The Township road

crew is busy gearing up

for this season’s road maintenance

and repairs. This year’s larger

project is the reclamation and

repaving of Circle Drive.

Please be especially cautious when

traveling the following roadways

that are scheduled for tar and chip

sealcoat beginning in June:

* Dietterick Hill Road

* Deitterick Road

* Edwards Road

* Miller Road

* Moore Road

* Sponenberg Hill Road

* Thomas Drive

* Whitmire Road

PennDOT also has projects

planned on state roads in the

Township. From August 1 thru 21,

a bridge replacement is scheduled

on SR 93 between the Heller Lane

and Dohl Road intersections and

requires a detour to Fowlersville

Road. SR 93 is also scheduled for

resurfacing from Slowick Road to

the Route 11 intersection with

West Front Street in Berwick. The

project is scheduled to begin late

August.

Two additional projects are

scheduled by PennDOT, both

on Mountain Road. A pipe

replacement is scheduled

near Heller Lane and

sealcoating of Mountain

Road from SR 93 to Dohl

Road is set to begin in July.

As always, we remind you to stay

safe when traveling through

construction areas during our busy

spring and summer road

construction season. Our

workers’ safety in construction

zones depends on your patience

and compliance with work zone

safety laws and Pennsylvania Steer

Clear Law. When law enforcement

is not present, Steer Clear Law

allows road crews and emergency

responders to report violations for

which law enforcement can issue

citations.

Over the past

five years, 128

fatalities

resulted from

work zone

crashes in Pennsylvania.

Remember the law, have patience,

and stay safe!

Road Construction Projects

Dear residents,

We say goodbye to yet another cold and snowy Pennsylvania winter. As we welcome the long, warm days

ahead, we are busy planning and preparing this year’s road improvement projects. Our dedicated

volunteers are also busy planning maintenance at the cemeteries, projects at the Natural Park, and a day of

fun at Community Day. Take time this season to enjoy your neighbors, family, friends and our beautiful

township! Your Township Supervisors,

David Artman, Steven Hess Sr., and Ronald LeVan Jr.

2015

North Centre Township

NEWS FROM

1059 State Route 93

Berwick PA 18603

570-759-2733

E-Mail:

office@northcentretownship.com

Website:

www.northcentretownship.com

Office hours are

Tuesdays 9 am to 2:30 pm or

by appointment.

Meeting Dates

Township Supervisors meet

on the second Monday of each

month at 7pm at the township

building.

Township Historical Society

meets the first Tuesday of

each month at 7pm at the

township building.

Township Cemetery

Committee meets each

Tuesday, weather permitting

seasonally, at 9am at the

township building. Volunteers

are needed and greatly

appreciated to restore and

maintain the three township

cemeteries.

Township Natural Park

volunteers will be working at

the park on the following

Saturdays from 9am to noon:

June 6, July 11, August 1, and

September 9. For updated

information, please see our

website or the recycle center

bulletin board.

North Centre Township provides

police protection through the Briar

Creek Police Department. The

department now provides 24/7

protection to township residents

and has hired an additional full-

time officer to provide coverage.

Should you have any police

questions or concerns, please

contact the department at

570-759-0354.

Police

No Parking

Reminder: No parking is allowed

along roadways. Vehicle owners

will be cited by police if vehicles

are blocking the path of Township

snowplows and construction

vehicles.

The Taylor Drive safety project completed in

2014 cut back the bank, widened the roadway

and improved visibility near the intersection

of SR93.

At right: Cemetery Committee

volunteers erect stones at the

Lutheran Cemetery.

Looking for

a good summer

read? Enjoy free access to

books and services from the

Orangeville Public Library, the

McBride Memorial Library in

Berwick, and the Ezzyk-Makar

Memorial Little Free Library

located in front of Ezzyk’s Farm

Market on State Route 93.

The Orangeville Library is

holding its annual May book sale

on May 23 and 30 from 9am-

1pm at the library. The library’s

biggest book sale of the year,

including author book signings

and raffles, will take place from

July 17-25 at the Orangeville

Fireman’s Carnival. The summer

reading theme will be Fairy

Tales and Rhymes. Children are

invited to come on Tuesday

mornings, beginning June 16.

