Jim Thorpe's solicitor will continue to negotiate a revised preconstruction security agreement with the developer of a proposed 86-lot housing community on Flagstaff Mountain.

Mayor Michael Sofranko broke a 3-3 tie by borough council members Thursday night that would have otherwise put a serious dent in Jacob Arner's plan for Canyon Rim Estates."As long as this means the original agreement remains in place and this is only for negotiation purposes, I'll vote yes," Sofranko said.In 2005, Arner agreed to pay $153,000 to the borough for improvements to Flagstaff Road, which adjoins the first two phases of the development, in exchange for relaxed subdivision rules related to curbing and lighting.An inflationary index was built into the agreement and the amount Arner owes for roadwork has eclipsed $200,000.Arner has approached council for the last few months asking to pay for the Flagstaff Road improvements out of the first few lot sales instead of a lump sum before the development takes shape."In 2005, it was reasonable for me to walk into a bank and borrow $153,000," Arner said. "After the commercial lending crisis, everything changed. I can't borrow that money today."Around 20 lots are planned for the first phase of the project. Arner estimates the lots will sell for around $65,000."The only reason people have an interest is the view," he said. "Property isn't selling anywhere. That's why banks aren't loaning money."Several council members including Curtis Jackson, Greg Strubinger and John McGuire, the three who voted to negotiate an updated agreement, wanted to keep the door open."This allows us to work on a new pre-construction agreement," Jackson said. "It doesn't mean we'll approve whatever our solicitor comes up with."Solicitor James Nanovic said all parts of the original agreement would be reviewed including what it would actually cost to fix Flagstaff Road in 2015."The road we decided on in 2005 may not be the road we want to put in today," Nanovic said.Councilman John McGuire said the development would solve runoff issues from Flagstaff."The only way to solve it is for the roads in the development to go in," he said. "I'd like to see a happy ending for everyone here."Others on council were not so sympathetic."When we get our money to fix the road depends on how good a salesman you are," Tom Highland said. "I don't think we should be fronting your business. You should have been putting this money aside since 2005."Highland, Joanne Klitsch and Paulette Haupt voted against continuing negotiations.Joe Krebs was absent.