On April 29, Mount Penn Borough Council unanimously voted to dissolve the Mount Penn Borough Municipal Authority with the intention of opening a public works department and using revenue generated to supplement the borough’s revenue. Since 1941, MPBMA has maintained and protected the water infrastructure to ensure clean water in Mount Penn, St. Lawrence, Lower Alsace Township, St. Lawrence and a portion of Exeter Township.
MPBMA is building a critical new water storage tank on Spook Lane. This project is funded by a low-interest rate state loan from PennVest. Upon the dissolution of the authority, PennVest explicitly warned borough officials that if there is no written agreement with MPBMA, repayment of the entire loan would be due immediately, adding $900,000 in interest and passed on directly to rate payers.
The borough’s aggressive legal maneuvers directly threaten the financial stability of all MPBMA rate payers.
Borough leaders need to drop legal action against the authority for a takeover, compromise on a lease-back conveyance and assure a no-sale covenant in writing. Rate payers need to attend the borough council meeting on Aug. 25 at 7 p.m. and voice their objections to actions that will ultimately increase rates.
Debbie Moore
Lower Alsace Township