MAHANOY CITY - The Mahanoy Township police, engineers and solicitor are looking into complaints about a local sports club allegedly restricting access to a township road near leased land.
At Thursday's township meeting, Thomas Ward spoke about problems he had with a hunting club along what is known locally as "Tower Road," although it is not maintained by the municipality.
"We were coming through with our four-wheelers (on the road) outside of their property," Ward said. "They told us they were allowing four-wheelers to come through there. Later on that night, they jumped out on Tower Road at 10 o'clock at night, stopped me, took the key out of my bike and was retaining us and telling us we were trespassing. They said they owned the land and they owned the road."
While not identified during the meeting, police Officer Brandon Alexander afterward said the club in question is the Racks and Spurs Hunting Club, which has leased land from Girard Estate north of the township village of Park Place along township Route 818, Tower Road.
"The way they treated people when we were up there was totally disrespectful, uncalled for, the way they talked to women and to be literally jumping out of the bushes and grabbing somebody's bike and ripping the key out of the ignition. If it is a township road, that's something to deal with."
Ward pointed out that the road is on the county map and on the township's liquid fuels map.
"It is a township road but we couldn't get that through to them," said Ward, who also claimed that the club gated the road.
Supervisor Chairwoman Sharon R. Chiao replied about problems in the area that led to restricting access to the area.
"The cell tower owners and hunting club group had come to us, and Brandon got involved in this, about all of the drugs and the damage and trespassing and the vandalism and stuff going on up through that area," Chiao said. "Plus, we had calls about people illegally dumping in that area. A lot of drug needles have been found up there. We were having the problems and we didn't want to have a drug haven there. We were told by the cell tower owners that they would take care of their road, and we more or less said to the club that if they put up a gate, that would be on their leased ground and we (the township) wouldn't supply anything."
"But it is a township road?" Ward asked.
"Right now, that is being looked into," Supervisor James P. Stevens said. "It's turned over to the engineers and they're working with the state."
The township consulting engineers, Alfred Benesch & Co., will conduct a survey of the area to determine the boundaries of the road and hand the results over to township solicitor Eric M. Lieberman.
Ward alleged that another rider was assaulted at the gate by club members.
"Somebody needs to call Girard Estate about what's going on there," Ward said.
"Anytime there is anything like that, a police report should be filed so that we have something to go with and it can be investigated," Stevens said. "That's a police issue, not ours (supervisors). I'm trying to get all this information together but I have no reports that we can go to Girard Estate and tell them what is going on. I only have what you told me they did. At this point, it would only be hearsay from us."
Alexander interjected that one complaint had been filed.
After the meeting, Alexander said he has received the one written complaint filed against the club by Ward, but other than verbal complaints, no others have come forth to officially file other complaints. Anyone who may have complaints about Tower Road should contact Mahanoy Township police.