Richhill Township • Greene County, Pennsylvania

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Minutes of January 5, 2026 Meeting

MINUTES OF JANUARY 5, 2026 ORGANIZATIONAL MEETING

The Richhill Township Supervisors held their organizational meeting on January 5, 2026 at 5:00 pm at the township building in Wind Ridge, PA. Temporary Chairman, Matthew Robison, called the meeting to order and instructed to start the tape recorder. All rose to Pledge the Flag. All Supervisors present, Thomas A. Chess III, Donald D. Jacobs and Matthew W. Robison, and township secretary, Deborah Penska.

PRESENT: James Helphenstine, Travis Jones, Buz Headley, Jon Helphenstine, Allen Chess & Charlie Day

ORGANIZATIONAL MEETING:

  • MOTION made by Thomas Chess Ill to appoint Matthew Robison as chairman. Second by Donald Jacobs. All in favor. (Mr. Robison will conduct remainder of meeting).
  • MOTION made by Thomas Chess Ill to appoint Donald Jacobs as Vice-Chairman. Second by Matthew Robison. All in favor.
  • MOTION made by Donald Jacobs to appoint Allen Chess as employee with a wage at $25.00 per hour. Retroactive to the 1st of January, 2026. Second by Matthew Robison. Motion carried with 2, Thomas Chess Ill abstained.
  • MOTION made by Thomas Chess Ill to appoint Deborah Penska as Secretary/Treasurer with a wage of $25.50 per hour. Retroactive to the 1st of January, 2026. Second by Matthew Robison. All in favor.
  • MOTION made by Thomas Chess Ill to appoint all 3 supervisors as road master/superintendent and request to the Board of Auditors a pay increase of $ .5O per hour for 2026. Second by Matthew Robison.
  • MOTION made by Thomas Chess Ill to leave treasurer’s bond at $3 million for 2026. Second by Donald Jacobs. All in favor
  • MOTION made by Donald Jacobs to appoint Phil Hook as solicitor for 2026. Second by Thomas Chess Ill. All in favor.
  • MOTION made by Matthew Robison to appoint Richard King as Chairman of the Vacancy Board. Second by Thomas Chess Ill. All in favor.
  • There are no vacancies or expired terms.
  • MOTION by Donald Jacobs to appoint Norman Lewis as Emergency Management Coordinator. Second by Matthew Robison. All in favor.
  • MOTION by Thomas Chess Ill to appoint Mike Salai as member of the Board of Appeals. Second by Donald Jacobs. All in favor.
  • MOTION made by Matthew Robison to appoint Keith Golden as SEO (sewage enforcement officer) and Timothy Neil as Alternate SEO. Second by Thomas Chess Ill. All in favor.
  • MOTION made by Donald Jacobs to leave all funds the same. All Checking accounts are with First National Bank, CD’s with FNB Wealth Management and 5 savings accounts at PLGIT. Second by Matthew Robison. All in favor. Three signatures required, Secretary & 2 Supervisors.

A discussion was had with the public attendance about the monthly meeting for the coming year. Some wanting to change the time to later, some indecisive.

  1. MOTION made by Thomas Chess Ill to keep monthly meetings on the 1st Tuesday of each month at 5:00 pm at the township building. Second by Donald Jacobs. After more discussion Tom redacted the motion. MOTION was remade by Thomas ChessIII to hold the meetings at 6:00 pm for the year 2026. Second by Matthew Robison. All in favor.
  2. MOTION made by Thomas A Chess Ill to approve Thomas Chess Ill and Donald Jacobs to attend the PA State Association’s Annual Convention, if they so choose. Donald Jacobs to serve as voting delegate. Second by Matthew Robison. All in favor.
  3. MOTION made by Matthew Robison to leave the reimbursement mileage rate for employees at .70/mile. Second by Thomas Chess Ill. All in favor.
  4. MOTION made by Thomas Chess Ill that holidays and sick leave be left the same. Donald Jacobs asked the auditors to consider allowing them to carry over a week of vacation to the following year. Second by Donald Jacobs. All in favor
  5. PUBLIC COMMENT ON AGENDA ITEMS OF BUSINESS: None at this time.
  6. MOTION Thomas Chess Ill to approve and place on file Minutes of December 31, 2025. Second by Donald Jacobs. All in favor.
  • MOTION by Donald Jacobs to approve and place on file the December 31, 2025 Treasurers Report. Second by Matthew Robison. All in favor.
  • BID OPENINGS: Diesel fuel, Dumpsters, Stone and Cold Patch. See attached results.
  • BUSINESS:
    • MOTION made by Matthew Robison to approve payroll when it is due, instead of at regular monthly meetings (payroll is every 2 weeks on Friday, with pay period ending on Wednesday). Transfer of monies from General Fund to Payroll as needed. Second by Thomas Chess Ill. All in favor.
    • MOTION made by Matthew Robison to approve and pay any bills that are due between meetings to take advantage of any discounts or avoid any penalties. Second by Thomas Chess Ill. All in favor.
  • ACTION ON BILLS: MOTION by Donald Jacobs to approve and pay all bills. Second by Matthew Robison. All in favor. Side note to look into purchasing tank from CGI instead of paying a monthly rental fee.
  • PUBLIC COMMENT: Buz commended the supervisors on the work that was done on Wise Lane. He stated that is a model of how the roads should be done. He also stated that Jones and Hughes Roads also need ditched. Buz also asked about making a contingency plan for loss of revenue in the next few coming years. Jon asked about the price of health insurance being high. A discussion was held on the cost of health insurance in the upcoming years. Travis asked where gasoline is bought and how much. Gasoline is usually bought at Stoke’s and only used for mowers, chain saws, etc. Some mixed gas has been purchased. Travis questioned the sinking in the parking lot. Supervisors are not sure why the lot is rutting up, they dug down and there is paper 16 to 18″ deep. Still deciding what avenue to take to fix the parking lot.
  • ADJOURNMENT: MOTION made to adjourn by Donald Jacobs.Second by Thomas Chess Ill. All in favor.

Deborah Penska – Secretary/Treasurer