2 The Dallas Post NEWS Sunday, December 5, 2004 BUDGET (continued from page 1) “As one supervisor, I would- n't anticipate any revenue increases for the coming year,” Box said last week. Box said that after a meeting with county officials earlier this year, he felt the commissioners would not make any change in tax collection methods until 2006. Kingston Township repre- sents small change compared to what the county pays the City of Pittston, where the rate is $15.91 per bill and the cost tops $50,000. DePolo said he have given the commissioners three options for a county takeover: 1. Take over collection for 2005 in the cities of Pittston, Hazleton and Nanticoke, and the home-rule municipalities of Kingston Township, Wilkes- Barre Township and Kingston. DePolo said doing so would save $160,000 per year. The county already collects its takes in the City of Wilkes-Barre. 2. Take over only the cities in 2005, for a projected savings of about $126,000. 3. Wait until 2006, when the “| wouldn't anticipate any revenue increases for the coming year." Jeffrey Box Township Supervisor county can take over collection of county taxes in all municipal- ities, as long as it announces the plan before the 2005 elec- tions. “They have not indicated to me which way they're think- ing,” DePolo said last week. = + Box said he has suggested that the county consider reduc- ing the rate it pays for tax col- lection, rather than taking over the function, which he believes will not produce the projected savings. DePolo is planning a public meeting to discuss the issue with tax collectors, the com- missioners and a representative from the Pennsylvania Economy League. Part of the discussion would be whether or not the county would continue to allow municipalities to piggy-back on its statement. FOR THE POST/CHARLOTTE BARTIZEK Firefighters and investigators pored through the remains of the Michak home in Sutton Hills. The house went up in flames early last Tuesday morning. FIRE (continued from page 1) neighbors in Sutton Hills have been great,” she said. She was unsure what their permanent living arrangements would be. “We really haven't gotten that far.” Gary Michak said inspectors told him the cause of the fire, which started on the first floor, may have been electrical. The home, which Courtney Michak said was about 25 years old, was insured. Their lives were spared, Gary Michak said, because the secu- rity system in the house went off, and because, “God was watching over us.” — Correspondent Charlotte Bartizek contributed to this article. Windows B A Division of Belles Construction Co. Inc. Yo Proudly Serving NEPA Since 1957. ENERGY SAVINGS SALE! Plygem Vinyl Windows Maximum Energy Efficiency & Elegance "Like Our Prices - Love Our Quality” All Windows installed by Our National Award Winning Co. Roofing & Siding Specialists Too! call 824-7220 For Free Estimates Belles Blood drive at GOH tops goal ‘The American Red Cross blood drive held Nov. 26 at Gate of Heaven Church was very successful. “Gate of Heaven Church always does a wonderful job,” said Regina Allen, the blood service coordinator at the American Red Cross. Since July the agency has struggled to get people out for the blood drives, but the drive at Gate of Heaven exceeded the agency’s target. “We hoped for 45 donors and 59 showed up; from, this, we got 52 productive units of blood that helped over 150 people,” Allen said. “We were so excited to see those results.” The next Back Mountain drive will be at Irem Temple Country Club on Monday, Dec. 6, from 1 to 6 p.m. Anther drive will be held at a new location on Friday, Dec. 10, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Management Recruiters on the second floor FOR THE POST/CHARLOTTE BARTIZEK Linda Kiddrich, Red Cross nurse technician, checks the veins of Renee Bolard, Dallas at the Red Cross blood drive, held Nov. 26 at Gate of Heaven Church. of the Pendragon Building in Trucksville. A special “O” blood drive wil be held at the Meadows Center on Dec. 21, from 1 to 6. Blood typed O negative is the univer- sal donor, therefore in more demand according to Allen, but anyone can donate blood, regardless of their blood type, at any of the blood drives or locations. For more information ] donating, call the Red Cross office at 823-7161. — Text and photos by Charlotte Bartizek Township, employee settle Stim claim By RONALD BARTIZEK Post Staff KINGSTON TWP. — Settling clerk Kathleen Sebastian’s suit against the township and four supervisors has cost the township $195,000, plus its legal expens- es and insurance deductible. All but $5,000 of the settlement will be paid by the township's insurance carrier, National Casualty Company. All the present supervisors signed the agreement at their Oct. 13 meeting. Paul Sabol and J. Carl Goodwin, who were named in the suit and still sit on the board, signed as individ- uals at that time. Former supervisors John Versari and Cornelius Allen, who lost their positions in the November 2003 election, signed separately. Allen signed on Oct. 20 and Versari on Nov. 4. While terms were confiden- tial until the settlement was finalized, it is now available for review because it involves a tax- payer-supported public entity, the township. The