Council passed a motion Wednesday night not to award a contract based on any of the three submitted bids for the pedestrian bridge project.
The pedestrian bridge was to be constructed from the side of the municipal building leading to the outside area. The lowest of the bids was from Multiscape in the amount of $78,886.
Council President Steve Duda said that at a time when Nanticoke “is looking to cut costs, it is not advantageous for the city to accept any of the bids.”
He continued that, “even $78,000 is too high” and that it “didn’t serve in the best interest of the city.”
Council also passed a resolution authorizing the city to enter into a tax collection agreement with the Greater Nanticoke Area School District. City Administrator Holly Cirko said the city “never had a written agreement” and it is “more comfortable to have a formal agreement” on record.
In other business, the reconstruction of Main and Market streets is in the preliminary planning stage, and the city will have to meet with the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation to make sure plans comply with state rules and regulations.
On June 3, the Honey Pot Volunteer Fire Department will host an all-you-can-eat breakfast from 7 a.m. to noon.

5/14/2012
Nanticoke park dreams closer
City files to acquire land to start long process of creating recreation park downtown.
sdelazio@timesleader.com

For years, the city has been working to create the Greater Nanticoke Area Recreation Park as part of a revitalization of the downtown.
Now, the city is one step closer to making the park a reality after filing eminent domain proceedings in Luzerne County Court to acquire nearly 90 parcels of land.
The $1.1 million plan began nearly seven years ago.
The planned park will include bleachers, a concession stand, practice football field, several pavilions, skate park, tee-ball field, basketball courts, softball field, sitting areas, open practice fields, natural and camping areas, walking and biking paths, and a boat launch and fishing area.
The first step is land acquisition.
“No agency will give us funding (to start the project) if we don’t have the land to make something happen on,” Holly Cirko, Nanticoke city administrator said. “We won’t get funding until that’s over. Until that’s done, we’re kind of on hold.”
The declaration of taking proceedings filed April 10 in county court includes nearly 90 parcels of land that will ultimately make up the 134.58 acres of the planned park.
After the Agnes Flood in 1972, William Finnegan, the city’s solicitor, said most of the land on Lower Broadway Street in the city was used to house Federal Emergency Management Agency trailers for residents to get back on their feet. After the flood, the lots were sold off or people left, creating title problems.
Finnegan said he doesn’t expect any problems in acquiring the land, and that a meeting will be held soon to update city administrators on the eminent domain proceedings.
Any land owner who objects must do so in writing to the court within 30 days. As of Wednesday, no objections were filed.
Finnegan said many of the parcels are small, which is why so many are needed to make up the proposed park.
“The parking lot (on the property now) alone was 20 parcels,” Finnegan said.
Construction in 2013
Most recently, in December, the city obtained a $60,400 grant from the state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. Construction on the land the city already owns is expected to begin some time in 2013.
The DCNR said the funding will be used for the construction of a pavilion, parking area improvements, pedestrian walkway, observation area, rain garden, installation of site amenities, removal of invasive species, handicap access, landscaping and signage.
State Sen. John Yudichak, D-Plymouth Township, who has been working with the city on the project, said the DCNR grant will pay for the 20,000-square-foot area.
The entire project has gained some funding from the beginning, including a $100,000 state grant used to come up with a comprehensive master plan.
The plan, drafted by the Borton-Lawson architectural and engineering firm, was updated in 2009 with a $15,000 state grant, Yudichak said.
“It’s a lot of land, with several different land owners, defunct coal land and rail land,” Yudichak said. “With the (state’s) budget situation over the last two years, and the elimination of the community development program, it resulted in a loss of $100 million that curtailed our efforts.”
Yudichak said the DCNR grant is good news, and a way to begin work on the project that has taken years to put together.
“We want to see it done. It would be a new recreational entrance to downtown (Nanticoke), an attraction for the city, and would bring the business district closer and the community connected to the (Susquehanna River),” Yudichak said.
Most of the area has undergone environmental work that still continues with the state Environmental Protection Agency -- testing soil, monitoring a nearby stream and planning for future flooding of the area, Yudichak said.
“We want something people of all ages can use,” Cirko said of the park. “We’re eager to see some construction start (with the DCNR grant).”

5/14/2012
Korch, Jesse win trail run
Patrick Leonard - Citizens Voice

Tony Korch of Nanticoke won the Wyoming Valley Striders' 21st Annual Spring Trail Run held Sunday afternoon at Frances Slocum State Park.
The Striders organized the race differently this year than in races past by using a handicapped start. Runners didn't begin the race all at once but started in waves.
Korch began running approximately sixteen minutes after the first wave of runners took off, but was able to make up the difference by crossing the finish line in 37:18, nearly three minutes ahead of second-place finisher, Joe Dutko of Mountain Top.
"This is one of the best times I have had on this course," said Korch, who has been competing in trail races for the last 10 years. "The course was dry; there was not a lot of mud so it made for a fast race."
For many of the 53 runners, including Korch, this was their first experience running in a handicapped race.
Vince Wojnar of the Striders believes it's the first such race to be held in Northeastern Pennsylvania.
Most felt it was a positive experience.
"I thought it was very enjoyable," remarked Korch, who completed the Bear Mountain Trail Marathon in New York last week. "You get to see more people on the course. It's fair and I think it's cool."
For more read http://www.citizensvoice.com

5/9/2012
Inmate shares cautionary tale about drugs at GNA
Sheena DeLazio - sdelazio@timesleader.com

When Rotarian Paul O’Malia asked Greater Nanticoke Area High School students if they know someone who does drugs or where to get them, nearly every hand in the auditorium went up Tuesday.
The teens’ familiarity with drug abuse is why a Luzerne County Correctional Facility inmate was brought to school to explain how drugs derailed her life. She told the students she hoped they would learn from her mistakes by making better decisions.
“It’s not worth it,” Shannon, 31, said about her lifetime struggle with drugs that landed her in jail. “As soon as I took that first pill, it was all over.”
The presentation by the inmate, identified only as Shannon, was part of the Straight-Up Drug and Alcohol Awareness Program sponsored by the Greater Nanticoke Area Rotary Club and its Interact Club at the school.
O’Malia, district governor of the Rotary Clubs, and founder of Straight Up, told students they can count on their dreams being crushed when they open the door to drugs.
Freshman Jake Bevan, president of the Interact Club, said he felt Shannon’s message will help students make good decisions if they are pressured by peers at the prom and other celebrations.
“We also learned about incarceration, and it teaches us what that’s like,” said Interact Club Vice President Tyler Fisher, a freshman. “I don’t want to be in prison.”
Students listened as Shannon told them about her troubled teen years, when she smoked marijuana at a concert with a friend’s mom. Acid and Ecstasy were next.
“When I was 17 years old, I went with friends to Philly and I was introduced to crack cocaine,” she said.
“I lost my car, my home, (everything) within two months. I graduated high school, but I don’t know how,” she said. It got so bad, she said, that at one point she was snorting cocaine off a textbook at the back of the school bus.
Shannon joined the U.S. Army, completed basic training and worked as a combat medic in a hospital. After two years in the Army, she returned home to the Wyoming Valley, where she met a man, had a job and owned a car.
Then the dream of a good life started to turn into a nightmare: “I started doing cocaine,” she said.
A short time later, Shannon said, she became addicted to the way Vicodin, Percocet and Xanax made her feel. She started snorting heroin and got violently sick when she didn’t have any.
“I didn’t care. I couldn’t stop,” Shannon said.
Feeling trapped, hopeless and powerless, she resorted to taking blank checks from her mother to get money to support her habit. That landed her in jail on forgery charges.
She violated the terms of her work release by not returning to the county prison, resulting in a two-year prison term in 2010.
She has spent the past three months in prison on other charges, and hopes to be released in July.
“I know I’m going to stay clean,” Shannon told the students. “I found one thing that is going to help keep me clean – God.”
She has been clean since January, is on work release and hopes to return as a productive member of society.

5/3/2012
Nanticoke modifies pension fund boards

Council voted unanimously on Wednesday on a pair of ordinances to modify the existing police and firefighter pension fund boards.
Under the new ordinances, the two boards will consist of the mayor, a current council member appointed by the mayor, the police and fire chiefs and two members of their departments.
In other business, council announced that Nanticoke will hold a citywide yard sale on Saturday, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. with a rain date on Sunday.
Interested parties may stop by Anthracite Park beginning at 8 a.m. Saturday to pick up a list of residents who plan to participate in the sale.

4/30/2012
King's star overcoming loss of hearing
Jill Snowdon - Citizens Voice

The crack of a bat. A fastball slapping the inside of a glove. A team celebrating a victory.
Amanda Cardone grew up playing softball and hearing the distinct sounds of a typical day on the field.
Just a few months ago, however, the sounds of softball and everyday life around her were no longer the same.
After three surgeries, the King's College sophomore catcher was dealt shocking news that she was permanently deaf in her right ear.
Cardone, a Nanticoke Area graduate, has rebounded from the diagnosis and while she now needs a hearing aid, her intensity and drive to succeed have remained the same.
She is enjoying a standout season with the Monarchs where she leads the team and is ranked ninth in nation with 48 RBIs.
King's (28-10, 10-4 Freedom) is the third seed for this week's conference tournament at Manhattanville College.
"I was really excited when I was told I was ranked nationally," Cardone, a two-year starter said. "I think because of what I've gone through the last few months, it was just the confidence boost I needed. It really made me realize that I can still do things and push on."
Cardone was just settling into life as a sophomore when she was hit with flu-like symptoms and a nasty sinus infection. She woke up one morning and had difficulty hearing from her right ear. At first she thought her ear was blocked due to the cold, but when it got progressively worse, it was time to take action
No official cause was given to Cardone, but the results were emphatic.
"The worst part was finding out that I wasn't going to get the hearing back," Cardone said. "I was really nervous how it was going to be with school and softball. But the hearing aid made a huge difference and it's really amazing how it works."
Cardone, a biology/pre-med major, informed her teachers of her condition and now sits in the front of each class to give her an added hearing advantage.
Softball can be trickier when things get loud, but Cardone adjusts the best she can.
"I really think she has a great attitude about it," King's coach Lisa Gigliello said. "She might miss some things that are said, but she has a good sense for things when she's on the field."
Cardone has a .994 fielding percentage behind the plate. She bats third in the order behind fellow Nanticoke Area grad Area Jenn Harnischfeger and sophomore Erin Beane. Cardone boasts a team-best .400 batting average.
"She's an explosive hitter," Gigliello said. "It's no surprise how well she's doing because she's a great athlete and we know she'll put the ball in play."
Dealing with her partial deafness has been a bit easier for Cardone thanks to her teammates. She credits the team's chemistry as one of its key strengths on the field and credits their friendship with getting her through a difficult transition.
"I was going through all of this during fall ball," said Cardone who has started in 63 of 65 games at King's. "In one game, every time Lisa yelled for me, the umpire had to tap me on the shoulder to let me know.
"There was some comic relief with it and I'm good with that because my team is so supportive and genuinely concerned."
The Monarchs are the defending conference champions and have their sights set on a repeat.
Cardone's bat is a big reason for the Monarchs to feel confident. And she's the perfect player to pick them up when they face a tough situation.
"I'm very excited about the possibilities for our team," Cardone said. "We have 19 people and we're 19 people strong. But the best thing is we're all behind each other. I know that first-hand."

