At the mid-month meeting of the Montrose Borough council, a short agenda was adopted. Topics discussed that evening included a hayride pub crawl, the funding of a curb, vicious dogs, and the reason why the zoning ordinance was not to be adopted that week.

Ms. Skinner requested clarification on who was paying for a curbing project on Wilson Street, discussed at a prior meeting. Mr. Lamont replied that as he understood it the borough was paying for the curbing, while the property owner was to pay for the drainage. Ms. Skinner said that she had missed the August meeting, where the residents had spoken. However, she thought that at the end of that meeting it was decided that Mr. DiPhillips would come back and present the cost of the project before council. The project had not been an agenda item at that meeting, and there had since been no formal presentation of cost, she contended. Paying for the curbing, she stated, was not in the minutes of the August 20th meeting in question, the matter was left with the street foreman’s price research. Mr. Reimel replied that he had approved the project that evening. Mr. Lamont asked those present if there had been any motion to approve the project, and it was responded by the secretary and Mr. Reimel that there had been such a motion.

Ms. Skinner requested that the secretary point it out to her in her copy of the minutes, saying that at the last meeting they had been led to believe that it was approved. The secretary read the section aloud, which stated that there had been a motion approved to have the materials installed. Ms. Skinner next asked where there was record to a vote on the subject, and where there was any allusion to the fact that the borough was going to pay for it, or what the cost would be. The motion, it was explained, had been to install 250 feet of curbing. Mr. Lamont said that he had assumed this was the borough’s cost. Ms. Skinner argued that the minutes did not explicitly say that. Mr. Granahan responded that when he had made the motion in question, his understanding had been that the borough would pay for the work. He offered to take a better look at the minutes and to try and clarify this in them.

Ms. Skinner maintained that she saw no explicit language in a motion which she said came and went quickly, that the borough was going to be “on the hook” for thousands of dollars. Mr. Granahan replied that it hadn’t been a quick vote by any means, the council had probably spent 30 to 40 minutes discussing drainage problems and had reviewed options for fixing this one. They had agreed that this location was a drainage problem, and one which the borough had created with roadwork. Ms. Skinner argued that she did not see the 30 minute discussion in the meeting minutes. She maintained that a 30 minute discussion warranted more than five or 10 lines of text, and that the minutes were insufficient when the borough was responsible for money. Others argued that this was how minutes were written, and that they did not have to be that detailed. Mr. Lamont stated that he didn’t have any problem with how the minutes were kept, quipping that he actually thought there was too much information. The borough secretary pointed out that she hadn’t been in attendance at that meeting. Mr. Lamont said that in the absence of a notation that someone else was bearing the cost, it was understood that the borough was fixing it, as they had created the problem.

Ms. Skinner then stated that she felt that e-mails ought to be replied to. The secretary said that she would respond to e-mails when she knew that they weren’t going to be put out for public record. Ms. Skinner felt this comment to be out of order.

Mr. Lamont said that he didn’t see the difference between okaying Mr. DiPillips street project, and this. Ms. Skinner had observed a procedure in her time on council, she said, where someone would get the cost, receive the okay, and report back. It seemed to her that it would behoove council to get and approve the cost prior to approving the project. Mr. Granahan replied this was part of a larger discussion as to whether or not the borough ought to be involved in fixing water problems it had created. He thought that the borough had decided through discussion to fix some of the problems it had created, on a case by case basis. In this case they decided to fix it. He felt this was why this project was a little bit different, because it was part of the larger matter.

Skinner then asked if it shouldn’t have been on the agenda. Mr. Granahan responded that the landowner in question had approached him that evening, and per procedure he had told him to come down and if two council members approved it he would be able to speak. This had happened. The landowner had come into the meeting and offered to pay for the entire project himself, Mr. Lamont said. It was a borough problem which he had offered to fix. Mr. Lamont thought that the consensus was that so long as he was already doing work, and his machines were there, they did not wish to hold him up. He was not doing what he was legally entitled to do, which would have been to raise the land and cause further problems for the borough. Mr. Lamont did not think the speed with which it was approved, then, was out of line. Ms. Skinner said that she respected his opinion and years of experience.

