UPPER MOUNT BETHEL TWP., Pa. — Upper Mt. Bethel Township’s board of supervisors voted Monday night to dissolve its municipal sewer authority, created less than six months ago to run wastewater infrastructure for the proposed River Pointe industrial park.
After the vote, board of supervisors president John Bermingham said he plans to reestablish the municipal authority in the future after negotiations with Lou Pektor, the developer behind the project.
“Now we’re going to go back and start from the beginning and get it done the way our engineer said,” he said.
Plans for River Pointe call for more than 5.87 million square feet of industrial buildings on 800 acres south of Portland Borough.
Upper Mount Bethel Twp. does not have a public sewer system, with residents instead using on-lot septic tanks.
To provide sewer service for the industrial park’s future tenants, developers proposed building a treatment plant on the River Pointe property capable of eventually treating up to 400,000 gallons of sewage per day.
“At some point, we come to a crossroad, and that crossroad starts to make people make decisions they don't want to make. And it gets very expensive.”Lou Pektor, River Pointe developer
An agreement with the township calls for River Pointe to build the new wastewater treatment plant at their expense. Once construction was completed, developers would deed it to the Upper Mount Bethel Municipal Authority, which would operate and maintain the facilities from then on.
While most of the capacity will be reserved for River Pointe, township residents living nearby would also be able to connect.
Monday’s meeting saw a heated exchange between Pektor and Bermingham, with each calling the other “untrustworthy.”
“Reality is, we own the property. The township doesn’t own the property. We’ve got certain rights. We’ve been very patient,” said Pektor. “At some point, we come to a crossroad, and that crossroad starts to make people make decisions they don't want to make. And it gets very expensive.”
“This is our town. We've got to live with this, not you. So if you want to work with us, let's work with us. But don't get up here and start off how we're frustrating you and holding you back,” Bermingham said.
Zoning hearings regarding the proposed wastewater treatment plan are ongoing, with the next meeting scheduled for March 18.
