2008-11-13 00:31:00
MADELYN PENNINO
By next spring, Lancaster County officials hope to begin the formidable task of taking inventory of local historical resources and eventually taking steps to preserve them.On Wednesday, Lancaster County commissioners approved applying for a grant through Preserve America that, if approved,......
2008-11-11 00:16:00
LORI VAN INGEN
The Manheim Township Commissioners on Monday night rescheduled a hearing on The Crossings at Conestoga Creek to Dec. 8.High Real Estate Group was to present a new flood plain plan Monday in hopes the commissioners would allow it to proceed with development of the proposed 600,000-square-fo......
2008-11-05 02:58:00
P.J. REILLY
Lancaster County voters said "no" to home rule in overwhelming numbers Tuesday.As a result, the county's form of government, which has remained relatively unchanged for the past 277 years, is preserved."It's done," said county Commissioner Scott Martin. &......
2008-11-04 00:05:00
DAVE PIDGEON
Election Day has finally arrived, and when it concludes, Lancaster County will learn if Democratic registration gains here have affected local, state and maybe even national races.Lancaster also will learn whether America will elect its first black president or give the nod to a Vietnam Wa......
2008-11-04 00:01:00
JEFF HAWKES
No one expected home rule to be an easy sell.It could well flame out today because change is unsettling and the Republican apparatus, not wanting to cede an ounce of influence, has played on voters' fears through a campaign of distortion and misinformation.That people are pickin......
2008-11-02 00:21:00
HELEN COLWELL ADAMS
Tuesday's election could produce a record turnout. And that, advocates of the home rule charter agree, could be the charter's best shot at passage. In a normal election cycle, the fact that the the county Republican committee is working against voter ratification of the charter ......
2008-10-29 01:00:00
PATRICK BURNS
A new, centrally located visitors center is scheduled to open this spring in the shadow of Lancaster County Convention Center.The newly named Lancaster Visitors Center will draw tourists to the first floor of the Heritage Center Museum in Penn Square and be operated by Pennsylvania Dutch C......
2008-10-29 00:53:00
P.J. REILLY
Twenty years ago, Ryan Meck's father gave his son a couple packs of vegetable seeds, a section of the family farm and the chance to get his hands dirty.Meck managed to coax a few radishes and zucchinis from the soil, but they weren't pretty."It didn't start out too ......
2008-10-26 00:21:00
HELEN COLWELL ADAMS
The yard signs sponsored by opponents of the county's proposed home rule charter say it all: "Home rule = Bigger Govt. = HIGHER TAXES." Except, proponents of home rule say, that's not true. Home rule counties actually have a lower rate of tax increases over time, and a be......
2008-10-26 00:12:00
HELEN COLWELL ADAMS
Voters are likely to be inundated with claims and counterclaims about taxes and home rule in the next week, as the battle over the charter heats up. Last week, every household in the county got a postcard from the Lancaster County Government Study Commission outlining features of the charter....
2008-10-22 10:28:00
CHAD UMBLE
The proposed home rule charter either embodies the American Revolution's promise of self governance or it represents a grave threat that could destroy our county government. Those starkly different views came in a debate on home rule Tuesday night at Franklin & Marshall College. Vo......
2008-10-22 01:36:00
PATRICK BURNS
Doubts about cost and accountability dominated a debate on the county's proposed home-rule charter Tuesday at Franklin & Marshall College.Four members of the 11-member Government Study Commission slugged it out over the merits of a Nov. 4 ballot question that will ask voters if the......
2008-10-16 00:36:00
P.J. REILLY
Fighting crime is not just a police matter, says Lancaster County Commissioner Scott Martin."I get asked often, 'What does crime fighting have to do with the county of Lancaster?' " Martin said. "It's really got everything to do with the county. We're the cat......
2008-10-08 01:40:00
P.J. REILLY
A historic milestone is fast approaching.When the Lancaster County commissioners meet this morning, they are expected to authorize the preservation of a 124-acre crop-and-dairy farm in Bart and Colerain townships owned by Bart Township supervisors chairman Calvin Keene and his wife, Valeri......
2008-10-02 00:22:00
P.J. REILLY
Lancaster Area Habitat for Humanity wants nearly 10 acres of wooded, county-owned land on the west side of South Broad Street in the city's southeast to build affordable housing.The nonprofit Hand's WOODS Foundation — for Wild Outdoor Observatory Designed by Students — ......
2008-10-01 11:15:00
CHAD UMBLE
Lancaster County Commissioners again brought up the idea today of unloading some county-owned property. At their regular meeting, commissioners opened a discussion on a proposal from Habitat for Humanity to build 25 houses on a roughly nine-acre property in the city's southeast. The wooded ......
2008-09-19 01:34:00
P.J. REILLY
Lancaster County Commissioners will pay for the mailer pertaining to home rule.Commissioner chairman Dennis Stuckey said his board reviewed the Lancaster County Government Study Commission's revised mailer with county solicitor Don Lefever on Thursday morning and decided that county ta......
2008-09-19 01:30:00
P.J. REILLY
SouthEast Lancaster Health Services wants to open a clinic in a building at 225 W. King St. now owned by the county.Lancaster County commissioners last week announced their desire to unload the property as soon as all county offices and District Judge Bruce Roth's court are moved out o......
2008-09-18 00:58:00
P.J. REILLY
Lancaster County Commissioners failed to decide Wednesday on whether to pay for a revised mailer pertaining to home rule.Members of the Lancaster County Government Study Commission presented the new version of the document to the commissioners at their weekly meeting Wednesday morning and ......
2008-09-17 11:27:00
CHAD UMBLE
Next up: a legal opinion. Lancaster County Commissioners said this morning they hoped to huddle with their solicitor and decide later today whether to pay for a mailer to all Lancaster County households about home rule. Last week, the commissioners said they wouldn't pay for the Government......
2008-09-17 00:45:00
MICHAEL YODER
Two-hundred and twenty-one years ago today, the United States Constitution was adopted in Philadelphia, ready to be put in front of each state for ratification.Dr. Victor DeSantis, dean of graduate studies at Millersville University, said Lancaster County residents will have their own vote......
2008-09-17 00:37:00
P.J. REILLY
Lancaster County Commissioner Craig Lehman said Tuesday that his board should not be interfering with the work of the county's government study commission."On a personal note, I don't believe the board of commissioners should be the referee when it comes to the home-rule issue......
2008-09-16 11:25:00
CHAD UMBLE
The Government Study Commission could be on a collision course with county commissioners over a postcard mailer about home rule. Last week, county commissioners said they wouldn't pay for the mailer because they felt it went beyond educating people about home rule and advocated for it. Stu......
