The Allen Township Board of Supervisors met Monday, January 3 for their 2023 annual reorganization meeting.
For the 2023 year, supervisors voted to reappoint Dale Hassler as Chairman, Gary Behler as Vice Chairman, Ilene Eckhart as Township Manager and Secretary, and Yohanna Vega as Treasurer.
The following schedule will pertain to meeting dates: the Board of Supervisors will meet on the second and fourth Tuesdays of the month at 6 p.m., the Planning Commission will meet on the third Monday of the month at 6 p.m., the Zoning Hearing Board will meet as required based on appeals received, and the Parks and Recreation Board will meet on the fourth Thursday of the month at 6 p.m.
The following paid holidays were approved for the year: January 1 and 2 for New Year’s Day and observance, January 16 for Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day, February 20 for President’s Day, April 7 for Good Friday, May 29 for Memorial Day, July 4 for Independence Day, September 4 for Labor Day, October 9 for Columbus/Indigenous Peoples’ Day, November 10 for Veterans Day, November 23 and 24 for Thanksgiving, and December 22 and 25 for Christmas.
Supervisors designated that payroll will be weekly on Friday and pay date will be the Friday following the end of a pay period. The township manager, treasurer, and all supervisors were designated as check signers for the township.
The depositories will be First Northern Bank and Trust, PNC Bank, and Pennsylvania Local Government Investment Trust, the Non-Uniformed Pension Fund Trustee is RJ Hall Company Inc. and Principal Financial Group, and the Non-Uniformed Pension Fund Actuary is Foster & Foster (formerly Beyer & Beyer).
The following bonds were also approved: Secretary and Treasurer Bonds ($300,000); Faithful Performance Bonds ($100,000); Forgery/Alteration ($40,000); and Tax Collector Bond ($50,000).
The Certified Public Account to Perform 2022 Audit will be France, Anderson, Basile, and Co., P.C., and the IRS reimbursement rate for vehicles was updated to the current rate of $0.655 per mile.
Next, the Earned Income Tax Collector for the township will remain Northampton County Tax Collection Committee and the appointed Tax Collection Officer Keystone Collections, the commission of elected Real Estate Tax Collector remains $6,050 annually, and the Real Estate Levy for general purposes is set at 5.00 mills.
Barry Isett and Associates were reappointed for the Township Engineer and B. Lincoln Treadwell Jr. was reappointed as Township Solicitor. Additionally, Cindy Witman from Base Engineering was reappointed as the Building Code Official, Walter Diefenderfer was reappointed as the Code Enforcement Officer, Philip Schiebel from Barry Isett and Associates was reappointed as the Sewage Enforcement Officer, and Barry Isett and Associates were reappointed as the Sanitary Building Sewer Inspector and Public Water Laterals.
The third-party Building Code Inspectors that residents will have a choice from when pursuing building permits are Key Codes Inspection, Bureau Veritas, Keller Zoning and Inspection Services, and Lehigh Valley Inspection Services, which are the same as the previous year.
Supervisors then acknowledged the following fire chief and officers: Fire Chief Dale Hassler, First Assistant Chief Mark Kocher, Second Assistant Chief Gary Krill, Fire Captain Mike Miller, and Fire Lieutenant Kyle Walbert.
Dale Hassler was also reappointed as Fire Marshal and the following individuals were appointed as Fire Police: Cheryl Daumer, Robert Daumer, Dale Hassler, Mark Kocher, Gary Krill, Mike Miller, Kyle Walbert, Brandon Gianopulos, Tom Gogle, Jared Miller, Mike Jamicky, Jacob Schock, Jeremy Haydt, Tyler Haydt, Todd Haydt, John Beltz, Michael Mauser, Logan Schwartz, and Matthew Stephen.
Next, Gary Krill was reappointed as Emergency Management Coordinator, Ilene Eckhart was reappointed as First Regional Compost Authority Representative, Gary Krill was reappointed as Nazareth Area Council of Government Representative, and Jay Hower was reappointed for the Vacancy Board.
Supervisors approved the 2023 General Fee Schedule and the Park Facility Reservation Fee Schedule, which will be online for public view shortly.
Ilene Eckhart was reappointed as Zoning Officer and Ryan Christman from Keystone Consulting Engineers was reappointed as the Assistant Zoning Officer. All elected/appointed supervisors were reappointed as both Roadmasters and Park Superintendents.
Gary Krill and Paul Link were both appointed to a four-year term as Planning Commission members, which will expire on Jan. 1, 2027.
The Zoning Hearing Board currently has one vacant seat and two applicants, so the board will be meeting with both candidates before making a decision at next month’s meeting on February 14.
Last, Ilene Eckhart was reappointed as the Northampton County Tax Collection Committee Delegate (Earned Income Tax) and Tim Paul was appointed as the Voting Delegate for the PSATS Conference and given authorization to attend the conference in April.
The next Allen Township Board of Supervisors meetings will be held on January 24 at 6 p.m. and February 14 at 6 p.m. at Allen Township Fire Company, located at 3530 Howertown Rd.
