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Residents, borough officials spar over Melrose drainage fixes as phase 2 plan moves forward
Summary
A long-running drainage problem linked to the Melrose development resurfaced at public comment; a resident said a builder may have installed a pipe incorrectly and said repairs could require additional easement or rework; borough staff said phase 2 plans were submitted and repairs are tentatively scheduled for late July.
During the meeting’s second public comment period a resident who identified their location as North Grant described 33 years of dealing with drainage that collects at a borough chamber and said the developer for Melrose installed a pipe at the wrong elevation. “They either have to redo the pipe across the road or they have to get extra easement area from McCloskey,” the resident said, describing a misaligned connection that the speaker said could require digging Ridge Road back up.
Borough staff confirmed the Melrose phase 2 plan was submitted for review this week. Staff said the developer and borough are discussing options: either the developer will rework the pipe to the correct elevation across Ridge Road, or the developer will seek an easement from the adjacent owner (identified in the meeting as Mr. McCloskey) so the connection can be corrected without reopening the road. The staff member said the developer’s tentative timeline for repair was late July, but that the date could change.
Separately, staff told council that the borough is still awaiting a Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) water-quality management permit for Pump Station 3 design. The borough also reported progress on replacing grinder pumps at a separate Colonial Craft grinder pit; electricians must replace relays before automatic operation resumes, and crews are manually operating switches to keep the pit drained in the meantime.
Councilors and members of the public noted that relocation or repair choices depend on property-owner cooperation and PennDOT’s position. Staff said earlier correspondence with PennDOT indicated the state did not want certain pipes plugged and that relocation requires further property easements; property owners to the east have not granted those easements and the township was not cooperative about using an alternate crossing.
Planning commission review of Melrose phase 2 will proceed over the next months, staff said, though recording of plans and final approvals may be delayed until outstanding easements and developer agreements from phase 1 are resolved.