Preschoolers (3-5yrs) meet at

9am and school age (K-4th)

meet at 10am for a fun time of

At the July 2014 Community Day, the Township honored Carl Fedako as the 2013 North Centre Township Volunteer of the Year. The Volunteer Award Committee had the daunting task of reviewing numerous volunteer award applications submitted by township residents. Carl and his wife Joyce are 15-year residents of the Township. Carl regularly attends township

meetings and is active with the North Centre Township Historical Society and the North Centre Township Cemetery Association. He has also served as the Township’s elected auditor for 11 years.

If you see Carl, thank him for his time and effort to make our Township a better place! The announcement of 2014’s Volunteer of the Year will take place at noon at Community Day on June 13th at Hidlay Church. Please come out and show your appreciation.

Volunteer of the Year

Page 2 North Centre Township

stories, crafts and

games. Please call the library

at 570-683-5354 or stop in to

register. Rounding out the

year, the Library plans the

Annual Family Scarecrow

Decorating contest in October

and a gift basket raffle in

November. For more

information, please visit

www.orangevillelibrary.org.

The McBride Memorial Library

in Berwick offers summer

programs for various ages.

Toddler and preschool story

time is on Mondays from

11:30am - 12pm and 6pm -

6:30pm. Elementary school K-

5th will meet on Wednesdays

from 10:30am - 12:pm. Middle

School and High School

students meet Tuesday

afternoons from 4pm - 5:30pm.

For more information or to

register, please visit

www.mcbridelibrary.org or call

the library at 570-752-8450.

Volunteer Appreciation

Over 50 township volunteers were

honored at the first ever Volunteer

Appreciation Picnic held at the

Natural Park in September.

After a few words of appreciation

from Township Supervisors, the

volunteers were treated to a bar-b-

que dinner and dessert.

We appreciate our volunteers and

their tireless effort to make our small

part of the world a wonderful place

to live!

Grab a Good Book

Free Fill

As township projects progress,

there is often excess fill that

needs to be removed. Please

note this is not topsoil. If you

are interested in free fill,

please contact the township

office with your name, address

and phone number. The road

crew will contact you if the fill

becomes available and make

Chuck Knorr, North Centre Township

volunteer, Historical Society President,

and area historical enthusiast,

continues his extensive research of

those buried in the abandoned

cemeteries in the Township. Many of

the graves belong to Civil War

Veterans and come with unique life

stories. The following families are

buried in the recently restored Old

Ebenezer Cemetery: Bower, Evans,

Lewis, Remley, Roup, Romick,

Sponenberger, and Whitmire. In

addition, single graves belong to Cox,

Gye, Hayman, Hill, Johnson, Lynn,

Martz, Muffley, Rinard, Shaffer, and

Shannon. Chuck has provided his

research results at

www.findagrave.com. A link to the

site can be found on the Township’s

website.

As you drive by the Natural

Park, you will notice the

obvious signs of progress by

our dedicated volunteers.

Two pavilions are available

for use, as well as picnic

tables, charcoal grills, and a

pit for disposal of used

charcoal. Two wooden foot

bridges lead the way for

future trails that are going in

throughout the park. The

Community Day/Park

Association is preparing to

tackle this year’s project list.

Park work days are

scheduled for May 2, June 6,

July 11, August 1, and

September 9 from 9am to

noon. Please consider

donating your time to this

beautiful nature park in your

own backyard.

Volunteers and ideas

welcome!

Natural Park

A Bit of History

Supervisors Ronald LeVan Jr. 570-759-6874 David Artman 570-752-4088 Steven Hess Sr. 570-759-9556 Roadmaster Steven Hess Sr. 570-759-2733 Manager Tom Clymer 570-759-2733 Secretary/Treasurer Stacy Shaffer 570-759-2733 Zoning & Code Officer 570-759-2733 Connie Kline or 570-441-3016 Sewage Officer Col. Co. Sanitary Inspection Agency 570-784-9171

Building Permits Tri-County COG-IBC Inspection Service 570-784-8654 Police Briar Creek Police Department 570-759-0354 Tom Frace, Chief Auditors Carl Fedako Gerald John Wendi Devine Tax Collector Columbia County Tax Assessment Office 570-389-5643 Zoning Hearing Board Richard Davenport, Chairman Planning Commission Lou O’Neil, Chairman Land Development and Subdivision Columbia County Planning Commission 570-389-9146

Township Administration

Page 3 2015

What is the emerald ash

borer? The emerald ash borer

is a 1/2" long metallic green

beetle that bores into ash

trees, ultimately killing them. It

has already killed tens of

millions of ash trees.

