Forks Property Owner Gets Go Ahead to Rebuild

Plans to rebuild a Forks Township home that was destroyed in a Jan. 26 fire on N. Delaware Drive (Route 611) may soon be under way.

The township zoning hearing board has given property owner Clark Eike the green light to rebuild the two-story structure at 4340 N. Delaware Drive -- the same lot where his home was destroyed in an early-morning fire.

Eike had to apply for a variance because the new construction would encroach on a side yard of the neighboring property, the Mineral Springs Hotel. No one from the hotel or neighborhood was at the meeting to oppose the application.

The former home was a two-story, two-unit structure that included a 19-foot-by-16-foot addition at the back of the home. But according to contractor Jay Miller of Jay Miller Contractors Inc., the addition was too small to break up into two bedrooms and does not work well with a more current floor plan.

New plans call for the same square footage, just a better layout for the planned two-story, two-family home that will include two bedrooms in each apartment.

“The outside will look much better and inside the rooms will be an easier layout,” said Eike.

“Plan as we design the two-unit would be more of a rectangular building which would lend itself to a better floor plan for a two-unit,” said Miller. “The roof lines will be a lot cleaner and helps in the floor plan. It’s just a much nicer looking building.”

The original century-old property burned to the foundation in the fire, which displaced four people. The cause was unattended cooking, according to township Fire Chief Charles Chapman.

Problems locating the property after initial 911 calls were received from a cell phone caused Forks fire officials to take some 15 minutes to respond. By the time firefighters arrived, the property was fully engulfed.

The nearest cellular tower is just over the bridge in Warren County, N.J. Emergency calls from cell phones along N. Delaware Drive  are received by Warren dispatchers. To make matters worse, there are also several repeated addresses through at least three municipalities along the road, causing mix-ups at times.

In March, 911 mix-ups occurred again when a person called from a cell phone about a brush fire along N. Delaware Drive in Lower Mount Bethel Township.

Forks has sent a letter to the Northampton County 911 Dispatch Center, requesting answers to the 911 problems.