William Wehr has asked South Whitehall commissioners to postpone the proposed November referendum for at least a year to give Friends of Wehr’s Dam a chance to find funds for restoration of the historic structure at Covered Bridge Park.

Wehr expressed comments on the matter at the board’s June 1 meeting.

“Why is Wehr’s Dam singled out for a referendum?” he asked. “We have formed a non-profit 501(c)(3).

“We want the opportunity to raise some of the money.

“We don’t want the township to have to raise taxes for this.

“Give the Friends of Wehr’s Dam an opportunity to see what they can do at raising money.”

Commissioners asked Wehr if he has already raised any funds for the dam project.

“We had to wait for the Baker report,” Wehr replied. “Most grants want something official saying how much money you’re applying for and for what purpose.”

He had experience obtaining grants in the past while working for an intermediate unit.

“I was hoping we could collaborate with the township on applying for grants but there is no one here who writes grants,” Wehr said.

“The township does apply for grants,” board President Christina “Tori” Morgan replied.

Wehr reminded commissioners thousands of individuals signed petitions requesting the dam be saved.

Many were from outside South Whitehall borders but at least 1,100 were township residents.

“If you go to referendum, the people on the petition are being ignored,” Wehr said. “The people living in close proximity want the dam.

“People come for recreation.”

He made reference to the Jordan Greenway, which will traverse a portion of Covered Bridge Park.

“Are people going to walk the Greenway trail without seeing the dam?” Wehr asked the board. “Do you want to throw the dam away if the referendum doesn’t pass?”

He added the specter of a referendum may discourage people from contributing.

“Who’s going to want to donate if a referendum may kill it?” Wehr asked.

Solicitor Joseph Zator explained the referendum question will likely read, “Shall debt be authorized in the sum of __?” dollars for the purpose of financing _?”

“The blanks need to be filled in by the board,” said Zator.

A resolution to proceed with the referendum must be approved by August to meet the timeline for the November ballot, stated Morgan.

“If the referendum fails, we need to look into alternatives for the future of the dam,” she explained.

She added removing the dam would stay on the table as an option if the referendum is defeated.

Commissioner Matt Mulqueen then expressed his thoughts.

“This is a very emotional issue for all of us,” he said. “There are only three of us tonight.

“We’re not going to do anything on this tonight.

“The Wehrs have a very keen interest in this. Clearly we want to make the right decision and we need to have the full board to do that.”

“Let’s take this under consideration,” suggested Morgan, bringing the discussion to a close.