2008-09-16 00:09:00
P.J. REILLY
Members of Lancaster County Government Study Commission on Monday revised the wording of a mailer regarding home rule, hoping the county commissioners will see fit to send it to all households in the county.They decided to make the changes even though several members believed it was unnece......
2008-09-16 00:05:00
DAVE PIDGEON
Pennsylvania's senior senator, the 78-year-old Republican Arlen Specter, slowly walked to where a female prisoner sat, her right leg bouncing nervously.The prisoner, a Vietnamese woman with long black hair and wearing faded royal-blue prison garb, looked up at Specter, who stood before......
2008-09-13 00:57:00
SUSAN E. LINDT
County commissioners might have pulled the plug on funding a countywide mailer explaining a proposed Home Rule Charter, but some members of the commission that spent 21 months drafting the charter aren't ready to drop the issue just yet.Lancaster County Government Study Commission, whi......
2008-09-12 01:59:00
P.J. REILLY
Lancaster County's human resources department is understaffed, in dire need of a leader and works inefficiently, according to an audit of the office released this week.Working as a consultant for Financial S&lutions of Reading, former county administrator Timothea Kirchner presente......
2008-09-11 01:08:00
P.J. REILLY
Lancaster County commissioners pulled the plug on funding Wednesday for a mailer that was to be sent to every household in the county regarding the proposed Home Rule Charter.Calling the one-page document drafted by the 11-member Lancaster County Government Study Commission "clear adv......
2008-09-11 00:56:00
P.J. REILLY
Lancaster County commissioners on Wednesday opened a public dialogue on what to do with the county-owned property at 225 W. King St.Commissioner chairman Dennis Stuckey said his board is considering unloading the property.The county plans to move all of its offices and a district ju......
2008-09-04 01:39:00
DAVE PIDGEON
On the day his Republican rival officially becomes the GOP standard-bearer, Democratic presidential nominee Sen. Barack Obama will rally supporters on the lawn of Buchanan Park, his campaign confirmed Wednesday.Obama's visit comes at a time when the Illinois senator is trying to hold o......
2008-09-03 01:16:00
P.J. REILLY
If a natural or manmade disaster hits southcentral Pennsylvania, Lancaster County will be in the eye of the emergency-management response.A year ago, South Central Pennsylvania Counter Terrorism Task Force designated the county's Public Safety Training Center as its Multi-Agency Coordi......
2008-08-29 02:23:00
P.J. REILLY
Many times during his 13 years working in Lancaster County's juvenile detention facilities, county Commissioner Scott Martin had to restrain youths."I started at Barnes Hall as a youth care worker, and then I was program coordinator, and then I became director of the Youth Interve......
2008-08-29 02:01:00
PATRICK BURNS
Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama delivered his message of hope and change Thursday before 80,000 people in Denver, Colo.Some Pennsylvania Republicans, including U.S. Rep. Joe Pitts, rallied for GOP hopeful Sen. John McCain in Denver, Pa. — total population about 3,......
2008-08-28 00:53:00
P.J. REILLY
Lancaster County's forest landowners will be on their own again next spring in the fight against gypsy moth caterpillars.The commissioners on Wednesday unanimously agreed the county should not participate in the state-run 2009 program to spray woodlands to kill the leaf-eating caterpil......
2008-08-27 00:51:00
P.J. REILLY
Lancaster County commissioners today are expected to decide whether the county will participate in next year's state-run spraying program to control gypsy moth caterpillars.A vote by the board to participate in the program run by the state Department of Conservation and Natural Resourc......
2008-08-21 00:01:00
PATRICK BURNS
Lancaster Chamber of Commerce & Industry's board of directors has reinforced its support for an initiative aimed at changing Lancaster County government.At a special session Tuesday, the board voted unanimously to urge voters to vote "yes" on a November ballot referendum ......
2008-08-20 00:55:00
LARRY ALEXANDER
Whether Lancaster County changes its government from its present three-commissioner structure to a five-commissioner form under home rule is now up to voters.By an 8-to-3 vote Tuesday, Lancaster County Government Study Commission approved the Home Rule Charter, clearing the way for it to a......
2008-08-19 01:23:00
SUSAN E. LINDT
Monday night's crowning of the Elizabethtown Fair Queen kicked off the area's fair season.Hannah Roser, a 10th-grader at Pennsylvania Virtual Charter School, took the crown but, with a mere two contenders, everyone went home with a scholarship.Runner-up Ellen Parkins, who wi......
2008-08-14 00:51:00
P.J. REILLY
The Arc of Lancaster County is joining a national protest of the movie "Tropic Thunder," which opened in area theaters Wednesday.Ellen Schellenberger, executive director of the local Arc chapter, on Wednesday called the film "offensive.""There's a charac......
2008-08-14 00:47:00
P.J. REILLY
Lancaster County Coroner Dr. Stephen Diamantoni has been a busy man since he took office in January.From the beginning of the year through July, the coroner's office handled 389 death investigations and performed 241 autopsies.That's a 56 percent increase in investigations a......
2008-08-12 01:28:00
BRETT HAMBRIGHT
The mishandling of a 911 call on the morning of a triple-murder in Manheim Township delayed police response time to the victims' home, officials said.Still, county officials say, a cleaner dispatch likely wouldn't have saved any of the three members of the Haines family or resulted......
2008-08-07 01:37:00
JEFF HAWKES
You might be on the fence about home rule, but I bet you're not on the fence about paying taxes.That's why a change the Government Study Commission made Tuesday to its proposed 27-page charter should grab the attention of undecided voters.If voters in November approve the ch......
2008-08-03 00:16:00
HELEN COLWELL ADAMS
If Lancaster County voters opt for home rule, advocates argue, life in the county courthouse will go on much as it always has. "Wills will continue to be probated, marriage licenses applied for, divorce cases will still be filed, deeds will continue to be recorded, criminal records kept up......
2008-08-03 00:08:00
STAFF
ARTICLE X: TRANSITIONAL PROVISIONS
Section 10.01 Nature of Article. The provisions of this article shall relate to the transition from Lancaster County's existing form of government to the form of government provided for in this charter. Where inconsiste......
2008-08-01 00:53:00
MICHAEL YODER
One year ago today, 13 people lost their lives when the I-35W bridge in Minneapolis collapsed during rush hour.In an instant, public attention was focused on the United States' infrastructure deficiencies and the dangers they pose.Since the tragedy, transportation departments ac......
