Gettysburg Times (Newspaper) - December 27, 2010, Gettysburg, Pennsylvania ADVERTISE IN THE TIMES - Call: 717- 334- 1131 E- MAIL: news@ gburgtimes. com sports@ gburgtimes. com WEB: www. gettysburgtimes. com Classifieds ...................... B6- B7 Comics ................................. B8 Crossword ............................ B6 Deaths .................................. A2 Horoscope ............................ B8 Lottery .................................. A3 Opinion ................................ A4 Sports ............................. B1- B4 INSIDE F OLLOW U S O N : VOL. 108, NO. 307 GETTYSBURG, PENNSYLVANIA • MONDAY, DECEMBER 27, 2010 50¢ * includes party food, two drink vouchers, taxes & gratuities and dancing from 8pm - 1am. Count Down & Get Down this New Year’s Eve * *$ 70 . . 00 pe r r pe r rson Call 717.339.0020 ext. 6029 for reservations. Space is limited. Bring in 2011 in style with great food, company, music & dancing. Chef Claude will prepare an extensive array of cuisine including food stations, elaborate buffets, themed hors d’oeuvres and delectable desserts. Republicans ready for ‘ new sheriff’ BY MARK WALTERS Times Staff Writer As 2010 draws to a close, state legislators begin to prepare for 2011 when Pennsylvania will usher in a new governor. The state House of Representatives will also change its face, with Republicans now leading 112- 91 after the November election. State Rep. Dan Moul, R- 91, said that while the mid- December meeting of the caucus was not an official session, many legislators came to Harrisburg to begin budget discussions. “ Right now, depending on the numbers, the state budget is facing somewhere between a $ 4 to 5 billion shortfall,” Moul said. “ That’s onesixth of your budget that you’re short.” Moul, who will begin his third term in January, said that he wished Governor Ed Rendell had not borrowed $ 600 million in RCAP funding or Walking Around Money ( WAMs) to hand out as “ thank you” gifts. “ Future generations have to pay that back,” Moul said of Rendell’s RCAP funding projects. “ I’m not against grants but you only do them when there’s extra money around.” Moul referred to Governor- Elect Tom Corbett as “ the new sheriff in town,” and he is optimistic about the changes Corbett will look to make. “ We’re looking to the new governor for leadership,” state Senator Rich Alloway, R- 33, said. “ He’s gonna make appointments. We’re waiting for his team to set their ( See REPUBLICANS on Page A8) Christmas Eve crash kills man BY RICK FULTON Times Staff Writer A Gettysburg driver died Friday in a one- vehicle crash that occurred in Straban Township. According to State Trooper Jason A. Weaver, the deceased driver has been identified as Mark William Brown, 46, Gettysburg. Trooper Weaver reported that Brown was traveling eastbound around 1: 30 p. m. on Route 394 when the driver lost control of the vehicle on a lefthand curve in the roadway in the area of Goldenville Road. Weaver stated Brown’s vehicle then began spun across a bridge and impacted a guard rail on the opposing side of the roadway. ( See CRASH on Page A8) Gettysburg lot receives new purpose BY SCOT ANDREW PITZER Times Staff Writer Construction is under way for a new three- story apartment complex along Carlisle Street in Gettysburg. The $ 3 million building will feature 22 two- bedroom apartments, according to Orchard Development spokesman Germano Gomez. Maryland- based Orchard Development owns the 40,000- square- foot lot, situated on the west side of the 100 block of Carlisle Street, across from Monahan Funeral Home, beside the Getty gas station. Crews started work in late November, with a target completion date of July- August 2011. “ We’re fully approved. It took us three years,” said Gomez, noting that the project is “ part of the old town revitalization.” The project has been scaled back since it was originally proposed in 2006, right before the economy plummeted. At the time, Orchard Development proposed 60 units in two buildings, including a five- story structure. But the five- story building, which received clearance from the borough’s Zoning Hearing Board in 2007, has been eliminated from the plans. “ We scaled back the project because of the market,” explained Gomez. Borough Planner Merry V. Bush said that the project has cleared the necessary planning and Historical Architectural Review Board requirements. “ You’ll see work