A letter had been received regarding was discussed regarding fundraiser hayride pub crawl. The idea was for a tractor pulling a hay wagon to transport patrons from bar to bar, staying for an hour at a time. The tractor would be lighted, and followed by a truck with its flashers on. The letter requested that council tell them if this would be possible. It had been indicated to the secretary that it was a fundraiser. Mr. Lamont said that he didn’t know as the borough would have much to say about it, but that they would be interested in the police following the conveyance when it was on borough roads. Chief Smith said that they could meet the wagon at the borough line and escort the implement of husbandry for safety. He suggested that they be encouraged to alert PennDot as well, as they would be on state roads. It was also felt that perhaps it ought to be made clear to them that the tractor driver should be a designated driver. Mr. Lamont said that all they could do was provide an escort through town.

Mr. Lamont raised the topic of the zoning map, wanting to ensure that it was discussed before the hearing. The map in the minutes was not totally accurate, it was said, but it was fairly accurate. The last version of the change, which went to the Planning Commission for review, was to have the M-1 and the D-1 revert back to C-1. If council wanted to make additional changes they would have to be advertised and reviewed by the Planning Commission prior to moving ahead. The people bordering the M-1 and the D-1 zones would need to be notified by certified mail, and it would have to be advertised in the paper. The neighbors had to be given 30 days notice. Mr. Granahan said that there were two ways the process could be done. If they wanted to make further changes to the map, they would have to send it back to planning and delay the zoning’s passing. Alternately, council could change those two sections as was already under consideration, and get it passed. There had been suggestions to extend X-1, C-1, etc. This would affect people in individual houses, and residents might want to speak on this, which could extend the process. The zoning specialist had said that if council wished to accept the map with just the current changes, and later wished to move on others, this could be possible down the line. Mr. Lamont and Mr. Reimel had heard that the land use map could only be changed every three years. This was a guideline as they wanted to keep people from changing as they pleased.

The D-1 was the square, and the M-1 was the hospital. Nothing would really be changed, then, by the changes. The recommendation was to change both to C-1 zones, which would make the hospital easier to sell, should it choose to do so.

Ms. Skinner had a procedural question. She, Mr. Reimel, and the borough secretary had attended a meeting. She wondered if they shouldn’t report back to council at large with the minutes of that meeting. They had paid the zoning specialist to come up, and she felt that there ought to be minutes. The secretary responded that work sessions were usually not recorded. Ms. Skinner would have taken notes had she known that, she said.

It was confirmed that all borough had to do to advance the ordinance would be to notify the neighboring residents and give them thirty days. A public hearing would have to be scheduled, but it could not be the next day as originally thought.

The FEMA letter and the flood ordinance were discussed. It requested that they please submit the existing or working flood plain ordinance within a month. The borough had an existing flood plain ordinance, but the secretary though it ought to be updated. Mr. Reimel suggested that it be submitted to Mr. Fitzpatrick as was. He could be asked to review it, and work with the community to create a complain ordinance. This was motioned and approved. It was clarified that the park was in a flood plain, as was some property going down Owego Street.

Mr. Granahan spoke of a woman who had been chased by a dog. The dog had been tied up outside the post office. This dog attacked anything that moved, and had drug the bike rack it was tied to after the woman until the rack became caught up on the curb. The solicitor said that she knew of someone else who had been chased. This led to a larger discussion of vicious dogs. It was stated that if a report was made to the dog warden, he would have to respond. Mr. Granahan said that people kept calling the police about violent dogs, and he wondered when the borough might be liable should something happen. Mr. Lamont thought there was some liability for the council to control the animals in the borough. Mr. Reimel responded that there was not. It was stated that the dog warden had filed citations. However the problems persisted. It was suggested that the solicitor contact the warden’s supervisor, stating that the warden had been working to address it but the borough had requested she contact him. Chief Smith explained that the police could cite owners for certain things, but they could not take a dog. It was also decided that PSAB would be contacted, so that the borough could look at vicious dog ordinances.

Mr. Reimel reported on the county tax situation. They needed more money. It wasn’t their fault. This was how he summed up the report. A reporter asked how much more money they needed. It was responded that the Susquehanna County Tax Committee had been forced to engage suit against one of the three tax collectors left by the state. They had an extra $8,000 legal this that year, then, and were expecting more before they were finished. An additional $894.60 was the borough’s share of it. This was motioned and approved

Mr. Lamont asked if they were going to do anything about the impact money. Mr. Granahan said that it ought to be put in a separate account, in People’s Bank. The amount awarded was the borough was $71,000 “and change”. This was motioned and approved.

Ms. O’Malley said that the zoning hearing board proceeding concerning the Alice Davis property was scheduled for the next day. It had been continued. The zoning hearing board was still to meet the next day however, as they had some administrative matters to attend to.

