Vol. 122 No. 46 THE BACK MOUNTAIN'S NEWSPAPER SINCE 1889 January 15 - 21, 2012 eo The DALLAS POST. WILKES-BARRE, PA. www.mydallaspost.com AN EDITION OF THE TIMES LEADER Teen drivers weigh in on changes in driving laws Back Mountain teens have conflicting opinions on how new laws will affect them. By SARAH HITE shite@mydallaspost.com New state laws were recently passed involving teen drivers, and the details of the legislation are putting the brakes on com- mon behind-the-wheel habits for young drivers. The law, called “Lacey’s Law,” took effect on Dec. 27. The new rules state for the first six months after teen drivers receive their junior driver’s license, they cannot have more than one pas- senger under the age of 18 who is not an immediate family mem- ber in a car unless a parent or guardian is also in the vehicle. It also makes driving without a seatbelt a primary offense for those under the age of 18. cerns and understand what the law is trying to accomplish. Dana Jolley, of Dallas, knows Teens in - all about safe the Back driving — af- Mountain ter all, her fa- have con- ther is Dallas flicting Township opinions Police Chief about the Robert Jol- new laws, ley. but mostare L “l proba- JOLLEY aware of STAIR bly know safety con- more about driving safely because of that,” said the 18-year-old. Jolley, who received her driv- ENGLISH er’s li- cense in 2010, said she never had more than one person in the car when she first got behind the wheel be- cause all of her friends had their licenses, too. “I think it would be an issue with sports, because you al ways pile everyone into your car if you have prac- tice or a game,” JAYNE she said. See DRIVING, Page 10 PETE G. WILCOX/ THE DALLAS POST Jack Dodson, Dallas Twp. Emergency Management Coordinator, addresses the Dallas School Board on Monday about following a set of guidelines when implementing an evacuation plan. arents demand plan for gas emergency evacuation By SARAH HITE shite@mydallaspost.com Parents flooded the Dallas School Board meeting Monday ready to confront the lack of communication involving nat- ural gas issues and the process for hiring a new football coach. The board also discussed high school security after one parent told how her son was beaten by another student and rendered unconscious in No- vember while no one respon- ded to the incident. Williams Field Services LLC recently completed work on the Springville Gathering Line located about 2,600 feet away from the Dallas School District campus. The line begins in Springville Township, Susque- hanna County, and taps into the Transco interstate pipe- line, which then sends natural gas to market. Williams delivered, a letter to nearby residents, the Dallas School District and township officials last week about the completion of the Springville line, though many were dis- pleased with the short notice. Helen Humphreys, senior communications specialist for Williams, said natural gas be- gan flowing through to the Transco line Monday after- noon. During the meeting, resi- dent Jane Tolomello repeated- | 8 } | 6 | aR 098151200798 “You all can live with the lives of 3,000 children on your heads, but now it's 2,999 - my daughter is no longer your responsibility. | will decide when she evacuates and how she evacuates.” Jane Tolomello . Dallas School District resident ly asked Superintendent Frank Galicki why parents weren’t notified about the expected work last week, as Galicki had received the letter before most residents. Galicki said at the .time, emergency officials had deemed the work to not be a hazard to students. When word was received on Sunday about continuing work through Monday, Galicki said he immediately took steps to contact all parents within the district with the information. “You have to understand that we are not the enemy,” Galicki told Tolomello. “You think you want us to be the enemy.” Humphreys also announced that she and Williams safety expert Paul Madey would par- ticipate in a safety task force with board member Fred Par- ry, Dallas Township Emergen- cy Management Coordinator Jack Dodson, Dallas Fire Chief Harry Vivian and Dallas Town- ship Police Chief Robert Jolley. © “When did this pipeline start - a year ago?” Tolomello yelled. “Why would you wait until to- day to bring Williams in (to a school board meeting)?” Evacuation plan Parents questioned the board about whether the dis- trict has an evacuation plan in place tailored to deal with nat- ural gas issues. Galicki said a general plan is in place, but the safety task force will help to further devel- op the emergency response plan. He said the task force will continue to meet to dis- See PLAN, Page 10 Chief wins appeal to avoid building fence By SARAH HITE shite@mydallaspost.com Chief Gathering LLC won an appeal to the Dallas Township Zoning Hearing Board Wednes- day for the modification of one of the conditions the board stip- ulated when it approved the company’s application for a nat- ural gas metering station last month. The company received ap- proval Dec. 7 for the construc- tion of a metering facility to be located off Hildebrandt Road about 1,300 feet from the Dallas School District. The facility would measure the quantity of gas flowing through a not-yet-built Chief gathering line that will tap into the Transco interstate pipeline. The condition Chief ap- pealed, which was one of seven posed to the company’s project, involved the construction and maintenance of a 