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Thursday, February 6, 1986, p. 4.
EDITORIAL
See related articles here

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Don't sever the artery

There are eleven crossings of the Delaware between Hancock and Port Jervis. Two of these, at Lordville and Minisink Ford (the Roebling Bridge), are presently closed for repairs.

The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) has. announced plans to add to the list by closing the Skinners Falls Bridge for the summer. If carried through as scheduled, this action will strike a major. blow to Milanville and the surrounding communities along the river.

Milanville is situated on the Pennsylvania side of the Delaware at Skinners Falls. At one time there were a number of mills, a tannery, an acid factory, and a creamery; The bridge has been a lifeline to the village for over 80 years, ever since it was built for the logging industry in 1902.

The mills are all closed now, and the economy of Milanville -- like many river communities -- is dependent on tourist trade. Skinners Falls is the most popular spot On the Delaware, attracting thousands of visitors each summer, many of whom cross the bridge to patronize local establishments.

Without these customers, the few businesses remaining in Milanville could well meet the fate of the old mills. Those in neighboring towns will also feel the pinch.

The Milanville General Store, which operates on a shoestring budget, could go out of business, according to owners Rocky and Maryann Degori. Only during the summer months does it make enough to stay in operation. The store is also a social center. If it fails, the entire community will feel the loss.


The Milanville Post Office will lose business, says postmaster Arnold Crum. If a larger post office is built in Damascus, a sharp decline in business here could clinch a postal decision to close the Milanville branch. The bridge closing also cuts off New York residents who maintain box service in Milanville.


The Innisfree Hostel is dedicated to providing reasonably priced accommodations to people who have an appreciation for the area. A nonprofit group, Innisfree has operated in the red for years. Restricting access during the summer would seriously impact the youth hostel's survival. As a trustee of the organization, my interest in keeping the bridge open this summer is very personal.


Local farmers, small business-people, and area residents on both sides of the river who use the bridge will be inconvenienced. Not to mention the National Park Service, which has its headquarters near Milanville.


Area liveries will also be affected by the bridge closing. Shuttle times will be lengthened. unscheduled pick-ups made more difficult, and customers inconvenienced.


There are other problems. Precious minutes will be lost in ambulance and fire response time getting to Milanville or the base of Skinners Falls.


If the Skinners Falls Bridge is shut to automobile and pedestrian traffic during the summer of 1986 -- at the height of the tourist season -- it will bring great and possibly irreparable harm to those who operate businesses and offer services in the proximity. It may even drive them under. It is vital to the Milanville community that the bridge remain open during the summer season.


Nothing in this editorial is to suggest that we do not want the bridge repaired. Repairs are much needed, and if they were not already planned, we would demand them.


Yet the ideal would be to do the work without closing the bridge at all. If repairs require a closing, let the work be scheduled in the spring or fall.


Area residents should call upon their local and state representatives, as well as delegates to the Conference of Upper Delaware Townships (COUP) and the Upper Delaware Citizens Advisory Council (CAC), to approve resolutions urging PennDOT to schedule the bridge repairs at a time that will have less impact on the community.


Residents are also urged to sign a petition to this effect at the Milanville General Store.

Tom Rue, Business Manager