A drug and alcohol treatment center has been approved for an office building in western Salisbury Township.

The Salisbury Township Board of Commissioners voted 4-0, with one commissioner absent, to approve Mid-Atlantic Rehabilitation Services, Inc.’s request for 1255 S. Cedar Crest Boulevard, Suites 1600 and 1610, as an outpatient drug and alcohol treatment center.

The vote followed a 20-minute conditional use hearing Jan. 25 in the meeting room of the municipal building.

Attorney Jason A. Ulrich, partner, Gross McGinley Attorneys At Law, LLP, Salisbury Township solicitor, chaired the hearing.

Attorney Michael A. Santanasto, Santanasto Law, Bethlehem, represented Mid-Atlantic Rehabilitation Services, Inc.

Testifying were Paul MacDonald, chief executive officer, MARSCare, health care companies which provide health care services in a seven county area of eastern Pennsylvania; Gregory A. Krausz, director, Mid-Atlantic Rehabilitation Services, 826 Delaware Ave., Fountain Hill and Joe Martellucci, administrator, Lehigh County Drug and Alcohol Services.

MARS will relocate from a building along Delaware Avenue in Fountain Hill to a building in Cedar Crest Professional Park in Salisbury Township.

“We have substantial contracts with MARS. It’s probably our largest treatment vendor,” Martellucci testified concerning Lehigh County.

According to testimony, no drugs are administered on-premises and there are no overnight stays. Office hours are 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Friday and, by appointment Saturday.

Concerning its location, Krausz testified, “It’s medical offices. There are other health care providers in the buildings there. There is plenty of parking.

“The people we serve are members of the community who live in the community,” Krausz testified.

“This is normal outpatient services. Since the pandemic, a lot of our consulting is done through telemedicine,” MacDonald testified.

Concerning the need for the move, MacDonald testified, “We keep experiencing a need for services. We are serving a lot of people in the Allentown area. We’ve outgrown our current space.”

The location would be licensed by the Pennsylvania Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs.

According to its website, “The philosophy of MARS (Mid-Atlantic Rehabilitation Services) is that Substance Use Disorders are a disease. As a result, MARS will seek to provide client-centered and community-based treatment to those impacted by substance use, and will do so at the most cost-effective level.”

During the township meeting that followed the hearing, commissioners voted 4-0 to approve:

- An ordinance amending the Salisbury Township Code of Ordinances, Chapter 21, Parts 1 and 4, regarding street opening and excavations and curbing and sidewalks. The approximate 130-page ordinance amendments and fee schedule is on the township website under the agenda of the Jan. 25 meeting.

- A resolution for the 2024 fee schedule.

- A motion for a time extension and-or land development plan for a property at 2844 S. Pike Ave.

The workshop included two topics of discussion:

• Draft of Food Truck Ordinance

• Water Meter Calibration Ordinance

The February Salisbury Township municipal meetings include:

7 p.m. Feb. 8, board of commissioners; 7 p.m. Feb. 14, zoning hearing board; 7 p.m. Feb. 21, environmental advisory council; 7 p.m. Feb. 22, board of commissioners and 7 p.m. Feb. 28, planning commission, all in the meeting room of the municipal building, 2900 S. Pike Ave.