Peters residents living on Mallard Lane, a private street off of Valley Brook Road, will have to wait a little longer to see if the road will be accepted into the township’s road system.
Council on Monday tabled action on the residents’ request for the road to cease being private so the township can perform maintenance on it. Council will reconsider the matter at a future meeting.
Township Manager Paul Lauer the Mallard Lane Homeowners Association requested that the street be taken over by the township for maintenance such as snow removal and storm sewer maintenance.
Mr. Lauer said developers often request private streets so they do not have to comply with the township’s 50-foot setback requirement for homes. If the street is made public, the right-of-way setbacks would be less than 50 feet.
“I think you’ll end up with a right-of-way that will work,” and not create a problem for the township, Mr. Lauer said.
The actual road, at 24 feet, meets township requirements for road width.
However, council was concerned about having to maintain residents’ sidewalks and driveways being if they are located in the right-of-way.
Mr. Lauer added that before the road can be taken over, the township will need an engineer’s report documenting the condition of its storm sewers.
If council decides to make Mallard Lane a township road, it “will be no different than any other street in Peters Township,” as far as maintenance is concerned.
“Everyone loves the idea of a private street until winter comes,” council member James Berquist said. He added he would “very reluctantly consider” making Mallard Lane a township road.
“We’re taxpaying homeowners,” said Don Kalkbrenner, a Mallard Lane resident. That Mallard Lane is a private street had no impact on why he purchased his home there, Mr. Kalkbrenner said.
“I certainly feel a certain amount of sympathy to property owners,” said council President Frank Kosir Jr. However, Mr. Kosir said before he felt comfortable making it a township road, he would want to know if any part of the homeowners’ sidewalks or driveways are in the right-of-way.
In other business, council:
• Awarded a contract to Kenworth of Pennsylvania for a new T479 truck cab and chassis at a cost of $100,849 and a contract for the purchase of a dump truck body from Walsh Equipment of Prospect for $78,065, bringing the total of the truck to $178,914. The township had budgeted $180,000 for the truck.
• Awarded a contract to Jeffrey Associates of Indianola for the purchase of $256,870 worth of playground equipment for Peterswood Park.
Deana Carpenter, freelance writer: suburbanliving@post-gazette.com.
First Published: January 31, 2019, 6:05 p.m.