2008-07-31 01:19:00
P.J. REILLY
The covered bridge that carries Log Cabin Road over Cocalico Creek at the West Earl/Warwick township line is expected to be closed for about a year to undergo restoration.On Wednesday, Lancaster County commissioners awarded a contract for a maximum of $62,300 to Rettew Associates to design......
2008-07-31 01:08:00
P.J. REILLY
Lancaster County's public transportation program for seniors and the disabled hit a series of potholes over the past month, for many reasons.But the head of Red Rose Transit Authority said Wednesday there are no excuses.Dave Kilmer, executive director of RRTA, which administers ......
2008-07-30 01:57:00
P.J. REILLY
Lancaster County Commissioner Scott Martin said he figures county taxpayers will shell out about $1 million this year for a medical bill that should be covered by the federal government.That's how much Martin expects it will cost in 2008 to provide health care to unconvicted inmates at......
2008-07-29 01:20:00
P.J. REILLY and JOHN WALK
Twenty-three miles of the abandoned Enola Low-Grade Line in southern Lancaster County today are under municipal ownership.At a gathering in Norfolk Southern's Harrisburg office Monday, railroad company officials signed over deeds to the 850-acre property to Bart, Conestoga, Eden, Marti......
2008-07-27 00:17:00
HELEN COLWELL ADAMS
Both critics and supporters of home rule often point out that the basic form of county government hasn't changed in 300 years. The last time anyone tried to tweak the system was 1973, when an earlier home rule study was thrown out after a lawsuit. But if voters approve a home rule char......
2008-07-27 00:07:00
STAFF
ARTICLE IX: MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS
Section 9.01 Subpoena Power. In any case where an elected County officer or agency has the power under this charter or other applicable law to conduct public hearings, the elected officer or agency shall have the authority......
2008-07-20 00:18:00
HELEN COLWELL ADAMS
In 2000, then-Democratic Chairman Scott Brubaker filed a complaint with the county elections board over a Republican voter registration plan that came to be known as Votergate. Normally, the three county commissioners sit as the elections board. Because his political action committee was named ......
2008-07-20 00:07:00
STAFF
ARTICLE VIII: AUTHORITIES, AGENCIES, BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS
Section 8.01 Establishment of Agencies, Boards and Commissions. a. There shall be such agencies, boards and commissions established by this charter, by state law, by the Administrative Code or......
2008-07-17 01:30:00
JEFF HAWKES
Lancaster County Republican leaders are out to torpedo home rule, ginning up fear and insulting our intelligence.By voice vote to drown out dissent within its ranks, the GOP committee last week passed a resolution so maliciously dishonest, so florid in its warnings of "powerful intimi......
2008-07-13 00:17:00
HELEN COLWELL ADAMS
County department heads getting invitations at their offices to a county commissioner's fundraiser. The same commissioner being accused of pressuring potential political opponents who are also county employees to drop out of a political race. Questions about whether it was proper for t......
2008-07-13 00:16:00
HELEN COLWELL ADAMS
The Lancaster County Government Study Commission tweaked the proposed home rule charter on Tuesday, but by Saturday, it appeared that the changes satisfied few. Two days after the Tuesday, July 8, GSC meeting, the county Republican committee voted overwhelmingly to encourage voters to reject th......
2008-07-13 00:06:00
STAFF
ARTICLE VII: ACCOUNTABILITY, CONDUCT AND ETHICS
Section 7.01 Accountability, Conduct and Ethics Code. The Board of County Commissioners shall establish by ordinance an Accountability, Conduct and Ethics Code covering all elected County officials, candidates f......
2008-07-11 01:45:00
JEFF HAWKES
Lancaster County Democrats, have a word with your leader. Please.Bruce Beardsley, your unfailingly optimistic, indefatigable county chairman, is in need of a reality check.While Beardsley is a courageous partisan, always marching the flag of Democratic values into the gale of Lancas......
2008-07-09 01:20:00
P.J. REILLY
The home-rule charter put to Lancaster County voters in November will not call for electing commissioners by district, the Government Study Commission decided Tuesday. Member Sam Mecum, who proposed the districting idea, said rejecting it could doom the charter's chances of ratification....
2008-07-06 00:16:00
HELEN COLWELL ADAMS
At first, Jim Miller wasn't thrilled with the idea of giving citizens access to the ballot in the county's home-rule charter. But the arguments for "initiative and referendum" changed his mind. Based on citizen input, Miller, a member of the Lancaster County Government St......
2008-07-06 00:12:00
STAFF
ARTICLE VI: INITIATIVE AND REFERENDUM
Section 6.01 Initiative. a. The citizens of the County have the power to propose ordinances by petition for consideration by the Board of County Commissioners. Each registered voter of the County signing an initiativ......
2008-07-02 01:21:00
P.J. REILLY
A developed portion of Weaverland Mennonite Reception Center's property in Earl and Ephrata townships will be tax exempt in the future.The county's board of assessment appeals approved the exemption last month because the center is used for religious purposes.But requests by......
2008-06-29 00:18:00
HELEN COLWELL ADAMS
Between 1999 and 2007, Lancaster County government's debt exploded from $46 million to $253 million — a 550 percent increase. "The rate of growth in annual debt service as a consequence was also alarming," Lancaster County Government Study Commission Vice Chairman John Smuck......
2008-06-29 00:10:00
STAFF
ARTICLE V: BUDGET AND FINANCE
Section 5.01 Fiscal Year. The fiscal year of the County shall commence on the first day of January and conclude on the last day of December of each year. Section 5.02 Budget Adoption Process. The Board of County Commissioner......
2008-06-26 00:01:00
P.J. REILLY
Charles E. Douts Jr. said Wednesday he's a man who likes a challenge.And the 53-year-old Washington Boro resident admits he'll likely have many of those as Lancaster County's new administrator.The county commissioners at their weekly meeting Wednesday morning announced t......
2008-06-25 00:02:00
P.J. REILLY
Former Lancaster County administrator Mark Esterbrook is poised to take the helm of Community Action Program of Lancaster County.Esterbrook and CAP officials this week confirmed that he has been offered the position of CAP chief executive officer.Although Esterbrook said he is confi......
2008-06-22 00:15:00
HELEN COLWELL ADAMS
In home rule math, 11 minus 4 could equal $500,000 in five years. That is, advocates of a proposed home rule charter for county government say, combining three of 11 "row offices" into one, and eliminating two others, could yield a half-million in savings within five years. Taxpa......
2008-06-22 00:11:00
STAFF
ARTICLE IV: OTHER ELECTED OFFICIALS
Section 4.01 Other Elected Offices. In addition to members of the Board of County Commissioners, the County offices to be filled by election pursuant to this charter are: 1. District Attorney 2. Sheriff 3. Co......
