SCRANTON, Pa. -- What was supposed to be an informational meeting at Scranton City Hall between representatives of a development company and some north Scranton residents quickly escalated into a shouting match as emotions and tempers flared.
At issue is a proposed housing complex in north Scranton.
That developer, NEPA Realty Ventures out of Allentown, wants to build several three-story apartment buildings holding more than 200 units in a neighborhood known as the Hollow.
At the meeting Wednesday night, residents--some getting emotional--made it clear they don't want this.
"We live here. You going to put 2,000 cars a day past my house. That's my house right there. 2,000 cars! How am I going to get over that bridge?" said Bill Moran of north Scranton.
NEPA Realty Ventures wants to build several three-story apartment buildings on a 19-acre plot of land it purchased near Interstate 81.
More than 200 units of one-, two-, and three-bedroom apartments are slated for those buildings.
Representatives for the developer were at City Hall for a zoning board hearing to get approval on variance requests. However, the board delayed making a decision, saying they should discuss their plans with those residents first.
Residents say not only do they not want this, they were blindsided, finding out about the project just last week.
"What we would have liked was for somebody to come talk to us and say, 'Hey, here's what we want to do.' The truth of the matter is you can't put all those apartments in that space. You cannot not get cars in and out of that space," said Moran.
"This was a surprise to everybody. We didn't even know that this was in the works. We just heard about it when they posted this stuff on our poles and gave us this notice in our doors," said Sandy Sherotski of north Scranton.
"You have developers, two young gentlemen that tried to, what they thought was going to be a good project, didn't realize it would cause this much consternation among the residents, so they now have to sit and evaluate," said Ron Corkley, attorney for NEPA Realty Ventures.
The attorney for the developer says the company has three options: try to move forward with plans as is, adjust plans to try to accommodate residents' concerns,
or abandon the project all together.
The zoning board is expected to vote on the issue on August 8.