EPHRATA, PA., LANDLORD SETTLES EPA COMPLAINT OVER LEAD-BASED PAINT HAZARD NOTIFICATION - US Fed News Service, Including US State News

The Environmental Protection Agency Region 3 office issued the following news release:

The owners of 14 residential rental properties in Ephrata, Pa., have agreed to pay a $10,000 penalty and complete a $90,000 project to abate lead-based paint in at least eight of their properties as settlement for violations alleged by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

On January 12, 2006, EPA filed a complaint against Doneckers Inc., and company CEO H. William Donecker (collectively Doneckers) under a federal law known as the Residential Lead-Based Paint Hazard Reduction Act (RLPHA). The law requires landlords and sellers of residential housing built before 1978 to notify tenants and purchasers about the presence of known lead-based paint hazards, or to disclose their lack of knowledge of such hazards. RLPHA also requires landlords to provide a lead hazard information pamphlet to prospective tenants; provide a standard warning statement in the lease regarding the dangers of lead-based paint; and include disclosure and acknowledgment language in leases and sales contracts. The federal government banned the sale of lead-based house paint in 1978.

The EPA complaint alleged violations of the lead-based paint disclosure rule involving 10 lease agreements for nine rental properties, signed in 2001 and 2002. The violations include the failure to disclose known lead-based paint hazards, or lack of knowledge of such hazards to prospective tenants and the failure to provide available reports regarding lead-based paint hazards.

In the consent agreement with EPA, Doneckers neither admitted nor denied liability for the alleged violations. The settlement reflects the cited parties' prompt action to address the alleged violations, and full cooperation with EPA in resolving this matter

EPA is cooperating with other federal, state, and local agencies to protect tenants and homeowners from the health risks of lead-based paint. High blood levels of lead can cause permanent damage to the nervous system and widespread health problems, such as a reduced intelligence and attention span, hearing loss, stunted growth, reading, learning and behavioral difficulties. Young children are most vulnerable because their nervous systems are still developing.

For more information on environmental, health, and legal issues involving lead, please visit http://www.epa.gov/lead/index.html. Contact: Mike Frankel, 215/814-2665.

Lancaster New Era, Pa., Business Briefs Column. - Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News

Lancaster New Era, Pa. Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News

Mar. 22--PPL SELLS CHILEAN ELECTRIC COMPANY: PPL Corp. said Friday it had completed the sale of its minority interest in a Chilean electric company for $123 million.

Allentown-based PPL had acquired its 8.7 percent stake in Compania General de Electricidad in October 2000.

The company serves 1.4 million electric customers in Chile and 600,000 in Argentina, while also distributing natural gas and liquefied gas.

MARKETING FIRM WINS AWARDS: North Star Marketing Inc. won three awards in the Service Industry Advertising Awards competition.

North Star won a gold award for creating and maintaining a Web site for The Christian Adoption Resources Inc.

The marketing firm won a silver award for creating collateral materials for the Bradley Academy of the Visual Arts' enrollment campaign.

North Star won a merit award for creating collateral corporate-identification materials for Stoudt Advisors.

SUPERINTENDENT WILL BE SPEAKER: John Bonfield, interim superintendent of the School District of Lancaster, will be the guest speaker at the next 'Wake Up to the Issues' breakfast.

The breakfast, hosted by The Lancaster Chamber of Commerce & Industry, will be held Thursday, April 22, at 7:30 a.m. in the Eden Resort Inn.

Cost is $15 for chamber members, $30 for non-members. For more information, contact the chamber's Maureen Ward at 397-3531, ext. 152.

CHRISTIAN BUSINESSMEN HOST SEMINAR SIMULCAST: The Christian Business Men's Committee will host a nationally simulcast seminar titled 'The Qualities of a Leader' on Friday, April 30.

The 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. event, part of a series produced by Atlanta-based Maximum Impact, will be held at Manor Brethren in Christ Church, 530 Central Manor Road.

Hosted by John C. Maxwell, author of 'The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership' and 'The 17 Indisputable Laws of Teamwork,' the seminar also will feature author Zig Ziglar, basketball coaches Pat Summitt and John Wooden, Pepsico CEO Steven Reinemund and Wal-Mart CEO Michael Duke.

Cost is $40. Tickets are available at Provident Bookstore. For more information, contact Bill Hoke at 291-0104.

MORE GROUPS BACK REGIONAL RAIL PROJECT: A proposed rail transit system in southcentral Pennsylvania has garnered more support.

