The West Finley Township Board of Supervisors convened for the monthly meeting on Monday, April 14, 2025, at 6:00 pm at the Township Office Building. Chairman Martin and Vice Chairman Pritt were present. Supervisor Collins was absent.
Also present at the meeting were Craig Yoho, Tracey Shaulis, Deb Swart, Brandon Gray, Warren Duncan, Tim Collins, and Edie Minch.
CALL TO ORDER
Chairman Martin called the meeting to order at 6:01 pm.
READING OF PRIOR MEETING MINUTES
The minutes from the March meeting were previously emailed to the Supervisors. After a quick review, the motion to approve the minutes was made by Chairman Martin and seconded by Vice Chairman Pritt. All in favor, Ayes: 2, motion carried.
PUBLIC COMMENT
Deb Swart inquired about the employees’ working hours. Currently, the Road Crew works from 6:30 am to 2:30 pm. The Secretary is in the office from 8:00 am to 4:00 pm.
UNFINISHED BUSINESS
The final draft of the West Finley Township employee policy and procedures handbook was reviewed by the Supervisors during a workshop gathering. Revisions to vacation time and cell phone usage were made. The motion to approve and adopt the new handbook was made by Vice Chairman Pritt and seconded by Chairman Martin. All in favor, Ayes: 2, motion carried. All employees must read the handbook, sign the acknowledgment, and return it to the Secretary by the end of the current payroll period, Wednesday, April 23, 2025.
The agility agreement with East Finley Township is being finalized. A few changes were initiated by their Solicitor, and their Secretary is completing the final version. Since the changes were minimal, and both parties are still in agreement, Chairman Martin motioned to approve the agility agreement with East Finley Township. Vice Chairman Pritt seconded the motion. All in favor, Ayes: 2, motion carried.
NEW BUSINESS
A resident has recently complained about the conditions of a neighboring property. It is assumable that it is being operated as a junkyard and is in violation of the Township’s coordinating ordinance. A letter was prepared to notify the resident of this infraction, giving a 30 day time frame for improvements to be made to the property. Motion made by Chairman Martin, seconded by Vice Chairman Pritt. All in favor, Ayes: 2, motion carried.
Stahl Sheaffer Engineering applied for renewals of Heavy Road Use permits for CNX as they continue working on the WFN 10, 12, and MORR 44 pipeline project. All fees have been paid. Chairman Martin made a motion to approve the renewal permits. Vice Chairman Pritt seconded the motion. All in favor, Ayes: 2, motion carried.
WEST FINLEY VFC REPORT
Craig Yoho presented the monthly report for the West Finley Volunteer Fire Company. He gave the Board a breakdown of the calls from March. Several VFC events are upcoming, including Bingo and Cash Bash. The social hall was inspected by EMS West and was certified by them for related training events. EMR classes should begin in the fall of this year. There is also an EVOC class hosted by Morris Township. The VFC would like to extend the invitation to the Road Crew as this would train them in apparatus driving. The date for the class still needs to be determined, but the Supervisors will recommend that the Road Crew participate.
Being that junkyards have been brought to attention again, there are also several properties that are in violation of the Township’s municipal waste ordinance. One of the worst properties is on Beham Ridge Road and is owned by Tunnel Ridge. A notification letter was prepared for them as well. Chairman Martin motioned to send the letter to the property owners, giving them 30 days to make improvements. Vice Chairman Pritt seconded the motion. All in favor, Ayes: 2, motion carried.
ROAD FOREMAN’S REPORT
There was no report this month as the Foreman was on vacation.
SECRETARY’S REPORT
The 2024 Audit was completed. The report was submitted to the DCED before the April 1st deadline. The Secretary for the Auditors filed the report with the county and received a stamped copy as a receipt. All accounts reconciled and balances matched. The Board of Auditors also wrote recommendation letters to the Board of Supervisors commending the Tax Collector and Secretary and Treasurer on jobs well done.
Lt. Dowlin from the PA State Police sent the March monthly report to the Supervisors. The report was reviewed and discussed.
K2 Engineering also submitted their monthly report. There were no building or commercial permits this past month, but one floodplain permit was issued to Columbia Gas. This project will consist of groundbed replacement of Line 1919 in Majorsville. The payment for the permit was written to the Township instead of our engineering firm. The check will be deposited and a new check to K2 will be issued from the Township. Columbia Gas will also need to be contacted as there is also a remaining balance of $50.
PennDOT notified the Township of a project in Donegal Township that will detour traffic through West Finley. They will be working on the bridges going over Interstate 70 at the West Alexander exit. Construction is expected to start in August and conclude by the end of November 2025. PennDOT will give the Township more information after the final design is completed.
West Finley Township clean up days are Friday, April 25, 2025 and Saturday, April 26, 2025. There will be dumpsters at the Township Building and West Finley VFC. We will also be collecting passenger/light truck tires at 4 per household. Any excess number of tires will be charged $3/tire for disposal. The Township will be responsible for hauling these tires to the facility.
Supervisor Collins resigned from his position with the Township due to relocating his residency to a different municipality. The motion to accept his letter of resignation was made by Chairman Martin and seconded by Vice Chairman Pritt. All in favor, Ayes: 2, motion carried. The two remaining Supervisors must appoint a replacement within 30 days. If not in agreement, the Vacancy Chair would act as the third Supervisor, and the Township would then have an additional 15 days to make an appointment. If no decision could be made, the appointment would then be made by the Court of Common Pleas. After some discussion, Chairman Martin motioned to make Amanda Yankovich the appointed Supervisor. Vice Chairman Pritt seconded the motion. All in favor, Ayes: 2, motion carried.
ADMINISTRATIVE ITEMS
The financial reports for all the Township accounts were presented, including balances from the March 2025 bank statements. This report was reviewed along with the QuickBooks reconciliation reports for each account. The Board also reviewed an itemized list of current expenditures for payment in April. The motion to approve the financial statements and payment of the expenditures was made by Vice Chairman Pritt and seconded by Chairman Martin. All in favor, Ayes: 2, motion carried.
Community Bank will also be contacted regarding the CDs’ maturity date. Interest rates will be checked at Community Bank and First Federal of Greene County.
ADJOURNMENT OF MEETING
Chairman Martin adjourned the meeting at 6:44 pm.