Charleroi denied grant to deal with uncapped gas well
CHARLEROI — An uncapped gas well will continue to be a problem for Charleroi Borough which has learned that it did not receive a state grant to cap the well.
The well had been in a house at 920 Rear Fallowfield Ave. that has been torn down by the borough. The previous owner of the house had been unaware of the gas well on the property, thinking the pipe was to an abandoned sewer line, according to council president Paul Pivovarnik.
“We’ve been dealing with this for two years,” Pivovarnik said.
The borough hired a company to cap the well, but that contract ran over cost as the company attempted to find the source of the well without success.
The borough was left with a $260,000 bill and unscented natural gas continuing to spew into the air, Pivovarnik said.
The borough has been assured that the venting gas does not pose a public safety hazard, since it is not confined, but the borough would like to resolve the matter.
In the meantime, it continues to pay $2,000 a month toward the initial bill for the unsuccessful capping efforts, with that bill now down to about $98,000. The borough had sought a grant of $236,700 from the state Department of Community and Economic Development to complete the project, but it did not have matching funds for the grant.
In other matters at Thursday’s agenda meeting, it was noted that the tax assessments would not be available from Washington County until Nov. 15, so action on setting the 2017 tax levy will be put off until Nov. 17 at a continuation of the November 10 meeting.
Council also heard a presentation from Jeff Roehrig of Comcast Business for a new telephone system for the borough building. Roehrig said the new 11-line system would increase the current bill by about $27 a month.
It was noted that there have been problems with the current aging phone system, which is also provided by Comcast. Borough officials were uncertain how long the current system had been in place.
“If we don’t change at all, it’s still $596 a month and there are problems with the system,” said Council President Paul Pivovarnik.
The updated system, including all equipment, will cost about $623 a month, with a three-year contract. The bill also includes the borough’s internet service.
Council also discussed the possibility of imposing an occupancy tax on apartments so the borough knows who is living in the community. Given that the code enforcement officer is resigning as of the end of November it was decided to table action to a later date.
Councilman Frank Paterra raised the issue of cars parking along the railroad tracks. Paterra said it is a safety issue and asked to either have the police ticket the vehicles or send a letter to Norfolk Southern Railroad asking it to address the situation.
Mayor Terry Newstrom and Pivovarnik questioned whether the borough could cite vehicles parked along the railroad right-of-way since it is private property. Councilwoman Deborah Buck asked if there had ever been any problems because of cars parked along the railroad tracks. Pivovarnik said that to his knowledge, there have never been any vehicles damaged or individuals injured because of the parking situation.