In a surprise announcement at a special 2nd October meeting on the 23rd, the Harford Township Supervisors told their audience of 2 that long-time township road crew employee Wayne Frederici would be retiring, effective November 2. The two Supervisors present (Doug Phelps missed the meeting) accepted Mr. Frederici’s resignation with sincere regret.

There is some urgency in replacing Mr. Frederici, with winter coming on apace. The Township will advertise for applications for the full-time position, which will be accepted until November 9. They will try to interview applicants prior to making a decision at the regular November meeting on the 13th. Township Secretary Sue Furney said she already had some applications on file as well.

With Roadmaster Eric Allen still indisposed, the Supervisors also appointed one of their own, Doug Phelps, to a new position of “Assistant Roadmaster.” The position was made retroactive to October 16; the Supervisors held an executive session on that date to discuss “management of the road crew,” according to Supervisor Garry Foltz.

The special meeting was originally billed as a budget session, and so it was, although the Supervisors allowed themselves to attend to other matters. Mr. Foltz reported that the township’s auditors had recommended that bank statements be reconciled by someone “who doesn’t sign checks, make deposits, or hold a township credit card.” That leaves out all the Supervisors and employees. So the Supervisors will try to scare up someone else to do the job, and make a decision at the regular November meeting.

Mr. Foltz also reported that the Harford Volunteer Fire Company, having purchased new radios for itself, has offered its old ones to the township. The township will have them refurbished and repurposed for its own needs.

At a meeting in September a resident suggested that the old street signs, now piled up in the township garage, be made available to others who may want them for their nostalgia value, perhaps by auction. Mr. Foltz said that he would produce a list of the available signs for the regular November meeting. The township will then accept bids at a minimum of 5 dollars that will be opened at the regular December meeting. The proceeds will be donated to the Harford/Lenox Baseball Association.

The remainder of the 2 1/2 hour meeting was devoted to a line-by-line examination of the budget for 2013. Final figures won’t be available until next month, but the budget doesn’t look like it will change very much, and no mention was made of increasing property tax rates or sewer fees. The Supervisors expect interest revenue to fall somewhat, as well as income from the state liquid fuels subsidy. As usual, the largest parts of the expense budget will be salaries, and debt service of various kinds, including on a loan for the new Dodge truck; the no-interest “infrastructure” loan used for the Stearns Road project; and two notes outstanding for the sewer system – the original construction loan and a new loan to renovate the sewer plant. None of the expense items are expected to increase dramatically over the current year, nor are any significantly out of balance as the current year comes to an end.

The Township component of the overall budget, financed primarily by property and earned income taxes, will probably come in at about $325,000. The “State” component, financed by liquid fuels subsidy and “turn-back” funding, is concerned almost exclusively with the roads and may end up in the neighborhood of $200,000. The sewer budget is funded exclusively by subscriber fees that will not cover anticipated expenses of approximately $160,000 next year.

One curiosity questioned by Mr. Foltz was a 1/3 decrease in revenue from the District Justice over the past couple of years. It doesn’t amount to much overall – between $300 and $1,000 – but he thought it unlikely that miscreants had been less active recently. Receipts from fines have gone down ever since the new District Justice took her position in the new office in Clifford.

Ms. Furney also noted that at least one local business has benefited handsomely from the construction of a pipeline through the township. Some of that money may be expected to trickle into township coffers through taxes.

A bigger chunk from area natural gas operations is already on the table. Harford should soon receive a check from the state Public Utility Commission for $132,576.57, a share of some $211 million collected by the state as a result of the “impact fee” legislation known as Act 13 of 2012. While the Supervisors will be happy to have the income for the Township, they have yet to consider seriously what to do with it; it was not part of the budget deliberations at this meeting. There is some concern that the gas companies and their numerous contractors and sub-contractors, now that they are paying these “impact” feeds, may expect more services from local municipalities, where before they had been improving many roads at their own expense; Mr. Foltz mentioned White Road as an example of an old road now actually drivable due to the work of the gas contractors.

Ms. Furney said that several recent meetings and presentations have been focused on the impact fee law, which contains some provisions about what municipalities can spend it on. A document on the website of the Pennsylvania Utility Commission, the agency overseeing the program, says “The money from the fees is to be directed for local and state purposes specifically outlined in the law such as water, wastewater and road infrastructure maintenance and improvements; emergency preparedness; environmental programs; tax reductions; increased safe/affordable housing; employee training; or planning initiatives.” There isn’t much that Harford Township does that wouldn’t fit within those guidelines.

