YORK TOWNSHIP, Pa. (WHTM) -- The wait continues to find out whether 150 houses will soon go where conservationists say only owls and eagles live today.
The thing is, those owls and eagles don't own the land. Who does? And who will?
The land in question is the old Red Lion Country Club property, which isn't in Red Lion. It currently belongs to the Red Lion Area School District even though it's not actually in the district either.
It's wedged between Red Lion and Windsor Township and is actually in York Township.
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The question?
"Progress versus - you know - being conservationists," said Eric Maloney, who is fighting to stop the homebuilders.
Maloney says conservation should win now that bald eagles and short-eared owls live here. He and other neighbors want the land to become a permanent park.
"You have to stand up for, you know, an animal that can't speak for themselves," Maloney added.
The land was once the Red Lion Country Club. Later, the clubhouse burned down and a firefighter was injured fighting a fire that investigators blamed on arson.
Police arrested three juveniles and now a developer wants to spend $1.3 million to buy the land from the school district and then build 150 houses.
But what questions do the York Township commissioners have?
"Is this compatible for the township? Is this desirable for the township?" said one of the commissioners.
Those questions were supposed to be answered at a hearing on Tuesday night. But it was delayed after the developer asked the meeting to be moved to a different date and larger venue because so many people wanted to speak.
For now, yard signs are doing the speaking.
Maloney is currently fighting a lawsuit against the developer, township, school district and others. The developer - Catalyst Commercial Development - didn't respond to a request for comment. But the township told us, "Today this property is zoned as commercial office and could be developed for any permitted uses as provided by the commercial office zoning district within the zoning ordinance."
Even without a zoning change, someone could already build on the land - just businesses, not houses - but all the same if you're an owl or eagle.
The hearing is now rescheduled for July at the much larger Dallastown Area high School auditorium.
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