Police Report No Applicants For Open Positions

Hollidaysburg American Legion Ambulance Service (HALAS) members Jacob Reilly and Susan Rea attended the Martinsburg Borough Council March meeting to “strengthen relations with the community.”

Reilly informed the council that HALAS has been serving the community since 2002. The nonprofit uses mostly money from fundraisers, and Reilly said they hope the council will support HALAS, as HALAS will support Martinsburg in their events.

“We’re grateful to serve this community,” Reilly said. “The community out here is so family-oriented.”

He noted that he always enjoys meeting people from Homewood and the Village.

President Robert Dickson pointed out to Reilly and the council that Martinsburg donates $3,500 to HALAS yearly.

Other business

Police Chief Kerry Hoover reported that there have been no applications for the full- or part-time positions open in the police department.

The new police cruiser arrived last Wednesday. It is currently being fitted with decals and should be usable by the weekend.

The new record management system (RMS) will be live April 1, with historical data being transferred over “in a timely manner.” Eight other police departments need historical data transferred, which is more than cNET usually does at once.

“It seems like a really nice system to work with,” Hoover said.

Councilmember Durban Metzler asked Hoover if other police departments pay for cadets to go through the police academy. Hoover said that it’s about $8,000 to go through the academy, and he knows that Clearfield Police and Altoona Police departments offer to pay cadets’ tuition with a promise of working in the department after. Hoover is looking into the possibility of reaching out directly to academies.

Hoover told the council that the State Trooper cruisers have seemingly been inspired by Martinsburg’s cruisers: they are now gray with gold writing. An easy way to tell the two apart is to look at the lights — Martinsburg’s are internal and the troopers have a light bar on the roof.

Borough Manager Rich Brantner Jr. informed the council that the tie-in for Curryville’s interconnect with Martinsburg’s Water Authority is complete but not in use. The DEP will inspect the connection next week.

According to Brantner, Martinsburg Volunteer Fire Company, along with eight other departments, responded to the barn fire at the Metzler farm on Feb. 23. Brantner said 50,000 gallons of water were taken out of Henry’s Pond to stop the fire.

On Feb. 28, the borough had to fix a pipe that broke in one of the large tanks at the wasterwater plant.

“They’re about 20 feet deep,” Brantner said. “We had to drain it, get in there and fix it. It was intense for a few days.”

Brantner said the 2006 dump truck has been advertised for sale on social media and will be put in the local paper. Bids will be due on April 3, at the next borough council meeting.

The council approved, at Brantner’s suggestions, moving the Equipment Fund from First National Bank to Pennsylvania Local Government Investment Trust (PLIGIT) for a better interest rate.

“It’s a no-brainer,” Councilmember Chuck Kensinger said.

Solicitor Nathan Karn presented an ordinance that prohibits well drilling. Councilmember Janet Blattenberger asked if this included residents from drilling for geothermal heating. Karn referred to the ordinance, which specifies that it is in regard to water for public consumption.

Blattenberger asked if there are any plans for the Trooper Landon Weaver Memorial Fund. Mayor Rich Brantner Sr. said that there is another project down the road, but fundraising will need to be done first. The ultimate plan is to build a new pavilion at Morrisons Cove Memorial Park, but the location of the pavilion has not been determined and the prices of materials are too uncertain right now. Brantner Sr. predicts that the project will take another year or two.

The council appointed Mark Gartland to the Zoning Hearing Board.