The Supervisors have scheduled a series of meetings through the end of the year to handle all the matters on the Township’s plate, including the budget, which must be formally adopted before January 1, 2013. They will be meeting on November 13, again on November 27, then December 11, but probably not on December 25. All Tuesdays, all beginning at 7:00 pm. All at the Township office on Route 547. Bring your own cookies and pillow.

The following is a list of names drawn to serve as Petit and Traverse jurors for November to appear in the Court of Common Pleas, Susquehanna County Courthouse (large courtroom), Montrose, PA, on the 5th day of November 2012, at nine o’clock a.m.

Apolacon Township: Craig Hewes
Auburn Township: Karen Franklin, Brent Salsman
Bridgewater Township: Rebecca Cooley, Phyllis Digiore, Deanna Krause
Brooklyn Township: Clarence Redman, Tammy Rought
Choconut Township: Robert McFarland, Toby Smith
Clifford Township: Lori Cook
Dimock Township: Donna Barber, John Rudzianski, Henry Spering, Eric Van De Mark
Forest City 1st Ward: Kimberly Parola
Forest City 2nd Ward: Robert Phillips
Franklin Township: Cynthia DeGraw, Raymond Oliver, Dora Oliver
Friendsville Borough: James Savage
Gibson Township: Susan Sparks
Great Bend Borough: Shane Rumage
Great Bend Township: Jeffrey Burkett, Leland Weed
Hallstead Borough: Lisa Welsch
Harford Township: Carl Oakley, Glen Smith, Sharon Wilbur
Harmony Township: Frances Arthur
Herrick Township: Anthony Tvaryanas, Charles Westgate
Jackson Township: Linda Arcuri, Liza Dooley, Ralph Kirsch
Lanesboro Borough: Robert Passetti
Lathrop Township: Bernard Singer
Lenox Township: Scott Birchard, Leon Feduchak, Shirley Francioni, James Griffiths
Liberty Township: Sandy Rogers
Middletown Township: Carolyn Conboy
Montrose Borough 1st Ward: Kristen Butler
New Milford Borough: Teri Gulick, Jay Thornton
New Milford Township: Amy Drake, Sandra Raub, Eileen Williams, Lisa Wojtkowski
Oakland Borough: Diane Dunn, Jeffrey Krall, Taymon Sampson
Oakland Township: Alfonso Russo, William Stracka
Rush Township: Camille Doyle, Marsha Mosier, Robert Owens
Silver Lake Township: Brendan McMahon, William Sanders
Susquehanna Borough 1st Ward: Ruby Bishop, Brenda Lake, Carolyn Wolf
Susquehanna Borough 2nd Ward: Dennis Roe

The Susquehanna County DOMESTIC RELATIONS Section has outstanding BENCH WARRANT’S for the following individuals as of 10:13 a.m. on October 26, 2012: Elbert G. Allen, Beau Baker, Bryan G Bodie, Jason J. Carroll, William J. Casey, James W. Donahue III, Thomas D. Earley, Bambie D. Ervin, Jonathan Fathi, David J. Fischer, Jennifer D. Hazlett, Melinda D. Holbrook, Keith R. Hurd, John J. Jenisky, Jr, Richard E. Kalinowski, Kay L. Knolles, Lee Labor, Todd J. Layton, Charlie J. Legere, Derrick J. Lezinsky, Michael Maryasz, Megan L. Moriarity, Anastacia V. Poff, Anthony Reed, Joseph M. Rhodes, Perry Rohan, Bruce A. Schurr, Christie L. Sheptock, Desiree L. Shifler, David J. Shiner, Brian R. Shio, Tina M. Smith, Eric J. Snell, Justin S. Thompson, Earl H. Thompson, Jr, Ryan Warnagiris, Steven G. Warner, Jamie L. Williams, Sr, Dennis Wisniewski, Kelly Lynn Yarbrough. Please contact the Domestic Relations Section at 570-278-4600 ext. 170 with any information on the location of these individuals.

Crash: On October 24th at 11:55 pm Mary Eddie of Dunmore was traveling south on Sr 0081 when she lost control of her vehicle while negotiating a right curve. The vehicle exited the roadway, entering a clockwise rotation and traveling approximately 45' before striking a guardrail with the front end. It continued the rotation while traveling in a southerly direction another 60', striking another guard rail with the left corner, and then continuing in a southeasterly direction while rotating clockwise approximately 100' before coming to a rest in the middle of both southbound lanes. Eddie sustained minor injury; a seat belt was in use.

Retail Theft: On October 24th, a drive off occurred of $40 worth of gasoline.

Identity Theft: A Jackson man was the victim of identity theft, via an unauthorized cell phone account. The problem was resolved by AT&T.

