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Thursday, August 08, 2013
State Court Refuses To Reconsider Elias Zoning Decision
In a one-sentence order, the state Commonwealth Court has refused to reconsider a June 7 decision, siding with Elias Market in a four year-old zoning dispute that pits a popular Linden Street produce business against North Bethlehem residents concerned about the negative impact a proposed expansion of the market's warehouse and loading dock. Neighbors can still ask the state Supreme Court to review this zoning decision, but that Court has no legal obligation to consider the matter.
12 comments:
You own views are appreciated, especially if they differ from mine. But remember, commenting is a privilege, not a right. I will delete personal attacks or off-topic remarks at my discretion. Comments that play into the tribalism that has consumed this nation will be declined. So will comments alleging voter fraud unless backed up by concrete evidence. If you attack someone personally, I expect you to identify yourself. I will delete criticisms of my comment policy, vulgarities, cut-and-paste jobs from other sources and any suggestion of violence towards anyone. I will also delete sweeping generalizations about mainstream parties or ideologies, i.e. identity politics. My decisions on these matters are made on a case by case basis, and may be affected by my mood that day, my access to the blog at the time the comment was made or other information that isn’t readily apparent.
This has gone on long enough. It shows how much of a roadblock 3 people can be to a project. One is a transplant from another state who said in his testimony "the only reason I don't like it, is I have to look at a tractor trailer in the parking lot when I drive by to my home" 1 mile down the street by the way. The other Plaintiff bought a house that was half finished right next to the parking lott of the existing market, finished the house and then started complaining that there is a market behind my house. considering the entire development was built on this markets farm is not even a consideration for these obstructionist. I think 4 years and countless hours of wasted time in the courts should be charged back to these plaintiffs, they should get the bill for a frivolous action with NO STANDING except for having money and being a "NOT IN MY BACK YARD NIMBY" Way to go Al and Fang. good use of the system for your own Crazy Agenda
ReplyDeleteBernie, I thought you don't let people slander other people especially anonymously! First names should be deleted don't you think? FYI, the dishonest are at it again. Let's let the city make the calls as to what is allowed now and what isn't ... Ha ha ha paybacks are a ___ch! (rhymes with witch)
ReplyDeleteThere is nothing in that comment that I consider a personal attack. Their positions on the Elias expansion are heavily criticized, but they are not personally attacked. Sorry.
ReplyDeleteOops forgot the link...... http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/bethlehem/index.ssf/2014/05/elias_farmers_market_in_bethle.html
ReplyDeleteSent from my iPad
Thanks Bernie for the reply. I guess you are correct 😊
ReplyDeleteBethlehem officials this week ordered Elias Farmers Market to stop the expansion of asphalt at its Linden Street store.
ReplyDeleteThe market last year won a four-year court battle with three neighbors over the expansion of the store. The neighbors this week saw market workers installing asphalt where they weren’t allowed and alerted city officials.
Chief Building Inspector Craig Hynes said he went out to the market Monday and ordered the asphalt expansion to stop. He said the market owners will be required to dig up the asphalt and replant grass.
“Unfortunately they didn’t call us sooner or I would have told them not to put asphalt down,” Hynes said.
The market has permission to add a 4,843-square-foot warehouse to the 14,436-square-foot store. The area where workers were laying asphalt is supposed to be a buffer area for neighbors, said Guishu Fang, one of the neighbors who fought the expansion.
“There’s nothing on their plans for new gravel,” she said. “Everything around their new warehouse is supposed to be grass and trees.”
Fang said she hopes the asphalt is torn up quickly and that the rest of the addition is built to plan. The market, which is at Linden Street and Johnston Drive, is on land zoned residential and borders residential neighborhoods.
Elias owner George Azar did not return calls for comment.
The link is good. I hate to see news articles cut-and-pasted as a comment.
