est yi 00 Bo 1 The Dallas Post Dallas, PA Wednesday, September 29, 1999 EDITORIALS Better late than never with cell tower rules Anticipating more applications for construction of cellular telephone antenna towers, the Kingston Township supervisors are planning to regulate the eyesores to the extent allowed under the Federal Telecommunications Act of 1996. That ~ legislation, which was supposed to spur competition and efficiency in all areas of communication, has proven to be most effective at raising cable television rates and inspiring cell phone providers to plop an unsightly tower on every available hillside. While a new ordinance will not prevent construction of towers that have already received approval, such as one behind the old municipal building, it should help to keep antennas out of areas where they are entirely inappropriate, such as residen- tial zones. When officials from cell phone companies first descended on the Back Mountain, they made their applications with all the subtlety of a pit bull, implying that local government power had been completely usurped by the Act. Many municipalities succumbed to this erroneous claim — and to offers of free tower space for police radios and generous lease payments for land — so towers received only a passing glance before being approved. But in truth these structures can be regulated to a reasonable extent. Kingston Township may be a little late to the table, but at least the supervisors have now pulled up a chair and are trying their best to look out for the interests of citizens who are concerned about the appearance of their town and the value of their property. Unfortunately, officials in other towns seem to be less forward-thinking, or else have accepted the contention that it’s fruitless to stand in the way of large companies and the federal government. But they are selling themselves and their citizens short; there is plenty that can be done to minimize the impact these structures, which may have very short lives anyway, have on people and property. In more than one township, it appears officials are waiting for the first application to show up before adopting regulations, but that is likely to be too late. Well-financed national compa- ‘nies aren't bashful about throwing their weight around and attempting to intimidate small-town boards to rule in their favor, so without an understanding of the law and an ordinance on the books it’s less likely towers will be kept under control. Chances are other towns can use the Kingston Township ordinance as a starting point to form their own regulations, now, not after it’s too late to have an effect. Publisher's notebook I love to play golf. I like to watch golf on television. And there hasn't been anything more exciting in recent years than last weekend's Ryder Cup matches, in which the U.S. contingent roared back from a record deficit to reclaim the cup that had lived in Europe the past four years. But for all the excitement, the finish also held some disappointment for traditionalists like me, who value the etiquette and courtesy of the game as highly as a well-struck 3 iron. It’s not the boisterous celebration that took place on the 17th green that bothers me, it's more the timing of it, and the behavior of other boorish “fans” who heckled European players all weekend. First, the celebration: It occurred after Justin Leonard sank a 45-foot putt that assured only that he wouldn't lose the hole. Since his opponent was much closer, it remained to be seen whether the pair would tie, in which case either could win or lose on the final hole. But that didn’t stop the startled Americans from leaping up and prancing around the green, in the process trampling the line between Jose Maria Olazabal’'s ball and the hole. He missed the putt, and it’s a good thing, since he won the final hole. And it wasn't just Leonard and his teammates running around the green, their wives and caddies joined in as eagerly as the men who had actually accomplished something. Then there were the folks outside the ropes, hooting and hollering in drunken revelry, or hurling digs at some of the world’s best golfers, who happen to come from across the pond. Colin Montgomerie, who is anything but my favorite golfing personality, received more insults than anyone else, undoubt- edly delivered by losers who couldn't play a match within 20 strokes of the Scotsman. But, hey, they were Americans who had shelled out big bucks to watch real golfers play the game, so they probably felt entitled to behave in any way they pleased. I hope their children weren't watching. I have a couple of suggestions for the managers of the Ryder Cup competition, and for all professional golf: First, don’t sell alcohol at events, and don’t let anyone bring it onto the premises, either in a cooler or in their gut when they arrive at the gate. Second, bring the price of admission down to $10 or so a day, so everyone has a chance to come out and see the best players at work. And while they're at it, be prepared to toss tasteless, disruptive spectators out on their ears the moment they get out of line. The Dallas Post Published Weekly By Bartsen Media, Inc. P.O. Box 366, Dallas PA 18612 570-675-5211 Ronald A. Bartizek Charlotte E. Bartizek PUBLISHER ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER OFFICE MANAGER Gregory Culver ADVERTISING ACCT. EXEC Kasia McDonough : REPORTER Ruth Proietto Olga Kostrobala PRODUCTION MANAGER CLASSIFIED/TYPESETTING Christine Pizzano OFFICE ASSISTANT 7] PRINTED WITH ORR on ET PENNSYIVANIA SOY INK il APER PUBLISHERS ASSOCIATION Tasty treat of the season. Photo by Charlotte Bartizek. | A Habitat for Humanity thanks fair association, fair-goers Editor: On behalf of Wyoming Valley Habitat for Humanity, we would like to express our appreciation to the Luzerne County Fall Fair As- sociation and to the Fair Commit- tee for providing us with a space at the recent 1999 Fall Fair. This was a great opportunity for us, not only to raise money and re- cruit volunteers but also to in- form the community about the work and ministry of our organi- zation. We are also indebted to the local businesses and families who donated merchandise for our booth. They