6-foot-high fence with barbed wire to be no less than 315 feet at all points surrounding the metering facil- ity. The condition also stated if Chief could not build the fence, the company would need to de- sign and construct a structure or mechanism that would “reduce the maximum potential impact radius for a large leak.” Jim Scott, senior vice presi- dent of the Dallas, Texas-based company, testified the construc- tion of such a fence would inter- fere with nearby wetlands sur- rounding the property and abut neighboring property owners’ land as well as the Transco line right-of-way. He said Transco would not al- low the construction of a fence Scott told the board that, instead of fence construction, Chief will install a fast-acting automatic shutdown valve upstream from the metering station and a check valve to prevent the backflow of natural gas downstream from the facility.Resident Diane Dreier asked why these fast-acting valves weren't part of the original plans for the facility, as parents have continuously demanded the utmost safety precautions for the site because of its proximity to the Dallas schools. on its right-of-way due to safety concerns, but a 6-foot-high fence about 50 feet from all points sur- rounding the facility with barbed wire around the top would be constructed for safety reasons. Scott said the proposed 315- foot perimeter fence would not add any element of safety to the site. Referring to testimony of- fered in previous hearings by ex- plosives expert Ali Reza, Scott said building a fence would not reduce the impact of a large leak. He explained that because nat- ural gas is lighter than air it would rise as it traveled out- ward. By the time the gas trav- eled 315 feet, it would rise to a minimum height of about 220 feet above ground. Scott said the flammability of ‘the gas would also decrease by the time it rose to that level be- cause natural gas needs to be at a certain concentration for it to combust with an ignition source. Zoning hearing board mem- ber Bob Bayer also said in ren- dering the decision and condi- tions, the board did not consider a graph Reza provided with the distance-height ratios that would result in a gas leak. Scott told the board that, in- stead of fence construction, Chief will install a fast-acting au- tomatic shutdown valve up- stream from the metering sta- tion and a check valve to prevent the backflow of natural gas downstream from the facility. Resident Diane Dreier asked why these fast-acting valves we- ren’t part of the original plans for the facility, as parents have continuously demanded the ut- most safety precautions for the site because of its proximity to the Dallas schools. Scott said the difference be- tween valves could be just a few seconds, and he said now the company is working with the manufacturer of the valves to en- sure the fastest available valves are part of the site. “We wouldn't pick the slowest valves on purpose,” he said. Resident Wayne Dottor op- posed Chief’s request, telling the zoning hearing board “not to back down and appease Chief.” He said Scott should have pro- vided written documentation to show Transco would not allow the construction of a fence, rath- er than relying on verbal com- munication. “I can’t take their word for it. I have to take worst-case scenario See APPEAL, Page 10 Friendly's has closed Friendly’s Restaurant, located at the intersection of routes 309 and 415, closed its doors on Sun- day, Jan. 8 after 26 years in busi- ness and will not reopen. Maura Tobias, a Friendly’s spokesperson, attributes the clo- sure to the Massachusetts-based company’s filing for Chapter 11 last October and its inability to negotiate lease rates with the landlord. With the closure, about 20 em- ployees lost their jobs and sever- al community organizations, in- cluding the Back Mountain Me- morial Library and Dallas Ro- tary Club, lost an important fundraising outlet. “We regret that this decision has become necessary, and we appreciate the hard work and dedication of the Friendly’s em- ployees and intend to accommo- date as many as possible at near- by operating restaurants, where available,” said Tobias. The company’s Family Fun Nights, a fundraising technique in which a portion of the restau- rant’s proceeds during a period of time would be donated to an organization, benefitted several local groups. “It was a fun thing because people came to eat there, and they often ran into people they knew,” said Martha Butler, di- rector of the library. “Everyone was there for a common cause, which made for a nice camarade- rie.” Dallas Borough Mayor Tim Carroll, who ate at the popular franchise about twice a week, said it’s difficult to see any busi- ness close its doors but expects the location to have another ten- i Tuank you i dor your pelronage. ¢ i 4 wed | CHARLOTTE BARTIZEK/ FOR THE DALLAS POST A sign on the door of Friendly's restaurant in Dallas thanks customers for their patronage. Friendly's has declared bankrupt- cy and the store at the intersection of Routes 309 and 415 has closed after 26 years of serving the Back Mountain. ant soon. “I think it means someone else was interested in the property,” he said. “I don’t think it will be empty for long.” A PFriendly’s Restaurant in South Abington Township in Lackawanna County also closed Sunday. Friendly’s has locations in Wilkes-Barre, Dunmore and Hazle Township. - Sarah Hite
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