4/24/2012
Authority board shuffle puts Nanticoke plans on hold
eskrapits@citizensvoice.com, 570-821-2072

Plans for the downtown business district, including the possibility of a new Geisinger Health System facility, are on hold while lawyers battle over whether the city council president can sit on the Nanticoke General Municipal Authority board.
Board Chairman Hank Marks said Monday that Geisinger is interested in an authority-owned parcel of land at Market Street and Broadway, next to Luzerne County Community College's new Health Sciences Center. The authority's developer, Scranton-based William Rinaldi, is working to bring Geisinger in.
Commonwealth Health, which bought up regional facilities including eight hospitals, has also showed interest in downtown Nanticoke, Marks said.
The municipal authority is responsible for downtown redevelopment projects, including LCCC's two new buildings, the Health Sciences Center and the Joseph Paglianite Culinary Arts Institute.
But the board can't make decisions on new projects, including the prospective medical facility, until a membership issue is ironed out.
City council on April 4 confirmed Mayor Joseph Dougherty's appointments of Council President Steve Duda, Councilman Richard Wiaterowski and resident Jeff Lewis to fill the expired terms of municipal authority board members Chester Beggs, Hank Kellar and Marilyn Collacchi.
Wiaterowski declined the appointment.
City solicitor William Finnegan said after council's vote that a Supreme Court ruling and Nanticoke's home-rule charter allow Duda on the municipal authority.
However, during Monday's authority board meeting, authority solicitor Bob Zaruta told Duda, "I think it goes against the law for you to sit on the board."
Zaruta said the authority's legal research determined Duda's appointment was invalid, but Dougherty replied that city officials' research says it is valid.
If the city's and authority's solicitors can't work the matter out, both sides say they will take it to court.|
Lewis' appointment is not contested, so he and authority members Tom Selecky and Marks formed a quota to pay bills. But other business has to wait until it's settled whether Duda can stay on the board, because if it turns out he can't, authority decisions could be invalidated.

4/24/2012
Celebrity game this weekend
Breaking Benjamin’s Josh Seibert and Chad Szeliga highlight stars to be on hand.
Jimmy Fisher - Times Leader

The second annual Celebrity Basketball Game will be returning to Nanticoke on Saturday at the Greater Nanticoke Area High School gym.The event, which is sponsored by the Clifton R. Lewis Good Life Foundation, will be split up into multiple events beginning at 1 p.m. The first event is the intrasquad game between two Nanticoke teams, followed by a three-point shootout. Afterwards a slam dunk contest will take place, followed by a performance by singer/songwriter Josh Seibert and Breaking Benjamin drummer Chad Szeliga, and finally the celebrity game.
Celebrities participating in the event include Pittsburgh Steelers players Steve McLendon and Darnell Stapleton, and two-time NASCAR Truck Series Champion Todd Bodine. These participants will take on local athletes and citizens from Luzerne County.
The slam dunk competition will include Sprite Slam Dunk All-Star Carlos Smothers, Harlem Globetrotters Roscoe Johnson and “The World’s Best Dunker” Kenny Dobbs.
Clifton R. Lewis, founder and president of the Good Life Foundation, said he and his co-workers have been working hard to acquire these celebrity participants.
“We’ve been working day and night trying to get these celebrities for six months,” said Lewis. “We got them through the social media such as Twitter and Facebook and also through word of mouth. I have a friend who golfs with Darnell Stapleton so that was a big help.”
At last year’s Celebrity Basketball event Lewis said over 800 people attended, but he hopes to improve not only this year but in the future, and he hopes to get different talent.
“We want to try and get people every year and keep adding year by year,” Lewis said.
The Celebrity Basketball game is looking to be an annual event in Nanticoke, but it is not the only event sponsored by the Clifton R. Lewis Foundation, as Lewis said they will be having dancing events going on in Minnesota and Arizona later this year.
Lewis is a native of Nanticoke and started the foundation in 2010 to help those diagnosed with Muscular Dystrophy, which he himself was diagnosed with in 2006. The Good Life Foundation helps families affected by MD by providing them with the help they need to afford mobilization such as wheelchairs and scooters. They have helped over 17 families in 14 states.

4/19/2012
Nanticoke files proposal for project
Susan Bettinger - Times Leader

City council on Wednesday night decided to file a proposal for reconstruction on Hill and East Green streets, from Prospect Street to Market Street, including removal of architectural barriers.
The proposal will be filed with the state Department of Community and Economic Development, which has given the city a grant of $300,000. The proposed project will benefit Park Towers, a senior citizen residence.
Council also gave the second reading to an ordinance setting uniform requirements for contributors into the city’s wastewater collection and treatment system and establishing the authority of the Wyoming Valley Sanitary Authority to administer and enforce the requirements. It also sets fees for the administration and operation of an industrial pre-treatment program. As well, it establishes the penalties for violations. Nanticoke is the first city to adopt such a resolution.

4/13/2012
Alden Road restoration work gets under way
Citizens' Voice

Work began Wednesday on the restoration of Alden Road in Nanticoke. Motorists are advised that there will be sewer and gas line work, along with grading of the road, and are asked to avoid the area if possible.
The contractor, Pennsy Supply, also known as Slusser Brothers, will rebuild Alden Road up to about the Learning Station and Reilly Plating Co.
The $1.9 million project, paid through federal funds via the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, has been in the works since 2005 and was started by former Mayor John Bushko. Delays in state and federal approvals stalled the project.

4/6/2012
Nanticoke municipal authority fills three vacancies on board
Elizabeth Skrapits - Citizens' Voice

City officials have selected three replacements to sit on the board of Nanticoke's municipal authority, and the chairman isn't happy about it.
Mayor Joseph Dougherty submitted the appointments Tuesday and council confirmed them Wednesday night. Council President Steve Duda will fill the expired term of Chester Beggs; Councilman Richard Wiaterowski will replace Hank Kellar; and Jeff Lewis will fill the expired term of Marilyn Collachi.
But Municipal Authority Chairman Hank Marks questioned the legality of putting two sitting members of council on the authority.
"I contacted our solicitor and asked him to research the validity of those appointments," he said.
The city's attorney, William Finnegan, says the move is backed by a state Supreme Court precedent. Third-class city code might have prohibited council members from serving on an authority, but it no longer applies, because as of Jan. 1, Nanticoke is under a home-rule charter, he said.
"These two people have made the decision to go run for office in the city, they have an interest in the city, and they're willing to serve on an authority that has a role in the development downtown," Finnegan said, referring to Duda and Wiaterowski. "Those two individuals obviously have a passion to improve the city."
The five-member, unpaid municipal authority board is in charge of downtown redevelopment projects. It owned the former Susquehanna Coal Co. building at Market and Main streets, which is now Luzerne County Community College's Culinary Institute. It also owned the former Kanjorski Center on Main Street that is now LCCC's Health Sciences Center.
Marks said the authority recently bought the former CVS building from the city for $155,000, and has received a $100,000 grant from state Sen. John Yudichak, D-Plymouth Township, for rebuilding a parking lot behind the culinary institute.

4/5/2012
Nanticoke mayor fills 3 authority posts
The city council OKs a permit parking system for three downtown streets.
Steven Fondo - Times Leader

Mayor Joseph Dougherty selected three individuals to serve on the city’s General Municipal Authority at a city council meeting on Wednesday night.
Appointed to five-year terms to the authority were Jeff Lewis, Richard Wiatrowski and Stephen E. Duda.
Duda and Wiatrowski both serve on council, but city Solicitor Bill Finnegan said current state laws allow the men to hold both positions.
The municipal authority is the business development arm of the city and was instrumental in Luzerne County Community College’s recent move to Nanticoke’s downtown area.
In other business, council approved a parking permit order on second reading that calls for permitted parking along Coal, Orchard and Hill streets in the city. Violators will face up to a $50 fine for all parking infractions.
The ordinance was enacted in response to residents’ concerns with spillover from LCCC’s downtown student parking lots.
An ordinance banning the use of cell phones while driving was tabled until Finnegan researches any possible conflict with existing laws.

4/4/2012
Nanticoke brewing company eyes expansion
Citizens' Voice

Benny Brewing Company, the Nanticoke microbrewery inside Marty's Blue Room, is one step closer to expanding its distribution beyond Luzerne County.
The Luzerne County zoning board voted 2-0 - one member was absent - Tuesday evening to allow a use variance that would permit the microbrewery at 100 Old Newport St. to expand its building to allow a 900 percent increase in its production. Benny Brewing currently has a single 31-gallon barrel to brew its three year-round beers and one revolving seasonal beer; the building expansion would allow for 10 31-gallon barrels.
"I want to look into Lackawanna and some up north as well," said brewmaster Ben Schonfeld, adding that about 10 locations currently carry its beer. "Maybe we'll go down to the Allentown area. I guess it depends on what distributor I choose."
Although there are many other steps left for construction to begin - getting the OK from the USDA, Liquor Control Board and planning commission - Schonfeld and his father, restaurateur James Schonfeld, hope to open the expansion by the spring of 2013.
At first, the Schonfelds would simply like to produce more of their three trademark beers: amber lager, india pale ale and wheat. As time progresses, brewmaster Ben might experiment with limited-edition beers, such as those aged in wooden barrels.
"We can't keep up with the demand we have right now," said James Schonfeld, owner of Marty's Blue Room. "We can't make it fast enough."
James Schonfeld said the microbrewery is already permitted to sell anywhere in Pennsylvania but, once the expansion is built, it will be a while before local residents spot the beers in a city like Philadelphia.
"We'd like to hit other markets slowly but surely," he said. "It's a slow climb, and it's something where you have to crawl before you walk. People enjoy it, and then you take it to another place."

4/3/2012
Baby's first haircut adds to family tradition
bkalinowski@citizensvoice.com, 570-821-2055

NANTICOKE - At 16 months old, Dutcher Stigora needed his first haircut. Dutcher's dad knew the right man for the job: legendary Nanticoke barber, 97-year-old Zelino Vici.
Jason Stigora, a Nanticoke native now from York County, recalls he and his grandfather going to Vici for haircuts decades ago. He thought it would be special to let Dutcher continue the family tradition.
On Monday morning, it was Dutcher's turn in Vici's barber chair, getting a trim from the old pro.
"Getting your hair cut by Mr. Vici is practically a rite of passage in our family. He's been cutting our hair for three generations, beginning with my grandfather, who used to bring me here when I was a young boy," Stigora, 35, said. "I have fond memories of growing up in Nanticoke, and I'm happy I can share the same experience with my son."
Stigora and his wife, Jennifer, were recently looking for somewhere "old fashioned" for Dutcher to get his first haircut and wondered if Vici was still in business. They came across a newspaper article online about how Vici was still going strong after 76 years. The couple set up a special appointment for Monday while they were in town visiting Stigora's mother, Kathleen Smith, 64.
"Mr. Vici's barber shop is an iconic Nanticoke landmark," Stigora said of the business at Prospect and Church streets.
Dutcher was well-behaved and calm as his mother placed him in the barber chair's child seat. Then came the first clip. Jennifer started to cry.
"It's hard. It is," she later said about witnessing the milestone.
Vici buzzed the sides of Dutcher's head with a trimmer, clipped a few inches from the top with scissors, and then combed his hair to the side. Dutcher's first haircut was complete and the gathered family gave him a round of applause.
"He looks more little boy, than baby now," Jennifer said.
Vici, who turns 98 next month, said Dutcher was the best behaved child in all his decades in business.
"I never had a baby sit so still," he said.
Vici said he was glad to be a part of the special day in Dutcher's life.
"It means quite a bit. They still have confidence in me at this age," Vici joked. "A lot of people think I'm too old to cut their hair.

