole groups of employees in search of greater efficiency. There's nothing wrong with efficiency, or synergy, of course. It’s how they are used that has ‘become a problem, and not just for small businesses that must “compete with large ones. It's a problem [or the entire economy, ‘because as industries become more compressed, they won't ‘need to compete so hard, and will seek ways to employ fewer People. But they might have it backwards. You need only read the statistics on job creation — which show most new jobs develop “in'small businesses — to realize that making economic life safe ¢ ." One now virtually ignored area of regulation is anti-competi- ro and anti-trust oversight. Once upon a time, the govern- ‘ment not only watched big business closely, it broke up “oligopolies which threatened to dominate industries to the “point that consumers and workers were made subservient to “the will of the corporation. Not any more; government could be ‘better described as a timid servant of big business, afraid to be “accused of shackling the Free Enterprise machine and ulti- mately harming the economy. Jor huge companies can do more harm than good. “It’s not just a big-picture issue. When large chain stores ‘move into an area, as several have come to Northeastern ‘Pennsylvania in recent years, they can use profits earned elsewhere to subsidize the new stores until competition thins “out. And the large chains don’t usually deal with local banks ~or suppliers, so if they drive out smaller competitors — who do their business here — the injury sinks down, instead of the ‘boats rising up. Not all large companies operate this way, ol course. Bul some “do, seeking to dominate a market at virtually any cost, so they can reap the rewards of near-monopoly status later on. That's ‘the kind of behavior that is more harmful than helpful overall. The Dallas Post Published Weekly By Bartsen Media, Inc. P.O. Box 366, Dallas PA 18612 717-675-5211 Ronald A. Bartizek PUBLISHER Peggy Young ADVERTISING ACCT. EXEC Paul Rismiller PRODUCTION MANAGER . Jill Gruver or OFFICE MANAGER [38% TrRINTED WITH NIN : SOYINK ASSOCIATION oer Grace R. Dove REPORTER Olga Kostrobala CLASSIFIED/TYPESETTING PEN PusiLiymran Avior iavion Charlotte E. Bartizek ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER #1] LVANIA Fishing on a calm day at Harveys Lake. Photo by Charlotte Bartizek. LETTERS | Wa Mr. Z's makes life easier for senior citizens Editor: Itis with great pleasure that we want to thank the manager Tom Mertz [rom Mr. Z's Food Mart for giving two carts to the Meadows Apartments, 220 Lake St. His generosily has eased a burden to the residents when the van picks them up toshopat Mr. Z's, so they can wheel their food to their apart- ments. Many, many thanks. God Bless you. Residents of Meadows Apts. Dallas Many people made memorial service success Editor: The Ladies’ Auxiliary of the Jackson Township Volunteer Fire Company, were proud to present our annual memorial service in honoring all those who gave their lives in service to their country and community. This year was particularly suc- cessful due to the many special people who gave up their personal time to participate in our Cer- emony. We give a special thank-you to Rev. Ronald Cease, for his inspir- ing messages and prayers, [rom the Valley View Union Chapel Church. Also to coordinator of Battery B-109th, SFC Steven Stempien and N.C.O.1.C. SSG. Brian McMichael and the mem- bers of the Firing Squad of the Battery B109th Field Artillery of Nanticoke National Guard. And with special thanks to O.1.C. Cap- tain Kevin Miller, Kingston Ar- mory. The Military Ceremony started off beautifully with bugler Dusty Rhodes - a 10th grader from Lake- Lehman High School. He is a member of the award-winning LLake-Lehman Band, Honors Band, Honors Orchestra and is activein sports. Thankyou Dusty. Special thanks to Lt. Col. Keith Martin, PA Army National Guard Commanding the 3rd BN, 103rd. Armor Division, who gave won- derful remarks on “Honor the Dead”, Thank the Living." Also remarks [rom M. Sgt. Neno Sartini, USAF Ret. Post 2 Kingston of the Veterans of the Vietnam War, spoke on POW's/MIA's. Thank you for being with us. The wreath from Mary's Flower Garden, donated by the Ladies’ Auxiliary was placed by the Dal- las Boy Scout Troop 232, with Scoutmaster Bob Neher and the Jackson Township Brownie Troop 640, with troop leader Stephanie Yavorchak. Our condolences to the fami- lies and friends of our beloved deceased ones. attending our memorial service. Thank you again to our Volun- teer Firemen and Ambulance per- sonnel, also to Chief Donald Jones, Thank you for and all the other police officers, and to all of the special guests who attended our Memorial Ser- vice. Thanks to Karen Richards and Charles Kasko for the wonderful programs they made and donated. Thank you for the new POW/ MIA, flag and all the American flags given to the Boy Scouts, Brownies and all the children in attendance, donated by Andrew Kasko. Chairpersons Desiree Evans, SFC. Steven Stempien, Charles Kasko, Karen Richards and Irene Kasko Preslipski, would like to extend our gratitude for the beau- tiful Honor Site. We want to give a special thank you to all the officers