The Greater Harrisburg Association of Realtors, the Lancaster Campaign and the Red Rose Transit Authority have joined the list of organizations that endorse the CORRIDORone regional rail project, according to a Modern Transit Partnership press release.

Among the other 11 supporters are: Health Management Associates Inc., Lancaster Chamber of Commerce & Industry, Lancaster County commissioners, Lancaster County Association of Township Supervisors, Lancaster Downtown Investment District Authority, and the Pennsylvania Dutch Convention & Visitors Bureau.

CORRIDORone represents the initial leg of a regional rail system in southcentral Pennsylvania, with plans for commuter trains to run from Cumberland County through Harrisburg to Lancaster County.

The system will use existing freight and passenger tracks in the area, and passenger trains similar to those used by Amtrak.

Service between Harrisburg and Lancaster is expected to begin in 2006 with Mechanicsburg-to-Harrisburg service to follow in 2007.

Modern Transit Partnership is a non-profit organization of business, community and government leaders striving to bring regional rail to southcentral Pennsylvania.

To see more of the Lancaster New Era, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.lancasteronline.com/newera.

(c) 2004, Lancaster New Era, Pa. Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News.

U.S. LABOR DEPARTMENT SUES SOMERSET, PA., COMPANIES AND EXECUTIVE TO PROTECT 401(K) PROFIT-SHARING PLAN PARTICIPANTS. - States News Service

SOMERSET, Pa. -- The following information was released by the U.S. Department of Labor, the Employee Benefits Security Administration:

The U.S. Department of Labor has sued Super City Sports Sales Inc., general manager James V. Sujansky and parent company Pioneer Inc. for failing to remit employee contributions to the company's 401(k) profit-sharing plan, and for withdrawing all remaining plan funds in violation of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act.

The lawsuit alleges that the defendants failed to remit employee contributions to the plan and remitted certain employee contributions to the plan late without interest. The suit also alleges that Sujansky withdrew the remaining assets from the plan's account and deposited the money into the company's account. The alleged violations occurred from July 2002 through September 2006.

'Plan fiduciaries have a legal obligation to protect the interests of plan participants. The department will hold plan fiduciaries accountable when they fall short of their obligations under the law,' said Mabel Capolongo, regional director of the department's Employee Benefits Security Administration in Philadelphia, Pa.

Filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania, the suit seeks to restore to the plan all losses and lost opportunity costs, and to permanently bar Pioneer Inc., Super City Sports Sales Inc. and Sujansky from serving in a fiduciary capacity to any employee benefit plan covered by ERISA.

Super City Sports Sales sells and services trailers, motorcycles and snowmobiles in Somerset.

This case is part of EBSA's employee contribution project to safeguard workers' contributions to 401(k) and health benefit plans. Employers and workers can reach EBSA's Philadelphia Regional Office at 215.861.5300 or toll-free at 866.444.3272 for help with problems relating to private sector retirement and health plans. Additional information can be found at http://www.dol.gov/ebsa.

Solis v. Sujansky

# # #

Allentown, Pa., high-end retail and office development fills up with tenants. - Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News

By Kurt Blumenau, The Morning Call, Allentown, Pa. Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News

Nov. 28--After years of false starts and failed flirtations, Liberty Center has finally fulfilled its promise.

The five-story office and retail building at West Broad and Main streets, Bethlehem, has emerged as a bona fide upscale retail hub, a rare thing among Lehigh Valley downtowns.

National chains such as the Gap rebuffed early entreaties from developer Liberty Property Trust. The builder then turned to locally owned companies. It took four years, but Liberty Property Trust assembled a nearly full house, with tenants including Edge restaurant; the American Hairlines hair salon and health club; home-accessories shop Accessories Inc.; and custom cabinet maker Oberholtzer Kitchens.

Liberty Center has room for one more shop of 3,300 square feet, according to the developer. The building features 48,000 square feet of retail space on its first two floors, topped by 72,000 square feet of office space -- also almost fully occupied.

That's good news for Bethlehem officials and residents, who spent decades watching proposal after proposal for West Broad and Main come to nothing.

It's also good news for the tenants, who are reaping benefits from Liberty Center's growing cachet. Some hope the building will serve as a model for further upscale development in downtown settings.

'There's a lot of people here looking for high-end retailing,' said Dave McCormack, co-owner of American Hairlines, which moved into Liberty Center's first floor last month. 'Downtown Allentown would be a terrific lifestyle center.'

If Liberty Center is any example, though, bringing high-end shops to a downtown setting can be a challenge.

