Meeting roundup
• Date: June 10
• Action: Council unanimously approved the site plan for Fiore’s Pizza and Italian Cuisine, which will be at the former Parkvale Bank site along Washington Road. Council had granted conditional use approval for the restaurant at its May 13 meeting.
Richard Hamil, architect for the project, stated that two-way traffic around the building was able to be achieved. He also stated he met with a landscape architect regarding the plants along the site and several plants are still valuable, while some will have to be replaced. Hamil added a monument-style sign will be placed where the pole sign for the bank currently stands.
Council voted to award a contract for the replacement of the Sugar Camp Road Trail Bridge to Appalachian Industries in the amount of $733,637. Appalachian Industries was the low bidder for the project. Silvestri said the township received a grant from Washington County to cover about $250,000 of the project.
Mark Zemaitis, director of engineering for the township, said the budget for the project was slightly more than $1 million. He said the project could be finished by the end of October.
Council voted to approve performing a traffic calming study for the Center Church/Johnston Road area. The study will cost about $3,500.
• Next meeting: 7:30 p.m. June 24 on the municipal building.
• Date: June 5
• Action: During a special meeting, the board accepted the resignation of Joel Kirsch, principal of the elementary center. Kirsch recently accepted a position in Bethlehem-Center School District.
• Next meeting: 7 p.m. June 19 in the high school library.
• Date: May 28
• Action: Contracts for a replacement circuit breaker cabinet for the high school building, a loading dock for the elementary center and sidewalk replacement and video security upgrades were approved by board members. The motion for $50,000 worth of renovations was approved by an 8-0 vote with board member Brant Miller absent.
The board also approved a $6,500 donation to Heritage Public Library in McDonald. Superintendent Robert Dinnen said this year’s donation was an increase of $2,000 from last year’s endowment.
“We donated more to the public library because the library does a lot for our kids and our community,” Dinnen said. “Working with the library goes a long way for educating the kids.”
The school board voted to hire a number of new employees, including Linda Spinded as elementary nurse and Tom Scarpone as athletic director. Scarpone had previously been employed as a teacher and assistant football and basketball coach in the district. The motion passed on a 7-0 vote with board member Tina Cottrill abstaining.
The board also announced the hiring of Glen Francisco as facilities manager, Rob Baier as boy’s head varsity basketball coach and Bill Ball as custodian. Baier played football at Robert Morris University and basketball at Our Lady of the Sacred Heart High School in Coraopolis.
The board reposted the position of police officer, with consideration being given to offers from local municipal forces.
Tuition rates for students were set for the 2013-2014 academic year. The yearly education of an elementary student will cost $8,522 and high school students $10,406. Elementary and high school lunch prices were set at $2.25.
• Next Meeting: 6 p.m. June 3 (special budget meeting)