GOOD LUCK, GLORIA! SUSO Vol. 76 No. 23 June 9. 1976 | “Darlene Williams Laurance Barnhart UEHAN +: Hat . N 7 \ Susquehanna Times & The Mount Joy Builetin MARIETTA & MOUNT JOY, PA. PUC orders bridge repair plans Raymond Gordner Maytown residents voice opinions on school’s future, higher taxes Would the citizens of Maytown be prepared to accept higher taxes in order to keep Maytown Elementary School open? The Donegal school board has stated that the school will definitely be open for the 1976-77 school year, but some citizens are concerned about the follow- ing year. To find out how citizens felt about closing the school the Susquehanna Times interviewed people around Maytown last Sat- urday. Out of ten people we spoke with, about half wanted the school kept open despite higher costs. Only one favored closing the school. The rest were undecided. Darlene Williams was typical of those who favor- ed a local school. She said, *“The school should be kept open, even though taxes are already high. It’s good Sewage plant cost may A Harrisburg consultant, after analyzing Mount Joy’s proposed $7.6 million sewer renovation, offered a plan Tuesday to cut it by 62 per cent-to only $2.8 million. Unless the DER approves one of the new plans the borough will not be able to take advantage of the lower estimates. The borough authority, upon presentation, voted to delay the project for six months to study the pro- posal. In a resolution, the authority ordered borough engineers Gannett, Flem- ing, Corddry & Carpenter, Inc., original designers, back to the drawing board. to have a community school one the kids can walk to.” Most of the people we spoke with expressed dis- satisfaction with the way the school system spends money. They felt that Maytown Elementary School could be kept open on it’s present budget with different fiscal priorities. Two people said that supervisory personnel should be laid off before teachers (so far, two teach- ing positions have officially been cancelled for next year). They felt that teachers do the most essential job in a school. Laurence Barnhart, who has lived in Maytown for 61 years, thought that “Donegal High School gets too. much, especially for extra-curricular activities.” Mr. and Mrs. Alan Johnson also expressed a preference for ‘‘no frills” They’ll now evaluate three cost-cut plans for- warded by Vartan Associ- ates, the Harrisburg engin- eering consultant, and re- port back-hopefully with reductions-on June 24. Borough engineers, re- presented by Gerald Voeg- ler, had planned a new activated sludge treatment plant on the Chickies Creek. It would convey wasterwaters along a 27- inch, six-mile-long concrete pipe to the Susquehanna River. “With the figures we saw in his (Vartan’s) re- port,”’ said authority chair- man C. Bernerd Grissinger, “it is certainly worthwhile looking into. education as a possible solution to the money crunch. Many of those interview- ed felt that closing the school would not save money in the long run. A typical reaction was that of Harold Derr, who said, “If they don’t keep it open, they’ll raise taxes anyway. The kids have to go some- where.” Others mentioned the costs of busing children and possibly razing the unused Maytown building. Raymond Gordner felt that persons who rent apartments should pay a higher proportion of the school taxes. While he would regret seeing May- town’s elementary school closed, he said that the school should be closed to show the inequitable burden on property owners. “You've got to draw the line somewhere.’’ he said. be cut 62% .%... a (left) presents plaque to Dr. Michael Gratch (right) at the surprise Sunday. “We wish to give the people of the borough the best service at the least cost.”’ Capacity was figured at 1.7 million gallons per day (mgd). Renovations includ- ed a new pumping station, aeration facilities, more sedimentation basins and out-buildings. Construction cost: $5.6 millions, which rose to a total $7.56 million project expense. Vartan, represented by president Vartan O. Keo- sheyan, proposed three cheaper alternatives. All maintained the present pumping station; two elim- inated the pipeline to the (continued on page 11) ders The Public Utilities Commission has issued or- which indicate that Penn-DOT, the borough of Mount Joy, and ConRail will all have to pay part of the cost of repairing Mount Joy’s railway bridges. The Pennsylvania Dept. of Transportation (Penn- DOT) has been ordered to prepare detailed plans and cost estimates to upgrade the New Haven and Mar- ietta Ave. Crossings to a 20 ton load capacity. The borough of Mount Joy has been ordered to prepare plans and cost estimates to upgrade the Barbara St. Crossing to an 18 ton load capacity. ConRail has been order- ed to prepare plans and cost estimates to tear down Shydor Rg the Comfort St. and Lumb- er Ave. Crossings. : The Public Utilities Commission has not yet ordered any work to begin. However, it seems likely that the parties ordered ordered to plan the work will also be ordered to pay for the work. A rough estimate of the price the borough will have to pay to repair the Barbara St. Bridge is $25,000. The PUC has also order- ed the borough to erect permanent barricades on the Lumber and Comfort St. bridges by Aug. 25 The Borough must also erect signs limiting the Jacob and Market St. crossings to 4 tons, and the Barbara St. crossing to 10 tons, until IES FIFTEEN CENTS the Market and Barbara St. Bridges are upgraded. The bridges were built by the Pennsylvania Rail- road when tracks were laid in a trench through Mount Joy. The railroad agreed to maintain the bridges when they were built: The rail- road lost money, couldn’t maintain the bridges, and finally went broke. The Public Utilities Commission has been eval- uating the conflicting claims of ConRail, Penn- DOT, and the borough of Mount Joy. The PUC’s final deciaion will be made after the cost estimates are submitted, 9 months from now. The deciaion can be appealed to the courts. [50 attend dinner for Dr. Gratch testimonial dinner last Lewis Sperla served as Master of Ceremonies at a surprise testimonial dinner honoring Dr. Michael Gratch, a general practi- tioner who served in the Maytown area for 30 years. The event was held at Mr. Lacy’s Lounge, Marietta, Sunday night where more than 150 friends, relatives, and patients paid homage to their doctor and friend. Among guests present was Michael Gratch, son of Dr. and Mrs. Gratch who recently acquired his MD Degree. Jack Frank, Jr. Maytown, one of the first babies delivered by the Doctor when he began his local practice, was also present. Representatives of local organizations with which Dr. Gratch is affiliated locally attended the dinner. A plaque listing Dr. Gratch’s various services to his community was pre- sented by Lewis Sperla, on behalf of the residents of East Donegal and friends; Patrick Kenney, Jr., made a similar presentation on behalf of the Marietta Lion’s Club, Lloyd Fuhr- man, East Donegal Town- ship Supervisor, presented a stringless tennis racquet ‘to hold down the score’’ of the honored guest. Ken Brandt, a member of the House of Representatives of PA, presented a citation prepared by that Govern- mental body. Telegrams and letters were read from persons unable to attend. Mrs. Hazel Crankshaw gave the biography of Dr. Gratch. Father Joseph Gotwalt, pastor emeritus of St. Mary’s Catholic Church, Marietta, offered the Invo- cation while Father Michael, current pastor, repeated the Benediction. Dr. Gratch was born in Russia, grew up and was educated in Italy and came to Chicago in 1919 with his family. He served a three year residency at St. Joseph’s Hospital, Lancas- ter, where he met his wife, Eleanor. 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