2008-06-20 01:32:00
P.J. REILLY
With the sun warming his back, George Way spent Thursday evening trimming the hedges on his Elizabeth Township property at 214 Fox Road.Way should have been working in the shade, given all the tall trees standing on his manicured lawn.Gypsy moth caterpillars took care of that, howev......
2008-06-18 00:35:00
P.J. REILLY
The Amtrak train station in Elizabethtown has seen a lot of traffic in recent years.With gas prices climbing, it could get busier.Even if use of the station doesn't increase, borough officials recognize it needs a facelift.Its platforms are badly in need of repair, its pa......
2008-06-15 00:18:00
HELEN COLWELL ADAMS
Since 2004, county government has run through three county administrators, and the job is vacant again. The responsibilities of the administrator have seesawed, too. The home rule charter up for voter approval on Nov. 4 aims to bring stability to the office by codifying the administrator's ......
2008-06-15 00:12:00
STAFF
ARTICLE III: EXECUTIVE BRANCH
Section 3.01 Executive and Administrative Power. The executive and administrative power of the county shall be vested in the Executive Branch. The Executive Branch shall consist of the County Administrator, the Office of Manageme......
2008-06-12 01:24:00
P.J. REILLY
Mount Joy Borough police Chief John O'Connell doesn't want his cops sitting in the police station doing paperwork or baby-sitting prisoners.He wants them on the street, protecting the public.But if one of O'Connell's officers makes an arrest that requires an arraignm......
2008-06-11 11:00:00
CHAD UMBLE
Three days of discussions on crime in Lancaster County began this morning with an encouragement to use federal resources to help enforce laws and prevent crime. United States Attorney Patrick Meehan told some 40 law enforcement officials, government agents and social service workers attending t......
2008-06-10 01:43:00
P.J. REILLY
Barely a month before the current county commissioners took office in January, a grim report was delivered to their predecessors.Prepared by consulting firm L. Robert Kimball & Associates to forecast a future for Lancaster County Prison, the report indicated the East King Street facili......
2008-06-08 00:19:00
HELEN COLWELL ADAMS
People view Lancaster County as simple and bucolic. But with a mix of urban core, growing suburbs and rural areas, political scientist Victor DeSantis argues, the county is far more complex than its image. With complexity, he says, comes a need for more professional expertise in government....
2008-06-04 00:25:00
P.J. REILLY
Lancaster County Government Study Commission on Tuesday began plotting a strategy to reach out to as many county residents as possible — without spending more than $50,000.The commission's goal is to educate the public prior to the Nov. 4 general election about the home-rule char......
2008-06-04 00:17:00
P.J. REILLY
The Lancaster County commissioners today are expected to authorize the county Housing and Redevelopment Authority to award $490,000 in federal grants for fiscal year 2008.The money would be divided among 12 local community-service organizations for programs ranging from dental care to coun......
2008-06-01 00:19:00
HELEN COLWELL ADAMS
Part one of 10
Since the 18th century, Lancaster County government, like almost all the 67 counties in Pennsylvania, has been a creature of state government. If voters agree on Nov. 4, county government will become an entity shaped by the people. That's the ration......
2008-05-28 01:15:00
P.J. REILLY
On one cold, January night this year, United Way of Lancaster County officials counted 633 homeless people staying at area shelters.Another 74 were literally living on the streets, said Tom Clingan, the United Way's director of homelessness and affordable housing."I don'......
2008-05-23 01:33:00
LARRY ALEXANDER
It is a tribute to Lancaster County's emergency responders who have died in the line of duty.A life-size statue depicting a police officer, a firefighter and an emergency medical technician arrived Thursday at Lancaster County Public Safety Training Center, where it will become the cen......
2008-05-22 11:00:00
JACK BRUBAKER
The former Lancaster County Commissioners had no reason to protect Gary Heinke from problems of his own making, according to a reply by one of those commissioners to a lawsuit filed by Heinke. The county's former human services director claimed in a suit filed in September that the commissioner......
2008-05-22 02:14:00
P.J. REILLY and JOHN WALK
Assistant District Attorney Monica Mosley has been all but shouting from the rooftops trying to find volunteers in Lancaster city willing to sit on city youth aid panels.So far, however, her words have fallen on deaf ears."For whatever reason, we're not getting the support ......
2008-05-21 01:23:00
P.J. REILLY
Lancaster County commissioners want to bring home the lawsuit regarding the county's taking of the building and property at 150 N. Queen St.In a motion filed last week in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, the commissioners argue there is no reason the suit f......
2008-05-17 00:49:00
KIM O’BRIEN
"Today's Trash. Tomorrow's Green Energy." That's the logo you'll see on Lancaster County Solid Waste Management Authority trucks driving to and from their Harrisburg Pike complex.LCSWMA has taken its goal to manage solid waste and recyclables one step further with......
2008-05-16 01:32:00
P.J. REILLY
It's been 19 years since Conrail first moved to abandon the train tracks that stretch across southern Lancaster County.And ever since then, the owner of the 23-mile Enola Low-Grade Line — which is now Norfolk Southern — has been trying to unload it.It now appears own......
2008-05-15 01:04:00
MICHAEL YODER
They crawl through the sheets late at night to suck the blood of unwitting victims. A common saying pays them prominent homage.Lancaster County residents may be sleeping tight, but the bedbugs are biting. The critters have reappeared locally to nibble on deep sleepers from all walks of lif......
2008-05-14 01:04:00
P.J. REILLY
Lancaster County commissioners are hoping to find a new county administrator locally."We decided to confine our search to the Lancaster region because we feel it's important to have someone who knows Lancaster County," Commissioners Chairman Dennis Stuckey said.The cou......
2008-05-13 01:01:00
JEFF HAWKES
Although he's given home rule the thumbs down, Jim Bednar has unwittingly made a case for a home-rule charter.Bednar, a former county GOP chairman, would be the last person to see it that way. He's certainly been consistent in opposing home rule.Last summer, Bednar was in th......
2008-05-13 00:31:00
P.J. REILLY
Lancaster County is as "prepared as we can be, given the resources we have" to deal with a health pandemic, Randy Gockley, the county's emergency management director, said.But that doesn't mean the county could handle a crisis, he said."We could be overwhelmed......
2008-05-12 11:30:00
JACK BRUBAKER
The 5-year-old boy fell violently ill following a vacation trip to New England. His worried parents consulted medical experts. Tests confirmed that their son had contracted E. coli. Doctors told the parents to contact health departments in New England and Pennsylvania. Within four days, a ......
