Local News

Barrett Township Halloween Parade
Sunday, October 24th, 2021 • 2pm
(Rain Date 10/31/21)

Scarecrowville
October 1st - October 31st
Residents throughout Barrett Township

Saturday, September 25th, 2021 • 12pm - 4pm
    (Rain Date 9/26/21)
    Hosted @ the former
    Barrett Elementary Center in Cresco

Details:
http://rotaryclubofthepoconomountains.com/concert-in-the-park/

I recently filed a Right to Know request about our township's job openings, asking for a copy of any help wanted, job opening, or career opportunity posting that the township put together in the last 5 years.  In 2019 Barrett Township reported almost $400,000 in payroll expenses so it would make sense that they regularly post ads and hold interviews, right?

Wrong.

The RTK response came back indicating the "records do not exist."

In other words, the Township has filled all of its employment needs by hiring people from within its own network, rather than advertising the openings and interviewing the best candidates for the positions.  

(source)

This started out as a simple request for a 5 year budget comparison. When the township treasurer was unable to provide the requested financial report, I requested the Quickbooks data file, so I could create the report myself. The response wobbled: first the RTK request response said that Quickbooks data is unavailable. Then I asked more questions and it turns out that they do have that Quickbooks file, now they are saying they can't share it because it has confidential information.

Which is it?

(Read the full article on my blog)

Editor's Note:
Rosemary Brown has been doing a series on local school budgets and funding, the first two were for other school districts in our area so I didn't include them.  Last week she sent out details about Pocono Mountain School district so here they are:

Weekly Series (3 of 5)
Education quality and funding continues to be a priority of mine, as well as creating an environment and policies that help reduce the rate of our school property tax bills.

For a deeper understanding of our education funding locally, we will review school district funding within the 189th Legislative District. (Including East Stroudsburg, Stroudsburg, Pleasant Valley, Pocono Mountain and Delaware Valley school districts). Over the last 10 years in my position as your state representative, we have made tremendous progress in improving state funding to our school districts, and although it is not perfect, the progress has been strong, which you will see.

Northeast PA Redistricting Regional Hearing:
1pm on Monday October 18, 2021 at The Sidney and Pauline Friedman Jewish Community Center

Rescheduling details:

Please be advised that the Northeast Regional Hearing on Congressional Redistricting originally scheduled for 1 p.m. on Monday, Sept. 20, will now be held at 1 p.m. on Monday, Oct. 18. The hearing will still be held at the Sidney and Pauline Friedman Jewish Community Center, Cohen Family Social Hall, 613 S J Strauss Ln, Kingston.

The reschedule was necessary because the state House of Representatives has been called to Session in Harrisburg the week of Sept. 20. The Chair of the House State Government Committee apologizes for the inconvenience.

As a reminder, written testimony is required in order to be placed on the schedule. Please be advised that due to recent changes to the Sunshine Law, subject matter of testimony must be confined to the hearing topic only. Testimony outside of the scope of the hearing will not be permitted.

Details:
http://paredistricting.com/Nehearing

(This post will be updated with sample ballots and additional information - stay tuned)

Edit 9/9/21:
Remember to sign the petition to reduce the number of Supervisors from 5 to 3

Locations:

Barrett 1
Barrett Township Municipal Building, 993 Route 390, Cresco, PA 18326

Barrett 2
Mountainhome United Methodist Church Annex, 6680 Route 191, Mountainhome, PA 18342

Don’t wait until it’s too late – register to vote now.

If you’re already registered, but didn’t vote last November or in the primary in May, you may want to check your registration status here for confirmation. That’s also a good way to verify your voting location.  

Elijah Johnathan Johnson, of the Canadensis area of Barrett Township, died of multiple gunshot wounds, and Northampton County Coroner Zach ...

A 20-year-old Monroe County man was killed Sunday afternoon in the parking lot shootout that sent shocked shoppers scrambling outside Target in the Lower Nazareth Commons shopping center.

Elijah Johnathan Johnson, of the Canadensis area of Barrett Township, died of multiple gunshot wounds, and Northampton County Coroner Zach Lysek ruled his death a homicide.

The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation announces the following road work this week, but be advised that road work schedules may change as needed during COVID-19 mitigation or due to changes in the weather:

• Barrett Township, Route 191 drainage between Route 390 and County Line, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. through Friday.

PUBLIC NOTICE PUBLIC HEARING NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the UCC Board of Appeals of Barrett Township has scheduled a Public Hearing at the Barrett Township Municipal Building, 993 Route 390, Cresco, Monroe County, Pennsylvania 18326 on Thursday, August 12, 2021 at 6 p.m. for consideration of the following, to wit: A hearing on the appeal of Congregation Ohr Menachem from the April 14, 2021 denial by the Barrett Township Construction Code Official of a requested building permit and corresponding determinations that: 1) an automatic fire sprinkler system is required; 2) additional detail is required for the 3rd floor accessible ramp; 3) the fastening schedule for the drywall is incorrect; and 4) the interior wall and ceiling finish requirements are incorrect. The appeal is related to the proposed renovation of portions of the property located at 180 Glenmere Road, Canadensis, PA 18325 (Property Identification Number 01638801455458). The property is owned by Congregation Ohr Menachem. Copies of the application may be examined without charge or obtained for a charge not greater than the actual cost of reproduction thereof at the Barrett Township Municipal Building, Cresco, Pennsylvania, during regular business hours. If you are a person with a disability and require auxiliary aid, service or other accommodation to participate in the proceedings, please contact the Township at (570) 595-2602, to discuss how your needs may be accommodated. UCC BOARD OF APPEALS OF BARRETT TOWNSHIP Geoffrey S. Worthington, Esq. Durney, Worthington & Madden, LLC 2937 Route 611 P.O. Box 536 Tannersville, PA 18372 P - July 25

On Saturday, August 7th, the Barrett Paradise Friendly Library will host our 2021 L.O.L. Comedy Night at Buck Hill Falls’ Tennis Tea. This Library benefit includes dinner, a live auction, a silent auction, and a hilarious evening of entertainment with comedians from New York City.

Details:
https://www.barrettlibrary.org/event/comedy-night-benefit-for-the-library/