of the Aux- iliary for a job well done, each year, president, Bernice Manzoni; vice president, Grace Fielding; secretary, Anna Manzoniand trea- surer, Desiree Evans. Irene Kasko Preslipski Desiree Evans Ladies’ Auxiliary Jackson Twp Vol. Fire Co. Dallas High School needs a swimming pool Editor: Dallas has grown tremendously in the past 20 years. It is not the same small community it was when the high school was built in 1961. The area is in need of change. It's time to give some- thing back to the community. Swimming is not just asport. It is a recreation for all ages. A school swimming pool is a great assel to any community. A pool is something the Back Mountain would be proud of. We should grow as a commu- nity. We are in full support of a Dallas school swimming pool. Bob and Mary Ellen Duris Shavertown Your news is welcome The Dallas Post welcomes submissions about Back Mountain people and events. In order to plan each issue, we must adhere to self-imposed deadlines, as well as those of our printer. To have the greatest likelihood of publication, items should be received at our office by 4 p.m. the Friday prior to each issue. Items will be accepted until 4 p.m. Mondays, although much of the paper is already assembled by that time. Send or bring items to: The Dallas Post, 45 Main Road, P.O. Box 366, Dallas, PA 18612. Our normal business hours are 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday. A deposit box is located at the front of the building for after-hours submissions. ONLY YESTERDAY 60 Years Ago - June 19, 1936 HARVEYS LAKE TOPSIN AREA QUOIT LEAGUE Possibility of an appeal by Norman Dinger {rom Judge. Will- iam S. McLean's decision invali- dating his three year contract with Dallas Borough School District arose this week as parties involved awaited the results of an effort to have the Luzerne County Court en banc lo re-open Mr. Pinger S suit. Harveys Lake quoit team has taken an early lead in the Rural Quoit League with 50 wins, and 14 defeats. Skytop and Fernbr ook are lied for second. : 50 Years Ago - June 21, ie g f RENT CONTROLS HIT AREA LANDLORDS One thousand six hundred landlords in the Back Mountain area are expected to register their housing projects, with the Office of Price Administration at Dallas Borough High School, June’ 27- 28, 2 p.m.-8 p.m. All landlords except those who rent their prop- erties only part of the year. such as Harveys Lake cottages and summer residences, must have their properties registered by July 15 to be in compliance with the Federal Rent Control program. Local registration will be for land-, lords living in Dallas Borough, Kingston, Dallas, Lehman. Lake and Jackson Townships." : Mr. and Mrs. Marvin K. Elston, will celebrate their 50th anniver-: sary June 23 with with an open: house. They are the parents of six children, have 18 grandchildren and two great grandchildren. Ca 40 Years Ago - June 15,1956 SCHOOLS STONEWALL SUPERVISING PRINCIPAL Dallas, Franklin and Monroe Twp. School boards presented a stone wall of resistance to election of James Martin as supervising principal of the newly formed Dallas Area Schools Jointure at Tuesday night's meeting until a retirement age of 65 was fixed, Retirement age varies in districts throughout Luzerne County, but is mandatory at 70, and varies from 62 to the ceiling limit. Three seniors from Lake-Noxen class of 1956 ran neck and neck for high honors, Jeanette Ide and Judy Searfoss tying for first place, Charlotte Kocher, placing a close second. Charlotie ,who would normally have given the Saluta- tory. introduced the speaker, Herbert Dushak, while Judy gave the Welcome and Jeanetle the Valedictory. ir 30 Years Ago - June 16,1966 | BORO BUYS LOT FOR 5 FUTURE EXPANSION With an eye to the future Dallas Borough Council has purchased a corner lot on Pinecrest Avenue and Huntsville Road. A new mu- nicipal building or voting place are posssibilities. The large lot was purchased from a California resident for $1500. row eR Nine boys [rom this area serv: ing in Vietnam are receivihg The Dallas Post. It was announced some lime ago Mrs. Howard Risley would [ollow the pattern set by her husband at the time of World War Il sending Postsiothess boys as a gift. 20 Years Ago - June 17, 1976. L-L CONSIDERS BUYING MODULAR CLASSROOMS: Faced with problems of main- taining two aged school buildings and overcrowding in still another facility, Lake-Lehman's School Board reviewed the possibility of purchasing modular classroom units during the course of its| monthly meeting. Director Angelo DeCesaris stated that he is “re- luctant to spend money to replace fixtures in antiquated buildings!’ and suggested that the 40-year guarantee offered on modular units indicates that the struc- tures can be regarded as perinid] nent buildings. ‘ Dallas Borough Council asitil Police Chief Ray Titus to establish’ a number of new “speed traps” in: the borough. The council men- tioned Lake Street,. Main Street, and the Davenport and Sterling thoroughfares as possible sites for the traps. J : Anthony Bonomo requested’ information from council concern-: ing his proposed project to build a. roller skating rink in the area.= © i) 0
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers