Saturday, August 17, the Top of the Mountain Democratic Club Speaker’s Bureau gathered community members at the Mt. Pocono United Methodist Church to discuss warehouse proliferation in the Pocono Region. Dr. Alex Jackson, biologist, and State Rep. Tarah Probst, PA-189, were guest speakers. The event took place less than a mile from a brand new 1 million square foot warehouse situated at the 5-points intersection in Mt. Pocono. Attendees included township supervisors, borough council members, environmental advocates, and community members, from every corner of Monroe County, all with one goal in mind: to protect exceptional value wetlands by preventing the further construction of more warehouses and distribution centers in the Poconos.
In a recent call to action for a neighboring township, Pocono Heritage Land Trust executive director Louise Troutman wrote, “that new warehouse is going to send its overflow stormwater through the 5 points intersection into the headwaters of Yankee Run, which are the wetlands adjacent to what used to be Pizza Hut. Yankee Run flows into Paradise Creek, which flows into the Brodhead, which flows into the Delaware. Polluting it up here means it’s polluted the whole way downstream. All the more reason to protect land locally.” According to the Coalition for the Delaware River Watershed (CDRW), more than 13 million people are served by waters from the Delaware River Basin, which also contributes over $21 billion in economic value to the region.
PHLT recently attempted to preserve a 70-acre property in Paradise Township by securing funding through grants and seeking additional support from the township’s Open Space Fund. The Open Space Fund is the direct result of a 2006 voter referendum, where Paradise residents voted in favor of an Earned Income Tax (EIT) of 0.25 percent so that the township could purchase open space properties. The Open Space Fund had $1.1 million dollars at the end of 2023. Chairman Peter Gonze voted in favor of using $230,000 from the Open Space Fund to preserve the 70-acre property, but PHLT’s request was rejected by Supervisors Reda Briglia and Mike Stein, who notably served as a past president of PHLT and also the Brodhead Watershed Association (BWA). Supervisor Reda Briglia preferred using funds for existing open space or greenways and believes there's enough open space already, however, when the referendum passed in 2006, the Pocono Record reported that “revenue from the new tax will be dedicated to the acquisition of open space properties. Open space EIT revenue cannot be used to develop properties the township or the Paradise/Barrett/Mount Pocono regional open space group already owns.”
Saturday's presentation urged residents of the Poconos to pay attention to local zoning maps, to join planning commissions, and to regularly attend township meetings. While it may be too late for the Borough of Mt. Pocono, neighbors in Paradise Township should be on high alert.
The Paradise Township Supervisors meet at 6pm on Monday, August 19 at the Paradise Township Municipal Building, 5912 Paradise Valley Road, Cresco, PA. Residents can offer public comment on agenda items at the beginning of the meeting, and also comment on non-agenda items at the end of the meeting. Residents concerned for the future of Paradise Township should attend this meeting and let their voices be heard.
EDIT: Monday, August 19, 9:40AM
Additional information provided by Township Supervisor Mike Stein shows that Act 422, which is the PA statute authorizing Open Space Tax, permits up to 25% of Open Space funding to be used to maintain, improve and develop Open Space properties (section 7.4).
