Hanover Township Council invited UGI representative Derrick Kichline to its meeting Feb. 1 to discuss the gas company’s programs to bring gas service to some existing residences in the township.

“We have a couple of people interested on Sherwood,” said council Chairman Bruce Paulus. In addition to Sherwood, there is no gas service on Tacoma, Ulster and certain sections of Taft.

“Homeowners don’t sign up for the service all at once,” he said. “Putting in main lines before we know what the interest level is creates a financial burden on UGI.”

Also, after the main service lines are installed, tapping into the main line often requires digging into the street.

Kichline estimated the costs for the project at $100 a foot for 1,500 to 2,000 feet of pipe.

“That cost doesn’t include connections to the residence,” he said. Under this program, the number of potential customers is divided into the cost. Homeowners are billed the capital costs.

If only a few customers agree to service, the cost is huge.

UGI does have an alternative program in which each new customer pays an upfront fee of $3,888 that can be prorated over 10 years. The monthly payment equates to a surcharge of $55 per month. The cost includes the embedded charges for the main service line and a connection to the residence.

“Customers realize this is affordable, but they need to add in the cost of a new furnace and installation. For homeowners who need to replace a furnace soon, it makes more sense.”

Kichline pointed out homeowners can join the program at any time in the 12-year life of the program.

“Because the program is so long, we have a problem adding customers because of street restoration costs,” he said. The township’s latest road program has Sherwood and Ulster scheduled for repaving. If enough customers are interested, the council may push back the road resurfacing program until after the UGI work is completed to reduce the number of patches.

“We are willing to work with you, but we need to know how many people are interested,” Paulus said.

The council authorized Kichline to query homeowners about their level of interest. He will carry his UGI identity card to prove he is authorized to make the solicitation.

“We would need to get this approved based on interest from homeowners,” he said. “The more customers who are interested, the better our chances are to make this a priority.”