Receiving Stolen Property: A Forest City man's stolen ATV was recovered in a wooded area along SR 0171 in Harmony Township on October 22nd. The ATV was reported stolen on April 17. It was a Polaris Razor RZR-S800cc.

Crash: On December 22nd at 4:52 pm a Montrose juvenile was traveling west on Sr 3023 in Dimock Township when he drove off the right berm of the road, hit a speed sign, and traveled down an embankment, striking a tree. The vehicle came to a rest on the bottom of the embankment against a tree. The boy was uninjured; a seat belt was in use.

Theft: On October 10th a woman reported that she had forgotten her purse in the bathroom of Bingham's restaurant. She stated that when she got it back her medication of Oxycodone and Xanax were taken, but the pill bottles were left.

Crash: On October 22nd Stephanie Young of Taylor, Pa was traveling south bound on I81 in the right lane when her vehicle struck a deer that entered the roadway from the median. Young was not injured; she was utilizing a seat belt.

Drug Possession: On October 21st at 4:45 pm a trooper initiated a traffic stop on a silver Dodge Intrepid for a traffic violation. Numerous criminal indicators were present; a consensual search of the vehicle was requested and granted. A subsequent search of the vehicle yielded 130 grams of powder cocaine, located in the trunk. The street value of the aforementioned cocaine was $8,000. The accused, Normal Powell of Binghamton, Ny was charged with Po session with the intent to deliver, Possession of a controlled substance, and Possession of drug paraphernalia. He was subsequently lodged in the Susquehanna County Correctional Facility in lieu of $100,000 cash bail.

Crash: On October 21st at 2:30 am Richard Jones of New Milford, PA was traveling South on Sr 11 in Harford, Twp when his car exited the right side of the roadway onto the shoulder. The vehicle came across both lanes of travel and impacted with the guide rail on the northbound lane side. The vehicle traveled along the guide rail for approximately 100 feet and continued over the guide rail and impacted a tree. It came to rest facing a northerly direction. Injury was unknown; as was seat belt use.

Crash: On October 21st at 9:35 am Anna Frisbie of Nicholson, Pa was traveling east as Heather Bixby of Scranton was traveling west on Sr 374. As Frisbie entered the curve in the roadway, her vehicle traveled across the solid double yellow line into the oncoming traffic lane. Her vehicle struck Bixby's vehicle, and continued east coming to a rest facing that direction. Bixby's vehicle spun counter clockwise and came to a rest facing a southeast direction.

Theft: PSP Gibson is investigating an incident in which a New Milford woman's purse was stolen and $200 taken from it. Anyone with information is asked to contact PSP Gibson at (570) 465-3154.

Criminal Mischief: PSP Gibson is investigating an incident in which a young Nicholson man damaged three mailboxes along Nickerbocker Road, resulting in an estimated damage of $150. The accused was cited for criminal mischief.

Theft: PSP Gibson is investigating the theft of a Sears Air Compressor, Electric Jack-Hammer, and 2 Battery Chargers from a location in Jackson Township. Anyone with information is asked to please contact the police.

Burglary: PSP Gibson is investigating a burglary in which unknown perpetrators broke the rear door window of a Jackson Township location to gain entry into the residence. Anyone with information is asked to please contact this station.

Criminal Mischief: Between the 16th and 17th of October, an air conditioner condenser was damaged at Embers Restaurant in Bridgewater Township. It was apparently shot at with a gun, with an estimated damage of $750.00.

Crash: On October 19th at 7:49 am Susan Rank was traveling west on Sr 3004 in Springville, Township and she swerved to avoid striking a deer in the roadway. The vehicle traveled off the roadway striking a ditch, a utility pole, and coming to a final rest facing down an embankment.

Crash: On October 18th at 10 pm Roberto Shears of Bakersfield, Ca was traveling west on Sr 3006 when he swerved to miss a possum in the roadway and traveled off the left side, striking a ditch and a culvert with its front end undercarriage.

Theft: On September 19th one or more unknown perpetrator(s) stole equipment form the work site of Price-Gregory International in Harmony Township. Stolen were two red and white Honda Water pumps and 165' forth of #4 copper wire lead. Anyone with information pertaining to this incident is asked to contact the police.

