CLEARFIELD – On Thursday night Clearfield Borough resident and former member of Clearfield Borough Council Harvey Haag expressed opinions on the possible Novey’s land gift to Clearfield Borough.
It was announced in April that Gladys Novey and her son Martin are offering to gift their property, 2 W. Pine St., along the river, to the borough.
According to a letter from Timothy Durant, on behalf of his clients to the borough, the land is assessed at $63,000. The letter also states that the Novey’s intend to move their operations to their Martin Street property within the next 12 months.
According to the terms of the agreement, if the borough were to accept the gift, the property would be transferred ‘as is.’ The borough would have to agree to hold the grantor harmless and indemnify her against claims which may arise from prior use of the property.
The grantor would be permitted to place a plaque or memorial garden in an appropriate spot on the land in memory of her late daughter and husband. The grantor agrees that she and her heirs shall select, pay for and maintain the memorial garden.
Any environmental testing of the land will be the borough’s responsibility.
Haag stated that when he was president of council he met with the late Saul Novey to discuss the possibility of Novey donating the land to the borough for a memorial park.
Haag touched on the different uses the land could afford the borough.
“In the borough we need access to the river,” said Haag, who noted that it could be used for boat access to the river.
He said it could also be used for fire departments to pump for water
Haag also touched on the chemicals or heavy metals that may be in the ground. He said that he heard a recommendation to blacktop the land to form an impermeable cover to protect from chemicals or heavy metals.
Haag said that he has been in contact with different departments at the high school. He noted that the land could give students an opportunity to do student projects, such as surveying, while not actually affecting the land.