Thomas's Blog

Spot Reassessments

Thomas Bradley (Century21 Select Group) — Mon, 04 Aug 2008 21:02:58 -0500

Carbon County, in particular Jim Thorpe School District, has been facing "spot reassessments" for some time now. They are not called that - it is really the School District appealing a property's assessed value based upon a sales price (since the assessment was set to be 50% of the "market value" when the last County-wide reassessment was done about 6 or so years ago). Prior tho that the property values had not been reassessed in many many years (other than bumped based upon building permits). With market values declining, will our friends at te School District seek lower assessments based upon the new market values? I doubt it!

The practice has had a chilling impact on real estate sales - but has not collapsed the market totally - because a new buyer may be paying 2 or 3 times the tax that his neighbor is paying simply because the current owner just biught and his neighbor has not. This seems blatantly unfair to me (but note that I am not a lawyer or a tax person) and certainly not a uniform way to distribute the tax burden.

While many a new Buyer has appealed the process's result, the local and State courts seem to uphold the principal. In a bipartisan attempt to close this alarming loophole in Pa Tax regulations, a State Senator (Rhoades, R- Schuylkill County) and a State Representative (Seip, D - Schuylkill County) had introduced Senate Bill 1247 and House Bill 1438, respectively to close the loophole. These Bills passed both houses of the State Legislature and it seemed that we would get a break from this onerous loophole.

Well - what do you think has happened? Our Governor (Rendell, D) has VETOED the legislation! This is the guy who says casinos in the state will generate property tax relief!! I guess he can afford to do that since he has a new way into our pockets via an unfair real estate tax loophole that is now sure to be exploited by every School District in tax hungry PA. I gues w ecan hope for the Legislature to dso the right thing and OVERRIDE the VETO but I would not hold my breath waiting for that to happen either. He even had the gall to say that [art of the reason he vetoed the legislation was the deliberative process did not have enough time to ensure that there would be reasonable protection to ensure that all homeowners carry their fair share of the property tax burden!! What about the fair share to those who recently purchased their dream or decided to invest in Pa by purchasing a vacation home or an income/tourist generating rental property naar one of the many resort areas in Carbon County?? I guess for them, paying 2x or 3x the property tax compared to the previous owner is FAIR Enough!! WHEN WILL WE WAKE UP?

Neighborhood Websites

Thomas Bradley (Century21 Select Group) — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 09:50:02 -0500

If you go to Localism and find the information about Lake Harmony useful or interesting from a local color viewpoint, you may also want to go to www.lakeharmonyneighborhood.com. This is locally-oriented site which allows local residents and visitors alike to post comments, pictures, news, events information etc relative to the area. The site is sponsored by The Bradley REALTORS^® Team at Century21 Select Group in Lake Harmony. The site will have access to weather updates and other inofrmation not posted to Localism and serves as a kind of community billboard for classified ads, recipes, restaurant reviews in addition to comments, news etc.

Albrightsville Fire Company Blood Drive

Thomas Bradley (Century21 Select Group) — Sat, 14 Jun 2008 22:30:01 -0500

Albrightsville Fire Co Blood Drive

The Albrightsville Volunteer Fire Co is having another blood drive. This one will be from 1 to 7PM on August 4, 2008. Contact the fire company for more details or contact Carol Meeker from Donor Services at the Miller-Keystone Blood Center 610-926-6060 extension 125 or call toll free at 1-800-486-2566. You can visit their website at http://www.giveapint.org/ for more information on the company or to see their donation and event calendar.