there through the winter months,” she said. Originally, the developer planned to market the units to “ young professionals” in the community. Potential clientele also include faculty and staff at Gettysburg Hospital, and Gettysburg Hospital employees, as well as professionals in the area’s banking, law and consulting firms. “ There is a great need in Gettysburg for this type of project,” said Gomez, pointing out that “ there hasn’t been any new purpose- built apartments in 50 years in Gettysburg.” Gomez noted that most existing apartment buildings in the town’s historic district are “ retro” and have been renovated. Rent is undecided at this point, but will likely be in the $ 1,000 range for a two- bedroom unit. “ We’d be similar for the newest rehabbed units in the market,” said Gomez. The project meets parking requirements under the borough’s zoning code, although the developer is renting spaces at the nearby Race Horse Alley Parking Plaza, owned and operatedby the borough. D ARRYL W HEELER / G ETTYSBURG T IMES WORK BEGINS — Construction crews perform foundation work at the site of a planned three- story apartment complex, along the 100 block of Carlisle Street in Gettysburg. Denis Aolosco, of Maryland- based Modern Foundations, holds a measuring stick in the foreground, as a colleague does base work in the background. The apartment building is scheduled to open in the summer of 2011. Mount Joy budget awaits approval BY MARK WALTERS Times Staff Writer The Mount Joy Township Board of Supervisors will attempt to finally approve its 2011 preliminary budget at tomorrow’s 7 p. m. meeting. The five- supervisor board tentatively adopted the township’s 2011 budget at a workshop meeting on Dec. 2. The $ 634,312 budget was adjusted to accomodate the 10 percent reduction of what the township provides the four volunteer fire departments that serve it. The township’s original tentative budget contained a 60 percent reduction in what it provided the four departments ( See MOUNT JOY on Page A8) B ILL S CHWARTZ / G ETTYSBURG T IMES TEMPORARY ENTRANCE — The public entrance to the Gettysburg Borough Municipal Building has been temporarily relocated to the High Street side ( front) of the facility. A wooden handicapped- accessible ramp has also been installed for the convenience of those who need it. The change is necessitated by building renovations currently underway at borough hall, and will stay in place until the project is completed in mid- April. PITTSBURGH ( AP) — A man sentenced to three life terms after being convicted of setting a western Pennsylvania fire that killed three firefighters a decade and a half ago is seeking a new trial, contending that the fire wasn’t arson and alleging that reward money may have tainted the testimony of witnesses. A hearing is scheduled in June in Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas on the appeal of 33- year- old Gregory Brown, who was convicted of second- degree murder, arson and insurance fraud in the fire on Valentine’s Day in 1995. Prosecutors said Brown and his mother, Darlene Buckner, started the fire in the basement of their four- story home to collect $ 20,000 in insurance money for a down payment on a new home. Investigators said Brown poured half a gallon of gasoline on some clothes and ignited them. Firefighters Thomas Brooks, 42, Patricia Conroy, 43, and Marc Kolenda, 27, suffocated when their air tanks ran out as they tried to grope their way out of the rapidly burning home. Buckner was convicted of insurance fraud and placed on probation. During Brown’s 1997 trial, defense attorneys said the government should have told jurors about reward money and said which witnesses, if any, were paid. In court documents, Allegheny County prosecutors said the witnesses had come forward before the reward was posted. The petition for a new trial, citing an investigation by the Innocence Institute of Point Park University in Pittsburgh, said the witnesses were paid $ 5,000 and $ 10,000. The defense is also challenging the arson finding, saying all possible causes were not considered. Gerald Hurst, a fire investigator from Austin, Texas who has been involved in the case for several years on behalf of the defense, said he believes the fire was sparked accidentally from ( See TRIAL on Page A8) New trial sought in ‘ 95 Pa. triple- fatal fire Ravens wrap up playoff berth — SPORTS, Page B1 Windy — Page A8
