SHAMOKIN - If city council is to guarantee a joint sewer authority loan, it may ask to be paid a fee in return.
The fee was compared by city officials to a franchise fee paid by Service Electric, which will generate more than $82,000 for the city this year, but just how much the city would seek in return from the authority is up in the air.
Steve Bartos, city clerk, said it's not unusual that a fee be provided to municipalities when guaranteeing loans for authorities. Daryl Peck, the city's financial consultant, confirmed that the city could seek a fee.
Council members discussed Shamokin-Coal Township Joint Sewer Authority's request that Shamokin guarantee a $17.6 million federal loan during a workshop Wednesday.
The authority will ask the same of Coal Township, and both municipalities are required to sign off on the guarantee. If one or both entities deny the authority's request, the low-interest loan offer by U.S. Department of Agriculture will be rescinded.
The loan would be used to fund the expansion and upgrade of the sewer plant, the latest phase of a federally mandated sewer-stormwater separation project. The project is not an option, and the authority must bring the sewer system into compliance with federal standards to reduce the amount of pollutants reaching the Chesapeake Bay.
According to a letter from Financial Solutions, the authority's consulting firm, the USDA loan is fixed at 2.375 percent over 40 years. That's in comparison to an estimate of a 4.477 percent rate on the bond market, the letter states.
If the federal loan is not guaranteed by the city and township and the authority enters the bond market, customers' monthly bills could increase an additional $4 to $6.25, according to the letter.
A $19.50 rate hike was enacted Oct. 1, which brought the monthly sewer bill to $49.50.
Councilman R. Craig Rhoades said he'd like to know what the customer bills will be at the end of the 40-year loan.
The authority is asking Shamokin to give first approval at its next monthly meeting, to be held 7 p.m. Feb. 13. Coal Township's next monthly meeting is 7 p.m. Feb. 9.
Payroll
Council members spoke of a potential switch to having payroll contracted out to a professional firm.
Bartos estimated he spends up to four hours a week on payroll, something with which he has little previous experience. He admitted he occasionally makes mistakes in the process.
A professional payroll company would limit those mistakes, he said. He estimated a biweekly payroll format would cost about $2,500 annually compared to a weekly format at more than $4,000 a year.
However, Councilman Bill Milbrand pointed out that the police department has in its collective bargaining agreement that it be paid weekly. Bartos said the street department also has the provision in its contract. Any changes to payroll for those two departments would take an amendment to the contracts.
Grants
Bartos proposed council consider contracting with a grant writer for repairs to the American Legion building and for the creation of its portion of a trail for the proposed Lower Anthracite Heritage Regional Trail.
Grant money for the trail project could total $500,000, Bartos said, with the city required to match 20 percent, or $100,000. He said a combination of existing recreation and grant monies could be used to cover their share.
Funding for the building repairs could come from a low-interest grant-loan combination, with $250,000 available, Bartos said.
If a grant writer were brought on to apply for three grants he identified for the projects, it could cost the city between $5,000 and $10,000; however, if just one application were approved, let alone all three, the fee would be covered.
The regional trail is a push to increase recreational and tourism opportunities along a wooded and urban walking trail, which spans 14 municipalities in Columbia, Northumberland and Schuylkill counties.
Shamokin is among the municipalities involved in a feasibility study for the trail, and a project result, if it were to occur, could be the restoration of four dilapidated staircases built between the late 1930s and early 1940s by the Works Progress Administration program, including the "99 steps" leading from North Grant Street to Lincoln Street.
Vision benefits
The city's contract with its provider of vision benefits is up for renewal this month and council is considering switching companies.
The current provider charges $4.94 for a single plan or $11.28 for a family plan. This includes new glasses or contacts every other year.
A second firm has bid $4.58 for single, $11.92 for family. The upgrade would provide new glasses or contacts annually, Bartos said, at an increased cost of $39 a year over the city's existing contract.
Committee meeting
The city's 150th Anniversary Committee will meet at 7 p.m. Feb. 22 inside city hall. Attendees will form subcommittees and begin to form plans for the event. All interested parties are urged to attend. For more information, call city hall at 644-0876.