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Lycoming Supply to pay borough damages
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BY JAMES LOEWENSTEIN
STAFF WRITER
TOWANDA — Lycoming Supply Inc. of Williamsport will owe Towanda Borough $1,000 per day in liquidated damages because it has not met its Oct. 2 deadline to substantially complete the demolition of three fire-damaged buildings in downtown Towanda.
The announcement that Lycoming Supply will have to pay the borough damages was made by Towanda Borough Council President Jean Miller at this week’s Towanda Borough Council meeting, where the council also voted to extend its lease of an Athens Borough Fire Department ladder truck.
The council also heard a report from the borough’s solicitor on his investigation into the events that occurred in the early morning hours of Sept. 6, when Scott Mitros, 25, of Towanda RR5 allegedly discharged a firearm in the holding area in the Towanda police station.
Damages
Miller reported that Lycoming Supply has failed to meet its Oct. 2 deadline to “substantially complete” the demolition of three fire-damaged buildings in the 400 block of Main Street in Towanda, partly because it has not yet installed a pre-cast retaining wall to protect the north wall of the Citizens & Northern Bank branch at 428 Main St.
Lycoming was also supposed to have filled in the basement areas of the demolished buildings by Oct. 2, which has not yet occurred.
Under the terms of Lycoming’s contract with the borough, the company had to pay the borough $1,000 per day in liquidated damages if it failed to meet the Oct. 2 deadline, Borough Manager Tom Fairchild Jr. has said.
“I’m sure we will be paid for the time that has elapsed” since the Oct. 2 deadline, Miller told her fellow council members.
Lycoming will be requesting an extension of its contract with the borough for the demolition project, and is working with the engineering firm for the project — Stiffler, McGraw & Associates — to develop the contract extension, she said.
Towanda Borough Code Enforcement Officer Jim Haight said that Lycoming Supply missed its Oct. 2 deadline because it has been working on other projects.
Towanda Borough Councilman Rick Lewis said that Lycoming has done “an excellent job” on the project, but “they do pick and choose when they work.”
After the demolition project is complete, the borough will use the vacant land as a municipal parking lot for the time being, although it hopes to see the land developed.
Lycoming was hired by the borough to demolish the former Bern Furniture store at 416 Main St. and two vacant buildings at 418-422 Main St., all of which were destroyed or damaged in a March 2006 fire.
Fire truck
Because the Towanda Fire Department has still not been able to repair its only ladder truck, the Towanda Borough Council on Tuesday approved a 90-day extension to the borough’s lease of one of the Athens Borough Fire Department’s two ladder trucks.
The extension of the lease had previously been approved by the Athens Borough Council, said Towanda Borough Solicitor Leonard Frawley, who thanked the Athens council for its willingness to help the Towanda Fire Department out at this time. Athens is leasing the ladder truck to Towanda at no charge.
The lease, which has already been in effect for two months, is necessary because Towanda’s ladder truck has been out of service due to a problem with its ladder.
The ladder cannot be locked in place after it is extended, fire officials said.
The repair shop that is working on the truck has still not been able to find parts to fix it, Towanda Fire Chief Bill Sheets told the council this week.
Due to the age of the Towanda’s ladder truck, which was constructed in 1979, there are problems finding replacement parts for it, Towanda fire officials have said.
It is not clear how long Athens’ ladder truck will continue to be available to the Towanda Fire Department. That’s because Athens fire officials showed the truck Monday night to another fire department that is interested in buying it, Chief Sheets told the council.
Under the terms of the lease, Athens can break the lease if it finds a buyer for the truck, Sheets said.
The Towanda Fire Department is currently waiting to hear whether it has been awarded a $650,000 federal grant to help purchase a new ladder truck. While there are good used ladder trucks on the market, the department does not want to enter into negotiations to buy a used truck at this time, Sheets said.
“We don’t want to go out and buy a used truck when we still have the possibility of getting a grant to buy a new one,” he said.
If the fire department bought a used truck at this time, and was subsequently awarded the $650,000 grant, the department would either be stuck with having to use the grant or it would have to give the grant back to the government, he said.
Shooting
Borough Solicitor Leonard Frawley reported that he had interviewed “a significant number of witnesses” to the Sept. 6 incident in which Towanda-area residents Scott and Janelle Mitros, both 25, were arrested on Main Street in the borough for public drunkenness, resisting arrest and related charges. Approximately two hours after the arrests, Scott Mitros allegedly fired his own handgun while he and Janelle Mitros were in the police department’s holding area. No one was injured in the incident.
“I don’t want to get into specifics in the case,” Frawley said at the council meeting. However, Frawley did say that he believed that the two police officers who arrested the Mitroses “have been very forthright and professional in their dealings with me while I attempt to ascertain what took place” that night, Frawley said.
Frawley is taking part in an investigation into whether Towanda police followed the police department’s policies and procedures that night and whether any department procedures and policies need to be changed.
Fire station
Chief Sheets reported that the Towanda Fire Department has “started to get quite a few calls” from people interested in renting the social hall of its new fire station to use for events.
“We had our first wedding in there on Sept. 27,” Sheets said. The fire department is interested in renting out the social hall, which seats 185, and kitchen in order to raise money to help operate the fire department, Sheets said. Anyone interested in renting the social hall can call 265-2000.
