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| Photo from savegreenpond.yolasite.com |
For the first time, birding enthusiasts who oppose a proposed 265-unit gated housing community near Green Pond Marsh have a clearer picture of where the Bethlehem Township Commissioners stand.
The five-member Board of Commissioners ultimately will decide whether to approve or reject the project. Two previous development plans, by Toll Brothers and J.G. Petrucci, died because of traffic and stormwater management concerns.
But this time, supporters of Green Pond face a tougher task. This plan seems more acceptable to the commissioners, based on comments they made at Monday evening's meeting. One of them voiced outright support for the project and another has spoken favorably about the plan. Two others raised questions about the ramifications of the development. The fifth was mum.
The township commissioners did not take a vote on whether to approve the project because it was only a preliminary sketch plan. The plan must be reviewed by state and regional officials, and then will be sent back to the commissioners for final action.
Traditions of America, which describes itself as a nationwide builder of housing projects for people aged 55 and older, wants to build 265 homes at a stone's throw of marshy areas where migrating and year-long birds obtain food and take refuge.
The National Audubon Society lists Green Pond Marsh as an "Important Bird Area." Over the years 162 different species of birds have been seen at the site, including eight that are listed as "endangered" or "threatened" in Pennsylvania.
Did the developer exaggerate?
One major issue at Monday's meeting was whether Traditions of America mischaracterized the meeting that its executives had in July with representatives of the Audubon Society, Ducks Unlimited and Hawk Mountain.
According to many critics of the project, the developer gave the impression at a public meeting on July 28 that all three organizations were satisfied with wetlands as designated on the housing plan.
However, a spokesman from the Pennsylvania Audubon Society and a researcher from Hawk Mountain denied that they had commented favorably on the project. In a letter, the Pennsylvania Audubon Society said it "is not in favor of any development of this site." A scientist from Hawk Mountain she was asked only to examine issues connected with wetlands generally. In her letter, she said she did not speak for Hawk Mountain then or now. However, as a personal matter, she said the project should not go through.
At Monday's meeting, TOA operations director David Biddison denied the company had misrepresented itself. He asserted that the company only sought information from the groups and did not solicit their endorsement. However, he did not address the objections raised in the letters from the Pennsylvania Audubon Society and the Hawk Mountain researcher.
Leaders of the Lehigh Valley Audubon Society strongly oppose the housing plan.
More wetlands in new plan
Traditions of America told the audience that it has reworked its "conservation area" to create a total of 20.35 acres, an increase of about 2 acres. In addition, TOA is increasing its designated wetlands to 153,000 square feet (equal to 3.5 acres), instead of the 73,000 (1.7 acres) as initially proposed.
"Right now, the Important Bird Area is fully covered," Biddison said.
TOA said it would create three ponds of varying depths on the east side of the tract. There will be a fourth pond at the southern end of the property. During wet periods, an infiltration basin will catch storm water. The infiltration basin would be planted with native grasses.
Originally TOA argued that, as a legal matter, it must protect just 27,000 square feet of wetlands, or less than an acre. That zone was earmarked by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers sometime after 1987, when amendments to the federal Clean Water Act required the Corps to delineate the extent of wetlands nationally for purposes of issuance of permits for dredging or backfilling.
Steve Kunz, a certified wetlands ecologist retained by Save Green Pond, which opposes the development, told the commissioners that the marshy area is much larger than the 27,000 square feet shown on TOA's original map. Kunz said the wetlands could be as large as five to seven acres.
The definition of a "wetland" is based on the plant life, soils and hydrology of the site. Kunz said the hydrology is the most important defining issue at Green Pond Marsh. One of the characteristics of a wetland is the amount of overflow created from rainfall or winter thaws. A wetland is an area that ponds for 14 days or more per year, an event that happens at Green Pond.
The wetlands are part of the area TOA has marked as a "conservation area." Biddison said the developer reduced the size of driveways to give more space for conservation.
"We're trying to do the right thing. We're trying to listen to the public. We're trying to address their concerns," Biddison said.
The people get their say
The public wasn't able to react to Biddison's presentation. The public portion of the meeting preceded the developer's. About 100 people attended the meeting. Of the 24 people who spoke, none supported the developer's plan.
The speakers emphasized that the loss or alteration of any habitat would harm bird life, especially for migratory species.
Some of them noted that the site presents an ideal opportunity for educational opportunities for school students. For instance, Terry Master, a professor at East Stroudsburg University, said Green Pond serves as a regional resource. He takes his students to Green Pond whenever possible to examine the ecology of the wetlands.
Vicky Bastidas, a member of the Northampton County Open Space Committee, suggested that the township try to acquire the site to create a nature preserve. Funding for land acquisition is available through the state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, the state Department of Community and Economic Development, the Northampton County Open Space Program and several nonprofit groups. However, because of the nature of the grant programs, the township cannot force a landowner to sell property for open space preservation.