Drug Possession: On October 17th at 5:20 pm a trooper initiated a traffic stop on a gray Cadillac CTS for a lane violation. Numerous criminal indicators were present, a consensual search of the vehicle was requested and denied. Trooper first class Powell with his canine trained in the detection of narcotics subsequently arrived on the scene, alerted on the vehicle and a search arrant was obtained. The search yielded the following items of contraband, 4,963 bags of heroin were located behind a speaker box in the trunk of the vehicle. The street value of the aforementioned narcotics is $125,000. Rahim and Neal were charged with possession with the intent to deliver, possession of a controlled substance, and criminal conspiracy. They were both subsequently lodged in the Susquehanna County Correctional Facility in lieu of $500,000 straight cash bail.

DUI: On October 7th at 6 pm Samantha Rehrig of Silver City, Nc was traveling west on East Lake Road in New Milford Township. As she was negotiating a left curve in the roadway, her vehicle left the roadway to the right. It came back onto the roadway and failed to regain control, leaving the right side of the roadway again and impacting an embankment. The vehicle came to rest facing a northerly direction. Rehrig was arrested for suspicion of DUI. A seat belt was in use. She was not injured. A child passenger was also not injured. A child seat was in use.

Theft: Between the 5th and 11th of October an unknown person stole the Reebok Sneakers belonging to a 13 year old female student from Montrose. The sneakers were stolen form a locker in the girl's gym locker room at Montrose Area High School in Bridgewater Township. The shoes were black and red in color, and a size 6. Anyone with information about this incident is asked to call the police.

If you have information regarding any of these incidents please contact PSP Gibson at (570) 465-3154.

There was quite a crowd at the Mountain View School Board meeting on October 22nd. Early in the meeting, Dr. Adams and Mrs. Shea presented years of service pins to staff members. Ernie Griffiths and Danielle Scott were presented with a five year pin, and Mona Hoadley with a fifteen year pin. Beth Bennet had accrued 35 years, it was announced, but she was not present to receive the pin at the meeting.

A student liaison, Veronica Robbins, reported to the board happenings throughout the high school. The Student Government Association was doing Feed a Friend, which this year involved a competition between Susquehanna County schools. The FBLA officers had attended a leadership conference. The senior class had taken a general count on interest regarding the senior trip, and over 60 had expressed interest. The National Honor Society was hosting a blood drive. The drama club had a play scheduled for November 16th and 17th. The Bully Prevention club was to kick off on November 7th. The Scholastic club had participated in the WVIA contest, and was to go on to the finals. Thirty people were scheduled for County Band, and four students had placed for District Chorus.

The IT department then gave a presentation. Matt Georgetti spoke of what he called a technology refresh of sorts, which had taken place over the summer. The recycling company was going to start charging 25 cents a pound for each CRT monitor, an estimated $8,000 if the district had waited to recycle them until August. Also Microsoft had ceased support for Windows XP. Thus the district had updated to Windows 7, and a lot of the computers had been updated as they couldn’t handle that operating system. One hundred eighty-seven monitors had been upgraded replacing CRT monitors with LCD monitors. Both of the windows domain computers had been upgraded to windows server 2008. The labs were updated with new laptops, as opposed to the old shared desktop setup. Every classroom had a new functional computer for students and staff to use. It was estimated that the district would be saving about $19,000 a year on electricity due to the new lcd monitors. All instructor computers were set to automatically shut off at 6 pm, to further save electricity. Use of laptops in the labs would reduce air conditioning and also reduce electric usage. The office computers were still running Windows XP, but it was hoped that these could be updated. Several of the printers needed to be replaced as they weren’t compatible with Windows 7.

None of these items explained the number of visitors, however. Dr. Adams spoke up during the first hearing of visitors, explaining that he knew some people wished to speak on a particular matter and that the board would allow them to do so. He also laid out some ground rules, stating that the board would not discuss personnel issues. Anything between the administration and Coach Thomas, he added, was a personnel issue. He asked the visitors to please keep comments brief and to the point.

Mary Ketterer, a Mountain View alumnus and retired educator was the first to speak, asking why the district wasn’t siding with its own instead of siding with the people who had put them in district three. The outcome was as expected, she said, Mtn. View had dominated every team. She asked why the Old Forge coach hadn’t stopped the game, and wondered why the team was being punished for winning with a high score. She contrasted it with PSSA scores, saying that if this were the case there would be dancing in the aisles. She felt that the players deserved all the praise and loyalty the district family could give them, saying she was proud of them.

A second visitor said that she also wished to speak about the family. She shared an e-mail from her son in college who had played minimally on the soccer team, and, she said, had watched younger, better players than he play. Regardless, he loved it and loved being with Mr. Thomas and the team. She said that Mr. Thomas exemplified patience and kindness with a particular player whose behavior could be challenging. She read her son’s e-mail aloud, which spoke highly of the coach.

