Vol. 122 No. 38 THE BACK MOUNTAIN'S NEWSPAPER SINCE 1889 November 13 - 19, 2011 50¢ @\Lkes BARRE, PA. www.mydallaspost.com AN EDITION OF THE TIMES LEADER CHARLOTTE BARTIZEK/ FOR THE DALLAS POST Successful Democratic Dallas Township Supervisor candidate Liz Martin shakes hands with Steve Traver after he voted Tuesday morning. Martin will replace long-time Republican supervisor Glenn Howell. Longtime DT supervisor defeated One major issue in the township is natural gas development. Two companies, Chief Gathering LLC and Williams Field Services LLC, have received approval to install their gathering lines in the township to tap into the Transco interstate pipeline at a location near the Dallas School District campus. Liz Martin successfuly garners seat held for 50 years by Glenn Howell. By SARAH HITE shite@mydallaspost.com Local races causing a stir in communities in Tuesday’s gener- al election included one contest- ed Dallas Township supervisor spot and four seats available for Harveys Lake Council in which four Democrats and four Repub- licans vied for the positions. Democratic challenger Liz Martin managed to unseat long- time Republican incumbent Glenn Howell in the race for Dal- las Township supervisor. Martin received 893 votes and Howell received 849 votes, ac- cording to unofficial results. All ction results are unofficial un- certified by the Luzerne Coun- ty Board of Elections. Martin’s win is historic — she is the first challenger to succeed in nearly 50 years, and she is also the first female supervisor in the township. Howell and Martin set up shop outside the Dallas Township Mu- nicipal Building during the day. “It seems like there is a steady stream of people coming in and out,” said Howell, who has been a Dallas Township supervisor for more than 50 years. A retired bank manager, Ho- well said he was mostly interest- ed in keeping the township bud- get balanced and maintaining lo- cal roads. Martin, who ran in 2009 and narrowly lost the seat to Supervi- sor Philip Walter, remained “cau- tiously optimistic” throughout the day. She will join Walter and Super- visor Frank Wagner, who have both served the township for more than four decades. Dallas Township resident Bob Perschau said it was a “tough de- cision” to make, but he felt he made the right choice. “You've got one guy in there who's been there a long time and is doing a good job, and a lady who wants to give it a try,” he said. One major issue in the town- ship is natural gas development. Two companies, Chief Gathering LLC and Williams Field Services LLC, have received approval to install their gathering lines in the township to tap into the Transco interstate pipeline at a location near the Dallas School District campus. As a member of the Gas Drill- ing Awareness Coalition and the Dallas Parents-Taxpayers Group, Martin has been very outspoken against the development and the way township officials have dealt with the issue. Kunkle Fire Department Chief Jack Dodson said no matter who won the race, the most important part of the job is preserving the community and protecting citi- zens. “They passed the ordinance and it’s the only one like it in the state of Pennsylvania,” he said. Poll officials said Back Moun- tain residents voted in typical numbers on Tuesday in the gen- eral election, with many polling places reporting a turnout of about 35 percent. George Horwatt, judge of elec- tions at the District 3 polls in Dal- las Township, felt the race for township supervisor would draw crowds. “That’s one that’s usually un- contested,” he said. “When there’s a challenge to an incum- bent, it’s interesting.” Horwatt said turnout was “pretty low” in the morning, but he suspected it might pick up in the evening, when many would be returning home from work. “But we keep people moving in and out,” he said. HARVEYS LAKE At the Harveys Lake Municipal Building, residents were interest- ed in their local council race as well. Republicans Amy Williams, Ri- chard Haas, William Monk and Richard Svec faced Democrats Michelle Boice, Ed Kelly, Tho- mas Kehler and Jamie Coleman for four council seats. Boice was the top vote-getter with a total of 417 votes. Though she campaigned with the three other Democrats in the race as the Harveys Lake Hopefuls, only See DT, Page 11 Coming to aid of HL firefighter By SARAH HITE shite@mydallaspost.com Harveys Lake residents are hosting a benefit dinner today to aid a local volunteer who has spent much of his time helping others in need. Mike Avery, assistant fire chief of the Harveys Lake Fire & Ambulance Co., lost his house during Hurricane Irene in late August, but that didn’t deter him from helping others during the storm. Trees fell on Avery’s Foster Avenue property, making it un- inhabitable. Avery, his wife, Brandi, and their two children have been living at Mike’s par- ents’ home in Noxen since the ordeal. “I was getting the kids up for breakfast when the trees start- ed coming down,” Brandi Avery remembered. “There’s a big hole in the