James Loewenstein can be reached at (570) 265-1633; or e-mail: jloewenstein@thedailyreview.com
The announcement that Lycoming Supply will have to pay the borough damages was made by Towanda Borough Council President Jean Miller at this week’s Towanda Borough Council meeting, where the council also voted to extend its lease of an Athens Borough Fire Department ladder truck.
The council also heard a report from the borough’s solicitor on his investigation into the events that occurred in the early morning hours of Sept. 6, when Scott Mitros, 25, of Towanda RR5 allegedly discharged a firearm in the holding area in the Towanda police station.
Damages
Miller reported that Lycoming Supply has failed to meet its Oct. 2 deadline to “substantially complete” the demolition of three fire-damaged buildings in the 400 block of Main Street in Towanda, partly because it has not yet installed a pre-cast retaining wall to protect the north wall of the Citizens & Northern Bank branch at 428 Main St.
Lycoming was also supposed to have filled in the basement areas of the demolished buildings by Oct. 2, which has not yet occurred.
Under the terms of Lycoming’s contract with the borough, the company had to pay the borough $1,000 per day in liquidated damages if it failed to meet the Oct. 2 deadline, Borough Manager Tom Fairchild Jr. has said.
“I’m sure we will be paid for the time that has elapsed” since the Oct. 2 deadline, Miller told her fellow council members.
Lycoming will be requesting an extension of its contract with the borough for the demolition project, and is working with the engineering firm for the project — Stiffler, McGraw & Associates — to develop the contract extension, she said.
Towanda Borough Code Enforcement Officer Jim Haight said that Lycoming Supply missed its Oct. 2 deadline because it has been working on other projects.
Towanda Borough Councilman Rick Lewis said that Lycoming has done “an excellent job” on the project, but “they do pick and choose when they work.”
After the demolition project is complete, the borough will use the vacant land as a municipal parking lot for the time being, although it hopes to see the land developed.
Lycoming was hired by the borough to demolish the former Bern Furniture store at 416 Main St. and two vacant buildings at 418-422 Main St., all of which were destroyed or damaged in a March 2006 fire.
Fire truck
Because the Towanda Fire Department has still not been able to repair its only ladder truck, the Towanda Borough Council on Tuesday approved a 90-day extension to the borough’s lease of one of the Athens Borough Fire Department’s two ladder trucks.
The extension of the lease had previously been approved by the Athens Borough Council, said Towanda Borough Solicitor Leonard Frawley, who thanked the Athens council for its willingness to help the Towanda Fire Department out at this time. Athens is leasing the ladder truck to Towanda at no charge.
The lease, which has already been in effect for two months, is necessary because Towanda’s ladder truck has been out of service due to a problem with its ladder.
The ladder cannot be locked in place after it is extended, fire officials said.
The repair shop that is working on the truck has still not been able to find parts to fix it, Towanda Fire Chief Bill Sheets told the council this week.
Due to the age of the Towanda’s ladder truck, which was constructed in 1979, there are problems finding replacement parts for it, Towanda fire officials have said.
It is not clear how long Athens’ ladder truck will continue to be available to the Towanda Fire Department. That’s because Athens fire officials showed the truck Monday night to another fire department that is interested in buying it, Chief Sheets told the council.
Under the terms of the lease, Athens can break the lease if it finds a buyer for the truck, Sheets said.
The Towanda Fire Department is currently waiting to hear whether it has been awarded a $650,000 federal grant to help purchase a new ladder truck. While there are good used ladder trucks on the market, the department does not want to enter into negotiations to buy a used truck at this time, Sheets said.
“We don’t want to go out and buy a used truck when we still have the possibility of getting a grant to buy a new one,” he said.
If the fire department bought a used truck at this time, and was subsequently awarded the $650,000 grant, the department would either be stuck with having to use the grant or it would have to give the grant back to the government, he said.
Shooting
Borough Solicitor Leonard Frawley reported that he had interviewed “a significant number of witnesses” to the Sept. 6 incident in which Towanda-area residents Scott and Janelle Mitros, both 25, were arrested on Main Street in the borough for public drunkenness, resisting arrest and related charges. Approximately two hours after the arrests, Scott Mitros allegedly fired his own handgun while he and Janelle Mitros were in the police department’s holding area. No one was injured in the incident.
“I don’t want to get into specifics in the case,” Frawley said at the council meeting. However, Frawley did say that he believed that the two police officers who arrested the Mitroses “have been very forthright and professional in their dealings with me while I attempt to ascertain what took place” that night, Frawley said.
Frawley is taking part in an investigation into whether Towanda police followed the police department’s policies and procedures that night and whether any department procedures and policies need to be changed.
Fire station
Chief Sheets reported that the Towanda Fire Department has “started to get quite a few calls” from people interested in renting the social hall of its new fire station to use for events.
“We had our first wedding in there on Sept. 27,” Sheets said. The fire department is interested in renting out the social hall, which seats 185, and kitchen in order to raise money to help operate the fire department, Sheets said. Anyone interested in renting the social hall can call 265-2000.
James Loewenstein can be reached at (570) 265-1633; or e-mail: jloewenstein@thedailyreview.com
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