How does it kill a tree? Adult

beetles lay eggs on the bark of

ash trees. The larvae bore into

the bark and feed on the

tissues of the tree. All species

of ash native to the United

States are susceptible. It can

spread naturally by larvae

flying to new trees upon

hatching, but more often it

occurs from people

transporting wood to

uninfected areas. Within 2

years of observing symptoms,

most of the crown of the tree

will be dead. Complete tree

death typically occurs within 5

years, but may take as few as 2

to 3 years.

What does a tree infested

with the emerald ash borer

look like?

Initially, the top of the crown

begins to thin and partially die

and sprouting from the main

stem of the tree may occur.

The presence of insects

below the bark leads to

increased woodpecker activity,

which causes the tree to look

like it is losing patches of bark.

In severe cases, the bark of the

tree may split. Small exit holes

will occur wherever a beetle

emerges.

What can be done about it?

Currently, little can be done to

protect or save trees from this

menace. The best option for

most ash trees is to quickly

detect the presence of them

and destroy affected tree

materials. Cut down dead and

dying ash trees and chip, burn,

or bury the wood on the site to

reduce the chance of other

trees being attacked.

Insecticide options are

available for those wishing to

protect high-value ornamental

trees although this must be

done by a professional and is

not guaranteed and requires

retreatment.

To report possible infested

trees call the PA Dept. of

Agriculture at 1-866-253-7189.

What is the Emerald Ash Borer?

With the number of fire incidents in the

County lately, we wanted everyone to

remember the

following about

open burning in

the Township:

1. Burning is

allowed

daily from

daybreak

to 9 p.m.

2. All fires shall be attended to at all

times by a responsible adult with

readily available means of

extinguishing the fire.

3. Fire must be extinguished

thoroughly with no smoldering.

4. No open burning shall create a

nuisance to or impact the health or

safety of other persons or animals

or create a harmful effect to

another’s property.

5. No person shall feed an open fire

with any refuse, garbage, rubbish or

trade waste other than untreated

wood and yard waste.

6. A fire may be set solely for

recreational purposes, or used only

for cooking, at any time without a

permit.

7. No fire shall be allowed during a

fire ban emergency.

Burning Rules

With the swimming season

quickly approaching, please

keep in mind that all pools

other than wading pools must

have a permit issued by the

zoning officer and must have

sides that are a minimum of 4’

in height or have a 4’ fence

surrounding them. Access must

be controlled by either a self-

locking gate or by removing the

ladder away from the pool

when not in use.

Permits

As a reminder, North Centre

Township requires permits for

any manmade structure or

apparatus, whether

temporary, permanent,

movable or unmovable.

Please call the Township office

at 570-759-2733 before

starting any project.

Pools

Be sure to visit

www.northcentretownship.com

and follow us on our

North Centre Township

Facebook page.

Community Day June 13, 2015

9am to 3pm

Township Supervisors and the Park/Community Day

Association invite you to a day of fun, food, and

fellowship at Hidlay Church. Please come out and

enjoy crafts, homemade food, ice cream, and music

and visit with your community family, friends and

neighbors.

We hope to see you there!

To many residents, property taxes are one of the most misunderstood aspects of

municipal government. The North Centre Township Board of Supervisors

consistently strives to keep municipal property taxes as low as possible while still

maintaining quality roads and services. The confusion stems from the fact that

many people aren't aware of the distribution percentage that each taxing body

receives when property taxes are collected. As you can see from the pie chart, the

majority of the tax money collected goes to the School District, while a portion

goes to the County and a smaller portion is filtered down to the Township and Fire

Service. For a complete explanation of where your tax money goes and how the

taxes are calculated please visit our website at www.northcentretownship.com.