Union Township residents petition courts to fill supervisor vacancies

More than two dozen registered voters in Union Township filed a petition Thursday with the Washington County Court of Common Pleas to have four people appointed to the municipality’s board of supervisors after this week’s mass resignation.
Washington attorney Dennis Makel filed the petition on behalf of the 26 residents asking that Larry Spahr, Charles Wilson, Linda Evans Boren and Stephen Parish be appointed to fill the vacancies after four of the township’s five supervisors resigned Monday. The petition also asks the judge to formally accept the resignations in absence of a majority board.
A hearing will be held at 8:45 a.m. Tuesday before Judge Michael Lucas for him to decide whether the four applicants should be appointed to the board or whether other candidates should be considered. The positions must be filled so a quorum of the board can assemble before the next meeting, at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday, to handle tasks such as paying bills.
“Everything stops at this point,” said Holly Fishel, policy and research director for the Pennsylvania State Association of Township Supervisors. “You can’t have a meeting with one supervisor. (The Pennsylvania Sunshine Act) requires it to be a quorum and they don’t have that right now.”
Submitting resignations Monday were Heather Daerr, board chair; Charles Trax Jr., vice chair; Richard Lawson and Michael Barna, leaving Michalle Dupree as the township’s lone supervisor.
The resignation letters submitted by the four were acquired by the Observer-Reporter through the Right-To-Know Law. All four letters expressed similar sentiments.
“I am uncomfortable and saddened by much of what has been brought to light,” read Barna’s letter. “I have witnessed public harassing and intimidating behavior. There have been sensitive materials shared on social media. Materials that were shared on social media were posted with harmful intent. There have been heinous comments and false accusations made in meetings and on social media that go against my personal beliefs and morals. When I submitted my application for the position, I wanted to make a positive difference. I love where we live and I still believe I can make a positive difference. Unfortunately, this is not the time that this can be done due to what I have mentioned.”
Dupree said Thursday that she gave a reporter’s contact information to her attorney, whom she did not identify.
It was not known how Makel became involved in the petition, and he was unavailable for comment Thursday afternoon.
Fishel explained there is not a specific process a judge uses to fill vacancies on a municipal board.
“Often, those petitions will name candidates, but it’s up to the judge as to how they will handle that,” she said. “Sometimes, they will move forward with the proposed candidates. Sometimes, they will want to be more involved in the process and give others the opportunity to participate.”
The supervisors are not the only recent resignations. The Sweat Law Firm of Washington also resigned Monday as the township’s solicitor, a position the firm had held since 2016.
The accounting firm of Palermo/Kissinger & Associates also recently resigned, and project manager Terri Gladus announced her resignation at the board’s Oct. 12 meeting.
“It is with very heavy heart that I did this,” Gladus said at that meeting. “I have gotten to experience some of the most kind, committed, hard-working, willing to make sacrifices beyond belief people that have sat behind that board table.”
The secretary/assistant treasurer also resigned, according to the petition.
Union Township was in the news in September when Pennsylvania American Water threatened to shut off service to fire hydrants due to delinquent water bills. That and a $37,096 payment of a delinquent water bill in June prompted elected auditor Larry Spahr to issue a stern warning at the supervisors’ Sept. 27 meeting.
“I’ve tried to impress upon the board when this first came to light about how finances have to be handled in the township in an appropriate and legal manner,” he said at the meeting. “When you’re dealing with township finances, you can’t look at them in a willy-nilly manner.”
Fishel said mass resignations such as these are not common.
“It is not a frequent occurrence,” Fishel said, adding she doesn’t recall resignations to this extent. “Every once in a while it happens and usually there’s an extenuating circumstance involved.”
The township office staff has been on duty and the road crew has been at work.
“There’s current employees and they should be able to continue with their duties,” Fishel said. “It becomes questionable, can they pay their bills at this time? I’m not sure that they can.”
Staff writer Mike Jones contributed to this story.