DOJ vs NAR

Thomas Bradley (Century21 Select Group) — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 09:50:17 -0500

Internet Crusade (the company which conducts the e-PRO Course for NAR) had an announcement on their Real Town website that the recent final judgment from DOJ about the investigation and suit against NAR was a WIN for NAR and regular brokers and MLS systems. BUT - There was an article in the 5/28/08 edition of USA Today with a headline that touted "Online real estate agents get equality". This article said the ruling was a win for the online discount broker (those operating a VOW or Virtual Office) and implied that what NAR was doing was somehow suspect and anti-competitive. How could these both be correct? Spin, of course. USA Today and other media have been against NAR in recent coverage of MLS ownership of data and broker's ownership of listings. DOJ has been in the same mindset and spent 3 years and millions of tax-payers dollars to "prove" it. The facts seem to indicate that both the media and DOJ were incorrect and there is now a face-saving DOJ final judgment on that. IC put out a video of their two principal founders on their website going over the final judgment line by line to show why their position was the correct interpretation of the judgment. Problem is that it lasts several hours. Now they have a 6 minute summary of the conversation. It can be found at RealTown - Real Estate Social Network, Real Estate Articles, Real Estate Blogs. The full set of videos can be seen at their website and a copy of the Final Judgment is also available on their website. The point is who owns the data and who can control its use. VOWs often got access to data only to sell it back to REALTORS^® as a "lead". Evidently REALTOR.com was doing that for a while as well.

Seems that if the IC interpretation is correct, NAR did a good job and REALTORS^® in general pretty much had MLS and data sharing right from the outset. IC feels that VOWs will kind of go away as a business model or at least significantly change as a result of the ruling rather than be strengthened by it.

Real Estate Tax Reassessment Relief?

Thomas Bradley (Century21 Select Group) — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 10:06:27 -0500

Maybe some relief from Tax Assessment Issue

Just read an article in the June edition of The Pennsylvania REALTOR^® about two companion pieces of legislation being taken through the process in the State Legislature. The House version was introduced by Rep Tim Seip of Schuylkill County (HB 1438 and 1439) and the Senate version was introduced by Sen James Rhoades also of Schulykill County (SB 1247 and 1258).

The purpose of the Bills is to close the loophole in current law which is being exploited by school districts in the State (including Jim Thorpe School District right here in Carbon County) to appeal assessments based upon sales price thereby creating inequities in the assessment structure and among homeowners. This practice has hit Carbon County especially hard in the Towamensing Trails, Split Rock and Lake Harmony areas but I am sure elsewhere as well.

The Pa Association of REALTORS^® is supporting the legislation as it has had a chilling effect on real estate transactions for a while in this area and that is in addition to the effect caused by the current worries about the economy, gas prices, and the general reluctance to commit to real estate investment caused by those worries. A past President of the Lehigh Valley Association of REALTORS^®has provided testimony that there is evidence that prospective "buyers strongly reconsider looking at homes in districts that are appealing assessments after the sale", according to the article. Part of the issue is that many Counties had delayed their County-wide reassessments for so long that an imbalance built into the system. However, this is only further exacerbated by the current practice of after sale appeals by the Taxing Authority.

The point here is that there may be some light at the end of this tunnel based upon the legislation proposed. The trail of this issue through the court system has not yielded very satisfactory results from the homeowner perspective and MAYBE legislation can correct what judicial fiat has done. If you are interested in this topic, you can follow the Legislative process to keep abreast of it and we will try to keep you up to date from a REALTOR^® perspective as we get more information.

New Comprehensvie Plan for Kidder Township

Thomas Bradley (Century21 Select Group) — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 00:32:31 -0500

I am an elected Township Supervisor (1 of 5 total) and we hired a professional Planning/Engineering firm to conduct the surveys, guide the Township through the legally required steps to create a Comp Plan and to write the plan for us. I went to the first public update meeting last night held in Kidder Township on the new Township Comprehensive Plan being developed. This meeting was to give the results from the first surveys done about the township as part of the year long process to get a new Comp Plan in place so that a new Subdivision and Land Ordinance as well as Zoning Law could be generated and enacted to follow that plan.

The last time Kidder's Comp Plan was revised was in 1986 and a lot of the demographic and infrastructure makeup of the Township has changed since then. This new Plan will give us the vision for the township over the next 10 to 20 years and set the stage for the requirements found in a new Zoning Ordinance and the specifications found in the new SALDO.

