(2/26) Auditor resigns

Gary Gipe, one of three elected Auditors for Hamiltonbam, has officially resigned his position.

At the February 2nd Hamiltonban Township’s Board of Supervisor’s Meeting, a motion was made to send a letter to Gipe asking for his resignation. Gipe has been absent from meetings, for reasons unbeknownst to other council members. Meetings only occur once a year, and Gipe has not been present for the past three meetings. Supervisors hope to elect another member to this position who may have more time, availability and interest to serve this position.

Supervisor’s passed the motion to send Gipe a letter asking him to resign, but supervisor’s requested that the letter be revised slightly, to ensure that the letter is as polite and unobtrusive as possible.

Hamiltonban Township voters elect citizens to this auditor position and there are 3 auditors serving Hamiltonban Township. Each term is staggered to ensure all three auditors do not need to be elected at the same time. Gipe was elected as an auditor in 2013, allowing his term to terminate in 2019. The other two auditors are Eugene Starbuck, who is also the chairman, and Sarah Ginn, who acts as the secretary. The term for the auditor position is 6 years, and auditors receive a monetary compensation of $10 an hour for their service.

As an auditor, Gipe’s responsibilities entail auditing the Township bank accounts. The Township has a certified public accountant that does the "official" audit, but elected auditors review the financial statements for the bank accounts, which are prepared by the Township secretary, and ask any questions that they have at their annual meeting. Elected auditors also establish the compensation of any Supervisor who may be employed by the Township.

Next year a new auditor will be elected to fill Gipe’s position. In the meantime, the Board of Supervisors will appoint someone to fill the remainder of Gipe’s term.

Joint Parks and Recreation Commission

At their February 2nd meeting, the Hamiltonban Township’s Board of Supervisor’s passed a motion to advertise for adoption Ordinance 2016-01 which would create a Joint Parks and Recreation Commission between the Borough of Fairfield and Hamiltonban Township. This joint commission would be entitled the Hamiltonban Township & Fairfield Borough Joint Parks and Recreation Commission.

By advertising the ordinance, the Township is giving the public time to review the ordinance and ask questions before it is adopted. The proposed ordinance also needs to be advertised in a newspaper to additionally ensure that the public has a chance to view it before it is officially adopted, or put into motion/action.

The Board of Supervisors believed that adequate public recreation programs and facilities for Hamiltonban Township would be best advanced by the establishment of a Joint Parks and Recreation Commission with the Borough of Fairfield as both were working toward the same goals and taking action on overlapping projects. Given this, it was recognized by all that it would be beneficial to combine the committees from both municipalities.

The commission will consist of five members appointed by the governing bodies of Hamiltonban Township and the Fairfield Borough. One of these members will be appointed by the Fairfield Borough Council and the remaining four will be appointed by the Hamiltonban Township Board of Supervisors. Members will serve a term of five years.

The Commission will report to both the Hamiltonban Township Board of Supervisors and the Fairfield Borough. The ordinance awaits the signatures of the Hamiltonban Township Board of Supervisors. This ordinance will become effective five days after adoption.