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Hamilton
Township Supervisors Rebecca Davidson and Nora Yasurek met Monday Dec
8, at the township building. Supervisor Brian Bastow was absent. After
approving the minutes of November 10 and 17, they went into a short
executive session to discuss personnel. The supervisors tentatively set
Monday, Dec 29 at 9 a.m. as the meeting date to adopt the General Fund,
Forestry Fund, and Sewer Fund Budgets for 2009. Pennsylvania townships
are required to adopt their budgets prior to the end of the year. The
good news for Hamilton Township residents is that the budgets drafted
at a recent budget meeting contain no tax or sewage payment increases.
The Forestry Fund budget does set aside $100,000 of its total to pave a
section of Gibbs Hill Road, along with state aid received during Fiscal
Year 2008 and 2009. There were no paving projects done during the
current year. The budget documents are available for public review at
the township office. In the draft budget, the General Fund Budget
revenue is $258,000; expenditures total $116,000; with the net income
(difference) approximately $141,900. The draft Forestry Fund Budget
income totals $392,800; with expenses calculated at $279,855, and a net
income of $112,900. The draft Sewage Fund Budget income total is
$131,600; with expenses standing at $99,300, and a net income of
$32,300. Rather than a single budget, Hamilton Township keeps all three
budgets separate, although the General Fund Budget can also be used to
contribute to Forestry Fund projects, which are limited to road-related
items/activities.
The township supervisors signed an order for a certified letter to be sent to a resident delinquent customer on paying their sewer bill. The letter will advise them to pay what they owe, or set up a payment plan, and begin paying or their water will be cut off, under an agreement with the water company. Of five potential residential water shut-offs of delinquent customers pursued by the township last month, four have responded with payments, Davidson said. Under New Business, the supervisors approved two resolutions dealing with the revised State’s Open Meetings Act, also called the “Right to Know Law.” The first resolution designates Rebecca Davidson, the town clerk, as the Open Records Officer. That officer is responsible for responding to requests for access to documents, letters, minutes and other records received by the township under the open meetings law. The next resolution defines certain requirements of the law, and the officer’s responsibilities under the law. These include receiving, and keeping track of requests for records, responding to the requests within five business-days, and either providing the documents, or stating the allowed reasons for denying them. Under Old Business, supervisors approved the hire of “Mitzie” Lindquist to clean the township office twice a month. The reorganization meeting and regular monthly meeting will take place Monday, Jan 5, 2009. In other area news, Nov. 12, customers of Ludlow TV, the local cable service provider, voted for Westpa.Net to be the new cable provider for the area. Westpa.Net promised to begin upgrading the cable/phone system next spring and will thereafter start offering residents cable, phone and DSL high speed internet service. The high-speed service will be welcome by local residents, more than 50 of whom had signed a petition with Verizon, Inc., eager for a provider to offer high-speed service to the area. A phone company is legally required to provide DSL service within a year of receiving a communities’ petition, but Verizon officials have told the Warren Times Observer that due to high demand, the company already had more than two years of work scheduled for communities in the Warren-Sheffield area. The township-sponsored Christmas Lighting contest is underway, with only about eight homes participating despite a greater sum of prize money available, plus an extra category for the winners. Supervisors say the brutal early winter snows may have had something to do with there being fewer participants than last year.
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