ReplyDeleteBernie, why don't you copy and paste it so the correct news gets published? Btw, how come you didn't comment or report anything on Lynn Olanoff's article that she wrote in the Express Times. Is it a big surprise to you that Elias would do such a "sneaky, underhanded" thing! NOT, Same exact thing they did years ago by not getting a permit to expand their parking lot but the "Neighborhood Watch" wasn't formed then and the neighbors just didn't know there are people that think they can do anything they want by possibly just greasing a few palms or giving a few donations to the right politicians and then walla.....they can get everything they want. That's called abusing the system! OR are they just simply your "BUDDIes" and you don't want the public to know the truth about their bullying tactics! Shame, shame Bernie!
ReplyDeleteThe link suffices. I hate cut-and-paste of news accounts for numerous reasons,one of which is I think it is unfair to the person who wrote the story.
ReplyDeleteYou are free to speculate however you wish about my connection to the Elias Market. I visited the store twice or three times during my coverage of this matter, and find the people there to be decent, hard-working people. I know the people opposed to the expansion much better. I did them to be decent and hard-working, too. It is too bad this could never be resolved and that persons like you are reduced to these anonymous attacks and insinuations. You demean yourself.
Hey Bernie..... A certain market lost their appeal for a 60-day extension Thursday 5/22/2014! Maybe all the fighting the neighbors have done for their Residential Community for 4 years will wake up the City of Bethlehem to not be bullied by a certain "Family" and stick to the building plan that they testified to and the one that was approved with a 28 page Zoning Decision which outlined 65 facts that they testified to under oath and were given numerous stipulations from the Zoning Hearing Board and in which George Loupus testified and said "if they do anything else other than what they testified to...... they will be breaking the law! Thursday at their appeal, their lawyer said: adding "5,000 sq feet of pavement instead of grass and trees to buffer their neighbors property in an RR zone is just a SLIGHT deviation from the original approved plan that they submitted to Zoning and the Planning Board approved! They will skirt around the law every chance they can and hope they don't get caught like they did when they paved their parking lot years ago! They think they are untouchable..... I wonder why? By the way..... did I mention they were paving first without a permit when the neighbors called the City and the building inspector rushed to the market to stop them from paving macadam and from putting a road around the building where grass and trees was agreed to and which was on their official approved plans and Mr. Hynes and Ms. Suzanne Borzak issued a cease and desist. Then one week later there they were again putting barb wire down and going to now pour cement in a different area without a permit and they got a SECOND cease and desist from the City! Read for yourself Bernie in the Lehigh Valley Live link below! Btw, how come you don't report on this issue anymore on your own like you do of all your articles about yourself and a certain woman? Are you afraid to touch this subject?
ReplyDelete5/22/2014 Elias Market denied 60-day extension to appeal asphalt-related code violation
http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/bethlehem/index.ssf/2014/05/elias_market_denied_60-day_ext.html#incart_river_default
5/24/14. This is what is wrong with your side. You make some great points and then you ruin it all by trashing anybody who does not walk lockstep with you. You took an unnecessary anonymous cheap shot. You're not going to be published.
ReplyDeleteBernie, I hope this is better?
ReplyDeleteA market lost their appeal for a 60-day extension Thursday 5/22/2014! They were told to rip up the pavement by the Building Inspecter and stick to the building plan that was approved with a 28 page Zoning Decision in 2011 which outlined 65+ facts they would adhere to and that they testified to under oath and were given numerous stipulations from the Zoning Hearing Board when they were given the okay to build. Thursday at their appeal, their lawyer said: "adding 5,000 sq feet of pavement instead of grass and trees to buffer their neighbors property in an RR zone is just a SLIGHT deviation from the original approved plan that they submitted to Zoning and that the Planning Board previously approved! They were in the process of paving without a permit on the day the neighbors called the City and the Building Inspector rushed to the market to stop them from paving macadam and from putting a road around the building where grass and trees was agreed to and which was on their official approved building plans. Mr. Hynes and Ms. Suzanne Borzak issued a cease and desist and gave them a window to remove the pavement but instead they filed an appeal. Then one week later there they were putting barb wire down and going to pour cement in a different area without a permit and they got a SECOND cease and desist from the City! The Lehigh Valley Live link is below!
5/22/2014 Elias Market denied 60-day extension to appeal asphalt-related code violation
http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/bethlehem/index.ssf/2014/05/elias_market_denied_60-day_ext.html#incart_river_default