2008-05-08 01:33:00
P.J. REILLY
Lancaster County commissioners on Wednesday voted to hire a former county administrator to audit the county's human resources department and to help find a new director for that department.Timothea Kirchner, who was the county's highest-ranking employee from 1996-2004, will take on......
2008-05-07 01:11:00
P.J. REILLY
The clock is now ticking on whether Lancaster County becomes a home-rule county.Members of the county Government Study Commission on Tuesday voted 8-3 in favor of officially proposing a home-rule charter that calls for, among other changes to the current form of county government: expandin......
2008-05-06 11:20:00
CHAD UMBLE
County Commissioners Dennis Stuckey, Scott Martin and Craig Lehman took office four months ago vowing to change the tone in the fifth floor of the county courthouse. So far, the three new commissioners appear to have largely fulfilled that promise, winning praise from some government watchers a......
2008-05-04 00:17:00
HELEN COLWELL ADAMS
The home rule charter that county voters will be asked to approve in November apparently will give more power to the people. At the end of three public hearings, members of the Government Study Commission tentatively agreed Saturday to expand citizen access to the ballot by providing more right......
2008-05-03 01:40:00
P.J. REILLY
Timothea Kirchner and the Stevens & Lee law firm both are poised for a return to Lancaster County government. At their weekly meeting Wednesday, the county commissioners are expected to consider hiring Kirchner as principal consultant for Financial S&lutions to study the county's human ......
2008-04-30 01:08:00
P.J. REILLY
Lancaster County commissioners today are expected to make preparations for a long battle with the former owner of the building at 150 N. Queen St.The commissioners plan to hire the Lancaster law firm of Barley Snyder at a rate of $260 per hour to serve as special counsel.The firm wo......
2008-04-27 00:19:00
GIL SMART
Here we go again. Maybe. The convention center and hotel being built on Penn Square have been the subject of several lawsuits since 1999. Now it appears another one could be in the works — if county commissioners dare to hike the hotel tax that helps pay for the project. In a Ma......
2008-04-25 00:37:00
P.J. REILLY
Lancaster County Department of Parks and Recreation plans to spray some parkland on Welsh Mountain to kill gypsy moth caterpillars.Jim Hackett, director of the department, said a contractor will be hired to spray by airplane 200 acres of the forested, 377-acre Money Rocks County Park in Ea......
2008-04-24 00:51:00
P.J. REILLY
The state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources is gearing up once again to combat gypsy moth caterpillars.And while the state agency plans this spring to triple the number of acres across the state that it sprayed from helicopters and airplanes last year to suppress the leaf-ea......
2008-04-23 02:25:00
P.J. REILLY
West Lampeter Township supervisor Lloyd Smucker on Tuesday easily won the hotly contested primary race for the Republican nomination for the state Senate seat in the 13th District.And while he celebrated that victory over Steve McDonald, Paul Thibault and Bill Neff — which featured a......
2008-04-18 01:49:00
P.J. REILLY
Lancaster County's proposed home-rule charter was publicly unveiled to mixed reviews Thursday night.To Steve Geisenberger of Manheim Township, the charter represents a chance for county residents to dictate, at least in part, how they want to be governed."If we want to chan......
2008-04-16 11:05:00
BERNARD HARRIS
The differences between the four Republican candidates for the 13th state Senate District lie in the details. All the candidates — West Lampeter Supervisor Lloyd Smucker, former County Commissioner Paul Thibault, county Recorder of Deeds Steve McDonald and businessman Bill Neff — de......
2008-04-16 01:17:00
P.J. REILLY
The idea of Lancaster County having its own public health department has been around for decades.In 1967, for instance, county voters narrowly defeated a referendum that would have created such a department.Since 2004, United Way of Lancaster County has spearheaded the latest campai......
2008-04-16 01:04:00
P.J. REILLY
Conewago Recreation Trail outside Elizabethtown got a makeover last year.Now, it's Lancaster Junction Trail's turn.Lancaster County commissioners are expected to vote today to apply for a $191,450 grant from the state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources to help ......
2008-04-12 00:52:00
LARRY ALEXANDER
The hotly contested race to win the GOP nomination for the state Senate seat in the 13th District got hotter Friday as accusations flew regarding the candidates' latest financial disclosures.Of specific interest to many was the report of West Lampeter Township supervisor Lloyd K. Smuck......
2008-04-11 01:09:00
DAVE PIDGEON
It is "possible but not probable" that Republican Mitt Romney would be Sen. John McCain's pick for vice president, the former Massachusetts governor told the Intelligencer Journal on Thursday.Romney, seen as the favorite to capture the GOP presidential nomination before his c......
2008-04-10 01:47:00
JEFF HAWKES
Why is it not a surprise to find Paul Thibault appealing to a voter's baser instincts?I'm referring to a Thibault campaign mailer that plays on the age-old prejudice that Lancaster County shouldn't have to pay for Philadelphia's problems.The card features a photo of ......
2008-04-10 00:56:00
P.J. REILLY
Acting as the Lancaster County Board of Elections Wednesday, the county commissioners approved a series of polling-place changes for the upcoming April 22 primary election.Mary Stehman, chief clerk of the elections board, said she has received no objections to the changes since they were f......
2008-04-09 01:10:00
P.J. REILLY
Lancaster County commissioners Tuesday approved severance packages for two top employees who recently quit.Former county administrator Mark Esterbrook and Frank Koerber, former deputy administrator for human services, each will receive three months' salary, plus vision and dental insur......
2008-04-09 00:53:00
P.J. REILLY
Education is one thing. Advocacy is another.Members of Lancaster County's government study commission Tuesday told the county commissioners they are prepared to "educate" the public about the soon-to-be-proposed home-rule charter without "advocating" for its adoptio......
2008-04-08 00:09:00
P.J. REILLY
Lancaster County government's top manager has quit.Courthouse sources on Monday said the county commissioners this morning will announce the resignation of Mark Esterbrook as county administrator nearly 13 months after he was hired.He is the fourth high-ranking county employee t......
2008-04-08 00:00:00
JEFF HAWKES
Of the many good-government ideas in the draft home-rule charter that will be on the November ballot, none is more compelling than the document's opening words: "We, the people of Lancaster County."The phrase, echoing the U.S. Constitution, sums up the whole point of home rul......
2008-04-06 00:20:00
GIL SMART
Dennis Stuckey is drawing a line in the sand. He doesn't want the county to borrow any more money this year. In February, the county issued $8.8 million worth of bonds, borrowing so that it might pay the rising costs associated with the project at 150 N. Queen St. There are tentative p......