The survey had an impressive 31% response rate so the findings have statistical significance. While some of the results to date were not startling to those who follow the Township and attend its public meetings, they are still interesting. Kidder Township has over 4000 property owners but only a little over 1100 residents in a land area of about 38 square miles with 3.5 miles of Township roads. The roads here are state roads, Interstate highways or in private developments. The survey results were tabulated by non resident property owner and residents. Naturally, residents see things from a day to day living viewpoint and that prioritizes their thinking differently as compared to the non-resident property owner.

As some examples, 57% of residents see the need for additional traffic lights (we have 2 at the moment), only 32% of the non-resident property owners felt that way. As for the need for a Township specific park, 39% of residents saw a need/benefit while only 29% of the non-residents did. The numbers in agreement for the use of tax breaks to attract economic development were similar but those opposed were 45% of residents and only 38% of non-residents with this group being more in the undecided category. 50% of residents but 73% of non-residents said they were here because of the natural environment - only 10% of residents said they were born or raised here but 0% of non-residents said this.

The data collected to date and the preliminary conclusions drawn from that can be seen in detail by going to the township website www.kiddertownship.com. I will try to update the results of the project as it progresses as it should be of interest to property owners, residents and businesses in Carbon County.

Lake Harmony/Long Pond = Pa's 3rd largest City!

Thomas Bradley (Century21 Select Group) — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 14:48:00 -0500

Well it is again one of those two times a year when Lake Harmony and the area surrounding Long Pond, Pa becomes the 3rd Largest city in the state of Pennsylvania. NASCAR Racing is coming for one of their two events held each year at Pocono International Raceway and it's unusual tri-oval tests the drivers and crews. Of course the economic shot in the arm is always welcomed by area businesses (even if less enthusiastically by the residents due to the crowded restaurants. roads, etc). NASCAR is still a fast growing sports/entertainment phenomenom and seems to have the open-wheelers beat, at least in this country, for fans.

Most of the area establishments have race tie-ins with demo cars, demo activities, food or drink specials all geared for the race fans (and even drivers and crews), especially for those fans who may not have tickets to the event but are still here to enjoy the atmosphere, activity, and excitement generate by top level sporting event.

Tax coffers get a boost, businesses (especially hospitality related ones) get a shot of always needed revenue and race fans get to see their stars up close, not just on TV. Its often a wild and wacky weekend and a great asset to the area. Hope this year is as successful as past years, the early part of the week seemed a little slow compared to someothers but the crowds really start Thursday on so we'll soon see if the economy and high gas prices have a negaative impact on the event from a consumer viewpoint.

Networking and Drip Campaigns

Thomas Bradley (Century21 Select Group) — Tue, 03 Jun 2008 13:03:54 -0500

Just saw an ad on the AR Home Page for articles from Branching Out and My Word Tree.com Seems like a possible source for real estate articles for use in an email drip campaign or newsletter service. Of course there are others like Reaty Times and Inman, plus a lot of the national real estate brokerage shave in-house sources as well.

Has anyone in the AR community used or tried this service from My Woed Tree and Branching Out? If you have, what do you think about them? Is it worth the time to use - e.g. did it get you results? Any input from the people who are involved with networking and Internet marketing of real estate would be especially valuable to readers of the AR blogs.

AR Points

Thomas Bradley (Century21 Select Group) — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 12:21:44 -0500

"I just read a comment about agents with lots of points but few listings or sales. Had not thought about that before. Of course, to know that you need to know the agent involved or have access to their MLS info etc because you would not learn that from the Rain itself. The point I have is why should there not also be points for listings, for sales, for referrals and other business related activities as well as the business of networking and sharing? This may provide a better service to AR members and the public alike."

That was the comment i made while looking at recent blogs while not even "logged on". The thought to respond was greater than the potential points gotten by stopping and logging in etc before responding. After thinking about that for a bit, I thought that the usefulness of business related points was too good to let it be lost in an obscure comment (1 of more than 200 to the original posting) within another post so I decided to put it on my blog to see if that flag garners any salutes.