The development site currently is owned by Green Pond Country Club, which is selling the property to the developer. Traditions of America plans to pitch the project as a boon to golfers.
Other speakers focused on the aesthetic beauty of Green Pond Marsh and on the wildlife that lives there. They feared that Bethlehem Township would soon become overdeveloped to the detriment of residents who live there.
Still other speakers focused traffic and flooding problems the development would create. Dennis Taylor, a Farmersville Road resident who farms 3,000 acres, tackled both issues. He cultivates in various locations, some on leased properties. As a result, he needs to move equipment to different sites, and the increased traffic would compound the problems he has even now in traveling on a 16-foot-wide combine. He also pointed out that erosion from development throughout the area is causing greater flooding on Nancy Run.
"I really hope you guys would take a look at what happens downstream because of what happens upstream," Taylor said.
He said he loses 200 to 300 acres of farmland each year due to development.
Barbara Malt, vice president of the Lehigh Valley Audubon Society, and Rick Wiltraut, who has been studying birds for 45 years, were among those making presentations at the meeting.
Two other speakers tried to emphasize their points with visual effects.
Scott Burnet, head of the habitat and conservation committee of the Lehigh Valley Audubon Society, displayed a mounted American Coot that had been killed by a herbicide that was sprayed in another township. The species, he said, is a shy, retiring bird that has been seen in Green Pond. Do the Bethlehem Township Commissioners, Burnet asked, want to be responsible for killing birds like this species by voting for the housing project?
Gwendolyn Evans Caldwell, a professional painter who lives in sight of Green Pond, gave each commissioner a watercolor painting of birds that she has seen at the site.
"Bird watching is no mere hobby like golf," she said. "Birds are crucial to man's survival."
Commissioner Hudak has 'heard this before'
Commissioner Michael Hudak was unimpressed by Caldwell's gift. He didn't look up to accept the painting. He had been staring at the ceiling during most of her presentation. He got the cold shoulder from several other speakers, a fact that did not go unnoticed.
Michael Adams, a former Butztown resident who now lives in Lehigh County, began his remarks with a biblical reference. "The Good Book has some very profound things to say about the birds of the sky," he said, pausing as his voice choked with emotion. Once he resumed his presentation, he turned to Hudak and said: "I find your studied indifference contemptible."
"That's your right," Hudak replied.
"I don't need you to affirm that right," Adams countered.
Hudak brushed aside the public objections to the development, saying, "I've heard this before."
He asserted that Traditions of America has fully met the needs of bird life in Green Pond.
"I don't think that the houses will scare the birds away," he said, noting that Blue Herons have roosted on his roof.
"The birds have been here for hundreds of thousands of years," he said. "I'm not so arrogant as to think they need our help."
Hudak also said there are many 55-and-older residents in the township who have told him they're interested in the project and support it.
Commissioner Zawarski wants proof about bird life
A second commissioner, President D. Martin Zawarski, spoke favorably of the project when it was unveiled in early July. "Out of all of the plans that came before us over the years, this is absolutely the best use and they're more respectful of all the issues they have to deal with," Zawarski told the Easton Express-Times back then.
On Monday evening, Zawarski didn't expressly endorse the project, but wondered why Green Pond has become such a big deal. He said has lived in the township since the 1960s but doesn't recall seeing birds at Green Pond back then. He thinks they arrived as time went on, and now the site has become a refuge for them. He asked the Audubon Society to document why Green Pond should be treated as an Important Bird Area. "Next time you come back, bring something with some more meat in it so I can understand this better," said Zawarski, a real estate agent and developer.
Earlier in the meeting, the Lehigh Valley Audubon Society had presented the commissioners with a binder containing photographs taken at Green Pond of dozens of birds, some of them rarely seen locally.
Commissioners Nolan and Barnard have reservations
On the other hand, Commissioner Thomas Nolan posed numerous questions to the developer. He noted that in his 27 years as a township official, he has seen development projects come and go, and not all of them worked out as planned.
"I have to go into the bigger sphere: What is good for the township, not what is good for the developer," Nolan said.
He commended Traditions of America for making improvements to the original plan, but said the final plan still has hurdles to get through, including those relating to traffic congestion and a clear delineation of what is a wetland and what is not.
"My judgment as to whether to support it right now is on hold," Nolan said.
Commissioner Phil Barnard had similar reservations. "When you come up with a formal plan, I hope their concerns are addressed," he said, referring to those in the audience.
The fifth commissioner, Pat Breslin, was mum. Throughout the meeting, he said nothing about the development plan or about the concerns voiced at the meeting. He asked no questions of the developer.
No timetable was announced for a final vote on the housing project. The developer has yet to present it for review by the Lehigh Valley Planning Commission or the Northampton County Conservation District. The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation must sign off on the developer's traffic study. The state Department of Environmental Protection may have to evaluate the wetlands issue.
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