Earlier this month, the West Penn board of supervisors announced that a settlement was reached between West Penn Township and other parties regarding ongoing water extraction ordinances and issues.

April 30 has been set as the deadline to receive all remaining signatures for the agreement.

“This is in relation to the proposed settlement between the township and the 1 Fort Franklin parties,” said township solicitor Paul Datte on Monday.

“As we sit here today, we don’t have all of the signatures of the settlement agreement. If you recall, two weeks ago, your (the board’s) motion was to approve it subject to receiving those signatures. I would expect that we would receive the remaining signatures,” Datte said.

“And I am clearly going to indicate as we sit here today, we don’t have all of the final signatures. So, we don’t technically have a settlement agreement as we speak today,” he added.

Public information on this new settlement is not available until the document has all required signatures. The Times News will continue to monitor the situation.

“I think both parties here have negotiated the best possible outcome for each other and for the township,” said supervisor Tim Houser. “I can’t say that I am 100% thrilled with it, but I feel that it’s equitable.”

Supervisor Glenn Hummel added, “I tasked myself with trying to get this on the table, to get this in the open, because the rumor mill that’s out there is just unbelievable and nonfactual. There is no validation in a lot of the rumors that were spread throughout the community.”

Previous settlements

Datte said there were a “number of considerations that the board considered before entering the settlement agreement.”

But one was substantial.

“I think among the more significant considerations of the township, is the fact that there were a number of property owners that were arguably affected - at least they thought they were affected enough to bring 16 different lawsuits in the Court of Common Pleas of Philadelphia,” Datte added on Monday.

“These were 16 separate lawsuits initially in 2016 by 23 separate plaintiffs against M.C. Resource Development Company, also known as M.C. Resource Development Inc., Ringgold Acquisition Group LLC, Ringgold Acquisition Group II LLC, James J. Land Jr., David W. Knoedler, and Tower Springs, LLC.

“Documents are available as a matter of public record in those proceedings. I think to summarize, those property owners were bringing claims, dealing with among other things, the 1 Fort Franklin Water Extraction Project. After the township had issued its enforcement notices - and the township was aware of the pendency of the lawsuit - but the township was not aware of, because nobody brought it to the attention of the township, that those cases have been consolidated and have settled.”

Datte said Monday that the township was specifically named as a third-party beneficiary of that agreement, even though the township was not a party to that litigation, nor did it participate in that litigation.

“When I talk about monetary aspect of the settlement to those plaintiffs, the township certainly did not get any funds,” Datte added.

“The township was not made aware of the settlement of that litigation until after the township had issued the enforcement notice against the parties related to the 1 Fort Franklin project.”

New ordinance

Board chairman Tony Prudenti said a new water extraction ordinance is in the works and should be put into effect in the near future.

“This thing came in under an old one,” Prudenti said “We spent in excess of $65,000 to go back, pull all the permits, look at it, come up with the new ordinance. We had special water attorneys and hydrologists for their expertise to weigh in on this stuff. It’s all reflected in our new ordinance in regard to what needs to do be done.

“As far as stopping the ongoing businesses - it should have been stopped in the very beginning at the permitting process - and it wasn’t.”