4/2/2012
Coffee shop hoping to perk up Nanticoke
Kimberly Coffee was first Main Street business owner to secure a facade grant.
smocarsky@timesleader.com - 570-970-7311

The owner of a new coffee shop could be the small business poster girl for a renaissance of sorts that’s invigorating a tired and worn Main Street.
Kimberly Coffee is bringing more than just a slice of Miami to downtown Nanticoke with her trendy, new coffee shop. She’s adding new color and a fresh look to the southern side of a block of storefronts – some of them empty – that hasn’t changed much in years.
The Nanticoke native and University of Miami graduate, who decided to bring some of that Southern Florida flavor to a Main Street where just a few doors down a pizza and pierogie shop takes a place of prominence, said now is the perfect time to open a new business in the city.
“For many years I thought about opening something like this. And when the health sciences building came across the street, and also the culinary school, I decided to put things in gear so the students have a place to come for lunch,” Coffee said.
Main Street got its first major facelift in decades when Luzerne County Community College built and opened a culinary arts institute across the street and a block west of Coffee’s building in the fall of 2010.
State Sen. John Yudichak, D-Plymouth Township, attended Coffee’s grand opening on March 14. He said in a press release that the partnership between between the city, state and LCCC has led to nearly $20 million in downtown investment with the $12 million health sciences center and $7.5 million culinary institute.
“This is an exciting time for Nanticoke. … These projects are also fostering an entrepreneurial spirit for business people like Ms. Coffee to invest in the downtown,” Yudichak, a Nanticoke native, said in a prepared statement.
Coffee agreed that the timing couldn’t be better for opening her shop.
“We get a lot of dental students, nursing students, some of the faculty come in. And I decided to have our uniforms as chef coats. We were inspired by the culinary school, so I thought it would be a nice touch,” Coffee said.
Some sweet additions
Two of Coffee’s five part-time employees are LCCC students; one of them, a pastry arts major, makes some of the delectable desserts filling a display case.
Students, faculty and police officers love the $5 daily lunch specials, Coffee said, and the smoothies and frozen hot chocolate are big hits too. But Coffee caters to ethnic tastes as well.
“The panini sandwiches are very popular, and in honor of the many people of Polish descent who live here, we have kielbasa paninis,” Coffee said.
But trendy offerings are the heart of the menu.
“We have … a different flavored water every day. Today it was orange, yesterday we had pineapple water. That is definitely a signature of Miami. They do that at a lot of hotel lobbies in Miami. That’s where I got the idea,” Coffee said.
Tiger Sauce – a spicy mayonnaise with secret ingredients – is the signature condiment upon request, and jalapenos and jalapeno cheese are also available – good toppers for the shop’s “fat dogs” that are twice as fat as regular hot dogs.
Coffee’s employees are all trained baristas, able to properly steam and foam milk for the cappuccinos and lattes, that is, after a couple weeks of training that included milk spray on the ceiling, she said with a laugh.
Several two-seater tables with comfortable chairs, a lunch counter with high-back stools and an overstuffed loveseat add to the ambiance, along with free wireless internet and an online jukebox.
“I tried to make it trendy for the students. I tried to make it with a Miami flair,” Coffee said.
Adding a little decor
But Coffee isn’t limiting the breath of fresh air to the shop’s interior. She was the first Main Street business owner to apply for – and secure – façade grant.
“We’re changing all the windows, we’re doing a whole remodeling of the front of the building, we’re putting up a lighted canopy with our name on and we’re adding outdoor seating,” Coffee said.
City administrator Holly Circo believes the façade grant program is another good motivator for new and existing business owners like Coffee to invest in the city. The city and state match will kick in up to $5,000 each to match the business owner’s investment in a new façade.
“We’re excited she made this investment in our city. We’re hoping the community college’s expansion and Kim’s opening the coffee shop will help other speculators see downtown Nanticoke is a place that’s growing in the future.”
Circo said Bartuska’s Furniture, Antonio’s Pizza and Nardozzo’s Pizza & Pierogies also have applied for façade grants and the city is in discussion with two other businesses. Council President Steve Duda says the program is a win-win. “We invite any business to come and invest in our city. It’s a joint venture. If they’re successful, the city is successful; that’s our philosophy,” he said.
Making more moves
Coffee said business is so good and feedback so positive that she’s already considering expanding the shop into a space next door that she uses for storage.
“I’ve been getting people who say, ‘This is great, this is just what the downtown needs, I hope it continues up the street,’” Coffee said.
Nanticoke Mayor Joseph Dougherty said he sees Coffee’s shop and the eventual façade improvements of other businesses as steps toward revitalization, and he hopes townspeople will support the businesses.
“No matter the size, any step toward revitalization is a positive. Private investment is very important to downtown revitalization. I’d like to see things move quicker, but projects like this take time. We need to have patience,”Dougherty said.
Coffee is counting on Dougherty’s support as well.
“He said he loved the place. He said it was awesome. I told him when people come in and ask why I would open a place like this in Nanticoke, I say, ‘Why not Nanticoke?’” Coffee said. “He loved that.”

3/29/2012
Nanticoke officials, home-rule committee settle policy differences
Elizabeth Skrapits - Citizens' Voice

Nanticoke officials and the city's home-rule transition committee amicably resolved their differences over who can make binding decisions.
Elected officials and transition committee members disagreed over interpretations of the home-rule charter, which took effect Jan. 2.
The committee's position was the charter enables them to enact a personnel policy and select a city manager, but elected officials' stance was that only council and the mayor had the power to hire, fire and pass legislation.
An agreement, signed by council and the committee, confirms elected officials should make the final decisions on matters that affect the city.
"The parties recognize that entities which have authority to act independently from the city are not eligible to be covered by the city's insurance policies," it states.
"Accordingly, the members of the transition committee expressly acknowledge that their role in the transition process is advisory in nature and that they do not have any final authority to take any actions which would bind the city of Nanticoke and therefore are eligible for coverage under the city's policy."
Under the terms of the agreement, the committee will be responsible for drafting codes and policies such as administrative and ethics codes, conflict of interest and personnel policies and the competitive bidding process.
Elected city officials will be consulted when these are drawn up, make the final decision relative to the content of the policies and codes, and give final approval.
The process for selecting the manager is also spelled out in the agreement. A city manager recruitment committee will be formed, consisting of council President Steven Duda - who is also on the transition committee - Councilman Richard Wiaterowski, two members of the transition committee and a neutral third party such as a representative from the International City/County Management Association.
This search committee will interview candidates, rank them and give them to the transition committee to review, then to the mayor, who will select the manager and set a salary.
City council will then have to vote to confirm the mayor's decision.

3/27/2012
Bertoni Turns It Around
On Campus - Bill Arsenault
Times Leader

After starting the season 0-7, freshman Sarah Bertoni has won four straight games for the Millersville softball team.
Bertoni (Greater Nanticoke Area) kicked off the winning streak by tossing the first no-hitter in Millersville softball history – a 7-0 triumph over Philadelphia University. She followed that up with a 6-1 victory over Holy Family (six hits, an earned run, no walks and five strikeouts) and a one-hit 3-0 triumph over West Chester.
Last Sunday, the 5-foot-6 right-hander worked 5 1/3 innings and got credit for a 3-2 victory over East Stroudsburg.
On the season, Bertoni has pitched in 13 games and started 12 with seven complete games. She’s worked 72.2 innings and has given up 86 hits and 43 runs, 35 earned. She’s walked 11 and struck out 45. Her earned run average has dropped to 4.43.

3/24/12
New cafe, Coffee's Coffee, opens in downtown Nanticoke
Bob Kalinowski - Citizens Voice

The name is fittingly simple - Coffee's Coffee - and the location is great, Kim Coffee says about her new coffee and sandwich shop in downtown Nanticoke.
Coffee's Coffee opened March 14 at the site of the former McDonald's Newsstand and is amid its grand opening. Coffee, who has owned the Main Street storefront since 1993, always dreamed of opening a coffee shop and thinks the timing is perfect. Luzerne County Community College recently opened two classroom buildings downtown - its culinary center and health/science building - drawing large groups of students and staff downtown like never before.
"I always wanted to do this, and when the school came here, it made it that much better," Coffee said.
The business features speciality coffee, espressos, cappuccinos, lattes, teas, along with frappuccinos and smoothies. It also serves breakfast sandwiches, baked goods, soup, big hotdogs called "fatdogs," and panini sandwiches. The store is open 6 a.m. to 6 p.m., Monday through Friday, and 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. on the weekends.
Coffee said her business was recently granted approval for one of the state's "facade grants" being awarded to help revitalize the downtown. She plans to remodel the store front, add a canopy, install new windows and create outside seating.

3/23/2012
Nanticoke passes first reading of permit parking ordinance
Susan Bettinger - Times Leader

City Council on Wednesday night approved the first reading of ordinance 3-2012, which would establish permit parking only on areas of Coal Street, Hill Street and Orchard Street.
The permits, which would be paid for by the council, would make parking in those areas available solely to the residents.
At present, residents of those streets often have great difficulty in finding parking near their homes because of parking by Luzerne County Community College culinary students.
The ordinance will require a second reading before the final voting.
In another matter, City Director of Finance Pam Heard said the city has received the last $125,000 reimbursement from the state Department of Environmental Protection/federal Environmental Protection Agency for the City Hall HVAC grant.
The city also received a letter from DEP stating that the city will receive an Act 101 Recycling Program Performance grant of $8,875 for 2011 materials recycled.
Heard also said the city has acquired a $60,000 grant from DCNR for the development of a walking trail and pavilion in the Lower Broadway vicinity.
Mayor Joseph Dougherty administered oaths to two area firefighters.
Richard Bohan has been promoted to captain of the Nanticoke Fire Department, while Mark Boncal has been promoted to lieutenant.
Resolution 6 of 2012 to approve a home rule transition memorandum of understanding, has been passed.
This agreement protects all parties involved in Nanticoke’s home rule transition.
What’s next
Council will next meet at 7 p.m. April 18 in City Hall.

In order to be eligible for kindergarten next school year, a child must be 5 years or older on or before Sept. 1, 2012. Parents should accompany their child. Bring the child's birth certificate and provide all health and immunization records. Two proofs of residency also are required. If a child is a foster child or has a custody paper, bring the original so that a copy can be made for the child's record. All information is necessary to complete the registration. Copies will be made.
According to the Department of Health, all children must be immunized with the following in order to attend school: DPT - four or more properly spaced doses with the fourth dose given on or after the fourth birthday; polio - three or more properly spaced doses; MMR - two properly spaced doses with the first dose on or after the first birthday; Hepatitis B - three properly spaced doses, and chicken pox - two doses of varicella vaccine or a history of chicken pox.
Children will register according to last names. Children with last names beginning with the letters A to L will register April 2 from 8:30 a.m. to 11 a.m. and names with M to Z will register from 12:30 to 2 p.m.
April 3, last names beginning with the letters M to Z will register from 8:30 to 11 a.m. and A to L will register from 12:30 to 2 P.M.
All residents of the Greater Nanticoke Area School District will attend the registration at K.M. Smith Elementary School, 25 Robert St., Sheatown.
All children registering for kindergarten will receive speech, hearing and vision examinations. A reading readiness screening will also be done on each child.
Registration for new first grade students will also be accepted at this time. In order to be eligible for first grade next school year, a child must be 6 years of age on or before Sept. 1, 2012. Parents should bring their child's birth certificate, health and immunization records, and two proofs of residency.
Registration packets are available in the K.M. Smith principal's office between 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. for parents/guardians to pick up.