Prominent Bethlehem developer Lou Pektor took it on in the late '90s, proposing a $13 million project that would have included Tommy Hilfiger, Abercrombie and Fitch or similar national names. Pektor's proposal also included an upscale restaurant and office space.

The city committed to build a $10 million, 800-space parking deck next to the building. The garage was especially vital for Liberty Center because the building was displacing two 100-space parking lots.

Pektor's plans were thwarted in early 2000, when his original anchor tenant, a group of 27 doctors, pulled out. Pektor handed over the project to deeper-pocketed Liberty Property Trust, of Malvern, Chester County, in May 2000.

Within a month, the building had landed its first tenant, Fireman's Fund Insurance, which agreed to move more than 220 employees from a processing center in an industrial park in Hanover Township, Northampton County. The deal with Fireman's Fund filled two of the three floors of office space, giving the project a strong push forward.

Filling the street-level retail space proved more difficult. The Gap decided not to build at Liberty Center in April 2001, after slow company-wide sales forced it to scale back on expansion plans. Other national names, including coffee chain Starbucks, never committed.

The announcement last year of upscale mall plans in Bethlehem and Upper Saucon townships further drew those retailers' attention away from downtown, officials said.

'We held out and held out to try to get \[big-name tenants\], and realized they weren't going to come downtown,' said Bob Kiel, senior vice president of Liberty Property Trust.

Talks with the first retail tenant, Edge restaurant, were announced in September 2001. Edge opened in October 2002, followed by Accessories the next month. Accessories moved from a shopping plaza on Route 512, Hanover Township, Northampton County.

Gail Dunn, owner of Accessories, said her store has done well. Accessories expanded this spring, adding 5,934 square feet, bringing the store to more than 12,000 square feet. The new space is expected to open in February.

A law firm, Kolb, Vasiliadis & Florenz, took a small chunk of the first floor last year.

But Liberty Center's biggest push forward came in March, when American Hairlines announced a long-term lease for the remaining 14,442 square feet of first-floor space, moving from a nearby location on West Broad Street. The new store adds a health club, complete with exercise machines, to American Hairlines' established salon business.

The arrival of American Hairlines last month brought a well-known tenant with regular daily traffic to Liberty Center's last major retail vacancy -- high-visibility first-floor space, to boot.

'The corner is spectacular placement in downtown,' McCormack said.

Kiel said talks are under way to lease the remaining space, but nothing is imminent.

Some argue that Liberty Center represents the latest step in an established formula, rather than something new. Tony Hanna, Bethlehem's economic development director, said Liberty Center is the latest addition to a thriving downtown upscale area.

'That's been the story of the success of downtown Bethlehem,' Hanna said. 'You look down Main Street and Broad Street, and we have a lot of high-end retail, all local.'

Still, brand-new downtown buildings filled with higher-end stores are a rarity throughout the Lehigh Valley.

Allentown's Plaza at PPL Center, also a Liberty Property Trust project, might be a comparable building, Kiel said. That building, opened in spring 2003, has landed leases with a regional Mexican restaurant and Keystone Nazareth Bank & Trust. But the eight-story Plaza at PPL Center is predominantly an office building, with retail limited to the first floor.

Tenants at Liberty Center hope their success, hard-earned as it was, will inspire more such projects.

'It's good for everybody,' said Fran Mantz, general manager of Edge. 'People look at it as competition. But, the more the merrier.'

kurt.blumenau@mcall.com

610-820-6664

ORIGINAL INSERTION TIME: 11/26/2004 12:18:37 PM

KRT NEWS SERVICE VERSION:

To see more of The Morning Call, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.mcall.com.

The Times Leader, Wilkes-Barre, Pa., Business People Column. - The Times Leader (Wilkes-Barre, PA)

May 5--GREATER WILKES-BARRE CHAMBER OF BUSINESS AND INDUSTRY: Susan Boyles has been named assistant to the vice president for communications.

Boyles is a veteran with more than 20 years service in the U.S. Army and Army Reserves, both military and civilian. She previously worked in Los Alamitos, Calif., with the U.S. Army 63rd Regional Support Command.

While in the military, she served as a personnel manager in various locations, including Ft. Jackson, S.C.; Ft. Sheridan, Ill.; and St. Louis. She attended the University of South Carolina, where she studied applications programming.

She is a Wilkes-Barre resident.