Another team mother spoke up then, stating that she totally backed what the others had said. At other schools, larger schools, there were tryouts, and a student only made a team if he or she tried out. All kids were brought on to the team; some were better than others. As a varsity team she agreed that they were present to represent the school, and to win. She felt that taking the ball and playing with it to avoid running up the score would have been more humiliating to the other team. She also felt that they were not supporting their team. The students were doing their best to advance. She didn’t know of any school, she continued, which didn’t try to go out there and score, and score big. She felt that there was a lot said, and that a lot of people had jumped to conclusions, rather than taking the time to go and talk with Mr. Thomas. She felt that many things which had happened in the last week had been unfair and unjust, and she felt that the girls had been doing just the same as their team.

A third mother spoke up, noting that she also had older sons who had not played much but had enjoyed it. They would have been present had they not been at college. She wondered if prior to it going to the media, anyone had considered the effect on the students.

A dad spoke up asking Mrs. Shea if a warning had been given to Mr. Thomas or any coach, regarding which score would be acceptable. Mrs. Shea didn’t respond, and he said that he would take this as a negative response, that the matter had progressed straight to suspension. In the game in question, at which the score had been 24 to 1, JV players had scored. He did not say that some of the administration had fought for the boys not to be in the league.

Another visitor read a statement which he said related the facts of that evening, which he said he had witnessed first hand. Both coaches has spoken before the game and agreed that they shouldn’t have been playing each other, he said, and the Old Forge coach had agreed to let the Mountain View players play as normal in order to prepare for Districts. He alleged that at one point a member of the board or administration had instructed Mr. Thomas to bench the entire varsity team, and that one administrator had repeatedly interrupted him throughout the game, without listening to what the coach was saying. He stated that the JV kids were being cycled in. Mr. Thomas was accused of demoralizing the Old Forge team, but at no time did Old Forge express being demoralized. He asked the board to reconsider suspending the kids.

A former previous coach then spoke, stating that he had been around the soccer program for 20 years, and that he had been around the Lackawanna League since its inception. He said that the Lackawanna League had known this was going to happen. He said that it did the better teams no good to play the weaker teams, and that in the past they had fought to change this as neither side wanted it. For unknown reasons the system had been switched back to the system which had failed ten years ago. The games had been decided before they began, he opined that the JV team could have played eight out of the 10 games and still won. He said that the district had been working toward a state caliber team. If they were still in District 3 next year, he continued, he would beg Roger not to coach and the best players not to play, as the meeting had held so much venom it wasn’t safe. He wondered aloud why this had to happen, and why it had to be blown up so large. If they had beaten Blue Ridge, he said, that school wouldn’t have whined.

One visitor said that the bottom line was that they were not only hurting the coach they were hurting the kids.

Mr. Bain, a previous coach, summed it up by saying that they were in a lose, lose situation. Right now, he thought, they did have a state championship caliber team, after years of building the teams up. They had been at the other end, and told the kids that they had to take their lumps if they wanted to be a good team. Now that they had such a team, regardless of what had happened at the game in question, he felt that the district had to look at how they could send the kids to the PIAA game with the best chance. The way to do that, in his opinion, was to send them on with the coach who had sweat and bled with them. He asked them to reinstate Mr. Thomas to help the team, and then if decisions had to be made in the future they could be.

Mr. Doster spoke up, reiterating that the administrators had opposed the decision to move Mountain View into the current league. They had been one of only two votes against it.

Ms. Goodenough then spoke up about baseball. they wanted to know when the baseball coach would be hired. They were in discussion on the matter, and it hadn’t been voted on.

As the meeting continued, some of those concerned with soccer alone continued their conversations amongst themselves, first in the back of the board room and then, after a mass exodus, outside of it. Items on the agenda were then dealt with.

Tom Rudzinski was appointed to be the Softball coach. Letters of intent to retire were accepted from Cynthia Singer and Sue Ann Wildrick. The resignation of Janice Finnochio as Business Manager was also accepted, effective at the end of November. However, it was then approved for Ms. Finnochio to provide contracted services for the business office as a consultant beginning December third. The motion was also made to authorize advertising of the position. All motions were approved.

During the superintendent’s comments, Mrs. Shea stated that she had attended a two day training to become a Child Abuse training trainer. She was then certified to train the district employees who needed the three hour child abuse training, and that she would be putting together a schedule to try and accommodate the different employees. The PAIUCC was posting a forum and they wanted schools to send people to attend some of the sessions where they would be speaking of changing school report cards to school performance profiles. They sought input for the way they should be represented. She asked if any board members would be interested in being on the focus group.

