Aug 18, 2015 3 min read

AVELLA – Independence Township supervisors voted to take back control of Avella Community Center after it was found in June that the township recreation board, which managed the building since 1984, was taking rent and other fees as a nonprofit and failing to provide reports to the municipality.

According to meeting minutes from May and June, Supervisor Joyce McKenzie questioned the board’s legal status after recreation board members weren’t reporting financial information to the township. The Independence Township Recreation Board was created in April 1984, then incorporated as a nonprofit in October the same year, according to documents filed with the Pennsylvania Department of State. Supervisor Tom Jennings said the recreation board was accepting donations of at least $3,000 a year from the board of supervisors, and were also been charging $3,000 annual rent without a legal lease agreement with Avella Library, as well as nominal fees from youth athletic organizations. Community center staff said that was the arrangement for at least 25 years. Supervisors then set up insurance and engineering inspections of the building, which found the building in poor shape.

“The estimates we’ve gotten were around $30,000 just for mold remediation,” said township solicitor Gary Sweat.

At tonight’s meeting, supervisors are expected to discuss if the recreation board can claim property deeded to the community center. One of the biggest assets is a fire truck donated to the recreation board by Gary Powers, who said he wants supervisors to give it back to the fire department. James Brinksy, 76, the treasurer and secretary for the recreation board, said he helped hide the truck from supervisors in July until McDonald police got involved. It’s back at the community center.

“We moved it to an undisclosed location … And the supervisors are saying we have to turn over everything, checking accounts, donated items, everything,” Brinsky said.

Brinsky said he and other members of the board were locked out since the June decision, but meeting minutes said the locks were changed for security purposes and no one was ever locked out during regular business hours. Library staff said a rumor the library was closed is false, and it was never closed.

According to the minutes from the July 15 meeting, McKenzie said, “this issue is not about minimizing the contributions of volunteers’ time and efforts over the years, but to bring the community center up to legal and safety standard for liability purposes for the ultimate protection of the township.”

At that meeting, the board of supervisors voted to dissolve the Indpendence Township Recreation Board bylaws, placing the community center under management of the township supervisors. The board also voted unanimously to not charge Avella Library rent as of Aug. 1, but want to have a documented lease in place.