Reynoldsville council learns that work to start soon on repairs to a partial roof collapse on Main Street

The Reynoldsville Borough Council met in regular session on October 18 and finally got to hear from the owner of the building where a roof partially collapsed in September.

Jack Shuttleworth of Reynoldsville was on the agenda for the work session earlier this month but did not attend. This time he was in attendance and told council he is moving forward with repairs at his building on Main Street across the alley from Farmers National Bank. He said the collapse was caused by the rubber roof being damaged prior to a heavy rain storm which allowed the water to build up.

He said he immediately went to work to make the building safe, hiring a contractor and an engineer.

“I wasn’t dragging my feet,” he assured council.

Shuttleworth has a plan in place to make repairs and has contractors getting ready to do the work once the plan is approved by Pennsafe Building Inspection Services LLC. The plan includes new trusses sloping to the back of the building, reinforcing the the collapsed part with beams, reconstructing the damaged brick wall, and a new rubber roof.

Shuttleworth said none of this is covered by insurance and he wasn’t sure just what he was going to do with the building once the work was completed.

Citizen of the Month

Council president Bill Cebulskie announced that the Reynoldsville Citizen of the Month for October was Scott Wolfgang, the coach of the Reynoldsville Falcons youth football team. Wolfgang has been working with the team for the past 26 years.

Water problems

Patty Fish, the owner of several rental properties in the borough, asked the council for help with the Water and Sewer Authority. She said that she has a tenant who has not paid their water bill for eleven months and that she has been trying to get information from the authority about its polices and procedures concerning this issue to no avail. The pandemic moratorium prevents her from shutting off the water and she is responsible for the bill.

Borough solicitor Joe Ryan said there was nothing the council could do for her, but she could proceed with her efforts to appeal under the Right to Know Act to obtain the water authority’s policy and procedures. Council president Cebulskie told Fish to keep council posted on her progress.

Regular agenda

After an hour-long executive session on legal and personnel issues, the council resumed its meeting by proceeding through its regular agenda.

Council approved a new contract with its non-uniformed employees. It also approved the final reading of the revised vacant building ordinance. Code enforcement officer Larry Kirkwood said letters to vacant building owners will be sent out November 6 and responses will be due in early 2021.

In the committee reports, council was informed that a pipe replacement on Willow Alley was completed with some assistance from the City of DuBois. That alley will be paved in the near future. An area of Pitch Pine Run behind Shortway Service Inc. is being dredged and cleaned to prevent water from building up on Jackson Street.