First Posted: 3/25/2014

It was a night of recognitionat the Clarks Green Borough Council meeting on March 19.

Mike Pehonich, a Clarks Green resident and Emergency Medical Services (EMS) worker, was recognized by council for assisting a resident that needed medical attention on Fairview Rd. when Pehonich heard the dispatch while snow plowing. Council officials presented Pehonich with an emergency EMS kit collected from donations.

Council member and Borough Health and Safety Chairman Joe Barrasse thanked Pehonich especially for his “valiant efforts,” he said.

“This makes Clarks Green a little safer every day,” he added.

Lackawanna County Community Relations Coordinator Gerard Hetman was given a Clarks Green Borough Certificate of Appreciation for initiating the county’s Code Blue cold weather alert system. Council President David Rinaldi thanked Hetman for his “valuable contributions” to the borough.

The Code Blue alert creates awareness for frigid temperatures, including wind chills, below 20 degrees Fahrenheit. The Code Blue alert directs homeless individuals to nearby shelters and offers safety information for individuals and animals, as well as how to care for personal property, such as preventing pipes from freezing.

Fire Chief Jake Hoinowski of Clarks Summit Fire Co. #1 was also recognized for the execution of the renewal of the fire protection contract between Clarks Green and Clarks Summit Fire Company #1 for the next three years.

Barrasse was also recognized because he donated his salary, which was matched by his company, to the volunteer fire companies in honor of his uncle, Charles Bobitka or “Uncle Chaz”, who died in a fire saving other residents in June of 1996.

“We greatly appreciate their outstanding service,” Barrasse said.

Borough Solicitor Attorney Alfred J. Weinschenk announced the contract for County Waste is in order for the council to sign. The new refuse and recycling contract reflects no change in services and a decrease of 10 percent of the cost residents are currently paying over the life of the five-year contract.

In other news, Clarks Green residents and members of surrounding communities can expect paving work on Abington Rd. in the coming weeks.

Officials from South Abington Township, Clarks Summit, Waverly, and Clarks Green are expected to sign off on a proposal for the project and plans for detouring traffic.

According to Rinaldi, PennDOT determines whether or not the detour plan is acceptable and will not allow the detour unless they get an agreement from all municipalities affected. If all local municipalities do not sign off on the detour, PennDOT may flag a length of pavement up to two miles long.

“We have good reasons to have a detour,” Rinaldi said. “We just have to try and minimize the effect it’s going to have on our residents.”

Paving is slated to begin in mid-April, weather permitting. It will start at the intersection of Abington Rd. and Route 6, working north up Abington Rd., Route 407.