HIRINGS/PROMOTIONS

TOBYHANNA ARMY DEPOT: Leroy A. Knowles has been named chief of the Woodworking/Fabric Applications Division in the depot's Production Support Services Directorate. He is responsible for the work of about 23 employees who perform overhaul and fabrication work on shelter and van components and composite material, such as radar units.

Knowles is a 1957 graduate of Pittston Area High School and served in the Army. He resides in Pittston with his wife.

ERDMAN, ANTHONY AND ASSOCIATES: Lawrence J. Marchetti, professional engineer, has been named senior mechanical engineer. He will serve as project manager and project engineer for building systems projects.

Marchetti holds associate's degrees in fire science technology and mechanical design technology from Luzerne County Community College.

An Exeter resident, he is a registered professional engineer in Pennsylvania with 16 years experience.

GEISINGER MEDICAL GROUP: Dr. Hema Padmanabhan has been named an associate in endocrinology.

Padmanabhan was one of 10 fellows awarded the Etzwiler Fellowship last year by the Endocrine Fellows Foundation at the International Diabetes Center.

A diplomate of the American Board of Internal Medicine, she previously was named a diplomate of the National Board of India.

She has earned numerous professional awards and has given many medical presentations.

FITZPATRICK LENTZ & BUBBA: George R. Barron of Mountaintop has joined the Lehigh Valley firm as an associate.

He received an undergraduate degree from Bloomsburg University and a law degree from Temple University, where he was a member of the Moot Court Honor Society.

His practice areas will include civil litigation, health care and corporate law.

TASTEFULLY SIMPLE: Sherri Williams of Plymouth now represents the national sales company based in Alexandria, Minn.

The company offers upscale, convenience-driven gourmet foods.

PNC BANK, NORTHEAST: Jack Walsh has been promoted to assistant vice president and Annmarie E. Andrejko has joined the bank as assistant vice president in the Corporate Banking Group for the Northeast PA Market.

Walsh is a corporate banking officer responsible for managing a credit relationship and the cross-sell of additional PNC products and services.

A Clarks Summit resident, he is a graduate of the University of Scranton, where he earned a bachelor's degree in accounting. He is a certified public accountant.

Andrejko is an account manager in the corporate banking group.

She also is a graduate of the University of Scranton, where she earned a bachelor's degree in finance and economics.

She is a Hudson resident.

VECTOR MARKETING: The Kingston office has promoted Suzanne Assenheimer to branch manager.

Assenheimer joined Vector as a sales representative in May 2000 in her hometown of Springfield. She will graduate this month from St. Joseph's University with a degree in elementary and special education. She is a Lansdowne resident.

Andrew Kish has been promoted to manager of the Hazleton office.

Kish joined Vector two years ago as a sales representative and was then promoted to field sales manager. He resides in Hazleton.

BOARDS

THE PENN MILLERS GROUP has elected J. Harvey Sproul Jr., as chairman of the board of directors. Sproul joined in 1990 and was elected its vice chairman in 1997.

Sproul, a graduate of Brown University, is president of H.B.S. Enterprises Inc., H.B. Sproul Construction Co., Harco Excavating Co. and Sproul Realty Company Inc.

He is a Waverly resident.

To see more of The Times Leader, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.timesleader.com

(c) 2002, The Times Leader, Wilkes-Barre, Pa. Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News.

Transmission line troubles Southwestern Pa. residents - Tribune-Review/Pittsburgh Tribune-Review

Marty Howsare and his wife spent weeks examining topographicalmaps of the area within 15 miles of Washington, Pa., then visitingcorresponding hilltops, looking for just the right location.

Five years ago, they found the spot to live, a hilltop in NorthBethlehem Township, four acres along Dutch Glory Road, nine milesfrom the nearest post office in Amity.

'We were looking for a hilltop with south and west (sun)exposure,' Marty said. 'When we saw this, we just fell in love withit.'

Now, after five years of spectacular sunsets, after sharing hislawn with deer, coyote and fox, after watching geese fly directlyover his home's rear deck, Howsare must consider something newsoaring over his home: 500,000 volts of electricity.

'They could bisect my house with the transmission line,' Howsaresaid, sitting at his kitchen table, looking out at hills and avalley as pretty as a proverbial picture. In fact, the amateurartist is finishing a charcoal drawing of the exact image.

Howsare's property lies in the way of one of the largesttransmission power line projects Pennsylvania has seen in decades.Proposed by Allegheny Energy Inc., the Tran-Allegheny InterstateLine would stretch 240 miles from Southwestern Pennsylvania, throughWest Virginia before ending in Loudoun County, Va., near Washington,and linking with Dominion Virginia Power.

