BY STACI WILSON

New Milford’s daily siren sends one resident running for cover during the noon-time blast.

The siren which hadn’t been used for years in the town was reinstalled at the request of manyNew Milfordresidents following the June 2006 flood.

The man brought his siren complaint to the borough council’s Thursday, Aug. 2 meeting.

“It hurts your ears and is too loud,” he said.

He also questioned that if the siren is to be used in emergencies, then why didn’t it go off during a recent tornado warning or during last year’s flooding.

“If it’s not used in an emergency, then why it do every day atnoon?” he asked.

He also said he was not against it being used in emergency situations, but would like it to not sound on a daily basis. He suggested perhaps ringing it once per week.

Another audience member said of thenoonalert, “Just cover your ears. You know when it’s coming.”

Council president Teri Gulick said this was the first complaint about thenoonsiren that she had heard. She also said that in the Sept. 2011 flooding, no evacuations were ordered inNew Milfordand so the siren was not sounded.

Councilman Lawrence White also added that he thought the consensus of borough residents would find more people in favor of thenoonsiren than against it.

Councilman Rick Ainey said the man did bring up a good point. It’s an emergency siren but people have no idea why it’s going off, he said. “We probably should have a plan.”

Gulick said the council would look into developing a better plan for the siren’s emergency use.

Council also discussed an ongoing drainage issue in the area ofPeck Hill Rd.andMontrose St.

Council members and those in attendance at the meeting contend that the problem with the road washing out in storms are being caused by work that has been done on a private property by a landowner.

In a visit to the property months ago, county conservation district employees found a violation, Ainey said. He suggested the borough send letters to soil conservation and to the county planning office (which has a stormwater ordinance in its subdivision and land development ordinance) to see how the issue is being resolved.

The road, council members said, was impassable during the hard storms that passed through the area nearly two weeks ago.

White also reported the road is being undermined by the constant drainage issues.

“To repair the damage without fixing the problem would be moot,” he said.

Ainey said the borough is not, financially, in good shape. He said that based on expenses already committed to in the budget, at year end the borough would have just over $9,000 in its coffers. Tax revenue doesn’t start coming into the borough until April, he pointed out.

That $9,000, he also noted, does not take any emergency expenditures or repairs into account for the remainder of the year.

Ainey suggested the council set aside the $67,000 of natural gas lease money in a reserve fund. Expenditures from that fund, he said, would require an action from council.

But the borough is also looking to possibly create another revenue stream with the possible adoption of an earned income tax.

A public meeting will be held Wednesday, Aug. 8, at7 p.m., in the borough building with representatives from Berkheimer Associates.

Berkheimer is the designated earned income tax collector inSusquehannaCounty.

The former Southern Tier Plastics building on Church St., New Milford, is being demolished to make way for a 24-unit senior housing project.

The former Southern Tier Plastics building, now owned by the Susquehanna County Housing and Redevelopment Corporation, is slowly being removed. It was reported parts of the roof of the building are caving in. The building sits on the site of a proposed senior housing complex. Construction of the apartment complex has been held up because of a court battle about the area’s zoning changes.

The borough’s park association is planning to hold a ribbon cutting ceremony at the recently completed walking track and concession stand on Sept. 22.

Also planned at the park is an American Cancer Society event, “Bark for Life” – a Relay for dogs on Oct. 28.