Home >  Local News >  Neighborhoods

Wednesday, July 16, 2003

By Lori Shontz, Post-Gazette Staff Writer

The certified letter that arrived last week at Bob Logue's house -- about 500 feet from a proposed racetrack/casino development in Hays -- was one page long and it wasn't easy for him to understand.

In complicated legal terminology, the letter provided details about the blasting that would take place on the site in advance of a planned strip-mining operation.

"The letter is kind of intimidating," he said.

The letter wasn't long enough or straightforward enough for Logue, or for many others who live in the 2,650 households that received the letters.

"It doesn't explain to anybody what's going on here," Logue said. "If you're 80 years old and get something like this, you think the sky's falling. I called and I told them it was a really poor excuse for a letter."

Logue, a member of the Baldwin Borough Citizens Alliance, came up with 42 questions about the project. He hopes to have them answered at a meeting tonight with officials from the state Department of Environmental Protection. The meeting begins at 7 p.m. at the Baldwin Borough meeting room on Churchview Avenue.

Written in strict legal terms, the letter from Hiser Engineering informs all households within a half-mile radius of the proposed development that "overburden blasting" will take place on the site, and it provides information about the possible hours for such blasting and the warning signs that will be posted.

The letter also informs residents that they can request a pre-blast inspection of their property.

Jon Hiser, president and owner of Hiser Engineering, said it is "difficult to hit a happy medium" between fulfilling the legal requirements and explaining the process in detail. His company has chosen to follow the law to the letter and then to field phone calls.

Many people who received the letter, including Hal Holland, who lives on Castleview Drive, were shocked to get it. The half-mile radius includes people who live in Hazelwood and West Homestead as well as people in Hays and Baldwin. Holland, saying there are several hills and valleys between his home and the site, isn't particularly worried.

"If we were on the level where they were blasting, maybe a half-mile, then maybe I'd be worried," he said. "With all those hills and valleys, I don't know."

The pre-blast inspection is a little like inventorying the damage on a rental car before driving it off the lot. Hiser said a third party will inspect each home, if asked, and document the existing condition of the structure.

"Then if the homeowners feel the condition has worsened or a new condition shows up, they can contact the DEP, and then the DEP will look at the records," he said.

Hiser stressed that there is "very rarely" any damage when blasting occurs, saying that he was once involved with a project that shot within 50 feet of an active natural gas well and there were no problems. He said there are three wells on the Hays site, one of which is active.

That's not quite enough information for Logue.

His questions range from how suspected mine fires would be handled to mine subsidence issues to who is responsible in the event that hazardous materials are found.

"Basically, how can we make this safe?" he asked. "How can we make this operation work for us? I have a feeling it's going to go through no matter what we do, but how can we maximize the protection for us?"

Lori Shontz can be reached at lshontz@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1722.