3/20/2012
Former Nanticoke Area star playing for Sweet 16 berth
Jill Snowdon - Citizens Voice

The second round sectional of the Division I NCAA women's basketball tournament may be in Little Rock, Ark., but the Wyoming Valley has a very close connection.
Nanticoke Area graduate Sarah Acker is a 6-foot-3 senior center on the University of Delaware squad that will meet the University of Kansas tonight at 9:40. The game can been seen on ESPN2.
"It's amazing to be a part of something like this," Acker said during a telephone interview Monday night. "You always imagine playing in the NCAA tournament, but to actually be here is really awesome."
Acker played 15 minutes, scored two points and hauled in four rebounds in the Blue Hens' 73-42 win over the University of Alabama Little Rock on Sunday.
The win over UALR was the first NCAA tournament win for Delaware and the third-seeded Blue Hens enter tonight's game with a 31-1 record.
Their only loss of the season came on the road at the University of Maryland.
Acker and her teammates had a team dinner Monday and finished off the night by reviewing film of Kansas. A win and Delaware is in the Sweet 16.
"Their post players are very athletic and they have really quick guards," Acker said of what her team is preparing for against the Jayhawks.
"Kansas rebounds the ball really well, so it's going to be tough in the lanes. And we need to contain their shooters."
Acker is in her second season at Delaware, having played as a freshman at St. Joseph's University in Philadelphia.
She did not play as a sophomore.
The former Nanticoke Area standout played in 23 games this season for Delaware and averages 7.9 minutes per game.
The Blue Hens' roster also includes Dunmore graduate Lauren Carra, a 5-9 junior forward who is second on the team in scoring with 10.3 ppg.
Elena Delle Donne is the team's top player and also is considered one of the top players in the nation. A 6-5 junior guard/forward, Delle Donne averages a nation's-best 29.7 ppg.
She was a Connecticut recruit after starring at Ursuline Academy in Delaware and was the No. 1 college prospect as a high school player.
She left UConn two days after arriving for summer school, citing family reasons for her return to her home state. Her story of her close bond with her sister Elizabeth has been the focus of many articles and television interviews as Elizabeth has cerebral palsy and is deaf and blind.
Delle Donne was recently featured on ESPN's "Outside the Lines" and she talked of the closeness she shares with her sister.
After leaving UConn, Delle Donne enrolled at Delaware but opted not to play basketball, instead she played one season for the Blue Hens' volleyball team and has since been a star on their basketball team.
"I played a summer of AAU basketball with her and she amazes me every time she plays," Acker said of Delle Donne. "It's great playing with her. She's a great girl and one of the most down-to-earth people I have ever met. And she will be the first to tell you that we are where we are right now because of the team we have - from the starters to the bench players. It really is about everyone putting in hard work."
The Trojanettes went 58-2 in Acker's final two seasons and she had more than 1,500 points, 1,500 rebounds and 500 blocks.

3/16/2012
Support staff substitutes will get raise
Susan Denney - Times Leader

In an effort to attract support staff substitutes, the Greater Nanticoke Area School Board voted Thursday to raise the pay rate.
Before the raise, all support staff substitutes were paid $7.50 an hour. Now maintenance substitutes will receive $11 an hour, janitor substitutes will receive $10 an hour, and all others including cafeteria, cleaners, aides, secretaries, hall monitors and business office subs will receive $9 an hour.
In another matter, the school board has approved the EnerNOC’s Demand Response Program, which is intended to reduce energy use during peak summer months from July through September. If the district can reduce 500 kilowatt-hours per year over a six-year period, the potential earnings will be $98,373 in addition to the energy cost savings.
Director of Buildings and Grounds Frank Grevera said EnerNOC will install demand meters in every room. He will then be able to monitor room-by-room energy use and can reduce consumption in unused areas.
The board has appointed the following coaches for the spring season: girls track head coach Anthony Fleury, boys track head coach Edward Pascoe, wrestling head coach Joseph Ebert, baseball head coach Dean Myers and girls soccer head coach Ryan Amos.
Boys volleyball head coach Debbie Krupinski and assistant coach James Gavin have resigned for personal reasons. Those spring coaching positions are now open.
The board also posted the coaching positions for the 2012-2013 school year.
The high school’s newly appointed dean of students, Eric Speec, reported to the board that discipline is improving on the campus and that the percentage of students attending their assigned detentions is increasing.
In his remarks, Superintendent Anthony Perrone listed recent academic achievements by GNA students in regional competitions. He also urged teachers attending the meeting to invite guest speakers into the classroom and to use the long distance learning laboratory.
What’s next
Board will meet next at 7 p.m. April 12.

3/8/2012
Nanticoke fills vacant seat on City Council
Lesley Butczynski appointed to position that opened when Margaret Hydock resigned
Steven Fondo - Times Leader

City Council voted unanimously on Wednesday to appoint Lesley Butczynski to fill the seat vacated by the recent resignation of Councilwoman Margaret Hydock.
Council also authorized the filing of a FEMA grant application that will provide funds to hire three additional firefighters for three years.
Council President Stephen Duda stressed that if the grant is awarded, the city would be under no obligation to continue the employment of the three firefighters beyond that three-year period at taxpayer expense.
The council also voted to authorize City Clerk Holly Cirko to execute Hazard Mitigation Grant program documents on behalf of the city.
City officials stated Slusser Brothers Construction Co. will begin work on the Alden Road improvement project next week.
The Alden Road work is part of a $2 million dollar road improvement project in the city.
In other business, Interact, the junior arm of the Nanticoke Rotary Club, gave notice it will be filing the necessary permit applications to conduct a farmers market on the first weekends of June, July and August in the city’s Patriot Square as a way to attract patronage for Nanticoke businesses.

3/8/2012
They’re living on with prayer, priest says of family
Fire would have killed them had they been home instead of at church, priest says of family.
jlynott@timesleader.com

Church really was the best place to be Sunday for the Rev. Adam Sexton, his wife and eight children.
The rectory where they lived next door to St. John the Baptist Orthodox Church caught fire while Sexton was conducting the morning service.
He continued on without a second thought of stopping the liturgy. Instead the chaplain of the Nanticoke Fire Department said he put his faith in the firefighters.
Sexton and Bishop Tikhon of the Diocese of Philadelphia held a special Service of Thanksgiving for the firefighters of Nanticoke and surrounding communities who responded to the alarm.
The bishop understood Sexton’s reasoning..
“I think that’s what you saw in father’s actions, that prayer to the Lord and service to him is always foremost,” said the bishop. “But we don’t neglect taking care of the needful things like putting out a fire.”
His trip to the church was not unusual, he said. Having a small diocese, he is able to travel to most of the parishes.
“I did come here more specifically because of the fire and to be with the community and to be with father,” said the bishop.
The blaze temporarily displaced Sexton, his wife, Angie Rae, and children: Alyscia, 12, Jacob, 11, Raeman, 10, Josiah, 8, Ilia, 6, Bede, 4, Gabriel, 3, and Seamus, 1.
They are staying in a hotel and next week plan to move into a rectory of a closed Catholic church in Nanticoke until their place is rebuilt.
Support for the family is coming from all over the country, said Sexton, who acknowledged being overwhelmed by it.
"I’m not accustomed to being fussed over,” he said.
Recalling the fire, Sexton said his initial reaction was not to panic. He felt “an enormous peace” upon seeing the smoke, he said.
Still he had concerns for the firefighters.
“I could tell by the look of the flames this was a very awful basement fire,” he said. “Basement fires, as most people know, are lethal and had we been asleep we would have all been dead. Thank God we were not asleep and we were here praying instead.”
The rectory could be repaired, he said he thought that morning. “The firefighters couldn’t be. The only thing to do was to continue to pray and to urge my people to pray for them because these are our protector.”
Sexton and the bishop and parishioners joined some of the firefighters after the service at the fire department’s Station 4 on Espy Street, a block away from the church.

3/8/2012
Nanticoke police probing LCCC account discrepancy
sdelazio@timesleader.com

A financial audit at Luzerne County Community College has revealed a discrepancy in one of the school’s accounts, prompting an investigation by city police.
After an annual audit at the school, college officials asked its business consultants to assist in looking into the discrepancy.
The amount of money missing from the school’s Public Safety Training Institute has not been released.
Nanticoke police have asked the Luzerne County District Attorney’s Office to meet with them regarding the funds. A meeting is scheduled for today, District Attorney Stefanie Salavantis said.
Nanticoke Detective Capt. William Shultz did not return a phone call Wednesday seeking comment.
In an email, a college spokesperson said that after college officials reviewed information from the business consultants it was turned over to the Nanticoke Police Department.
Money had gone missing from the school in September 2008 when Peter Moses, was charged with stealing more than $17,000 and two laptop computers from the school.
Moses, who was the associate dean of administration and auxiliary services, oversaw the cafeteria and Educational Conference Center and was paid about $73,000 a year.
A Luzerne County jury convicted Moses of related charges in July 2010, and he was later sentenced to four to 23 months in county prison.
His conviction and sentence is on appeal in state Superior Court. He has remained free on bail.

3/8/2012
Air Force veteran comes home
Airman 1st Class David Warren of Nanticoke served 5 1/2 months in Iraq and Kuwait.
Joe Dolinsky - Times Leader

A son reunited with his family Wednesday after a tour in the Middle East.
Airman 1st Class David Warren, 21, of Nanticoke was greeted by friends and family at the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton International Airport after returning home from 5 1/2 months of service in Iraq and Kuwait.
A 2008 graduate of Greater Nanticoke Area High School, Warren worked locally for two years before deciding to enlist in the Air Force Reserve.
His mother, Sharon, recalls that day.
“He just came home one day and said ‘Mom, I joined the Air Force,’ ” she said.
David’s father, a retired first sergeant in the Plymouth National Guard, never went overseas during his time of service.
“I was proud. But I was also worried,” she said.
Warren spent the majority of his time overseas as a vehicle operator, participating in convoy operations and movements of various supplies and munitions.
His position called for him to be proficient in cleaning, servicing and operating military vehicles, overseeing the loading and unloading of personnel and cargo and preparing operator records and reports.
Specifically, Warren said he drove tractor-trailers trucks full of supplies from Kuwait into bases throughout Iraq.
“I was through about five different bases in five months,” he said.
Balloons and digital camera in hand, Sharon said she was just looking forward to having her son home.
Other than through email, David and his mother had little to no contact while he was overseas.“I just wanted to see him,” she said. “And see him safe.”
Warren spent his fair share of time in the air the past week.
He flew out of Kuwait before landing at Ramstein Air Base in Germany for a four-day debriefing period.
Warren then boarded a 12-hour flight straight into Dallas, before catching a short flight to his reserve base in Oklahoma.
From there, Warren would finally board the flight that reunited him with his family.
“After all the flying, I’m looking forward to just being home,” he said. “And sleep in my own bed.”
Contemplating his first taste of stateside cooking in more than five months, Warren said he is most looking forward to wings at Green Street’s Restaurant in Nanticoke.
He picked a great day to fly home.
“Tonight’s wing night,” he said.
His return home is short-lived, however.
Warren will be returning to Oklahoma March 27 for seven months.
After his enlistment in the Air Force Reserve is completed in three years, Warren said he plans to go to school in hopes of becoming a parole officer.

