After a special meeting held yesterday morning, Snyder Township supervisors and representatives from Kunzler & Company, Inc., reached an agreement so the bacon manufacturer’s 22,000 square foot expansion project can continue as planned.
Township solicitor Allen Gibboney said four issues needed to be addressed, including: the township’s approval of Kunzler’s map revision request; storm water management approval; land development ordinance status; and a building permit to be issued by the township.
The first step at resolving the issue was that Bill Gohn of the EADS Group, and township engineer, issued a letter to supervisors at the meeting that endorsed the approval of the map-revision request.
Motioned by supervisor Jim Chronister and seconded by chairman Charlie Diehl, Resolution 2004-8 to sign the overview and concurrence form from the Federal Emergency Management Agency for Kunzler’s was therefore adopted by supervisors.
To address the other three issues, Gibboney then proposed a plan where there would be a written understanding between the township and Kunzler’s so that all ordinances would be met in the future and so that construction could continue on the expansion project at the same time. The written proposal would result into conditional approval with Kunzler’s for a building permit.
Both the supervisors and representatives from Kunzler’s agreed to the proposed plan. It was determined Gibboney would meet with Kunzler’s engineer Dan Fichtner to work on the written proposal. Then, the EADS Group engineers would look it over. The written proposal is scheduled to be completed by the next regularly scheduled township meeting on March 1.
Also at the meeting, vice president and plant general manager of Kunzler’s Dave Grazier, told supervisors the company has created a large detention pond which stops flooding across the road and down stream of where the current building is located. He also said Kunzler’s has spent $50,000 on the most recent flood plain study already.
“You can do all the paperwork you want, but common sense will tell you what we’ve done has helped it,” Grazier told supervisors at the meeting. “My whole effort here is we have 50 people we can get to work. We’re not going to affect our neighbors (with storm water) around us. We want to move forward on this.”
Diehl reassured representatives from Kunzler’s by saying during the meeting, “For the meantime you’re under construction right now. We didn’t shut the project down.”
Supervisors were in agreement they wanted to do everything in the township’s power to keep the expansion project moving, but they also wanted to follow the ordinances set in place to protect the public.
Grazier is hoping the building expansion project can be completed by May and that it will be opened at the end of May. The project will create 25-50 new jobs for the area.
