At its regular meeting, the South Whitehall Township Board of Commissioners received a midyear financial update and passed several measures aimed at infrastructure and public safety improvements at its July 2 meeting.

Township Manager Tom Petrucci reported, as of the end of May, the general fund is in good financial shape, with revenues at nearly 63% of the annual projection, bolstered by real estate tax collections. Expenses in the fund stand at just under 30%.

The fire tax fund is performing similarly, with 81% of revenue received and expenses at 26.6%.

The water fund has underperformed on projected revenues due to the absence of expected tapping fees from a new user. In response, expenses were scaled back, keeping the fund balanced with 14% of projected revenue and 12% of expenses logged year-to-date.

Commissioners unanimously approved an ordinance to increase township indebtedness by $1,330,011.51 for public safety radio equipment. The breakdown includes Woodlawn Fire Department, Greenawalds Fire Company, Cetronia Fire Company, South Whitehall Township Emergency Management and Cetronia EMS. Although Cetronia EMS is responsible for its own portion, the township will act as a conduit so they can benefit from the county’s bulk purchasing plan. A separate agreement between the township and Cetronia EMS is being drafted.

Two financing options were offered: a 5-year repayment at 0% interest or a 10-year plan at 5%, with payments beginning in 2026.

The board also approved a resolution granting PPL Electric Utilities the right of way to perform utility improvements on township-owned land located at 1036 and 1058 Springhouse Road, part of a reliability project. PPL plans to remove four utility poles and install one new anchor guide. The property was named Davis Smith Open Space in 2022.