Senator Blake of the 22nd district was to hold an E2, education and economy forum. He had invited school districts to participate in the forum, which was to be held in Scranton, on an invitation only basis. Mountain View had been invited and Mr. Presley was to attend.

Mrs. Finnochio spoke of the local auditors having begun the audit. The district had received notice for the index for the 2013-2014 budget year. The standard increase was 1.7%, but some districts received an adjusted index. Mountain View’s adjusted index was 2.2%, a point lower than they were the last year. The maximum would probably be 3 quarters of a mill during budget considerations.

Mr. Presley spoke of the bullying program; the student kickoff was scheduled for November 7th. Many staff and students had been working hard on this, and he wanted to thank them. This year the students were doing a Hunger Games theme for Feed a Friend, to create competition between the grade levels. Also there was a competition between the schools of the county, where the students were requested to create a sculpture from the food, which was to be judged.

A proposal for reinstatement of the assistant coaches was discussed. There were three options. One had the coaches making what they would have been making that year. The second would be to pay them at half of the varsity coach’s salary. The third would be to pay them half of the scheduled assistant salary. He proposed the second option, as the coaches were very important and did significant work, and there was only $2,760 of difference between the second and third option. The assistant positions had been done away with. However, he said that without this second person the chance of liability was much greater.

Mrs. Rinehart-Cowan asked Mrs. Shea a question. She said that she would favor a lower end cost, and wondered if someone could pull together numbers concerning a tutoring program. She felt that this was an adjunct to public education, not what education was based on. Given the school’s PSSA scores, she wanted to know how much tutoring could be done for $13,000 (the cost of option 2), even if the district were to do both. Mrs. Shea said that she was waiting for more information regarding, and what it could be used for.

When busing was mentioned in the context of that grant, Mrs. Rinehart-Cowan said that in her opinion busing was spending money where it wasn’t really best spent. Dr. Adams quipped that as had been seen that night, people would come out for sports but not tutoring. Mrs. Rinehart-Cowan suggested maybe the tutoring could be done during the day. Mr. Presley said that this was being done, with peer tutoring set up, and staff being available during resource periods. Ms. Rinehart-Cowan said that she would like to see the numbers involved.

Dr. Adams said that he hoped whatever direction they were going to move in, it would be acted on soon.

It was asked if currently there was an administrator, a coach, and a director at the games. It was answered that normally if the director wasn’t there, Mr. Presley was, and if not there was a manager present. That didn’t include away games however. That was where the problem was, if someone was injured and needed to be accompanied to a hospital, etc.

Mr. Doster spoke of a positive behavior blowout, which involved a basketball game between the sixth graders and the staff members. WNEP had been present and it was televised. Every student had been involved. He thanked the person who helped make this possible.

Mr. Taylor reported that he had good news; the pipe was in place from the boiler room out to the vault. It was hoped it could be operational by Wednesday. The district had used 12 inches of fuel oil in the last month, which was quite a bit as generally they didn’t much use it with the wood burner system.

A safety committee update was given. Mr. Taylor had attended a class on the new Chapter 10 Safe School, the law itself had changed. The changes were to be discussed at the next safety committee meeting. Part of this would be ensuring that the fall hazards plan was in alignment with these changes.

He said that they were the only school district in NEPA which had done the right-to-know training for all employees, and this had been received very favorably.

The Memorandum of Agreement for the Mountain View Education Association contract was approved as presented.

Mrs. Rinehart-Cowan had asked for some reports, at a prior meeting. She wished to follow up. The alumni dinner was held. Five students had been involved as well as the Chimmettes. The sixth graders had done very well. She thanked them and the high school students.

Mrs. Voigt spoke about the Scholastic scrimmage team. They had started on Wednesday. She said that they couldn’t divulge any results, but the school would have multiple appearances.

Ivy Simons broached the Centax Berkheimer situation, where Berkheimer took over. Mrs. Finnochio explained that Berkheimer had gone in and worked with Centax. Initially there was a lack of information coming. Her understanding was that Centax had filed for bankruptcy. She said that there was some slow money coming in as a district, but she did not believe that they would be losing money at any great amounts. The Susquehanna County Tax Committee had legal actions goin against Centax, and had a bond on it that, it was thought, could cover any losses. She said that this was well known, and she believed that Susquehanna was one of the first counties to bring attention to the situation. The legal fees were to be spread out across the municipalities and the school districts.