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Ephrata council OKs obesity study
By JAMES McGINNIS
Ephrata Review
Published: Jun 12, 2008 11:07 AM EST
EPHRATA -
Ephrata officials will go ahead with funding for a study being
conducted by the borough's recreation center to determine the incidence of
obesity among residents.
Mayor Ralph Mowen voted in favor of
contributing $60,000 for the first year of the study, which the recreation
center plans to conclude in 2010, breaking a tie among members of the
borough council, who were deadlocked over the proposal. The study, which
will be conducted in conjunction with Lancaster General and Ephrata
Community hospitals, will compare obesity rates of residents in Ephrata
with Lancaster County as a whole. Borough residents who participate in the
study will receive a 20 percent discount on an annual membership to the
recreation center.
Although the council generally voiced support for
the study's goal of promoting healthy lifestyles and reducing obesity,
several members questioned whether the money should be allocated for other
priorities.
Borough president Robert Good pointed out that the
council already contributes $12,000 per year to the recreation center. "Our
recreation center is having a hard time keeping its head above the water,"
he said. "Membership is declining. The borough has always made some type of
contribution to the center and we still contribute about $12,000 per
year."
Councilwoman Mary Schurr said that rising gas and food prices
and economic uncertainties could make spending $60,000 on a study appear
frivolous. She also added that the Ephrata Linear Park, which was completed
between Parkview Drive and Fulton Street last year, and will eventually be
extended north into Ephrata Township and west to Warwick Township, along
with other proposed trails that the borough hopes to construct along
Cocalico Creek and on the Mountain, will provide residents with new
opportunities for exercising.
"People are struggling to keep a roof
over their heads, food on their table and gas in their cars," she said. "I
think we need to reconsider this. I support what the recreation center is
trying to do, but I don't know if we can support it at this
time."
However, councilman Anthony Kilkuskie responded by pointing
out that the $60,000 would only cover the first year of the study, and that
the borough can review the progress of the study next year before deciding
whether to release the second $60,000 installment. "I'm going to support
this, but recommend we take a hard look next year," he said.
Mowen
said that he based his decision on the importance of promoting good health
in the borough. "Spending money to improve this overall quality of health
for residents of the borough is money well-spent," he said.
Trail
Extension
The council also discussed the possible extension of the
Ephrata Linear Park north into Ephrata Township.
Kilkuskie said that
the council's Development Activities Committee should discuss the
possibility of obtaining an easement that would permit the eventually
extension of the trail northward along the former Reading Railroad
right-of-way to connect with one that a developer plans to construct to
serve a subdivision proposed to be built on the Nolt tract in Ephrata
Township.
Borough manager Gary Nace said that the developer of the
subdivision supports this proposal and that the engineer for the project
plans to meet with committee members later this week to discuss the
feasibility of the project.
The borough plans to construct the
portion of the Linear Park from State Street north to the borough line as
the third, and final phase of the project, meaning that the extension into
Ephrata Township is probably still a few years off.
Police Officer
Awarded
Borough officials also commended Ephrata Police Officer Paul
Moore for his service to the borough.
Mowen presented the 2007
Lancaster County Police Officer of the Year award to Moore. The Police
Chief Association of Lancaster County gives the award each year to three
police officers that it feels have made a difference in their communities.
Candidates for the award are nominated by members of each police department
in the county.
Mowen said that Moore has shown dedication to the
community during his 13 years of service on the department by ensuring that
perpetrators of domestic violence are held accountable for their behavior
and that landlords are fair to their tenants. "There is no way to describe
all the ways Paul Moore has made a difference, but these are just a few
examples," he said. "It is my pleasure to present Officer Paul Moore with
the 2007 Lancaster County Officer of the Year Award."
Moore was
humble about receiving the award, and thanked both officials and the
community for supporting the police department. "This is a team sport," he
said. "We could not do as fantastic a job as we can without your help," he
said.
Moore is the third member of the Ephrata Police Department to
receive the award in recent years. Past recipients include Eric Schmitt, in
2005, and Paula Bright, in 2006.
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