agreement, reached with the help of a federal mediator, awards $66,250 to Koff, Mangan, Vullo & Gartley P.C., Sebastian’s legal counsel, and $128,750 to Sebastian. It specif- ically states that $3,500 consti- tutes damages paid for “med- ical care attributable to emo- tional distress.” The township also trust bear its own legal costs, which were not immediately available, and the deductible on its insurance policy. The agreement, compromise of “made in disputed claims,” also states that there is no “admission of liability by any party.” Sebastian said last week that she did not pursue the action for money. “I' did not want to cost the township any money,” she said. “Im not walking around here a rich woman.” “It was just to protect myself and make people be responsible for their actions.” In the suit, filed Oct. 21, 2003, Sebastian stated she was appointed acting township manager in Oct. 2001 after the previous manager, Jeffrey Box, resigned. Prior to the appoint- ment she served as assistant township manager, a post she said she was given two weeks after first being hired in 1999. While working as acting township manager, she applied for the township manager posi- tion and was interviewed for the post. She said that after her interview supervisors changed the qualifications so she would not be able to apply, according to her suit. During the application and selection process, Sebastian claims, Sabol made discrimina- tory comments about her, including remarks about her marital status, whether there would be a problem between her and single men if she were appointed to the position and about the way she dressed. The supervisors appointed Edmund O'Neill as township manager in May 2002 and Sebastian returned to the post of assistant manager. She was later demoted to township clerk. In the suit, Sebastian sought lost wages and benefits, plus interest. She also sought dam- ages resulting from humilia- tion, embarrassment and emo- tional distress. She had earlier filed complaints with t Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission. The settlement is based on the claim of lost wages between Sebastian’s present salary of $35,979 and what she would have been paid as manager. O’Neill’s salary this year is $54,209. The township’s insurance contract requires the township to pay the first $5,000 of such a claim. More trolley memories An article in last week’s Post about the trolley line that ran through the Back Mountain stirred up fond memories for Kathleen Richards, 81, who lives on Harris Hill Road in Trucksville. When she was growing up, she and her friends rode the trolley to “the big town of Luzerne” for fun and shopping on Friday nights. Her earliest years were spent in Dallas, which had few stores at the time. She recalled when the trolley car barn, which was in the area of the present Uni-Mart, caught fire. “We all just walked down the track and watched it burn,” she said. Later, she lived in a house, now gone, that was near the location of the Sheetz store in Trucksville. The two-lane road “of the time separated her house from Toby’s Creek, and a build- ing that had been a mill still stood just below Harris Hill Road. If you have any recollections of the trolley or railroad line, or the creek, don’t hesitate to send them to us at: The Post, 15 N. Main St., Wilkes-Barre PA 18711, or by e-mail to: thep- ost@leader.net Need extra copies of this week’s Post? They are on sale at local newsstands through Saturday Beadweaver’s 487 Bennett Street Luzerne, PA 18709 570.714.6700 www.beadweaver.com Holiday locity Boutique Shop the handcrafted jewelry & accessories of local designers for two days only! Meet the artists, enjoy refreshments, & enter to win fabulous prizes! NOW ON THE WEB Toby’s Creek: Our hidden resource The complete text of The Post’s comprehensive look at Toby’s Creek is now available at www.timesleader.com : Look for the link, then read each of the 11 stories and two editorials that tell the story of our historic, beautiful but nearly forgotten “hidden asset.” The articles range from the creek’s geological history to examples of similar waterways that are being pre- served in other parts of the nation. 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Creative services at no charge. Combination rates with The Abington Journal, Clarks Summit, and the Sunday Dispatch, Pittston available. we can provide color prints of photos taken iy our staff. Only 8x10 is available, at $25 for the first print and $15 each thereafter. Prepayment required. Call, mail in, or stop by to order. Oiders for subscriptions received by Friday at noon will begin the following week. Please inform us of damage or delay, call 829-5000. The Post (ISSN - 1551-1650) Published weekly by Cypress Media, LLC. $26 per year, in Luzeme and Wyoming counties (PA). Call 829-7141 for rates to other areas. Periodicals postage paid at Wilkes-Barre, PA 18701-9998 POSTMASTER: Send address changes to The Post, 15 N. Main St., Wilkes-Barre PA 18711 ©COPYRIGHT 2004: Entire contents copyrighted. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced by any means without the express written consent of the publisher. 4 \ / v
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers