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Lehigh Township debates taxpayer-funded land and open-space preservation program
Summary
At its April 22 meeting the Board heard a proposal for a .25% earned-income tax referendum to fund permanent farmland and open-space preservation, heard legal and program details from the township solicitor, and faced community questions about costs, enforcement and timing; no ordinance or referendum vote was taken.
Lehigh Township supervisors on April 22 considered whether to ask voters to approve a taxpayer-funded land and open-space preservation program that would be funded by a 0.25 percent increase in the township’s earned-income tax.
Advocates including resident Zach Szoke urged public outreach and a clear explanation of benefits and costs. "When they say preserved, it would basically mean that it couldn’t become a housing development," Szoke told the Board, describing the goal of protecting farmland and open space from subdivision and development.
Township Solicitor David Backenstoe described the legal steps the Board would have to take. The Board must first adopt an ordinance authorizing a referendum…
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