2008-03-27 00:31:00
P.J. REILLY
Despite being millions over budget and about a year behind schedule, progress is being made on the 150 N. Queen St. project.So reported Mike Myers, operations manager for KCI Technologies, to Lancaster County commissioners on Wednesday regarding the extensive renovations under way at the f......
2008-03-26 11:50:00
JACK BRUBAKER
Gary Heinke's lawsuit against the county and three former county commissioners should be dismissed because it states no cause for which the court could grant relief, according to a legal reply from the county and one of those commissioners. Heinke, the county's first human services dire......
2008-03-26 01:09:00
P.J. REILLY
For decades, public school buildings throughout Lancaster County and the state have been used as polling places, with voters freely entering and exiting the buildings during and after school hours.Ever since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, however, schools here gradually have been c......
2008-03-19 02:15:00
P.J. REILLY
Lancaster County Commissioner Craig Lehman frequently commuted to Harrisburg by train during the 15 years he worked as a budget analyst for state House Democrats.It was a stress-free, comfortable way to travel between Lancaster and the state Capitol, he said."I've always be......
2008-03-13 01:59:00
P.J. REILLY
A year ago, Lancaster County officials said they expected to have a new radio system for local police, fire and ambulance crews up and running by now.It's not. And the realization of such a system took yet another step backward Tuesday.At their weekly work session Tuesday, the c......
2008-03-12 01:47:00
P.J. REILLY
Dr. Ira Trocki wants the former Armstrong building back."I'd be happy to sit down with the county and work out a deal where they'd give me the building back and I'd lease it to them," Trocki, of Ventnor City, N.J., said in a telephone interview Tuesday.Short of......
2008-03-11 11:28:00
JACK BRUBAKER
Lancaster County taxpayers may have to shell out another $7.8 million for a county government building at 150 N. Queen St. that already has cost millions more than anticipated for renovations and other charges. The county originally paid $8.3 million after taking the building by eminent domain ......
2008-03-11 01:28:00
P.J. REILLY
Lancaster County must pay about $7.8 million in additional compensation to the former owner of the building at 150 N. Queen St., which the county took by eminent domain in 2004, paying $8.3 million for it.A three-member "board of view" that reviewed the case ordered the county to......
2008-03-05 01:12:00
P.J. REILLY
There's a thin line between advocacy and education.But the Lancaster County Government Study Commission plans to walk it.On Tuesday, commission members voted to hire the public relations firm Barry Bruce & Co. of Lancaster for $50,000 to help spread the word about the propos......
2008-02-29 01:35:00
DAVE PIDGEON
Republican Lloyd Smucker came under fire Thursday from the national chairman of the Constitution Party for not releasing a donor list detailing who contributed to Smucker's state Senate campaign.Smucker earlier this month told the Sunday News he had raised $185,000 in just two weeks, a......
2008-02-28 01:01:00
P.J. REILLY
Columbia Mayor Leo Lutz says his town has invested 10 years and millions of dollars in an effort to build a bypass and move the truck traffic on Route 441 out of the borough.Though PennDOT has proposed putting the $18 million project on the back burner, Lutz is mounting a campaign to convi......
2008-02-27 11:20:00
CHAD UMBLE
Automation has left Judy Saylor without much to do as the elected Democratic jury commissioner. The massive collating and organizing task she formerly undertook to compile a list of potential jurors is now taken care of by a low-level courthouse employee with a computer. All that remains f......
2008-02-27 01:20:00
P.J. REILLY
The resurrection of an old covered bridge in Ephrata Township will likely begin today.At their weekly meeting this morning, Lancaster County commissioners are expected to hire Rettew Associates Inc. for $199,700 to design and oversee the reconstruction of the former Rettew Mill Road covere......
2008-02-26 02:19:00
P.J. REILLY
Yet another top manager working for Lancaster County is apparently heading out the door.Multiple sources say the county commissioners recently told Frank Koerber, the county's deputy administrator for human services, that he must find a new job.Koerber has not been fired.......
2008-02-26 02:17:00
DAVE PIDGEON
Republican Steve McDonald attacked two of his GOP rivals Monday, saying their support for gun rights is suspect.McDonald, the Lancaster County recorder of deeds who is running for state Senate in the 13th District, took fellow Republicans Lloyd Smucker and Paul Thibault to task for not und......
2008-02-26 00:31:00
P.J. REILLY
Proposed new rules for county parks probably will be put on hold for at least a month while commissioners sort out objections to them.•••Lancaster County commissioners are expected to postpone a vote this week on proposed rules for the ......
2008-02-22 11:12:00
JACK BRUBAKER
Gary Heinke shouldn't have bothered suing the county and three former county commissioners, according to the legal reply of one of those commissioners, Pete Shaub. In a suit filed last September, Heinke alleged that the commissioners had "effectively terminated" him from his $97,0......
2008-02-22 01:17:00
DAVE PIDGEON
A local Republican state Senate candidate announced a scholarship plan Wednesday he said would help college students save money.Paul Thibault, standing on the snowy steps of Millersville University's Biemsderfer University Center, said if elected he would like to expand a controversial tax......
2008-02-21 01:26:00
P.J. REILLY
Forget last week ever happened.That's what the Lancaster County commissioners said Wednesday regarding their meeting of Feb. 13.In response to objections raised by Ron Harper Jr. of Stevens, the commissioners Wednesday reconsidered every item they voted on at the Feb. 13 meeting......
2008-02-19 00:29:00
LARRY ALEXANDER
Manheim Township desperately needs more playing fields for its rapidly expanding youth sports programs.The commissioners have some solutions, and they want residents to come to the next township meeting to hear about them."I urge people to come," Commissioner Carol Simspon......
2008-02-18 01:07:00
DAVE PIDGEON
Sometimes, you can go back where you belong.Lisa Sanchez, a veteran naturalist and educator, stood in a Lancaster County Park pavilion creating maple candy with a portable stove, as a crowd of adults and children listened, waiting for a taste of the sugary treat."We were readin......
2008-02-17 00:16:00
GIL SMART
It was so much fun, they're going to do it all over again. Wednesday morning it was snowing and the county courthouse was opening late. County commissioners were supposed to hold a meeting at 9:15 a.m. but told people the meeting was off. Then they reconsidered and held the meeting any......
2008-02-15 02:31:00
SUSAN E. LINDT
Theater of the Seventh Sister is mixing it up for Valentine's Day with a weekend production of A.R. Gurney's classic love story, "Love Letters," starring a different couple for each performance.You know the names — Thursday's performance starred former Lancaster......
2008-02-15 01:21:00
MICHAEL YODER
With an economic crunch being felt across the spectrum of government programs in Pennsylvania, agricultural preservation is not immune from the dangers of dwindling resources.The Pennsylvania Farmland Preservation Board on Thursday approved $33 million for farm easements across the state i......
