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Canton Twp. attempts to regain $147,000 it says Chartiers is ‘holding hostage’

3 min read
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Neighboring Canton and Chartiers townships a few years ago cooperated on a sewer line extension project in the Route 18 area north of Washington.

But Canton this week sought court intervention to regain $147,000 it claims Chartiers is wrongfully keeping through what it called “a strong-arm tactic.”

The adjacent municipalities entered into the agreement in August 2009 to cooperate on a sewer project in the areas of South Hewitt Avenue to Lynn Portal Road; Route 18; and Malone Ridge.

Total cost of the sewer project was $4.4 million, according to a document Canton Township filed with Washington County Court.

“In 2017, now that Canton is essentially built-out and no longer expects new connections or developments, Chartiers informed Canton that it wished to enter into a new agreement or to amend the prior agreement or it would withhold approximately $147,000 owed to Canton until Canton met their demands,” wrote attorney Christopher Furman.

He asked the court to order Chartiers to return the cash because “Canton does not wish to enter into a new agreement and Chartiers is holding the money hostage.”

Canton Supervisors John W. Sheppard and Thomas A. Bodnar signed the complaint against Chartiers.

The suit includes a letter written a year ago by Chartiers Solicitor James P. Liekar asking Canton to finalize a new agreement because “Chartiers has been ready to transfer approximately $147,000 to Canton” once the supervisors approve it.

Chartiers supervisors unanimously voted June 12 to approve the transfer of Canton’s portion of the unused fund balance upon reaching an agreement, said Chartiers Township Manager Jodi Noble.

Liekar said he couldn’t comment until he saw the complaint.

Noble, meanwhile, said she disagrees with Canton’s assertion that her township is holding any money “hostage.”

According to the terms of the original agreement, Canton is to collect debt service payments from its residents, then transfer the money to Chartiers so Chartiers can pay both municipalities’ debt service for the bond issue that financed the sewer project.

The townships refinanced the debt in 2016 to take advantage of lower interest rates.

“As part of the refinancing, we agreed to change the debt service structure so each municipality would pay its own debt,” Noble said. “The agreement in place from 2009 does not reflect that, which is why we requested a new and revised agreement.”

One-hundred percent of the debt is in Chartiers’ name, and if Canton would not pay its portion, Chartiers would be held responsible for it, Noble said. The $147,000 is from the project’s construction, and Canton is responsible for 61.7 percent of the debt, according to Noble.

“I’m very hopeful we can reach an agreement,” Noble said. “We’ve worked very closely with Canton over the years. We need an agreement to show how the debt is being retired to protect both municipalities.”

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