roof upstairs ... and it’s all moldy throughout the house.” Avery said she and her chil- dren were stranded at the house due to excess debris on the -roads. Her husband ran up the street to check on his family and took them to the nearby Har- veys Lake Fire & Ambulance IF YOU. G0 .. What: Spaghetti dinner to bene- fit the Avery family When: Today, Nov. 13, from 2 to 6 p.m. Where: Kunkle Community Hall, Kunkle-Alderson Road, Dallas Township Info: Tickets are $10 for adults, $5 for children 12 years of age and under and free for children 2 years of age and under. Co. building on Lakeside Drive while he continued to respond to emergencies throughout the day. “There wasn’t anything else we could do,” Brandi said. Brandi said working with their insurance company has been very difficult, and she’s un- sure whether the family will be able to afford to rebuild their house. She said insurance estimates may be as much as $47,000, and the company would not take in- to consideration several factors that make the house now unliv- able. “I don’t want to move into a home until it’s safe for our fam- ily,” Brandi said. “We’re not dis- cussing buying a new home yet. See AID, Page 11 CHARLOTTE BARTIZEK/ FOR THE DALLAS POST Brandi Avery keeps her two children, Mike and Mackenzie, away from the door of the family's Harveys Lake house which is covered with mold and ruined by water damage from Hurri- cane Irene. A benefit dinner will be held for the family today at the Kunkle Community Hall. \ Back Min. By SARAH HITE shite@mydallaspost.com The Luzerne County races in Tuesday’s general election in- cluded filling spots for the new 11- person county council after the passage of the home rule charter last year, seating six county judg- es and voting for a district attor- ney. Republican Stefanie Salavan- tis, of Shavertown, unseated Democratic incumbent Jackie Musto Carroll in the race for dis- trict attorney. The majority of residents in @.. and Harveys Lake bor- oughs and Dallas, Franklin, Jack- son, Kingston, Lake, Lehman and Ross townships voted for Sala- vantis, a Dallas High School grad- uate. 200 6809815 798g represented in county winners Seven candidates vied for six positions in the Luzerne County Court of Common Pleas, with Democrat Molly Hanlon Mirabi- to losing a spot on the bench. Jen- nifer Rogers, a Harveys Lake resi- dent, earned the most votes in Lu- zerne County. Voters also took to the polls to choose the 1l-person county council as a result of the home rule charter passage last year. Dal- las Township resident Eugene Kelleher won a spot on the newly- formed council, as did Dallas Middle School teacher Harry Haas, of Wilkes-Barre. LUZERNE COUNTY TOTALS EDITOR'S NOTE: Listed here are the results from Tuesday's General Election for Luzerne County races. An asterisk (*) m- dicates a victory; however, all re- sults are unofficial until they are certified. JUDGE OF THE COURT OF COMMON PLEAS 10-year term (vote for six) * Dick Hughes (R) 34,995 * Joe Sklarosky Jr. (R, D) 39,535 * Michael T. Vough (R, D) 35,739 * Fred A. Pierantoni (R, D) 39,881 * Lesa Gelb (R, D) 34,755 * Jennifer Rogers (R, D) 41,706 Molly Hanlon Mirabito (D) 34,014 COUNTY COUNCIL Four-year term (vote for 11) * Stephen J. Urban (R) 22,577 * Rick Morelli (R) 25,003 Kathleen M. Dobash (R) 17,537 John Ruckno (R) 18,581 * Harry Haas (R) 21,292 Blythe H. Evans II (R) 16,247 William Bill James (R) 15,597 * Eugene L. Kelleher (R) 18,852 Gina Nevenglosky (R) 13,835 Joyce = Dombroski-Gebhardt (R) 14,708 Michael Cabell (R) 12,843 * Stephen A. Urban (D) 23,631 * Linda McClosky Houck (D) 19,351 * Jim Bobeck (D) 23,396 * Edward A. Brominski (D) 21,610 Jane Walsh-Waitkus (R) 18,397 Eileen M. Sorokas (D) 18,793 Salvatore Licata (D) 16,591 * Tim McGinley (D) 21,640 Michelle Bednar (D) 17,514 M. Theresa Morcavage (D) 14,288 * Elaine Maddon Curry (D) 19,572 Tim Mullen (L) 10,763 Brian R. Bergman (L) 3,732 Michael A. Lacey (L) 11,104 Jeremy Packard (I),11,085 * Rick Williams (I) 20,345 Charlie Bible Buck Hatchko (A I) 6,302 DISTRICT ATTORNEY Four-year term (vote for one) * Stefanie J. Salavantis (R) 31,776 Jackie 30,811 Musto Carroll (D) HOW THE BACK MOUNTAIN VOTED DALLAS BOROUGH Voter turnout, 729 of 1,895 reg- istered voters (38 %) JUDGE OF THE COURT OF COMMON PLEAS See COUNTY, Page 11 THE COVETED OLD SHOE CHARLOTTE BARTIZEK/ FOR THE DALLAS POST The Old Shoe Trophy is a coveted possession and players from the Dallas and Lake-Lehman High School football teams do battle in the last game of the regular season to fight over the trophy. This year, the Mountaineers racked up a 42-7 victory over the Black Knights to retain possession of the trophy which has been in their possession for three consecutive years. Although arch-rivals on the field, the players meet in a much more relaxed atmo- sphere when they gather at the Huntsville Country Club for the annual Old Shoe Breakfast the day be- fore the big game. Story, additional photos, page 9.
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