Penn-Kidder Council of CCCC Family Day - Update

Thomas Bradley (Century21 Select Group) — Wed, 28 May 2008 17:12:28 -0500

If you are an area business and involved with the PK Coucil or the CCCC and are interested in having a booth or table at the event, please contact Anne at 570-401-0618 and tell her you saw this blog about the event. She can give you the needed details for costs and booth ideas as well as get you registered as a vendor at the event. This will be fun, family-oriented day benefitting the Lake Harmony Rescus Squad and Ambulance Corps. If such an event fits your advertising and marketing plane or your customer base, plan on attending as a vendor - its great publicity. If they event does not suit your business plans, be there as a consumer, bring your family and friends, and enjoy a wonderful day! The event is 7/19/08 at Nick's Lake House in Lake Harmony, Pa. Starts at Noon and runs to 10PM. Visit www.lakeharmonyneighborhood.com for event details, activities and times.

Penn-Kidder Council of Carbon County Chamber of Commerce Family Day

Thomas Bradley (Century21 Select Group) — Thu, 22 May 2008 14:47:37 -0500

The PK Council of the CCCC will be hosting a Family Day on July 19, 2008 in the area of Nick's Lake House in Lake Harmony, Pa. The events will start at Noon and include games for the children, booths sponsored by area businesses with products, information, games/activities or prizes. A rock climbing wall is planned as well as face painting and many family-oriented activities. As the Family Day portion of the day winds down, the same venue will be hosting a Clam Bake (clams, corn on the cob, salads, grilled chicken. sausages, hot dogs and hamburgers) with some of the proceeds going to support the Lake Harmony Rescue Squad and Ambulance Corps. A band will be there for your entertainment pleasure and a great time will be had for a very worth cause. A chance for PK CCCC to give back to the community and for the community to support the Ambulance service. Plan to be there and bring your family and friends!!

Emergency Services Banquet

Thomas Bradley (Century21 Select Group) — Fri, 16 May 2008 10:53:13 -0500

If you were not at the 1st Annual Kidder Township EMS Banquet, held at The Galleria at Split Rock, you missed a great evening. The event was well attended and everyone who did manage to attend seemed to have fun and was inspired by the proceedings. Honored at the Banquet were the individual members, officers, board members and trustees who combine to make these services available in the community. The organizations honored were Lake Harmony Rescue Squad and Ambulance Corps, Albrightsville Vol Fire Co, Lake Harmony Vol Fire Co and Kidder 1 Vol Fire Co. Heartfelt Thanks to all of them!

The Channel 13 Weatherman was the emcee and State Representatvie Keith McCall was one of the featured speakers. All attendees over 21 years of age received a complimentary bottle of Pennsylvania wine with a special label commemorating the event - compliments of Blue Ridge Real Estate (Big Boulder and Jack Frost).

Each of the EMS organizations spoke, introduced their members and presented awards for various accompishments. The highlight of the awards ceremony seemed to be the one given to Lake Harmony Assistant Chief Dave Bevilacqua. He recieved a special plaque for his near Guiness Book of World records feat of leaving the firehouse with the truck's battery charger still connected three (that's right, 3) times in a couple of month span! Well Done Dave, not many can asppire to this level of acomplishment!!

The evening included a DJ during dinner and a band for dancing the night away afterwards. The inspiring purpose of the dinner combined with good food, good drink, good friend, good comaraderie and a good cause all at a reasonable price made for a wonderful evening.

Plans begin for next year's event. If you missed this one plan to be there next year you will be glad you do.

Emergency Services Banquet - Update

Thomas Bradley (Century21 Select Group) — Thu, 15 May 2008 07:54:24 -0500

The first Annual Banquet to honor local area Volunteer Firefighters as well as the Rescue Squad & Ambulance Corps was held at the Galleria at Split Rock last Saturday evening. It was well attended by residents and the attendees included Pa State Representative Keith McCall. After a cocktail hour dinner, awards presentations and dancing followed. The event was well supported by local businesses via door prize donations, an ad book, and reduced rates for the venue and food. A good time was had by all and it was an inspiring evening to boot.

