The Morris Township Board of Supervisors met at the township office for their regular scheduled meeting. Present were Supervisors Dave Dietrich, Rob Sanders, Doug Smith, Zoning Officer Bob Sanders, Jim & Michelle Wilson, Dusty Stockdale, Randy Hamilton, Tim Hamilton and Pam Bartolotto.
Chairman Sanders called the meeting to order at 7:30 P.M. Minutes of the previous meeting were read. Sanders indicated that the cinder/salt storage building partitions are nearly complete and there is electric in the building. It was also determined that the secretary forgot to include the discussion about the township looking into a new F-550 dump truck with plow and spreader and a F-350 truck with a plow and spreader. Motion by Sanders, second by Smith to approve the minutes as corrected. Dietrich agreed.
In old business, Mr. and Mrs. David Watt have not removed the unregistered and/or unlicensed vehicle from Morris Township property. Secretary Lesnock to draft a letter to the Watts demanding removal of the car.
Dietrich stated that El Grande will not be able to do the Weir Cole Road (nearest to Dille Run Road) project until 2020. Sanders stated the Weir Cole Road township resident’s road surveys are nearly complete. The Redevelopment Authority will determine if the specific portion of Weir Cole Road will qualify for a grant.
As Secretary Lesnock is resigning at the end of December 2019, Smith made a motion and a second was made by Dietrich to appoint Pamela Bartolotto as Secretary/Treasurer beginning January 1, 2020 at $20.00 per hour. All agreed. In order to complete the bonding process and to begin training, Motion by Sanders, second by Smith to hire Pamela Bartolotto as of this date as a temporary clerk during the month of December at $15.00 per hour. All agreed.
The township still has the old V-plow. Discussion ensued as to the correct way to sell it. Water well not drilled yet. It is believed that the drilling outfit is currently broke down. There has been no action taken on the bottled gas tanks for welding.
Supervisors spoke about the Lemon Hill Road slip repair. Road crew spoke with the Koehlers. There is a spring at the bottom of the slip and that is the water source for the Koehler’s home. The road slip is disrupting their water. There may already be a water buffalo on site due to mining in the area. Lemon Hill has a turn that needs to be widened. Road crew may have to redirect some water coming off Lemon Hill to fix the slip. There will be a need to order more stone than was previously bid. Discussion ensued.
We received notification that the DCNR awarded a $40,000.00 grant to put toward a double vault prefabricated restrooms unit at the park.
Sanders discussed the need for smaller trucks to run on the township roads when the conditions are not favorable for the big trucks. Plus, our Internationals are a 2006 and a 2008 and the use of smaller trucks will help the bigger trucks last longer. Sanders received Woltz and Wind Ford, Costars quote of $48,505.00 on a 2020 Ford F-350 Crew Cab with a salt spreader. Smith stated he thought the township was a bit equipment happy at times. Discussion ensued. Dusty felt that the township should move on this issue soon as it will take a while to get the truck in. Motion by Sanders, second by Smith to purchase the Ford F-350 XL 4X4 SRW Crew Cab Pickup through Costars. All agreed.
In new business, Randy Hamilton stated that the township employee handbook directs the road crew to present a written report on road work for the supervisors. As both Dietrich and Sanders are currently elected Supervisors who are also Road Masters, they already discuss on the record at a public supervisors meeting, what work is done on township roads. Hamilton stated they need to follow their own handbook. Discussion ensued. Hamilton then stated that he believes the township needs to implement an agenda for township meetings and to post on the website pending discussions or actions. Smith felt it was not a bad idea. Discussion ensued.
Randy Hamilton stated that he is the auditor elect for the term beginning in 2020. He stated he contacted the state and obtained an auditor’s guidebook. He referred to the auditors setting the compensation of a township employee that is also an elected supervisor. He indicated that on page 18, there is a chart that the auditors fill out and it states “the compensation shall not be higher than local adjoining and nearby townships, etc … ” He believes the pay of the two supervisors who are employees is too high and spoke of lowering the current wages of the township supervisors who are employed by Morris Township. He stated he understands that the auditors can be sued by the employees who are supervisors if they lower the wages. He also spoke of the PSATS Wage and Salary Survey. The Supervisors had a copy of the current PSATS Wage and Salary Survey and pointed out that their pay is within reason of other townships within the survey. Hamilton stated that the state representative told him to have Morris Township Solicitor give his legal opinion on this matter and to have it put into the township minutes and to head off any legal action from any township entity. Hamilton questioned whether the current auditors followed the guidelines. Sanders stated for the record that he believes their wages are within reason and he believes they are compensated fairly for their abilities. Discussion ensued.
Dietrich stated that during the township budget workshop, the possibility of having a Certified Public Accountant perform the yearly township audit was brought up. He stated that with our budget being well over a million dollars, it would be a wise move to hire a CPA. Hamilton stated that he thought that would be a good idea and believed it was up to the auditors to determine if the township should use a CPA. Secretary to contact Hook concerning this matter.
Motion by Sanders, second by Dietrich to review and pay bills. Motion by Sanders, seconded by Smith to adjourn. Meeting adjourned at 8:55 P.M.
Respectfully submitted,
Kathy Lesnock, Secretary