The Board of Supervisors of West Finley Township held their monthly meeting on Monday, March 10, 2025, at 6:00 pm at the Township Office Building. All Supervisors were present.
The following individuals were present at the meeting: Edie Minch, Craig Yoho, Brandon Gray, Tracey Shaulis, Tom Teagarden, Faith Welling, Lauren Perkins, Melinda Duncan, Tim and Becky Collins, Rhonda Zozula, Ian Martin, and Cindy and Dave Kuhn. Also present at the meeting was Tiffany Vargo from Canonsburg Ambulance.
CALL TO ORDER
Chairman Martin called the meeting to order at 6:00 pm.
READING OF PRIOR MEETING MINUTES
The Secretary presented the Board with the minutes from the February monthly meeting. These minutes were previously emailed to the Supervisors. After review, the motion to approve the minutes was made by Chairman Martin Pritt and seconded by Vice Chairman. All in favor, Ayes: 3, motion carried.
PUBLIC COMMENT
Melinda Duncan inquired about the status of the Grange building, the items inside of it, and the plans for its future use. Just recently, our insurance company requested that the Grange update its electrical system. The current system includes old fuses that need to be replaced with breakers. The box will also be replaced. Future plans for this property will soon be discussed by the Board.
UNFINISHED BUSINESS
The final draft of the West Finley Township employee policy and procedures handbook was sent via email to the Board members. There may be a few items that still need to be discussed by the Supervisors. A workshop has been scheduled for Saturday, March 22, 2025 at 9:00 am at the Township Building for a final review. Approval of the new handbook will be put on the agenda for the April monthly meeting.
NEW BUSINESS
The Williams’ Subdivision paperwork was submitted to the Board for approval. The Planning Commission previously approved the Subdivision. The motion to approve the Subdivision for the Township was made by Vice Chairman Pritt and seconded by Chairman Martin. All in favor, Ayes: 3, motion carried.
*** OPENING OF BIDS ***
At 6:15 pm, the Supervisors paused the meeting and opened all sealed bids for materials. The following bids were received:
FOR AGGREGATES
- Heidelberg Materials – #57 stone @ $34.80/ton and #67 stone @ $35.80/ton
- Greer Limestone Company – 57 stone @ $28.25/ton and #67 stone @ $28.25/ton
FOR No. 2 LOW SULFUR DIESEL FUEL
- Stuck Enterprises (Jacob’s Petroleum) – 7,000 gallons @ $2.35/gallon
- Bruceton Petroleum – 5,000 gallons @ $2.27 (with tank requirements)
FOR E-3 ASPHALT OIL
- Midland Asphalt – 40,000 gallons @ $2.48/gallon
- Youngblood Paving – 40,000 gallons @ $2.81/gallon
- Russell Standard – 40,000 gallons @ $2.47/gallon
The motion to accept the bids from Greer Limestone Company for #57 and #67 stone @ $28.25 per ton, from Stuck Enterprises for 7,000 gallons of No. 2 low sulfur diesel @ $2.35 per gallon, and from Russell Standard for E-3 asphalt oil @ $2.47 per gallon was made by Chairman Martin and seconded by Vice Chairman Pritt. All in favor, Ayes: 3, motion carried.
NEW BUSINESS (continued)
A logging company has applied for a Heavy Road Use permit to access trees on Blockhouse Run Road. These trees are on private property. The permit fees have been paid.
The Williams Company also applied for a Heavy Road Use permit for slide repair on Beham Run Road. The payment for the application has not yet been received as it will come from their corporate office. Approval letters for both Heavy Road Use permits were presented to the Board. Chairman Martin motioned to approve these Heavy Road Use permits, pending complete payment from Williams. Vice Chairman Pritt seconded the motion. All in favor, Ayes: 3, motion carried.
Some future upgrades of the building were discussed. The front of the garages could use some minor repairs. There are places where the metal has been damaged and needs to be replaced. The paint could be freshened up and/or some brick could be added to give the building some more appeal. No upgrades to the main building have been made in over twenty years. There is also a strong need for a building for material storage. This past winter proved to be difficult to access materials in cold temperatures which made treatments of roads inefficient. A tarp building would be beneficial for cinders, salt, and some stone. The Foreman has contacted several vendors and is waiting for quotes. The Board will be notified when they are received.
The dates for Spring Clean Up Days are Friday and Saturday, April 25 and 26, 2025. The Foreman recommended that we use Donnie Beck for this service. The prices from last year were not cost effective once payroll and overtime were calculated. There were also issues with receiving and removing dumpsters that cost the Township time and energy. Donnie Beck’s services are more efficient and better fit the Township’s needs. This year, Donnie will place dumpsters at the Township Building and the Volunteer Fire Company. The dumpsters at the fire company will be monitored by their volunteers. The Township will also do a tire collection, receiving 4 tires/household with a price cap of $4,000.00. The Supervisors also would like the slips from the dump site that lists the trash tonnage. Vice Chairman Pritt motioned to approve these requirements and Supervisor Collins seconded the motion. All in favor, Ayes: 3, motion carried.
WEST FINLEY VFC REPORT
Craig Yoho presented the monthly report for the West Finley Volunteer Fire Company. There were numerous calls for February. The volunteers have been busy doing training to keep their certifications current. The VFC is also looking to get more of the members trained in medical services and will schedule some EMR classes. The equipment is all running well, except for a leak in the tanker. It will be repaired since replacing it is very expensive.
ROAD FOREMAN’S REPORT
The F-550 truck needed new front tires. The skid steer maintenance is also finished. The rear idlers and tracks were successfully replaced. The Crew will begin some ditch work tomorrow. The Foreman also addressed the slip on Spotted Tail Road. The application period for the DGLVR grant is open with an August 31, 2025 deadline. We would still have to wait until the end of the year to be notified of the award recipient. The Township could address the slip now by adding culverts and filling it in. The Foreman will reach out to his contact at the Conservation District to determine if doing some remedial work would affect our chances of receiving the grant funds.
SECRETARY’S REPORT
The Pennsylvania state police report for February 2025 was prepared for the Board prior to the meeting. This report is for informational purposes only.
K2 Engineering also submitted their monthly report. One commercial permit was issued for T-Mobile who will be completing some pole alterations. The floodplain permit that was to be issued to Tunnel Ridge was deemed unnecessary by the engineering firm since the applicant’s description of construction did not include work in the floodplain area.
PennDOT will also begin traffic counting again throughout the entirety of District 12. They will be collecting information on 855 local roads from March to November 2025. The Township only has one road being monitored: Fleming Hollow between Clovis and Beham Ridge Roads. The roads to be counted were selected using a series of automated processes via PennDOT’s transportation department.
ADMINISTRATIVE ITEMS
The financial reports for all the Township accounts were presented. This included balances from the February 2025 bank statements. This report was reviewed along with the QuickBooks reconciliation reports for each account.
The Board examined an itemized list of current expenditures for payment in March. The motion to approve the financial statements and payment of the expenditures was made by Vice Chairman Pritt and seconded by Supervisor Collins. All in favor, Ayes: 3, motion carried.
Supervisor Collins announced that he will be resigning from his Supervisor position by May 2025. He has bought property in East Finley Township and will be moving soon.
ADJOURNMENT OF MEETING
Chairman Martin adjourned the meeting at 7:15 pm.