3/5/2012
Fund set up for Nanticoke fire chaplain
Times Leader

A fund has been established for the city fire department’s chaplain and his family after a blaze caused significant damage to their residence on Sunday.
The Rev. Adam R. Sexton was giving the liturgy at St. John the Baptist Orthodox Church at Welles and Front streets in the Hanover section of Nanticoke when a fire erupted at the rectory at 106 S. Welles St.
Fire Fighter Greg Grzymski said firefighters responded to the blaze at about 11 a.m. while Rev. Sexton, his wife, and his eight children were attending services.
A neighbor spotted the fire and called 911.
Grzymski said there is “significant damage” to the rectory.
When Rev. Sexton was told about the fire, he continued with the service worrying about the firefighters, Grzymski said.
Grzymski said an investigation determined the fire was accidental.
A firefighter suffered a minor injury, Grzymski said.
Rev. Sexton has been the fire department’s chaplain for about three years.
Monetary donations can be made to the Adam Sexton Fire Fund at Vantage Trust Federal Credit Union, 158 S. Market St., Nanticoke, to help with the family.
Grzymski said children’s clothing and toys can be dropped off at the Nanticoke Fire Headquarters on East Ridge Street.
Rev. Sexton has six boys, ages 16 months, 3-years-old, 5, 7, 8 and 11, and two girls, ages 10 and 12.

2/16/2012
Nanticoke council member steps down
Margaret Haydock cites demands of new career with Department of Corrections.
Susan Bettinger - Times Leader

Councilwoman Margaret Haydock has resigned from her council seat as of Feb. 15.
Haydock has left the council due to the demands of her new career with the state Department of Corrections.
Council is looking for a citizen to fill her seat. The requirements are that the person must be at least 21 years of age and a resident of Nanticoke for at least one year.
Letters of interest should be sent to the Nanticoke City Hall, 15 E. Ridge St., Nanticoke, attention Council President Steve Duda.
The last day for the letters of interest is Feb. 26. There will be two stages of interviews for the prospective members.
In other business:
• Council approved Thomas Wall for a position with the Wyoming Valley Sanitary Authority.
• Analysis of the lands in Lower Broadway will begin in early spring. The grants for the work have come from the state Department of Community and Economic Development and Department of Environmental Protection. City Administrator Holly Cirko said the phase 2 grant of just under $9,000 will be used to check the grounds to make sure that they are suitable for recreational purposes. Certain lands in the Lower Broadway area would be taken and turned into an area where residents can enjoy bird watching, walking trails, and other leisure activities.
• Director of Finance Pam Heard has asked residents to be patient while changes with the new web-based tax system are taking place. Heard also reported the property tax bills were mailed out on Feb. 13, and the new tax collector for 2012 will be Don Wilkinson. The last year to file with Berkheimer, was the year 2011.
• Recovery Plan Coordinator Joe Boyle said that under the Act 47 Recovery Plan, there is no limit to the amount of earned income tax or real estate tax that can be charged to residents. The state’s recovery plan, has been enacted as a way for distressed areas to get back on a balanced budget.
What’s next
The next council meeting will be at March 7 at 7 p.m. In addition, the Home Rule Transition Committee will hold its meetings on the second and fourth Tuesdays of every month.

2/15/2012
Nanticoke officials, home rule panel clash over policies
eskrapits@citizensvoice.com, 570-821-2072

The city's elected officials are clashing with the home rule transition committee over who has the power to pick a manager and decide how city employees should act.
When Nanticoke's home rule charter took effect on Jan. 2, the study commission became the transition committee. Its members say the charter enables them to enact a personnel policy and select a city manager, but elected officials say only council and the mayor can hire, fire and pass legislation.
If not resolved, the matter could be decided in court, but committee solicitor Jeffrey Malak hopes it can be resolved amicably.
Malak said at Tuesday's transition committee meeting that he received a letter from city solicitor William Finnegan clarifying three concerns city officials had.
One issue was taken care of when the committee voted to put out requests for proposals for a professional consultant, legal advisor, recording secretary and insurance to cover errors and omissions. The committee previously hired Northeastern Pennsylvania Alliance as consultant, Malak as solicitor and Donna Wall as secretary. But city ordinances require advertising for professional services and the committee hired without putting the services out for bid.
The committee voted to appoint NEPA Alliance, Malak and Wall on an interim basis until proposals are received.
Although they put the insurance out to bid, the committee will also check to see if it can "piggyback" on the city's policy.
The other two issues - the process of recommending, drafting and approving the administrative code and what the committee's role is in it, and the search for and recruitment of a city manager and whether the committee has authority to hire one - might not be as easy to resolve.
The charter calls for an administrative code that includes conflict of interest, personnel and purchasing policies, a code of ethics and a competitive bidding process.
The city already has a full-time administrator as required by its state-mandated financial recovery plan. Committee members say the charter gives them authority to draw up qualifications for and hire the first manager. However, the charter also gives the mayor and council the ability to replace the manager at any time.
Council President Steve Duda, who is on the transition committee, asked what other home rule municipalities in Pennsylvania created transition committees empowered to pass legislation or hire employees.
Nobody could answer the question. NEPA Alliance Chief Executive Officer Jeffrey Box said they would have to research the matter. NEPA Alliance Government Services Manager Joe Chacke said a home rule commission can enact any law as long as it is not in conflict with the state constitution.
Malak said he and Finnegan will meet with some members of the transition committee and key city officials to try to resolve the issues or "at least narrow down where there may be a difference of opinion."
"I'm hopeful and confident that everything will work out," he said

2/10/2012
GNA board takes hard line on coach clearances
School directors want updated background checks for sports program personnel.
Susan Denney - Times LeaderThe Greater Nanticoke Area School Board on Thursday night voted down an agenda item appointing coaches for the 2012 wrestling, baseball, track and field and girls’ soccer teams.
Several board members were concerned that many of the candidates have not provided updated clearances and background checks.
Board President Jeff Kozlofski said that if the district allows coaches or volunteers to have contact with students without clearances, “we’re liable.”
When voting no on the agenda item, board member Chet Beggs said, “You have clearances or you don’t.”
Board Solicitor Vito DeLuca prepared a new policy on background check procedures, which he presented at the meeting and the board adopted.
He said the new policy will apply to all coaches and sports program volunteers. It states coaches or volunteers who are not in compliance with background check requirements will not be permitted contact with students.
The following clearances are required by law: a state police Criminal History Record, a Department of Public Welfare Child Abuse Report and a Federal Criminal History Report or FBI report which includes fingerprints.
DeLuca said, “The law was amended at the end of 2011. We want to make sure we’re in compliance.”
According to DeLuca, the background check process is more complicated at GNA.
“Our district is a little different. Our coaches are appointed by season. We reappoint each year.”
Board member Ken James said, “The public needs to know that these people have clearances. They don’t have updated clearances.”
The board also decided that all clearances must be approved by district Athletic Director James Rhinehammer.

2/7/2012
Nanticoke bar cited with multiple violations
Tavern where cops say woman was slashed cited by state police bureau.
elewis@timesleader.com

A tavern where police say a woman was slashed in the face early on New Year’s Day was cited with multiple violations by state police Bureau of Liquor Control Enforcement.
In a news release issued Monday, state police said they cited the Prospect Street Caf? at 23 S. Prospect St. with excessive noise and operating in a disorderly manner on multiple dates in 2011, and on Jan. 1 when Jennifer Mieczkowski was severely injured.
The tavern also was cited with permitting minors to frequent the business and furnishing alcohol to minors, operating gambling devices and failing to abide by an agreement reached with the state Liquor Control Board on Dec. 6 that allowed the tavern to remain open.
Mieczkowski, 30, said she entered the tavern with Rickey Wells to buy a 12-pack of beer to take home. While she was talking to friends, a fight broke out and a woman slashed Mieczkowski numerous times in the face and neck, police said.
No charges have been filed in the slashing.
Police obtained a video surveillance system that may have captured the assault.
Mieczkowski and Wells have filed separate civil lawsuits against the tavern and owner Paul Halliday.
Wells was beaten with a pool stick when he tried to help Mieczkowski, police said.
Halliday could not be reached for comment Monday.
Citations filed against the tavern on Monday add to 16 others since 2004, according to online records maintained by the state Liquor Control Board.
The LCB ordered the tavern to shut down after a series of administrative citations but successful appeals by Halliday allowed the business to stay open.
In the latest appeal, a three-member panel of the LCB objected to renewing the liquor license in September based upon the 16 citations and nine disturbances at or near the tavern.
Under a conditional agreement signed on Dec. 6, Halliday pledged to remain in compliance with the liquor code and to employ a security guard every Friday and Saturday from 10 p.m. to 2:30 a.m.
State police allege the tavern did not adhere to the agreement on Dec. 20 and Jan. 1.
While the news release does not specify the agreement violations, police said Mieczkowski was slashed on Jan. 1 and Lee David Antonik, 35, allegedly assaulted Vincent Rodriguez with a pool stick on Dec. 20.