The evening was set up as a chance for residents and the community to thank the brave men and women who volunteer their time to do a dangerous job which the Township would be hard-pressed to provide via tax revenues. This is a very serious issue in small rural areas of the state. Volunteering is not as popular as it once was and as the communities grow older in average age, it gets very hard to find new volumteers. Costs for new equipment are astronomical and fundraising becomes a way of life. The Lake Harmony Fire Co is currently lookiing to purchase a new ladder truck to replace the old one they have. It is the only ladder truck in the Township (which has three volunteer fire companies - who support each other as best as possible). This truck is ecpected to cost between $800,000 and $1,000,000!! Think about that - a million dollar expenditure for a single piece of equipment in a community with only about 1000 full-time residents but thousands of vacation and rental properties.

Emergency Services Banquet

Thomas Bradley (Century21 Select Group) — Thu, 08 May 2008 16:01:01 -0500

The May 10 dinner, music and dance being held at the Galleria at The Resort at Split Rock is fast approaching. While this is the first time such an event is being held here we have gotten over 250 attendees willing to have a great evening at a reasonable price with the chance to say THANK YOU to people who put their lives on the line every day to protect their fellow citizens (and without compensation). If this sounds a litle sarcastic, it is. We should have 500 or more attending given the population of the area. I throw this out to all who live, work or own property in Kidder Township - let's be prepared for next year and show your support (even if it is only to have a good time yourself) in earnest,

NHL Hockey observation

Thomas Bradley (Century21 Select Group) — Sun, 04 May 2008 13:48:04 -0500

Being a prior resident of Philadelphia I am a Flyers fan from their inaugural season in 1967. To see a team which had fallen to worst in the league last year get into the playoffs this year and now be one of the final four striving for the Stanley Cup is an inspiring situation. It shows that no matter how bad things appear, with concious change and hard work you can reverse your situation to the positive. While I would like them to win Lord Stanley's Cup I know that this is a tall expectation - given the quality of potential upcoming opponents (like the cross state Penguins) BUT they did beat the #1 seed in the conference so it may still be a possibility. While only ONE of Thirty teams actually plays their last game with a win at this time of year in hockey, it is still a tribute to hard work and situational reversal of fortunes that they made it this far given last year's duldrums. Much can be learned from this applicable to everyday life.

More Gambling Facilities destined for the Pocono area

Thomas Bradley (Century21 Select Group) — Sun, 04 May 2008 13:07:31 -0500

Seems as if at least one new casino may be coming to the Pocono Mountain area. The next round of license hearings were held in May. There are only three applicants for the two Resort or Class 3 licenses available. The three are Fernwood Resort in Monroe County, The Resort at Split Rock in Carbon County and the Valley Forge Convention Center. The license would allow the successful applicants to have a facility with up to 500 slot machines (as opposed to the up to 5,000 permitted in the other two types of licenses).

At the May hearing held at the Kidder Township Building on the Split Rock application, the gist of the Resort's presentation was to show who and what they are, how they already comply with the stated requirements for such a license and the added revenue it would bring to the area. They also emphasized that the Valley Forge application is a stretch since they do not seem to meet the intent of the legislation (to assist resorts in the state to attract additional overnight stays and promote tourism) since they are not a destination resort like Split Rock or Fernwood. If that is the correct interpretation, it would seem to be a "no-brainer" and the two resorts would get their approvals. However, we all know that obvious interpretation of complicated laws seldom results in the same decision as reached by a court or other legal entity/agency. Even so, the two area resorts have a 2 out of 3 chance to get at least one license awarded here.

Public comment at the hearing was all favorable at the Split Rock hearing although it was not attended by anywhere near the number of people attending and commenting at the Fernwood hearing (which also essentially all favorable) held the day before. Of course, additional comments can still be made and received for the record via an online forum at the State Gaming Commission website.

Get ready for the impacts if the applications go through. This could well mean additional home rental business in the area plus a positive impact on local area stores, restaurants and other businesses. Naturally there could also be some downsides such as added traffic, additional people with the opportunity for additional crime etc. I hope that we are prepared for both of these possibilities and that the added revenues offset the added local government costs to deal with them. Anyone have any thoughts to share here or with the Gaming Commission?

