Jul 23, 2015 3 min read

The Greene County Planning Commission will conduct a special meeting Monday night to decide whether to reapprove a site plan for a proposed drug treatment clinic in Cumberland Township.

The 7 p.m. meeting inside the county office building is needed after Jason and Heidi Whipkey, the nearest property owners to the proposed clinic at Paisley Industrial Park, were never notified of the previous meeting on June 8 when the planning commission gave conditional final approval to the site plan.

“We’re giving the Whipkeys their rightful opportunity to discuss this with the planning commission,” Greene County Economic Development Director Robbie Matesic said.

All other nearby property owners were also notified again of the meeting and can speak about the proposal or ask for certain conditions, such as buffers, fencing and lighting, she said. Matesic added any conditions must be set by the township’s zoning board.

The proposed methadone clinic has stirred up protests from township residents who demanded that township officials reject the plan or hold a hearing to set conditions on the project. Cumberland Township officials previously said they did not think they were required to hold a hearing to discuss the plan and that it fits with the municipality’s zoning rules.

It was not known whether the planning commission would rescind and reject its previous site plan approval over the new concerns that the clinic was not subjected to a local zoning hearing before approval. Kevin O’Malley, the planning commission’s solicitor, wrote to the township in early June explaining that it was his board’s opinion that a zoning hearing should be held to grant the clinic a special exception.

“We continue to believe a zoning hearing is appropriate and compliant with the ordinance,” Matesic said, adding that the township’s zoning board has the final say on the interpretation of the zoning ordinance and whether to set any conditions. “We believe conducting a zoning hearing would be the proper step.”

Cumberland Township Board of Supervisors Chairman William Groves said they have no plans to reverse course and hold a zoning hearing on the issue. He added the township is not expected to send a representative to Monday night’s meeting.

“That’s their meeting and we don’t usually attend their meetings,” he said. “We could change our mind and someone could be going.”

The planning commission will also decide whether to recommend enforcement action against Coontz Excavating located at 1920 Route 88 in Monongahela Township over accusations that the company is discharging water into a roadway drainage system that leads to a neighboring property’s pasture. The planning commission will decide whether to recommend that the county commissioners take action for violating the building and site plan approved in 2011.