2/3/2012
Nanticoke Housing Authority finds QVC purchases on credit card
eskrapits@citizensvoice.com, 570-821-2072

After finding questionable purchases on the Nanticoke Housing Authority credit card - including more than $2,000 in unspecified items from a television shopping network - the authority's board decided to bring in an outside accounting firm to give the books a thorough examination.
During a special meeting Thursday, board members Josephine Battista, Enes Centurione, Tony Prushinski and Chairwoman Dorothy Hudak voted to seek proposals for a full forensic audit of the authority's finances for 2009, 2010 and 2011.
A forensic audit, which involves going through all the authority's financial records line by line and item by item, will help determine whether any funds were spent incorrectly. Solicitor Vito DeLuca said authority officials consider it "prudent to know exactly what happened and whether the expenditures were appropriate or weren't appropriate." He noted that the audit could go further if necessary.
"The further you go back, the more expensive it's going to get, so we're starting off with the three years," he said.
The board also ratified an earlier decision to hire former Luzerne County Manager/Chief Clerk Doug Pape as interim executive director at a salary of $78,000 plus benefits.
Pape replaces Jean Ditzler, longtime board member who served as executive director from July 2007 until her abrupt termination by the board on Jan. 19.
DeLuca confirmed Ditzler was suspended and dismissed, but would not explain why or give any other details, calling it is a personnel matter.
Ditzler, who did not attend the meeting, said she had "really no comment to make, not at this moment."
The board recently became aware Ditzler may have used the authority's credit card for items that might not have been appropriate.
"The executive director typically has authority to make purchases up to a certain amount," DeLuca said. "When we stumbled on some purchases that were a little bit questionable, I looked into them further."
Credit card statements for the Nanticoke Housing Authority's Bank of America account for 2010 and 2011 obtained by The Citizens' Voice show that between August 2010 and Nov. 2011, a total of 23 payments for $2,111.75 in merchandise from QVC appears to have been charged on the card.
The items were not identified on the statements and no receipts could be located in the housing authority files.
"I confirmed recently that those were personal purchases made by the former executive director," DeLuca said.
He said Ditzler paid the housing authority back for all the QVC items. From his conversations with the office staff, DeLuca said he believes the authority was reimbursed immediately after each purchase.
Nonetheless, he said, "I don't believe a government credit card should ever be used for personal purchases at all. â?¦ You're using housing authority credit. If you carry it over, you're getting a private or personal benefit from the government entity."
DeLuca said neither he nor any of the board members had any knowledge at the time that the items were being bought.
"We're pulling as many records as we can and looking to reconstruct some of the things that have gone on," he said.
The authority receives approximately $1 million a year from the federal department of Housing and Urban Development for management and operations of the authority's six buildings containing 268 elderly high-rise apartments and 149 low-income family apartments.
It was unclear what source of funding was used to pay the credit card bills. DeLuca said the forensic auditors will determine exactly where the money came from.
Most expenses charged on the card appear legitimate. Receipts showed orders from the Oriental Trading Co. were for craft supplies for the senior high rises the authority oversees. Hotel rooms, airline tickets and gasoline were related to business trips such as Pennsylvania Association of Housing and Development Agencies conferences.
However, authority officials are checking to see if there are any remaining purchases that should be reimbursed, including numerous meals from Johnny D's and Pasquale's and a $102.50 purchase from Valley Seafoods on Jan. 6, 2010, for which no receipt could be found.
"I could tell you that maybe an argument could be made that they are housing authority expenses. I don't believe that," DeLuca said.
DeLuca said if authority officials discover any act they believe to be criminal, it will immediately be reported to authorities.

2/2/2012
Nanticoke's elected tax collector unhappy
eskrapits@citizensvoice.com, 570-821-2072

The city's elected tax collector, whose position was eliminated under the city's new home rule charter, isn't happy about the transition.
But city officials say he's welcome to take part in creating a new, more streamlined and efficient finance department.
Albert Wytoshek told council Wednesday he would like to continue in the position he "did a great job" in for 12 years.
Council President Steve Duda said he understood, but "we all have to realize home rule changed the whole scope of government in this town."
Wytoshek, who turned 81 on Monday, said Mayor Joseph Dougherty discriminated against him and his "age, gender and beliefs" by putting the city's Finance Director Pamela Heard, who is 42, in charge of tax collection.
City Solicitor William Finnegan said if Wytoshek feels he is being discriminated against, he should hire an attorney, but indicated it is not the case.
"I know this has been explained to you, Al, 10 different times," Finnegan said.
Nanticoke's home-rule charter, which took effect Jan. 1, calls for the mayor to appoint the tax collector. It is part-time and can either be independent or "incorporated into an existing staff position."
At the same time, it allows for the elected tax collector to complete his term of office, which pays $6,500 a year.
The charter states, "The mayor shall resolve any disputes that may arise between the elected Controller and elected Treasurer and the individuals and/or departments to which their duties and responsibilities have been assigned."
Finnegan said Dougherty sent Wytoshek a letter inviting him to help with the transition, but Wytoshek swore he never received the letter.
Finnegan countered Wytoshek's claim that Heard was getting $48,300 a year to be tax collector, saying she would not receive any extra compensation for taking on the additional duties. The $48,300 is her total salary in the 2012 budget.
Wytoshek also attacked Heard's tax collector certification from the state Department of Community and Economic Development, saying the city should be reimbursed.
City Administrator Holly Circo said the state course Heard took, which cost about $100, had been included in the budget for staff training and was approved by council.
"I think training employees is a good thing, and I don't think it should be criticized," Circo said.
She said tax collection is being consolidated with the finance department to increase efficiency.
In a Jan. 31 letter to Dougherty, Heard stated that planned tax collection improvements include converting to the less expensive system used by Luzerne County and 71 of its tax collectors; using a bar code scanner to post payments automatically; installing security cameras at the cash collection points; and working with PNC bank to bring in a check scanner to give the city immediate access to funds and eliminate the need for trips to the bank.
Heard is a licensed certified public accountant with a degree from the University of Scranton.

2/2/2012
Mayor rebuts age bias claim
Nanticoke’s change to home rule cited as reason for removal of tax collector.
Steven Fondo - Times Leader

Former city tax collector Al Wytoshek at Wednesday night’s City Council meeting accused the mayor of age discrimination in his removal from office.
Wytoshek, who served as tax collector for 12 years, alleged Mayor Joseph Dougherty ousted him because of “bad blood” in a closed-door decision process.
The mayor disagreed.
“Mr. Wytoshek was replaced under a transition process due to our move to home rule,” said Dougherty. “He was fully informed about the decision and was invited to participate in the transition.”
Dougherty reiterated Wytoshek will still be paid $6,500 per year for the next two years of his term, “whether he participates in the transition or not.”
City Solicitor William Finnegan said the home rule charter mandated specific changes with it’s inception. One of the changes deals with tax collection at the city level.
“We’re following the dictates of the voters,” said Finnegan. “Home rule brought a lot of changes.”
Also, City Council voted to approve the first reading of an ordinance that will authorize the development of land along Lower Broadway in the city for a municipal recreation area which will include walking paths and a picnic area when completed.
The ordinance must pass a second vote before council can begin the process of acquiring the land.
In another matter, Dougherty read a formal proclamation honoring the Nanticoke chapter of the Eagles for their generous support of the city’s police department.
“The Eagles are a great example of a civic organization,” said Dougherty. “They do a lot of good for our community.”

1/31/2012
Ex-county official gets Nanticoke spot
Doug Pape, who was chief clerk/manager, getting $78K as interim authority manager.
jandes@timesleader.com

Former Luzerne County chief clerk/manager Doug Pape has been hired as the Nanticoke Housing Authority interim manager, a $78,000 position vacated by the termination of Jean Ditzler
Authority Solicitor Vito DeLuca, also a county solicitor, said he recommended Pape because the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, or HUD, told him it was “imperative” for someone to oversee operations in the interim.
The permanent position must be filled through the state Civil Service system, requiring a test. DeLuca said he notified the state of the vacancy but does not know how long it will take to complete the process to find a replacement.
Pape said he has not decided whether to apply for the permanent position.
DeLuca said he suggested Pape because he has a master’s degree in public administration, oversaw county government and was available.
“His education, background and experience speaks for itself. We certainly were in a crisis situation, and it was the right choice. I stand by it,” DeLuca said.
DeLuca said he knows Pape professionally but does not consider him a close friend.
“I would never do anything inappropriate to get a friend or family member a job,” DeLuca said. “In the best interest of the authority, he is the best man for the position without any doubt in my mind.”
Ditzler was terminated a little over a week ago, though DeLuca said he can’t publicly disclose the reasons.
The authority board independently interviewed Pape multiple times and agreed to appoint him, DeLuca said. The authority has five members, but one seat is vacant. The remaining board members are Dorothy Hudak, Tony Prushinski, Enes Centurione and Josephine Bashista.
Pape earned $72,000 as county chief clerk/manager until home rule was implemented Jan. 2.
He declined an invitation from some county home rule transition committee members to consider serving as interim home rule manager, saying he couldn’t commit because he was exploring potential private sector positions.
Pape said Monday was his first day on the authority job.
“I want to dive in with all the HUD regulations and make sure we’re doing everything by the book,” Pape said.
The authority oversees about 419 low-income apartments in six complexes, he said.

1/23/2012
Earth Conservancy to rehabilitate land
Nonprofit group hopes to clean up part of a former strip mine in Nanticoke.
mhughes@timesleader.com

Earth Conservancy plans to rehabilitate another plot of mine-scarred land in the southern Wyoming Valley.
The Ashley-based nonprofit will host a public meeting Feb. 1 at its headquarters to accept public comments about its plans to clean up part of a former strip mine in Nanticoke.
Earth Conservancy wants to re-grade and resurface a 20-acre parcel of a larger, 389-acre tract of land on the Nanticoke/Hanover Township border near the intersection of Kosciuszko Street and Middle Road to prevent acid mine drainage from escaping the property into surrounding waterways.
Properties previously remediated by Earth Conservancy have been sold or donated to public and private entities, including Luzerne County Community College.
Jacqueline Dickman, director of public affairs and development, said Earth Conservancy doesn’t have any immediate plans to develop the property, but hopes it will eventually attract commercial or mixed-use development.
The site is near the proposed terminus of the South Valley Parkway, a bypass the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation will build to alleviate traffic on Middle Road. Dickman said the land may become more marketable for development when the roadway is complete.
Eventually, Earth Conservancy hopes to clean up the entire 389-acre Nanticoke property, which the roadway will pass through, she said.
The nonprofit must hold the public hearing because the project is being funded with a $200,000 Brownfields Cleanup Grant from the state Environmental Protection Agency, in addition to $40,000 from Earth Conservancy.
Earth Conservancy hopes to begin cleanup at the site in the early spring and complete work within 12 months.

If you go
What: Public hearing on Earth Conservancy’s remediation of former mine land in Nanticoke
When: Feb. 1, 4 p.m.
Where: Earth Conservancy office, 101 S. Main St., Ashley
More information: A complete project analysis is available for review at Earth Conservancy’s office or online at www.earthconservancy.org

1/21/2012
Nanticoke officials target eyesore for demolition
Elizabeth Skrapits - Citizens Voice

In an ongoing war on eyesores and problem properties, the city is planning to get rid of a longtime nuisance at 66-68 W. Ridge St.
Solicitor William Finnegan said the city will purchase the site, demolish the vacant house, then sell the property through a public bidding process.
City Administrator Holly Cirko said the money will come from a fund earmarked for removing blight. She said acquisition will be about $5,000 plus $6,000 in back taxes, and estimates the bid for demolition, transportation, disposal and backfilling should come in around $31,000 to $32,000. The project will be bid out once the city has control of the site. The property owner, who lives in New Jersey, has been taken to court and the site has been a problem for at least six years, said councilman Rich Wiaterowski, Nanticoke's former code enforcement officer.
Mayor Joe Dougherty and council have an ongoing commitment to cleaning up Nanticoke, council President Steve Duda said.
"We don't want any abandoned properties or properties that aren't up to code in the city." Duda said.

