Dear Editor:

There was a slight error in your comprehensive and otherwise excellent coverage of the last Bethlehem City Council meeting. It was stated that "...one area resident commented on Habitat for Humanity's plan to build housing near Bethlehem's South Mountain, calling the site a precious resource that ought to be preserved." I was that resident, and referred to housing on South Mountain, not just near the mountain. The Habitat representative spoke with some seeming pride about building "on the mountain," as had Habitat's executive director at a previous committee meeting, which approved their $170,000 grant from the city.

I do not understand this compulsion to build "on the mountain." South Mountain is a wonderful, uplifting and irreplaceable resource. This is why the city has a steep slope ordinance, which places additional restrictions on building on the mountain. Unfortunately, Habitat sought variances to override that ordinance, and received them from our sometimes too-friendly Zoning Hearing Board.

The Habitat for Humanity is an otherwise exemplary organization. Can't they find other places to build?

Bill Scheirer

Bethlehem