Township supervisors’ vote to appeal court ruling fails
A motion by Cecil Township supervisors to appeal the state Commonwealth Court’s recent ruling that the township’s zoning hearing board erred when it denied a Marcellus Shale company’s application for a natural gas compressor station failed Monday.
The vote, which came after 2 ½ -hours of public comment, failed 3-2.
Supervisors Thomas Casciola, Elizabeth Cowden and Frank Ludwin opposed the motion to appeal, while supervisors Cindy Fisher and Andy Schrader were in favor.
According to the opinion issued by the court, the township has 45 days to approve MarkWest’s application for the compressor station on Route 980.
Solicitor John Smith said the zoning hearing board can vote to appeal the court’s decision.
MarkWest, which operates a natural gas processing plant in Houston, submitted an application in November 2010 to construct a compressor station in Cecil Township’s light industrial district. The property is about a half-mile north of the intersection of Route 980 and Route 50. It is adjacent to residential districts, and the facility would be constructed at least 1,000 feet away from residents’ homes.
According to Cecil Township’s 2010 ordinance, natural gas compressor stations are permitted as long as they comply with the township’s Unified Development Ordinance, which allows them by special exception. That use is “expressly permitted by the zoning ordinance, absent a showing of a detrimental effect on the community,” according to the court opinion written by Judge Anne E. Covey.
The zoning board denied MarkWest’s application in March 2011, stating it did not satisfy the UDO’s requirements. MarkWest filed an appeal in April 2011, and Range Resources intervened in May 2011 as a property owner or tenant. Washington County Common Pleas Court affirmed the zoning board’s decision in January 2013, and the two parties again appealed.
The zoning board argued the compressor station is not of the same general character as other permitted uses in that district, and its impact on the environment would be greater than other uses.
More than a hundred residents attended the meeting, and about a dozen shared their concerns about and support for the compressor station during the meeting.
Following the vote, resident Melanie Dawson, who has two children, said she was disappointed with the board’s decision.
“I’m just upset. I feel the monetary issue seems to be so much more important than the health issue,” said Dawson. “It makes me sick that the health and safety of our children is not a priority.”
Other residents, including Dave Martincic, said they were happy with the outcome.
“I think Cecil Township needs to progress and move forward and bring in new industry,” he said.