East Bethlehem authority hopes plan will increase revenue, cut bills
EAST BETHLEHEM TWP. – The East Bethlehem Municipal Authority officials say they may have found a way to increase the authority’s revenue, and in turn, pass on less expense to their customers. Ted Giovanelli and Terry Boyle approached the board at their meeting regarding sewage treatment for the Green Cove boating facility. They said it had been expensive for them to dispose of the sewage and wanted to find out if the authority would approve treating and disposing of the sewage for them. Boyle said that about 80 percent of it was water and if the board could agree to dispose of that, he could possibly still have his current hauling service take care of the 20 percent solid.
Office Manager Marcy Persin said she had spoken to members of the DEP about the issue.
“The DEP had no problem with it,” said Persin. “They thought it would be a good source of revenue, which could help us pass on less cost to the consumers.”
The DEP said the authority would have to write up an agreement with Green Cove and fill out a hauling registration form.
“I think we could figure something out and take care of it for them,” said engineer Mike Hritz.
The board agreed that they would try to accommodate them if they could and would find out what the cost would be before the next meeting.
“Barring any unforeseen things, we’ll try to get them an answer and a price before next month,” said Chairman Edward DeMuth.
In other matters, solicitor Josh Carroll reported on some of the title searches he had done on properties that the authority wished to place liens on because the owners have not paid their sewage bills. He said that two of the properties showed multiple owners rather than the single owners that were listed by the authority.
“This is a problem, because if you only list one owner when there are two owners, the lien you file against them will not be effective,” said Carroll.
He told the authority that they have up to three years to file a lien, and he will make sure the names in his title search are the current owners of the properties so that the authority can correct the problem and proceed.
Carroll also told the board that he had been invited to a township meeting, and the township had agreed to split the costs of filing liens against properties that were not tapped in to the sewerage system.
On a more positive note, Persin received recognition at the meeting for taking on the jobs of two secretaries for some time.
Rural Development Specialist Barb McMillen of Rural Utility Service (RUS), the organization that lent the authority the money for their sewerage project, told the board she had come to thank Persin for what she had done.
She explained that Persin had helped the secretary of the Municipal Authority of Fayette City while she was being treated for cancer.
“While she was getting chemotherapy and radiation, she was getting a lot of help from Marcy with the work that she was not able to do,” said McMillen. “I am here to present Marcy with a certificate of appreciation for helping the borough in their time of need.”
Persin later said that because McMillin had also worked with Fayette City, she called her to explain their situation and asked her if she could help.
“I think it speaks very highly of Marcy that RUS trusts her to help someone else out,” said DeMuth.
Persin accepted the award and received a round of applause from the board and the audience.