Tensions ran high during a recent third hearing over a proposal for a YMCA and Agricultural Innovation Center held before the Cherry Ridge Township Supervisors.
Wayne County Commissioners and the YMCA of Wayne County are seeking conditional use approval to build on a 40-acre site off Spinner Road and Leinert Lane, adjacent to state Route 191.
But some concerned residents question whether the developments would alter the community’s rural character or financially strain taxpayers.
The Nov. 25 hearing centered around Mitchell “Mitch” Jacobs, the civil engineer in charge of both projects. He was the only witness called to testify during the nearly three-hour long hearing.
Part of the applicants’ hurdle to get conditional use approval is they need to prove their project is in line with township regulations. The site is in the township’s Rural Resource District, which means the project must not affect its neighbors’ existing agricultural, residential and commercial uses.
Would a 40-acre development impact its neighbors?
That question set off a series of objections and legal repartee between Mark Zimmer, the attorney for the YMCA and the county; and Ronald Bugaj, who is representing residents Carol and Mark Leinert, who own adjacent property to the site.
Jacobs also was questioned by Dennis Cheng, who is representing himself as another party in opposition to the project.
Zimmer questioned Jacobs on whether he made the applicants aware that it would become their responsibility to handle any “burdens” the project poses to the township’s facilities or utilities. He also acknowledged that any time there is a change in use for a location or if something new is being built, “obviously there is some sort of impact on the adjacent properties.”
Bugaj objected — one of several made in rapid succession.
“It’s a speculation … it would be based on hearsay … the engineer doesn't know everything. How's he getting this information? Supposedly, either on his general opinions or his knowledge that somebody else told them,” Bugaj said.
The project’s neighbors include a well-contracting company, single-family homes on several sides of the site and various commercial properties.
Much of the hearing hinged on the suspected sound (decibel level), traffic, water use, and unintended effects of installing a new sewage line on residents’ finances and quality of life.
Bugaj: ‘Is the source ChatGPT or some scientific journal’
Questions around the proposed YMCA centered around the suspected decibel level that would come from the facility when it runs large events.
The center would have major upgrades from the current Honesdale YMCA. location and would be more than double its size by square footage. Paul Edwards, a member of the YMCA’s board of trustees, said at the first hearing the project would include a gymnasium, exercise areas, indoor track, lockers, offices, aquatics center, kitchen, a daycare wing, as well as potential health services space that could be rented back to Wayne Memorial Hospital. There also would be outside facilities including non-lighted multipurpose fields and a pavilion.
Jacobs said outdoor activities around the property would likely range between 60 to 70 decibels.
That’s about the noise level from normal conversation or a vacuum cleaner.
Bugaj said Jacobs would not be able to determine how loud the YMCA would be while in operation because he does not know many people would use its services, specifically the daycare center, which would open each day at 5:30 in the morning.
“You can’t tell us [if] there’s going to be like a hundred screaming kids on one of those fields or 10 kids,” Bugaj said.
At the first hearing, Bugaj questioned Edwards at length about the project, including its expected usage and anticipated traffic.
"Is it fair to say that as you sit here today, you cannot tell this board how many people you expect to use the entire YMCA facility property on a given day, once it's up and running," Bugaj asked in October.
"No," Edwards said.
Edwards did say the YMCA currently has 686 members, and "we anticipate we could probably double the membership, mainly because of the pool."
At the third hearing, Bugaj pressed Jacobs on how he compiled his data on how the YMCA’s expected use would affect its daily noise level.
“Is the source ChatGPT or some scientific journal,” Bugaj said.
Jacobs said he found his information online and said he did not “have anything to specifically reference.” He did not conduct any decibel studies on similar projects.
Jacobs: Traffic increase likely in area
The planned 40-acre project site on Spinner Road and Leinert Lane is off of state Route 191, a narrow two-lane road about three miles out from Honesdale. It has poor sight lines and few lights.
Jacobs said the applicants plan to widen the road and add turning lanes at the Route 191 and Spinner Road intersection, as required by the state Department of Transportation. There are no plans to add a stoplight.
Bugaj asked Jacobs whether residents who live on Leinert Lane — which is currrently a dirt road — can expect traffic to increase.
“Yes,” Jacobs said.
“And wouldn’t that affect the different property owners along the line,” Bugaj asked.
“I don’t believe that there’s anything that would say that our property — our project — can’t use Lienert Lane,” Jacobs replied.
Environmental concerns center on water use, proposed sewer line
Jacobs said the project will use about 4,500 gallons of water per day in total for both the YMCA and agricultural center. He also said the average three-bedroom house uses 400 gallons a day.
Bugaj argued that the likely water use would be much higher as the two projects combined would have 255 parking spaces.
The project would also require a new sewer line to be built to connect the YMCA and agricultural center to the Central Wayne Regional Authority, which runs the local sewer system.
Cheng asked whether the sewer line would financially burden surrounding residents, businesses and municipal services. He also asked about the general effects of building two 20-acre projects on a rural community.
Jacobs said nearby residents would be given the option to hook up to the line, but would not be forced to do so.
There also was some confusion on whether the sewer line would affect Texas Township, which is between Honesdale and Cherry Ridge. That question was not resolved during the hearing.
What’s next for Cherry Ridge?
Wayne County Commissioners and the YMCA of Wayne County have not finished making their argument before the Cherry Ridge Township Supervisors.
The next hearing is set for Monday, Dec. 29 at 6 p.m.
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Editor's Note: Dennis Cheng, who is a member of WVIA's board of directors, is among residents who are speaking out against the project.
