Committee animosity in Donora

By KRISTIE LINDEN

klinden@yourmvi.com

Last month, Donora council President Jane Ackerman eliminated all committees in an effort to run borough business through council as a whole rather than having issues dealt with by just a few people. 

Some council members have been asking to hire a code enforcement officer for several months, and a committee led by Councilman Gib Szakal has been working on a job description for the position. Ackerman has said when non-committee members asked about the progress of the project, they’ve been told it’s being handled by the committee. 

Ackerman, who was participating in the workshop meeting via video chat as she recuperates from a broken leg, asked council members Thursday if they wanted to advertise for a code enforcement officer “or are we just going to sit here and not worry about code enforcement.”

Szakal presented the job description, and Councilwoman Cindy Brice said it appeared the description was copied from the City of Johnstown. Councilman Dennis Gutierrez agreed that it was very close. 

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