Township Proceeds With Solicitor, Engineer Search

South Whitehall officials have narrowed the field of candidates for township solicitor and engineer to the "short-short list" and will be conducting interviews soon with the full board, Commissioner Thomas Johns said Wednesday.

Township officials began the process earlier this year as they set out to evaluate whether to continue with those currently in the positions or to start anew. Johns said it will be several weeks before a decision is made.

"If we do make a change, I want to keep it professional, the way it has been," Johns said. "We always had first-class people representing us."

Township officials have not disclosed the names of the candidates on the short list but they have said that current solicitor Blake Marles and the firm Stevens & Lee, as well as current engineer The Pidock Co. would be part of the final round.

They also have not indicated the number of candidates so far interviewed, or the number to be included in the final round.

Johns, a member of the sub-committee that conducted the first round of interviews, said, "My biggest concern is, we need to control our costs" for engineering and legal services.

He said the township doesn't want a tax increase next year, so without growth, it needs to control costs.

Also, Johns said, "We're not user-friendly with our land development process, and that costs us." He said the costs of permitting and inspections need to be controlled.  "Without controlling that, we’re never going to increase our tax base. We've got to stay competitive to the other first-class townships." 

At the start of the solicitor/engineer search earlier this year, township officials said that they would try to evaluate whether taxpayers are currently getting the best value for their money for professional services. The issue had come up during last year's budget process, as the commissioners faced financial challenges that resulted in the use of capital reserves to hold off a tax increase. 

The township had received more than two dozen proposals for both the solicitor and engineering positions, officials have said.