A well-established mobile home park in Palmerton has been sold.

The property transfer is from Joseph J. Weiner to WME Management LLC, Morgantown, which includes 19 parcels (also in Lower Towamensing Borough) for a price of $2,999,000.

Weiner Mobile Estates was sold on Aug. 27 to GSP Management of Morgantown. They are owners to 35 manufacturing communities.

Joe Weiner built the community in 1981 and has managed it for 40 years. There are 62 mobile sites, one farm house, five garages, and 28 acres of land.

Weiner said that the opportunity was right, and that it was time to retire.

The new company also owns Heritage Village in Walnutport, Indian Creek in Macungie, and Melody Lakes in Bucks County. The company has plans to hook on to the Palmerton sewage and water as soon as possible. It also has plans to expand the community.

In June, Jens Damgaard, bond counsel, spoke to borough council to discuss a proposal for several homes and a business to connect to Lower Towamensing Township’s sewer system.

Damgaard told council at that time the purpose of the discussion was to help Lower Towamensing find money to build its sewer system, and explained the benefit to the township to have customers in the borough.

He said if there was just one municipality involved, the township could only look to borrow $12 million from PENNVEST. However, if there is more than one municipality, it could look to borrow $20 million.

Damgaard said the township would need the borough to adopt an ordinance that would mandate the customers in the borough to connect to the new sewer main.

The process would entail an easement from the borough for the township to construct the line that the township would maintain; a mandatory connection construction ordinance; and making sure the existing agreement between the township and the borough allows for these new connections.

Council President Terry Costenbader said the borough previously agreed to take on the Weiner Trailer Court.

Damgaard said that the township engineer has not presented the proposal to the township’s board of supervisors.

Council plans to wait to hear from the township once they have had an opportunity to review the proposal.

Costenbader noted that in order for this to go through, the borough has to grant the township an easement.

Borough Manager Donna McGarry said the properties would be charged the same rate to hookup to the system as all the other customers.

McGarry said that the township is willing to extend the sewer main to the motorcycle shop so that two businesses and four homes could connect to the main.

By working with the township, it qualifies them as a multimunicipal project.

The township is planning to install a main and connect to the borough’s sewer system for their properties on Red Hill Road, and may be willing to extend the sewer main from their border, along State Road in Palmerton, toward the Delaware Avenue intersection.

The township including this work in its plan would qualify them for a higher loan amount from PENNVEST.

Supervisors announced in 2017 that the Department of Environmental Protection approved the township’s Official Sewage Facilities Plan for a new sewage system.

The sewage system plan will service Aquashicola, Walkton, Little Gap, Red Hill Road and Weiner Mobile Estates. Plans for the sewer system have been in the works for several decades.

According to the plan, the new sewer system will consist of gravity lines, manholes and pump stations and their associated force mains.

A portion serving Aquashicola, Walkton and Little Gap will be treated at the Blue Mountain Ski Area Wastewater Treatment Plant. Another portion of the line serving Red Hill Road and Weiner Mobile Estates will be treated at the Palmerton Borough Wastewater Treatment Plant.

The total cost of the project, including surveying, engineering, land acquisition, inspection, legal and administrative fees and interest, had previously been estimated to be about $12.4 million.

The system will connect to the existing Blue Mountain Ski Area wastewater treatment plant, which will be upgraded to account for the additional sewage flow.