2008-02-14 01:06:00
P.J. REILLY
Swimming is not allowed in creeks, rivers and ponds in Lancaster County parks, but wading up to the knee is.After yet another revision, county commissioners Wednesday formally adopted a new slate of rules that will govern the six parks and two rail-trails owned by the county.The com......
2008-02-13 01:00:00
P.J. REILLY
Following a week of public comment, Lancaster County commissioners will vote today on a revised list of proposed regulations for county parks.Gone is a proposed blanket ban on swimming and wading in creeks, rivers and ponds.Gone, too, is a proposed clause requiring equestrians to cl......
2008-02-12 01:43:00
P.J. REILLY
Lancaster County Sheriff Terry Bergman and Diane Fralich, director of the county Office of Domestic Relations, knew they had to do something different.The number of bench warrants being issued to deadbeat parents was growing, along with the amount of money they owed for the care of their c......
2008-02-09 01:45:00
SUSAN E. LINDT
A Friday afternoon e-mail to county department heads announced the dismissal of county human resources director Jane E'del.County board of commissioners Chairman Dennis Stuckey confirmed Friday that E'del was dismissed from the $87,500 position less than three months after taking t......
2008-02-08 01:38:00
P.J. REILLY
On a typical hot day in August, it's common for kids to head to Lancaster County Central Park and take a swim in the Conestoga River.Lore Verne, chief ranger for the county's Department of Parks and Recreation, said his rangers often see those kids and encourage them to get out of ......
2008-02-08 01:34:00
P.J. REILLY
Fired county parks naturalist Lisa Sanchez was back on the job Thursday.She spent much of the day at Lancaster County Environmental Center reorganizing her desk, getting her voice mail back in operation and "reconnecting with coworkers after six weeks," she said."I......
2008-02-07 00:58:00
P.J. REILLY
Lancaster County commissioners on Wednesday tabled until next week a vote on new rules for county parks.Commissioners chairman Dennis Stuckey said the board wants to give the public a chance to review and comment on the proposed rules, which would apply to the six parks and two rail-trails......
2008-02-06 02:21:00
P.J. REILLY
Lancaster County commissioners are set to vote today on new rules for county parks. Among the proposals: No hitting golf balls, no paintball guns, no cruising, and clean up after your horse.•••If a horse defecates on a county trail, doe......
2008-02-01 01:41:00
P.J. REILLY
Lancaster County Commissioners Dennis Stuckey, Scott Martin and Craig Lehman are planning to travel together in one vehicle to the National Association of Counties conference in Washington, D.C., next month.During a special commissioners' meeting on the Pennsylvania Sunshine Act Thursd......
2008-01-31 01:51:00
P.J. REILLY
Lancaster County commissioners painted a bleak picture Wednesday of the renovation project at 150 N. Queen St.The commissioners talked of a need to "stop the bleeding," to "get our arms around what's going on with this project" and "try to contain costs." ......
2008-01-31 01:43:00
LARRY ALEXANDER
The fate of the Crossings At Conestoga Creek is now in the hands of the Manheim Township board of commissioners.The commissioners have been trying to decide if the proposed 646,000-square-foot shopping complex across Harrisburg Pike from Long's Park fits the township's planned comm......
2008-01-31 01:37:00
P.J. REILLY
A help-wanted ad seeking a naturalist to work in the Lancaster County Parks and Recreation Department was posted Jan. 14 on the county's Web site.The commissioners Wednesday morning ordered the removal of the ad, which was an attempt to fill the position created by the controversial fi......
2008-01-30 01:41:00
DAVE PIDGEON
Sharron Nelson may be the newest appointee to the Lancaster County Convention Center Authority board, but she's already mapping out her priorities."We have so much to lose as a city and a county now if it is not successful," said Nelson, who was appointed to the seven-member ......
2008-01-24 01:12:00
DAVE PIDGEON
They entered the night as heavy favorites.They both lost what they wanted.Neither Lloyd Smucker nor Gregory Sahd was able to garner an endorsement from the county Republican committee, despite balloting that stretched from Tuesday night into Wednesday morning at Conestoga Valley Mid......
2008-01-24 00:58:00
P.J. REILLY
Pressed on how they would decide who will fill Tom LeCrone's seat on the Convention Center Authority board, the county commissioners said it depends on who applies for the position.•••When the former board of Lancaster County Commission......
2008-01-23 11:47:00
TOM MURSE
You take 154 rank-and-file members of the county Republican committee, lock them in a school auditorium for two and a half hours, go through 12 rounds of voting well into the wee hours and what do you get? Not an endorsement. But an open primary. Republican committee people in the 13t......
2008-01-23 01:32:00
DAVE PIDGEON and TOM KNAPP
After several hours and a dozen rounds of back-and-forth voting, the Republican committee was unable to pick a candidate for the 13th Senate District seat.Early this morning, the committee, with its number of voting members dwindling and a deadlock between two candidates, finally called an......
2008-01-22 01:14:00
DAVE PIDGEON
Local Republican leaders are hopeful that one of five state Senate candidates will receive the GOP endorsement at tonight's convention, landing that candidate momentum, cash and a horde of volunteers heading into the April 22 primary.Dave Dumeyer, chairman of the Lancaster County Repub......
2008-01-21 00:35:00
MICHAEL YODER
Colleagues and friends are mourning the loss of Paul F. Paes, a former Lancaster County commissioner and local Republican Party chairman.Paes, 84, died Saturday at his home in Refton.County GOP chairman Dave Dumeyer said he got to know Paes when Dumeyer worked for the House of Repre......
2008-01-18 12:01:00
STAFF REPORT
The Lancaster County Commissioners and other county officials failed to take the correct oath of office two weeks ago and should be removed from office, says a frequent critic of local courts.But the court that administered the oath says the critic is wrong.Ron Harper Jr., publisher......
2008-01-17 01:51:00
P.J. REILLY
The first time Lisa Morgan took her son, Joshua, to an environmental-education class led by Lisa Sanchez, she knew her son was in good hands."He loved her. She was so enthusiastic," said Mrs. Morgan, of Manor Township. "He did stream studies, and she had crayfish hanging fro......
2008-01-17 01:35:00
DAVE PIDGEON
Republican Steve McDonald will no longer ask the local GOP to back his bid for state Senate, although he intends to campaign all the way to the April 22 primary."I'm not seeking the endorsement," McDonald said during a telephone interview. "That's the only comment I ......
