Ambrose Heinz, the lawyer representing FAMvest, calls for Muncy Twp Supervisor Terri Lauchle to recuse herself from voting on the proposed development of the Bass Pro location in Pennsdale during Tuesday evening’s meeting. DAVE KENNEDY/Sun-Gazette

PENNSDALE — After months of delays and obfuscations by the Muncy Township board, particularly Chair Terri Lauchle and Vice-Chair Denise Artley, attorney Ambrose Heinz, from Stevens & Lee PC of Harrisburg, legal counsel for FAMvest LLC, developers for the District, stated that they were asking Lauchle to be recused from any further dealings with the land development plan for the proposed site of a Bass Pro Shop at the property.

“There’s a letter to the township directing or asking for the recusal of Ms. Lauchle, from any further participation, and-or decision making, review, or processing of the land development application,” Heinz said.

“I won’t bore the crowd with reading from that letter, but we detail in that letter certain things, specifically the Board of Supervisors in a review of a land development application is acting in a judicial capacity, in which case they have to act in an impartial and unbiased manner. Over the last six months, Ms. Lauchle has made multiple statements, including statements in open court, and including actions that she has taken that have demonstrated to us and have evidence that she is not impartial, she is in fact biased against both the application, the project, and the applicant, and therefore we are asking that she announce tonight that she is recusing herself from any further participation in the review processing deliberation action on that land development plan application,” he said.

“That would be two members of the board in place to continue with the process and do the appropriate review in accordance with the subdivision land development ordinance, so we’re asking that Ms. Lauchle can take that action tonight, and we move that she refuse herself from any further participation,” he added.

Several people at the Muncy Township board meeting this week were openly questioning Lauchle’s motivations for continuing to put up obstacles for signing a land development plan from FAMvest LLC which could bring jobs and tax revenue to the township. Heinz was just the first to say the silent part out loud.

A copy of the letter referenced by Heinz that was delivered to Muncy Township was also shared with the Sun-Gazette.

The letter states that “It is readily apparent that your bias against our clients renders you unfit to remain part of any further participation in the review or consideration of the Application as it progresses through the development process. Your conduct has demonstrated, at a minimum, the appearance of bias and impropriety toward both our clients and their proposed project.”

It goes on to say that Lauchle filed frivolous legal action in December to try to void the board’s actions to approve the minor subdivision lot add-on plans related to the project and that she continued to refuse to perform the duties associated with approving the plan related to the project once the conditions were satisfied and even after being ordered by the court to do so.

It also listed other ways in which she tried to influence other township officials to refuse to perform their duties and to act in a “manner adverse to the application and the applicant.

The letter also indicated that they were aware of statements that Lauchle had made prior to becoming board chair that “evidenced hostility toward our clients’ principal based on their ethnic background. Such statements, even standing alone, are irreconcilable with the obligation of a township supervisor to act impartially. When viewed in conjunction with your subsequent conduct regarding the Plan, they confirm that you have approached this matter with a fixed predisposition rather than the neutrality required by law. No reasonable observer could conclude, under these circumstances, that our clients are receiving, or could receive, fair and unbiased treatment while you remain involved in any aspect of the review of this Application,” the letter stated.

It concluded by stating, “Furthermore, our client hereby reserves all rights and remedies it may have at law and in equity, against both the Township and you in your personal capacity, due to your willful disregard and refusal to perform your ministerial obligations and any willful violations of our clients’ due process rights arising from your continued participation in the review of this Application. You may choose to recuse yourself now, or that determination will be made for you.”

During the meeting, several people commented on the fact that it seems like the FAMvest land development proposal was being treated differently than another proposal listed for approval on the agenda for the meeting.

“At the April 8 meeting that Heath was not at, there was a vote taken and passed involving the township requiring FAMvest to provide the supervisors with a copy of the lease agreement with Bass Pro,” said Jason Fink, president and CEO of the Williamsport-Lycoming Chamber of Commerce.

“There was no explanation for this action, and I’ve got two questions associated with that. The first is, what was the purpose for requesting this by the supervisors of any of the leases involved with FAMvest and your project there, and in particular Bass Pro? What were you looking to gain from that? And then the second is this going to be something you’re going to require all of your businesses in this township to provide, and if not, why is FAMvest the only one being required…you’ve not required any other businesses to provide that type of documentation,” he added.

Heath Ohnmeiss, the third supervisor who mainly remains silent at the meetings, outflanked by Lauchle and Artley’s apparent agenda, spoke out at the meeting about the way the FAMvest-Bass Pro land development is being handled.

‘I don’t even know where to begin. Five months, five months, I’m sitting up here when I’m here, and this is ridiculous. This is a train wreck. I can’t go anywhere and somebody not stop me and say, what the hell is going on in your township? We’d like to move there, but we can;’t,” he said.

“I’ve always been impartial. I think that’s what every supervisor should be. I don’t care what your feelings are towards anybody…I’m a firm believer. If you own your property, you should be allowed to do whatever you want with it, within reason,” he said.

“I don’t know why we have gotten so off the rails here. I don’t know why we are so obsessed with not letting Bass Pro do what they need to do. I don’t know why we are so obsessed with FAMvest not being able to develop in this township. It is directed towards them and only them, and it has been going on with you, Terri, since last year, even before that,” he continued.

“I don’t remember when we gave them the letter, but you wanted to come in here and tell us how Jon and Ara are billionaires and they all this money and this and that. I don’t really care how much money they have, I want to know how the township is going to benefit from this,” Ohnmeiss said.

(Jon Jahanshahi, president and Ara Kervandjian, manager, vice-president, secretary for FAMvest)

“I will be a little biased. I belong to the fire company. I want this township to get money, so that we can buy new fire trucks, because I’m telling you right now, the stuff we have downstairs is not going to last very long. You know, we can’t afford to buy a brand new engine at three quarters of a million dollars, we have to look at refurbishing, and that’s just basically managing something that we have that might, might last us another 10-15, years, might not,” Ohnmeiss said.

“If the township has money and can give it to the fire company. I’m for that, because that means the township itself is doing great. If the township’s doing great, that means the citizens, the residents, don’t have to pay more taxes, and that right there is what I am scared of. I am scared that we are going to piss them off so bad that they’re either going to sue the ever-loving pants off of us, or they’re going to pull out, and we’re not going to be able to develop that property over there, and if we can’t develop that property over there, or FAMvest can, it ain’t happening, and you’re not going to see anything come into Muncy Township, and you’re going to see taxes skyrocket,” he said.

“When we raised taxes a few years ago, I swear to God, there was almost a lynch mob after me, because they didn’t understand that the tax base of this township has been going down the toilet quickly, and all these people keep on reassessing, the county’s reassessing, everybody’s reassessing. We’re losing money. We are losing money, and we are losing it quickly. It is hemorrhaging, and It’s starting to get to the point where it’s going to be in survival mode. And I’m sorry, I have a Bass Pro hat on, because I want to see them do good, because if they do good, more businesses will come. If you build it, they will come,” he said.

“I just don’t know what your hang up is, Terri,” he said to Lauchle.

“I really don’t. I wish you could figure it out, and either excuse yourself from the situation or step down, get away, because you’re a cancer right now on this board,” he added.