Along with working toward the first grant needed to possibly form a Regional Recreational Organization between Slatington, Walnutport and Washington Township, two Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR) representatives also worked at Wednesday night's meeting to dispel misunderstandings about it.

While explaining what led up to this meeting at Slatington's borough hall, DCNR's Monica A. Hoffman, Recreation and Park Adviser, explained that such an organization would not be primarily for the benefit of the Northern Lehigh Community Center (NLCC) but instead a step toward assisting each municipality with its own individual recreational needs.That said though, Rep. Julie Harhart's (R-183) Legislative Aide Jodi Nestor later explained it was the NLCC that had approached Harhart months ago about gaining funding for the center.Afterward, Harhart had recommended that the DCNR might be able to help and set up a meeting between it and the community center. At that meeting, the DCNR advised that when municipalities band together, they have a better chance of obtaining funding. This led to a meeting in October that included the three municipalities to see if they wanted to entertain the idea of forming a Regional Recreational Organization.At Wednesday's meeting, Slatington Parks and Recreation and Council Member David Schnaars said his borough would take the lead in the next step of the process, which is to apply for a peer-to-peer study grant. All three municipalities had already agreed to participate in the study.Once the peer-to-peer study meeting is concluded within the next few months, said Hoffman, each municipality can then decide whether or not to proceed to the next step, which is to apply for a Circuit Rider Projects grant.No municipality is obligated to continue past the next meeting, she explained. In other words, two of the municipalities could still move forward with a Regional Recreational Organization even if the third declines.In addition, Hoffman noted that other groups, such as a different neighboring municipality or the Northern Lehigh School District, may see the organization as beneficial and ask to join.Should an agreement eventually be signed, Hoffman said, the municipalities need to maintain that contract for the number of years designated but could then dissolve it, if so desired.The main concern expressed by Walnutport Council President Matthew Newhard on behalf of the Walnutport Playground Association and the Walnutport Canal Association, he said, is that sovereignty over one's own municipality's recreational programs and resources might be compromised.However, Hoffman and fellow DCNR attendee, Natural Resources Program Supervisor Lorne Possinger, assured everyone present that the purpose of the organization would not be to usurp power from one municipality and hand it to another nor to usurp power from all three municipalities and hand it over to the state or the full-time staff person required to be hired by the municipalities to oversee the organization.Instead, they said, each municipality can determine exactly how much power that future staff person will or will not have, how much he or she will be paid and how much each municipality will contribute toward that salary, whether or not that person is performing up to par and needs to be let go and someone else hired, etc.The next meeting will be announced as soon as possible, Hoffman said.