Intelligencer Journal/Lancaster New Era

Sadsbury Township retains leadership roster for 2013
BY DEBBIE WYGENT, Correspondent

Sadsbury Township supervisors reorganized earlier this month, making few changes to their leadership roster.

Supervisors unanimously reappointed Gene Lammey, chairman; Greg Esh, vice chairman; Linda Swift, secretary/treasurer; Bill Davis, roadmaster; and Blakinger, Byler and Thomas, township solicitors.

Also reappointed were Marvin Stoner, sewage enforcement officer; David Lockard, alternate sewage enforcement officer; Bill Beers, zoning officer; Barbara Margetto, planning commission member; and David Hoopes, vacancy board chairman.

New appointees are Rebecca Vorsteg, to the municipal authority, and Frank Leslie to the zoning hearing board. Mark Leatherman resigned from the planning commission.

Supervisors also approved a 50-cent-per-hour raise for the roadmaster and a 75-cent-per-hour increase for members of the road crew.

Paul R. Reimold, chief of the Christiana Fire Company, was unanimously appointed township fire marshal.

According to a year-end fire company report given to supervisors, Station 52 responded to 216 incidents in 2012. Volunteers gave 2,959 hours of their time for incidents in 25 municipalities, and property losses were estimated to be $1,417,580.

In other action, supervisors unanimously passed an ordinance that made some minor amendments to the township's zoning ordinance. The changes were made following review by the township planning commission and county planners.

Manufacturing was deleted as a use permitted by special exception in the agriculture and agriculture holding zones, and the square footage for cottage industries and farm occupations was increased from 4,000 to 5,000 square feet.

Supervisors also continued to discuss with neighbors along Meetinghouse Road their interest in turning the rural lane back to the property owners, because it is a private driveway and not a public road.

Supervisors said they would arrange for a survey and ask their attorney to prepare legal documents.

They also gave Vorsteg, a volunteer, the go-ahead to begin building a township website, kept employee health insurance coverage with Capital Blue Cross and approved switching phone service from Nextel to AT&T.

In another matter, supervisors discussed the future of the Enola line, noting that despite advertising they have had trouble finding someone to remove the last bridge over the line. Supervisors said they don't want to open the line for public use until the aging structure is gone.

Esh said he has been attending meetings with trail volunteers in other municipalities.

"There is state money in place for this project," said Esh, adding that trail volunteers are working on raising funds to meet a $400,000 matching grant for trail improvements. Esh said one large issue is the impact buggy and horse traffic will have on the hard-pack gravel surface.

"Everyone is very concerned about the long-term costs of maintaining this," Esh said.

"I think we need to get rid of the bridge and it needs to become public property," Swift said.

Esh said he believes many township residents would like to see the township portion of the trail opened for public use.

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