2008-01-16 12:10:00
TIM MEKEEL and CINDY STAUFFER
Former County Commissioner Molly S. Henderson is suing Lancaster Newspapers, alleging it ran a smear campaign against her so she'd be ousted from office. Henderson, in a 48-page lawsuit, claims that she was targeted because of her persistent opposition to the development of a downtown co......
2008-01-16 12:01:00
CHAD UMBLE
Jay Lutz, longtime chairman of the county's Board of Assessment Appeals, has retired, effective today. Lutz, 72, who has served on the board since 1975, said his age, years of service on the board and a new slate of county commissioners coming in made it a natural time for him to leave....
2008-01-16 01:54:00
BRIAN WALLACE and P.J. REILLY
Former Lancaster County Commissioner Molly Henderson has sued Lancaster Newspapers, alleging the company and some of its employees conspired to publish a series of "false and defamatory" news stories and editorials designed to ruin her reputation and turn the public against her.T......
2008-01-12 01:59:00
DAVE PIDGEON
There's something noticeably absent in this year's local legislative campaigns: Democrats.No Democrat, except for incumbent state Rep. Mike Sturla, has stepped up to campaign for the state Legislature.So far, that is.Bruce Beardsley, chairman of the Lancaster County D......
2008-01-10 12:24:00
JACK BRUBAKER
A year ago today, a grand jury blasted the county's commissioners for secretly manipulating the sale of the county nursing home and the hiring of one of the key administrators responsible for that sale. The jurors released a lengthy report, concluding with 11 recommendations for "le......
2008-01-10 02:30:00
P.J. REILLY
Shortly before concluding their first public meeting Wednesday morning, the three new Lancaster County commissioners talked about their priorities for the next four years.And Republicans Dennis Stuckey and Scott Martin and Democrat Craig Lehman all agreed: Priority No. 1 is the budget.......
2008-01-08 01:42:00
JENNIFER TODD
To sum up the night in one word — bittersweet.While Lancaster City Council sadly bid farewell Monday to two eight-year veterans, it celebrated the addition of new faces and a new president.Patricia Coller, Joe Morales and Nelson Polite Sr., who has served on council since 1996......
2008-01-05 01:49:00
LARRY ALEXANDER
And then there were five.Five Republicans from Lancaster and York counties are vying to fill the seat being vacated by retiring state Sen. Gibson E. Armstrong.The deadline for candidates filing with the Lancaster County GOP in order to win the party's endorsement was 5 p.m. Frid......
2008-01-05 01:39:00
CARLA DI FONZO
Three new commissioners were sworn in during an afternoon ceremony at Lancaster County Courthouse Friday.During the benediction, the Rev. Louis A. Butcher of Bright Side Baptist Church wished Scott Martin, Craig Lehman and Dennis Stuckey well, then suggested to everyone in the ceremonial c......
2008-01-03 02:11:00
P.J. REILLY
Despite all the controversy surrounding their four years in office, Lancaster County commissioners Dick Shellenberger and Molly Henderson are proud of their service records and of what they believe they accomplished.They discussed those accomplishments during and after a tearful public mee......
2008-01-03 01:46:00
DAVE PIDGEON
A local businessman has entered the Republican race to replace retiring state Sen. Gibson Armstrong, making it a three-way contest.Bill Neff, 54, owner of Neff's Safe, Lock & Security Inc. in Lancaster city, cited campaign finance reform, school vouchers and the defense of traditio......
2007-12-30 00:20:00
HELEN COLWELL ADAMS
Another year. Another cable-news spotlight on Lancaster County. In 2005, it was David Ludwig killing his teenage girlfriend's parents in Lititz. In 2006, it was Jesse Dee Wise killing six family members in Leola — followed by Charlie Roberts killing five Amish schoolgirls in......
2007-12-28 11:54:00
JANET KELLEY and ROBYN MEADOWS
Conservationists are applauding a state Supreme Court ruling Thursday that said county officials have the right to a voice in the use of preserved farmland. In its opinion, the justices overturned an earlier, lower-court decision that gave the Ephrata School District permission to build a 50-fo......
2007-12-21 12:00:00
ANYA LITVAK
The Lancaster County Republican Party has submitted its choice to replace controller Dennis Stuckey when he becomes commissioner next month. Keith Greiner, 42, a certified public accountant and Upper Leacock Township supervisor, is being nominated for appointment by the governor, subject to the......
2007-12-20 01:39:00
P.J. REILLY
After approving the third tax hike in four years, the county commissioners voted to set aside $9.3 million for farmland preservation.•••Lancaster County commissioners Wednesday approved a 7.1 percent tax hike for 2008.That means ......
2007-12-19 12:06:00
CHAD UMBLE
County commissioners unanimously approved a 2008 budget this morning, finalizing a spending plan that includes a 7.1 percent tax hike. The new tax rate means a homeowner with a property assessed at $145,000 — the county average — will pay $495 in real estate taxes next year, or $33 ......
2007-12-19 01:18:00
P.J. REILLY
Welsh Mountain Medical & Dental Center provides dental care to children who don't otherwise get the chance to have their teeth checked.However, if parents today sign up their child for a checkup, it's likely to be two years before he or she sees a dentist because the center already has......
2007-12-17 00:52:00
CARLA DI FONZO
Paul Thibault, who finished his second term as county commissioner in 2004, is now the second declared candidate for the 13th District seat that will be vacated next year by state Sen. Gibson E. Armstrong.The Lancaster Township Republican committee chairman joins county Recorder of Deeds S......
2007-12-14 12:26:00
CHAD UMBLE
On Monday, Manheim Township Commissioners unanimously approved a township budget for 2008 that details $15.9 million in general government expenses — a 6.6-percent increase over 2007. Despite the new spending, the 2008 budget will keep real estate taxes at 1.9 mills, a rate that hasn'......
2007-12-11 11:59:00
ANYA LITVAK
When parts of Central Market went dark last month, the power outage illuminated some electrical infrastructure upgrades needed at the Lancaster City landmark. The Central Market Trust, hoping to get some extra help with the bills, has appealed to the Lancaster County Commissioners for anothe......
2007-12-10 00:02:00
DAVE PIDGEON
It would be hard to decipher what's going on in Harrisburg these days without considering it in the context of the 2008 legislative elections.A great example is the current row between Republicans and Democrats (including Gov. Ed Rendell) over providing health insurance for the more th......
2007-12-07 01:47:00
DAVE PIDGEON
Molly Henderson injected nearly $70,000 of her own money into her failed campaign to win a second term as a Lancaster County commissioner, far outpacing what her opponents spent of their own money.Thursday was the deadline for candidates to submit their 30-day postelection campaign-finance......
