Jan 27, 2018 6 min read

At a special meeting Thursday, a crowd of citizens packed into City Hall as Monessen City Council voted to fill the vacant council seat.

The council also heard concerns regarding the legality of the library board appointments that were made in December.

The board voted unanimously to appoint David Feehan, a U.S. Marine Corps veteran, to fill the vacant council seat for a two-year term. This seat was left open when Councilman Anthony Orzechowski won both the four-year and two-year council seats and chose the four-year term.

Feehan was sworn in by District Judge Joseph Dalfonso of Monessen. Dalfonso congratulated Feehan for coming forward and offering to serve the city.

“You’ve done service to our U.S. military serving our country. I know that the honesty and integrity you’ve learned and lived through your life will prepare you to be councilman in the city of Monessen,” Dalfonso said.

Feehan, who served in the Marine Corps for eight years, said he was born and raised in Monessen.

“I promise you I will work with everyone on this council to do what is best for this city. I have no political agendas. I have no allegiances to anyone,” Feehan said.

He said he has been on the Monessen Civil Service Council for the last two and a half years. He also was appointed as the city’s director of public safety at Thursday night’s meeting.

Resident Linda Lacey raised a complaint council did not publicly advertise the library board positions.

Solicitor Krisha DiMascio said council is not legally required to advertise openings on the public library’s board, but she does recommend advertisement.

Lacey said the positions should have been advertised. She said by not advertising the openings to the public, council was discriminating against every resident in the city of Monessen. “Everybody has a right to apply for these positions,” Lacey said.

In December, Shirette Carpenter and Jocelyn Golomb were appointed to the library board for three-year terms by the previous council, including Councilmen John Nestor, Ronald Chiaravalle and Ed Lea, and then-Mayor Lou Mavrakis.

Citizens voiced their concerns regarding the legality of these appointments and asked whether certain background checks and clearances are required to be allowed to serve on the board.

DiMascio said council does not require clearances for the library board but said it is something council could consider in the future.

Lacey said based on what was discussed at a recent library board meeting, the library board does require clearances and criminal background checks. Delmar Hepple of the library board said the appointees have 30 days to obtain the required clearances.

Golomb told council she received a certified letter from Mayor Matt Shorraw, which she rejected. She said Carpenter also received a certified letter from Shorraw, which Golomb said stated they were not legally appointed to the library board. Golomb questioned DiMascio about whether she was still on the board.

“These appointments are legal until this board takes action otherwise,” DiMascio said. She said once someone is sworn in, they can be removed from the library board only if council subsequently votes against the appointment or a citizen files a complaint through the district attorney’s office challenging the appointment. She said she does not see how this appointment has violated the law at this time, and said Golomb is still on the board.

Shorraw said tensions have been high regarding this matter since December. He said because library law can be vague, the city is waiting to hear back from the state library board to clear up the legality of the appointments.

Resident Marsha Adams, who works for the library as the children’s coordinator, also addressed the board regarding issues with the library.

“The library is no joke. It is one of the only things going on here in Monessen that is still respectable and still used by the public. For several miles around, we are one of the best libraries. We should be proud of our library,” Adams said.

Adams said the people who were recently appointed don’t really come into the library, and she said she believes one of them does not even have a library card. She asked the board if qualifications were taken into consideration during the appointment process.

“If you don’t know what goes on in the library, why would you be appointed to a board?” Adams asked.

DiMascio said the only qualification to be a member of the library board is that you have been a resident of the city for one year. She said the state library code did not list any further qualifications. She said this is something council can take under advisement for future appointments. Chiaravalle encouraged Adams to come back to the council in six months and give them her opinion on the appointments.

In other business, the council approved a motion to file a tax exemption for the new City Hall building and exonerations for any of the past due taxes on the roughly more than 350 repository properties the city obtained through the Westmoreland County Unsold Property Repository.

Council acknowledged the resignation of Charles Urbanowicz from the Mon Valley Refuse Authority. It also approved a motion to begin advertising for letters of interest for expired terms and/or vacant seats on various city boards and authorities, as needed.

Council also voted to retain Dodaro, Matta & Cambest, P.C. law firm as city solicitor. Chiaravalle, Orzechowshi and Feehan voted in favor. Shorraw and Councilman Gilbert Coles voted against the motion.

Council also hired two part-time police officers, Joshua Diolus and Tyler Kowall, who will be paid through the housing authority.

Council voted to adopt an agreement with West Penn Power to install security cameras on telephone poles. DiMascio said this would be a 10-year licensure agreement, and then it would be a month-to-month agreement after that. She said there is a one-time fee of $75 per camera, and there will be a $150 fine for violating the regulations set by West Penn. DiMascio said West Penn will not be charging the city for the cameras that are already in place.