Marshall's new manager aims to help township balance growth while preserving open spaces

Balance and preservation is what Robert Grimm hopes to achieve as the newest manager of Marshall Township.

With a career of managing municipalities from Bellevue to Beaver Falls, North Fayette and, most recently, McCandless from 2019 to 2022, Grimm is ready to take on Allegheny County’s northern-most community.

With an official start date of Sept. 15, Grimm filled the spot left by former township Manager Julie Bastianini, who resigned in June and now serves as manager of Fox Chapel. He takes over for interim Manager Neil McFadden with a salary of $137,000.

Grimm’s managerial responsibility includes municipal administration of an approximately $11 million general fund budget and a staff of 23 employees in areas of administration, finance, public works, planning, land use, zoning, and parks and recreation, as posted in the job advertisement this summer.

Grimm recently was working at Herbert, Rowland & Grubic Inc., a full-service engineering firm, which has locations in the Pittsburgh area and throughout the state.

The Pennsylvania State University graduate, who majored in urban and regional planning, shares what he looks forward to as Marshall’s new manager.

What do you find most fascinating and alluring about Marshall Township? The township has a quality staff that I look forward to getting to know better and work with. It is a busy place due to the numerous developments and projects that the township is undertaking. It has quality recreational facilities. There is a desire to balance development with open space preservation.

Where are some areas or issues you think need some extra attention? Balancing the desire to preserve open space with ongoing development.

How is the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation’s I-79/Route 910 Wexford interchange project moving along (with the project partially located in Marshall)? That project is currently under construction and will impact the township for the next several years. We will continue to work with PennDOT and the contractor to ensure that disruptions are kept to a minimum.

Where are you from originally? I grew up in Oil City, Venango County.

In which area or township do you reside? My wife, Lyn, and I currently reside in North Fayette Township.

What are your hobbies/special interests? I occasionally play guitar with a couple of church worship teams.

Age? I prefer to think that I am “seasoned.”

Visit www.twp.marshall.pa.us or call 724-935-3090.