Winfield Township - The proposed Flat Top Acres development continues to be a source of debate in Winfield Township.
Winfield supervisors again denied a request to allow the development to tap into Buffalo Township's public sewer lines, which run within 500 feet of Flat Top's property along Route 356 in Winfield.
A.J. Lesney, owner of Classy Realty in Buffalo Township, represents property owners John "Joe" and Ron Jack, who propose 40 buildings, with four units each, on the 50-acre property
Winfield supervisors Chairman Glenn Nagle declined to detail why the latest request was denied. He said one reason is that the board is working on a plan that calls for decentralized sewage in the township and that plan would not work with Lesney's proposal.
Winfield does not have a public sewerage system. In an April 1 letter to Lesney, the board said its proposal would include "on-lot systems and small scale collective systems utilizing various on-lot non-discharge alternatives."
However, Lesney said he had soil at the site tested since April's meeting and the tests showed an on-lot system would not be supported because the water table is too close to the surface.
Dan Cousins, a sewage enforcement officer for Winfield, said he assisted Lesney in testing the soil and agreed that the soil won't support the township's suggested system.
"There are some other options for on-lot systems, but in the residential type setting he's proposing, I'm not sure they would work," Cousins said.
Nagle said he was not aware of the testing.
Lesney said his next step is to contact the state Department of Environmental Protection, asking it to order Winfield to adjust its plans to meet the development's needs.
In January 2001, Lesney submitted a proposal to either create a sewage treatment plant that would discharge into Little Buffalo Creek or connect to Buffalo Township's system. The township approved the first option.
However, in an October letter to the township supervisors, Jon Lester, the DEP's acting regional manager of water management, disapproved of the private treatment plant, saying it probably was not "environmentally acceptable."
The letter suggested the township work with the developer to find another alternative, "namely, connection … to the Buffalo Township public sewerage system."
Lesney resubmitted a plan early this year, proposing to tap into Buffalo Township's lines. In March, Winfield supervisors denied the plan. Following DEP guidelines, Lesney made a final, private request to the township that the new plan be approved, resulting in April's denial.
The two townships have no administrative measures that support a Winfield connection with Buffalo lines, according to Don Amadee, manager of the Municipal Authority of Buffalo Township. Establishing one would the first step in considering Flat Top's proposal, Amadee said.
Amadee said he recommended to Buffalo supervisors that they not pursue the matter at this time, especially because Winfield supervisors have expressed opposition to the development.
Amadee said he wasn't sure whether the authority's system had the capacity to handle sewage from the proposed development.
"If we say yes to Flat Top, what do we say to the next person who wants to connect with our lines?" Amadee said. "We'd be opening ourselves up to everyone from the township line to Cabot."
The authority serves portions of other municipalities, including Freeport and South Buffalo.
Amadee said the DEP usually looks favorably on joint authorities.
"In one sense, a regional authority is a good idea, but you need to be able to handle it. I'm not sure we can handle it at this point," Amadee said.