included Boscov's, Sears, Kaufmann'’s and Sickler’s Bicycle Shop as well as the Shoe- maker and Hromisin families. In particular, we are grateful for the extraordinary generosity shown to us by the Wilkes-Barre Home Depot store, which not only pro- vided us with a children’s playhbouse as a raffle prize, but also contributed a storage shed to secure our merchandise at the fairgrounds. This shed will now be used for storage at our new Habitat site in Nanticoke, at Ridge and Fairchild Streets. Finally, we would like to thank everyone who bought merchan- dise, raffle tickets and expressed interest in the work of Habitat for Humanity. Your support enables us to continue our efforts to elimi- nate sub-standard housing in Wyoming Valley. Morag Michael and Geordd) “ Brown Wyoming Valley Habitat for Humanity Board Members ONLY YESTERDAY 70 Years Ago - Sept. 28, 1929 STUDENTS PAY TRIBUTE TO RESPECTED TEACHER Surrounded by his pupils, of a former day, all grown to manhood now, Frank F. Morris, grand old schoolman of this section, was the guest of honor Friday evening with a touching testimonial din- ner sponsored by Dallas Rotary Club at Higgins’ College Inn. Among the guests were men high in professional, business and gov- ernmental circles of the State, many of them with national repu- tations. A number came from distant cities to pay their tribute toa man who had influenced their lives, 30, 40 and 50 years ago. In that company were men Morris had known only as boys whom he had not seen in years, yet he recognized them without a moment's hesitation. 60 Years Ago - Sept. 29, 1939 DALLAS TWP. HIGH SCHOOL ADDITION DISCUSSED Another attempt to finance con- struction of an addition to Dallas Township High School to replace the obsolete Goss school will be made at the General Election, Tuesday, Nov. 7 when township voters will decide the state of a proposed $20,000 bond issue. Last year when the directors sought authority for a $15,000 bond issue, voters defeated it 285 to 242. The amount sought this year is for same purpose to build a second story on the high school annex built in 1936 so students can be transferred from the old Goss building, long a target for criticism. Twenty six of the 33 homes at Goss Manor, Dallas's newest resi- dential development have been sold according to Dallas Construc- tion Co. About 400 lots on the tract have been purchased and considerable new construction is being planned. There is room, for 750 homes on the development. 50 Years Ago - Sept. 30, 1949 WELL DRILLING BEGINS NEAR FERNBROOK CORNERS Cresswell Drilling Co. was ex- pected to start drilling a new well for Dallas-Shavertown Water Co. this week on the Gansel property abouta 1/4 mile up the Demunds Road from Fernbrook Corners. Location for the well was selected several weeks ago by Bradford Willard, geologist at Lehigh Uni- versity. Three to four weeks will be required for drilling operations, depending on the depth at which a continuous supply of water is reached. 40 Years Ago - Oct. 1, 1959 PRISON’S NAME SUBJECT OF CONTROVERSY IN DALLAS The name State Correctional Institution in Jackson Township hasrecently been changed to State Correctional Institution at Dal- las. Many residents don’t know the name has been changed and many know that it changed, but do not feel that the matter is of importance. Many feel that the name is of vital importance and that the association of Dallas with a prison will tend to interfere with its development as a favored sub- urban community. The area is of exception beauty - It has a well recognized college for women, an annual Library Auction which brings people from all over the country and now it has a prison. It's not as if this correctional in- stitution were within the confines of Dallas Borough of Dallas Town- ship. Itis far outside. Some name could certainly be found which would not reflect upon our com- munity. 30 Years Ago - Oct. 2, 1969 NATONA MILLS RECEIVES TWO BOMB THREATS Two bomb threats within the past week have marred the nor- mally smooth operations of Natona Mills in Dallas. The first threat was received by telephone at 7:43 a.m. shortly before the plant's switch board had opened. The second bomb threat was re- ceived by phone Friday, Sept. 26 once again both state and local police were notified and a direc- tive to evacuate the plant was promptly carried out. Both threat (y are under investigation by both state and Dallas Borough police. You could get - Round roast, 99¢ Ib.; eye roasts, $1.29 Ib; Waldorf bathroom tissue, 4 roll pkg., 19¢ w/coupon; enriched bread, 5 1-1b. loaves $1; McIntosh apples, 31b. bag 39¢; celery stalk, 19¢. 20 Years Ago - Sept. 27, 1979 HARVEYS LAKE RESIDENTS © OPPOSE BIG GOVERNMENT Harveys Lake Borough will see urbanization and big government if coucil goes through with its controversial plan to buy a bor- ough building and two pieces of land according to Andrew J. Sordoni III during a borough's taxpayers meeting Tuesday. Ty Back Mountain resident and busi nessman told the Borough Tax- payers Association that the “beach purchase will inevitably lead to the expansion of government com- plete with such endeavors as pub- lic housing projects. We don’t need urban living or big govern- ment at Harveys Lake.” Ground breaking ceremonies were held Sunday at the site of the Lake-Noxen School in Harveys Lake. School Board President Gil | bert Tough presided and with Superintendent of School M. Davis Preston acknowledged with thanks the efforts of persons in- volved in the project. Do you agree? Disagree? Editorials are the opinion of the management of The Dallas Post, and are written by the editor unless otherwise indicated. We welcome your opinion on contemporary issues in the form of letters to the editor. If you don't write, the community may never hear a contrasting point of view. Send or bring letters to: The Dallas Post, 607 Main Rd., Dallas PA 18612. Please include your name, address and a daytime phone number so that we may verify authenticity. We do not publish anonymous letters, but will consider withholding the name in exceptional circumstances. We reserve the right to edit for length and grammar. ww we
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