Some more views of Split Rock and Lake Harmony

Thomas Bradley (Century21 Select Group) — Sat, 22 Mar 2008 16:34:48 -0500

At the top end of this photo is The Resort at Split Rock. The pictures below show that long established four season resort on Lake Harmony. Originaly built and owned by Lehigh Coal and Navigation Co, the Lodge was a vacation get-away for hunting and fishing for their executives but quickly eveolved into a public facility. The first picture below shows the Lodge from the swimming/dock area.

The picture below is a panoramic shot of Lake Harmony from the docks at Split Rock. From this viewpoint you are looking toward the bottom of the photo in the aerial view above.

We are digging up some more old photos of the area and will psot them later.

Winter and Early Spring Views in Split Rock

Thomas Bradley (Century21 Select Group) — Sat, 22 Mar 2008 16:25:08 -0500

Lake Harmony was frozen over for most of the winter. This was just prior to starting to thaw. taken at the "spilway" end of the lake (where it "flows" into the Tunhkannock and tobyhanna Creeks Watershed) Ice fishing is a popular sport here when the conditions are right (which is most winters)

Someone hoping for Spring/Summer and th ewarmer weather. Maybe the ice with the fishing then will be with a cold drink rather than fishing through the ice.

Some Photos of Split Rock area

Thomas Bradley (Century21 Select Group) — Sat, 22 Mar 2008 15:15:09 -0500

The above picture was taken from the southeastern end of the Lake. THe Resort at Split Rock is located at the top of this picture. Lake Harmony, the largets natural lake in the Pocono Mountains of Pa, is a 125 acre spring fed lake which permits power boats(with proper registration, boat tags, identification, and insurance) for area property owners to fish, water ski and enjoy the outdoors. It has been a popular vacationing area since before WWII and has evolved from a fishing/hunting/summers oriented venue into a four seasons resort area with a growing full-time residence population.

Split Rock is located on the NW end of Lake Harmony. The views above were taken from our Split Rock Neighborhood website. They show, clockwise from upper left: The entrance to Split Rock Cpuntry Club, The 11th Fairway on the North Course from the tee box, docks at Split Rock and our pontoon boat at sunset,

Lake Harmony Growth

Thomas Bradley (Century21 Select Group) — Sat, 22 Mar 2008 08:49:38 -0500

I have posted a market report on growth in Carbon County and it would follow that this area should also be experiencing similar soaring grwoth. However, while there is some new construction in progress at Big Boulder & Jack Frost Mountain Ski areas as well as the golf course at Split Rock it is not actually even close to booming. Many more units are planned at these locations but the overall market slow-down seems to be hitting here hard. New unit sales are way off and even open houses at the locations do not seem to attract more than the occaisional passer though. I suppose most of the carbon grwoth is still in Penn Forest Township rather than Kidder Township. This will change, the question is when?

Fast Growth in Carbon County

Thomas Bradley (Century21 Select Group) — Fri, 21 Mar 2008 22:44:12 -0500

Read an article recently (3/21/08) in the Pocono Record and it seems that Carbon County has become a growth hotbed! In the recent past it has been Pike and Monroe Counties with the spurting growth around here. Pike County is still leading the State in growth in percentage terms but Monroe has slipped while Carbon has steamed ahead into the number two spot. The majority of the new residents are coming from New York, New Jersey, and Maryland. In fact the whole eastern part of the State is growing at quite a clip compared to the remainder of the State. York and Chester Counties are the 3rd and 4^th fastest growing in Pa.

