The West Finley Township Board of Supervisors held their monthly meeting on Monday, November 11, 2024 at 6:00 pm at the Township Office Building. All Supervisors were present. Township residents in attendance were Ian Martin, Craig Yoho, Mark Sibert, Steve and Cathy Emery, Tracey Shaulis, Albert and Angela Lash, Brandon Gray, Griffith Lesnock, Ed Ritsko, Eric Grahan, Melinda Duncan, and Tim Collins. Several special services representatives were also present at the meeting, including Larry Pollock and Lorenzo Garino from Ambulance and Chair EMS, and Robert T. and Rob Rathi from LifeFlight.
CALL TO ORDER
The call to order was made by Chairman Martin at 5:58 pm.
READING OF PRIOR MEETING MINUTES
The Secretary read the minutes from the October board meeting. The motion to approve the minutes was made by Vice Chairman Pritt and seconded by Chairman Martin. All in favor, Ayes: 3, motion carried. The minutes from the 2025 Budget meeting were also read. The motion to approve the minutes was made by Chairman Martin and seconded by Supervisor Collins. All in favor, Ayes: 3, motion carried.
PUBLIC COMMENT
Angela Lash informed the Board about some burning that occurred during a windy day. She suggested, along with Chief Emery, that the Township impose a burning ban, especially with the current draught conditions. There have already been several local firemen injured due to wood fires.
Griffith Lesnock has concerns about the condition of the crossing on Walnut Valley Road. The abutments are falling into the creek. He provided pictures of the crossing for the Board members to view. The Road Foreman will evaluate the poor conditions of the crossing.
OLD BUSINESS
The campers are still in the roadway along Burnsville Ridge Road. Under the Second Class Township code, this qualifies as a nuisance and a safety issue, and the Board may take action. Chairman Martin made a motion to notify the landowner via certified letter that the camper is to be removed as soon as possible. Vice Chairman Pritt seconded the motion. All in favor, Ayes: 3, motion carried.
CNX has sent the Board updated plans for WFN 13 on Slemmons Road. There are permits in process with the state to do the road upgrades along with a storm water management basin. They also plan to install a sound wall and will contact K2 Engineering for permit information. The Board requests Brett Matthews, our CNX representative, to attend the December Board meeting to further discuss the project.
NEW BUSINESS
The Township’s proposed budget for 2025 has been prepared. According to the Township code, an advertisement announcing the proposed budget will need to be placed in the Observer Reporter. Chairman Martin motioned to advertise the availability of the budget for public inspection for a period of twenty days. Vice Chairman Pritt seconded the motion. All in favor, Ayes: 3, motion carried.
A Heavy Road Use permit application was submitted by Freeman Miller. He plans to do a logging job for Richard and Judy Skrenta on Robison Run Road. He has paid the $250 application fee. Since the job will only take a few weeks, just two additional road inspections will be needed. Pending the $300 payment of these inspections, Vice Chairman Pritt made a motion to approve the permit. Chairman Martin seconded the motion. All in favor, Ayes: 3, motion carried.
K2 Engineering submitted their monthly report to the Board of Supervisors. They will resubmit the Township’s application for LSA funds with a Resolution passed by the Board and the completion of a letter of intent. The deadline to submit all the documents to K2 is November 30, 2024. Vice Chairman Pritt made a motion to approve the Resolution and submit the letter. Chairman Martin seconded the motion. All in favor, Ayes: 3, motion carried.
FIRE CHIEF’S REPORT
A report from the VFC was given by Craig Yoho. There are 201 calls to date. Education programs continue and the VFC will have one more interior firefighter by the fall. There will be no monthly meeting for December.
Ambulance and Chair EMS representative, Larry Pollock, brought a draft of the long-standing contract for the Board to review. His associate, Lorenzo Garino, updated the Board members on the new endeavors of the company. As Ambulance and Chair continues their commitment to the community, additional advanced equipment will be purchased. There is $1.5 million worth of capital from the Ambulance and Chair Board of Directors that will go into EMS, vehicles, and other necessities. Part of the agreement presented by Mr. Pollock would help to verify the Township’s commitment to exclusive service with Ambulance and Chair EMS.
The agreement between the West Finley Volunteer Fire Company and the Township was discussed. The VFC explained their definition of incidentals, but the wording in the Chief’s letter was somewhat confusing. To make the agreement clearer, it will be added that incidentals are defined as everyday operating expenses.
ROAD FOREMAN’S REPORT
The Road Crew has completed various projects this month. Many ditches have been cleaned free of debris, mostly leaves. A culvert was replaced on Beham Run Road and the well at the Township building has been finished. The Foreman is aware of a culvert issue on Walnut Valley Road but wasn’t aware of the crossing issue brought up by Mr. Lesnock. As previously stated, he will investigate this crossing. The Foreman also met with Jason Fillhart from Dirt and Gravel to discuss possible funding for bridge work. We will be able to reapply for next year’s available funds. These bridges have recently had some repairs made according to bridge inspections by SAI Engineering.
SECRETARY’S REPORT
The Township received an NOI from Environmental Commodities Corporation regarding their application for Enlow Mine’s methane enclosed flare.
The October State police report from Lt. Dowlin was prepared for the Board prior to the meeting. The number of calls is down for the month.
Greer Industries sent notice about price increases for 2025. Their costs are expected to rise by 7% (seven). This should not affect us until new bids go out in February.
ADMINISTRATIVE ITEMS
The financial reports for all the Township accounts were presented. The bank statements from October were reviewed along with their QuickBooks reconciliation reports.
The Board also examined an itemized list of current expenditures. The motion to approve the financial statements and payment of the expenditures was made by Chairman Martin and seconded by Vice Chairman Pritt. All in favor, Ayes: 3, motion carried.
ADJOURNMENT OF MEETING
Chairman Martin adjourned the meeting at 7:30 pm.