Northampton County Halloween Parades and Trick-or-Treat Dates, Page 16
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OCTOBER 2-8, 2025
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American Disposal in Lehigh Township Supervisors consider Allen Township permitted Upcoming changes By LAURA KLOTZ requesting an additional $9,500. wants them to be more specific To stay in business The Lehigh Township Board of Board member Cynthia Miller about the reason for the additional Supervisors opened their Sept. 23 stated that the ad hoc commit- charge. meeting by discussing the pay- tee has completed their part of It was clarified that Urban ReUnder new conditions ment request from Pennoni As- the project. She reminded every- search had made some errors on
By KERI LINDENMUTH American Disposal, a junk removal and disposal service operating at 1438 Willowbrook Road, will be allowed to continue operations, with stipulations, in Allen Township. This decision by the township’s Zoning Hearing Board was made following a 5-plus-hourlong Zoning Hearing Board meeting on Thursday, Sept. 25, during which several residents and Township Manager Ilene Eckhart testified against the company, citing noise disturbances, health risks and visible debris. Grandfathered Zoning Protections “This property has been very gray,” Zoning Hearing Board Chairman Harold Dashuta said following the board’s decision. For nearly 30 years, the property (formerly Marth’s Disposal Service) operated as a recycling center, collecting, sorting and selling construction materials like metal and wood. In 1996, the township officially gave the property the zoning designation of “recycling center.” When the land was rezoned to residential use in 2003, the property received protection that allowed operations to continue. However, according to Solicitor Brett Flower of Eckert Seamans, who represented the township during the Sept. 25 hearing, the property can lose this preexisting zoning protection when its use changes or when it becomes “vexatious to the health, safety and welfare of neighbors.” Flower added that the use of the property since new ownership
took over in late 2024 has “fundamentally” changed, operating on a larger scale akin to a junkyard. According to Solicitor Joel Ready of Cornerstone Law Firm, on behalf of American Disposal, the business continues to operate as a recycling center, and this hearing is a way for the township to “retract” a past decision they regret. “It is not this facility that planted itself in a residential zone,” Ready said. “It is the other way around.” “[You] ignored other issues for 30 years,” Ready continued. “[You] cannot take someone out of a grandfathered situation [and you] have not shown how we exceeded the scope of a recycling center.” Sean Kerrigan, owner of American Disposal, testified that his business operates under a recycling center permit from the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection. He said his employees manually sort through materials, and items that are not recyclable are sent to landfills in Bethlehem, St. Clair and Pen Argyl. The unclear definition of a recycling center is something the Zoning Hearing Board acknowledged. However, while the zoning definition was broad, one thing was clear: changes needed to be made to protect the quality of life for neighboring property owners. “Just because it is licensed for something does not mean you can bust it at the seams,” Dashuta told Kerrigan. Waste, Odors and Safety ConContinued on page 13
sociates, which had been tabled from the previous meeting. Township Manager Alice Rehrig explained the existing payment is enough to complete their work on SALDO, but they are
one that Pennoni had previously agreed they would not bill the township any more than what had been outlined in the contract, which they had taken over from Urban Research, and she
the zoning map which Pennoni had to correct. Miller suspects that there was more work left to be done than Pennoni anticipatContinued on page 2
Multi-vehicle collision in Moore Township under investigation By HOME NEWS STAFF On Friday, Sept. 25 at 4:40 p.m., emergency responders were dispatched to the area of Pheasant Drive and Valley View Drive in Moore Township for a multi-vehicle collision. Upon arrival, responders found multiple vehicles involved, including a box truck flipped onto its side.
The box truck had flammable placards displayed, with drums of a lemon extract-type liquid inside the truck. It was quickly determined that, although the drums were on their sides, only one had come loose from its packing and all drums were determined to be intact with no leakage. Out of an abundance of cau-
tion, Northampton County Emergency Management and Lehigh County Special Operations were requested to evaluate the scene. Crews remained on location to provide safety until the truck could be up-righted, the load secured and safe to travel to the Continued on page 7
Celebration of 20,000 preserved farmland acres held at farm in Bath By HOME NEWS STAFF Northampton County is proud to announce a major milestone in its Farmland Preservation Program. On Monday, Sept. 29 at 2 p.m., a ribbon cutting ceremony was held at Unangst Farms in Bath to commemorate the preservation of the county’s 20,000th acre of farmland. The 51-acre pumpkin patch in Bath officially marks the 20,000th acre of farmland that is preserved in Northampton County. Unangst’s pumpkin patch,
bought by Roger Unangst last year, borders his preserved tree farm, totalling 230 acres of preserved farmland. The now-20,000 acres of preserved farmland in the county represent a total of 271 farms. The celebration brought together county officials, preservation partners and members of the community to recognize this historic achievement and honor the contributions of those who made it possible. Northampton County looks
ahead to preserving the next 20,000 acres. To continue that preservation, a total of 550 more acres is currently in the process of being preserved.
84th Year, Issue No. 40 www.homenewspa.com
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