Developer Gary Strausser Wants Forks to Pay for his Road

In a letter dated Feb. 2, the attorney for builder Gary Strausser asks Forks Township to pay $2,000 a month to help maintain Winchester Road in Strausser's Riverview Estates development.

The township supervisors said "no" Thursday night.

Strausser has stated the he could close Winchester to other township traffic if he didn't get help maintaining it. The letter, addressed to Township Solicitor Karl Kline, states that it costs Strausser $50,000 a year to plow, salt and cut the grass around the road.

Township residents, other than those from Riverview, also use Winchester via Frost Hollow Road to get to Route 611. This, Strausser argues, makes Winchester beneficial to township residents.

The letter then proposes that "the township pay $2,000/month, and in exchange Strausser Enterprises will keep the road open ... ."

With little discussion, in a 5-0 vote, supervisors rejected the proposal Thursday night. Strausser did not attend the meeting.

"Winchester Drive is still a private road," Kline said. "Mr. Strausser does not have a PennDOT permit to allow [the road] to be used by the general public."

That means two things: The township won't take possession of a road without all the required PennDOT permits, and technically residents shouldn't be using Winchester to get to a state road.

Kline said PennDOT has been aware of the situation with Winchester Drive for at least 10 years and has asked for improvements to allow better access onto Route 611, a state road.

As a private road, Strausser could close Winchester to thru traffic. Similarly, according to Kline, PennDOT can deny access to a state road from Winchester if it does not meet PennDOT standards.