(1/11) The Hamiltonban Township supervisors approved at their January 4 meeting to provide Liberty Township with roadside brush and overhead limb-removal services, if Liberty is agreeable to a proposed offer.
According to the township Board of Supervisors, Hamiltonban owns a boom-mower which is designed to remove roadside overgrowth and tree limbs that are overhanging the roadways. The boom-mower can be employed by attaching it to a tractor.
Tree limbs hanging over a roadway can pose a threat by accumulating heaving ice and snow, causing them to snap and fall onto the roadway, or even onto a vehicle.
Hamilton Township Supervisor Coleen Reamer told the News-Journal that the municipality employs the use of the boom mower for its intended purpose every year "just before winter" to prevent the potential danger posed by the trees.
Reamer noted that Liberty Township does not possess the type of equipment necessary to address all of the safety issues, and that they have asked Hamiltonban Township if they would be willing to remove overgrowth and tree limbs along Liberty roadways.
The supervisor stated that the board will offer to provide Liberty with the service at a cost to include both the operator and the equipment at an hourly-rate of $119.
She stated that if Liberty approves of the charge, "We will propose an inter-municipal cooperation agreement with them, describing the duties and responsibilities of each township in the agreement."
In other business … the supervisors conducted their annual, first-of-the-year re-organization.
Edward Deardorff was re-appointed as the Board of Supervisors’ chairman, while Douglas Woerner was re-appointed as vice-chairman. Nina Garretson was re-appointed as the township secretary and treasurer, CDL coordinator, and Right-to-Know officer. David Martin was appointed as the township safety officer.
Matthew Battersby will remain as the township solicitor. Ray Herr was named as the roadmaster, with Jim Eyler and Randy Pritt being named as full-time roadcrew members. Adam Win was appointed as the EMA coordinator, with A.J. Aldrich being named as deputy EMA coordinator.
Regarding board and commission appointments, Sherry Rogers-Frist and Stephen Jacobs were confirmed to four-year terms on the township Planning Commission, with Gene Wiehagen being confirmed to the municipal Zoning & Hearing Board, with Harold Eastman named as that board’s solicitor. Matthew Inskip was confirmed for a five-year seat on the Joint Parks & Recreation Committee, with Dean Thomas to serve as that committee’s Fairfield Borough-alternate.
Land and Sea Services will continue to provide the township with a zoning officer, floodplain manager, code-enforcement officer, and a building and Uniform Construction Code inspection officer.
