Snyder Township supervisors spent some time last evening discussing the next step on the issue of police jurisdiction for Hospital Road and Clay Avenue near Tyrone Area School District buildings.
Supervisors and officials from Tyrone Area School District have been working together for months on the issue. Police coverage is being sought specifically during the time of student arrival in the morning and dismissal in the afternoon. The area in question is not on school property but in Snyder Township.
A policeman employed by the school would be able to deal with such problems as students smoking, littering and loitering along Hospital Road and Clay Avenue.
Supervisors have not been able to act on the issue because the township is still in the process of finding an insurance policy to accommodate the plan. The township does not have its own police force and does not have the budget to create one. Therefore, the township needs its own insurance policy to cover any possible liability issues if it enters into an agreement with an outside party, in this instance, the school district.
The school cannot name Snyder Township on its insurance policy, and Tyrone Borough has not expressed interest in wanting to work with the township on the issue, according to supervisors.
At previous township meetings, supervisors indicated they wanted to have the policing agreement in place by the first day of school.
At the meeting, Supervisor Buddy Daughenbaugh, Jr. apologized to everyone involved with the plan, including the school district and the residents of Snyder Township, for having the issue “drag on this long”.
Daughenbaugh said that if the township can get an insurance policy, the school district said it would be willing to pay for it. Supervisor Jim Burket said he would like the township to look into finding a policy and go from there, since finding the policy is the only thing holding up the plan.
Also at the meeting, supervisors:
• designated Trick-or-Treat night for October 26 from 6 to 8 p.m.;
• approved selling the Mack Truck for $1,750 to Miller’s Parts/Services and
• awarded the township’s salt bid to American Rock Salt, anti-skid bid to New Enterprise, ash bid to T & D Trucking, heating oil bid to Martin’s, regular unleaded gas bid, on-road and off-road diesel fuel bids to JJ Powell.