The Pennsylvania portion includes some 37 miles of the 500,000-volt line, between a pair of to-be-built substations, includingPrexy, in North Strabane, Washington County, and 502 Junction, inDunkard, Greene County, near the West Virginia border.

Allegheny Energy's portion of the $1.3 billion total cost isabout $850 million, with the project slated for completion by 2011.

A dozen public meetings chaired by state Public UtilityCommission administrative law judges begin today, with the firstfour slated at 1 p.m. and 7 p.m. today and tomorrow at theWashington County Fairgrounds, Building 2, at 2151 N. Main St.,Washington.

Howsare and many of his neighbors in North Bethlehem admitthey're suspicious of Allegheny Energy's plans, and wonder of theneed for the line and the nearly 200 towers needed withinPennsylvania alone.

'They (Allegheny Energy) say the line is needed, but I questionthe need,' said Pamela Seibel, a Howsare neighbor and 25-yearresident on Dutch Glory Road.

The concerns and questions are nothing new to Allegheny Energy,which has on its side the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, theNorth American Electricity Reliability Corp. and PJMInterconnection, the entity charged with operating the region'spower grid.

'The biggest misconception in Western Pennsylvania is that poweris moving out of Western Pennsylvania,' said Allegheny Energyspokesman David Neurohr. 'Power will be moving north, from the 502(substation) to Prexy (substation). The power is needed inWashington County.'

Power needs in Washington County during the past six to eightyears have been growing at about 4 percent annually, AlleghenyEnergy contends. And with new commercial development around theMeadows race track, and other projects -- such as the $404 millionVictory Centre, including a Bass Pro Shop and Tanger Outlets,planned or under way along Interstates 70 and 79 and Route 19 -- theGreensburg-based utility says the current power transmission systemwasn't built to handle the growth.

Mack and Lois Conkle built their home along Sunedecker Road inNorth Bethlehem 55 years ago. They admit it's no fun being withoutpower, having endured a multi-day outage years ago due to stormdamage, but still aren't convinced the new lines are required.

'I'm on the fence, I don't know which way to go,' Lois said.

'I'm worried about the health implications of the power lines,the impact on our resale value (home and 11 acres of property), andwhat the project will look like,' said Melanie Soares, who livesdown the hill from Howsare, on Mong Drive. 'One of the reasons wemoved here almost four years ago was the view.'

'The scientific studies don't support any connection between EMF(electromagnetic fields) and long-term health effects,' Neurohr said.

Howsare's quest to find the perfect spot to build his house tookmonths, but if Allegheny Energy's objective to build newtransmission on or near his property is successful, the 59-year-oldis prepared to move.

PA. PLANS TO ENFORCE LATE-ABORTION BAN - The Boston Globe (Boston, MA)

HARRISBURG, Pa. - Pennsylvania plans to enforce a ban onvirtually all abortions after 24 weeks of pregnancy.

At issue is Pennsylvania's restrictive abortion law, which islikely to be put to a test in a federal appeals court this yearand could ultimately reach the US Supreme Court.

US District Judge Daniel J. Huyett 3d overturned keyprovisions of the law last Friday, including requirements thatwomen notify their husbands if they want an abortion and thatminors get the consent of a parent, or a court, to have an abortion.

The American Civil Liberties Union and the Women's LawProject in Philadelphia said Wednesday that the ban on abortionsafter 24 weeks also was overturned.

However, Kate L. Mershimer, who argued the case for thestate, said the prohibition remained largely intact. The stateHealth Department has been instructed to enforce the ban.

Since few abortions in Pennsylvania each year take placeafter 24 weeks, the dispute would appear to carry relatively minorsignificance. But the issue could take on greater importance if itgoes to an appeals court.

The 24-week ban, which prohibits abortions except in cases inwhich a woman would face death or irreversible harm, was widelyviewed as a direct assault on Roe v. Wade, the 1973 Supreme Courtruling that established the right to an abortion.

That ruling said a woman's decision to have an abortionduring the first three months of pregnancy must be left to her andher doctor. It said states may interfere in the abortion decisionduring the second trimester only to protect the woman's health, andmay take steps to protect fetal life in the third trimester.

Twenty-four weeks falls near the end of the second trimester;proponents of a ban on abortions after 24 weeks say that a fetushas a good chance of surviving at that point in pregnancy.

Huyett's ruling, which is being appealed by the state,stemmed from a lawsuit filed by a group of doctors and clinics.