1/11/12
Nanticoke teen in Punt, Pass and Kick finals
Tom Brolley - Citizens Voice

Alec Norton spent last weekend watching the NFL playoffs, his favorite sport.
Norton could have the chance to be a small part of this Sunday's AFC divisional round game between the Houston Texans and Baltimore Ravens at M&T Bank.
Norton is one of just four national finalists in the 12-13 boys age group in the NFL Punt, Pass and Kick competition this Saturday night at the Ravens' team facilities.
If Norton is lucky enough to win his age group, he'll join the nine other champions for an award presentation that will air on CBS, between the third and fourth quarter of Sunday's game.
Norton said he has no expectations going into Saturday's finals.
"I'm going to go out there to do my best," he said.
He'll still get to attend the game with his father Todd even if he doesn't win.
Forty finalists, in 10 groups, will compete in the PPK finals and two finalists will come from the area.
Olivia Seely from Berwick will join Norton in the finals in Baltimore. She'll compete in the girls 14-15 age group.
Seely won a local event, a sectional event and the Philadelphia Eagles team event before the Patriots game on Nov. 27.
Seely demonstrated her arm strength this past May during track season, finishing finished sixth in the javelin at the District 2 Junior High Championships last spring.
Norton, 13, also won the a local event, a sectional event in Allentown and the Philadelphia Eagles team event.
Norton was especially excited to win the Philadelphia event because the Eagles are his favorite team.
All 32 NFL teams crown champions in each of the 10 groups and the field was narrowed down to four finalists with the best scores.
Norton had the fourth best score in his age group to advance to the finals.
Norton's best throw traveled 108 feet, his best kick went 136 feet and his best punt flew 115 feet.
Norton, the son of Todd and Sherri Norton, is an eighth grader at Nanticoke Area where he's an high-honor student and he plays football, basketball and baseball.
He plans to play all three sports next school year at Nanticoke Area High School.
Norton and his father will drive to Baltimore Friday night and the competition will be held at 4:30 p.m. at the Ravens' team facilities.|
Finalists in the five age divisions on both the boys and girls will have two punts, two passes and two kicks with the scores based on distance and accuracy in feet.
The top scorer in each group will be crowned national champion.
All participants and their guests are provided airfare, hotel accomodations and tickets to the AFC Divisional Playoff Game in Baltimore.
"I'm excited to just be there and to go to all the stuff in Baltimore," Norton said. "And I'm excited to go to the game."

1/10/2012
Prospect Cafe surveillance system seized
elewis@timesleader.com

Authorities investigating the slashing of a woman’s face inside a Nanticoke tavern have seized the bar’s surveillance system, according to a search warrant affidavit.
District Judge Rick Cronauer authorized the search warrant filed by Nanticoke police and the Luzerne County District Attorney’s Office late Friday afternoon, two days after a request was made to attorney Michael Yelen for the surveillance footage.
Yelen represents the Prospect Street Cafe and its owner, Paul Halliday.
Police Detective Capt. William Shultz said Monday the surveillance video of the assault early New Year’s Day was taken from Yelen’s law office on West Market Street, Wilkes-Barre. The video is in state police custody to be forensically analyzed.
Police said Jennifer Mieczkowski, 30, of Nanticoke, was assaulted by an unknown female with a box cutter inside the tavern at about 2 a.m. on Jan. 1. Mieczkowski suffered several severe slash wounds to her face and neck.
Mieczkowski said she went into the tavern with her friend, Ricky Wells, 30, of Mountain Top, to buy beer to take home. While she was talking to friends inside, a fight broke out and a woman slashed Mieczkowski numerous times in the face and neck, police said.
Mieczkowski said the slash on her neck was a half-inch away from the carotid artery. She underwent emergency surgery at Geisinger Wyoming Valley Medical Center, Plains Township, and will need further medical procedures on her face.
Shultz said police are actively investigating the vicious assault. The District Attorney’s Office is assisting the investigation along with the state police Bureau of Liquor Control Enforcement to determine if the tavern can be closed as a nuisance bar.
An estimated 20 people who were inside the tavern have been questioned by investigators.
Mieczkowski estimated there were 50 people present, and she criticized the patrons for not coming to her aid.
Wells, who Mieczkowski said did come to her aid, was dragged outside and beaten with a pool stick. He suffered a broken jaw, police said.
According to the search warrant affidavit:
A state police liquor enforcement officer conducted an inspection inside the tavern on Jan. 4 and observed interior cameras affixed at various locations.
Halliday told the enforcement officer the surveillance system was within a room in the kitchen area. After the fight on Jan. 1, Halliday allegedly told the enforcement officer he removed the (surveillance) system and gave it to his lawyer, Yelen.
The District Attorney’s Office contacted Yelen’s office on Jan. 4 requesting the surveillance equipment to have it examined by the state police computer crimes unit. Two days after the request, police and the District Attorney’s Office obtained the search warrant for Yelen’s office after they did not receive a response, the search warrant affidavit says.
Yelen did not return a message for comment, and Halliday could not be reached at the tavern on Monday.

1/9/2012
Luzerne County's distressed municipalities on way to success
eskrapits@citizensvoice.com, 570-821-2072

Luzerne County's three financially distressed municipalities are on track to shed their dubious distinction.
Nanticoke City, Plymouth Township and West Hazleton Borough have all been making financial improvements and could emerge from their state-designated Act 47 status this year or next.
"I don't see any reason for us not to get out this year," Nanticoke Mayor Joseph Dougherty said. "We're in better shape than we have been in decades, and our audits prove that."
The state Department of Community and Economic Development makes the decision whether or not to grant distressed status. West Hazleton was declared Act 47 in November 2003, Plymouth Township in July 2004 and Nanticoke in May 2006.
Under the designation, all three municipalities have been required to maintain balanced budgets, follow plans drawn up by their financial recovery coordinators and adopt better accounting practices, among other things.
Professionals with Pennsylvania Economy League, recovery coordinator for Nanticoke and West Hazleton, and Northeastern Pennsylvania Alliance, which is Plymouth Township's, say the municipalities are really making progress.
"We're hoping by the end of this year (Plymouth Township) will be in a position to present its case to the state for exit of distressed status," said Alan Baranski, vice president of community and government services at Northeastern Pennsylvania Alliance.
Joe Boyle of Pennsylvania Economy League said emerging from Act 47 will happen. "Clearly in the next year or two for Nanticoke and West Hazleton."
The three municipalities just need to keep doing what they're doing, he said.
Plymouth Township
Even natural disasters couldn't keep Plymouth Township down.
The township's financial situation has improved to the extent officials were able to handle infrastructure expenses such as damage to roads, sewers and drainage systems, created by flash-flooding on July 3, Hurricane Irene on Aug. 28 and severe flooding from Tropical Storm Lee on Sept. 8-9.
"Even despite the recent flooding event they had there, which normally would have crippled them - which would cripple a financially healthy community - they're doing well," Baranski said.
Disasters are nothing new to the township. It suffered flooding in September 2004, April 2005 and June 2006, plus there was a Dec. 17, 2004 fire that ruined the public works garage.
"You almost have to say we've been tested, and tested, and tested," supervisor Chairwoman Gale Conrad said.
It was overspending in the aftermath of the 1996 flood that started Plymouth Township on the road to financial distress. A previous administration spent money on things such as road repairs, without governmental guarantees they would get the funds back.
That taught the current administration a lesson: "We are determined not to spend what we do not have, and until we are approved for things by the government, we do not do it," Conrad said.
This time, township officials worked hard to get grants and find other sources of money to ensure there would be no negative effects on residents' pockets, Conrad said.
"Those days are gone," she said. "The people have given enough with this earned income tax."
Township officials rolled up their sleeves and did what they had to do in terms of cleaning up, engaging the right professionals and using the federal and state emergency management agencies to get the damage assessments in for the hazard mitigation grant program, Baranski said.
Supervisor Joe Yudichak, who is head of the road department, "is doing an excellent, excellent job," Conrad said. She said for weeks after the flood, he ran machinery on his own time, unpaid, to help the department get a handle on the huge amount of work to be done.
Money is starting to trickle in, Conrad said. She estimates at least 90 percent of the businesses - the backbone of the township's revenue - have bounced back.
Conrad said Plymouth Township's home-rule charter, which kicked in this year, is crucial to the recovery. It changes very little, but it allows the township to keep the 1.5 percent earned income tax it would have to give up when it gets out of Act 47.
The township's home-rule charter more or less institutionalizes the changes township officials have been following under the Act 47 plan, Baranski said.
"It is a big step to stabilize the financial condition of the township for the future," he said. "This is huge: realizing the recovery practices have worked for them. We're proud of the results there."
Plymouth Township has persevered through all the adversity and is better as a result of it, Baranski said.
"We hope this year will be one of recovery and emancipation," he said.
Nanticoke
What stands out about Nanticoke's most recent audit - for 2010 - is what isn't in it.
The independent auditor, Certified Public Accountant Joseph Mazzoni, wrote in his report for the 2003 audit that conditions "do raise substantial doubt about the City's ability to continue as a going concern."
By contrast, the last audit had no such dire warnings that the city might have to shut down.
For years Nanticoke was plagued by a cycle of borrow and spend. City officials borrowed more and more to pay its bills. The bills kept accumulating to the point the city would run out of money by July and have to borrow still more.
"That catches up to you after a while," PEL Executive Director Gerald Cross said.
Add to it a former tax collector who was found guilty of stealing thousands of dollars from the city's coffers, and it was a recipe for financial disaster.
Gone are the days of slipshod record-keeping and defaulting on tax anticipation notes, according to PEL.
"The city is now on a firmer financial footing, with professional management and a dedicated council and mayor," Cross said.
Boyle credits City Administrator Holly Cirko and Director of Finance Pam Heard with making an impact, noting, "When you put professionals in there to do the job and support them, they will make progress."
Dougherty thinks the city's new home-rule charter, which took effect this year, will help the city.
"Act 47 was the vehicle that helped us become financially solvent," he said. "But now that home rule is passed, we have the ability to do what we need to do. We are always trying to improve our finances. Continually, as the audits show."
Nanticoke's charter, which is more comprehensive than Plymouth Township's, calls for numerous changes including a strong-mayor form of government. The charter allows Nanticoke to keep the 1.5 percent earned income tax that is permitted under Act 47 but would revert back to the state-mandated level of 0.5 percent without home rule, and formalizes the city administrator position to make it permanent.
Boyle called Nanticoke "an excellent example of how Act 47 can work" if city officials take it seriously and cooperate with DCED and their financial recovery coordinator.
Dougherty gives kudos to PEL as well.
"Did I always agree with what they wanted to do? Absolutely not. But it worked," he said.
West Hazleton
Things look good financially for West Hazleton in the upcoming year. The budget calls for income of $1.9 million and expenses of $1.85 million, which means an anticipated $76,948 surplus. There's no tax increase, either. The fire department is changing over from partially paid, with the retirements of fire Chief Robert Ward and an engine driver, to all-volunteer, which will save about $132,000.
But in contrast to his Nanticoke counterpart, West Hazleton Mayor Frank Schmidt doesn't have much faith in Act 47 and doesn't think it helped the borough.
He said West Hazleton has debt of more than $1.5 million, including a $300,000 interest-free loan from the state and a $1 million loan taken out 15 years ago. Schmidt said the previous administration that took out the $1 million loan kept refinancing it instead of paying it down, which is how the financial trouble started.
The borough had to give up its 1-percent earned income tax, "and now we have to really struggle to survive, without raising taxes," Schmidt said.
Home rule would have allowed the borough to keep it, but West Hazleton voters struck down a ballot question to form a study commission, so the earned income tax rate reverted back to the state-mandated 0.5 percent.
Schmidt calls home rule a big gamble: you don't know who's going to run, who's going to get elected, and whether they're qualified to make changes.
"As mayor, I would be glad to give up my position if I knew somebody was going to come in and do a good job," he said.
Schmidt said he would like to see changes made in Harrisburg that would allow municipalities like West Hazleton to keep higher earned income taxes.
"The last thing we want to do is raise taxes on homeowners, because they've been taxed enough," he said. "We're hoping the state changes Act 47 and gives us permission to get that 1 percent. We wouldn't have to worry ever again."

