LOCK HAVEN — Lock Haven City Council has preliminarily approved a use request for Peddie Park, the city beach and other city property for a new event.

Mark “The Shark” Schlesinger, of Schlesinger Communications, and Lock Haven Fire Department Chief Tyler Wooding attended council’s first meeting of 2025 to make the request — which would give permission to utilize Peddie Park, the city beach, Perry’s Alley and a portion of North Vesper Street for a fundraising floating event on Aug. 17 from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Schlesinger told council fundraising and awareness for what the fire department does is a key component on why they made the request.

According to the proposal, participants would enter the Susquehanna River at Peddie Park and float down to the city beach where they’d exit.

Floats, the proposal said, would be limited to innertubes, floats, small inflatable rafts and other similar items.

The hope ultimately is to have a bus service transport participants from the downtown area to the park along state Route 120.

According to the request, Schlesinger and the fire department are requesting the alley and the 400 block of North Vesper Street be closed to traffic. The proposal notes the loop at the end of North Vesper near the entrance to the levee would be used for registration and flow of transport buses.

Perry’s Alley would be used to contain food vendors with fire apparatus parked along the eastern side of Vesper Street for public viewing.

Proceeds from the registration to float down the river for this event will be donated to the department’s two fire companies — East Side and Citizens Hose.

Council unanimously approved the use request on its first reading with a second reading expected to take place at its Jan. 20 meeting.

PUBLIC NOTICES

Council heard from a resident of South Fairview Street regarding its posting of public meeting notices — particularly for its Zoning Hearing Board.

The issue at hand regarded two separate incidents where rezoning requests were brought to the city’s Zoning Hearing Board for the former Dickey Elementary School property.

In December, the board voted down requests made by engineering firm Quandel, which was proposing to tear down the existing structure to place a 40-unit senior living facility for individuals 62 and older.

The proposal also included the creation of on-site parking that would house 46 parking spaces — with the group proposing a reduction in the number of assigned parking spaces per unit from three to one.

Quandel requested the reduction in parking spaces as well as a use variance to upgrade the property from its current residential low density to residential medium density.

Following the denial, Code Enforcement Officer Cyndi Walker — who first spoke to council about the proposal during its budget discussions in December — told The Express she isn’t certain if Quandel will proceed with the project.

“They have the option to appeal the decision of the Zoning Hearing Board — which would be heard by the Court of Common Pleas. They could amend their plans and make another request or they could simply do nothing,” Walker said. “At this point we (the city) have not received anything official from them.”

Walker previously told council Quandel had worked with city staff to develop the potential plan for the property.

Bill Spedding, who lives near the property, said this was the second time a potential plan for the property was brought to the Zoning Hearing Board without prior notification to neighboring properties.

The first attempt was made by the Clinton County Housing Authority, which had looked at the property to place affordable housing. That project did not include the complete removal of the existing structure, but rehabilitation.

“Both times they were defeated because of a review by the Zoning Hearing Board,” Spedding said. “In the latest go around someone with the city noted they’d been working with a developer for six months.”

Spedding asked council if it would be possible to post notices for Zoning Hearing Board meetings on its website, with agenda items to allow the public an opportunity to comment on projects earlier in their planning phases.

“If there’s going to be another application for a variance there, and someone is working with a developer for months, perhaps the city and land developer could contact the neighbors and get them involved early as opposed to working on it for six months and going to the Zoning Hearing Board… making it an all or nothing proposition,” Spedding said. “Maybe we can come to some kind of compromise.”

Spedding ultimately asked council if meeting notices for boards and authorities could be posted to the city’s website — www.lockhavenpa.gov — similar to its own meetings.

“If you put them there it gives the opportunity for the public to go to the meeting and see the plan as it’s developed,” he said. “It’s been there twice, both times we were uninvolved.”

It was noted by City Manager Greg Wilson and Community Life Director Kasey Dumm the city’s website is currently being updated and meeting notices could potentially be added.

Councilmember Steve Stevenson said the city posts all public meeting notices in The Express per state guidelines.

In other business council:

— Approved, on its first reading, the closure of North Vesper Street from East Main Street to Jordan’s Alley for June 28 by Uncle Albert’s. The use request will be up for second reading at council’s next meeting.

— Approved a use request for Zindel Park on Sept. 6 for a youth trail run.

— Entered into an agreement for the purchase of land for two wellhead protection areas — Plow Holdings LP and S. and A. Matz — for the city’s ongoing dam improvement projects.

— Received notification of a 2024 disbursement of Opioid Trust funds in the amount of $37,353.96.

— Received notice from the Keystone Central School District that its tax office would no longer be the subcontractor for the collection of Earned Income Tax “as soon as feasible.”

— Authorized the solicitation of bids for Sunset Pines Phase II project.

— Briefly discussed elected official compensation rates. Wilson told council the matter is brought up periodically, with council able to consider adjusting the rates for both members and the mayor. He noted those rates wouldn’t go into effect until 2026 for council members and 2028 for the mayor position. No members moved to discuss the matter further.

Council’s next meeting will be held on Monday, Jan. 20, at 7 p.m., in council chambers.