Change is inevitable and growth is a good thing, from an economic viewpoint, but fast growth not only changes the fundamental character of an area (going from wooded mountains and resorts to almost suburban in nature) it places enormous strain on infrastructure. By infrastructure, in this case, I mean more than just the obvious concerns about roads, bridges, schools, storm water runoff control, ground water depletion for wells, need for central sewage and other public works type issues. I also mean issues related to simple things like mail delivery (currently there is none, everyone still goes to the Post Office to get their mail) and complex ones like emergency services (such as police protection, fire fighting and ambulance services) which are all stretched to the limit. These concerns must also include the need for updated Comprehensive Planning for Townships, new Subdivision and Land Development Ordinances and new Zoning Ordinances. This is very difficult and expensive to deal with in a community with few full time residents which swell to large populations on weekends, holidays and NASCAR race times. Volunteer fire fighters and rescue/ambulance people are few and far between in an area where there is no paid force to contend with these issues and the influx of people is often retirees who are not as inclined to tackle the stressful, physical duties of fire fighting etc. Without trying to sound like a rural versus city argument, the people do come for the open space and pristine "wildness" of an area but expect city-like amenities and services - great if doable but it usually does not work out well for one or the other of these competing interests. As someone once said, "may you live in interesting times!" It will be interesting to see how this all plays out here in Carbon County.

Emergency Services Banquet

Thomas Bradley (Century21 Select Group) — Thu, 13 Mar 2008 16:40:45 -0500

The 1st Annual Emergency Services Banquet is scheduled for May 10, 2008 at The Galleria in Split Rock. The banquet is being held to say "THANK YOU" to the men and women serving in an emergency services capacity in Kidder Township and surrounding communities. This certainly includes the Lake Harmony Rescue Squad & Ambulance Corp as well as the Albrightsville, Lake Harmony, & Kidder Volunteer Fire Companies. More information on times and menu can be obtained by contacting Maureen Kennedy (see Events page of this website), your local fire company or the Penn-Kidder Council of the Carbon County Chamber of Commerce. This is a worthy event and will be a fun time for all attendees. If you are in this area, live here or own property here, please plan to attend the 1st Annual Banquet. Souvenir progam booklets will be available.

Thomas Bradley (Century21 Select Group) — Sat, 08 Mar 2008 15:34:18 -0600

Anyone interested in receiving a Newsletter on Lake Harmony, Albightsville and Split Rock please contact us. We are in the process of putting it together and would love to have you on the mailing list. We will need an email address as that is how the newsletter will be sent. It will have information on local news of interest and upcoming events. The Bradley REALTOR(R) are your source for area information. We will also be looking for any ideas you may have about the newsletter itself or the articles to be included. We may not be able to use all of them but we will certainly try. New neighbors info, your events, your organization's events are all welcomed.

Neighborhood Websites

Thomas Bradley (Century21 Select Group) — Sat, 08 Mar 2008 15:26:21 -0600

The Bradley REALTORS(R) Team continues to support three area neighborhood websites. These are http://www.lakeharmonyneighborhood.com/, http://www.albrightsvilleneighborhood.com/ and http://www.splitrockneighborhood.com/. These sites are meant to be community resources which allow residents, non-resident property owners and visitors alike to get up to date information on local news, weather, events, photos, professional services directory, classified ads, recipes, lawn/gardening tips. home maintenance tips, and restaurany reviews. The site also has real estate offeriings, real estate news, access to office website, Active Rain(R), MLS via IDX, and national/global news plus a cartoon of the day and quote of the day with related topics. THey are a way to know what is going on even if your schedule keeps you away from the area. They are also a way to see what is coming up should you be planning to be at your vacation get-away property.

Lake Harmony Easter Egg Hunt

Thomas Bradley (Century21 Select Group) — Sat, 08 Mar 2008 15:15:00 -0600

Once again, we will be sponsoring an Easter Egg Hunt at the recreation field in SplitRock. The event is open to all children under 12 years old and will again be visited by the Easter Bunny. The hunt has 1st 2nd and 3rd place prizes for children lucky enough to find the special eggs hidden with the 1600+/- eggs around that area. Four age categories will again be used: under 3 years old, 4 & 5 years old, 6 to 9 years old and 10 to 12 years old. The event is held indpendent of weather so dress accordingly (last two years we had snow!!). The event starts at 1PM and runs to about 2PM or whenever the children stop finding the eggs. It is a good idea to bring a bag or basket to hold your eggs while looking for more. Turn in thr special eggs and we will see what special prize you receive. Hope to see you there!