1/8/2012
Despite attacks, Nanticoke calm
jlynott@timesleader.com

Even after he was brutally clubbed in a carjacking last June, Mayor Joseph Dougherty looked forward to his nightly walk.
“When I got attacked it did not deter me,” he said Saturday before he headed downtown.
The New Year’s Day slashing of a woman in The Prospect Street Caf? wasn’t keeping him inside and residents haven’t raised concerns about an increase of violent crimes in the city.
“I was a victim of circumstance. I was in the wrong place at the wrong time.”
Police are investigating the assault of Jennifer Mieczkowski, 30, of Nanticoke. She has to undergo additional reconstructive surgery on her face.
Dougherty sympathized with Mieczkowski, who waits for police to file charges in her case. “I wasn’t happy waiting a couple weeks,” he said.
Police arrested three men who pleaded guilty on Dec. 29 to charges related to beating Dougherty and stealing his company car as he sat in it on South Chestnut Street near his residence. The men will be sentenced next month in Luzerne County Court.
Nanticoke Detective Capt. William Shultzworked Dougherty’s case and has been working on the Mieczkowski case.
“I don’t know all the facts yet,” said Shultz.
He said investigators are attempting to talk to people who were in the bar at the time of the slashing, he said. As many as 50 people may have been there.
“Interviewing that many people takes time,” said Shultz.
His department is getting assistance from the state police Bureau of Liquor Enforcement and the county District Attorney’s Office, he said.
Shultz declined to comment on whether there has been an increase in the number of violent crimes in the city.
The latest data available from the FBI’s Uniform Crime Reporting Program showed a decrease.
In 2010 Nanticoke reported 58 violent crimes compared to 74 in 2009, according to the reports of offenses know to law enforcement. The violent crimes in 2010 were: nine forcible rapes; 11 robberies; and 38 aggravated assaults. The totals for 2009 were: one murder/non-negligent manslaughter; five forcible rapes; seven robberies; and 61 aggravated assaults.
A few blocks from where the slashing occurred, Luigi Carannante works behind the counter of his business, Antonio’s Pizza & Subs on East Main Street.
He has read and watched the media reports of the attack. “Things happen in every town,” he said.
Across the street Fran Stavetski showed the pepper spray she keeps near the register at On the Rise Gifts and Novelties. The store also installed security cameras and posted signs on the door indicating they are in operation.
The measures were taken when stores were selling bath salts that have since been banned. The store did not sell them out of concern that it could be targeted for a robbery.
“We didn’t want that,” said Stavetski.

1/7/2012
Vigil is held for slashed woman
Residents demand that attacker at Prospect Street bar be brought to justice.
jlynott@timesleader.com

When Rilee Ruminski saw the bandages, she kept her distance from Jennifer Mieczkowski.
The face so familiar to the 3-year-old Rilee was partially hidden to protect the slash wounds Mieczkowski received early Sunday morning when she was attacked during a fight inside the Prospect Street Cafe.
As police continue to investigate the assault of the 30-year-old hair salon owner and mother of a 7-year-old daughter, nearly 100 people, including Ruminski and her grandmother Paula Shemanski of Nanticoke, gathered Friday night at a vigil for Mieczkowski on Patriot Square a few blocks from the bar.
They demanded that her attacker be brought to justice and planned to raise money through a bake sale and other benefits to pay for the medical treatments still needed for Mieczkowski, who has not health insurance.
“My son goes to her shop and (Mieczkowski) loves (Rilee) so much,” said Shemanski. “She’ll cut her hair and do her nails for nothing.”
Shemanski, like many of those who held lit candles, knew Mieczkowski and were shocked by the slashing.
“I started crying as soon as I saw her,” said Shemanski.
One of Mieczkowski’s cousins told Joe Iraca of the attack.
“It just blew me away,” said Iraca, of Nanticoke.
“There’s no way to make sense of it,” he said. “I’m just hoping something good comes out of this.”
Mieczkowski and a friend, Ricky Wells of Mountain Top, stopped in the crowded bar to pick up beer to take out shortly before 2 a.m. While she spoke to friends a fight broke out and a woman slashed Mieczkowski in the face and neck multiple times with a box cutter. Wells was dragged out of the bar and beaten, suffering a broken jaw.
Wells was the only one who came to her aid, she said.
“If it wasn’t for him, I wouldn’t be right here in front of you because I would have been killed,” said Mieczkowski.
She thanked her family, relatives, friends and strangers for attending.
“They weren’t coming out to look at my face,” she said. Instead they came to offer support and demand that the person who wounded her be held accountable.
“Let Jen get justice for what’s been done to her,” said her cousin Denise Pearson of Nanticoke before leading the crowd in “The Lord’s Prayer.”
Mieczkowski’s 25-year-old sister Ashlee organized the vigil and said she was planning a benefit to be held at the Pennsylvania Army National Guard armory in Nanticoke.
“My family is ridiculously close,” said the younger sister.
She and her sister were raised by a single mother who imparted a lasting piece of advice: “She said, ‘At the end of the day, all you have is each other.’”
The younger Mieczkowski expressed frustration with the lack of an arrest.
“My sister identified someone Monday night and still nothing has been done,” she said.

1/5/2012
Byorick returns to receive the ultimate honor
Paul Sokoloski Opinion - Times Leader

The game has changed for Ali Byorick since she last stepped on the basketball court at Nanticoke High School.
That doesn’t mean she can’t play it.
She isn’t the scoring star anymore that she was at Nanticoke, where she put up more points than anyone else ever did – including the greats from the school’s storied boys teams.
But her current team at Lehigh University, where she’s averaging 6.1 points through the first 14 games of her senior season, depends on Byorick as much as the Trojanettes did when she was shooting the lights out every night in high school.
Just in a different way.
“I think playing Division I ball, it’s a challenge,” Byorick, 22, said Tuesday. “It’s hard to play. It’s such a huge transition. You’re playing with people who are all Division I basketball players.”
Meaning they were all high school stars.
Not all of them stay in the spotlight. But not all of them get their old number retired, either, which is partly why the Lehigh women’s team was on hand in the Nanticoke gym Tuesday to watch Byorick receive such a rare honor.
“It’s something you dream about,” Byorick said. “You dream of this as a little kid.”
Her old No. 15 went up on the wall, where future generations of Trojanettes, and Trojans, can always aspire to reach such esteem.
“I remember coming to the varsity games and looking up to her,” current Nanticoke player Katie Wolfe said. “She basically inspired me to keep playing basketball.”
The mere sight of Byorick working her magic on a high school floor stirred pure joy in anyone fortunate enough to watch her.
She finished with 2,272 career points before graduating in 2007, led Nanticoke’s charge into two PIAA playoff tournaments and was the engine driving the Trojanettes to identical 29-1 records during her final two seasons. In doing all that, Byorick became as dominant in high school as anyone the Wyoming Valley Conference has seen.
That’s why Byorick became the first girl to have her jersey retired by Nanticoke, even without winning a state championship like the girls on the 1990 team she so revered.
“She was fantastic. She really was,” said Nanticoke head coach Allen Yendrzeiwski, who didn’t coach Byorick but sure watched her play. “A six-foot guard who could step out and shoot 3s. Just a phenomenal player.”
Byorick hasn’t lost her touch, as she led Lehigh with 48 three-point field goals as a junior last season and is second on the team with 19 three-pointers early in this one.
The daughter of Dan and Trish Byorick of Nanticoke isn’t the go-to girl at Lehigh, where Emily Gratch and Alexa Williams both average more than 10 points to pace a team picked to finish second in the Patriot League.
But Aly Byorick could still play the big scorer when she wants to. She hit for 15 points in a victory over St. Peter’s and had 11 in a loss to Rutgers to lead Lehigh’s scorers in November games.
“Every player wishes they can go out and score 20 points a game,” Byorick said. “That’s not my role at Lehigh. And I really wouldn’t change anything.
“I’m just very blessed to have the opportunity to play Division I basketball.”
She still plays as hard as she ever did, whether the cheers come for the baskets she scores of the ones her teammates put in.
Because it may not always lead to a championship. But it forever leaves the mark of a champ.

1/4/2012
New Nanticoke council members officially sworn in
Elizabeth Skrapits - Citizens Voice

The first council under the city's new home-rule charter is in the saddle and ready to ride.
On Tuesday, Magisterial District Judge Donald Whittaker swore in new council members Stephen Duda and Richard Wiaterowski, and also Kevin Coughlin, who stepped down as city controller to become the fifth member of council, replacing Mayor Joseph Dougherty. The other two councilmen, James Litchkofski and Jon Metta, are incumbents.
The new form of government, replacing third-class city code, calls for a strong mayor. Dougherty said he's up to the challenge. He is particularly looking forward to talking with residents, and plans to hold an open house in his office from 5:45 to 7 p.m. each Wednesday, with additional hours in the future.
Council will now have a chairman to lead it instead of the mayor, and Duda was selected as the first to fill the role, with Litchkofski as vice-chairman. Duda will also serve on the home-rule transition committee, which will help ease in the new form of government. Nanticoke residents voted in May 2010 to form a home-rule study commission, then, in November 2011, to pass the charter drawn by commission members.
One of the main factors behind the home rule movement was to keep the higher earned income tax - 1.5 percent - the city is allowed under its state designation as an Act 47, or financially distressed, city. The alternative would be to hike the property tax substantially. Dougherty said the city's finances are improving.
"We will be able to get out of Act 47 this year," he said. "The sooner, the better."

1/1/2012
Nanticoke budget includes property tax increase
Because of the transition to home rule, new five-member city council has until Feb. 15 to amend budget.
mhughes@timesleader.com

At its last meeting before the new home rule government assumes power, Nanticoke City Council passed its 2012 budget at a special meeting Saturday morning.
Council was required by state law to pass the budget by the end of the year, but because of the transition to home rule, the new five-member city council will have until Feb. 15 to amend the spending plan after taking office.
The budget includes a property tax increase of .35 mills, or approximately $17.50 on a home assessed at $50,000. A mill is a $1 tax for every $1,000 in assessed property value.
The earned income tax and other tax rates will not change.
The budget allows for about $4.3 million in expenditures, about $22,500 less than the 2011 budget.
Director of Finance Pam Howard said the city raised taxes so it could put $50,000 into a capital expenses account for contingency expenses because council has vowed not to take out a tax anticipation loan in 2012.
Treasurer and Tax Collector Al Wytoshek criticized the tax hike, saying the city should look to reduce expenses instead. The city spent about $260,000 on attorney and legal fees and the salaries and benefits of the city administrator and finance director in 2011, he said.
“We just can’t afford that; not this small a city,” Wytoshek said.
In other business, council also approved, subject to solicitor review and approval, an agreement with the Luzerne/Schuylkill Workforce Investment Board to bring 10 employees and a supervisor to work with the city road department for six weeks at no cost to the city.
Council also approved the sale of the old CVS building on East Main Street, assessed at $160,000, to the city’s General Municipal Authority and the sale of 24 S. Prospect St.
The city will host an auction at the municipal building this month to sell the property, with bidding starting at the building’s assessed value of $106,000.