Mother Nature has intervened, albeit temporarily, in the controversy over a proposed active senior golf course community located next to Bethlehem Township’s Green Pond Marsh. An ice storm has delayed the meeting at which commissioners were scheduled to decide on waivers and deferrals sought at what is now a 229-home development. The planning commission, at their Jan. 25 meeting, recommended approval, but commissioners have final say. They will now make their call at the March 7 meeting.

David Biddison, a partner with developer Traditions of America and its director of operations, has reacted to concerns raised by township residents and environmentalists by reducing the density of the development from 261 to 229 homes. He has also increased open space from 22 to 29 acres, with buffers of at least 50 feet surrounding the wetlands.

Graham Simmons is an attorney representing Green Pond Country Club, which owns the lands surrounding this proposed development. He told the planning commission that, if it fails, stockholders have already decided to develop the entire golf course.

“The decision has already been made,” he said.

Simmons told planners that many of the 24 stockholders are no longer local residents and are looking for a return on their investment. But a review of property records reveals that at least nine still own real estate here is the Lehigh Valley.

John Daub, their president, took a flight back to the Lehigh Valley from his winter home in Arizona. But he will have to wait until March 7, the next scheduled meeting. Bethlehem Township Manager Melissa Shafer canceled the scheduled meeting, which occurred during the storm that resulted in numerous fender benders throughout the Lehigh Valley.

The township is still recovering from what Public Works Director Richard Grube has called “the single largest recorded snowfall in Lehigh Valley history.” His monthly report was an eye-opener.

“The snow was so deep in some areas our trucks could not push it back. Small trucks that we typically use in cul-de-sacs were getting stuck in the deep snow and had to be pulled out of the drifts. Our plows and trucks took quite a beating trying to push this record amount of snow. Many plows needed welding as the weight of the snow cracked frames and broke several blades. “After the storm our crews tried to get around to all of the Bethlehem Area School District bus stops to try to move the mountains of snow at these locations so that children had a place to wait for buses. We also started to clean snow off of storm drains to allow melt water a place to go.”

During January, Police Chief Dan Pancoast reported there were 79 traffic accidents involving 143 vehicles and 13 injuries. There were 43 traffic citations and 82 written warnings. Police were involved in 12 misdemeanor or felony arrests, along with two arrests for summary offenses.